{"collection":"myth-cosmogony","full_text_available":true,"graph_url":"https://unchartedknowledge.5gfusion.net/v2/api/page/gutenberg_14726/graph","html_url":"https://unchartedknowledge.5gfusion.net/v2/page/gutenberg_14726","id":"gutenberg_14726","license":"Public Domain (US)","rights_basis":"gutenberg_metadata_copyright_false","source":"gutenberg","source_url":"https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/14726","summary":null,"tags":["Category: Mythology, Legends & Folklore","Mythology, Norse","Scalds and scaldic poetry"],"text":"THE ELDER EDDAS\n\nOF SAEMUND SIGFUSSON.\n\n_Translated from the Original Old Norse Text into English_\n\nBY\n\nBENJAMIN THORPE,\n\nAND THE\n\nYOUNGER EDDAS\n\nOF SNORRE STURLESON.\n\n_Translated from the Original Old Norse Text into English_\n\nBY\n\nI.A. BLACKWELL.\n\n\n\nHON. RASMUS B. ANDERSON, LL.D.,\n\nEDITOR IN CHIEF.\n\n\n\nJ. W. BUEL, Ph.D.,\n\nMANAGING EDITOR.\n\n\nPUBLISHED BY THE\n\nNORROENA SOCIETY,\n\nLONDON STOCKHOLM COPENHAGEN BERLIN NEW YORK\n\n1906\n\n\n\n[Illustration KING GUNTHER.]\n\n(_After a painting by B. Guth_.)\n\n\nGunnar, Gunther, or Gunter, King of Burgundy, was probably a real\npersonage of the troubled times with which his name is associated--a\nperiod distinguished as much for heroic characters as for tragic\nevents. Gunther represents the best type of kinghood of his age; a man\nswayed by his affections rather than by ambition, who scrupled at\nmisdeeds, yet yielded to the mastering passions of love; one whose\ninstincts were loyalty to friends and country, and who shrank from\ncruelties to gain his ends, but who fell a victim to woman's\nfascinations. History accordingly praises him more for a lover than\nfor a sovereign.\n\n\n\n\n\n\nLIST OF PHOTOGRAVURES.\n\n(ELDER AND YOUNGER EDDAS.)\n\n\nFrontispiece--Gunnar (Gunther) Page\n\nSiegfried Awakens Brynhild 159\n\nDeath of Atli 247\n\nA Feast in Valhalla 331\n\n\n\n\nCONTENTS.\n\nTHE ELDER EDDAS OF SAEMUND.\n\n Page\n\n Preface by the Translator ix\n Introduction to the Voluspa xv\n The Vala's Prophecy 1\n The Lay of Vafthrudnir 9\n The Lay of Vegtam, or Baldur's Dream 26\n The High One's Lay 29\n Odin's Rune Song 44\n The Lay of Hymir 48\n The Lay of Thrym, or the Hammer Recovered 53\n The Lay of the Dwarf Alvis 57\n The Lay of Harbard 63\n The Journey, or Lay of Skirnir 71\n The Lay of Rig 78\n Egir's Compotation, or Loki's Altercation 84\n The Lay of Fiolsvith 95\n The Lay of Hyndla 102\n The Incantation of Groa 109\n The Song of the Sun 111\n The Lay of Volund 121\n The Lay of Helgi Hiorvard's Son 127\n The First Lay of Helgi Hundingcide 137\n The Second Lay of Helgi Hundingcide 144\n Sinfiotli's End 155\n The Lay of Sigurd, or Gripir's Prophecy 157\n The Lay of Fafnir 172\n The Lay of Sigrdrifa 180\n Fragments of the Lay of Sigurd and Brynhild 186\n The Third Lay of Sigurd Fafnicide 194\n Fragments of the Lay of Brynhild 203\n The First Lay of Gudrun 206\n Brynhild's Hel-ride 210\n The Slaughter of the Niflungs 212\n The Second Lay of Gudrun 213\n The Third Lay of Gudrun 219\n Oddrun's Lament 221\n The Lay of Atli 226\n The Groenland Lay of Atli 233\n Gudrun's Incitement 248\n The Lay of Hamdir 251\n\nTHE YOUNGER EDDAS OF STURLESON.\n\n The Deluding of Gylfi 256\n Of the Primordial State of the Universe 259\n Origin of the Frost-Giants 260\n Of the Cow Audhumla, and Birth of Odin 262\n The Making of Heaven and Earth 263\n Creation of Man and Woman 265\n Night and Day, Sun and Moon 266\n Wolves that Pursue the Sun and Moon 267\n The Way that Leads to Heaven 268\n The Golden Age 269\n Origin of the Dwarfs, and Norns of Destiny 270\n The Ash Yggdrasill and Mimer's Well 271\n The Norns that Tend Yggdrasill 273\n The Wind and the Seasons 275\n Thor and His Hammer 277\n Balder and Njord 278\n Njord and His Wife Skadi 279\n The God Frey and Goddess Freyja 280\n Tyr and Other Gods 281\n Hodur the Blind, Assassin of Baldur 283\n Loki and His Progeny 284\n Binding the Wolf Fenrir 285\n The Goddesses and their Attributes 289\n Frey, and Gerda the Beautiful 291\n The Joys of Valhalla 293\n The Wonderful Horse Sleipnir 297\n The Ship Adapted to Sail on Sea or Land 299\n Thor's Adventures in the Land of Giants 300\n The Death of Baldur 315\n Baldur in the Abode of the Dead 319\n Loki's Capture and Punishment 321\n Destruction of the Universe 323\n Restoration of the Universe 327\n How Loki Carried Away Iduna 329\n The Origin of Poetry 331\n Odin Beguiles the Daughter of Baugi 333\n\nGlossary 335\n\n\n\n\nPREFACE.\n\nS\u00e6mund, son of Sigfus, the reputed collector of the poems bearing his\nname, which is sometimes also called the Elder, and the Poetic, Edda,\nwas of a highly distinguished family, being descended in a direct line\nfrom King Harald Hildetonn. He was born at Oddi, his paternal dwelling\nin the south of Iceland, between the years 1054 and 1057, or about 50\nyears after the establishment by law of the Christian religion in that\nisland; hence it is easy to imagine that many heathens, or baptized\nfavourers of the old mythic songs of heathenism, may have lived in his\ndays and imparted to him the lays of the times of old, which his\nunfettered mind induced him to hand down to posterity.\n\nThe youth of S\u00e6mund was passed in travel and study, in Germany and\nFrance, and, according to some accounts, in Italy. His cousin John\nOgmundson, who later became first bishop of Holum, and after his death\nwas received among the number of saints, when on his way to Rome, fell\nin with his youthful kinsman, and took him back with him to Iceland,\nin the year 1076. S\u00e6mund afterwards became a priest at Oddi, where he\ninstructed many young men in useful learning; but the effects of which\nwere not improbably such as to the common people might appear as\nwitchcraft or magic: and, indeed, S\u00e6mund's predilection for the sagas\nand songs of the old heathen times (even for the magical ones) was so\nwell known, that among his countrymen there were some who regarded him\nas a great sorcerer, though chiefly in what is called white or\ninnocuous and defensive sorcery, a repute which still clings to his\nmemory among the common people of Iceland, and will long adhere to it\nthrough the numerous and popular stories regarding him (some of them\nhighly entertaining) that are orally transmitted from generation to\ngeneration.[1] S\u00e6mund died at the age of 77, leaving behind him a work\non the history of Norway and Iceland, which is now almost entirely\nlost.\n\nThe first who ascribed to S\u00e6mund the collection of poems known as the\nPoetic Edda,[2] was Brynjolf Svensson, bishop of Skalholt. This\nprelate, who was a zealous collector of ancient manuscripts, found in\nthe year 1643, the old vellum codex, which is the most complete of\nall the known manuscripts of the Edda; of this he caused a transcript\nto be made, which he entitled _Edda Saemundi Multiscii_. The\ntranscript came into the possession of the royal historiographer\nTorf\u00e6us; the original, together with other MSS., was presented to the\nKing of Denmark, Frederick. III., and placed in the royal library at\nCopenhagen, where it now is.[3] As many of the Eddaic poems appear to\nhave been orally transmitted in an imperfect state, the collector has\nsupplied the deficiencies by prose insertions, whereby the integrity\nof the subject is to a certain degree restored.\n\nThe collection called S\u00e6mund's Edda consists of two parts, viz., the\nMythological and the Heroic. It is the former of those which is now\noffered to the public in an English version. In the year 1797, a\ntranslation of this first part, by A.S. Cottle, was published at\nBristol. This work I have never met with; nor have I seen any English\nversion of any part of the Edda, with the exception of Gray's spirited\nbut free translation of the Vegtamskvida.\n\nThe Lay of Volund (Volundarkvida) celebrates the story of Volund's\ndoings and sufferings during his sojourn in the territory of the\nSwedish king Nidud. Volund (_Ger_. Wieland, _Fr_. Veland and Galans)\nis the Scandinavian and Germanic Vulcan (Hephaistos) and D\u00e6dalus. In\nEngland his story, as a skillful smith, is traceable to a very early\nperiod. In the Anglo-Saxon poem of Beowulf we find that hero desiring,\nin the event of his falling in conflict with Grendel, that his\ncorslets may be sent to Hygelac, being, as he says, the work of\nWeland; and king \u00c6lfred, in his translation of Boethius de\nConsolatione, renders the words _fidelis ossa Fabricii, etc_. by Hw\u00e6t\n(hw\u00e6r) Welondes? (Where are now the bones of the famous and wise\ngoldsmith Weland?), evidently taking the proper name of Fabricius for\nan appellative equivalent to faber. In the Exeter Book, too, there is\na poem in substance closely resembling the Eddaic lay. In his novel of\nKenilworth, Walter Scott has been guilty of a woeful perversion of the\nold tradition, travestied from the Berkshire legend of Wayland Smith.\nAs a land-boundary we find Weland's smithy in a Charter of king Eadred\nA.D. 955.\n\nOn the Lay of Helgi Hiorvard's Son there is nothing to remark beyond\nwhat appears in the poem itself.\n\nThe Lays of Helgi Hundingcide form the first of the series of stories\nrelating to the Volsung race, and the Giukungs, or Niflungs.\n\nThe connection of the several personages celebrated in these poems\nwill appear plain from the following tables:\n\n Sigi, king of Hunaland, said to be a son of Odin\n |\n Rerir\n |\n Volsung = a daughter of the giant Hrimnir\n __________________|\n |\n Sigmund = Signi = Borghild = Hiordis\n | | | |\n Hamund. Sinfiotli. Helgi = Sigrun Sigurd = Gudrun\n __|____________\n | |\n Sigmund, Svanhild.\n m Jornmnrek.\n\n\n Giuki = Grimhild.\n _______________________|\n |\n Gunnar=Glaumvor. Hogni=Kostbera. Guthorm. Gudrun,=1 Sigurd.\n | 2 Atli.\n Solar. Giuki. Sn\u00e6var. 3 Jonakr.\n\n\n\n Budli.\n |\n Atli = Gudrun: Brynhild = Gunnar. Oddrun. Beckhild = Heimir.\n | |\n Erp. Eitil Alsvid.\n\n\n Jonakr = Gudrun\n _____| |__________\n | |\n Erp Hamdir. Sorli.\n\nThe Eddaic series of the Volsung and Niflung lays terminates with the\nLay of Hamdir; the one entitled Gunnar's Melody is no doubt a\ncomparatively late composition; yet being written in the true ancient\nspirit of the North is well deserving of a place among the Eddaic\npoems. Nor, indeed, is the claim of the Lay of Grotti to rank among\nthe poems collected by S\u00e6mund, by any means clear, we know it only\nfrom its existence in the Skalda; yet on account of its antiquity, its\nintrinsic worth, and its reception in other editions of the Edda, both\nin original and translation, the present work would seem, and justly\nso, incomplete without it.\n\nThe Prose, or Younger Edda, is generally ascribed to the celebrated\nSnorre Sturleson, who was born of a distinguished Icelandic family, in\nthe year 1178, and after leading a turbulent and ambitious life, and\nbeing twice the supreme magistrate of the Republic, was killed A.D.\n1241,[4] by three of his sons-in-law and a stepson. When Snorre was\nthree years old, John Loptson of Oddi, the grandson of S\u00e6mund the\nWise, took him into fosterage. Snorre resided at Oddi until his\ntwentieth year, and appears to have received an excellent education\nfrom his foster father, who was one of the most learned men of that\nperiod. How far he may have made use of the manuscripts of S\u00e6mund and\nAri, which were preserved at Oddi, it is impossible to say, neither do\nwe know the precise contents of these manuscripts; but it is highly\nprobable that the most important parts of the work, now known under\nthe title of \"The Prose Edda,\" formed a part of them, and that\nSnorre--who may be regarded as the Scandinavian Euhemerus--merely\nadded a few chapters, in order to render the mythology more\nconformable to the erroneous notions he appears to have entertained\nrespecting its signification. Be this as it may, the Prose Edda, in\nits present form, dates from the thirteenth century, and consists\nof--1. _Formali_ (Fore discourse); or the prologue. 2. _Gylfa-ginning_\n(The deluding of Gylfi). 3. _Braga-roedur_ (Conversations of Bragi).\n4. _Eptirmali_ (After discourse); or Epilogue. The Prologue and\nEpilogue were probably written by Snorre himself, and are nothing more\nthan an absurd syncretism of Hebrew, Greek, Roman, and Scandinavian\nmyths and legends, in which Noah, Priam, Odin, Hector, Thor, \u00c6neas,\n&c, are jumbled together much in the same manner as in the romances of\nthe Middle Ages. These dissertations, utterly worthless in themselves,\nhave obviously nothing in common with the so-called \"Prose Edda,\" the\nfirst part of which, containing fifty-three chapters, forms a complete\nsynopsis of Scandinavian mythology, derived principally from the\nPoetical Edda.\n\nTHE TRANSLATOR.\n\nFOOTNOTES:\n\n[Footnote 1: The following, the first among many, may serve as a\nspecimen.\n\nS\u00e6mund was residing, in the south of Europe, with a famous Master, by\nwhom he was instructed in every kind of lore; while, on the other\nhand, he forgot (apparently through intense study) all that he had\npreviously learned, even to his own name; so that when the holy man\nJohn Ogmundson came to his abode, he told him that his name was Koll;\nbut on John insisting that he was no other than S\u00e6mund Sigfusson, born\nat Oddi in Iceland, and relating to him many particulars regarding\nhimself, he at length became conscious of his own identity, and\nresolved to flee from the place with his kinsman. For the purpose of\ndeceiving the master, John continued some time in the place, and often\ncame to visit him and S\u00e6mund; till at last, one dark night, they\nbetook themselves to flight. No sooner had the Master missed them than\nhe sent in pursuit of them; but in vain, and the heavens were too\novercast to admit, according to his custom, of reading their\nwhereabouts in the stars. So they traveled day and night and all the\nfollowing day. But the next night was clear, and the Master at once\nread in the stars where they were, and set out after them at full\nspeed. Then S\u00e6mund, casting his eyes up at the heavens, said, \"Now is\nmy Master in chase of us, and sees where we are.\" And on John asking\nwhat was to be done, he answered: \"Take one of my shoes off, fill it\nwith water, and set it on my head.\" John did so, and at the same\nmoment, the Master, looking up at the heavens, says to his companion:\n\"Bad news; the stranger John has drowned my pupil; there is water\nabout his forehead.\" And thereupon returned home. The pair now again\nprosecute their journey night and day; but, in the following night,\nthe Master again consults the stars, when, to his great amazement, he\nsees the star of S\u00e6mund directly above his head, and again sets off\nafter the fugitives. Observing this, S\u00e6mund says: \"The astrologer is\nagain after us, and again we must look to ourselves; take my shoe off\nagain, and with your knife stab me in the thigh; fill the shoe with\nblood, and place it on the top of my head.\" John does as directed, and\nthe Master, again gazing at the stars, says: \"There is blood now about\nthe star of Master Koll, and the stranger has for certain murdered\nhim,\" and so returns home. The old man now has once more recourse to\nhis art; but on seeing S\u00e6mund's star shining brightly above him, he\nexclaimed: \"My pupil is still living; so much the better. I have\ntaught him more than enough; for he outdoes me both in astrology and\nmagic. Let them now proceed in safety; I am unable to hinder their\ndeparture.\"]\n\n[Footnote 2: Bishop P.E. Muller supposes the greater number of the\nEddaic poems to be of the 8th century. Sagabibliothek II, p, 131.]\n\n[Footnote 3: Codex Regius, No. 2365, 4to. The handwriting of this MS.