Aesirs and Vanirs

According to Norse myth, the mountainous regions of Asgard were once home to the principal gods or the Aesirs. A clan of warriors, the Aesir pantheon has gods like Odin, Thor, Baldyr and Tyr. They were tall, blue eyed and blonde haired and were known for their prowess with the axe and the sword.

The Aesirs were in constant battle with the Vanirs, a Nordic clan; also believed by some to be an older family of gods. The Vanirs were peace loving and agricultural while the Aesirs were always ready for a fight

The conflict between Aesirs and Vanirs is central to Nordic mythology. Some interpret this as a fight for supremacy between two tribes. Others believe that the Vanirs were an older cult that was forced to flee when faced with a warrior clan like the Aesirs.

It is not possible to pick one theory over the other simply because we don’t know fact from fiction. Like most myths, these too are short of documentary evidence or proof. But that is not issue really. What is interesting is that the Norse legends tell us about the way Aesirs and Vanirs interacted with each other. They fought over land, over women and for moral supremacy.

The myths tell us about the qualities that the tribes held dear and it indicates the compulsions behind the migratory nature of most ancient civilisations. According to one story, Iounn was the Aesir god of youth and beauty and held in high regard by the clan. Once, she was abducted by the giants and the Aesirs found themselves ageing like the normal folk. Iounn was rescued by Loki the trickster who changed his form and flew her back to the kingdom of Aesirs.

These myths make me wonder whether the Aesirs and Vanirs of Norse tales are even remotely connected to the Asur and Vanar in Indian mythology? Or are Aesir, Ahura and Asur part of the same family of myths?

Mircea Eliade, the well known Romanian scholar of comparative religions better known in India for his autobiographical novel, Maitreyi (a fictionalised account of his relationship with Bengali writer Maitreyi Devi) has said that the conflict between Aesirs and Vanirs reflect Indo-European myths of conflict between the gods of the sky and the gods of the earth.

Is it possible that we have more than just a name in common between Nordic and Vedic mythologies?