Valhalla was Odin’s palace at Asgard, and its grandeur was breathtaking. On the battlefield, Odin would dress as an old man – indeed, Odin had many disguises, for when things changed in Asgard, and became bad, he had reason to travel on the earth to uncover many secrets – attended by ravens, wolves and the Valkyrs, who were the ‘choosers of the slain’, the maidens who took the souls of fallen warriors to Valhalla. He was more subtle and more dangerous than any of the other gods, and his name in some dialects means ‘wind’, for he could be both forceful and gentle, and then elusive or absent. Odin belonged to a mysterious region, somewhere between life and death.
If one happened upon them while hunting, success was assured. At the foot of Odin’s throne sat two wolves or hunting hounds, Geri and Freki, and these animals were sacred. On his finger Odin wore a ring, Draupnir, which represented fertility and fruitfulness and which was more valuable to him, and to his land, than anything in any other god’s possession. In his hand Odin carried a great spear, Gungnir, which had been forged by dwarfs, and which was so sacred that it could never be broken. Hugin and Munin were Odin’s eyes and his ears when he was in Asgard and he depended on their bright eyes and alert ears for news of everything that transpired down below. On his shoulders he carried two ravens, Hugin (thought) and Munin (Memory), and they perched there, as he sat on his throne, and recounted to him the activities in the great wide world.
While not having the brawn of many excellent men, he had wisdom which counted for much more. He held a throne there, one in an exalted and prestigious position, and it served as a fine watchtower from which he could look over men on earth, and the other gods in Asgard as they went about their daily business. He was called Allfather, for all gods were said to have descended from him, and his esteemed seat was Asgard itself. He was the most supreme god of the Northern races and he brought great wisdom to his place at the helm of all gods. Odin was the son of Bor, and the brother of Vili and Ve. The second of ten Norse myths tells of Odin and Frigga in Valhalla in Asgard, and their sons Thor, Balder and the first gods of the Vikings…