Mimir was a primal god of
Norse mythology whose head was severed during the war between the
Aesir and the
Vanir deities. He was renowned for his knowledge and wisdom and the god
Odin journeyed to the land of the giants,
Jotunheim, to acquire Mimir's omniscient wisdom and knowledge for himself. The knowledge was attained by drinking from Mimir's magical well, but as a price for drinking of it Odin was forced to pluck out one of his eyes. Odin returned to
Asgard with Mimir's heads for
oracular consultation according to some accounts. Mimir was also
Honir's chief advisor after he became a ruler of the
Vanir.
Mimir was also the name of the
dwarf that fixed
Sigurd's father's sword in
Norse mythology.
A
mimir is also a magical construct that is created to provide information to players in the
Dungeons & Dragons role playing game Planescape setting. They are usually a silvery, metallic, disembodied skull (most likely derived from the definition above).
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