\nis supposed to be of the beginning of the 14th century.]\n\n[Footnote 4: Snorre, at the death of John Loptson (A.D. 1197), does\nnot appear to have possessed any property whatever, though he\nafterwards became the wealthiest man in Iceland. His rise in the world\nwas chiefly owing to his marriage with Herdisa, the daughter of a\npriest called Bersi the Rich,--a very enviable surname, which no doubt\nenabled the Rev. gentleman to brave the decrees of Popes and Councils,\nand take to himself a wife--who brought him a very considerable\nfortune. If we may judge from Snorre's biography, Christianity appears\nto have effected very little change in the character of the\nIcelanders. We have the same turbulent and sanguinary scenes, the same\nloose conduct of the women, and perfidy, and remorseless cruelty of\nthe men, as in the Pagan times.]\n\n\n\n\nINTRODUCTION TO THE VOLUSPA.\n\nAs introductory to the Voluspa, the following description of a\nwandering Vala or prophetess may be thought both desirable and\ninteresting: \"We find them present at the birth of children, when they\nseem to represent the Norns. They acquired their knowledge either by\nmeans of _seid_, during the night, while all others in the house were\nsleeping, and uttered their oracles in the morning; or they received\nsudden inspirations during the singing of certain songs appropriate to\nthe purpose, without which the sorcery could not perfectly succeed.\nThese seid-women were common over all the North. When invited by the\nmaster of a family, they appeared in a peculiar costume, sometimes\nwith a considerable number of followers, e.g. with fifteen young men\nand fifteen girls. For their soothsaying they received money, gold\nrings, and other precious things. Sometimes it was necessary to compel\nthem to prophesy. An old description of such a Vala, who went from\nguild to guild telling fortunes, will give the best idea of these\nwomen and their proceedings\":--\n\n\"Thorbiorg, nicknamed the little Vala, during the winter attended the\nguilds, at the invitation of those who desired to know their fate, or\nthe quality of the coming year. Everything was prepared in the most\nsumptuous manner for her reception. There was an elevated seat, on\nwhich lay a cushion stuffed with feathers. A man was sent to meet her.\nShe came in the evening dressed in a blue mantle fastened with thongs\nand set with stones down to the lap; round her neck she had a\nnecklace of glass beads, on her head a hood of black lambskin lined\nwith white catskin; in her hand a staff, the head of which was mounted\nwith brass and ornamented with stones; round her body she wore a\ngirdle of agaric (knoske), from which hung a bag containing her\nconjuring apparatus; on her feet were rough calfskin shoes with long\nties and tin buttons, on her hands catskin gloves, white and hairy\nwithin. All bade her welcome with a reverent salutation; the master\nhimself conducted her by the hand to her seat. She undertook no\nprophecy on the first day, but would first pass a night there. In the\nevening of the following day she ascended her elevated seat, caused\nthe women to place themselves round her, and desired them to sing\ncertain songs, which they did in a strong, clear voice. She then\nprophesied of the coming year, and afterwards, all that would advanced\nand asked her such questions as they thought proper, to which they\nreceived plain answers.\"\n\n * * * * *\n\nIn the following grand and ancient lay, dating most probably from the\ntime of heathenism, are set forth, as the utterances of a Vala, or\nwandering prophetess, as above described, the story of the creation of\nthe world from chaos, of the origin of the giants, the gods, the\ndwarfs, and the human race, together with other events relating to the\nmythology of the North, and ending with the destruction of the gods\nand the world, and their renewal.\n\n\n\n\nV\u00d6LUSP\u00c2. THE VALA'S PROPHECY.\n\n1. For silence I pray all sacred children, great and small, sons of\nHeimdall,[5] they will that I Valfather's deeds recount, men's ancient\nsaws, those that I best remember.\n\n2. The J\u00f6tuns I remember early born, those who me of old have\nreared. I nine worlds remember, nine trees, the great central tree,\nbeneath the earth.\n\n3. There was in times of old, where Ymir dwelt, nor sand nor sea,\nnor gelid waves; earth existed not, nor heaven above, 'twas a chaotic\nchasm, and grass nowhere.\n\n4. Before Bur's sons raised up heaven's vault, they who the noble\nmid-earth shaped. The sun shone from the south over the structure's\nrocks: then was the earth begrown with herbage green.\n\n5. The sun from the south, the moon's companion, her right hand cast\nabout the heavenly horses. The sun knew not where she[6] a dwelling\nhad, the moon knew not what power he possessed, the stars knew not\nwhere they had a station.\n\n6. Then went the powers all to their judgment-seats, the all-holy\ngods, and thereon held council: to night and to the waning moon gave\nnames; morn they named, and mid-day, afternoon and eve, whereby to\nreckon years.\n\n7. The \u00c6sir met on Ida's plain; they altar-steads and temples high\nconstructed; their strength they proved, all things tried, furnaces\nestablished, precious things forged, formed tongs, and fabricated\ntools;\n\n8. At tables played at home; joyous they were; to them was naught\nthe want of gold, until there came Thurs-maidens three, all powerful,\nfrom J\u00f6tunheim.\n\n9. Then went all the powers to their judgment-seats, the all-holy\ngods, and thereon held council, who should of the dwarfs the race\ncreate, from the sea-giant's blood and livid bones.\n\n10. Then was M\u00f4tsognir created greatest of all the dwarfs, and Durin\nsecond; there in man's likeness they created many dwarfs from earth,\nas Durin said.\n\n11. N\u00fdi and Nidi, Nordri and Sudri, Austri and Vestri, Althi\u00f4f,\nDvalin N\u00e2r and N\u00e2in, Niping, Dain, Biv\u00f6r, Bav\u00f6r, B\u00f6mbur, Nori, An and\nAnar, Ai, Miodvitnir,\n\n12. Veig and Gand\u00e2lf, Vind\u00e2lf, Thrain, Thekk and Thorin, Thr\u00f4r,\nVitr, and Litr, N\u00fbr and N\u00fdr\u00e2d, Regin and R\u00e2dsvid. Now of the dwarfs I\nhave rightly told.\n\n13. Fili, Kili, Fundin, Nali, Hepti, Vili, Hanar, Svior, Billing,\nBruni, Bild, B\u00fbri, Fr\u00e2r, Hornbori, Fr\u00e6g and L\u00f4ni, Aurvang, Iari,\nEikinskialdi.\n\n14. Time 'tis of the dwarfs in Dvalin's band, to the sons of men, to\nLofar up to reckon, those who came forth from the world's rock,\nearth's foundation, to Iora's plains.\n\n15. There were Draupnir, and D\u00f4lgthrasir, H\u00e2r, Haugspori, Hl\u00e6vang,\nGl\u00f4i, Skirvir, Virvir, Skafid, Ai, Alf and Yngvi, Eikinskialdi,\n\n16. Fialar and Frosti, Finn and Ginnar, Heri, H\u00f6ggstari, Hli\u00f4d\u00f4lf,\nMoin: that above shall, while mortals live, the progeny of Lofar,\naccounted be.\n\n17. Until there came three mighty and benevolent \u00c6sir to the world\nfrom their assembly. They found on earth, nearly powerless, Ask and\nEmbla, void of destiny.\n\n18. Spirit they possessed not, sense they had not, blood nor motive\npowers, nor goodly colour. Spirit gave Odin, sense gave Hoenir, blood\ngave Lodur, and goodly colour.\n\n19. I know an ash standing Yggdrasil hight, a lofty tree, laved with\nlimpid water: thence come the dews into the dales that fall; ever\nstands it green over Urd's fountain.\n\n20. Thence come maidens, much knowing, three from the hall, which\nunder that tree stands; Urd hight the one, the second Verdandi,--on a\ntablet they graved--Skuld the third. Laws they established, life\nallotted to the sons of men; destinies pronounced.\n\n21. Alone she[7] sat without, when came that ancient dread \u00c6sir's\nprince; and in his eye she gazed.\n\n22. \"Of what wouldst thou ask me? Why temptest thou me? Odin! I know\nall, where thou thine eye didst sink in the pure well of Mim.\" Mim\ndrinks mead each morn from Valfather's pledge.[8] Understand ye yet,\nor what?\n\n23. The chief of hosts gave her rings and necklace, useful\ndiscourse, and a divining spirit: wide and far she saw o'er every\nworld.\n\n24. She the Valkyriur saw from afar coming, ready to ride to the\ngod's people: Skuld held a shield, Sk\u00f6gul was second, then Gunn, Hild\nG\u00f6ndul, and Geirsk\u00f6gul. Now are enumerated Herian's maidens, the\nValkyriur, ready over the earth to ride.\n\n25. She that war remembers, the first on earth, when Gullveig[9]\nthey with lances pierced, and in the high one's[10] hall her burnt,\nthrice burnt, thrice brought her forth, oft not seldom; yet she still\nlives.\n\n26. Heidi they called her, whithersoe'r she came, the\nwell-foreseeing Vala: wolves she tamed, magic arts she knew, magic\narts practised; ever was she the joy of evil people.\n\n27. Then went the powers all to their judgment-seats, the all-holy\ngods, and thereon held council, whether the \u00c6sir should avenge the\ncrime,[11] or all the gods receive atonement.\n\n28. Broken was the outer wall of the \u00c6sir's burgh. The Vanir,\nforeseeing conflict, tramp o'er the plains. Odin cast [his spear], and\nmid the people hurled it: that was the first warfare in the world.\n\n29. Then went the powers all to their judgment-seats, the all-holy\ngods, and thereon held council: who had all the air with evil mingled?\nor to the J\u00f6tun race Od's maid had given?\n\n30. There alone was Thor with anger swollen. He seldom sits, when\nof the like he hears. Oaths are not held sacred; nor words, nor\nswearing, nor binding compacts reciprocally made.\n\n31. She knows that Heimdall's horn is hidden under the heaven-bright\nholy tree. A river she sees flow, with foamy fall, from Valfather's\npledge. Understand ye yet, or what?\n\n32. East sat the crone, in I\u00e2rnvidir, and there reared up Fenrir's\nprogeny: of all shall be one especially the moon's devourer, in a\ntroll's semblance.\n\n33. He is sated with the last breath of dying men; the god's seat he\nwith red gore defiles: swart is the sunshine then for summers after;\nall weather turns to storm. Understand ye yet, or what?\n\n34. There on a height sat, striking a harp, the giantess's watch,\nthe joyous Egdir; by him crowed, in the bird-wood, the bright red\ncock, which Fialar hight.\n\n35. Crowed o'er the \u00c6sir Gullinkambi, which wakens heroes with the\nsire of hosts; but another crows beneath the earth, a soot-red cock,\nin the halls of Hel.\n\n36. I saw of Baldr, the blood-stained god, Odin's son, the hidden\nfate. There stood grown up, high on the plain, slender and passing\nfair, the mistletoe.\n\n37. From that shrub was made, as to me it seemed, a deadly, noxious\ndart. H\u00f6dr shot it forth; but Frigg bewailed, in Fensalir, Valhall's\ncalamity. Understand ye yet, or what?\n\n38. Bound she saw lying, under Hveralund, a monstrous form, to Loki\nlike. There sits Sigyn, for her consort's sake, not right glad.\nUnderstand ye yet, or what?\n\n39. Then the Vala knew the fatal bonds were twisting, most rigid,\nbonds from entrails made.\n\n40. From the east a river falls, through venom dales, with mire and\nclods, Sl\u00eed is its name.\n\n41. On the north there stood, on Nida-fells, a hall of gold, for\nSindri's race; and another stood in Ok\u00f4lnir, the J\u00f6tuns beer-hall\nwhich Br\u00eemir hight.\n\n42. She saw a hall standing, far from the sun, in N\u00e2str\u00f6nd; its\ndoors are northward turned, venom-drops fall in through its apertures:\nentwined is that hall with serpents' backs.\n\n43. She there saw wading the sluggish streams bloodthirsty men and\nperjurers, and him who the ear beguiles of another's wife. There\nNidh\u00f6gg sucks the corpses of the dead; the wolf tears men. Understand\nye yet, or what?\n\n44. Further forward I see, much can I say of Ragnar\u00f6k and the gods'\nconflict.\n\n45. Brothers shall fight, and slay each other; cousins shall kinship\nviolate. The earth resounds, the giantesses flee; no man will another\nspare.\n\n46. Hard is it in the world, great whoredom, an axe age, a sword\nage, shields shall be cloven, a wind age, a wolf age, ere the world\nsinks.\n\n47. Mim's sons dance, but the central tree takes fire at the\nresounding Giallar-horn. Loud blows Heimdall, his horn is raised; Odin\nspeaks with Mim's head.\n\n48. Trembles Yggdrasil's ash yet standing; groans that aged tree,\nand the j\u00f6tun is loosed. Loud bays Garm before the Gnupa-cave, his\nbonds he rends asunder; and the wolf runs.\n\n49. Hrym steers from the east, the waters rise, the mundane snake is\ncoiled in j\u00f6tun-rage. The worm beats the water, and the eagle screams:\nthe pale of beak tears carcases; Naglfar is loosed.\n\n50. That ship fares from the east: come will Muspell's people o'er\nthe sea, and Loki steers. The monster's kin goes all with the wolf;\nwith them the brother is of Byleist on their course.\n\n51. Surt from the south comes with flickering flame; shines from his\nsword the Val-gods' sun. The stony hills are dashed together, the\ngiantesses totter; men tread the path of Hel, and heaven is cloven.\n\n52. How is it with the \u00c6sir? How with the Alfar? All J\u00f6tunheim\nresounds; the \u00c6sir are in council. The dwarfs groan before their stony\ndoors, the sages of the rocky walls. Understand ye yet, or what?\n\n53. Then arises Hl\u00een's second grief, when Odin goes with the wolf to\nfight, and the bright slayer of Beli with Surt. Then will Frigg's\nbeloved fall.\n\n54. Then comes the great victor-sire's son, Vidar, to fight with the\ndeadly beast. He with his hands will make his sword pierce to the\nheart of the giant's son: then avenges he his father.\n\n55. Then comes the mighty son of Hl\u00f4dyn: (Odin's son goes with the\nmonster to fight); Midg\u00e2rd's Veor in his rage will slay the worm. Nine\nfeet will go Fi\u00f6rgyn's son, bowed by the serpent, who feared no foe.\nAll men will their homes forsake.\n\n56. The sun darkens, earth in ocean sinks, fall from heaven the\nbright stars, fire's breath assails the all-nourishing tree, towering\nfire plays against heaven itself.\n\n57. She sees arise, a second time, earth from ocean, beauteously\ngreen, waterfalls descending; the eagle flying over, which in the fell\ncaptures fish.\n\n58. The \u00c6sir meet on Ida's plain, and of the mighty earth-encircler\nspeak, and there to memory call their mighty deeds, and the supreme\ngod's ancient lore.\n\n59. There shall again the wondrous golden tables in the grass be\nfound, which in days of old had possessed the ruler of the gods, and\nFi\u00f6lnir's race.\n\n60. Unsown shall the fields bring forth, all evil be amended; Baldr\nshall come; H\u00f6dr and Baldr, the heavenly gods, Hropt's glorious\ndwellings shall inhabit. Understand ye yet, or what?\n\n61. Then can Hoenir choose his lot, and the two brothers' sons\ninhabit the spacious Vindheim. Understand ye yet, or what?\n\n62. She a hall standing than the sun brighter, with gold bedecked,\nin Gimill: there shall be righteous people dwell, and for evermore\nhappiness enjoy.\n\n64. Then comes the mighty one to the great judgment, the powerful\nfrom above, who rules o'er all. He shall dooms pronounce, and strifes\nallay, holy peace establish, which shall ever be.\n\n65. There comes the dark dragon flying from beneath the glistening\nserpent, from Nida-fels. On his wings bears Nidh\u00f6gg, flying o'er the\nplain, a corpse. Now she will descend.\n\nFOOTNOTES:\n\n[Footnote 5: In the Rigsmal we are informed how Heimdall, under the\nname of Rig, became the progenitor of the three orders of mankind.]\n\n[Footnote 6: In the Germanic tongues, as in the Semitic, the sun is\nfem., the moon masc.]\n\n[Footnote 7: The Vala here speaks of herself in the third person.]\n\n[Footnote 8: His eye here understood to signify the sun.]