The Nine Worlds

The Nine Worlds

Everything is connected. The fate of one affects the fate of all. Unite for a cause. Darkness and light, good and evil, beginnings and endings, birth and death are all connected. We are never alone.

The mighty ash
Holds all nine,
And the wyrd it flows through
All ends,
All beginnings,
All thoughts.
Each a place for someone:
Sky, earth, trees, ice, fire, death, light.
All united,
All home.

In Norse cosmology, there are nine home worlds (Níu Heimar) or realms, all of which are held within the branches or roots of the world tree, Yggdrasil. In this way, all nine worlds are connected, and each influences the others.

The nine worlds and their inhabitants are as follows:
* Asgard, the home of the Æsir ruled by the god Odin
* Álfheimr/Ljósálfheimr, the home of the Light Elves ("Ljósálfar")
* Niðavellir/Svartálfaheimr, the home of the Dwarves, who are also synonymous with the Dark Elves ("Dökkálfar") and Black Elves ("Svartálfar")
* Midgard (Earth), the home of humans
* Jötunheimr/Útgarðr, the home of the Jötnar (Giants)
* Vanaheim, the home of the Vanir
* Niflheim, a world of ice and snow
* Muspelheim, a world of fire and lava and home of the Jötunn Surtr
* Hel(heimr), the home of the dishonorable dead, sometimes synonymous with or located within Niflheim and ruled by the goddess Hel 

The different realms correspond with various aspects of our physical world. For example, Asgard is set high in the sky; Hel below ground, where graves may be found; Niflheim is within the ice; and Jötunheimr, in forests and green places. There are also direct links between worlds, including the rainbow bridge Bifrost that links Asgard through Alfheimr to Midgard and allows the gods of Aefir and Vanir to communicate with each other and human beings.

Within the Norse cosmos, we learn that everything is connected. The same tree holds up all nine worlds, different though each world may be, and each world influences the others. While there is a natural ebb and flow, and even battles between elements, the whole ultimately seeks balance and harmony. When all worlds end, at Ragnarok, we know that the cycles begin again and the world reforms, elements first.

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From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

The cosmology of Norse mythology has "nine homeworlds" or "nine realms", unified by the world tree Yggdrasil. Mapping the nine worlds escapes precision because the Poetic Edda often alludes vaguely. The Norse creation myth tells how everything came into existence in the gap between fire and ice, and how the gods shaped the homeworld of humans.

A cosmic ash tree, Yggdrasil, lies at the center of the Norse cosmos. Three roots drink the waters of the homeworlds, one in the homeworld of the gods, the Æsir, Asgard, one in the homeworld of the humans, Midgard, and one in the homeworld of the dead, Helheim. Beneath the root in the world of the frost giants is the spring of Mímir, whose waters contain wisdom and understanding.

The root in the Æsir homeworld taps the sacred wellspring of fate, the Well of Urðr. The tree is tended by the Norns, who live near it. Each day, they water it with pure water and whiten it with clay from the spring to preserve it. The water falls down to the earth as dew.

Animals continually feed on the tree, threatening it, but its vitality persists evergreen as it heals and nourishes the vibrant aggression of life. On the topmost branch of the tree sits an eagle. The beating of its wings cause the winds in the world of men. At the root of the tree lies a great dragon, Niðhǫggr, gnawing at it continuously, together with other unnamed serpents. The squirrel Ratatoskr carries insults from one to the other. Harts and goats devour the branches and tender shoots.