Gerd - Goddess of Ferility - Norse Goddess

Gerd - Goddess of Ferility

Gerd (Gerdr) ("fenced-in") is the wife of Freyr and a goddess of fertility. She is the personification of the fertile soil. She is described as 'the most beautiful of all women'. She is the daughter of Gymir and Aurboda.

In myths Freyr went to Hlidskjalf and looked over all worlds, to the north he saw Gerdr and at once becomes deeply lovesick at the sight of her shimmering beauty. He sends his servant, Skimir, to gain her love. At first Gerdr refuses to meet with Freyr, but eventually agrees to meet him at Barri where they consummate their union.

    "From Gymir's house I behold forth
    A maiden dear to me;
    Her arms glittered, and from their gleam
    Shone all the sea and sky."

    "To me more dear than in days of old
    Was ever maiden to man;
    But no one of gods or elves will grant
    That we be together should be."[3]
        —Henry Adams Bellows translation:

    Barri the grove is named,
    which we both know,
    the grove of tranquil paths.
    Nine nights hence,
    there to Niörd’s son
    Gerd will grant delight.

        —För Skirnis eðr Skirnismál (39), Thorpe's translation

--~Attributes and Correspondences~--

Area of Influence:
Fertility

Pantheon: Norse

Abode: Jotunheimr

Animals: Dogs

Colours: -

Consort: Freyr

Crystal: -

Day: -

Direction: North

Element: Earth

Incense: -

Musical Instrument: -

Offerings: Mead, Gold Rings, Apples

Planet: -

Plant/Tree: -

Rune: Thurisaz

Symbols: -

Tarot Card: -

Time: -

Norse - Gods and Goddesses

Bibliography

• The Witches God - Janet and Stewart Farrar
• The Witches Goddess - Janet and Stewart Farrar
• A Dictionary of Egyptian Gods and Goddesses - George Hart
• Celtic Goddesses - Miranda Green
• Gods, Demons and Symbols of Ancient Mesopotamia - Jeremy Black and Anthony Green
• Maori Religion and Mythology - Edward Shortland
• The Greek Myths - Robert Graves
• Encyclopedia of Goddesses and Heroines, 2-Volume Set - Patricia Monaghan
• Asgard and the Gods: The Tales and Traditions of Our Northern Ancestors - Wilhelm Wägner Macdovvall
• The Mythology of all Races - Vol 1-12 - Louis H Gray
• The Ancient Gods Speak - Edited by Donald B Redford
• The Pyramid Texts - Faulkner
• Aradia, Gospel of the Witches - Charles G. Leland
• Myths of the Norsemen From the Eddas and Sagas - H. A. Guerber
• The Theogony of Hesiod - translated by Hugh G. Evelyn-White 1914
• Encyclopedia of Ancient Deities, 2-Volume Set - Charles Russell Coulter and Patricia Turner
• Wikipedia

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