Valhalla (
Old Norse Valhöll, "Hall of the slain") is
Odin's hall in
Norse mythology, located in
Gladsheim and is the home for those slain gloriously in battle (known as
Einherjar) who are welcomed by
Bragi and escorted to Valhalla by the
valkyries. The main gate of Valhalla is called Valgrind, which is described in
Grímnismál as a "sacred gate", behind which are the "holy doors" and "there are few who can tell the manner by which it is locked". The hall itself has 540 doors, so wide that 800 warriors could walk through side-by-side. It is said that there is room enough for all those chosen. Here, every day, the slain warriors who will assist Odin in
Ragnarök, the gods' final conflict with the giants, arm themselves for battle and ride forth by the thousands to engage in combat on the plains of
Asgard. Those who die in the fighting will be brought back to life. At night, they return to Valhalla to feast on the boar
Sæhrímnir and drink intoxicating drink. Those who do not get to Valhalla go to the home of the dead (
Hel), a place beneath the underworld (
Niflheim), or one of various other places. Those who are lost at sea, for example, are taken to
Ægir's hall at the bottom of the sea. In addition to the
valkyries and the
Einherjar, a rooster named
Gullinkambi lives there.
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Valhalla (Scandinavian) Valholl (Icelandic) [from val choice, death + hall, holl hall] In Norse mythology, the hall of the chosen or of the slain where Odin's heroes, the One-harriers, are brought by the Valkyries at the end of each day's battles to feast with Ropt, the maligned or misunderstood god (Odin). "The hall of the chosen glows golden in Gladhome," one of the superior "shelves" or ethereal planes which are closely related to our planet earth. The walls of Valhalla are built of the spears of the warriors, it is roofed with their shields, while inside the hall "the benches are strewn with byrnies." Over the entrance door are transfixed the wolf (bestiality) and the eagle (pride). All of these are symbolic of the sacrifice of properties that have been relinquished by Odin's chosen warriors, for these represent, in the Norse tales, the initiated adepts who have elected to serve the cause of universality and aid the progress of human evolution. Abandoning progressively all weapons of offense, then of defense, and finally all personal protection, exemplifies the universal service of the chosen.
The One-harriers of Odin emerge daily to do battle on the plain of consecration (Vigridsslatten, life on earth) and by night return to feast with Allfather Ropt in the sacred hall on the mead brewed from their experience of life.
At the feast of the warriors in Valhalla they are served three boars, representing three elements as well as three principles of cosmic life: Andrimner (air, spirit), Sarimner (water, mind), and Eldrimner (fire, desire). A suggestive verse in Grimnismal may then be read as: "Spirit lets mind be steeped in desire. Few know what nourishes the One-harriers."
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