Einherjar

Einherjer (also Einherjar, Einherier; Old Norse "the one who fights alone", "honorably fallen") refers in Norse mythology (e.g. in the Edda) to the fallen warriors who, according to Germanic belief, are led by the Valkyries from the battlefield to the army father Odin in Valhalla and live there in a warrior's paradise free of worries. During the day they fight each other in drills in which they fight each other to the death until only one warrior is left standing. Then the Valkyries bring the fallen back to life with a kiss. In the evening, they feast together in joyful company. There they consume mead from the udder of the goat Heidrun and meat from the ever-renewing boar Sährimnir, and listen to Bragi's songs.

The Einherjer were the warriors who had fallen in battle and who were called to Valhalla to support Odin in the great battle at the end of all time, the Ragnarök, against the giant army (cf. Muspel, Utgard). According to other sources, it was later believed that all men who died with a weapon in their hands made it to Valhalla; thus, a violent death was no longer mandatory. The notion of a "warrior's paradise" developed especially in the Viking Age, presumably under the influence of conversion and forced proselytization and the implied decay of paganism that resulted. Valhalla is also based on older ideas.

Furthermore, it was considered a duty for every warrior to strive for an afterlife in Valhalla. This was only possible if the warrior died in battle and thus died an "honorable death". For example, dying at home of old age, for example, was more or less tantamount to a tragedy. To die honorably in the war, or later with a weapon at hand, was the life goal of every man, in order to receive as Einherjer entrance into Valhalla. Those who did not succumb to an "honourable death" reached Hel, also called Helheim, which was considered the real realm of the dead.

See also

• Wild Hunt (cf. Otto Höfler)
• Einheer