Introducing Freya
“When you leave this place, you will no longer be a girl, but a woman. And not just any woman. You will be a priestess of Freya, a mistress of seidhr, a völva. It will be your role to wander the country, moving from one village to the next, bringing the grace of Freya to our brave people, working her magic and channelling her feminine powers.
As Freya performs her magic, her seidhr, in Asgard, so we völur perform ours in Midgard, our earthly plane.”
The fire, which had been blazing hours earlier, had now died down to low flames and burning embers. On one side sat an elderly woman, her long white hair lying in elaborate plaits over both shoulders, and her piercing blue eyes steadily fixed upon the small figure sat opposite. This woman was really no more than a girl. Her fair hair was free of the strands of white that would appear perhaps decades from now, and her skin was smooth and clear. Her hazel eyes gazed steadily back as the elder woman spoke to her, explained to her the way of the völur: the spiritual priestesses of the Viking people.
The young woman’s name was Astrid, and she had always been a little different from her peers. Set apart from her community by the way that she held herself, always distanced, refusing to join in the children’s games that had been so popular amongst the boys and girls her age, and always so serious. Those huge eyes of hers seem to hold within them the wisdom of past ages, her narrow shoulders the burden of her people’s pain and power, her strong legs the desire to run uninhibited and free.
Ever since she was little her obstinance had been legendary, and her stubbornness had only increased with her years. The only boy who had seemed interested in Astrid, was now married to another, spurned by Astrid’s cold disinterest. Her mother had fretted at her, shouted at her, shaken her… but Astrid knew that life as a village wife was not for her. She was born for a life of more importance than that. She could not bring herself to commit to a man who would then be her master. The very idea made her skin crawl in indignation.
The day the völva came to their village to perform the fertility rites, Astrid finally understood her purpose.
Each day this week, I have been sharing excerpts fromt he stories contained in Virgins & Lovers: Ancient Wisdom for the Modern Goddess, and today we have the first of our lover goddesses – the Norse goddess Freya.
This story is a little different as it is framed by the experience of a young initiate who has been chosen to become a völva, a Shamanic seeress who held significant power in a staunchly patriarchal culture. The excerpt I have shared is from the opening pages, but I wanted to share a little more from the point at which the elder woman is describing the energy of Freya…
“Freya is the sensation of movement we feel in the soles of our feet when we dance. She is the quickening we feel low down in our belly when we seduce and are seduced. She is the swift pace of our heartbeat when we step into our warrior self. She is the sparkle in our eyes when we communicate our desire.
Freya is love and she is war, for often those two keep close company. She speaks to us of passion and power, and she bows to no man, no god to keep her safe and small. She uses her sexuality to gain what she wants and she works her sexual energy to master her own power as a goddess and as a woman.”
If you are interested in getting to know Freya better, then you can read the rest of her story in Virgins & Lovers. I also have a selection of journal prompts, creative exercises and really beautiful visualizations to help you develop your own personal connection to the goddess.
