Odin and Frigg, queen of Asgard, are the parents of Baldur the Beautiful and the blind god Höðr. Baldur's death at Höðr's unwitting hand set in motion the events leading to Ragnarök.
⚠ Gylfaginning names Baldur as son of Odin and Frigg explicitly, but Höðr's mother is not specified in surviving sources. His inclusion as Frigg's son is a common scholarly inference.
Baldur and Nanna were husband and wife. At Baldur's funeral, Nanna's heart burst from grief and she was placed on his pyre beside him. Their son Forseti became the god of justice.
Loki tricked the blind god Höðr into throwing mistletoe at Baldur, killing the otherwise invulnerable god and setting in motion the chain of vengeance that led to Ragnarök.
The Æsir are the principal tribe of Norse gods who dwell in Asgard, including both native members and Vanir hostages received after the Æsir-Vanir War, as catalogued in Gylfaginning.
After Ragnarök, Baldur and Höðr return together from Hel to the renewed world, the slayer and the slain reconciled at last in the green fields of a reborn earth.
Odin placed Draupnir, the golden arm-ring that multiplied itself every ninth night, on Baldur's funeral pyre as a final gift to his slain son.
Frigg extracted oaths from every substance in the world not to harm Baldur, but overlooked the mistletoe, which Loki exploited to bring about Baldur's death.
Hel agreed to release Baldur from her realm only if all things in the world wept for him. When the giantess Þökk (Loki in disguise) refused, Baldur remained in Helheim.
After the blind god Höðr hurled the mistletoe shaft, Baldur fell dead and descended to Helheim, the brightest of the gods consigned to the cold halls of the dead.
Hermóðr rode Odin's horse Sleipnir to Helheim to plead for Baldur's release. Hel agreed on condition that all things weep for Baldur, but the giantess Þökk refused.
Hringhorni, the greatest of all ships, served as Baldur's funeral pyre. The gods launched the vessel with the giantess Hyrrokkin's help, and Baldur's body was burned aboard it.
Loki orchestrated Baldur's death by discovering that mistletoe had not sworn the oath, then guided Höðr's throw. He further ensured Baldur could not return by refusing to weep while disguised as the giantess Þökk.
Odin whispered unknown words into Baldur's ear on the funeral pyre, a mystery referenced in Vafþrúðnismál that no other being can answer.
Thor consecrated Baldur's funeral pyre with Mjölnir, hallowing the flames as the gods mourned. During the ceremony, Thor kicked the dwarf Litr into the fire.
In Saxo's Gesta Danorum, Baldur and Ullr are rivals — Baldur (Balderus) wars with Høtherus over Nanna, while Ullr (Ollerus) seizes the throne during Odin's exile, a tradition far removed from the Eddic accounts.
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