\n\n[Footnote 9: A personification of gold. With the introduction of gold\nwas the end of the golden age.]\n\n[Footnote 10: _i.e._, Odin's: his hall is the world.]\n\n[Footnote 11: Of introducing the use of gold.]\n\n\n\n\nTHE LAY OF VAFTHRUDNIR.\n\nOdin visits the Giant (J\u00f6tun) Vafthr\u00fbdnir, for the purpose of proving\nhis knowledge. They propose questions relative to the Cosmogony of the\nNorthern creed, on the conditions that the baffled party forfeit his\nhead. The J\u00f6tun incurs the penalty.\n\n_Odin_.\n\n1. Counsel thou me now, Frigg! as I long to go Vafthr\u00fbdnir to visit;\ngreat desire, I say, I have, in ancient lore with that all-wise J\u00f6tun\nto contend.\n\n_Frigg_.\n\n2. At home to bide H\u00e6rfather I would counsel, in the gods'\ndwellings; because no J\u00f6tun is, I believe, so mighty as is\nVafthr\u00fbdnir.\n\n_Odin_.\n\n3. Much have I journeyed, much experienced, mighty ones many proved;\nbut this I fain would know, how in Vafthr\u00fbdnir's halls it is.\n\n_Frigg_.\n\n4. In safety mayest thou go, in safety return; in safety on thy\njourneyings be; may thy wit avail thee, when thou, father of men!\nshalt hold converse with the J\u00f6tun.\n\n5. Then went Odin the lore to prove of that all-wise J\u00f6tun. To the\nhall he came which Im's father owned. Ygg went forthwith in.\n\n_Odin._\n\n6. Hail to thee, Vafthr\u00fbdnir! to thy hall I am now come, thyself to\nsee; for I fain would know, whether thou art a cunning and all-wise\nJ\u00f6tun.\n\n_Vafthr\u00fbdnir._\n\n7. What man is this, that in my habitation by word addresses me? Out\nthou goest not from our halls, if thou art not the wiser.\n\n_Odin._\n\n8. Gagnr\u00e2d is my name, from my journey I am come thirsty to thy\nhalls, needing hospitality,--for I long have journeyed--and kind\nreception from thee, J\u00f6tun!\n\n_Vafthr\u00fbdnir._\n\n9. Why then, Gagnr\u00e2d! speakest thou from the floor? Take in the hall\na seat; then shall be proved which knows most, the guest or the\nancient talker.\n\n_Gagnr\u00e2d._\n\n10. A poor man should, who to a rich man comes, speak usefully or\nhold his tongue: over-much talk brings him, I ween, no good, who\nvisits an austere man.\n\n_Vafthr\u00fbdnir._\n\n11. Tell me, Gagnr\u00e2d! since on the floor thou wilt prove thy\nproficiency, how the horse is called that draws each day forth over\nhuman kind?\n\n_Gagnr\u00e2d._\n\n12. Skinfaxi he is named, that the bright day draws forth over human\nkind. Of coursers he is best accounted among the Reid-goths. Ever\nsheds light that horse's mane.\n\n_Vafthr\u00fbdnir._\n\n13. Tell me now, Gagnr\u00e2d! since on the floor thou wilt prove thy\nproficiency, how that steed is called, which from the east draws night\no'er the beneficent powers?\n\n_Gagnr\u00e2d._\n\n14. Hrimfaxi he is called, that each night draws forth over the\nbeneficent powers. He from his bit lets fall drops every morn, whence\nin the dales comes dew.\n\n_Vafthr\u00fbdnir._\n\n15. Tell me, Gagnr\u00e2d! since on the floor thou wilt prove thy\nproficiency, how the stream is called, which earth divides between the\nJ\u00f6tuns and the Gods?\n\n_Gagnr\u00e2d._\n\n16. Ifing the stream is called which earth divides between the\nJ\u00f6tuns and the Gods: open shall it run throughout all time. On that\nstream no ice shall be.\n\n_Vafthr\u00fbdnir._\n\n17. Tell me, Gagnr\u00e2d! since on the floor thou wilt prove thy\nproficiency, how that plain is called, where in fight shall meet Surt\nand the gentle Gods?\n\n_Gagnr\u00e2d._\n\n18. Vigrid the plain is called where in fight shall meet Surt and\nthe gentle Gods; a hundred rasts it is on every side. That plain is to\nthem decreed.\n\n_Vafthr\u00fbdnir._\n\n19. Wise art thou, O guest! Approach the J\u00f6tuns bench, and sitting\nlet us together talk; we will our heads in the hall pledge, guest! for\nwise utterance.\n\n_Gagnr\u00e2d._\n\n20. Tell me first, if thy wit suffices, and thou, Vafthr\u00fbdnir!\nknowest, whence first came the earth, and the high heaven, thou,\nsagacious J\u00f6tun?\n\n_Vafthr\u00fbdnir._\n\n21. From Ymir's flesh the earth was formed, and from his bones the\nhills, the heaven from the skull of that ice-cold giant, and from his\nblood the sea.\n\n_Gagnr\u00e2d._\n\n22. Tell me secondly, if thy wit suffices, and thou, Vafthr\u00fbdnir!\nknowest, whence came the moon, which over mankind passes, and the sun\nlikewise?\n\n_Vafthr\u00fbdnir._\n\n23. Mundilfoeri hight he, who the moon's father is, and eke the\nsun's: round heaven journey each day they must, to count years for\nmen.\n\n_Gagnr\u00e2d._\n\n24. Tell me thirdly, since thou art called wise, and if thou,\nVafthr\u00fbdnir! knowest, whence came the day, which over people passes,\nand night with waning moons?\n\n_Vafthr\u00fbdnir._\n\n25. Delling hight he who the day's father is, but night was of N\u00f6rvi\nborn; the new and waning moons the beneficent powers created, to count\nyears for men.\n\n_Gagnr\u00e2d._\n\n26. Tell me fourthly, since they pronounce thee sage, and if thou,\nVafthr\u00fbdnir! knowest, whence winter came, and warm summer first among\nthe wise gods?\n\n_Vafthr\u00fbdnir._\n\n27. Vindsval hight he, who winter's father is, and Sv\u00e2sud summer's;\nyearly they both shall ever journey, until the powers perish.\n\n_Gagnr\u00e2d._\n\n28. Tell me fifthly, since they pronounce thee sage, and if thou,\nVafthr\u00fbdnir! knowest, which of the \u00c6sir earliest, or of Ymir's sons,\nin days of old existed?\n\n_Vafthr\u00fbdnir._\n\n29. Countless winters, ere earth was formed, was Bergelmir born;\nThr\u00fbdgelmir was his sire, his grandsire Aurgelmir.\n\n_Gagnr\u00e2d._\n\n30. Tell me sixthly, since thou art called wise, and if thou,\nVafthr\u00fbdnir! knowest, whence first came Aurgelmir, among the J\u00f6tun's\nsons, thou sagacious J\u00f6tun?\n\n_Vafthr\u00fbdnir._\n\n31. From Eliv\u00e2gar sprang venom drops, which grew till they became a\nJ\u00f6tun; but sparks flew from the south-world: to the ice the fire gave\nlife.\n\n_Gagnr\u00e2d_.\n\n33. Tell me seventhly, since thou are called wise, and if thou\nknowest, Vafthr\u00fbdnir! how he children begat, the bold J\u00f6tun, as he had\nno giantess's company?\n\n_Vafthr\u00fbdnir_.\n\n33. Under the armpit grew, 'tis said, of the Hr\u00eemthurs, a girl and\nboy together; foot with foot begat, of that wise J\u00f6tun, a six-headed\nson.\n\n_Gagnr\u00e2d_.\n\n34. Tell me eighthly, since thou art called wise, and if thou\nknowest, Vafthr\u00fbdnir! what thou doest first remember, or earliest\nknowest? Thou art an all-wise J\u00f6tun.\n\n_Vafthr\u00fbdnir_.\n\n35. Countless winters, ere earth was formed, Bergelmir was born.\nThat I first remember, when that wise J\u00f6tun in an ark was laid.\n\n_Gagnr\u00e2d_.\n\n36. Tell me ninthly, since thou art called wise, and if thou\nknowest, Vafthr\u00fbdnir! whence the wind comes, that over ocean passes,\nitself invisible to man?\n\n_Vafthr\u00fbdnir_.\n\n37. Hraesvelg he is called, who at the end of heaven sits, a J\u00f6tun\nin an eagle's plumage: from his wings comes, it is said, the wind,\nthat over all men passes.\n\n_Gagnr\u00e2d_.\n\n38. Tell me tenthly, since thou all the origin of the gods knowest,\nVafthr\u00fbdnir! whence Ni\u00f6rd came among the \u00c6sir's sons? O'er fanes and\noffer-steads he rules by hundreds, yet was not among the \u00c6sir born.\n\n_Vafthr\u00fbdnir_.\n\n39. In Vanaheim wise powers him created, and to the gods a hostage\ngave. At the world's dissolution, he will return to the wise Vanir.\n\n_Gagnr\u00e2d_.\n\n40. Tell me eleventhly, since all the condition of the gods thou\nknowest, Vafthr\u00fbdnir! what the Einheriar do in Haerfather's halls,\nuntil the powers perish?\n\n_Vafthr\u00fbdnir_.\n\n41. All the Einheriar in Odin's halls each day together fight; the\nfallen they choose, and from the conflict ride; beer with the \u00c6sir\ndrink, of Saehrimnir eat their fill, then sit in harmony together.\n\n_Gagnr\u00e2d_.\n\n42. Tell me twelfthly, as thou all the condition of the gods\nknowest, Vafthr\u00fbdnir! of the J\u00f6tuns' secrets, and of all the gods',\nsay what truest is, thou all-knowing J\u00f6tun!\n\n_Vafthr\u00fbdnir_.\n\n43. Of the secrets of the J\u00f6tuns and of all the gods, I can truly\ntell; for I have over each world travelled; to nine worlds I came, to\nNiflhel beneath: here die men from Hel.\n\n_Gagnr\u00e2d_.\n\n44. Much have I journeyed, much experienced, mighty ones many\nproved. What mortals will live, when the great \"Fimbul\"-winter shall\nfrom men have passed?\n\n_Vafthr\u00fbdnir_.\n\n45. Lif and Lifthrasir; but they will be concealed in Hoddmimir's\nholt. The morning dews they will have for food. From, them shall men\nbe born.\n\n_Gagnr\u00e2d_.\n\n46. Much have I journeyed, much experienced, mighty ones many\nproved. Whence will come the sun in that fair heaven, when Fenrir has\nthis devoured?\n\n_Vafthr\u00fbdnir_.\n\n47. A daughter shall Alfr\u00f6dull bear, ere Fenrir shall have swallowed\nher. The maid shall ride, when the powers die, on her mother's course.\n\n_Gagnr\u00e2d_.\n\n48. Much have I journeyed, etc. Who are the maidens that o'er the\nocean travel, wise of spirit, journey?\n\n_Vafthr\u00fbdnir_.\n\n49. O'er people's dwellings three descend of M\u00f6gthrasir's maidens,\nthe sole Hamingiur who are in the world, although with J\u00f6tuns\nnurtured.\n\n_Gagnr\u00e2d_.\n\n50. Much have I journeyed, etc. Which of the \u00c6sir will rule o'er the\ngods' possession, when Surt's fire shall be quenched?\n\n_Vafthr\u00fbdnir_.\n\n51. Vidar and Vali will the gods' holy fanes inhabit, when Surt's\nfire shall be quenched. M\u00f4di and Magni will Mi\u00f6llnir possess, and\nwarfare strive to end.\n\n_Gagnr\u00e2d_.\n\n52. Much have I journeyed, etc. What of Odin will the life's end be,\nwhen the powers perish?\n\n_Vafthr\u00fbdnir_.\n\n53. The wolf will the father of men devour; him Vidar will avenge:\nhe his cold jaws will cleave, in conflict with the wolf.\n\n_Gagnr\u00e2d_.\n\n54. Much have I journeyed, etc. What said Odin in his son's ear, ere\nhe on the pile was laid?\n\n_Vafthr\u00fbdnir_.\n\n55. That no one knoweth, what thou in days of old saidst in thy\nson's ear. With dying mouth my ancient saws I have said, and the gods'\ndestruction. With Odin I have contended in wise utterances: of men\nthou ever art the wisest!\n\n\n\n\nTHE LAY OF GRIMNIR.\n\nThe subject is wholly mythological.\n\n\nKing Hraudung had two sons, one named Agnar, the other Geirr\u00f6d. Agnar\nwas ten, and Geirr\u00f6d eight winters old. They both rowed out in a boat,\nwith their hooks and lines, to catch small fish; but the wind drove\nthem out to sea. In the darkness of the night they were wrecked on the\nshore, and went up into the country, where they found a cottager, with\nwhom they stayed through the winter. The cottager's wife brought up\nAgnar, and the cottager, Geirr\u00f6d, and gave him good advice. In the\nspring the man got them a ship; but when he and his wife accompanied\nthem to the strand, the man talked apart with Geirr\u00f6d. They had a fair\nwind, and reached their father's place. Geirr\u00f6d was at the ship's\nprow: he sprang on shore, but pushed the ship out, saying, \"Go where\nan evil spirit may get thee.\" The vessel was driven out to sea, but\nGeirr\u00f6d went up to the town, where he was well received; but his\nfather was dead. Geirr\u00f6d was then taken for king, and became a famous\nman.\n\nOdin and Frigg were sitting in Hlidski\u00e2lf, looking over all the world.\nOdin said, \"Seest thou Agnar, thy foster-son, where he is, getting\nchildren with a giantess in a cave? while Geirr\u00f6d, my foster-son, is a\nking residing in his country.\" Frigg answered, \"He is so inhospitable\nthat he tortures his guests, if he thinks that too many come.\" Odin\nreplied that that was the greatest falsehood; and they wagered\nthereupon. Frigg sent her waiting-maid Fulla to bid Geirr\u00f6d be on his\nguard, lest the trollmann who was coming should do him harm, and also\nsay that a token whereby he might be known was, that no dog, however\nfierce, would attack him. But that King Geirr\u00f6d was not hospitable was\nmere idle talk. He, nevertheless, caused the man to be secured whom no\ndog would assail. He was clad in a blue cloak, and was named Grimnir,\nand would say no more concerning himself, although he was questioned.\nThe king ordered him to be tortured to make him confess, and to be set\nbetween two fires; and there he sat for eight nights. King Geirr\u00f6d had\na son ten years old, whom he named Agnar, after his brother. Agnar\nwent to Grimnir and gave him a full horn to drink from, saying that\nthe king did wrong in causing him to be tortured, though innocent.\nGrimnir drank from it. The fire had then so approached him that his\ncloak was burnt; whereupon he said:--\n\n\n1. Fire! thou art hot, and much too great; flame! let us separate.\nMy garment is singed, although I lift it up, my cloak is scorched\nbefore it.\n\n2. Eight nights have I sat between fires here, and to me no one food\nhas offered, save only Agnar, the son of Geirr\u00f6d, who alone shall rule\nover the land of Goths.\n\n3. Be thou blessed, Agnar! as blessed as the god of men bids thee to\nbe. For one draught thou never shalt get better recompense.\n\n4. Holy is the land, which I see lying to \u00c6sir and Alfar near; but\nin Thr\u00fbdheim Thor shall dwell until the powers perish.\n\n5. Ydalir it is called, where Ullr has himself a dwelling made.\nAlfheim the gods to Frey gave in days of yore for a tooth-gift.\n\n6. The third dwelling is, where the kind powers have with silver\ndecked the hall; Valaski\u00e2lf 'tis called, which for himself acquired\nthe As in days of old.\n\n7. S\u00f6kkvabekk the fourth is named o'er which the gelid waves\nresound; Odin and Saga there, joyful each day, from golden beakers\nquaff.\n\n8. Gladsheim the fifth is named, there the golden-bright Valhall\nstands spacious, there Hropt selects each day those men who die by\nweapons.\n\n9. Easily to be known is, by those who to Odin come, the mansion by\nits aspect. Its roof with spears is laid, its hall with shields is\ndecked, with corslets are its benches strewed.\n\n10. Easily to be known is, by those who to Odin come, the mansion by\nits aspect. A wolf hangs before the western door, over it an eagle\nhovers.\n\n11. Thrymheim the sixth is named, where Thiassi dwelt that\nall-powerful J\u00f6tun; but Skadi now inhabits, the bright bride of gods,\nher father's ancient home.\n\n12. Breidablik is the seventh, where Baldr has built for himself a\nhall, in that land, in which I know exists the fewest crimes.\n\n13. Himinbi\u00f6rg is the eighth, where Heimdall, it is said, rules\no'er the holy fanes: there the gods' watchman, in his tranquil home,\ndrinks joyful the good mead.\n\n14. F\u00f4lkvang is the ninth, there Freyia directs the sittings in the\nhall. She half the fallen chooses each day, but Odin th' other half.\n\n15. Glitnir is the tenth; it is on gold sustained, and eke with\nsilver decked. There Forseti dwells throughout all time, and every\nstrife allays.\n\n16. N\u00f4at\u00fbn is the eleventh, there Ni\u00f6rd has himself a dwelling made,\nprince of men; guiltless of sin, he rules o'er the high-built fane.\n\n17. O'ergrown with branches and high grass is Vidar's spacious\nLandv\u00eedi: There will the son descend, from the steed's back, bold to\navenge his father.\n\n18. Andhrimnir makes, in Eldhrimnir, S\u00e6hrimnir to boil, of meats the\nbest; but few know how many Einheriar it feeds.\n\n19. Geri and Freki the war-wont sates, the triumphant sire of hosts;\nbut on wine only the famed in arms, Odin, ever lives.\n\n20. Hugin and Munin fly each day over the spacious earth. I fear for\nHugin, that he come not back, yet more anxious am I for Munin.