|
Password Protected Areas Fallen Leaf Lake Cabin - Directions & Info
|
Various histories/definitions of the name Freya
From Eva Schwanner-Housman (Ron's co-worker):
In Norse mythology, gods and goddesses are dividied into two groups, the peaceful Vanir and the combative Aesir. The Aesir brought war and discord into the peaceful world of the Vanir. To settle the war between them, the Vanir agreed to give the Aesir the goddess of beauty, Freya, who was also the daughter of Njord, the god of fair winds.
In this way, Freya became the mediator between peace and violence. She also became known as the goddess who presided over the living and the dead. Although she was honored mainly as a goddess of beauty and love, Freya was responsible for the souls of half of the warriors who died in battle. After their death, they were taken to Freya's grand hall in Asgard, the home of the Aesir gods and goddesses. The afterlife of warriros brought to Freya was filled with joy and pleasure. They were brought delicious food and drink and they listened to the goddess's favorite poems about brave deeds.
Freya had married Od, the god of ecstasy, but he vanished after the birth of their daughter, Noss, whose name means 'delight'. When Freya missed her husband too much, she wept tears of gold. Sometimes she looked for Od, riding through the sky in her golden chariot drawn by two grey cats. At other times, she wore her falcon-skin cloak, which enabled her to fly through the air like a bird. Freya was said never to be seen without her favorite necklace, given to her by the dwarfs who mine precious metals and gems from the earth. So beautiful is this piece of jewelry that the Norse still refer to the Milky Way as 'Freya's neckalce'.