om the ancients considered a personification of the primaeval forest
or of the imperishable forces of Nature.

As the gods, through Heimdall, were intimately connected with the
sea, they were also bound by close ties to the forests and Nature
in general through Vidar, surnamed "the silent," who was destined to
survive their destruction and rule over a regenerated earth. This god
had his habitation in Landvidi (the wide land), a palace decorated
with green boughs and fresh flowers, situated in the midst of an
impenetrable primaeval forest where reigned the deep silence and
solitude which he loved.

"Grown over with shrubs
And with high grass
In Vidar's wide land."

Norse Mythology (R. B. Anderson).

This old Scandinavian conception of the silent Vidar is indeed
very grand and poetical, and was inspired by the rugged Northern
scenery. "Who has ever wandered through such forests, in a length of
many miles, in a boundless expanse, without a path, without a goal,
amid their monstrous shadows, their sacred gloom, without being filled
with deep reverence for the sublime greatness of Nature above all
human agency, without feeling the grandeur of the idea which forms
the basis of Vidar's essence?"

Vidar's Shoe

Vidar is depicted as tall, well-made, and handsome, clad in armour,
girded with a broad-bladed sword, and shod with a great iron or leather
shoe. According to some mythologists, he owed this peculiar footgear
to his mother Grid, who, knowing that he would be called upon to fight
against fire on the last day, designed it as a protection against
the fiery element, as her iron gauntlet had shielded Thor in his
encounter with Geirrod. But other authorities state that this shoe
was made of the leather scraps which Northern cobblers had either
given or thrown away. As it was essential that the shoe should be
large and strong enough to resist the Fenris wolf's sharp teeth at
the last day, it was a matter of religious observance among Northern
shoemakers to give away as many odds and ends of leather as possible.

The Norn's Prophecy

When Vidar joined his peers in Valhalla, they welcomed him gaily, for
they knew that his great strength would serve them well in their time
of need. After they had lovingly regaled him with the golden mead,
Allfather bade him follow to the Urdar fountain, where the Norns
were ever busy weaving their web. Questioned by Odin concerning his
future and Vid