Glossary - exWitch Australia (formerly 'Born Again Pagan')

FREYJA
also: Freya

In Norse mythology, blonde and blue-eyed Freya was the Goddess of love, pro-creation and fecundity. The hare was her companion. She was the wife of Odur, god of sunshine, and the daughter of Njord, a Van or sea Goddess, and Nerthus. Both Njord and Nerthus were members of the Vanir, deities of the earth, fertility and death. Freyja also was a fierce warrior, leading the Valkyries to the battlefields to recover slain heroes and take them to Valhalla.

Freyja is often confused with Frigga, wife of Odin and Goddess of marital love and marriage. Like Frigga, she loved jewelry and ornaments. She is frequently identified with Gefjon, "the Giver," a fertility Goddess.

Freya was condemned as a witch by early Christians and banished to the mountains, where she was said to convene and dance with her demons on Walspurgisnacht (Beltane), April 30, and is associated with Hares.

In Neo-Paganism, Freyja is worshipped in the Pantheon of Norse and Teutonic deities. With her combination of sexuality, fruitfulness, aggression and bravery, she has strong feminist appeal.

PLEASE NOTE:
One of the major problems with 'defining' Paganism and/or its beliefs and practices is that it is an 'organic' movement, in that it is undergoing constant change and re-evaluation from within, and as such any 'one-size-fits-all' approach to understanding Paganism will be found wanting.

Due to the very 'organic' nature of Paganism, and the many differing Paths and Traditions within it, in many cases no one definition may be universally accepted by all Pagans. Therefore, where such cases of possible conflicting and/or contradictory meanings of certain terms occur I have endevoured to give not only the generally accepted meaning, but also any major 'variations' in belief and/or practice.

Christians who believe this difference in meaning of certain key terms, beliefs and practices to be unique to Paganism need to remember that such conflicts also arise within the Body of Christ - the Church. Take for instance the differing practices amongst Christians concerning Baptism and the different attitudes towards women in the clergy.

- Jean-Luc