The Road to Yggdrasil: Odin’s Path of Self-Discovery

Abstract

Through the ages, Odin has been a strong archetype of wisdom within the mythic imagery of the West as the god who has relentlessly pursued magic through sacrifice. He stands at the crossroads of shadow and light, a beacon for the individual poetic soul, inspiring great masterworks of art, literature and music.

This dissertation explores the mythology of Odin from his earliest life as a creator of worlds, warrior and bringer of civilization to the nine Norse worlds, philosopher King and ruler of the gods, through his later development as a Senex, solitary adventuring hermit of the soul, and wielder of the magic rune-enchantments, with focus given to his influence on poets. The re-emerging archetype of Odin throughout time to the present is a sign of the individual seeking wholeness that integrates the solo-shamanic journey into the Underworld of sacrifice with a return to society in order to bring back the boons of the night sea journey.

The Norse Allfather reflects the innate human desire to transcend the herd of societal life with all of its requirements and integrate the experience and wisdom of the individual journey through life. It is evident in recent contemporary literary works, such as Neil Gaiman’s novel American Gods that Odin is an active force in the current consciousness of society. My experience growing up in Minnesota and working with the great Norwegian-American poet Robert Bly form the basis for my observations of the tremendous transformative power of poetry and mythic narratives of Odin drawn from the medieval Germanic tradition.

This dissertation culminates in a mythic battle where Odin, as a dying moon god, is consumed by the great cosmic wolf Fenris but lives on through his sons and daughters to continue the task of bringing human beings back to their own inner nature and in accord with the world as a living breathing entity.