#MythologyMonday: A weird theory about the Aesir and the Tuatha de Danaan.
This is gonna be a little disjointed, but try to keep up.
Many mythology buffs are aware of the ancient war between the Aesir and the Vanir, that ended in a truce, and an exchange of hostages. They are also aware of the ongoing war against the Jotuns, who in many ways are just like the Aesir, really just a rival tribe. Somewhat less may be aware of the ancient war between the Tuatha de Danaan and the Fomor, despite the close connections, marriages, and even shared kings between them. Many of the mightiest of the Tuatha had Fomor blood. Just as many of the Aesir were part Jotun, or even fully jotun, as the case with Skadi, Loki, and more. There are many parallels. What if it is more than a parallel? What if the Aesir and the Tuatha had a war…and the Aesir remembered the Tuatha as the Vanir? (Yes, I know there is literally no actual evidence for this. )
Both the Tuatha and the Vanir tend to be gods of fertility, the arts, beauty, the earth…where as the Aesir tend to be sky gods, gods of war, bloody handed butchers, with notable exceptions. Thor was a sky god, a thunder god…but also a god of fertility, and while the favored god of many warriors…not a war god. A god of strength, of protection. Not war. The Vanir hostages to the Aesir include Frey, his sister Freya, Njord, possibly others. All are gods of fertility and beauty. Freya’s approach to the world could be identical to the Tuatha perspective…war when you must, love when you can, enjoy the world.
The Aesir hostages to the Vanir, that we are told of, include Honir, god of ecstasy and battle madness, and Mimir, god of Wisdom. Only…two? For three? That doesn’t track with the customs of the people involved. In addition, the Vanir apparently got mad about being lied to regarding how awesome Honir was as a leader, so they cut off Mimir’s head and sent it back?
They talk of a new agreement reached after that to keep the peace, but don’t say what it was.
I have a notion. Frigg and Freya may or may not be the same person. The jury is out. But if that’s the case…if they are…who was Odin’s wife before the war? Who did he have children with? Odin is father of Tyr in some stories, but his mother is not mentioned. His grandmother is described as having 900 heads which is pretty wild.
Tyr loses a hand to bind Fenris. Nuada, of the Irish, never had his mother named, but one presumes it was Danu, like most of the very early de Danaan (literally the Children of Danu). He lost his hand winning the battle against the Firbolgs. I’m not sure what that means, hoestly, but it’s interesting.
Thor is the son of the Earth herself, a giantess named Jord. In Irish myth, the Earth goddess, the mother goddess, is Danu. Her consort? Bile, or Bel. At once lord of the world tree and lord of the dead. Their child was the Dagda…a really big red headed dude with a magic club that could kill anything or raise the dead. We’ll come back to this.
Thor’s hammer, Mjolnir, can both kill and raise the dead. Odin is sometimes known as Ygg..lord of Yggdrasil, the World Tree. And he is certainly Valfather. Lord of the dead.
So. Say Odin was Danu’s mate at one point, but probably not her husband. Anywho, Thor is one kid, Dagda is the other. They each keep one. The war happens after that. And in the end, they do send hostages. Three each way. Three. Not two one way and three the other. Njord, Frey, and Freya, are balanced by Honir, Mimir, and …Odin’s other ex, the Morrigan. Why do we never hear of her amongst the Aesir? Maybe we do. Fate and death take female form in Norse myth, under the name Dis, or Disr, which has been applied to valkyries, norns, and more…but means, at its base, goddess. But if Dis was a singular goddess and went off to join the Vanir, or in this case, the Tuatha de Danaan, that would explain why the Vanir would be willing to give up the most beautiful being in any world, likewise a goddess of fate, war and death…Freya. The Morrigan then becomes the chooser of Kings in Irish myth, the Great Queen. The arrangement that makes things ok after they send Mimir’s head back for the insult? Probably the sending of her other two parts, Macha and Nemain, giving the Danaan an advantage in their wars against the Fomor, which are probably the same as the Norse Jotun.
BTW, Odin is listed in some sources as the father of Meili the lovely one or good one, but he doesn’t appear in the tales. Jord is seen as his mother as well. The Dagda is called ‘the good god’. His mother is Danu. I still see a connection.:)
