Image Information:
Freyja. J. Doyle Penrose (1862-1932). Wikipedia.
Once Ishtar had finished her story, she sank back down into the cloud,
her eyes staring off into the distance. The other goddesses awkwardly
made sideways glances toward one another and fidgeted with their jewels.
Aphrodite
was the first to break the silence. "Ishtar, you have proved your
point. Love can be horribly depressing. Blah, blah, blah. Just because
you have experienced some dreadful aspects of love does not make love a
heinous thing. Love is beautiful, and I refuse to be told differently."
Urvashi
spoke up to defend Ishtar. "Aphrodite, you are arguing to no one.
Ishtar
was sharing a part of her past with us, not starting an argument. She
was simply showing love from a different angle, and you cannot be mad
about that. I thought the story was beautiful."
"I think
Ishtar is making a point with her story that all of us need to learn
from," Frejya said. "Everyone," as she spoke she took a long look at
Aphrodite, "needs to know that love can bring good as well as bad
effects. Now, I think we could all use another glass of wine." As soon
as the words were out of her lips, the four glasses the goddesses were
holding were immediately refilled. "It's time you all listened to the
wise words of a beautiful Norse goddess, myself." Frejya smiled and
straightened up in her cloud, preparing for her storytelling.
"I
have experienced the many benefits of being a goddess of love, but I
have also known the many faults that come with such a glamorous
position. Gods and goddesses are known for their secret alliances and
clever traps. Although I am a wise goddess, I have indeed fallen into
the traps of other gods. Being a goddess of love is somewhat
contradictory because although I have the power to use love to my
advantage, I cannot obtain the free love and support of my fellow gods
and goddesses. Actually, I have found that being a goddess of love
creates resentment and jealousy among others.
Ægir, the Norse
god of the sea, was hosting a large party. All the prominent gods and
goddesses were invited, so I, of course, received an invitation and
decided to make an appearance. Ægir had brewed for us a large
cauldron
of ale. The cauldron was so large that I and all the gods and goddesses
started feeling the ale's affects after the cauldron was only half
empty. It was a joyous event, and I was very much enjoying myself. By
the time the cauldron was three-fourths gone, I was well aware of the
ale's affects on myself. I dare to say that I was a bit drunk, and
probably enjoying myself a little too much. I became quite flirtatious
with all the gods present, and I was quickly the center of attention at
the party.
While we were all having a good
time at Ægir's party,
Loki decided to show up uninvited. Loki is a Norse god who can change
his body into various shapes, such as animals. He acts as a messenger
or assistant to all the gods, and he is not very well liked for all the
problems he seems to cause among the gods. Well, Loki came into
Ægir's
home to find us all enjoying a party that he was not welcome at. He was
very upset. Instead of blaming Ægir for not inviting him to his
party,
Loki made me his target. He called me many names in front of all the
gods and goddesses. He claimed that I had commited too many crimes to
count, and he accused me of being a sorceress. Loki yelled that I was
evil and shouted that my current drunken, flirtatious state was
proof of his accusations.
I was taken with such surprise that
I could do nothing but stare at Loki while he accused me of so many
wretched things. I looked around for one of the other gods or goddesses
to help me, but not one of them rose to my defense. All eyes stared at
me, judging me for all that Loki said. I could not believe that not one
of my 'friends' would try to deny Loki's accusations. I was so upset
that I ran from Ægir's home. Of course, Loki was punished for
his public charges at the party. He was not punished solely on my
behalf, but he angered many of the gods and goddesses present at the
party. After I left, Loki made some sladerous comments towards the
others, which made them very upset. They had Loki bound to a rock for
his punishment.
I had thought that all the
gods and
goddesses were on my side, but this clearly showed that I was all
alone. Being a god or a goddess comes with a price. Although we have
various powers and are immortal, we can trust no one but ourselves. We
have few friends and must be cautious of the ones we do have."
Author's
note: In this story, I tried to demonstrate some of the weaknesses of
the gods and goddesses. Although all four of the goddesses of love I
used for my storybook are slightly conceited, they are also
selfconcious just like ordinary people. I tried to portray Freyja as a
human with human-like feelings. Just because one is a god or goddess
does not mean they are without everyday thoughts and feelings. I used the story of Lokasenna("Loki's
Wrangling") to demonstrate Freyja's advice to the other goddesses. The
story comes from the Poetic Edda, which is collection of poems from the
Norse mythology collected around the 9th to 11th century. I changed a
few details from the story. In the original story, Freyja is not
actually singled out in Loki's accusations. Loki is furious with many
of the gods, and he goes around the party individually tormenting
several gods or goddess. Although this is a major point in the story, I
wanted to keep Freyja singled out in order to prove her point. The
slanderous words Loki used agree with the original story. The claims
that Loki makes are easy targets that none of the
gods or goddesses could disprove. In the end, the gods and goddesses
catch Loki and bind him to a rock.
