

The Dísablót was the blót (sacrificial holiday) which was held in honour of the female spirits or deities called dísir[1] (and the Valkyries[2]), from pre-historic times until the Christianization of Scandinavia. Its purpose was to enhance the coming harvest.[3] It is mentioned in Hervarar saga, Víga-Glúms saga, Egils saga and the Heimskringla. The celebration still lives on in the form of an annual fair called the Disting in Uppsala, Sweden.
The Dísablót appears to have been held during Winter Nights,[1] or at the vernal equinox.[4] In one version of Hervarar saga, there is a description of how the sacrifice was performed. Alfhildr, the daughter of king Alfr of Alfheim, was kidnapped by Starkad Aludreng while she was reddening a hörgr with blood.[1][5]
This suggests that the rite was performed by women, especially in light of what is generally believed to be their nearly exclusive role as priestesses of the pagan Germanic religion.[1] However, according to the Ynglinga saga part of the Heimskringla, the king of Sweden performed the rites, which was in accordance with his role as high priest of the Temple at Uppsala. The mention of the Dísablót concerns the death of king Eadgils (Aðils, Adils) who died from falling off his horse while riding around the shrine:
See also
References and notes
- 1 2 3 4 "The Religious Practices of the Pre-Christian and Viking Age North at Northvegr". Archived from the original on 2007-09-27. Retrieved 2006-11-30.
- ↑ The article Diser in Nationalencyklopedin (1991).
- ↑ "Disablot", Nationalencyklopedin.
- ↑ The article Distingen, in the encyclopedia Nationalencyklopedin.
- ↑ Hervarar saga in Old Norse, N. M. Petersen's edition Archived 2007-05-19 at the Wayback Machine
- ↑ Sturluson, Snorri; Laing, Samuel (1930). Heimskringla: The Norse King Sagas. p. 30.
- ↑ The article Landsting, at the official site of the Museum of National Antiquities, Sweden Archived 2006-09-30 at the Wayback Machine.
- ↑ The article Disablot, in the encyclopedia Nordisk familjebok.
- ↑ [http://www.foteviken.se/historia/ynglinga/yng_start.htm The article Snorres Ynglingasaga at the site of the Foteviken Museum, Sweden
- ↑ An obsolete name for Sweden, more specifically what today is named Svealand. Literally: "the Swedish people".
- ↑ The month of February.
- ↑ Saga of Olaf Haraldson, part II.
- ↑ Myth and Religion of the North (1964), 224-227.
