Old Norse shamanic magic used to perceive and shape fate.
Seiðr is a form of Norse magic closely linked to fate and the hidden. The practitioner, often a völva, entered a trance-like state to travel between worlds, prophesy the future or influence events.
Seiðr was considered ergi, that is, unmanly, for male practitioners, a taboo that Óðinn nevertheless transgressed. Freyja is said to have brought the knowledge to the Æsir, and there are connections to Sámi noajdie tradition.
Attestations
- Eiríks saga rauða, kap. 4
- Classic description of a völva's seiðr ceremony.