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F

Fenris-Also known as Fenrir. One of Loki’s monster children, who will one day break free of his chains and eat the sun, heralding the apocalyptic battle of Ragnarok.

The Death of Baldr
Frigg especially loved her son Baldr, and with a mother's concern she set about trying to protect him after he had a prophetic dream of his own death. She had everything in the world promise not to harm him, but did not extract a promise from mistletoe. The gods soon made a game of throwing things at Baldr and watching them bounce off without hurting him. In Snorri Sturluson's version of the story, Baldr's brother Höðr is blind and can't join in on the fun. Loki made a dart out of mistletoe and put it into Höðr's hand, offering to guide his aim so he can participate in the game of throwing things at Baldr. Rather than bouncing off, the dart kills Baldr.

Even though Frigg must have known that Baldr was doomed, both through one of Baldr's prophetic dreams and her own foreknowlege, she tries to alter his fate. Even after he dies she doesn't give up and tries to arrange to have him ransomed from the underworld. According to some versions of the story, mistletoe became sacred to Frigg as a result of its failure to give Frigg its oath.

The Winnilers and the Vandals
Frigg was shown in the role of wife, but one who knows how to get her own way even though her husband thinks he is in charge. The Winnilers and the Vandals were two warring tribes. Wöden favored the Vandals, while Frigg favored the Winnilers. After a heated discussion, Wöden swore that he would grant victory to the first tribe he saw the next morning upon awakening-- knowing full well that the bed was arranged so that the Vandals were on his side. While he slept, Frigg told the Winniler women to comb their hair over their faces to look like long beards so they would look like men and turned the bed so the Winniler women would be on Wöden's side. When he woke up, Wöden was surprised to see the disguised women first and asked who these long bearded men were, which was where the tribe got its new name, the Langobards. Wöden kept his oath and granted victory to the Winnilers (now known as the Lombards), and eventually saw the wisdom of Frigg's choice.

Vili and Ve
Frigg sometimes has the role of sacred queen much like the role of queens during certain periods in ancient Egypt, where the king was king by virtue of being the queen's husband. As the story goes, Wöden went wandering for a very long time without coming back. Finally, everyone assumed he was dead or otherwise never going to return. After quite some time had passed, Frigg "married" Wöden's two brothers, Vili and Ve, who ruled in his place. Eventually, Wöden came back to rule and Frigg returned to his side as his wife.

She is the daughter of the god Njord, and the sister of Freyr. Later she married the mysterious god Óôr, who disappeared. When she mourned for her lost husband, her tears changed into gold.

Her attributes are the precious necklace of the Brisings, which she obtained by sleeping with four dwarfs, a cloak (or skin) of bird feathers, which allows its wearer to change into a falcon, and a chariot pulled by two cats. She owns Hildesvini ("battle boar") which is actually her human lover Ottar in disguise. Her chambermaid is Fulla. Freyja lives in the beautiful palace Folkvang ("field of folk"), a place where love songs are always played, and her hall is Sessrumnir. She divides the slain warriors with Wöden: some go to her palace, while the others go to Valhalla.

Freyja may be an avatar of Frigg.

faery If a human watched the dance of the faeries, he would discover that even though only a few hours seemed to have passed, many years had passed in the real world.

G

Genius Locii- Also platzgeist. Spirit of the place. When a person dies, who has a particular attachment to a place, they may become the guardian god or goddess of that location. If malevolent, these genii may be considered poltergeists, ghosts, etc.

Giants-

H

Herne-variously a God of the hunt, and platzgeist of Windsor forest, Herne sports a pair of deer's antlers, and a cloak of ferns; he is traditionally associated with Windsor Forest and Great Park in the English county of Berkshire. His name comes from the sound made by does calling to a stag.

Herne is said to have been a huntsman in the employ of King Richard II (reigned 1377-1399) in and around Windsor Forest. He saved the King's life when he was attacked by a cornered white hart, but was mortally wounded himself in the process. A local wizard brought him back to health using his magical powers, which entailed tying the dead animal's antlers on Herne's head. In return, however, Herne had to give up his hunting skills. The other king's huntsmen framed him as a thief. As a result he lost the favour of the king. He was found the next day, hanging dead from a lone oak tree. That same oak tree is in the Home Park at Windsor Castle.

Sometime a keeper here in Windsor Forest,
Doth all the winter-time, at still midnight,
Walk round about an oak, with great ragg'd horns;
And there he blasts the tree, and takes the cattle,
And makes milch-kine yield blood, and shakes a chain
In a most hideous and dreadful manner.
You have heard of such a spirit, and well you know
The superstitious idle-headed eld
Receiv'd, and did deliver to our age,
This tale of Herne the Hunter for a truth.
— William Shakespeare, The Merry Wives of Windsor

Herne is commonly suspected to be an avatar of Cernunnos.

