No, Loki isn’t evil. In Norse mythology, Loki represents behaviors associated with children / the inner child / the midbrain, which all make decisions based on emotion and gratification. Just like with children, Loki’s mischief only becomes malicious when he feels regularly condemned or disenfranchised.

The interpretation of Loki as evil comes from a few places:

  • In his Prose Edda, Snorri describes Loki the same way Lucifer is often described; beautiful to look at but wicked in character. It appears Snorri added this description knowing it would mislead Christian readers unfamiliar with the myths.

  • The philologist Sophus Bugge further compared Loki to Lucifer in the 1800’s.

  • The popular Marvel Cinematic Universe portrays Loki as a villain—or at least as a terribly misguided antihero.

Today, Loki is a popular deity amongst both American and Scandinavian Heathens and can be safely worshiped.