\n\n21. Thund roars; joyful in Thiodvitnir's water lives the fish; the\nrapid river seems too great for the battle-steed to ford.\n\n22. Valgrind is the lattice called, in the plain that stands, holy\nbefore the holy gates: ancient is that lattice, but few only know how\nit is closed with lock.\n\n23. Five hundred doors, and forty eke, I think, are in Valhall.\nEight hundred Einheriar will at once from each door go when they issue\nwith the wolf to fight.\n\n24. Five hundred floors, and forty eke, I think, has Bilskirnir with\nits windings. Of all the roofed houses that I know, is my son's the\ngreatest.\n\n25. Heidr\u00fbn the goat is called, that stands o'er Odin's hall, and\nbites from L\u00e6r\u00e2d's branches. He a bowl shall fill with the bright\nmead; that drink shall never fail.\n\n26. Eikthyrnir the hart is called, that stands o'er Odin's hall, and\nbites from L\u00e6r\u00e2d's branches; from his horns fall drops into\nHvergelmir, whence all waters rise:--\n\n27. Sid and Vid, Soekin and Eikin, Sv\u00f6l and Gunnthr\u00f4, Fi\u00f6rm and\nFimbulthul, Rin and Rennandi, Gipul and G\u00f6pul, G\u00f6mul and Geirvimul:\nthey round the gods' dwelling wind. Thyn and Vin, Th\u00f6ll and H\u00f6ll, Gr\u00e2d\nand Gunnthorin.\n\n28. Vina one is called, a second Vegsvin, a third Thiodnuma; Nyt and\nN\u00f6n and Hr\u00f6n, Slid and Hrid, Sylg and Ylg, V\u00eed and V\u00e2n, V\u00f6nd and\nStr\u00f6nd, Gioll and Leipt; these (two) fall near to men, but fall hence\nto Hel.\n\n29. K\u00f6rmt and Ormt, and the Kerlaugs twain: these Thor must wade\neach day, when he to council goes at Yggdrasil's ash; for the\nAs-bridge is all on fire, the holy waters boil.\n\n30. Glad and Gyllir, Gler and Skeidbrimir, Sillfrintopp and Sinir,\nGisl and Falh\u00f4fnir, Gulltopp and Lettfeti; on these steeds the \u00c6sir\neach day ride, when they to council go, at Yggdrasil's ash.\n\n31. Three roots stand on three ways under Yggdrasil's ash: Hel under\none abides, under the second the Hrimthursar, under the third mankind.\n\n32. Ratat\u00f6sk is the squirrel named, which, has to run in Yggdrasil's\nash; he from above the eagle's words must carry, and beneath to\nNidh\u00f6gg repeat.\n\n33. Harts there are also four, which from its summits, arch-necked,\ngnaw. D\u00e2in and Dvalin, Duneyr and Durathr\u00f4r.\n\n34. More serpents lie under Yggdrasil's ash, than any one would\nthink of witless mortals: G\u00f4in and M\u00f4in,--they are Grafvitnir's\nsons--Gr\u00e2bak and Grafv\u00f6llud, Ofnir and Svafnir, will, I ween, the\nbranches of that tree ever lacerate.\n\n35. Yggdrasil's ash hardship suffers greater than men know of; a\nhart bites it above, and in its side it rots, Nidh\u00f6gg beneath tears\nit.\n\n36. Hrist and Mist the horn shall bear me Skegg\u00f6ld and Sk\u00f6gul, Hl\u00f6kk\nand Herfiotur, Hildi and Thr\u00fbdi, G\u00f6ll and Geir\u00f6lul, Randgr\u00edd and\nR\u00e2dgr\u00eed, and Reginleif, these bear beer to the Einheriar.\n\n37. Arvakr and Alsvid, theirs 'tis up hence fasting the sun to draw:\nunder their shoulder the gentle powers, the \u00c6sir, have concealed an\niron-coolness.\n\n38. Svalin the shield is called, which stands before the sun, the\nrefulgent deity; rocks and ocean must, I ween, be burnt, fell it from\nits place.\n\n39. Sk\u00f6ll the wolf is named, that the fair-faced goddess to the\nocean chases; another Hati hight, he is Hr\u00f4dvitnir's son; he the\nbright maid of heaven shall precede.\n\n40. Of Ymir's flesh was earth created, of his blood the sea, of his\nbones the hills, of his hair trees and plants, of his skull the\nheaven;\n\n41. And of his brows the gentle powers formed Midgard for the sons\nof men; but of his brain the heavy clouds are all created.\n\n42. Ullr's and all the gods' favour shall have, whoever first shall\nlook to the fire; for open will the dwelling be, to the \u00c6sir's sons,\nwhen the kettles are lifted off.[12]\n\n43. Ivaldi's sons went in days of old Skidbladnir to form, of ships\nthe best, for the bright Frey, Ni\u00f6rd's benign son.\n\n44. Yggdrasil's ash is of all trees most excellent, and of all\nships, Skidbladnir, of the \u00c6sir, Odin, and of horses, Sleipnir,\nBifr\u00f6st of bridges, and of skallds, Bragi, H\u00e2br\u00f4k of hawks, and of\ndogs, Garm, [Brimir of swords.]\n\n45. Now I my face have raised to the gods' triumphant sons, at that\nwill welcome help awake; from all the \u00c6sir, that shall penetrate, to\nOegir's bench, to Oegir's compotation.[13]\n\n46. I am called Grim, I am called Gangleri, Herian and Hi\u00e2lmberi,\nThekk and Thridi, Thund and Ud, Helblindi and Har,\n\n47. Sad and Svipall, and Sanngetall, Herteit and Hnikar Bileyg,\nB\u00e2leyg, B\u00f6lverk, Fi\u00f6lnir, Gr\u00eem and Grimnir, Glapsvid and Fi\u00f6lsvid,\n\n48. S\u00eedh\u00f6tt, S\u00eedskegg Sigf\u00f6dr, Hnikud, Alfodr, Valf\u00f6dr, Atrid and\nFarmatyr; by one name I never have been called, since among men I have\ngone.\n\n49. Grimnir I am called at Geirr\u00f6d's, and at Asmund's J\u00e2lk and\nKialar, when a sledge I drew; Thr\u00f4r at the public meetings, Vidur in\nbattles, Oski and Omi, Jafnh\u00e2r and Biflindi, G\u00f4ndlir and Harbard with\nthe gods.\n\n50. Svidur and Svidrir I was at S\u00f6kkmimir's called, and beguiled\nthat ancient J\u00f6tun, when of Midvitnir's renowned son I was the sole\ndestroyer.\n\n51. Drunken art thou, Geirr\u00f6d, thou hast drunk too much, thou art\ngreatly by mead beguiled. Much didst thou lose, when thou wast of my\nhelp bereft, of all the Einheriar's and Odin's favour.\n\n52. Many things I told thee, but thou hast few remembered: thy\nfriends mislead thee. My friend's sword lying I see, with blood all\ndripping.\n\n53. The fallen by the sword Ygg shall now have; thy life is now run\nout: Wroth with thee are the D\u00eesir: Odin thou now shalt see: draw near\nto me if thou canst.\n\n54. Odin I now am named, Ygg I was called before, before that,\nThund, Vakr and Skilfing, V\u00e2fudr and Hr\u00f4ptatyr, with the gods, Gaut\nand J\u00e2lk, Ofnir and Svafnir, all which I believe to be names of me\nalone.\n\nKing Geirr\u00f6d was sitting with his sword lying across his knees, half\ndrawn from the scabbard, but on finding that it was Odin, he rose for\nthe purpose of removing him from the fires, when the sword slipt from\nhis hand with the hilt downwards; and the king having stumbled, the\nsword pierced him through and killed him. Odin then vanished, and\nAgnar was king for a long time after.\n\nFOOTNOTES:\n\n[Footnote 12: What in this strophe is said of Ullr has apparently\nreference to a lost myth. It would seem that, through the intervention\nof the kettles, the \u00c6sir were unable to see Odin's unpleasant position\nbetween the two fires.]\n\n[Footnote 13: My version of this strophe is not in accordance with\nthose of other interpreters. Odin raises his countenance to heaven, in\nfull confidence that when seen help will forthwith be afforded him.\nUnder the name of Oegir, Gierrod is generally understood: I rather\nthink the meaning to be, that all the \u00c6sir who [sit at] Oegir's\ncompotation will forthwith come to his aid.]\n\n\n\n\nTHE LAY OF VEGTAM, OR BALDR'S DREAMS.\n\n1. Together were the \u00c6sir all in council, and the Asyniur all in\nconference, and they consulted, the mighty gods, why Baldr had\noppressive dreams.\n\n2. [To that god his slumber was most afflicting; his auspicious\ndreams seemed departed. They the J\u00f6tuns questioned, wise seers of the\nfuture, whether this might not forebode calamity?\n\n3. The responses said that to death destined was Ullr's kinsman, of\nall the dearest: that caused grief to Frigg and Svafnir, and to the\nother powers--On a course they resolved:\n\n4. That they would send to every being, assurance to solicit, Baldr\nnot to harm. All species swore oaths to spare him; Frigg received all\ntheir vows and compacts.\n\n5. Valfather fears something defective; he thinks the Hamingiur may\nhave departed; the \u00c6sir he convenes, their counsel craves: at the\ndeliberation much is devised.]\n\n6. Uprose Odin lord of men and on Sleipnir he the saddle laid; rode\nthence down to Niflhel. A dog he met, from Hel coming.\n\n7. It was blood-stained on its breast, on its slaughter-craving\nthroat, and nether jaw. It bayed and widely gaped at the sire of magic\nsong:--long it howled.\n\n8. Forth rode Odin--the ground rattled--till to Hel's lofty house he\ncame. Then rode Ygg to the eastern gate, where he knew there was a\nVala's grave.\n\n9. To the prophetess, he began a magic song to chant, towards the\nnorth looked, potent runes applied, a spell pronounced, an answer\ndemanded, until compelled she rose, and with deathlike voice she said:\n\n_Vala_.\n\n10. \"What man is this, to me unknown, who has for me increased an\nirksome course? I have with snow been decked, by rain beaten, and with\ndew moistened: long have I been dead.\"\n\n_Vegtam_.\n\n11. \"Vegtam is my name, I am Valtam's son. Tell thou me of Hel:\nfrom, earth I call on thee. For whom are those benches strewed o'er\nwith rings, those costly couches o'erlaid with gold?\"\n\n_Vala_.\n\n12. \"Here stands mead, for Baldr brewed, over the bright potion a\nshield is laid; but the \u00c6sir race are in despair. By compulsion I have\nspoken. I will now be silent.\"\n\n_Vegtam_.\n\n13. \"Be not silent, Vala! I will question thee, until I know all. I\nwill yet know who will Baldr's slayer be, and Odin's son of life\nbereave.\"\n\n_Vala_.\n\n14. \"H\u00f6dr will hither his glorious brother send, he of Baldr will\nthe slayer be, and Odin's son of life bereave. By compulsion I have\nspoken; I will now be silent.\"\n\n_Vegtam_.\n\n15. \"Be not silent, Vala! I will question thee, until I know all. I\nwill yet know who on H\u00f6dr vengeance will inflict, or Baldr's slayer\nraise on the pile.\"\n\n_Vala_.\n\n16. \"Rind a son shall bear, in the western halls: he shall slay\nOdin's son, when one night old. He a hand will not wash, nor his head\ncomb, ere he to the pile has borne Baldr's adversary. By compulsion I\nhave spoken; I will now be silent.\"\n\n_Vegtam_.\n\n17. \"Be not silent, Vala! I will question thee, until I know all. I\nwill yet know who the maidens are, that weep at will, and heavenward\ncast their neck-veils? Tell me but that: till then thou sleepest not.\"\n\n_Vala_.\n\n18. \"Not Vegtam art thou, as I before believed; rather art thou\nOdin, lord of men!\"\n\n_Odin_.\n\n19. \"Thou art no Vala, nor wise woman, rather art thou the mother of\nthree Thursar.\"\n\n_Vala_.\n\n20. \"Home ride thou, Odin! and exult. Thus shall never more man\nagain visit me, until Loki free from his bonds escapes, and Ragnar\u00f6k\nall-destroying comes.\"\n\n\n\n\nTHE HIGH ONE'S[14] LAY.\n\n1. All door-ways, before going forward, should be looked to; for\ndifficult it is to know where foes may sit within a dwelling.\n\n2. Givers, hail! A guest is come in: where shall he sit? In much\nhaste is he, who on the ways has to try his luck.\n\n3. Fire is needful to him who is come in, and whose knees are\nfrozen; food and raiment a man requires, wheo'er the fell has\ntravelled.\n\n4. Water to him is needful who for refection comes, a towel and\nhospitable invitation, a good reception; if he can get it, discourse\nand answer.\n\n5. Wit is needful to him who travels far: at home all is easy. A\nlaughing-stock is he who nothing knows, and with the instructed sits.\n\n6. Of his understanding no one should be proud, but rather in\nconduct cautious. When the prudent and taciturn come to a dwelling,\nharm seldom befalls the cautious; for a firmer friend no man ever gets\nthan great sagacity.\n\n7. A wary guest,[15] who to refection comes, keeps a cautious\nsilence, with his ears listens, and with his eyes observes: so\nexplores every prudent man.\n\n8. He is happy, who for himself obtains fame and kind words: less\nsure is that which a man must have in another's breast.\n\n9. He is happy, who in himself possesses fame and wit while living;\nfor bad counsels have oft been received from another's breast.\n\n10. A better burthen no man bears on the way than much good sense;\nthat is thought better than riches in a strange place; such is the\nrecourse of the indigent.\n\n11. A worse provision on the way he cannot carry than too much\nbeer-bibbing; so good is not, as it is said, beer for the sons of men.\n\n12. A worse provision no man can take from table than too much\nbeer-bibbing: for the more he drinks the less control he has of his\nown mind.\n\n13. Oblivion's heron 'tis called that over potations hovers; he\nsteals the minds of men. With this bird's pinions I was fettered in\nGunnlods dwelling.\n\n14. Drunk I was, I was over-drunk, at that cunning Fialar's. It's\nthe best drunkenness, when every one after it regains his reason.\n\n15. Taciturn and prudent, and in war daring, should a king's\nchildren be; joyous and liberal every one should be until his hour of\ndeath.\n\n16. A cowardly man thinks he will ever live, if warfare he avoids;\nbut old age will give him no peace, though spears may spare him.\n\n17. A fool gapes when to a house he comes, to himself mutters or is\nsilent; but all at once, if he gets drink, then is the man's mind\ndisplayed.\n\n18. He alone knows who wanders wide, and has much experienced, by\nwhat disposition each man is ruled, who common sense possesses.\n\n19. Let a man hold the cup, yet of the mead drink moderately, speak\nsensibly or be silent. As of a fault no man will admonish thee, if\nthou goest betimes to sleep.\n\n20. A greedy man, if he be not moderate, eats to his mortal sorrow.\nOftentimes his belly draws laughter on a silly man, who among the\nprudent comes.\n\n21. Cattle know when to go home, and then from grazing cease; but a\nfoolish man never knows his stomach's measure.\n\n22. A miserable man, and ill-conditioned, sneers at every thing: one\nthing he knows not, which he ought to know, that he is not free from\nfaults.\n\n23. A foolish man is all night awake, pondering over everything; he\nthen grows tired; and when morning comes, all is lament as before.\n\n24. A foolish man thinks all who on him smile to be his friends; he\nfeels it not, although they speak ill of him, when he sits among the\nclever.\n\n25. A foolish man thinks all who speak him fair to be his friends;\nbut he will find, if into court he comes, that he has few advocates.\n\n26. A foolish man thinks he knows everything if placed in unexpected\ndifficulty; but he knows not what to answer, if to the test he is put.\n\n27. A foolish man, who among people comes, had best be silent; for\nno one knows that he knows nothing, unless he talks too much. He who\npreviously knew nothing will still know nothing, talk he ever so much.\n\n28. He thinks himself wise, who can ask questions and converse also;\nconceal his ignorance no one can, because it circulates among men.\n\n29. He utters too many futile words who is never silent; a garrulous\ntongue, if it be not checked, sings often to its own harm.\n\n30. For a gazing-stock no man shall have another, although he come a\nstranger to his house. Many a one thinks himself wise, if he is not\nquestioned, and can sit in a dry habit.\n\n31. Clever thinks himself the guest who jeers a guest, if he takes\nto flight. Knows it not certainly he who prates at meat, whether he\nbabbles among foes.\n\n32. Many men are mutually well-disposed, yet at table will torment\neach other. That strife will ever be; guest will guest irritate.\n\n33. Early meals a man should often take, unless to a friend's house\nhe goes; else he will sit and mope, will seem half-famished, and can\nof few things inquire.\n\n34. Long is and indirect the way to a bad friend's, though by the\nroad he dwell; but to a good friend's the paths lie direct, though he\nbe far away.