Kvasir- Norse GodDeity"The Wisest of All"

The Spittle and the Peace

When the Æsir and Vanir ended their war, both sides sealed the treaty by spitting into a communal vat. From that mingled saliva the gods fashioned Kvasir. He could answer any question anyone asked. The Skáldskaparmál says he traveled the world, teaching wisdom wherever he went.

The Murder

Kvasir came to the dwelling of two dwarves, Fjalar and Galar. They invited him in and killed him. They drained his blood into two vats called Són and Boðn and a kettle called Óðrerir, mixed honey with the blood, and brewed the Mead of Poetry. Anyone who drank it would speak in verse and wisdom.

When the gods asked what had become of Kvasir, the dwarves said he had choked on his own knowledge because no one was learned enough to ask him proper questions.

The Mead's Journey

The mead did not stay with the dwarves. Fjalar and Galar murdered a giant named Gillingr and his wife, and Gillingr's son Suttungr seized the mead as compensation. He hid the three vessels inside the mountain Hnitbjörg, guarded by his daughter Gunnlöð.

Odin came for it. Working as a farmhand under the name Bolverk, he tricked Suttungr's brother Baugi into boring a hole through the mountain. Odin slipped through as a serpent, spent three nights with Gunnlöð, and she let him drink: one draught from each vessel. He drained them all, flew back to Asgard as an eagle, and spat the mead into vats the Æsir had prepared.

Snorri explains that this is why poetry is called "Kvasir's blood," "drink of the dwarves," or "Odin's gift."