Mímir

Mímir.

Mímir, "the remember" or "the wise one", is a wisdom deity in Norse mythology. He is closely associated with a magical well of knowledge that bears his name, the Mímisbrunnr.

Overview

As owner of his namesake well, Mímir himself drinks from it and gains great knowledge. To drink from the well, he uses the Gjallarhorn, a drinking horn which shares its name with the sounding horn used by Heimdallr intended to announce the onset of Ragnarök. The section further relates that the well is located beneath one of the three roots of Yggdrasil, in the realm of the frost jötnar.

At the conclusion of the Æsir-Vanir War he was sent to the Vanir along with the god Hœnir as part of a peaceful hostage exchange. Fearing trickery from the Aesir because of Hœnir's foolishness, the Vanir beheaded Mímir and returned his head to Asgard.

In order to keep the head from losing its wisdom, the god Odin preserved the head in herbs and gained knowledge from it. According to another story, Mimir resided by a well that stood beneath one of the roots of Yggdrasil, the World Tree. That well contained one of Odin’s eyes, which Odin had pledged in order to drink from the waters and receive wisdom.