Editing Freyja (section)

===''Poetic Edda''===
In the ''[[Poetic Edda]]'', Freyja is mentioned or appears in the poems ''[[Völuspá]]'', ''[[Grímnismál]]'', ''[[Lokasenna]]'', ''[[Þrymskviða]]'', ''[[Oddrúnargrátr]]'', and ''[[Hyndluljóð]]''.

''Völuspá'' contains a stanza that mentions Freyja, referring to her as "Óð's girl"; Freyja being the wife of her husband, [[Óðr]]. The stanza recounts that Freyja was once promised to an unnamed builder, later revealed to be a [[jötunn]] and subsequently killed by [[Thor]] (recounted in detail in ''Gylfaginning'' chapter 42; see ''Prose Edda'' section below).{{sfnp|Larrington|1999|p=7}} In the poem ''[[Grímnismál]]'', Odin (disguised as ''[[List of names of Odin|Grímnir]]'') tells the young [[Agnarr Geirröðsson|Agnar]] that every day Freyja allots seats to half of those that are slain in her hall [[Fólkvangr]], while Odin owns the other half.{{sfnp|Larrington|1999|p=53}}

[[File:Lokasenna by Lorenz Frølich.jpg|thumb|upright|Freyja and Loki [[Flyting|flyte]] in an illustration (1895) by Lorenz Frølich.]]

In the poem ''[[Lokasenna]]'', where [[Loki]] accuses nearly every female in attendance of promiscuity or unfaithfulness, an aggressive exchange occurs between Loki and Freyja. The introduction to the poem notes that among other gods and goddesses, Freyja attends a celebration held by [[Ægir]]. In verse, after Loki has [[Flyting|flyted]] with the goddess [[Frigg]], Freyja interjects, telling Loki that he is insane for dredging up his terrible deeds, and that Frigg knows the [[wyrd|fate of everyone]], though she does not tell it. Loki tells her to be silent, and says that he knows all about her—that Freyja is not lacking in blame, for each of the gods and [[elf|elves]] in the hall have been her lover. Freyja objects. She says that Loki is lying, that he is just looking to blather about misdeeds, and since the gods and goddesses are furious at him, he can expect to go home defeated. Loki tells Freyja to be silent, calls her a malicious witch, and conjures a scenario where Freyja was once astride her brother when all of the gods, laughing, surprised the two. Njörðr interjects—he says that a woman having a lover other than her husband is harmless, and he points out that Loki has borne children, and calls Loki a pervert. The poem continues in turn.{{sfnp|Larrington|1999|pp=84,90}}

The poem ''Þrymskviða'' features Loki borrowing Freyja's cloak of feathers and Thor dressing up as Freyja to fool the lusty [[jötunn]] [[Þrymr]]. In the poem, Thor wakes up to find that his powerful hammer, [[Mjöllnir]], is missing. Thor tells Loki of his missing hammer, and the two go to the beautiful court of Freyja. Thor asks Freyja if she will lend him her cloak of feathers, so that he may try to find his hammer. Freyja agrees:
<blockquote>
{|
|
:<small>[[Benjamin Thorpe]] translation:</small>
:That I would give thee, although of gold it were,
:and trust it to thee, though it were of silver.{{sfnp|Thorpe|1866|p=62}}
|
:<small>[[Henry Adams Bellows (businessman)|Henry Adams Bellows]] translation:</small>
:Thine should it be though it of silver bright,
:And I would give it though 'twere of gold.{{sfnp|Bellows|1923|p=175}}
|
|}
</blockquote>
[[File:Ah, what a lovely maid it is! by Elmer Boyd Smith.jpg|thumb|upright|While Freyja's cats look on, the god [[Thor]] is unhappily dressed as Freyja in ''Ah, what a lovely maid it is!'' (1902) by [[Elmer Boyd Smith]].]]
Loki flies away in the whirring feather cloak, arriving in the land of [[Jötunheimr]]. He spies [[Þrymr]] sitting on top of a [[tumulus|mound]]. Þrymr reveals that he has hidden Thor's hammer deep within the earth and that no one will ever know where the hammer is unless Freyja is brought to him as his wife. Loki flies back, the cloak whistling, and returns to the courts of the gods. Loki tells Thor of Þrymr's conditions.{{sfnp|Larrington|1999|p=98}}

