ALFABLT

The Old Norse Day of the Dead

It is closing in to the time of the Alfablt, the Sacrifice to the Elves, the elves in Norse not meaning
Faerie but referring to spirits that are both of nature and of the souls of departed men who still live on
in mounds, where they can still be sought and communicated with. The Dkkalfar (Dark Elves) live
underground, akin to the Huldrefolk and other creatures from beneath the Earth.
These were Powers of the dark and hidden things, death, the mysterious. These spirits were the most
powerful during the dark winter-months and their power was of a kind that made people decide that it
was best to keep them on our side. They entry to the first month of darkness is an offering of friendship
to the powers of the dark time so that they be benevolent rather than malevolent towards us, so that
they will assist us in surviving through the dark cold to come, so that they will be strengthened in their
efforts to impregnate the Earth with life once more and we call especially upon the powers of our
male ancestors who still live among the elves, call on them to protect us and be our ambassadors
among the dark powers.
The female ancestors have their own time of celebration at winter solstice (Yule), if you wondered
why the ancestral elves are all male ancestors.
The dark powers are not evil, but they will not offer any assistance unless we ask them to and honor
them for it. Today, Mexicans offer assorted favorite foods to their dead anestors. The Norse Heathens
offered what they thought anyone would want most on a dark and cold night: Beer and meat.
The Sacrifice to the Elves
In the autumn of 1018, the Norwegian and Christian skald Sigvatr rarson traveled to Sweden and
reported that he was continuously refused entry to the farms he tried to visit because the Alfablt the
Sacrifice to the Elves was being held.
After a long and tiresome journey, Sigvatr and his companions arrived at a homestead called Hof
(Temple). They expected to be received well, according to the laws of hospitality, but the door
remained shut. Sigvatr had to stick his nose down into a narrow opening in order to present himself, but
the people of the household refused him by saying that the place was hallowed. Sigvatr retorted that the
trolls should take them, and continued to the next homestead.
At the following farm, he met a lady who told him to go away and said Dont go further inside
unlucky man! We are afraid of ins wrath; we are pagans! Then, she chased him away as if he were
a wolf and said that they were having the Sacrifice to theElves at the homestead.
They tried three more times to find a place to rest, but all the times they were dispatched by men who
called themselves lvir. The title means Beer-Man and the Beer-Man was probably a guardian of
the ritual. Sigvatr and his men, in desperation, decided to seek out the man who was reputedly the most
hospitable man in the district. The last man only scowled at them, and calling the man the guardian of
the pickaxe, Sigvatr stated that if that man was the best man, the worst man must have been truly
evil.
As far as we can see from Sigvats account, the harvest rite of the Alfablt was a time when ordinary
rules of hospitality were put aside in favor of a very private and sacred family celebration where

outsiders could not expect entry. It took place after the harvests, towards the end of October and the
beginning of November.
But what was the ritual about? What kind of powers were the elves?
Another source, the Kormaks saga (ch.22), describes how the injured hero rvarr is told by a
woman who is the lady of great household, to pour the blood of a sacrificed bull onto a hill inhabited
by elves and to prepare a meal for the elves from the meat of the sacrificial bull in order to heal his
injury. According to the saga, this incident took place sometime towards the latter half of the 10th
century, although the saga itself was written down very late (13th century), so that the source is
uncertain. The story suggests that the lady of the household held knowledge about the healing powers
of the elves, who were said to live in hills and mounds, and that it was possible to sacrifice to them
individually also when the annual celebration of the elves was not happening.
The elves and their connection to the harvest suggest a link to the cult of Freyr. Indeed, Britt Mari
Nsstrm has suggested that just as Freyia was the lead character at the annual spring celebration of the
dsir the dsablt sacrifice to the goddesses, so Freyr may have been the lead character at the
annual harvest celebration of the elves. And just as the dsir were strongly associated with an older cult
of ancestral mothers known on the Iron Age continent as the matron cult, so it seems that the elves
were associated with ancestors perhaps, primarily, with the ancestral fathers, since the word for elf,
lfr, is distinctly masculine and offers no feminine version.
According to Snorris Gylfaginning, Freyr is foremost among the Aesir:
Njrr of the Ships Harbor later had two children, the son Freyr and the daughter Freyia; they
were beautiful in appearance and very powerful. Freyr is the foremost among the Aesir. He rules rain
and sunshine, and by this he rules the harvests of Earth. He is good to invoke for the purpose of a good
harvest and peace. He also rules the welfare among people.
In his Ynglinga saga, (ch.10) Snorri describes Freyr as a powerful Swedish king and priest, the
founder of the temple of Uppsala which became a famous center of parliament and worship, thriving
until the last days of Paganism:
Freyr took the kingdom after Njrr, and he got the nickname Lord of the Swedes, and received
gifts and taxes from them [the Swedes]. He was friendly and aged well, just like his father. Freyr built a
huge temple complex by Uppsala and kept his main seat there, and to the temple he invested everything
he owned, land and properties. Thus the Uppsala-Wealth was established, and it has kept ever after.
In his days, there was a Peace of Wisdom [Frafrr], it was then good harvests in all countries and
the Swedes gave credit to Freyr for this, therefore he was worshipped more than other gods, and still
more as long as the people of the country were richer during his realm than before, because there was
peace and good harvests.
Gerr Gymis-Daughter was his wife, and their son was called Filnir [The One Who is Many].
Freyr had another name, Yngvi [Sacred Lineage], and the name Yngvi was since used as a name of
honor in his lineage, and his descendants were called the Ynglings.
Freyr became ill, and as his illness worsened, his men pondered the solution, and let people come
and watch him, then they built a huge mound with a door and three windows. And when Freyr was

