Valhalla

The Norse gods, the Aesir, were greatly concerned with preparing for the final battle against the forces of evil, in which they knew that they too would perish. The bravest warriors who died on the field of battle were brought to Valhalla, to train for the day when they would take part in the last battle. The Hall of the Slain, it was located in Asgard, the highest tier of the Norse universe. In the middle of Asgard lay the plain of Ida, where the Aesir met to decide matters of importance. At other times, the gods met in the hall of Gladsheim, while the goddesses gathered in the hall of Vingolf. Once a day, the gods also ventured to the Well of Urd, located beneath the root of Yggdrasil, the world tree which held up the universe, to ponder their fate.

Valhalla, deep in the hear of Asgard, was the home of the most favoured of heroes. When a Norse warrior died in battle and displayed great bravery in doing so, the gods took notice. If such a warrior was particularly heroic, a Valkyrie would come from him. These beautiful young women were mounted upon winged horses, and armed with helmets and spears. They scouted the fields of battle to find the bravest of the brave, the warriors who would serve the gods when the last battle, Ragnarok, came. Although their name means “The Choosers of the Slain”, the Valkyrie were not just spirits of battle. They also served as Odin’s messengers, and when they rode forth on his errands, their armour caused a strange, flickering light in the skies of Midgard, our earth, that men came to know as the Northern Lights.

Valhalla by Fishbot1337

When the slain heroes, the Einherjar, arrived at Valhalla, they were greeted by Odin, the Allfather, leader of the gods. A tall, powerful figure clothed in a cloak and deep-brimmed hat, Odin had but one eye, which blazed like the sun itself. The other he had sacrificed for a drink from the Well of Wisdom, which gave him great knowledge. He was typically accompanied by his ravens, Huginn and Muninn (‘thought’ and ‘memory’), who acted as his eyes and ears across the planes, and by his wolves Freki and Geri, to whom he gave all his food, as he only ever consumed wine. He carried also his spear, Gugnir, which always struck its target. A god of war and death, of poets and wisdom, he ruled the Aesir, yet often resided in Valhalla with his warriors.

The hall itself was mighty, with 540 doors. Spears formed the rafters of the huge roof, which was made of shields. Breast-plates formed the benches and tables that the warriors sat at. A terrible wolf guarded the western door of the hall, and an eagle hovered above it. Each morning, the heroes, the Einherjar, were woken by the crowing of the cockerel Gullinkambi, ‘Golden Comb’. They would file out of the hall onto the training fields around the hall, and fight each other until they were cut to ribbons. Then, miraculously healed by the hand of the gods, they would return to the hall and to Odin’s side, to feast and drink, and rest up for the next day’s fun.

It is said that the time of the last battle, Ragnarok, will be heralded by the Fimbulwinter, when three harsh winters follow each other without pause, without a summer in between. In the world of men, morality and goodness will disappear, and brother will turn on brother. Then, after aeons of chasing, the evil wolf Skoll will eat the sun, and his brother Hati will eat the moon, and the world will be plunged into darkness. The three cocks will crow, one to summon the giants, one to summon the dead, and Gullinkambi to summon the gods and heroes. From each of the doors of Valhalla, eight hundred warriors will march, shoulder to shoulder, to follow Odin and the other Aesir to the battle that will finally herald Gotterdammerung, the doom of the gods.