As we’ve briefly discussed in other bits of trivia throughout this guide, Asgard isn’t the only place where the dead might go in Norse mythology. In general, fallen warriors are first chosen from the battlefield by Freyja, to join her in the meadows of Fólkvangr. Only when Freyja has chosen her share are others permitted to join Odin in Valhalla. Both Valhalla and Fólkvangr seem to be favoured destinations in the afterlife.
Hel (or Helheim) on the other hand, is a place where those who have died outside of battle (from old age or disease, for example) would go, and though not depicted in the same favourable light as Asgard, Hel is still a place where the dead might feast and drink. A stark contrast to the Christian depiction of Hell, conceptions of which may have been influenced by the Scandinavian Hel.
While the three realms of Valhalla, Fólkvangr, and Hel are most often mentioned as destinations for the dead, there are even more specific references of destinations which relate to how people die. For example the goddess Rán, a personification of the sea, welcomes those who have died at sea to join her in a realm of the dead at the bottom of the ocean.
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