Mímisbrunnr in the context of "Urðarbrunnr"

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⭐ Core Definition: Mímisbrunnr

In Norse mythology, Mímisbrunnr (Old Norse "Mímir's wellspring") is a spring or well associated with the being Mímir, located beneath the world tree Yggdrasil. Mímisbrunnr is attested in the Poetic Edda, compiled in the 13th century from earlier traditional sources, and the Prose Edda, written in the 13th century by Snorri Sturluson. The wellspring is located beneath one of three roots of the world tree Yggdrasil, a root that passes into the Jötunheimr where the primordial plane of Ginnungagap once existed. In addition, the Prose Edda relates that the water of the wellspring contains much wisdom, and that Odin sacrificed one of his eyes to the wellspring in exchange for a drink. In the Prose Edda, Mímisbrunnr is mentioned as one of three wellsprings existing beneath three roots of Yggdrasil, the other two being Hvergelmir, located beneath a root in Niflheim, and Urðarbrunnr.

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👉 Mímisbrunnr in the context of Urðarbrunnr

Urðarbrunnr (Old Norse "Wellspring of Urðr"; either referring to a Germanic concept of fate—urðr—or the norn named Urðr) is a spring or well in Norse mythology. Urðarbrunnr is attested in the Poetic Edda, compiled in the 13th century from earlier traditional sources, and the Prose Edda, written in the 13th century by Snorri Sturluson. In both sources, the wellspring lies beneath the world tree Yggdrasil, and is associated with a trio of norns (Urðr, Verðandi, and Skuld). In the Prose Edda, Urðarbrunnr is cited as one of three wellsprings existing beneath three roots of Yggdrasil that reach into three distant, different lands; the other two wellsprings being Hvergelmir, located beneath a root in Niflheim, and Mímisbrunnr, located beneath a root near the home of the frost jötnar. Scholarly theory and speculation surrounds the wellspring.

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Mímisbrunnr in the context of Wodan

Odin (/ˈdɪn/; from Old Norse: Óðinn) is a widely revered god in Norse mythology and Germanic paganism. Most surviving information on Odin comes from Norse mythology, but he figures prominently in the recorded history of Northern Europe. This includes the Roman Empire's partial occupation of Germania (c. 2 BCE), the Migration Period (4th–6th centuries CE) and the Viking Age (8th–11th centuries CE). Consequently, Odin has hundreds of names and titles. Several of these stem from the reconstructed Proto-Germanic theonym Wōðanaz, meaning "lord of frenzy" or "leader of the possessed", which may relate to the god's strong association with poetry.

Most mythological stories about Odin survive from the 13th-century Prose Edda and an earlier collection of Old Norse poems, the Poetic Edda, along with other Old Norse items like Ynglinga saga. The Prose Edda and other sources depict Odin as the head of the pantheon, sometimes called the Æsir, and bearing a spear and a ring. Wider sources depict Odin as the son of Bestla and Borr; brother to Vili and Vé; and husband to the goddess Frigg, with whom he fathered Baldr. Odin has many other sons, including Thor, whom he sired with the earth-goddess Jörð. He is sometimes accompanied by animal familiars, such as the ravens Huginn and Muninn and the wolves Geri and Freki. The Prose Edda describes Odin and his brothers' creation of the world through slaying the primordial being Ymir, and his giving of life to the first humans. Odin is often referred to as long-bearded, sometimes as an old man, and also as possessing only one eye, having sacrificed the other for wisdom.

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Mímisbrunnr in the context of Yggdrasil

Yggdrasil (from Old Norse Yggdrasill) is an immense and central sacred tree in Norse cosmology. Around it exists all else, including the Nine Worlds.

Yggdrasil is attested in the Poetic Edda compiled in the 13th century from earlier traditional sources, and in the Prose Edda compiled in the 13th century by Snorri Sturluson. In both sources, Yggdrasil is an immense ash tree that is central to the cosmos and considered very holy. The gods go to Yggdrasil daily to assemble at their traditional governing assemblies. The branches of Yggdrasil extend far into the heavens, and the tree is supported by three roots that extend far away into other locations; one to the well Urðarbrunnr in the heavens, one to the spring Hvergelmir, and another to the well Mímisbrunnr. Creatures live within Yggdrasil, including the dragon Níðhöggr, the squirrel Ratatoskr, the hawk Veðrfölnir, and the stags Dáinn, Dvalinn, Duneyrr and Duraþrór.

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Mímisbrunnr in the context of Hvergelmir

Hvergelmir (Old Norse "bubbling boiling spring") is an important primal wellspring in Norse mythology. Hvergelmir is attested in the Poetic Edda, compiled in the 13th century from earlier traditional sources, and the Prose Edda, written in the 13th century by Snorri Sturluson. In the Poetic Edda, Hvergelmir is mentioned in a single stanza, which details that it is the location where liquid from the antlers of the stag Eikþyrnir flow, and that the spring, "whence all waters rise", is the source of numerous rivers. The Prose Edda repeats this information and adds that the spring is located in Niflheim, that it is one of the three major springs at the primary roots of the cosmic tree Yggdrasil (the other two are Urðarbrunnr and Mímisbrunnr), and that within the spring are a vast amount of snakes and the dragon Níðhöggr.

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