The two go to see the beautiful Freyja. The first thing that Thor says to Freyja is that she should dress herself and put on a bride's [[headgear|head-dress]], for they shall drive to Jötunheimr. At that, Freyja is furious—the halls of the gods shake, she snorts in anger, and from the goddess the necklace [[Brísingamen]] falls. Indignant, Freyja responds:
<blockquote>
{|
|
:<small>Benjamin Thorpe translation:</small>
:Know of me to be of women the lewdest,
:if with thee I drive to Jötunheim.{{sfnp|Thorpe|1866|p=64}}
|
:<small>Henry Adams Bellows translation:</small>
:Most lustful indeed should I look to all
:If I journeyed with thee to the giants' home.{{sfnp|Bellows|1923|p=177}}
|
|}
</blockquote>
The gods and goddesses assemble at a [[thing (assembly)|thing]] and debate how to solve the problem. The god [[Heimdallr]] proposes to dress Thor up as a bride, complete with bridal dress, head-dress, jingling keys, jewelry, and the famous Brísingamen. Thor objects but is hushed by Loki, reminding him that the new owners of the hammer will soon be settling in the land of the gods if the hammer is not returned. Thor is dressed as planned and Loki is dressed as his maid. Thor and Loki go to Jötunheimr.{{sfnp|Larrington|1999|pp=99–100}}

In the meantime, Thrym tells his servants to prepare for the arrival of the daughter of [[Njörðr]]. When "Freyja" arrives in the morning, Thrym is taken aback by her behavior; her immense appetite for food and [[mead]] is far more than what he expected, and when Thrym goes in for a kiss beneath "Freyja's" veil, he finds "her" eyes to be terrifying, and he jumps down the hall. The disguised Loki makes excuses for the bride's odd behavior, claiming that she simply has not eaten or slept for eight days. In the end, the disguises successfully fool the jötnar and, upon sight of it, Thor regains his hammer by force.{{sfnp|Larrington|1999|pp=100–101}}

In the poem ''[[Oddrúnargrátr]]'', [[Oddrún]] helps [[Borgny]] give birth to twins. In thanks, Borgny invokes [[vættir]], Frigg, Freyja, and other unspecified deities.{{sfnp|Larrington|1999|p=206}}

[[File:Hyndla og Freia by Frølich.jpg|thumb|Reclining atop her boar Hildisvíni, Freyja visits Hyndla in an illustration (1895) by [[Lorenz Frølich]].]]
[[File:Freia Gestures to Hyndla by Frølich.jpg|thumb|upright|Nuzzled by her boar Hildisvíni, Freyja gestures to a jötunn in an illustration (1895) by [[Lorenz Frølich]].]]

Freyja is a main character in the poem ''[[Hyndluljóð]]'', where she assists her faithful servant [[Óttar (mythology)|Óttar]] in finding information about his ancestry so that he may claim his inheritance. In doing so, Freyja turns Óttar into her boar, Hildisvíni, and, by means of flattery and threats of death by fire, Freyja successfully pries the information that Óttar needs from the jötunn [[Hyndla]]. Freyja speaks throughout the poem, and at one point praises Óttar for constructing a [[hörgr]] (an altar of stones) and frequently making [[blót]] (sacrifices) to her:
<blockquote>
{|
|-style="vertical-align: top;"
|
:<small>Benjamin Thorpe translation:</small>
:An [[hörgr|offer-stead]] to me he raised,
:with stones constructed;
:now is the stone
:as glass become.
:With the blood of oxen
:he newly sprinkled it.
:Ottar ever trusted the [[Áss|Asyniur]].{{sfnp|Thorpe|1866|p=108}}
|
:<small>Henry Adams Bellows translation:</small>
:For me a [[hörgr|shrine of stones]] he made,
:And now to glass the rock has grown;
:Oft with the blood of beasts was it red;
:In the goddesses ever did Ottar trust.{{sfnp|Bellows|1923|p=221}}
|
|}
</blockquote>