The Divine Origin of the

Scandinavian Kingship

Author: Dimitar Alekseev Dimitrov 2019 ©

(All illustrations are from Pinterest)

In the beginning of time there were giants. And there was the gigantic cosmic tree Yggdrasill
with nine worlds on its branches.
 When the first living creature – the giant Ymir existed, there was no Earth and no sea.

Then, the sons of Borr lifted the first land – the Midgard (“Middle Dwelling”) – the world of
men. Borr (Old Norse “son”, “born”) was son of Búri. Borr’s wife was Bestla, daughter, or,
depending on the source, granddaughter of the jötunn Bölþorn, mother of the gods Odin, Vili and
Vé by way of Borr, and sister of an unnamed being who assisted Odin. Odin and his brothers
slew the giant Ymir and drowned in his blood all the frost giants but one, who survived on his
ship and started a new race of frost giants. From Ymir’s body the gods created the Earth. Already
in early mediaeval times, the Norsemen knew that the Earth is round.

The first rays of the sun came from the south. The sun was thought of in feminine gender, like
nowhere else on Earth. She was the male Moon’s sister. This concept probably came from the
fact that the sun is weaker in the North, and in a typical patriarchic society the dominant celestial
body had to be male, and the softer one had to be feminine.

The gods gathered in Ithavoll (“Field of Deeds” or possibly “splendour-plain”) on their first
council and gave names to the parts of the day and the night, and to the celestial objects. There
were wooden temples and shrines in Ithavoll and iron mines nearby for making of tools.

The gods lived in peace and prosperity in this early age and played chess or checkers on
golden tables. They lack nothing, until another giant tree emerged – the tree of the giant-maids,
straight from Jotunheim - the world of the giants.

Then, the gods created the race of the dwarfs. The dwarfs lived beyond the reach of the sun,
which was fatal to them. “Beyond the reach of the sun” probably designates the far north.

After that, the gods found the first humans – Ask and Embla (ash and elm) – fateless, soulless,
senseless, cold and motionless. Odin gave them souls, Hönir gave them sense/reason, Lothur
gave them heat. According to the Snorri’s Edda (more about the sources – at the end of the
paper), these two were made of two trees, and from them the whole mankind descended.

Then, the three wise maidens (the Norns) came from an abode near the roots of Yggdrasill.
Their names were: Urth, Verthandi and Skuld – Past, Present, and Future. They made the magic
signs (the runes) which controlled the destinies of men, cut on pieces of wood. At those days, the
runes were both magic signs, generally carved on wood, and sung or spoken charms.

The races, and the worlds they inhabited, were: Men (dwellers of Midgard), Æsir-gods
(Asgard), giants (Jotunheim), light–elves (Alfheim), Vanir-gods (Vanaheim), dwarfs (who
occupied either Nidavellir – “low fields”, “dark fields”, or Svartalfheim), svartálfar (“black
elves”, “swarthy elves”), also called myrkálfar (“dark elves”, “dusky elves”, “murky elves”),
who dwelt in Svartalfheim, and dwellers “in hell”, which probably referred to the world of the
dead. There were also the valas – from Vidolf, soothsayers/wizards – from Vilmeidr, and
sorcerers/enchanters – from Svarthofde.

***

After the gods arranged the whole world, they took care of their abodes:
 According to the Snorri’s rendition of the Ynglinga saga, god Odin made his residence by
Logrinn, at a place that he called Sigtun, and he also appropriated to himself the whole region.
The place is now in Sweden, and is known as Fornsigtuna (forn - ancient) (59°37′N 17°39′E). It
is located in the parish of Håtuna, approximately 4 km. (2.5 mi) west of the modern town of
Sigtuna, by the Lake Mälaren.

There, Odin built a large farm shrine (hof), where there were offerings (blót), according to the
customs of the Æsir and the Ásynjur (male and fem. gods).

I do believe, I sincerely hope, and I really wish that someday the palace of Odin will be
discovered and made a place of worship. So far, there are two large ruins discovered, that had
been large three-aisled halls. And also, a series of terraces just above the line of the Vendel era
(550-790 AD, so, much later). There are also traces of harbor, a large mound and a number of
smaller tombs. The archaeologists announced that the earliest remains, found so far, are from 6 th
century. So, my expectations are for much more older material to appear.

Odin gave good estates to the other gods too – to his sons and to the hostage Vanir Njordr.
Baldr dwelt in Breidablik, Thor in Thrudvang, Heimdall in the Himinbergs, Njörðr (sometimes
modernly anglicized as Njord, Njoerd, or Njorth) in Nóatún, and his son Freyr in Uppsala.

Breidablik was the fairest of all places. There was the mansion, called Glitner, of which the
walls, pillars and posts were of red gold, and the roof was of silver. Furthermore, the dwelling
Himinbjorg stood at the end of heaven, where the Bifrost−bridge was united with heaven.

Odin had another great dwelling – Valaskjalf. The gods made it and thatched it with sheer
silver. In its hall was the high−seat Hlidskjalf…

The whole paper is 19 pages…

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