Everything about Vili totally explained
» For other meanings of Ve
, see Ve (disambiguation).:
For other meanings of Vili
, see Vili (disambiguation).
In
Norse mythology,
Vili and
Vé are the brothers of
Odin, sons of
Bestla daughter of
Bölþorn and
Borr son of
Búri:
» Hann [Borr] fekk þeirar konu er Bettla hét, dóttir Bölþorns jötuns, ok fengu þau þrjá sonu. Hét einn Óðinn, annarr Vili, þriði Vé.
Old Norse
vili means "
will". Old Norse
vé means "
sanctuary" (Old English
weoh).
Creation
The three brothers are the first generation of the
Æsir who slay
Ymir ending the primeval rule of the race of giants (corresponding to the three brothers
Zeus,
Poseidon and
Hades defeating the
Titans in
Greek mythology). The first human couple,
Ask and Embla, Odin gave soul and life, Vili wit (intelligence) and sense of touch, Ve countenance (colour?),
speech, hearing and sight. The names given to Odin's brothers in the
Völuspá are
Hœnir and
Lóðurr.
Rydberg (1886) speculates that as Odin is the progenitor of the Æsir, Vili and Vé would be the progenitors of the clans of the
Vanir and
Álfar, respectively. He positively identifies Vili and Vé with Lóðurr and Hœnir, further identifying Lóðurr (Saxo's
Lotherus) with
Mundilfori.
Triad
Note that in
Proto-Norse, the three brothers were
alliterating, *
Wódin, Wili, Wé (
Proto-Germanic *
Wōdinaz, Wiljon, Wǣhaz), so that the they can be taken as forming a triad of *
wódz, wiljon, wǣhaz, approximately "
inspiration (transcendent, mantic or prophetic knowledge),
cognition (will, desire, internal thought that leads to action) and
numen (spiritual power residing in the external world, in sacred objects)".
Compare to this the alliteration in a verse found in the
Exeter Book,
Wôden worhte weos "Woden wrought the
sanctuaries" — where compared to the "triad" above, just middle
will etymon has been replaced by the
work etymon. The name of such sanctuaries to Woden
Wôdenes weohas (Saxon
Wôdanes wih, Norse
Oðins ve) survives in toponymy as
Odinsvi,
Wodeneswegs.
While Vili and Vé are of little prominence in Norse mythology as attested, their brother Oðinn has a more splendid career as the chief of the Norse pantheon. Oðinn however remains member of a triad, at the head of the three mightiest gods, Oðinn,
Thôr,
Freyr. Oðinn is also styled
Thridi "the third", in which case he appears by the side of
Hâr and
Iafnhâr (the "high" and the "even-high" or co-equal), as the "Third High". At other times, he's Tveggi "the second". In relation to the Oðinn-Vili-Vé triad, Grimm (ch. 7) compares Old High German
willa, which not only expressed
voluntas, but also
votum, impetus, spiritus, and the personification of Will,
Wela in Old English sources. Keyser (1847) interprets the triad as "Spirit, Will and Holiness", postulating a kind of Germanic
Trinity in Vili and Vé to be "blended together again in the all-embracing World-spirit — in Odin. [...] he alone is Al-father, from whom all the other superior, world-directing beings, the Æsir, are descended."
According to
Loki, in
Lokasenna, Vili and Vé had an affair with
Odin's wife,
Frigg. This is taken by Grimm as reflecting the fundamental identity of the three brothers, so that Frigg might be considered the wife of either. According to this story Oðinn was abroad for a long time and in his absence his brothers acted for him. It is worthy of note, that Saxo also makes Othin travel to foreign lands and Mithothin fill his place, and therefore Mithothin's position throws light on that of Vili and Ve. But Saxo, represents Othin as once more an exile, and puts Oller in his place. The distant journeys of the god are implied in the Norse by-names Gângrâðr, Gângleri, Vegtamr, and Viðförull. It isn't to be overlooked, that even Paulus Diaconus (1, 9) knows of Wodan's residence in Greece while Saxo removes him to Byzantium, and Snorri to Tyrkland.
Further Information
Get more info on 'Vili'.
|
External Link Exchanges
Do you know how hard it is to get a link from a large encyclopaedia? Well we're different and will prove it. To get a link from us just add the following HTML to your site on a relevant page:
<a href="http://vili_and_v_.totallyexplained.com">Vili and Vé Totally Explained</a>
Then simply click through this link from your web page. Our crawlers will verify your link, extract the title of your web page and instantly add a link back to it. If you like you can remove the words Totally Explained and embed the link in article text.
As long as your link remains in place, we'll keep our link to you right here. Please play fair - our crawlers are watching. Your site must be closely related to this one's topic. Any kind of spamming, dubious practises or removing the link will result in your link from us being dropped and, potentially, your whole site being banned. |
