The Dragonborn is Odin {Spoilers}

[The Woolly Viking]

Ok, so I'm assuming most of the people who will be reading this will be one familiar with the main quest of the game, right? You play as a messianic character known as the Dragonborn, a being who can tap into an innate magical power by use of speaking words of power, a blessing that is rarely given to mortals in the Elder Scrolls universe and is either a result of a blessing of Akatosh, however, there are accounts of beings who definitely fit the bill of being Dragonborn who are said to acquire it from Shor, or Lorkhan for all you elves out there. That last point will be rather significant to my statement.

You see, many people write off the Dragonborn as being a typical Jesus archetype, with a seemingly generic prophecy and such. However, I believe that the Dragonborn is actually meant to be inspired by Odin, the chief of the Norse Gods.

No I know what you're thinking, already my theory is in trouble since the Dovahkiin is;

1. Capable of being any race and either gender.

2. in possession of both his eyes while Odin is without his right eye.

However, from what I'll explain to you, I hope some of you will have a new way of looking at the the player character. So, before we start comparing, we have to ask, who is Odin? Well, in Norse Mythology, Odin is the God of War, Inspiration, Music, Poetry, Fury, Magic, Wisdom, as well as Death. So we see Odin covers a pretty wide spectrum, but one thing to keep in mind with Odin is that he was not born into these titles, Odin was known for traveling in disguise across the Nine Realms in the search for lost knowledge. What about the Dragonborn? Well, isn't that comparable to when you journey to all manner of Draugr crypts for Dragon Shouts? In fact, some of the Shouts you unlock are eerily similar some of the spells Odin himself exclaims he had discovered when unlocking the power of Rune magic in the Section of the Norse Poem Havamal known as the Runetal;

"I know an eighth spell;
it would be useful
for anyone to learn it.
When hate arises
between any two people,
I can cool their tempers."

That's basically Kynes Peace, or Bend Will depending on how you look at it.

"I know a ninth spell;
if the need arises
for me to save a ship upon the sea,
I can calm the wind
upon the waves
and soothe the sea to sleep."

Basically Clear Skies.

"I know an eleventh spell;
if I lead old friends into battle,
I enchant their shields
so that they will have the victory;
and return from battle unharmed.
They will come home without harm."

Very similar to Battle Fury.

Not to mention how both Odin and the Dragonborn crossover to the land of the dead and return with newfound knowledge, Odin hung himself on the branches of Yggdrasil, the world tree in Norse Mythology in order to decipher the knowledge of the Runes, while the Dragonborn reaches Sovngarde to slay Alduin and is given the Thu'um to summon a Hero from Sovngarde. In fact, you could say the Dragonborn has Odin beat in this if you count the Soul Cairn and/or Apocrypha.

Going back to my statement on Shor, a few of the figures in the Elder Scrolls lore who are known as Dragonborn are said to have gotten their power from Shor, one instance being Wulfharth of Atmora whose Thu'um was so powerful he became know as "Shor's tongue". Shor in many instances shows he is very similar to Odin, being the God associated with an afterlife more than a little similar to Valhalla. Not to mention that he as a warrior god himself. So, if the Dragonborn is meant to be an extension of Shor, a god who is basically meant to be Odin in everything but name, wouldn't it make sense for that same person to take on attributes of that god?

So what do you people think? Are you looking at the Dragonborn from a new perspective? What do you think I missed? Let me know.

[Docsprock]

The many deities, demigods, and characters from the Elder Scrolls are taken piecemeal from real-world myths, legends, and religions. Not just Norse.

If you look at Tolkein's Middle Earth, you get the same thing. Creating a ficticious story-world, you would have to have some familiar base that your audience can relate to. Having a completely alien lore-base will breed confusion and misunderstanding among the audience.

[DrNewcenstein]

Yeah, what he said ^^.

I mean, the Imperial Legion's armor is a direct copy of the Earthen Roman Legion, Imperials have names derived from Latin (Septimus, Tullius, etc), so yeah the Nords have a Norse religious structure. Religions are difficult to build from the ground up and make them unique, so you have to adapt what's already there, and has been there for thousands of years, just to save development time on a video game.

