Freyr and Gerd

Author: * Fenian Niafer - 2 Posts on this thread out of 1,340 Posts sitewide.
Date: Oct 12, 2003 - 10:57

I offer this tale for the entertainment of the Jarl and his court, a tale to warm the heart of the autumn night, a tale of two lovers but much more - a tale of the harvest, the icebound winter, and the warmth that always wakens the fields in spring.

The Tale of Freyr and Gerd

Freyr, the god of love, peace, fertility, wealth and harvest, was the son of the sea-god Njord, and brother to Freya the love goddess. As a god, he enjoyed many treasures. One of these was a magical ship called Skidbladnir, built especially for him by the dwarves. Skidbladnir always drew a fair wind when launched, and always went straight to its destination. It could hold all the gods inside it, yet it could be folded neatly to fit into Freyr's pocket. Freyr also owned a chariot drawn by two boars, Slidrugtanni and Gullinbursti. Gullinbursti, whose name means "Golden Bristles", was Freyr's favorite. He would ride him through the sky and those famous golden bristles would shine so brightly that they could light up even the darkest and longest night. He also had a magical sword called Sunlight's Shaft or Boar's Tusk, which would swing itself.

One winter's day Freyr found no one around to guard Odin's throne, and he decided to find out what it was like to sit on that forbidden high seat. Freyr quickly discovered that from that throne, he could see everywhere, all over the nine worlds and to every corner of the universe! He looked to the east, the west, the south, revelling in the wonders of this all-encompassing view. Then he looked to the north, to Jotunheim, the land of giants. There he spied the most beautiful woman he had ever laid eyes upon. As Freyr watched, the lady lazily stretched, raising her arms to the sky. She was so dazzlingly beautiful that her loveliness shone out all over the land and the sea. She lit up the sky in rainbows, like the bridge of Bifrost. Her name was Gerd, which means something like "field of gold" and she was the daughter of an Ice Giants. From the moment he saw her, he fell deeply and hopelessly in love - hopelessly because she was held captive in the frozen mountains of the giants. But even from that great distance, even though she was bound in her castle of ice, her warmth touched Freyr's heart.

He hopped down from Odin's throne and ran from that place, filled with longing and sadness so great that he could not speak, nor could he eat or even sleep. His only desire was for Gerd, and he knew that could never be fulfilled. Day after day, night after night, Freyr remained silent, withdrawn, and frozen with his own sorrow. No one dared approach him.

Finally his father, Njord, was so worried about Freyr's strange mood that he send Freyr's favorite servant Skirnir, the Shining One, to try to find out what was so wrong. If he would not confide in anyone else, he knew that he would speak to Skirnir.

And Freyr did. "I have fallen in love," he sadly told Skirnir. "And if I cannot have her as my wife, I will not live much longer!"

Skirnir considered this in his cunning and bright way. A plan was made that Skirnir would go as Freyr's messenger. He would ask Gerd, on Skirnir's behalf, to leave the mountains whether her father agreed to it or not. "I will reward you well for this!" promised the love-sick Freyr.

"And just exactly what will be my reward?" Skirmir slyly demanded. "I have always admired that magical sword of yours...the one that swings itself if he who wields it is wise..."

Without a second thought, Freyr handed it over to Skirmir. "It is yours. I will give it up freely, if only Gerd will be my wife."

And so off Skirmir went, to the northern mountains, where he found Gerd in her castle of ice. It was not easy to persuade her to leave. She did not wish to go against her father's wishes. She had never even seen Freyr. She shook her lovely head and turned her back on Skirmir.

"You will have great riches - the golden apples of youth!" he crooned to tempt her.

She did not move. Skirmir knew he would have to offer something better than that, even if it was not truly his to give. He thought for a moment, then cried, "You shall have Draupnir, the golden ring of Odin himself, if you will marry Freyr! Who could resist that prize?"

Still she would not consent. "No one buys my love with trinkets," she replied.

Losing his patient, Skirmir brandished Freyr's sword. "If you do not go, I will chop off your head!" he threatened her. Gerd simply shrugged, confident that he Skirmir would not go so far as to risk depriving Freyr of her companionship forever.

Desperately, Skirmir thought of the magical sword that would not be his unless he brought Gerd back with him. Only if I am wise, he thought to himself. Then he spoke to Gerd one more time and gently did he persuade her, with the sweet voice of a lover.

"You must break free, Golden Lady," he whispered seductively. "For without the light of your smile, the fields will lay fallow forevermore. Without the warmth of your love, the harvest will never come. Without the stretch of your bright arms over the land, there will be no fodder for the beasts, no fruit for the children." Then the tone of his voice changed from honey to poison, as he shouted, "You dare to bring the wrath of all the gods down upon you? If you do not leave this barren place and marry Freyr, I will carve an enchantment of runes upon my staff that, when it touches you, will keep you from having any other mate except the Rime Thurse! It bring a curse and bewitchment down upon the land, that it will be forever as barren as this mountain of ice in which you dwell!"

Gerd's gentle heart trembled. She agreed to meet Freyr at the forest Barri nine nights later. Skirmir's hand tightened on the hilt of the magic sword and he smiled to himself in satisfaction. He returned quickly to Freyr with the news.

Freyr sighed. "One night is long, two are longer, but three...how can I be filled with a desire like this that lasts so long!"

Nine night passed. Gerd fulfilled her promise and Freyr and Gerd were married. And like the northern winter that lasts nine months, the union of these two brought forth a son - and blessed by their happy union, the land itself yielded abundance, each year with a plentiful harvest and abundance for all.

Only one shadow was cast from that moment. Freyr had given up his sword for Gerd's love - the sword that he would need to fight Surt, the fire giant, at Ragnarok. On the day of that last battle, at the end of the world, Freyr, the god of love, will be among the first to die.