Rode Sleipnir to Hel to attempt to bring Baldr back from the realm of the dead.
Hermod (Old Norse Hermóðr) appears in mythology as the god who voluntarily undertook the most perilous mission after Baldr's death: riding to Hel to ask the death goddess to release Baldr back to the living. In Gylfaginning 49 Snorri recounts how Odin lent his horse Sleipnir to Hermod, who rode for nine nights through deep, dark valleys down to the gates of Hel. He leaped over the gate Helgrind on Sleipnir and found Baldr seated in the place of honor in Hel's hall.
Hel set the condition that all things in the world must weep for Baldr in order for him to return. Hermod carried the message back, but the giantess Thokk (presumably Loki in disguise) refused to weep, and Baldr remained in the realm of the dead. In Hyndluljóð 2 a Hermóðr is mentioned as receiving a helmet and mail-coat, but whether this is the same figure is uncertain. Hermod's status among the Aesir is debated: Snorri calls him a son of Odin, but in the Poetic Edda his genealogy is vague, and some scholars argue that he is a mythological function-bearer rather than an established deity.
Sources in the Eddas
- Gylfaginning 49
- Snorri recounts Hermod's ride to Hel on Sleipnir to retrieve Baldr; Hel's condition and the failed weeping.
- Hyndluljóð 2
- A Hermóðr is mentioned as receiving a helmet and mail-coat, but the identification with Baldr's messenger is uncertain.
Interpretive traditions
A What we know
Hermod rides Sleipnir to Hel to try to bring Baldr back, but fails when Thokk refuses to weep. This is attested in detail in Gylfaginning 49.
B What we think we know
Whether Hermod is a full member of the Aesir or a mythological function-bearer (messenger) without an independent cult is debated. Snorri calls him Odin's son, but the Poetic Edda gives him no clear genealogy.