As well, all the "major" religions of Earth have the "One God" or "God of Gods" like Odin or Zeus and the one messianic figure who represents the link between Gods and Men, or who is a God in human form, supposedly sent here to do something only they can do, and only after enduring a great physical, mental, and emotional trial, because apparently the Gods don't experience these sorts of issues, and that's supposed to give them a deeper understanding of mortals. Nevermind the fact they never do anything to fix the inherent design flaws in any of their creations because they can just retreat to their perfect paradise whenever they choose and forget about the problems down below, but that's another rant for another time.

As for the specifics of what Bethesda drew from for each "race" and their particular religious beliefs, like the Argonians being spawned from the Hist, since the game doesn't hinge on these things, I don't try to analyze it too deeply and say "Oh yeah I see what they did there." It's a pointless exercise, especially when you can't actually apply anything to it in-game i.e. you can't perform the 10 Labors of Hercules as an Imperial and unlock some bonus, nor can you unlock anything by recreating any given Norse legend as a Nord.

[Solomon Hawk]

Dragonborn is partly based in Norse Mythology and a few other loosely based legends that have no place in it. ... the difference is the world on which it takes place.

[pestthurse]

I dont think the dragonborn is really inspired by him. But I like the connection you saw. Its clever and a good theory :)

[Ihateeverybody]

" the inherent design flaws"

What makes you think they are design flaws? What makes you think each and everyone of us is not a piece of the divine?

What purpose is there in creating a paradise, here, there or anywhere? Life is meaningless without struggle without pain and overcoming obstacles. Would you really want to spend eternity in a heaven? No struggle, no pain? No tears? Each moment the same as the last.

Tell you what. Play skyrim in god mode (console: TGM). Whenever you want to buy something just summon a #($*ton of gold (Console Player.additem 005 5000). Going through a dungeon just open the console and target something and type kill.

Now tell me how fun that was. Tell me of your sense of accomplishment.

My point is, without challange. Existance is pointless. Sure sometimes the hand your dealt is pure ♥♥♥♥. But ♥♥♥♥ tastes better then anything served up in Heaven, Nirvanna, the Elyssium Fields or any other Destination any religion will promise you. The only thing worse is being "one with the universe".

I don't know. Maybe its just me. I don't want to tell anyone how to live their life or afterlife, or unlife. I am just saying you're doing it wrong.

[Kragemund]

Hi Woolly Viking

This was very inspiring.
I am planning a new playthrough, which will take me years and years to do.
Play like and adult, in control, not loose myself and my time in a computer world. Enjoy it like red wine.
TES in this way is a kind of transcending exercise, with its miniature reinkarnation meta-game (ex. when you create a new character, and the lore vibe).

Anyways, I might not be making much sense.
Just wanted to hop in and say, your idea of the wandering Wotan as being the dragonborn, or dragonbornlike, it's wholly genius.
Thanks for that.

I love Skyrim for allowing my mind and spirit to fantasize and REFLECT.
But I am learning to use the gift the right way.

Skyrim channels the joy of the daily exploration, adventure and feeling of achievement and a kind of peace and danger loop; a deep, basic pull in a human being.

No wonder we misuse Skyrim like a drug.

It's a pointer towards discovering your own humanity, joy and needs, to recognize and care about in real life.
Anyways, thanks.

[Alex]

The Last Dragonborn is a Shezarrine. If anything, they are an avatar of what you would consider to be Loki.

https://en.uesp.net/wiki/Lore:Shezarrine

The TES cosmology might have adapted some parts of the germanic mythology, but it is still a distinct universe.

[alexander_dougherty]

Originally posted by Alex:

The Last Dragonborn is a Shezarrine.

No! the hero of Morrowind is Shezzarine, nothing linking Dragonborn to Shor at all.

[FauxFurry]

The Dragonborn was never nailed to a tree nor did s/he give up an eye for knowledge. They don't even get a pair of ravens to sit on their shoulders (without mods).
I would probably put them in a similar category as Magni or Modi, as their power is more akin to that of descendants of deities rather than a chief deity.

