Study › Runes & Norse › Vidar
Vidar is the silent god of Norse mythology, a son of Odin, almost as strong as Thor. At Ragnarok he avenges his father by tearing the wolf Fenrir apart, and he is one of the few gods who live on in the new world.
Who is Vidar in Norse mythology?
Vidar is the silent god, a son of Odin by the giantess Grid, and second in strength only to Thor. He is spoken of little, but he is kept in reserve for the most important act of the world's end.
He is called the Silent God because the Prose Edda names him inn þögli áss. He speaks little, but he is almost as strong as Thor. At Ragnarok he will avenge his father, Odin.
What is Vidar the god of?
- Domains — silence, vengeance, survival
- World — Asgard
- Animal — wolf
- Offerings — beer, wine, meat, bread; a scrap of thick leather, a shoe sole
- Metal — iron
Kin — Parents: Odin and Grid
Vidar at Ragnarok
At Ragnarok, when the wolf Fenrir has swallowed Odin, it is Vidar who avenges his father. Wearing a great shoe made of all the leather scraps that cobblers have ever discarded, he sets that foot on the wolf's lower jaw, seizes the upper, and tears Fenrir apart. Vidar is one of the few gods fated to survive the burning of the worlds and to walk in the green world that rises after.
He avenges Odin on Fenrir at Ragnarok.
Questions
How does Vidar kill Fenrir?
He puts his foot, in a great shoe made of all the leather scraps ever thrown away, on the wolf's lower jaw and tears its jaws apart.
Does Vidar survive Ragnarok?
Yes. He lives on in the new world.