Hel-a goddess of Helheim, the realm of the dead. She is the youngest child of the god Loki and the giantess Angrboda. Usually described as a horrible hag, half alive and half dead, with a gloomy and grim expression. Which half of her body is decayed is not explained in ancient source material, so she is sometimes depicted as woman above the waist and corpse below, or divided vertically.

The Aesir had abducted Hel and her brothers from Angrboda's hall. They cast her in the underworld, into which she distributes those who are send to her; the wicked and those who died of sickness or old age. Her hall in Helheim is called Eljudnir, home of the dead. Her manservant is Ganglati and her maidservant is Ganglot.

Hel may be considered an avatar of

Heimdall is the guardian of the Bifrost (Rainbow) bridge which is the entrance to Asgard, thus linking heaven and earth. He lives on a cliff by the bridge and is uniquely suited for his guardian role barely sleeping, having hearing so good that he can hear grass grow, coupled with exceptional eyesight. Heimdall symbolizes duty, patience and eternal vigilance. Loki mocks his dedication when he gatecrashes the gods' party in Lokasenna

"Enough Heimdal! I know that fate
Assigned you a servile task"

When Thor's hammer is stolen it is to Heimdall the gods turn and who demonstrates powers of prophecy

"Heimdall said, sagest of gods
Who could see the future as his fathers did ..."

Possibly this predictive power is linked to the runes for Heimdall is a master of them. He is the god who shares this gift with mankind. As Rig he descends to earth where sleeping between various couples he is responsible for the emergence of three classes- thralls, free-men and nobility. It is to the last of these he gives the runes

"Out of woodlands came Rig walking
Came Rig walking and taught him runes"

There may be a pattern here. Odin discovers the runes and so brings them to Asgard but Heimdall brings them to Earth. Odin breathes life into the first man and woman but it is Heimdall who founds and structures human society.

The rune associated with Heimdall (in his Rig personna) is Mannaz (Man) which represents the individual and society. It symbolizes reason, intelligence, and social structuring as well as the development of consciousness. Some authors also link him with the Algiz (Eohl) rune due to its protective nature and an association they make between the glyph and Bifrost.

Underneath the world tree, Yggdrasil, lies Heimdall's horn, Gjallarhorn, which he will blow to signal the start of Ragnarok as the gods come under attack, and the sons of Muspell ride across the Bifrost bridge breaking it.

I

Iahova- originally a god of war and guardian of Israel, now a collective term for the gods and goddesses who act in his name. Iahova led an army of his sons against the other gods of Israel and took the land and people for himself, killing or expelling his rivals. He then claimed to be the ‘only’ God, through which lie he gained many millions of followers. Since his disappearance, many Gods have used his reputation to reach humankind; although Iahova has had many sons, his influence has been reported by other prophets and claimed-heirs.

Imbolc-also Oimelc, Brigid, Candlemas, groundhog day. Imbolc is one of the eight solar holidays, festivals or sabbats of the Neopagan wheel of the year, with some origins in Irish mythology and the pre-Christian Celtic calendar. Originally it was a pagan Irish festival celebrated on 1 February, which began, according to Celtic custom the evening before. Today modern neopagans either celebrate it on the 1st or 2nd, the 2nd being more popular in America, perhaps because of a confusion with Candlemas. In the southern hemisphere it is celebrated in August. The name, in the Irish language, means "in the belly" (i mbolg), referring to the pregnancy of ewes, and is also a Celtic term for spring. Another name is Oimelc, meaning "ewe's milk"; also Brigid, referring to the Celtic goddess of smithcraft, to whom the day is sacred.

That Imbolc was an important time to the ancient inhabitants of Ireland can be seen at the Mound of the Hostages in Tara, Ireland. Here, the inner chamber is perfecty aligned with the rising sun of both Imbolc and Samhain.

In the modern Irish Calendar, Imbolc is variously known as the Feast of Brigid (Secondary Patron of Ireland) and Lá Feabhra - the first day of Spring. The holiday is a festival of light, reflecting the lengthening of the day and the hope of spring. It is traditional to light all the lamps of the house for a few minutes on Imbolc, and rituals often involve a great deal of candles.

Imbolc is often defined as a cross-quarter day midway between the winter solstice (Yule) and the spring equinox (Ostara/Easter), and the precise midpoint is half way through Aquarius (in the northern hemisphere) or Leo (in the southern hemisphere). By this definition Imbolc in the northern hemisphere coincides with Lughnasadh in the southern hemisphere.

Traces of the festival of the growing light can even be traced to modern America in the Groundhog Day custom on February 2. If the groundhog sees his shadow on this morning, it means there will be six more weeks of winter. The custom comes directly from Europe, and Scotland in particular, where an old couplet goes: If Candlemas Day is bright and clear, there'll be two winters in the year.

J

Jahovah