the eye of odin
The
Eye of
Odin by ryan burger rtbfcd@gmail.com
hail odin
Illustrated by Ryan Burger
hail thor
for irgens
L
ong ago in the northern lands, a time of magic and the old gods. odin, the allfather, king of the gods, ruled over asgard, his magical kingdom. Odin was very wise and kind, but also fought and led his warriors to battle.
U
pon Odin’s shoulders sat two ravens, named hugin and munin. they would fly over the land each day to bring odin news of the realm. at the feet of his mighty throne lay two mighty wolves named Geri and Freki.
O
din rode a magical flying horse that had eight legs named Sleipnir. He would soar through the skies above Asgard upon his mighty steed.
H
e carried a mighty golden spear as he watched over his realm. Odin indeed was a mighty king, the father of all the gods.
O
din often traveled to the realm of men upon Earth. he would disguise himself as the Wanderer when he was on Earth. Looking like a simple traveler, he wore a blue cloak and wore a broad brimmed hat.
H
is long white beard and piercing blue eyes shone through under the shadow his hat.
U
pon one of his many travels, he came upon Mimir, a wise old giant who guarded the Well of Knowledge.
I
t was said that whomever drank from the well of knowledge would gain the gift of future and past sight.
O
din wanted to gain the knowledge the well had to offer. While he was already wise, he knew more knowledge would just make him a better king for his people.
M
imir would surely test the Wanderer for access to the well. But Odin also knew that Mimir did not recognize him as Odin.
M
imir said “let’s see how wise you already are!” So Mimir began to question the Wanderer of his knowledge of the Gods and the realm of asgard.
W
hat is the name of Thor’s mighty hammer? what is the name of the bridge that connects Asgard to the other worlds? what is the name of the river that feeds all of midgard? Of course Odin knew all the answers; he was the king of the gods after all.
B
eing please that the Wanderer had sufficient knowledge of the realm of the gods; he told Odin that he must sacrifice something precious to him in order to gain the knowledge of the well. Mimir told him he must sacrifice one of his eyes.
O
din’s eyes were deep blue and very beautiful, but he knew how the great the knowledge was and that it was worth the sacrifice.
S
o Odin willingly cut out one of his eyes with his own knife to give to Mimir.
N
ow when Odin traveled in the realm of men, he did not have his powers of a god, he felt the pain as much as any mortal man would.
M
imir placed Odin’s eye in the well and it shone very brightly, revealing Odin’s true identity to Mimir.
U
pon drinking from the well, Odin gained the great knowledge he was seeking, knowledge of the past and future.
T
he already very wise Odin now was the wisest of all the Gods. His sacrifice would provide the knowledge to help rule as a wise king and let the people of Asgard flourish.
The
Eye of Odin the eye of odin by ryan burger