\n\n35. A guest should depart, not always stay in one place. The welcome\nbecomes unwelcome, if he too long continues in another's house.\n\n36. One's own house is best, small though it be; at home is every\none his own master. Though he but two goats possess, and a\nstraw-thatched cot, even that is better than begging.\n\n37. One's own house is best, small though it be, at home is every\none his own master. Bleeding at heart is he, who has to ask for food\nat every meal-tide.\n\n38. Leaving in the field his arms, let no man go a foot's length\nforward; for it is hard to know when on the way a man may need his\nweapon.\n\n39. I have never found a man so bountiful, or so hospitable that he\nrefused a present; or of his property so liberal that he scorned a\nrecompense.\n\n40. Of the property which he has gained no man should suffer need;\nfor the hated oft is spared what for the dear was destined. Much goes\nworse than is expected.\n\n41. With arms and vestments friends should each other gladden, those\nwhich are in themselves most sightly. Givers and requiters are longest\nfriends, if all [else] goes well.[16]\n\n42. To his friend a man should be a friend, and gifts with gifts\nrequite. Laughter with laughter men should receive, but leasing with\nlying.\n\n43. To his friend a man should be a friend; to him and to his\nfriend; but of his foe no man shall the friend's friend be.\n\n44. Know, if thou hast a friend whom thou fully trustest, and from\nwhom thou woulds't good derive, thou shouldst blend thy mind with his,\nand gifts exchange, and often go to see him.\n\n45. If thou hast another, whom thou little trustest, yet wouldst\ngood from him derive, thou shouldst speak him fair, but think\ncraftily, and leasing pay with lying.\n\n46. But of him yet further, whom thou little trustest, and thou\nsuspectest his affection; before him thou shouldst laugh, and contrary\nto thy thoughts speak: requital should the gift resemble.\n\n47. I was once young, I was journeying alone, and lost my way; rich\nI thought myself, when I met another. Man is the joy of man.\n\n48. Liberal and brave men live best, they seldom cherish sorrow; but\na base-minded man dreads everything; the niggardly is uneasy even at\ngifts.\n\n49. My garments in a field I gave away to two wooden men: heroes\nthey seemed to be, when they got cloaks: exposed to insult is a naked\nman.\n\n50. A tree withers that on a hill-top stands; protects it neither\nbark nor leaves: such is the man whom no one favours: why should he\nlive long?\n\n51. Hotter than fire love for five days burns between false\nfriends; but is quenched when the sixth day comes, and-friendship is\nall impaired.\n\n52. Something great is not [always] to be given, praise is often for\na trifle bought. With half a loaf and a tilted vessel I got myself a\ncomrade.\n\n53. Little are the sand-grains, little the wits, little the minds of\n[some] men; for all men are not wise alike: men are everywhere by\nhalves.\n\n54. Moderately wise should each one be, but never over-wise: of\nthose men the lives are fairest, who know much well.\n\n55. Moderately wise should each one be, but never over-wise; for a\nwise man's heart is seldom glad, if he is all-wise who owns it.\n\n56. Moderately wise should each one be, but never over-wise. His\ndestiny let know no man beforehand; his mind will be freest from'\ncare.\n\n57. Brand burns from brand until it is burnt out; fire is from fire\nquickened. Man to' man becomes known by speech, but a fool by his\nbashful silence.\n\n58. He should early rise, who another's property or wife desires to\nhave. Seldom a sluggish wolf gets prey, or a sleeping man victory.\n\n59. Early should rise he who has few workers, and go his work to see\nto; greatly is he retarded who sleeps the morn away. Wealth half\ndepends on energy.\n\n60. Of dry planks and roof-shingles a man knows the measure; of the\nfire-wood that may suffice, both measure and time.\n\n61. Washed and refected let a man ride to the Thing,[17] although\nhis garments be not too good; of his shoes and breeches let no one be\nashamed, nor of his horse, although he have not a good one.\n\n62. Inquire and impart should every man of sense, who will be\naccounted sage. Let one only know, a second may not; if three, all the\nworld knows.\n\n63. Gasps and gapes, when to the sea he comes, the eagle over old\nocean; so is a man, who among many comes, and has few advocates.\n\n64. His power should every sagacious man use with discretion; for he\nwill find, when among the bold he comes, that no one alone is\ndoughtiest.\n\n65. Circumspect and reserved every man should be, and wary in\ntrusting friends. Of the words that a man says to another he often\npays the penalty.\n\n66. Much too early I came to many places, but too late to others:\nthe beer was drunk, or not ready: the disliked seldom hits the moment.\n\n67. Here and there I should have been invited, if I a meal had\nneeded; or two hams had hung, at that true friend's, where of one I\nhad eaten.\n\n68. Fire is best among the sons of men, and the sight of the sun, if\nhis health a man can have, with a life free from vice.\n\n69. No man lacks everything, although his health be bad: one in his\nsons is happy, one in his kin, one in abundant wealth, one in his good\nworks.\n\n70. It is better to live, even to live miserably; a living man can\nalways get a cow. I saw fire consume the rich man's property, and\ndeath stood without his door.\n\n71. The halt can ride on horseback, the one-handed drive cattle; the\ndeaf fight and be useful: to be blind is better than to be burnt[18]\nno one gets good from a corpse.\n\n72. A son is better, even if born late, after his father's\ndeparture. Gravestones seldom stand by the way-side unless raised by a\nkinsman to a kinsman.\n\n73. Two are adversaries: the tongue is the bane of the head: under\nevery cloak I expect a hand. * * *\n\n74. At night is joyful he who is sure of travelling entertainment.\n[A ship's yards are short.][19] Variable is an autumn night. Many are\nthe weather's changes in five days, but more in a month.\n\n75. He [only] knows not who knows nothing, that many a one apes\nanother. One man is rich, another poor: let him not be thought\nblameworthy.\n\n76. Cattle die, kindred die, we ourselves also die; but the fair\nfame never dies of him who has earned it.\n\n77. Cattle die, kindred die, we ourselves also die; but I know one\nthing that never dies,--judgment on each one dead.\n\n78. Full storehouses I saw at Dives' sons': now bear they the\nbeggar's staff. Such are riches; as is the twinkling of an eye: of\nfriends they are most fickle.\n\n79. A foolish man, if he acquires wealth or woman's love, pride\ngrows within him, but wisdom never: he goes on more and more arrogant.\n\n80. Then 'tis made manifest, if of runes thou questionest him, those\nto the high ones known, which the great powers invented, and the\ngreat talker[20] painted, that he had best hold silence.\n\n81. At eve the day is to be praised, a woman after she is burnt, a\nsword after it is proved, a maid after she is married, ice after it\nhas passed away, beer after it is drunk.\n\n82. In the wind one should hew wood, in a breeze row out to sea, in\nthe dark talk with a lass: many are the eyes of day. In a ship voyages\nare to be made, but a shield is for protection, a sword for striking,\nbut a damsel for a kiss.\n\n83. By the fire one should drink beer, on the ice slide; buy a horse\nthat is lean, a sword that is rusty; feed a horse at home, but a dog\nat the farm.\n\n84. In a maiden's words no one should place faith, nor in what a\nwoman says; for on a turning wheel have their hearts been formed, and\nguile in their breasts been laid;\n\n85. In a creaking bow, a burning flame, a yawning wolf, a chattering\ncrow, a grunting swine, a rootless tree, a waxing wave, a boiling\nkettle,\n\n86. A flying dart, a falling billow, a one night's ice, a coiled\nserpent, a woman's bed-talk, or a broken sword, a bear's play, or a\nroyal child,\n\n87. A sick calf, a self-willed thrall, a flattering prophetess, a\ncorpse newly slain, [a serene sky, a laughing lord, a barking dog, and\na harlot's grief];\n\n88. An early sown field let no one trust, nor prematurely in a son:\nweather rules the field, and wit the son, each of which is doubtful;\n\n89. A brother's murderer, though on the high road met, a half-burnt\nhouse, an over-swift horse, (a horse is useless, if a leg be broken),\nno man is so confiding as to trust any of these.\n\n90. Such is the love of women, who falsehood meditate, as if one\ndrove not rough-shod, on slippery ice, a spirited two-years old and\nunbroken horse; or as in a raging storm a helmless ship is beaten; or\nas if the halt were set to catch a reindeer in the thawing fell.[21]\n\n91. Openly I now speak, because I both sexes know: unstable are\nmen's minds towards women; 'tis then we speak most fair when we most\nfalsely think: that deceives even the cautious.\n\n92. Fair shall speak, and money offer, who would obtain a woman's\nlove. Praise the form of a fair damsel; he gets who courts her.\n\n93. At love should no one ever wonder in another: a beauteous\ncountenance oft captivates the wise, which captivates not the foolish.\n\n94. Let no one wonder at another's folly, it is the lot of many.\nAll-powerful desire makes of the sons of men fools even of the wise.\n\n95. The mind only knows what lies near the heart, that alone is\nconscious of our affections. No disease is worse to a sensible man\nthan not to be content with himself.\n\n96. That I experienced, when in the reeds I sat, awaiting my\ndelight. Body and soul to me was that discreet maiden: nevertheless I\npossess her not.\n\n97. Billing's lass[22] on her couch I found, sun-bright, sleeping. A\nprince's joy to me seemed naught, if not with that form to live.\n\n98. \"Yet nearer eve must thou, Odin, come, if thou wilt talk the\nmaiden over; all will be disastrous, unless we alone are privy to such\nmisdeed.\"\n\n99. I returned, thinking to love, at her wise desire. I thought I\nshould obtain her whole heart and love.\n\n100. When next I came the bold warriors were all awake, with lights\nburning, and bearing torches: thus was the way to pleasure closed.\n\n101. But at the approach of morn, when again I came, the household\nall was sleeping; the good damsel's dog alone I found tied to the bed.\n\n102. Many a fair maiden, when rightly known, towards men is fickle:\nthat I experienced, when that discreet maiden I strove to seduce:\ncontumely of every kind that wily girl heaped upon me; nor of that\ndamsel gained I aught.\n\n103. At home let a man be cheerful, and towards a guest liberal; of\nwise conduct he should be, of good memory and ready speech; if much\nknowledge he desires, he must often talk on good.\n\n104. Fimbulfambi he is called who' little has to say: such is the\nnature of the simple.\n\n105. The old Jotun I sought; now I am come back: little got I there\nby silence; in many words I spoke to my advantage in Suttung's halls.\n\n106. Gunnlod gave me, on her golden seat, a draught of the precious\nmead; a bad recompense I afterwards made her, for her whole soul, her\nfervent love.\n\n107. Rati's mouth I caused to make a space, and to gnaw the rock;\nover and under me were the Jotun's ways: thus I my head did peril.\n\n108. Of a well-assumed form I made good use: few things fail the\nwise; for Odhr\u00e6rir is now come up to men's earthly dwellings.\n\n109. 'Tis to me doubtful that I could have come from the Jotun's\ncourts, had not Gunnlod aided me, that good damsel, over whom I laid\nmy arm.\n\n110. On the day following came the Hrimthursar, to learn something\nof the High One, in the High One's hall: after Bolverk they inquired,\nwhether he with the gods were come, or Suttung had destroyed him?\n\n111. Odin, I believe, a ring-oath[23] gave. Who in his faith will\ntrust? Suttung defrauded, of his drink bereft, and Gunnlod made to\nweep!\n\n112. Time 'tis to discourse from the preacher's chair. By the well\nof Urd I silent sat, I saw and meditated, I listened to men's words.\n\n113. Of runes I heard discourse, and of things divine, nor of\ngraving them were they silent, nor of sage counsels, at the High One's\nhall. In the High One's hall. I thus heard say:\n\n114. I counsel thee, Loddfafnir, to take advice: thou wilt profit if\nthou takest it. Rise not at night, unless to explore, or art compelled\nto go out.\n\n115. I counsel thee, Loddfafnir, to take advice, thou wilt profit if\nthou takest it. In an enchantress's embrace thou mayest not sleep, so\nthat in her arms she clasp thee.\n\n116. She will be the cause that thou carest not for Thing or\nprince's words; food thou wilt shun and human joys; sorrowful wilt\nthou go to sleep.\n\n117. I counsel thee, etc. Another's wife entice thou never to secret\nconverse.\n\n118. I counsel thee, etc. By fell or firth if thou have to travel,\nprovide thee well with food.\n\n119. I counsel thee, etc. A bad man let thou never know thy\nmisfortunes; for from a bad man thou never wilt obtain a return for\nthy good will.\n\n120. I saw mortally wound a man a wicked woman's words; a false\ntongue caused his death, and most unrighteously.\n\n121. I counsel thee, etc. If thou knowest thou hast a friend, whom\nthou well canst trust, go oft to visit him; for with brushwood\nover-grown, and with high grass, is the way that no one treads.\n\n122. I counsel thee, etc. A good man attract to thee in pleasant\nconverse; and salutary speech learn while thou livest.\n\n123. I counsel thee, etc. With thy friend be thou never first to\nquarrel. Care gnaws the heart, if thou to no one canst thy whole mind\ndisclose.\n\n124. I counsel thee, etc. Words thou never shouldst exchange with a\nwitless fool;\n\n125. For from an ill-conditioned man thou wilt never get a return\nfor good; but a good man will bring thee favour by his praise.\n\n126. There is a mingling of affection, where one can tell another\nall his mind. Everything is better than being with the deceitful. He\nis not another's friend who ever says as he says.\n\n127. I counsel thee, etc. Even in three words quarrel not with a\nworse man: often the better yields, when the worse strikes.\n\n128. I counsel thee, etc. Be not a shoemaker, nor a shaftmaker,\nunless for thyself it be; for a shoe if ill made, or a shaft if\ncrooked, will call down evil on thee.\n\n129. I counsel thee, etc. Wherever of injury thou knowest, regard\nthat injury as thy own; and give to thy foes no peace.\n\n130. I counsel thee, etc. Rejoiced at evil be thou never; but let\ngood give thee pleasure.\n\n131. I counsel thee, etc. In a battle look not up, (like swine the\nsons of men then become) that men may not fascinate thee.\n\n132. If thou wilt induce a good woman to pleasant converse, thou\nmust promise fair, and hold to it: no one turns from good if it can be\ngot.\n\n133. I enjoin thee to be wary, but not over wary; at drinking be\nthou most wary, and with another's wife; and thirdly, that thieves\ndelude thee not.\n\n134. With insult or derision treat thou never a guest or wayfarer.\nThey often little know, who sit within, of what race they are who\ncome.\n\n135. Vices and virtues the sons of mortals bear in their breasts\nmingled; no one is so good that no failing attends him, nor so bad as\nto be good for nothing.\n\n136. At a hoary speaker laugh thou never; often is good that which\nthe aged utter, oft from a shriveled hide discreet words issue; from\nthose whose skin is pendent and decked with scars, and who go\ntottering among the vile.\n\n137. I counsel thee, etc. Rail not at a guest, nor from thy gate\nthrust him; treat well the indigent; they will speak well of thee.\n\n138. Strong is the bar that must be raised to admit all. Do thou\ngive a penny, or they will call down on thee every ill in thy limbs.