If you’ve ever scrolled through a deck of Norse oracle cards or watched a Marvel movie, you might think you’ve got a handle on the lady with the cats. You probably think she’s just the "Norse Aphrodite." Honestly? That’s kind of a lazy comparison. While it’s true that people often ask what is Freya the goddess of only to be told "love and beauty," that answer barely scratches the surface of who she actually was to the people of the Viking Age.
Freya is a contradiction. She’s the golden-teared mourner and the blood-stained commander. She’s the one you pray to when you want to find a partner, but she’s also the one who gets first pick of the dead on the battlefield—beating even Odin to the punch. She is the archetype of the "independent woman" a thousand years before that was even a concept.
The Vanir Origins and the War of the Gods
Most people assume all Norse gods are the same. They aren't. There are actually two "families" or tribes: the Aesir and the Vanir. Freya belongs to the Vanir. These were the older, earth-connected deities associated with fertility, wealth, and the wilder parts of nature.
Long before the world we recognize today was fully formed, the Aesir and Vanir fought a brutal war. When the fighting finally stopped, they swapped hostages to keep the peace. That’s how Freya, along with her twin brother Freyr and their father Njord, ended up living in Asgard among the Aesir.
This background is vital because it explains her vibe. While Odin and Thor are busy with rules, honor, and celestial politics, Freya brings a certain primal, magical energy that the Aesir didn't originally possess. She’s an outsider who became the most essential player in the room.
What is Freya the goddess of exactly?
If we’re being technical, she’s the goddess of love, sex, beauty, fertility, gold, war, and death. It's a lot. Most modern scholars, like Dr. Jackson Crawford, note that her name literally translates to "The Lady." It’s a title of high status.
The Love and Lust Aspect
Yeah, she’s the goddess of love, but it’s not the "Victorian romance" kind of love. It’s raw. It’s physical. In the Poetic Edda, specifically the poem Lokasenna, the trickster god Loki accuses her of having slept with every single god and elf in Asgard. While Loki is a known liar, the point is that Freya’s sexuality wasn't something she was ashamed of. She owned it.
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She represents the life force itself. When the giants (Jötnar) try to kidnap a goddess to cause the downfall of the gods, they almost always go for Freya. Without her, Asgard loses its vitality. It stops growing. It stops feeling.
The Commander of the Slain
This is where people get tripped up. Why is a love goddess also a war goddess?
In Norse mythology, half of those who die in battle go to Valhalla, Odin’s hall. But the other half? They go to Fólkvangr, which is Freya's meadow.
"The ninth is Folkvang, where Freyja decrees who shall have seats in the hall; half the dead she chooses daily, and half Odin has." — Grímnismál
Think about that for a second. She gets the first pick. Before the All-Father even looks at the fallen warriors, Freya has already taken her share. This suggests she isn't just a "pretty face" in the pantheon; she is a powerful psychopomp, a guide for the dead, and a formidable military leader. Her hall, Sessrúmnir, is described as large and beautiful, filled with the sounds of her chosen warriors.
Seidr: The Dangerous Magic
If you want to understand the darker side of Freya, you have to talk about Seidr. This was a specific type of Norse magic involving weaving the threads of fate, seeing the future, and even manipulating the minds of others.
The Aesir didn't know how to do this until Freya taught them.
Odin, obsessed with knowledge, was her primary student. But there was a catch. In Viking society, Seidr was seen as ergi—essentially "unmanly" or "shameful" for men to practice because it involved a passive, receptive state. Freya didn't care about those taboos. She moved between worlds, shifted her shape with a cloak of falcon feathers, and saw things no one else could.
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When you ask what is Freya the goddess of, you are asking about the patron of witches. She is the original Völva (seeress). If you were a woman in the 9th century trying to predict if the harvest would fail or if your husband would return from a raid, you weren't looking to Thor. You were looking to Freya.
The Brisingamen and the Price of Desire
There’s a famous story about her necklace, the Brisingamen. It’s the most beautiful piece of jewelry ever made. To get it, she found four dwarves forging it in a cave. They refused to sell it for gold or silver. The price was that she had to spend one night with each of them.
She did it.
She didn't haggle. She didn't cry. She made a transaction.
To the Norse, gold was "the tears of Freya." When she wept for her missing husband, Óðr (who is often thought to be a version of Odin himself), her tears turned to gold on land and amber in the sea. This links her directly to the economy of the Viking world. She is the source of wealth, but that wealth is born from longing and pain.
Common Misconceptions: Freya vs. Frigg
Are they the same person? It’s the ultimate academic debate in Norse studies.
- Frigg is Odin’s wife, the Queen of the Aesir, the goddess of the household and motherhood.
- Freya is the independent "Lady," associated with passion and magic.
Some historians argue they were originally one goddess (Frija) who split into two personas over time as the Germanic tribes moved north. They both share similar attributes: they both have bird-skin cloaks, they both weep for lost husbands, and their names have similar roots. However, in the stories we have left, they are distinct characters. Frigg is the "proper" wife; Freya is the "wild" woman.
How to Connect with Freya Today
You don't have to be a Viking to appreciate the archetype. Freya is about autonomy. She is about knowing your worth and refusing to let others dictate your desires.
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If you're looking for actionable ways to bring that energy into your life, start with these:
- Reclaim your independence. Freya never asked for permission. If you’ve been waiting for a "green light" from someone else to start a project or make a move, stop. The "Lady" energy is about self-governance.
- Acknowledge the duality of grief and beauty. Freya’s gold comes from her tears. It’s a reminder that the hard stuff you’ve been through—the losses, the "warrior" moments—is exactly what makes you valuable.
- Study the "Old Ways" of intuition. Whether it’s meditation, tarot, or just trusting your gut, Freya’s association with Seidr magic is a call to listen to your internal compass rather than external noise.
- Value your "chosen family." Just as Freya took her warriors to Fólkvangr, focus on the people you choose to have in your inner circle, not just the ones you're obligated to.
Freya is a complex, multifaceted powerhouse who reminds us that you can be soft enough to cry gold and tough enough to lead an army. She isn't just the goddess of love. She is the goddess of the whole human experience—the messy, beautiful, violent, and magical parts of it.
Recommended Reading for the Deeply Curious
If you want to go beyond the surface, check out The Poetic Edda (the Carolyne Larrington translation is great) and Snorri Sturluson’s Prose Edda. These are the primary sources. For a more modern take on the archaeology of Freya-worship, look into the work of Neil Price, specifically The Viking Way. He digs into how the magic Freya taught was actually practiced in real-life Viking rituals.
The historical reality is often weirder and more interesting than the myths we see on TV. Freya wasn't a background character; she was the heartbeat of a culture that valued gold, blood, and the mysterious threads of fate above all else.
Next time you see a cat or a piece of amber, think of the Lady. She’s still around, in a way, reminding us that we don't have to choose between being loved and being powerful. We can, and should, be both.