dead, they carried him to the mound in secret, and told the Swedes that he still lived, and they hid him
there for three years, and all the treasure they poured into the mound, the gold through one window, the
silver through the second, and the copper through the third. Then the harvest and the peace were
maintained.
Freyrs association to worship in the burial mound after his death may be one reason why he is also
associated with the elves. In the Grmnisml, st.5, we learn that Freyr is the lord of Alfheimr the
World of Elves, the second dimension of heaven, after rs realm rheimr [Power World]. We
also learn that Freyr is associated with a very ancient Scandinavian god, Ullr, whose mythology is
mostly unknown to us, except that he is associated with hunting, especially hunting with the bow and
arrow, like Skai also was. We only know that Ullr was widely worshipped because of his importance
in the place-name material countless areas were named after his sanctuaries and fields dedicated to
him:
5. Ydalir heita

Yew Valleys it is called

ar er Vllr hefir

where Ullr has

ser vm gorva sali;

built his halls;

Alfheim Fre

Freyr received the World of Elves

gfo i ardaga

in the days of origin

tivar at tannfe.

from all the powers, as a tooth-gift.

The yew [r, m.sg.] is a masculine tree and is thus a metaphor for man, in whose valleys (interiors)
the god of hunting and bowman-ship has taken up his residence. The yew is also a reference to the bow
that he uses to shoot with, since it was the wood matter most commonly used for bows. The association
to masculinity, male potency and fertility is more than hinted at, an impression that is strengthened by
the fact that of all gods, Freyr was the one most associated with sexuality and phallic symbols. We
could say that Freyr on one level represents the essence of manhood and masculine power. That he is
the ideal man model is strengthened by the image of the just king who provides peace, prosperity and
fertility to his land and his people. He rides a horse or a boar, and carries a sword.
However, there is more to Freyr than the potency of life and procreation he is also the Lord of
Elves. The elves were objects of worship in the Pagan religion. During the annual alfablt The
Sacrifice to the Elves the elves were probably honored as the spirits of dead ancestors. These were
thought to reside underground and within the burial mounds or within mountains. The festival took
place around the same time as the Halloween and the Day of the Dead is celebrated other places and is
clearly related a very ancient ritual in honor of the souls of the ancestors.
Some elves were particularly honored: When King Olaf Gursson of Vestfold, brother to Halfdan
the Black (810-860 AD) died, his burial mound at Geirstad became associated with great fortune for
those who went there to pray. It was thought that the soul of Olaf heard their prayers. The dead king
was referred to as the Geirstaalfr The Elf of Geirstad.
Thus we see that in Old Norse lore, the elves are strongly associated with souls. There were Light
Elves and Dark Elves. In the Gylfaginning, Snorri describes the Dark Elves as darker than tar and
offers a very sombre vision of them, in contrast to the Light Elves:

