![]() ![]() Originally, it is thought, Asgard was a part of the world of humans but Snorri places it in the heavens, connected to Midgard by Bifrost, the rainbow bridge. At this same time, it seems, the nine realms were also created. After Ymir is dead, Odin, Vili, and Ve drag his body to the void of Ginnungagap where they create the world from his corpse and, later, the first man (Ask) and first woman (Embla) from two trees. Odin and his brothers kill Ymir and the giants are all drowned in his gushing blood except for Bergelmir and his wife who escape on a raft and will produce all the later giants who will be the sworn enemies of the gods. The best-known gods of the Norse pantheon are Aesir or live in Asgard: Odin, Thor, Loki, & Baldr. At some point, the fires of Muspelheim began to melt the ice of Niflheim and two entities emerged from the realm of mist: Ymir the giant and Audhumla the cow. It seems to have grown from the misty void of Ginnungagap which was bordered on one side by fiery Muspelheim and on the other by icy Niflheim. No mention is made anywhere of who or what created the great tree of the world but all nine realms existed in and around its roots. In the time before time, when nothing existed, there was only the tree Yggdrasil and the void. The same is true of the story of the creation of the world and human beings which may have been quite different when the Norse religion was a living, dynamic faith. ![]() These nine most likely would not all be recognized by a pre-Christian Scandinavian but they are the clearest depiction of the Nine Realms available in the present day. Niflheim – Realm of Ice, Snow, and Mist near Muspelheim.Nidavellir/Svartalfheim – Realm of the Dwarves beneath the earth.Muspelheim – Realm of Fire, the fire-giant Surtr, and Surtr's forces of chaos.Midgard – Realm of the Humans between Asgard and Jotunheim.Jotunheim – Realm of the Giants and Frost Giants.Hel – Realm of those who died of illness or old age and then of most people.Asgard – Realm of the Aesir, joined to Midgard by the rainbow bridge Bifrost. ![]()
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