\n\n139. I counsel thee, etc. Wherever thou beer drinkest, invoke to\nthee the power of earth; for earth is good against drink, fire for\ndistempers, the oak for constipation, a corn-ear for sorcery, a hall\nfor domestic strife. In bitter hates invoke the moon; the biter for\nbite-injuries is good; but runes against calamity; fluid let earth\nabsorb.\n\nFOOTNOTES:\n\n[Footnote 14: Odin is the \"High One.\" The poem is a collection of\nrules and maxims, and stories of himself, some of them not very\nconsistent with our ideas of a supreme deity.]\n\n[Footnote 15: In the Copenhagen paper Ms. F. this strophe begins with\nthe following three lines:--\n\n Wit is needful\n to him who travels far:\n harm seldom befalls the wary:\n\nThey are printed in the Stockholm edition of the original Afzelius and\nBask, and in the Swedish translation by Afzelius.]\n\n[Footnote 16: The sense of this line seems doubtful; I have adopted\nthe version of Finn Magnusen.]\n\n[Footnote 17: The public meeting.]\n\n[Footnote 18: That is dead on the funeral pyre.]\n\n[Footnote 19: This line is evidently an interpolation.]\n\n[Footnote 20: Odin.]\n\n[Footnote 21: From this line it appears that the poem is of Norwegian\nor Swedish origin, as the reindeer was unknown in Iceland before the\nmiddle of the 18th century, when it was Introduced by royal command.]\n\n[Footnote 22: The story of Odin and Billing's daughter is no longer\nextant; but compare the story of Odin and Rinda in Saxo, p. 126, edit.\nMuller & Veleschow.]\n\n[Footnote 23: In the pagan North oaths were taken on a holy ring or\nbracelet, as with us on the Gospels, a sacred ring being kept in the\ntemple for the purpose.]\n\n\n\n\nODIN'S RUNE-SONG.[24]\n\n140. I know that I hung, on a wind-rocked tree, nine whole nights,\nwith a spear wounded, and to Odin offered, myself to myself; on that\ntree, of which no one knows from what root it springs.\n\n141. Bread no one gave me, nor a horn of drink, downward I peered,\nto runes applied myself, wailing learnt them, then fell down thence.\n\n142. Potent songs nine from the famed son I learned of Bolthorn,\nBestla's sire, and a draught obtained of the precious mead, drawn from\nOdhr\u00e6rir.\n\n143. Then I began to bear fruit, and to know many things, to grow\nand well thrive: word by word I sought out words, fact by fact I\nsought out facts.\n\n144. Runes thou wilt find, and explained characters, very large\ncharacters, very potent characters, which the great speaker depicted,\nand the high powers formed, and the powers' prince graved:\n\n145. Odin among the \u00c6sir, but among the Alfar, Dain, and Dvalin for\nthe dwarfs, Asvid for the Jotuns: some I myself graved.\n\n146. Knowest thou how to grave them? knowest thou how to expound\nthem? knowest thou how to depict them? knowest thou how to prove them?\nknowest thou how to pray? knowest thou how to offer? knowest thou how\nto send?[25] knowest thou how to consume?\n\n147. 'Tis better not to pray than too much offer; a gift ever looks\nto a return. 'Tis better not to send than too much consume. So Thund\ngraved before the origin of men, where he ascended, to whence he\nafterwards came.\n\n148. Those songs I know which the king's wife knows not nor son of\nman. Help the first is called, for that will help thee against strifes\nand cares.\n\n149. For the second I know, what the sons of men require, who will\nas leeches live. * * * *\n\n150. For the third I know,[26] if I have great need to restrain my\nfoes, the weapons' edge I deaden: of my adversaries nor arms nor wiles\nharm aught.\n\n151. For the fourth I know, if men place bonds on my limbs, I so\nsing that I can walk; the fetter starts from my feet, and the manacle\nfrom my hands.\n\n152. For the fifth I know, if I see a shot from a hostile hand, a\nshaft flying amid the host, so swift it cannot fly that I cannot\narrest it, if only I get sight of it.\n\n153. For the sixth I know, if one wounds me with a green tree's\nroots;[27] also if a man declares hatred to me, harm shall consume\nthem sooner than me.\n\n154. For the seventh I know, if a lofty house I see blaze o'er its\ninmates, so furiously it shall not burn that I cannot save it. That\nsong I can sing.\n\n155. For the eighth I know, what to all is useful to learn: where\nhatred grows among the sons of men--that I can quickly assuage.\n\n156. For the ninth I know, if I stand in need my bark on the water\nto save, I can the wind on the waves allay, and the sea lull.\n\n157. For the tenth I know, if I see troll-wives sporting in air, I\ncan so operate that they will forsake their own forms, and their own\nminds.\n\n158. For the eleventh I know, if I have to lead my ancient friends\nto battle, under their shields I sing, and with power they go safe to\nthe fight, safe from the fight; safe on every side they go.\n\n159. For the twelfth I know, if on a tree I see a corpse swinging\nfrom a halter, I can so grave and in runes depict, that the man shall\nwalk, and with me converse.\n\n160. For the thirteenth I know, if on a young man I sprinkle water,\nhe shall not fall, though he into battle come: that man shall not sink\nbefore swords.\n\n161. For the fourteenth I know, if in the society of men I have to\nenumerate the gods, \u00c6sir and Alfar, I know the distinctions of all.\nThis few unskilled can do.\n\n162. For the fifteenth I know what the dwarf Thiodreyrir sang before\nDelling's doors. Strength he sang to the \u00c6sir, and to the Alfar\nprosperity, wisdom to Hroptatyr.\n\n163. For the sixteenth I know, if a modest maiden's favour and\naffection I desire to possess, the soul I change of the white-armed\ndamsel, and wholly turn her mind.\n\n164. For the seventeenth I know, that that young maiden will\nreluctantly avoid me. These songs, Loddfafnir! thou wilt long have\nlacked; yet it may be good if thou understandest them, profitable if\nthou learnest them.\n\n165. For the eighteenth I know that which I never teach to maid or\nwife of man, (all is better what one only knows. This is the closing\nof the songs) save her alone who clasps me in her arms, or is my\nsister.\n\n166. Now are sung the High-one's songs, in the High-one's hall, to\nthe sons of men all-useful, but useless to the Jotuns' sons. Hail to\nhim who has sung them! Hail to him who knows them! May he profit who\nhas learnt them! Hail to those who have listened to them!\n\nFOOTNOTES:\n\n[Footnote 24: The first eight strophes of this composition require an\nexplanation which I am incompetent to afford. They have had many\ninterpreters and as many interpretations. The idea of Odin hanging on\na tree would seem to have been suggested by what we read of the grove\nat Upsala, or Sigtuna, in which the victims offered to that deity were\nsuspended from the trees. In the guise of an unknown wanderer, Odin\nmay be supposed to have been captured and thus offered to himself. It\nno doubt refers to some lost legend.]\n\n[Footnote 25: Probably, send them (the runes) forth on their several\nmissions.]\n\n[Footnote 26: The miraculous powers here ascribed by Odin to himself\nbear, in many instances, a remarkable similarity to those attributed\nto him by Snorri.]\n\n[Footnote 27: The ancient inhabitants of the North believed that the\nroots of trees were particularly fitted for hurtful trolldom, or\nwitchcraft, and that wounds caused thereby were mortal. In India a\nsimilar superstition prevails of the hurtfulness of the roots of\ntrees.]\n\n\n\n\nTHE LAY OF HYMIR.\n\n1. Once the celestial gods had been taking fish, and were in\ncompotation, ere they the truth discovered.[28] Rods[29] they shook,\nand blood inspected, when they found at Oegir's a lack of kettles.\n\n2. Sat the rock-dweller glad as a child, much like the son of\nMiskorblindi. In his eyes looked Ygg's son steadfastly. \"Thou to the\n\u00c6sir shalt oft a compotation give.\"\n\n3. Caused trouble to the Jotun th' unwelcome-worded As: he forthwith\nmeditated vengeance on the gods. Sif's husband he besought a kettle\nhim to bring, \"in which I beer for all of you may brew.\"\n\n4. The illustrious gods found that impossible, nor could the exalted\npowers it accomplish, till from true-heartedness, Ty to Hlorridi much\nfriendly counsel gave.\n\n5. \"There dwells eastward of Elivagar the all-wise Hymir, at\nheaven's end. My sire, fierce of mood, a kettle owns, a capacious\ncauldron, a rast in depth.\"\n\n_Thor_.\n\n6. \"Knowest thou whether we can get the liquor-boiler?\"\n\n_Ty_.\n\n\"Yes, friend! if we stratagem' employ.\" Rapidly they drove forward\nthat day from Asgard, till to the giant's home they came.\n\n7. Thor stalled his goats, splendid of horn, then turned him to the\nhall that Hymir owned. The son his granddam found to him most\nloathful; heads she had nine hundred.\n\n8. But another came all-golden forth, fair-browed, bearing the\nbeer-cup to her son:\n\n9. \"Ye Jotuns' kindred! I will you both, ye daring pair, under the\nkettles place. My husband is oftentimes niggard towards guests, to\nill-humour prone.\"\n\n10. But the monster, the fierce-souled Hymir, late returned home\nfrom the chase. He the hall entered, the icebergs resounded, as the\nchurl approached; the thicket on his cheeks was frozen.\n\n11. \"Hail to thee, Hymir! be of good cheer: now thy son is come to\nthy hall, whom we expected from his long journey; him accompanies our\nfamed adversary, the friend of man, who Veor hight.\n\n12. See where they sit under the hall's gable, as if to shun thee:\nthe pillar stands before them.\" In shivers flew the pillar at the\nJotun's glance; the beam was first broken in two.\n\n13. Eight kettles fell, but only one of them, a hard-hammered\ncauldron, whole from the column. The two came forth, but the old Jotun\nwith eyes surveyed his adversary.\n\n14. Augured to him his mind no good, when he saw the giantess's\nsorrow on the floor coming. Then were three oxen taken, and the Jotun\nbade them forthwith be boiled.\n\n15. Each one they made by the head shorter, and to the fire\nafterwards bore them. Sif's consort ate, ere to sleep he went,\ncompletely, he alone, two of Hymir's beeves.\n\n16. Seemed to the hoary friend of Hrungnir Hlorridi's refection full\nwell large: \"We three to-morrow night shall be compelled on what we\ncatch to live.\"\n\n17. Veor said he would on the sea row, if the bold Jotun him would\nwith baits supply: \"To the herd betake thee, (if thou in thy courage\ntrustest, crusher of the rock-dwellers!) for baits to seek.\n\n18. I expect that thou wilt bait from an ox easily obtain.\" The\nguest in haste to the forest went, where stood an all-black ox before\nhim.\n\n19. The Thursar's bane wrung from an ox the high fastness of his two\nhorns. \"To me thy work seems worse by far, ruler of keels! than if\nthou hadst sat quiet.\"\n\n20. The lord of goats the apes' kinsman besought the horse of plank\nfarther out to move; but the Jotun declared his slight desire farther\nto row.\n\n21. The mighty Hymir drew, he alone, two whales up with his hook;\nbut at the stern abaft Veor cunningly made him a line.\n\n22. Fixed on the hook the shield of men, the serpent's slayer, the\nox's head. Gaped at the bait the foe of gods, the encircler beneath of\nevery land.[30]\n\n23. Drew up boldly the mighty Thor the worm with venom glistening,\nup to the side; with his hammer struck, on his foul head's summit,\nlike a rock towering, the wolf's own brother.\n\n24. The icebergs resounded, the caverns howled, the old earth shrank\ntogether: at length the fish back into ocean sank.[31]\n\n25. The Jotun was little glad, as they rowed back, so that the\npowerful Hymir nothing spake, but the oar moved in another course.\n\n26. \"Wilt thou do half the work with me, either the whales home to\nthe dwelling bear, or the boat fast bind?\"\n\n27. Hlorridi went, grasped the prow, quickly, with its hold-water,\nlifted the water-steed, together with its oars and scoop; bore to the\ndwelling the Jotun's ocean-swine, the curved vessel, through the\nwooded hills.\n\n28. But the Jotun yet ever frowned, to strife accustomed, with Thor\ndisputed, said that no one was strong, however vigorously he might\nrow, unless he his cup could break.\n\n29. But Hlorridi, when to his hands it came, forthwith brake an\nupright stone in twain; sitting dashed the cup through the pillars:\nyet they brought it whole to Hymir back.\n\n30. Until the beauteous woman gave important, friendly counsel,\nwhich she only knew: \"Strike at the head of Hymir, the Jotun with food\noppressed, that is harder than any cup.\"\n\n31. Rose then on his knee the stern lord of goats, clad in all his\ngodlike power. Unhurt remained the old man's helm-block, but the round\nwine-bearer was in shivers broken.\n\n32. \"Much good, I know, has departed from me, now that my cup I see\nhurled from my knees.\" Thus the old man spake: \"I can never say again,\nbeer thou art too hot.\n\n33. \"Now 'tis to be tried if ye can carry the beer-vessel out of our\ndwelling.\" Ty twice assayed to move the vessel, yet at each time stood\nthe kettle fast.\n\n34. Then Modi's father by the brim grasped it, and trod through the\ndwelling's floor. Sif's consort lifted the kettle on his head, while\nabout his heels its rings jingled.\n\n35. They had far journeyed before Odin's son cast one look backward:\nhe from the caverns saw, with Hymir from the east, a troop of\nmany-headed monsters coming.\n\n36. From his shoulders he lifted the kettle down; Miollnir hurled\nforth towards the savage crew, and slew all the mountain-giants, who\nwith Hymir had him pursued.\n\n37. Long they had not journeyed when of Hlorridi's goats one lay\ndown half-dead before the car. It from the pole had sprung across the\ntrace; but the false Loki was of this the cause.\n\n38. Now ye have heard,--for what fabulist can more fully tell--what\nindemnity he from the giant got: he paid for it with his children\nboth.[32]\n\n39. In his strength exulting he to the gods' council came, and had\nthe kettle, which Hymir had possessed, out of which every god shall\nbeer with Oegir drink at every harvest-tide.\n\nFOOTNOTES:\n\n[Footnote 28: To wit, that they were short of kettles for brewing.]\n\n[Footnote 29: That is divining rods.]\n\n[Footnote 30: The great serpent that encircles the earth.]\n\n[Footnote 31: According to the Prose Edda, the giant, overcome with\nfright, took out his knife and severed Thor's line.]\n\n[Footnote 32: This strophe belongs apparently to another poem.]\n\n\n\n\nTHE LAY OF THRYM, OR THE HAMMER RECOVERED.\n\n1. Wroth was Vingthor, when he awoke, and his hammer missed; his\nbeard he shook, his forehead struck, the son of earth felt all around\nhim;\n\n2. And first of all these words he uttered: \"Hear now, Loki! what I\nnow say, which no one knows anywhere on earth, nor in heaven above;\nthe As's hammer is stolen!\"\n\n3. They went to the fair Freyia's dwelling, and he these words first\nof all said: \"Wilt thou me, Freyia, thy feather-garment lend, that\nperchance my hammer I may find?\"\n\n_Freyia._\n\n4. \"That I would give thee, although of gold it were, and trust it\nto thee, though it were of silver.\"\n\n5. Flew then Loki--the plumage rattled--until he came beyond the\n\u00c6sir's dwellings, and came within the Jotun's land.\n\n6. On a mound sat Thrym, the Thursar's lord, for his greyhounds\nplaiting gold bands and his horses' manes smoothing.\n\n7. \"How goes it with the \u00c6sir? How goes it with the Alfar? Why art\nthou come alone to Jotunheim?\"\n\n_Loki_.\n\n8. \"Ill it goes with the \u00c6sir, Ill it goes with the Alfar. Hast thou\nHlorridi's hammer hidden?\"\n\n_Thrym_.\n\n9. \"I have Hlorridi's hammer hidden eight rasts beneath the earth;\nit shall no man get again, unless he bring me Freyia to wife.