Einherjar
dead warriors of Norse mythology, chosen by the valkyries to prepare in Valhalla for the battle of Ragnarök
In Norse mythology, the einherjar (lone-fighters[1]) are warriors who have died in battle and are brought to Valhalla by valkyries.[2] In Valhalla, the einherjar eat meat from the boar called Sæhrímnir.[3] Every day he is boiled and every night he becomes whole again.[3] They drink mead provided by a goat named Heiðrún.[3] Every day they dress for battle and go out and fight each other.[4] This is to prepare for the events of Ragnarök (the end of the world).[5]
"Walhalla" (1905) by Emil Doepler
The einherjar are written about in the Prose Edda[6] by Snorri Sturluson. Also in the poem written in the 13th century Hákonarmál, by Eyvindr skáldaspillir.
References
change- ↑ John Lindow, Norse Mythology: A Guide to Gods, Heroes, Rituals, and Beliefs (Oxford; New York: Oxford University Press, 2002), p. 104
- ↑ Kathleen N Daly; Marian Rengel, Norse Mythology A to Z (New York: Chelsea House Publishers, 2010), p. 111
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 Paul Belloni Du Chaillu, The Viking Age (New York: C. Scribner's Sons, 1890), p. 427
- ↑ Collier's new Encyclopedia (New York: P.F. Collier, 1921), p. 154
- ↑ Charles Russell Coulter; Patricia Turner, Encyclopedia of Ancient Deities (New York; Oxford: Routledge, 2012), p. 164
- ↑ Ideology and Power in the Viking and Middle Ages, ed. Gro Steinsland (Leiden; Boston: Brill, 2011), p. 297
