Ragnarok

Ragnarok, sometimes called the Twilight of the Gods, is the prophesied fall of Asgard.

Most Asgardians consider Ragnarok to be part of a perpetual cycle of universal destruction and rebirth, believing that it has happened before, and that Asgard will be reborn after the next Ragnarok. In Asgardian belief, great heroes will be reborn into the same life after Ragnarok, while those who achieve nothing of note will be born into a new life, which may be worse than their current one.

Ragnarok was first prophesied by the seer Volla, during the last years of the reign of Buri. The other major prophesy of Ragnarok was given by Mimir. Common threads between the two prophesies are the Fimbul Winter (although Volla foresaw it on Asgard, and Mimir on Midgard), brother fighting brother, and key roles to be played by the children of Odin. The most notable difference is that Volla foresaw Ragnarok being heralded by the murder of the 'bright son of the forrest realm', commonly interpretted as being Baldr the Brave.

It has been theorised that the Fimbul Winter described by Volla will be caused by a disruption to the network of wormholes which holds Asgard unmoving in space. Hela interpretted Mimir's prophesy of the event as being a volcanic winter.

Related Species

• Asgardians

Related Organizations

• The Nine Realms

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Author's Note

This is a mash-up of comics lore, the Poetic Edda, and my own inventions. I dislike that MCU Asgard are never shown to be religious (Frigga's funeral being the one possible exception) when religion is such a central part of Asgardian comics lore. I've chosen to interpret the cycle of Ragnarok concept from the comics as something like Samsara in Sramanic religions, but with a focus on heroics to add a uniquely Asgardian flair.