\"\n\n10. Flew then Loki--the plumage rattled--until he came beyond the\nJotun's dwellings, and came within the \u00c6sir's courts; there he met\nThor, in the middle court, who these words first of all uttered.\n\n11. \"Hast thou had success as well as labour? Tell me from the air\nthe long tidings. Oft of him who sits are the tales defective, and he\nwho lies down utters falsehood.\"\n\n_Loki_.\n\n12. \"I have had labour and success: Thrym has thy hammer, the\nThursar's lord. It shall no man get again, unless he bring him Freyia\nto wife.\"\n\n13. They went the fair Freyia to find; and he those words first of\nall said: \"Bind thee, Freyia, in bridal raiment, we two must drive to\nJotunheim.\"\n\n14. Wroth then was Freyia, and with anger chafed, all the \u00c6sir's\nhall beneath her trembled: in shivers flew the famed Brisinga\nnecklace. \"Know me to be of women lewdest, if with thee I drive to\nJotunheim.\"\n\n15. Straightway went the \u00c6sir all to council, and the Asyniur all to\nhold converse; and deliberated the mighty gods, how they Hlorridi's\nhammer might get back.\n\n16. Then said Heimdall, of \u00c6sir brightest--he well foresaw, like\nother Vanir--\"Let us clothe Thor with bridal raiment, let him have the\nfamed Brisinga necklace.\n\n17. \"Let by his side keys jingle, and woman's weeds fall round his\nknees, but on his breast place precious stones, and a neat coif set on\nhis head.\"\n\n18. Then said Thor, the mighty As: \"Me the \u00c6sir will call womanish,\nif I let myself be clad in bridal raiment.\"\n\n19. Then spake Loki, Laufey's son: \"Do thou, Thor! refrain from\nsuchlike words: forthwith the Jotuns will Asgard inhabit, unless thy\nhammer thou gettest back.\"\n\n20. Then they clad Thor in bridal raiment, and with the noble\nBrisinga necklace, let by his side keys jingle, and woman's weeds fall\nround his knees; and on his breast placed precious stones, and a neat\ncoif set on his head.\n\n21. Then said Loki, Laufey's son: \"I will with thee as a servant go:\nwe two will drive to Jotunheim.\"\n\n22. Straightway were the goats homeward driven, hurried to the\ntraces; they had fast to run. The rocks were shivered, the earth was\nin a blaze; Odin's son drove to Jotunheim.\n\n23. Then said Thrym, the Thursar's lord: \"Rise up, Jotuns! and the\nbenches deck, now they bring me Freyia to wife, Niord's daughter, from\nNoatun.\n\n24. \"Hither to our court let bring gold-horned cows, all-black oxen,\nfor the Jotuns' joy. Treasures I have many, necklaces many, Freyia\nalone seemed to me wanting.\"\n\n25. In the evening they early came, and for the Jotuns beer was\nbrought forth. Thor alone an ox devoured, salmons eight, and all the\nsweetmeats women should have. Sif's consort drank three salds of mead.\n\n26. Then said Thrym, the Thursar's prince: \"Where hast thou seen\nbrides eat more voraciously? I never saw brides feed more amply, nor a\nmaiden drink more mead.\"\n\n27. Sat the all-crafty serving-maid close by, who words fitting\nfound against the Jotun's speech: \"Freyia has nothing eaten for eight\nnights, so eager was she for Jotunheim.\"\n\n28. Under her veil he stooped desirous to salute her, but sprang\nback along the hall. \"Why are so piercing Freyia's looks? Methinks\nthat fire burns from her eyes.\"\n\n29. Sat the all-crafty serving-maid close by, who words fitting\nfound against the Jotun's speech: \"Freyia for eight nights has not\nslept, so eager was she for Jotunheim.\"\n\n30. In came the Jotun's luckless sister, for a bride-gift she dared\nto ask: \"Give me from thy hands the ruddy rings, if thou wouldst gain\nmy love, my love and favour all.\"\n\n31. Then said Thrym, the Thursar's lord: \"Bring the hammer in, the\nbride to consecrate; lay Miollnir on the maiden's knee; unite us each\nwith other by the hand of Vor.\"\n\n32. Laughed Hlorridi's soul in his breast, when the fierce-hearted\nhis hammer recognized. He first slew Thrym, the Thursar's lord, and\nthe Jotun's race all crushed;\n\n33. He slew the Jotun's aged sister, her who a bride-gift had\ndemanded; she a blow got instead of skillings, a hammer's stroke for\nmany rings. So got Odin's son his hammer back.\n\n\n\n\nTHE LAY OF THE DWARF ALVIS.\n\n_Alvis_.\n\n1. The benches they are decking, now shall the bride[33] with me\nbend her way home. That beyond my strength I have hurried will to\nevery one appear: at home naught shall disturb my quiet.\n\n_Vingthor_.\n\n2. What man is this? Why about the nose art thou so pale? Hast thou\nlast night with corpses lain? To me thou seemst to bear resemblance to\nthe Thursar. Thou art not born to carry off a bride.\n\n_Alvis_.\n\n3. Alvis I am named, beneath the earth I dwell, under the rock I own\na place. The lord of chariots I am come to visit. A promise once\nconfirmed let no one break.[34]\n\n_Vingthor_.\n\n4. I will break it; for o'er the maid I have, as father, greatest\npower. I was from home when the promise was given thee. Among the gods\nI the sole giver am.\n\n_Alvis_.\n\n5. What man is this, who lays claim to power over that fair, bright\nmaiden? For far-reaching shafts few will know thee. Who has decked\nthee with bracelets?\n\n_Vingthor_.\n\n6. Vingthor I am named, wide I have wandered; I am Sidgrani's son:\nwith my dissent thou shalt not that young maiden have, nor that union\nobtain.\n\n_Alvis_.\n\n7. Thy consent I fain would have, and that union obtain. Rather\nwould I possess than be without that snow-white maiden.\n\n_Vingthor_.\n\n8. The maiden's love shall not, wise guest! be unto thee denied, if\nthou of every world canst tell all I desire to know.\n\n_Alvis_.\n\n9. Vingthor! thou canst try, as thou art desirous the knowledge of\nthe dwarf to prove. All the nine worlds I have travelled over, and\nevery being known.\n\n_Vingthor_.\n\n10. Tell me, Alvis!--for all men's concerns I presume thee, dwarf,\nto know--how the earth is called, which lies before the sons of men,\nin every world.\n\n_Alvis_.\n\n11. Jord among men 'tis called, but with the \u00c6sir fold; the Vanir\ncall it vega, the Jotuns igroen, the Alfar groandi, the powers supreme\naur.\n\n_Vingthor_.\n\n12. Tell me, Alvis, etc. how the heaven is called, which is\nperceptible in every world.\n\n_Alvis_.\n\n13. Himinn 'tis called by men; but hlyrnir with the gods; vindofni\nthe Vanir call it, uppheimr the Jotuns, the Alfar fagrar\u00e6fr, the\ndwarfs driupansal.\n\n_Vingthor_.\n\n14. Tell me, Alvis! etc., how the moon is called, which men see in\nevery world.\n\n_Alvis_.\n\n15. Mani 'tis called by men, but mylinn with the gods, hverfanda\nhvel in Hel[35] they call it, skyndi the Jotuns, but the dwarfs skin;\nthe Alfar name it artali.\n\n_Vingthor_.\n\n16. Tell me, Alvis! etc., how the sun is called, which men's sons\nsee in every world.\n\n_Alvis_.\n\n17. Sol among men 'tis called, but with the gods sunna, the dwarfs\ncall it Dvalinn's leika, the Jotuns eyglo, the Alfar fagrahvel, the\n\u00c6sir's sons alskir.\n\n_Vingthor_.\n\n18. Tell me, Alvis, etc., how the clouds are called, which with\nshowers are mingled in every world.\n\n_Alvis_.\n\n19. Sky they are called by men, but skurvan by the gods; the Vanir\ncall them vindflot, the Jotuns urvan, the Alfar vedrmegin; in Hel they\nare called hialm hulids.\n\n_Vingthor_.\n\n20. Tell me, Alvis! etc., how the wind is called, which widely\npasses over every world.\n\n_Alvis_.\n\n21. Windr 'tis called by men, but vavudr by the gods, the\nwide-ruling powers call it gneggiud, the Jotuns oepir, the Alfar\ndynfari, in Hel they call it hvidudr.\n\n_Vingthor_.\n\n22. Tell me, Alvis! etc., how the calm is called, which has to rest\nin every world.\n\n_Alvis_.\n\n23. Logn 'tis called by men, but l\u00e6gi by the gods, the Vanir call it\nvindslot, the Jotuns ofhly, the Alfar dagsevi, the Dwarfs call it dags\nvera.\n\n_Vingthor_.\n\n24. Tell me, Alvis! etc., what the sea is called, which men row over\nin every world.\n\n_Alvis_.\n\n25. S\u00e6r 'tis called by men, but sil\u00e6gia with the gods; the vanir\ncall it vagr, the Jotuns alheimr, the Alfar lagastafr, the Dwarfs call\nit diupan mar.\n\n_Vingthor_.\n\n26. Tell me, Alvis! etc., how the fire is called, which burns before\nmen's sons in every world.\n\n_Alvis_.\n\n27. Eldr 'tis called by men, but by the \u00c6sir funi; the Vanir call it\nvagr, the Jotuns frekr, but the Dwarfs forbrennir; in Hel they call it\nhrodudr.\n\n_Vingthor_.\n\n28. Tell me, Alvis! etc., how the forest is called, which grows for\nthe sons of men in every world.\n\n_Alvis_.\n\n29. Vidr 'tis called by men, but vallarfax by the gods, Hel's\ninmates call it hlidthangr, the Jotuns eldi, the Alfar fagrlimi; the\nVanir call it vondr.\n\n_Vingthor_.\n\n30. Tell me, Alvis! etc., how the night is called, that Norvi's\ndaughter hight, in every world.\n\n_Alvis_.\n\n31. Nott it is called by men, but by the gods niol; the wide-ruling\npowers call it grima, the Jotuns olios, the Alfar svefngaman; the\nDwarfs call it draumniorunn.\n\n_Vingthor_.\n\n32. Tell me, Alvis! etc., how the seed is called, which the sons of\nmen sow in every world.\n\n_Alvis_.\n\n33. Bygg it is called by men, but by the gods barr, the Vanir call\nit vaxtr, the Jotuns \u00e6ti, the Alfar lagastafr; in Hel 'tis hnipinn\ncalled.\n\n_Vingthor_.\n\n34. Tell me, Alvis! etc., how the beer is called, which the sons of\nmen drink in every world.\n\n_Alvis_.\n\n35. Ol it is called by men, but by the \u00c6sir biorr, the Vanir call it\nveig, hreina logr the Jotuns, but in Hel 'tis called miodr: Suttung's\nsons call it sumbl.\n\n_Vingthor_.\n\n36. In one breast I have never found more ancient lore. By great\nwiles thou hast, I tell thee, been deluded. Thou art above ground,\ndwarf! at dawn; already in the hall the sun is shining!\n\nFOOTNOTES:\n\n[Footnote 33: Thrud, Thor's daughter by his wife Sif. _Skaldskap_.]\n\n[Footnote 34: This appears to allude to a promise made to the dwarf;\nbut of which the story is lost.]\n\n[Footnote 35: When this composition was written, it appears that Hel\nwas no longer regarded as a person, but as a place.]\n\n\n\n\nTHE LAY OF HARBARD.\n\n\nThor journeying from the eastern parts came to a strait or sound, on\nthe other side of which was a ferryman with his boat. Thor cried\nout:--\n\n1. Who is the knave of knaves, that by the sound stands yonder?\n\n_Harbard_.\n\n2. Who is the churl of churls, that cries across the water?\n\n_Thor_.\n\n3. Ferry me across the sound, to-morrow I'll regale thee. I have a\nbasket on my back: there is no better food: at my ease I ate, before I\nquitted home, herrings and oats, with which I yet feel sated.\n\n_Harbard_.\n\n4. Thou art in haste to praise thy meal: thou surely hast no\nforeknowledge; for sad will be thy home: thy mother, I believe, is\ndead.\n\n_Thor_.\n\n5. Thou sayest now what seems to every one most unwelcome to\nknow--that my mother is dead.\n\n_Harbard_.\n\n6. Thou dost not look like one who owns three country dwellings,\nbare-legged thou standest, and like a beggar clothed; thou hast not\neven breeches.\n\n_Thor_.\n\n7. Steer hitherward thy boat; I will direct thee where to land. But\nwho owns this skiff, which by the strand thou holdest?\n\n_Harbard_.\n\n8. Hildolf fief is named who bade me hold it, a man in council wise,\nwho dwells in Radso sound. Robbers he bade me not to ferry, or\nhorse-stealers, but good men only, and those whom I well knew. Tell me\nthen thy name, if thou wilt cross the sound.\n\n_Thor_.\n\n9. I my name will tell, (although I am an outlaw) and all my kin: I\nam Odin's son, Meili's brother, and Magni's sire, the gods' mighty\nleader: With Thor thou here mayest speak. I will now ask how thou art\ncalled.\n\n_Harbard_.\n\n10. I am Harbard called; seldom I my name conceal.\n\n_Thor_.\n\n11. Why shouldst thou thy name conceal, unless thou crime hast\nperpetrated?\n\n_Harbard_.\n\n12. Yet, though I may crime have perpetrated, I will nathless guard\nmy life against such as thou art; unless I death-doomed am.\n\n_Thor_.\n\n13. It seems to me a foul annoyance to wade across the strait to\nthee, and wet my garments: but I will pay thee, mannikin! for thy\nsharp speeches, if o'er the sound I come.\n\n_Harbard_.\n\n14. Here will I stand, and here await thee. Thou wilt have found no\nstouter one since Hrungnir's death.\n\n_Thor_.\n\n15. Thou now remindest me how I with Hrungnir fought, that\nstout-hearted Jotun, whose head was all of stone; yet I made him fall,\nand sink before me. What meanwhile didst thou, Harbard?\n\n_Harbard_.\n\n16. I was with Fiolvari five winters through, in the isle which\nAlgron hight. There we could fight, and slaughter make, many perils\nprove, indulge in love.\n\n_Thor_.\n\n17. How did your women prove towards you?\n\n_Harbard_.\n\n18. Sprightly women we had, had they but been meek; shrewd ones we\nhad, had they but been kind. Of sand a rope they twisted, and from the\ndeep valley dug the earth: to them all I alone was superior in\ncunning. I rested with the sisters seven, and their love and pleasures\nshared. What meanwhile didst thou, Thor?\n\n_Thor_.\n\n19. I slew Thiassi, that stout-hearted Jotun: up I cast the eyes of\nAllvaldi's son into the heaven serene: they are signs the greatest of\nmy deeds. What meanwhile didst thou, Harbard?\n\n_Harbard_.\n\n20. Great seductive arts I used against the riders of the night,[36]\nwhen from their husbands I enticed them. A mighty Jotun I believed\nHlebard to be: a magic wand he gave me, but from his wits I charmed\nhim.\n\n_Thor_.\n\n21. With evil mind then thou didst good gifts requit\u00e8 _Harbard_.\n\n22. One tree gets that which, is from another scraped: each one in\nsuch case is for self. What meanwhile didst thou, Thor?\n\n_Thor_.\n\n23. In the east I was, and slew the Jotun brides, crafty in evil, as\nthey to the mountain went. Great would have been the Jotun race, had\nthey all lived; and not a man left in Midgard. What meanwhile didst\nthou, Harbard?\n\n_Harbard_.\n\n24. I was in Valland, and followed warfare; princes I excited, but\nnever reconciled. Odin has all the jarls that in conflict fall; but\nThor the race of thralls.\n\n_Thor_.\n\n25. Unequally thou wouldst divide the folk among the \u00c6sir, if thou\nbut hadst the power.\n\n_Harbard_.\n\n36. Thor has strength over-much, but courage none; from cowardice\nand fear, thou wast crammed into a glove, and hardly thoughtest thou\nwast Thor. Thou durst not then, through thy terror, either sneeze or\ncough, lest Fialar it might hear.\n\n_Thor_.\n\n27. Harbard, thou wretch! I would strike thee dead, could I but\nstretch my arm across the sound.\n\n_Harbard_.\n\n28. Why wouldst thou stretch thy arm across the sound, when there is\naltogether no offence? But what didst thou, Thor?\n\n_Thor_.\n\n39. In the east I was, and a river I defended, when the sons of\nSvarang me assailed, and with stones pelted me, though in their\nsuccess they little joyed: they were the first to sue for peace. What\nmeanwhile didst thou, Harbard?\n\n_Harbard_.\n\n30. I was in the east, and with a certain lass held converse; with\nthat fair I dallied, and long meetings had. I that gold-bright one\ndelighted; the game amused her.\n\n_Thor_.\n\n31. Then you had kind damsels there?\n\n_Harbard_.\n\n32. Of thy aid I had need, Thor! in retaining that maiden lily-fair.\n\n_Thor_.\n\n33. I would have given it thee, if I had had the opportunity.\n\n_Harbard_.\n\n34. I would have trusted thee, my confidence if thou hadst not\nbetrayed it.\n\n_Thor_.\n\n35. I am not such a heel-chafer as an old leather shoe in spring.\n\n_Harbard_.\n\n36. What meanwhile didst thou, Thor?\n\n_Thor_.\n\n37. The Berserkers' brides I on L\u00e6sso cudgeled; they the worst had\nperpetrated, the whole people, had seduced.\n\n_Harbard_.\n\n38. Dastardly didst thou act, Thor! when thou didst cudgel women.\n\n_Thor_.