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NJÖRD, NORSE GOD OF SEA

When my brother @fornleidh asked me to write a post about Njördr to accompany his magic, I was touched and flattered. This is the post, but these words are meaningless if you don't see the piece they are written for. Log on to @fornleidh profile to see the magnificent handcrafted wood carving of the sea god. His voice is deafening, it's a roar, but at the same time it givesme an immense sense of calm. Immense and powerful. He rules the course of the wind, calms water and fire, men invoke him to travel and hunt. Solitary, yet harbouring so much life within him .... Njörðr, in Norse folklore is the god of the sea, sailors, fishermen, abundance and fertility. Some claim that Njörðr means "power" or "strength" in Old Norse, but his origin isn't really clear. He's also linked to the Germanic goddess Nerthus, who was his sister and consort. Njörðr fathered two children with Nerthus: Freyr and Freyja, beautiful and fertile. Although there is not much written about Njörðr, he was a very revered god, and there is even an old Norse saying that 'very rich people are as rich as Njörd'. He lives in Nóatún, which means ''ships' enclosure'' in Old Norse. Æsir by adoption, he is a true Vanir. After the war between Æsir and Vanir, Njörðr and his children Freyr and Freyja went to live with the Æsir as part of a pact. Skaði chose him as her husband just by looking at his feet, for they were so beautiful that she thought he was Baldr. But their marriage didn't last long, both belonged to very different places and their hearts beat to a different rhythm. He will always belong to the sea, he lights the way for those sailors who call upon him through raging seas and wild storms


 
 
 

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