There lives the people called Light Elves [lisalfar]; but the Dark Elves [dkkalfar] live beneath the
ground. These two elfin kinds are very different to look at, and even more unlike within. The Light
Elves are brighter than the sun to look at, whereas the Dark Elves are blacker than tar.
Yet, the sources to our knowledge about the Sacrifice to the Elves and other references to elves as the
souls of dead people give a more complex picture; the Dark Elves are not evil, they are simply the souls
of the dead that reside in the underworld, perhaps ready to be reborn at some point. I am not going to
discuss the subject of reincarnation here for now, let us say that the elves appear to represent souls
and that there is considerable evidence that the Pagans believed in reincarnation.
The Dark Elves represent the souls of the dead that still reside in the world, albeit in the underworld,
still able to communicate with the living. They may have been kept in the world by their descendants,
who prayed to them and sacrificed to them for their wisdom, their guidance, their healing powers and
their protection exactly as it was said that people could pray to Freyr in his mound after his death.
Pagans would sit on burial mounds or on the sacred hills and mountains where the dead were thought to
reside, meditating until communication with the dead could be obtained. Their darkness is the darkness
of the unknown, that which is not seen by the living, of the hidden reality that is death.
The Light Elves, on the other hand, may very well refer to the souls of the dead that have achieved
immortality. Perhaps they have become shining bright and transparent through a descent (or ascent) in
the Well of Origin a feat achieved through spiritual training and initiation, leading to the
transformation and the immortality of the soul?
Whatever the key to their position, the silent Light Elves dine with the gods and the immortals in the
Hall of Aegir at Hlsey The Wind-Shielded Island, where the history of the world is recounted and
the nine Daughters of the Ocean provide the golden light of illumination for this mysterious banquet.
The Light Elves belong to the three upper heavens, where not even the gods may dwell; shining, bright
heavens to the south: The first of these heavens is called Giml The Glittering brighter even than
the Sun, where deceit-free lineages live for all eternity. The second is called Andlangr Long
Breath, and the third is called Viblinn The Wide Death, where only Light Elves may dwell.
As the Lord of Elves, Freyr is ultimately the Lord of Souls. What kind of soul or what aspect of the
soul is an open question the sources indicate that the elves are the souls of the dead, although there
are instances where apparently living entities, such as Vlundr the smith, is referred to as an elf, even
as the Lord of Elves.
We know that the feminine entities norns and fylgjur were also associated with souls both with the
souls of dead female ancestors and with the fate-spinning souls of all people. The word for elf in Old
Norse, alfr, is a masculine word, and when elves are mentioned in Old Norse sources, they are mostly
masculine, the souls of dead men. Like the fylgja, they may represent a dead ancestor, but unlike the
fylgja, who then is an ancestress, the elf is a male ancestor. Unlike the fylgja, the elf soul does not seem
to follow his descendants or play the guardian spirit, nor does he seem to appear or play a significant
role within the soul of the living. The elfin ancestor resides in the burial mound and may be helpful to
those who seek him there. To all appearances, the elf is the embodiment of the soul of a dead male. If
he resides in the mound or in other aspects of the Underworld, he is a Dark Elf. If he resides in the
upper heavens, he is the immortal soul of the enlightened, and is a Light Elf.
There are some elves that appear to be feminine, however. The Sun goddess is the Shine of the Elves
[Alfrdull], and the goddess of eternal rejuvenation (i.e. immortality), Iunn, is said to be of elf-kind
[alfa kindar] in the Edda poem Hrafnagalr ins. Neither Sl nor Iunn are said to actually be elves

they are said to be associated with elves, with their bright shine and their kind I suggest they are the
female kindred of the male elves, that is, the feminine aspects of the soul of both sexes, and/or the souls
of females.
We are starting to see the shape of a complex picture the Old Norse concepts about the soul.
Apparently, all human beings regardless of gender possess a female soul, a fate-spinning goddess who
follows us, is within us, aligned with us, yet also one who may take on a shape of her own and call on
the company and aid of other fate-spinning souls. She may be awake or sleeping. A dead woman could
act in the world as a fylgja without a body attached, mostly in order to help her descendants or loved
ones. Apparently, a man could not, but he could live on in the elf, a concept that at least seems to refer
to the souls of dead men only.
When Freyr is the Lord of Elves, he is also the Lord of dead men, the lord of the realm where the
souls of dead men linger. In a fashion, he represents or rules the soul of males. In the living, he is the
source of masculine energy, potency and fertility. As a deity of these things, he not only begets fertility
in the land, but also resides within all men and is a mold for men: What Freyr does is relevant to all
men.
The only important myth about Freyr that we are aware of, is the Skrnisml story about how he
wooed his wife, Gerr. During the quest, Freyr offers up his horse which can carry its rider high
through the dark and flickering flames and his sword that can fight giants on its own, as long as it is
carried by the fearless. He gives these gifts to his symbolical servant, Skrnir [The Shining One],
who then is able to enter the world of the dead, where the bride is hidden.
As we shall see, the marriage proposal constitutes and instigates a trial of initiation where the object
is the union with the mysterious giantess of the illuminating arms within the sacred and, most
importantly, breeze-less Grove of the Pine. The breeze-less grove is the same as the Wind-Shielded
Island a place of immortality, in union with the maiden within the soul elf united with the soul fate.
This difficult quest is the most important story about Freyr and thus the most important story about
all men who embark on the quest of the soul to become a Light Elf in the upper heavens.
It is interesting to note that these three upper heavens of immortality, brightness and Light Elves are
counted as the three last among the twelve cosmic dimensions in the Edda poem Grmnisml. The
remaining nine worlds belong to various gods, and we should bear in mind that Snorri stated that Hel
the personified Death rules in nine worlds. In the Grmnisml, the ninth world is the place where
Freyia rules the fate of people in life and in death. This is where the goddess receives the souls of the
dead, deciding which path they will take from that point. In the Edda poem Lokasenna, it is said that
the goddess has held all the gods and Light Elves of the Hall of Aegir the Hall of Immortality in her
embrace. It is time to have another look at Freyrs sister.
To conclude, we may assume that the annual harvest celebration of the Elves was powerfully
connected to the worship of dead ancestors, which may be the reason why it was such a private family
holiday. It is likely that food (the meat of a sacrificed animal) and drink (the blood of the animal and
beer) was offered to the elves who dwelled in the mounds and the hills. As such, we may be seeing a
Viking Age version of the Halloween or the Day of the Dead.