Odin {oh'-din} also known as “Woden”, “The All Father”, “Othinn”,
“Votan” and sometimes fondly as “Old One Eye”.
Odin is the leader of all the Irdin gods and in Irdin mythology
he is the creator of all things. He is the god of battle, knowledge, wisdom,
poetry and inspiration.
In Norse mythology Odin is the chief of the gods and the ruler
of the universe. He was the son of the frost giant Bor and the giantess
Bestla. Early in his career, together with his brothers Vili and Ve, Odin
overthrew the primeval giant Ymir and fashioned the world from his remains.
Odin, his wife Frigg, and the other major Norse divinities--Thor
and Tyr--live in Asgard, near which is located Valhalla, where Odin was
believed to feast with the spirits of slain warriors. At Ragnarok, the
"twilight of the gods," Odin will lead his army against the giants led
by Loki. Odin will be devoured by the wolf Fenrir but then be avenged by
his son Vidar. Odin's sacred bird is the raven, and his principal weapon--in
addition to his powerful runes, or magical spells--is the spear. He is
depicted as tall, bearded, and one-eyed, having exchanged his other eye
for wisdom.
Frigga is the wife of Odin and the goddess of clouds, sky, married
love and wives.
In the Irdinian mythology, Frigga was the supreme goddess and the
principal wife of Odin. She was goddess of the sky and, presided
over marriage. The myths portray her as very wise and very silent.
Thor is the great heroic god of the Irdin religion. He is the god of weather (particularly thunder), crops and battle. He is also noted for his immense strength and the magical artifacts he posses in particular his magic hammer (Mjolnir).
Sif is the goddess of excellence and skill in combat she is also the wife of Thor.
Aegir is the god of oceans and is also closely related to the giants.
Baldur is the god of beauty and charisma also innocence and light.
In Norse mythology, Balder was the god of light and beauty. The
most beloved of the gods, he was the son of Odin and Frigg and the husband
of Nanna, goddess of the Moon. A famous Norse myth tells how Loki, the
evil giant, had Balder killed with a dart made of mistletoe, the only thing
in the world that had not promised his mother it would never harm him.
Because Balder was the favorite of the gods, it was said that he would
return to Asgard, the home of the gods, at the end of the world.
Bragi {bray'-gee} is the god of poetry and song and sometimes storytelling.
In Norse mythology, Bragi was the god of wisdom, poetry, and eloquence,
whose song celebrated the deeds of warriors. His wife was Idun, the goddess
of youth. Bragi was fathered by (or as likely was a manifestation of)
Forseti is the god of Justice.
Frey {fray} is the god of fertility, peace and joy, He is also the
twin brother of Freya.
In Norse mythology, Frey (or Freyr) was the god of fertility, peace,
and prosperity. He was one of the Vanir gods, who were responsible for
wealth, and the brother of Freya. Among his magical possessions was a sword
that he gave to Skirnir, who in return obtained him Gerda, the most beautiful
woman in the world, as his wife.
Freya {fray'-ah} - is the goddess of love and passion and human fertility.
She is the twin sister of Frey.
In Norse mythology, Freya, or Freyja, was the goddess of beauty
and love. A beautiful, blonde, blue-eyed young woman, she was the sister
of Frey and in later traditions the wife of Odin. Freya claimed half of
the heroes slain in battle, carrying them to her realm of Folkvang in Asgard.
Most of her myths concern attempts by the giants to abduct her. In Teutonic
mythology, she was fused with the goddess Frigg. Friday is named for her.
Heimdall {haym'-dahl} is the god of guardians. He is the god who
guards the end of the rainbow bridge and none may pass without his permission,
not even Odin.
In Norse mythology, Heimdall was god of the dawn and watchman of
Bifrost, the rainbow bridge leading to Asgard. His hearing was so keen
that he could hear the grass growing.
Hel - she is the goddess of the underworld and daughter of Loki.
In Norse mythology, Hel, the daughter of Loki, was the goddess of
death who ruled over the cold, dark underworld of Niflheim. She had a hideous
body, half black and half blue. Her table was Hunger, her knife Starvation,
her bed Care, and her attendants Delay and Slowness. Her domain was also
sometimes called Hel.
Idun is the goddess of spring and youth. She also provides the gods with her apples of youth each year.
Loki {loh'-kee} is the trickster god who is always causing mischief
and always scheming.
In Norse mythology Loki was the spirit of strife and envy. The son
of a giant, he lived among the gods at Asgard, where he continually caused
them trouble but aided them with his cunning. After he contrived the death
of Balder, however, the gods chained him to a rock below a serpent whose
mouth dripped venom. Loki's wife, Siguna, caught the drops in a cup, but
when she turned away to empty it the venom fell on Loki's face and he writhed
in anguish, causing earthquakes. Loki was to remain bound until the final
battle of Ragnarok, in which he would lead the forces of evil against the
gods.
Tyr is the god of the sword and courage. He is also the one handed
god as he lost his hand to the Fenris Wolf.
Uller is the god of winter. He is the son of Sif and stepson of
Thor, his father is said to be a frost giant. He is also a god of hunting
and archery for which he has a passion for.
Niord is the god of the winds and sea and has the power to still tempests. He is also the god of summer.
Skadi is the goddess of winter and daughter of the giant Thiassi. She is also married to Uller yet in the past she was Niord’s lover.
Lesser Entities of the Irdin Religion
The Norns are lesser gods who dictate the fates, there are three
of them one for the past (Urd), one for the present (Verdandi), and one
for the future (Skuld).
In Norse mythology the Norns were three female deities whose spinning
and weaving determined the fates of humans and gods alike. They were the
guardians of Urda's well, which watered the root of Yggdrasil that extended
into Asgard. In some myths the Norns are described as three giantesses,
in others as a giantess, an elf, and a dwarf. Often one of them negated
the gifts of the other two or turned them into a curse.
Thrym is a great frost giant and is the Lord and Deity of all frost giants. He is also the mortal enemy of Surtr.
Surtr is the great fire giant and is the Lord and Deity of all fire giants. He is also the mortal enemy of Thrym.
The Valkries {val-keer'-eez} are warrior maidens of great beauty
who carry the dead of a battlefield.
In Norse mythology the Valkyries were nine semidivine virgins--priestesses
of the mother goddess Freya--who rode armed on horseback to battlefields
and decided who would live and who would die. They carried half of the
dead heroes to Valhalla, Odin's palace in Asgard, and waited on them at
their feasts. Their leader was Brunhild.
Brunhild {broon'-hilt}
In Norse mythology, Brunhild was the leader of the Valkyries. When
she disobeyed Odin and spared the lives of Siegmund and Sieglinde, the
parents of the hero Siegfried, Odin punished Brunhild by putting her to
sleep surrounded by a ring of fire. Siegfried rode through the fire to
win her love. But under the influence of a magic potion that made him forget
Brunhild, he married Gudrun. Later, he returned in disguise to win Brunhild
for Gunther, Gudrun's brother. Believing Siegfried had forsaken her, Brunhild
married Gunther, but when she discovered the deception she had Siegfried
murdered and then killed herself on his funeral pyre.
Fenris {fen'-rir}Wolf is the offspring of Loki and a giantess who
is said to be the one to devour Odin when Ragnarok occurs.
In Norse mythology Fenrir was a ferocious wolf, the offspring of
Loki and the giantess Angerboda. The gods subdued him with a magical chain,
Gleipher, but in the process he bit off the hand of the god Tyr.