The Saga of Vanadís, Völva and Valkyrja

It is interesting, but somewhat depressing to read this interpretation, in probably
the only book written exclusively about Freyja the Great Goddess, and by a woman.
Sigurður Nordal comes to the same conclusion. Gullveig is obviously Freyja herself, a
representative of the Vanir, since they are wealthy (the destructive power of gold) and
from them comes the seiður. She has been visiting the Æsir, and in some way (he doesn’t
explain how) she has disturbed them severely so that they feel they have lost something,
and have to get compensation (1923/1993, p. 86). After the burning it was Óðinn himself,
the High-God or Great Father of the Æsir who threw his spear into the battle, and that
was “still the world’s first war” (Völuspá, st. 24).
Fleygði Óðinn
ok í folk of skaut.
Þat var enn folkvíg
fyrst í heimi.
Brotinn var borðveggur
borgar ása.
Knáttu vanir vígspá
völlu sporna.
Völuspá, st. 24
Óðinn flung
and fired at the people
it was still
world’s first war.
Broken was the border wall
of bright Ásgarður
Vanir used war spell
to win the battle.
These last words tell us clearly that the war was between the Vanir, who won
because they knew how to use vígspá (war-spell or war-vision), and the Æsir, whose
leader sent his spear into the battle. This description accords with Snorri in Heimskringla,
where Óðinn was the one to start the war, and that the Vanir defended themselves. To be
able to even get an idea of who Gullveig is, we have to look to a time, place and people in
history where a peaceful existence was replaced with warfare. This was not really the
world’s first war, since Æsir had been warriors for a long time, and Óðinn had traveled
far and wide and conquered many a nation (Ynglingasaga, ch. 2). So the war with the
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