[Alex]

Originally posted by alexander_dougherty:

No! the hero of Morrowind is Shezzarine, nothing linking Dragonborn to Shor at all.

Its Nerevarine, you s'wit!

Well, Kirkbride did say that the next Shezzarine would be N..., but this may or may not exclude more of them.

[peon]

Originally posted by DrNewcenstein:

Yeah, what he said ^^.

I mean, the Imperial Legion's armor is a direct copy of the Earthen Roman Legion, Imperials have names derived from Latin (Septimus, Tullius, etc), so yeah the Nords have a Norse religious structure. Religions are difficult to build from the ground up and make them unique, so you have to adapt what's already there, and has been there for thousands of years, just to save development time on a video game.

As well, all the "major" religions of Earth have the "One God" or "God of Gods" like Odin or Zeus and the one messianic figure who represents the link between Gods and Men, or who is a God in human form, supposedly sent here to do something only they can do, and only after enduring a great physical, mental, and emotional trial, because apparently the Gods don't experience these sorts of issues, and that's supposed to give them a deeper understanding of mortals. Nevermind the fact they never do anything to fix the inherent design flaws in any of their creations because they can just retreat to their perfect paradise whenever they choose and forget about the problems down below, but that's another rant for another time.

As for the specifics of what Bethesda drew from for each "race" and their particular religious beliefs, like the Argonians being spawned from the Hist, since the game doesn't hinge on these things, I don't try to analyze it too deeply and say "Oh yeah I see what they did there." It's a pointless exercise, especially when you can't actually apply anything to it in-game i.e. you can't perform the 10 Labors of Hercules as an Imperial and unlock some bonus, nor can you unlock anything by recreating any given Norse legend as a Nord.

Only semi related, but

Greek modern legends are trash. For example, if you look up flying chariots we are told that only one god had a flying chariot, zeus and he used it to pull the sun across the sky. LOL.

No, all greek gods had their own chariots built by hephaestus, he also trained the demi gods who flew them. They were chariots that could traverse the land mountain or sea.

He also built the tripods that moved themselves and he also built some works for mortals.

Each deity possessed a beautiful chariot, which, drawn by
horses or other animals of celestial breed, conveyed them
rapidly over land and sea according to their pleasure.

Hephaestus appears to have been an indispensable
member of the Olympic Assembly, where he plays the
part of smith, armourer, chariot-builder, &c. As already
mentioned, he constructed the palaces where the gods resided, fashioned the golden shoes with which they trod
the air or water, built for them their wonderful chariots,
and shod with brass the horses of celestial breed, which
conveyed these glittering equipages over land and sea.
He also made the tripods which moved of themselves in
and out of the celestial halls, formed for Zeus the far
famed ægis, and erected the magnificent palace of the sun. He also created the brazen-footed bulls of Aetes,
which breathed flames from their nostrils, sent forth clouds
of smoke, and filled the air with their roaring.
Among his most renowned works of art for the use of
mortals were: the armour of Achilles and Æneas, the
beautiful necklace of Harmonia, and the crown of Ariadne;
but his masterpiece was Pandora, of whom a detailed account has already been given.

Source - Myths and Legends, ancient greece and rome by E. M. Berens

I guess they arent unidentified flying objects, if you know who is flying them.

[Valden21]

Originally posted by Alex:

The Last Dragonborn is a Shezarrine. If anything, they are an avatar of what you would consider to be Loki.

https://en.uesp.net/wiki/Lore:Shezarrine

The TES cosmology might have adapted some parts of the germanic mythology, but it is still a distinct universe.

No, the Last Dragonborn has more to do with Akatosh, when you consider what Dragonborns are. Shezzarines are associated with Shor, and the only Shezzarine that we know of for sure was Pelinal Whitestrake. As for Loki, the closest deity to him in any of the pantheons would be Baan Dar, who's only worshiped by the Bosmer and the Khajiit; no other pantheon recognizes him, so that parallel doesn't apply.