baldr

Baldr, also Baldur, is a central figure in Norse mythology, a god of light, beauty, and purity. He is the son of Odin and Frigg and a member of the Æsir. Baldr is described as benevolent, just, and beloved by the gods. His dwelling is Breidablik, the bright hall in Asgard, and in some sources he is said to be the father of Forseti with his wife Nanna, though different genealogies give Baldr various offspring.

Frigg, Baldr’s mother, obtains oaths from almost everything in the world not to harm him. Because of this all-powerful vow, Baldr becomes nearly invulnerable. The only exception is a mistletoe, regarded as harmless and not sworn to in Frigg’s pact. Loki, the trickster, learns of this and persuades the blind god Hodr to throw a dart made from mistletoe at Baldr. Baldr is killed, and the gods are plunged into mourning. Frigg commands that all things weep for Baldr, which prompts widespread lament, though the mistletoe itself remains the one thing that does not cry.

Baldr’s death is followed by a great funeral; his wife Nanna dies of grief, and Baldr is laid on a funeral ship and burned. The event is one of the most significant omens of Ragnarök, the foretold end-times for the gods. In some Norse traditions, Baldr is said to return after Ragnarök to rule in the renewed world alongside Hodr, though the principal accounts emphasize his death as a pivotal moment in the mythic cycle.