God of the Week - Hermod

God of the Week - Hermod / Hermóðr
"Now when the gods had come to themselves, Frigg spake, and asked who there might be among the Æsir who would fain have for his own all her love and favor: let him ride the road to Hel, and seek if he may find Baldr, and offer Hel a ransom if she will let Baldr come home to Ásgard. And he is named Hermódr the Bold, Odin's son, who undertook that embassy. Then Sleipnir was taken, Odin's steed, and led forward; and Hermódr mounted on that horse and galloped off.”
Gylfafinning, Prose Edda
Hermod is a traveller, a messenger, a scout, a vanguard. That’s how he is perceived today by modern heathens - a brave god who travels carrying the wishes of Asgard. While his attestations are rather scarce (he seemingly only appears as a god in the Prose Edda), he is nonetheless a figure of intense interest. Creating as many questions as he answers.
The easy answer, after all, would be to take a look at Hermod and his appearance in the Prose Edda and say, “Aha! He is simply the Nordic Hermes! Case closed!” But let’s take a closer look.
The meaning of Hermod as a name is somewhat contested. It could mean warrior, or passion of war, or war-spirit / fury-spirit. Which is interesting, when you consider the nature of his role, and his further associations among modern heathens as being tied closely to communication, and mediation (in a not-too dissimilar way to Forseti). Nonetheless, Hermod is undoubtedly a brave god, journeying to Hel on a mission to bring back the slain god Baldr. To go where few would dare go and meet with the realm’s ruler.
As a son of Odin, he mimics the actions of his father when he travels across realms on the back of Sleipnir to fulfil this mission. Following in his footsteps and attempting to do something that would seem almost paradoxical through any other lens: returning a god from the land of the dead. There’s something in Hermod then that also echoes Odin’s flair for pushing boundaries - both literally and figuratively.
As is becoming ever more common for these God of the Week posts, I’ll finish by stating that the information we have on Hermod is infuriating, in that it is just a tiny glimpse at a deity that has potentially many more stories and attestations we’ve lost. The fact that we have no other version of the story that Snorri shares in the Prose Edda, but that it remains so nuanced and detailed, suggests that Snorri was copying from an earlier work that hasn’t survived its journey through time.
So, let’s leave it there. How do you see Hermod?