The D铆sabl贸t was the bl贸t (sacrificial holiday) which was held in honour of the female spirits or deities called d铆sir[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, V铆ga-Gl煤ms 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 D铆sabl贸t 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 h枚rgr 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 D铆sabl贸t concerns the death of king Eadgils (A冒ils, Adils) who died from falling off his horse while riding around the shrine:
In Sweden, the D铆sabl贸t was of central political and social importance. The festivities were held at the end of February or early March at Gamla Uppsala.[6] It was held in conjunction with the great fair Disting and the great popular assembly called the Thing of all Swedes.[7]
The Icelandic historian Snorri Sturlusson, who was well-informed of Swedish matters and visited the country in 1219,[8] explained in the Heimskringla (1225):
The shrine where the D铆sir were worshiped was called d铆sarsalr and this building is mentioned in the Ynglinga saga concerning king A冒ils' death. It also appears Hervarar saga, where a woman becomes so infuriated over the death of her father by the hands of Hei冒rekr, her husband, that she hangs herself in the shrine.
The Scandinavian d铆sabl贸t is associated with the Anglo-Saxon modranect ("mothers' night") by Gabriel Turville-Petre.[9] The Anglo-Saxon month roughly equivalent to November was called blot-monath.
The number of references to the Disir ranging from the Merseburg Charms to many instances in Germanic mythology indicate that they were considered vital deities to worship and that they were primary focus of prayers (e.g. the charms) for luck against enemies in war.
