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ODIN

Odin the Sky Father; chief Norse god, head of the Aesir pantheon. God of the dead. Patron god of the berserker cult, much worshiped by Vikings and warriors. Odin's caries the spear Gungnir which never misses its mark. Oaths were sworn by the point of Olin's spear. (Corresponds to the Celtic god Gwydion) He rides the best of steeds Sleipnir.
Odin is the oldest of the gods; Buri's grandson, son of Bestla and Bor.

I ween that I hung on a windy tree,
Hung there for nights full nine;
With the spear I was wounded, and offered I was
To Odin, myself to myself,
On the tree that none may ever know
What root beneath it runs.
-Robert Graves

To learn the secrets of the dead Odin underwent a ritual spiritual death, sacrificing himself to himself. He pierced himself with his own spear then hung himself from Yggdrasil, the World Tree, for nine days and nights. He used magic to free himself, an act of spiritual rebirth. He came down from the tree with nine songs of power and eighteen runes, a runic alphabet made of ash twigs. Odin is all-seeing and divine but not immortal. He is said to never eat and live on wine. He possesses Draupnir (Draupner), a magic ring which produces eight new rings every ninth night.

Odin is the Norse god of wisdom, especially the occult wisdom of seers and sorcerers. He was the patron and the divine prototype of seers and magicians, especially those who (like shamans in Arctic Europe and Asia in modern times) undergo terrifying initiations and communicate with other worlds in ecstasies and mediumistic trances (Simpson 1971: 215).

Odin himself is a shaman and necromancer who obtains answers from the wisest of the dead. His continual search for occult knowledge lead him to trade one eye to Mimir for a drink from the Well of Wisdom. Mimir is the keeper of the fountains of knowledge and wisdom. His remaining eye symbolizes the all-seeing Sun; the eye in Mimir's well symbolizes the full Moon.

He hears all tidings since the two ravens Hugin and Munin provide him with all tidings.

Thus, Odin is the most learned of all the Norse gods. In this field he is connected to the Greek god Apollo who is the god of seers. Nevertheless, Odin is rater the keeper of magical knowledge. Whereas, Apollo is rather the patron of scientific knowledge. Furthermore, Apollo is connected to the fair and beautiful of the arts. Whereas, Odin is connected to the dark and dangerous powers.

Generally, Odin is more often compared to the Greek god Zeus because he is the godfather of all Norse gods.


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