Invocation to the Holy Twins

Holy sister and brother,

Lady and Lord of the Vanir,
Golden of hair as the fields of wheat
Who bring riches of heart and hearth
To noble and common folk alike
You are the security wealth can buy
And the happiness it cannot.
Lord Frey, Corn God
Warrior without a weapon
Who gave his sword for love,
You who make the grain spring forth,
Show us faith in every harvest.
Bless the bonds of those whose love
Binds them to land, to hearth,
To commitment of permanence,
O God whose wedding was cursed and blessed.
Lady Freya, warrior woman,
Chooser of the slain warriors,
Teacher of magic and mysteries,
Mistress of Seidhr and mother of jewels,
Love Goddess and Lady of Springtime,
Flowers scattered in your footsteps,
Unashamed of love and pleasure,
Help us to remember
That there are many kinds of wealth.
Bless us, Frey and Freya,
Most precious gems of Vanaheim,
With the gold of next year's grain and sun.

Planting A Freya Garden

As a goddess of love, spring, and fertility, Freya is also a goddess of blossoms, and nothing could be
more fitting than to plant her a garden. There are a variety of plants that are associated with her in
folklore, as well as some that have become associated with her in modern times, and some that have no
particular association, but she would probably love them.

Before we speak of flowers, however, we need to bring her sacred tree, the Linden (Tilia
europaea). If you’ve ever seen a Linden (or Lime, in the UK) tree with its swaying, dancing branches
and rustling leaves, it will become clear to you why this is Freya’s tree. While Linden trees grow to a
pretty fair height and putting one in the middle of a garden might overshadow the plants, the tree
could be planted at the edge of the garden and a bench placed under it, for sitting and admiring
Freya’s garden.

There is a folktale than when Freya first came to Asgard as a hostage, she spent the first year quite
unhappy. After the lush flora of Vanaheim, she found the bleak winters and lack of spring flowers to
be depressing. When she wept with homesickness, her tears fell to the earth and white flowers sprang
forth. In one version of the tale, they are Snowdrops (Galanthus nivalis); in another, they are the Lily
of the Valley (Convallaria majalis). Both these white flowers can therefore be considered sacred to
her; they are also small and bloom at different times, and can thus be interplanted. Snowdrops bloom
first and will probably be the earliest plant in her garden; Convalilly erupts in May, and was thus
sometimes called the Mayflower.

Cowslips (Primula veris) were traditionally associated with Freya, as was their domestic cousin
Primrose (Primula vulgaris). Two old names for the Cowslip flower were “Lady’s Keys” and
“Password”, as they could supposedly be used to travel magically to her hall, Sessrumnir, and get you
in the door. They are also golden, as she is. Primroses were originally only pale yellow – “primrose
yellow” as it came to be called – but they have been bred in modern times into many different colors.
I don’t think that Freya has a problem with this, and Primroses of any color can surely be put into her
garden.

The wild Daisy (Bellis perennis) is sacred to both Freya and Baldur. This isn’t the tall ox-eye dairy,
but the low-growing tiny one with many petals. Daisy is a warrior’s plant, despite its size; it was
given to warriors as a good-luck charm, and can be given for the protection of Freya in her warrior
form. Its protection extends especially to warriors who are women or nonheterosexuals, as these
come under Freya’s dominion rather than Odin’s.

The harlequin-bonnet Columbine flower (Aquilegia vulgaris) is associated with Freya in Swedish
folklore, and it became well-known as a supposed aphrodisiac, reflecting her Love Goddess aspect.
Potions of Columbine were made to arouse brides on their wedding nights, and during the “language
of flowers” era it still meant unbridled lust. In fact, it was considered poor taste to give it to someone
you were courting for that reason. Columbine flowers are actually mildly poisonous when ingested
raw, but the immediate poisons break down when heated, so it must be infused in boiling water.
One rather surprising plant associated with Freya is the humble European bean (Vicia faba). These,
too, can be incorporated into a Freya garden – there are numerous wonderful colors of runner beans,
scarlet and white and lavender and pink, with edible flowers. In fact, the center of the garden could be
trellises decorated with these annual beans that can twine six feet high or more.

The scarlet Pimpernel (Anagallis arvensis) is not one of the plants traditionally associated with Freya,
but when I asked, She told me authoritatively that it was Hers. Freya and her brother Frey are both
light-bringers and joy-bringers, although the nature of their light and joy is subtly different. The
Pimpernel is Freya’s joy-plant; its ground-hugging nature and relationship with the sky reflects
Freya’s earth-goddess Vanic nature that reaches upward to connect with the Aesir sky-nature. It is an
antidepressant, and is said to be especially good for youthful girls.

Modern followers of Freya have found that she definitely loves strawberries (Fragaria vesca) and the
wild strawberry plant, with its intense flavor packed into tiny fruits, is a nice ground cover for the
Freya garden. More domesticated strawberry plants can be put in as well. They grow well in pots if
there is little room, or perhaps in a “strawberry pyramid” in the center of the garden.
As a last point, while most practitioners will not want to get involved with this plant for legal reasons,
Hemp (Cannabis sativa) was also sacred to the Vanir Gods and supposedly used in seidhr
ceremonies. Beyond this, there are many lovely flowers unknown to the ancestors that are appropriate
for this beautiful goddess’s garden for their looks alone. Look for golden flowers, for her title as
Golden Lady; pink or red ones are for her Love Goddess passion, and white ones are for her warrior
side. A few darker purple ones remind us of her role as Mistress of Seidhr. For garden ornaments,
amber glass balls recall her favorite stone. Cat figurines symbolize her sacred animal, as do pigs. It’s
not hard – she’ll tell you what she likes.