Mother Earth School of Witchcraft Lesson #1 Freya Research Shane Staten

The Goddess Freya

Known as Lady of the Black swordhand Freya is the Goddess of Love, Fertility, Beauty, Witchcraft, War, & Death; and is Queen of the Valkyries. She is the daughter of Fjord and his unnamed Van sister/wife (also the parents of Freya's brother Freyr/ or Frey). Freya, like her father and her brother, is of the Vanir, but came to live with the Aesir. Her hall is called Sussrumnir and lies in the fields of Asgard. Freya is known to listen to the prayers of lovers and helps them when she can. One of Freya's most renowned possessions is her feathered cloak, which allows her to turn into a Raven and take flight. She has been known to lend the cloak to other Gods when they have needed it. She married Od, who was constantly away; and so she has had many lovers. One time while he was away she cried tears of gold for him, used her cloak to find him, and when she finally did discover him, he had been turned into a hideous sea monster. Nonetheless, she loved him very much and stayed with him until he died. Upon his murder she became acrimonious, threatening to kill the gods. To set her at ease they offered Od a place in Valhalla, regardless of the fact that he had not died a hero on the battlefield. Some sources say that Odin was the husband of Freya, and with him being allowed in to Valhalla, it seems their might be connection between Freya's Od and the all

father Odin. Freya learned the purposes and powers of the Runes from Odin in exchange for teaching him Seidr (Norse Sorcery). Freya was the leader of the Valkyries, women who rode winged horses over battlefields and took the souls of noble warriors who died in battle to feast at Valhalla with the Gods. At the feast the souls were divided between Freya and Odin; those that would go with Odin stayed at Valhalla, and those that would go with Freya went to her hall Sussrumnir, in the field Folkvang. These women were ordinary women, bred to be priestesses who then became Valkyrie, and later evolved into the famous Norns; Great Goddesses who weave the fates and histories of the human race. Freya is also the Goddess of the ancestral deities the Disir, who give guidance and help seekers see into the future. She is the patroness to women of renown power and wisdom. As of late in more common times she is known to be a Goddess of the Faery realm. Freya has the ability to travel all nine worlds of the Icelandic cosmic system, also known as Yggdrasil.

Resources: The Goddess-guide @ http://www.goddess-guide.com/freya.html Wikipedia @ http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Freyja Goddess Freya.info @ http://www.goddessfreyja.info/about_freya.htm Valkyrietower @ http://valkyrietower.com/freyja.html