How did the Vikings' religion help them in battle?

Answer 1

First off the Vikings liked to fight, like Star Trek's Klingons. Read Beowulf, Hrolf Kraki's Saga or Gisli the Outlaw to see what their idealized life was like.Casual and brutal behavior was accepted as the mark of a real man. As a consequence the idea of an afterlife which could only be attained by death in battle appealed to them. If they died a coward they would not have any after life. Add to this the fact that the afterlife consisted of all night beer busts with all day bloody battles as training for the final battle between the gods and giants followed by immediate repair on the way back to the party and it seemed to be just right. The fact that the final battle (Ragnarok) was going to be a loss for them didn't matter.