Freyja (sometimes spelled Freya) is the wife of
Od, who, while commonly mistaken for Odin and possibly a mythological predecessor, is not the same Deity. She is a
Vanir (Odin was from the sometimes-opposing tribe of the
Aesir), and Queen of the
Valkyries. Freyja herself is oft-
confused with the Aesir Goddess
Frigga (who was the real wife of
Odin), as both are feminine fertilitiy goddesses and many stories told of one could rather easily fit the other. Freyja, whose name means
Lady, is the female counterpart and sister to
Frey, the noble earth-
Lord.
Freyja is the daughter of
Njord and
Nerthus, who were earlier and somewhat more dignified, as well as less sexual, gods of the
Earth and
fertility.
Freyja is the most beautiful of the Norse deities, and the Lady of love and fertility. She is the
patron goddess of crops and birth, as well as the
art of witchcraft. When her husband, Od, disappeared, she is said to have cried tears of
gold. The lovely golden neckless of the Brisings she did indeed obtain by agreeing to sleep with four
dwarves. She also owns a cloak of bird feathers that allows her to
shapeshift into a
falcon, as well as a great chariot pulled by two majestic
cats. Freyja lives in the palace
Folkvang, and her hall is Sessrumnir. She divides
warriors who have died in battle with Odin, taking half to her hall, and women also come to her after death.
Her colours tend to be dark green, deep blue, light red, gold, and white. Her Tarot cards are The Lovers, The Moon, and the High Priestess, while her runes are
Kenaz,
Gebo,
Elhaz and
Ehwaz.