Even though September is coming to a close and this article might be a little to discuss the apple festival of Mabon, I decided that it’s still harvest time and worthy of an article on apples. This time I would write on Idun a Norse goddess connected to apple and the apple harvest. To my knowledge Idun is not directly connected to Mabon but felt it a good enough topic.
Idun was a Norse goddess of beauty and fertility. She also always carried a basket of apples, and no one was allowed to harvest from apple trees but herself. Her apples were well known for their magical qualities. These enchanted apples were said to bring about eternal youth, vigor, and perfect health in the style of an apple a day keeps the doctor away. Idun’s name translates as ‘forever young’. Idun’s husband was Bragi, the lord of poetry. Bragis was responsible for making the flowers boom by playing his magic harp. Idun and Bragis were quickly married. The concept of magical apples granting eternal youth is a common belief in the ancient mythology and was likely around before Idun, most likely Greek in origin. At one-point Idun is taken away which causes the elder gods to wither away and grow old. Her apples may be symbolic of the care she offers to the older gods. I assume that when she was returned, they grew young and healthy again.