\n\n39. She-wolves they were, and scarcely women. They crushed my ship,\nwhich with props I had secured, with iron clubs threatened me, and\ndrove away Thialfi. What meanwhile didst thou, Harbard?\n\n_Harbard_.\n\n40. I in the army was, which was hither sent, war-banners to raise,\nlances to redden.\n\n_Thor_.\n\n41. Of that thou now wilt speak, as thou wentest forth us hard terms\nto offer.\n\n_Harbard_.\n\n42. That shall be indemnified by a hand-ring, such as arbitrators\ngive, who wish to reconcile us.\n\n_Thor_.\n\n43. Where didst thou learn words than which I never heard more\nirritating?\n\n_Harbard_.\n\n44. From men I learned them, from ancient men, whose home is in the\nwoods.\n\n_Thor_.\n\n45. Thou givest certainly a good name to grave-mounds, when thou\ncallest them, homes in the woods.\n\n_Harbard_.\n\n46. So speak I of such a subject.\n\n_Thor_.\n\n47. Thy shrewd words will bring thee evil, if I resolve the sound to\nford. Louder than a wolf thou wilt howl, I trow, if of my hammer thou\ngettest a touch.\n\n_Harbard_.\n\n48. Sif has a gallant at home; thou wilt anxious be to find him:\nthou shalt that arduous work perform; it will beseem thee better.\n\n_Thor_.\n\n49. Thou utterest what comes upmost, so that to me it be most\nannoying, thou dastardly varlet! I believe thou art lying.\n\n_Harbard_.\n\n50. I believe I am telling truth. Thou art travelling slowly; thou\nwouldst have long since arrived, hadst thou assumed another form.\n\n_Thor_.\n\n51. Harbard! thou wretch! rather is it thou who hast detained me.\n\n_Harbard_.\n\n52. I never thought that a ferryman could the course of Asa-Thor\nretard.\n\n_Thor_.\n\n53. One advice I now will give thee: row hither with thy boat; let\nus cease from threats; approach the sire of Magni.\n\n_Harbard_.\n\n54. Go farther from the sound, the passage is refused thee.\n\n_Thor_.\n\n55. Show me then the way, if thou wilt not ferry me across the\nwater.\n\n_Harbard_.\n\n56. That's too little to refuse. 'Tis far to go; 'tis to the stock\nan hour, and to the stone another; then keep the left hand way, until\nthou reachest Verland; there will Fiorgyn find her son Thor, and\npoint out to him his kinsmen's ways to Odin's land.\n\n_Thor_.\n\n57. Can I get there to-day?\n\n_Harbard_.\n\n58. With pain and toil thou mayest get there, while the sun is up,\nwhich, I believe, is now nigh.\n\n_Thor_.\n\n59. Our talk shall now be short, as thou answerest with scoffing\nonly. For refusing to ferry me I will reward thee, if another time we\nmeet.\n\n_Harbard_.\n\n60. Just go to where all the powers of evil may have thee.\n\nFOOTNOTES:\n\n[Footnote 36: Giantesses, witches, etc.]\n\n\n\n\nTHE JOURNEY OR LAY OF SKIRNIR.\n\nFrey, son of Niord; had one day seated himself in Hlidskialf, and was\nlooking over all regions, when turning his eyes to Jotunheim, he there\nsaw a beautiful girl, as she was passing from her father's dwelling to\nher bower. Thereupon he became greatly troubled in mind. Frey's\nattendant was named Skirnir; him Niord desired to speak with Frey;\nwhen Skadi said:--\n\n1. Rise up now, Skirnir! go and request our son to speak; and\ninquire with whom he so sage may be offended.\n\n_Skirnir_.\n\n2. Harsh words I have from your son to fear, if I go to speak with\nhim, and to inquire with whom he so sage may be offended.\n\n_Skirnir_.\n\n3. Tell me now, Frey, prince of gods! for I desire to know, why\nalone thou sittest in the spacious hall the livelong day?\n\n_Frey_.\n\n4. Why shall I tell thee, thou young man, my mind's great trouble?\nfor the Alfs' illuminator shines every day, yet not for my pleasure.\n\n_Skirnir_.\n\n5. Thy care cannot, I think, be so great, that to me thou canst not\ntell it; for in early days we were young together: well might we trust\neach other.\n\n_Frey_.\n\n6. In Gymir's courts I saw walking a maid for whom I long. Her arms\ngave forth light wherewith shone all air and water.\n\n7. Is more desirable to me that maid than to any youth in early\ndays; yet will no one, \u00c6sir or Alfar, that we together live.\n\n_Skirnir_.\n\n8. Give me but thy steed, which can bear me through the dusk,\nflickering flame, and that sword, which brandishes itself against the\nJotuns' race.\n\n_Frey_.\n\n9. I will give thee my steed, which can bear thee through the dusk,\nflickering flame, and that sword, which will itself brandish, if he is\nbold who raises it.\n\n_Skirnir Speaks to the Horse_.\n\n10. Dark it is without, 'tis time, I say, for us to go across the\nmisty fells, over the Thursar's land: we shall both return, or the\nall-potent Jotun will seize us both. Skirnir rides to Jotunheim, to\nGymir's mansion, where fierce dogs were chained at the gate of the\nenclosure that was round Gymir's hall. He rides on to where a cowherd\nwas sitting on a mound, and says to him:\n\n11. Tell me, cowherd! as on the mound thou sittest, and watchest all\nthe ways, how I to the speech may come, of the young maiden, for\nGymir's dogs?\n\n_Cowherd_.\n\n12. Either thou art death-doomed, or thou art a departed one. Speech\nwilt thou ever lack with the good maid of Gymir.\n\n_Skirnir_.\n\n13. Better choices than to whine there are for him who is prepared\nto die: for one day was my age decreed, and my whole life determined.\n\n_Gerd_.\n\n14. What is that sound of sounds, which I now sounding hear within\nour dwelling? The earth is shaken, and with it all the house of Gymir\ntrembles.\n\n_A serving-maid_.\n\n15. A man is here without, dismounted from his horse's back: he lets\nhis steed browse on the grass.\n\n_Gerd_.\n\n16. Bid him enter into our hall, and drink of the bright mead;\nalthough I fear it is my brother's slayer who waits without.\n\n17. Who is this of the Alfar's, or of the \u00c6sir's sons, or of the\nwise Vanir's? Why art thou come alone, through the hostile fire, our\nhalls to visit?\n\n_Skirnir_.\n\n18. I am not of the Alfar's, nor of the \u00c6sir's sons, nor of the wise\nVanir's; yet I am come alone, through the hostile fire, your halls to\nvisit.\n\n19. Apples all-golden I have here eleven: these I will give thee,\nGerd, thy love to gain, that thou mayest say that Frev to thee lives\ndearest.\n\n_Gerd_.\n\n20. The apples eleven I never will accept for any mortal's pleasure;\nnor will I and Frey, while our lives last, live both together.\n\n_Skirnir_.\n\n21. The ring too I will give thee, which was burnt with the young\nson of Odin. Eight of equal weight will from it drop, every ninth\nnight.\n\n_Gerd_.\n\n22. The ring I will not accept, burnt though it may have been with\nthe young son of Odin. I have no lack of gold in Gymir's courts; for\nmy father's wealth I share.\n\n_Skirnir_.\n\n23. Seest thou this sword, young maiden! thin, glittering-bright,\nwhich I have here in hand? I thy head will sever from thy neck, if\nthou speakst not favourably to me.\n\n_Gerd_.\n\n24. Suffer compulsion will I never, to please any man; yet this I\nforesee, if thou and Gymir meet, ye will eagerly engage in fight.\n\n_Skirnir_.\n\n25. Seest thou this sword, young maiden! thin, glittering-bright,\nwhich I have here in hand? Beneath its edge shall the old Jotun fall:\nthy sire is death-doomed.\n\n26. With a taming-wand I smite thee, and I will tame thee, maiden!\nto my will. Thou shalt go thither, where the sons of men shall never\nmore behold thee.\n\n27. On an eagle's mount thou shalt early sit, looking and turned\ntowards Hel. Food shall to thee more loathsome be than is to any one\nthe glistening serpent among men.\n\n28. As a prodigy thou shalt be, when thou goest forth; Hrimnir shall\nat thee gaze, all beings at thee stare; more wide-known thou shalt\nbecome than the watch among the gods,[37] if thou from thy gratings\ngape.\n\n29. Solitude and disgust, bonds and impatience, shall thy tears with\ngrief augment. Set thee down, and I will tell thee of a whelming flood\nof care, and a double grief.\n\n30. Terrors shall bow thee down the livelong day, in the Jotuns'\ncourts. To the Hrimthursar's halls, thou shalt each day crawl\nexhausted, joyless crawl; wail for pastime shalt thou have, and tears\nand misery.\n\n31. With a three-headed Thurs thou shalt be ever bound, or be\nwithout a mate. Thy mind shall tear thee from morn to morn: as the\nthistle thou shalt be which has thrust itself on the house-top.\n\n32. To the wold I have been, and to the humid grove, a magic wand to\nget. A magic wand I got.\n\n33. Wroth with thee is Odin, wroth with thee is the \u00c6sir's prince;\nFrey shall loathe thee, even ere thou, wicked maid! shalt have felt\nthe gods' dire vengeance.\n\n34. Hear ye, Jotuns! hear ye, Hrimthursar! sons of Suttung! also ye,\n\u00c6sir's friends! how I forbid, how I prohibit man's joy unto the\ndamsel, man's converse to the damsel.\n\n35. Hrimgrimnir the Thurs is named, that shall possess thee, in the\ngrating of the dead beneath; there shall wretched thralls, from the\ntree's roots, goats' water give thee. Other drink shalt thou, maiden!\nnever get, either for thy pleasure, or for my pleasure.\n\n36. Thurs[38] I cut for thee, and three letters mere: ergi, and\noedi, and othola. So will I cut them out, as I have cut them, in, if\nthere need shall be.\n\n_Gerd_.\n\n37. Hail rather to thee, youth! and accept an icy cup, filled with\nold mead; although I thought not that I ever should love one of Vanir\nrace.\n\n_Skirnir_.\n\n38. All my errand will I know, ere I hence ride home. When wilt thou\nconverse hold with the powerful son of Niord?\n\n_Gerd_.\n\n39. Barri the grove is named, which we both know, the grove of\ntranquil paths. Nine nights hence, there to Niord's son Gerd will\ngrant delight.\n\nSkimir then rode home. Frey was standing without, and spoke to him,\nasking tidings:\n\n40. Tell me, Skirnir! ere thou thy steed unsaddlest, and a foot\nhence thou goest, what thou hast accomplished in Jotunheim, for my\npleasure or thine?\n\n_Skirnir_.\n\n41. Barri the grove is named, which we both know, the grove of\ntranquil paths. Nine nights hence, there to Niord's son Gerd will\ngrant delight.\n\n_Frey_.\n\n42. Long is one night, yet longer two will be; how shall I three\nendure. Often a month to me less has seemed than half a night of\nlonging.\n\nFOOTNOTES:\n\n[Footnote 37: Heimdall.]\n\n[Footnote 38: Thurs, etc., the names of magical runes.]\n\n\n\n\nTHE LAY OF RIG.\n\nIn ancient Sagas it is related that one of the \u00c6sir named Heimdall,\nbeing on a journey to a certain sea-shore, came to a village, where he\ncalled himself Rig. In accordance with this Saga is the following:\n\n1. In ancient days, they say, along the green ways went the powerful\nand upright sagacious As, the strong and active Rig, his onward course\npursuing.\n\n2. Forward he went on the mid-way, and to a dwelling came. The door\nstood ajar, he went in, fire was on the floor. The man and wife sat\nthere, hoary-haired, by the hearth, Ai and Edda, in old guise clad.\n\n3. Rig would counsel give to them both, and himself seated in the\nmiddle seat, having on either side the domestic pair.\n\n4. Then Edda from the ashes took a loaf, heavy and thick, and with\nbran mixed; more besides she laid on the middle of the board; there in\na bowl was broth on the table set, there was a calf boiled, of cates\nmost excellent.\n\n5. Then rose he up, prepared to sleep: Rig would counsel give to\nthem both; laid him down in the middle of the bed; the domestic pair\nlay one on either side.\n\n6. There he continued three nights together, then departed on the\nmid-way. Nine months then passed way.\n\n7. Edda a child brought forth: they with water sprinkled its swarthy\nskin, and named it Thr\u00e6l.\n\n8. It grew up, and well it throve; of its hands the skin was\nshriveled, the knuckles knotty, * * * and the fingers thick; a hideous\ncountenance it had, a curved back, and protruding heels.\n\n9. He then began his strength to prove, bast to bind, make of it\nloads; then faggots carried home, the livelong day.\n\n10. Then to the dwelling came a woman walking, scarred were her\nfoot-soles, her arms sunburnt, her nose compressed, her name was Thy.\n\n11. In the middle seat herself she placed; by her sat the house's\nson. They spoke and whispered, prepared a bed, Thr\u00e6l and Thy, and days\nof care.\n\n12. Children they begat, and lived content: Their names, I think,\nwere Hreimr and Fiosnir, Klur and Kleggi, Kefsir, Fulnir, Drumb,\nDigraldi, Drott and Hosvir, Lut and Leggialdi. Fences they erected,\nfields manured, tended swine, kept goats, dug turf.\n\n13. The daughters were Drumba and Kumba, Okkvinkalfa, and Arinnefia,\nYsia and Ambatt, Eikintiasna, Totrughypia, and Tronubeina, whence are\nsprung the race of thralls.\n\n14. Rig then went on, in a direct course, and came to a house; the\ndoor stood ajar: he went in; fire was on the floor, man and wife sat\nthere engaged at work.\n\n15. The man was planing wood for a weaver's beam; his beard was\ntrimmed, a lock was on his forehead, his shirt close; his chest stood\non the floor.\n\n16. His wife sat by, plied her rock, with outstretched arms,\nprepared for clothing. A hood was on her head, a loose sark over her\nbreast, a kerchief round her neck, studs on her shoulders. Afi and\nAmma owned the house.\n\n17. Rig would counsel give to them both; rose from the table,\nprepared to sleep; laid him down in the middle of the bed, the\ndomestic pair lay one on either side.\n\n18. There he continued three nights together. Nine months then\npassed away. Amma a child brought forth, they with water sprinkled it,\nand called it Karl. The mother in linen swathed the ruddy redhead: its\neyes twinkled.\n\n19. It grew up, and well throve; learned to tame oxen, make a\nplough, houses build, and barns construct, make carts, and the plough\ndrive.\n\n20. Then they home conveyed a lass with pendent keys, and goatskin\nkirtle; married her to Karl. Snor was her name, under a veil she sat.\nThe couple dwelt together, rings exchanged, spread couches, and a\nhousehold formed.\n\n21. Children they begat, and lived content. Hal and Dreng, these\nwere named, Held, Thegn, Smith, Breidr-bondi, Bundinskegg, Bui and\nBoddi, Brattskegg and Segg.\n\n22. But [the daughters] were thus called, by other names: Snot,\nBrud, Svanni, Svarri, Sprakki, Fliod, Sprund, and Vif, Feima, Ristil;\nwhence are sprung the races of churls.\n\n23. Rig then went thence, in a direct course, and came to a hall:\nthe entrance looked southward, the door was half closed, a ring was on\nthe door-post.\n\n24. He went in; the floor was strewed, a couple sat facing each\nother, Fadir and Modir, with fingers playing.\n\n25. The husband sat, and twisted string, bent his bow, and\narrow-shafts prepared; but the housewife looked on her arms, smoothed\nher veil, and her sleeves fastened;\n\n26. Her head-gear adjusted. A clasp was on her breast; ample her\nrobe, her sark was blue; brighter was her brow, her breast fairer, her\nneck whiter than driven snow.\n\n27. Rig would counsel give to them both, and himself seated on the\nmiddle seat, having on either side the domestic pair.\n\n28. Then took Modir a figured cloth of white linen, and the table\ndecked. She then took thin cakes of snow-white wheat, and on the table\nlaid.\n\n29. She set forth salvers full, adorned with silver, on the table\ngame and pork, and roasted birds. In a can was wine; the cups were\nornamented. They drank and talked; the day was fast departing, Rig\nwould counsel give to them both.\n\n30. Rig then rose, the bed prepared; there he then remained three\nnights together, then departed on the mid-way. Nine months after that\npassed away.\n\n31. Modir then brought forth a boy: in silk they wrapped him, with\nwater sprinkled him, and named him Jarl. Light was his hair, bright\nhis cheeks, his eyes piercing as a young serpent's.\n\n32. There at home Jarl grew up, learned the shield to shake, to fix\nthe string, the bow to bend, arrows to shaft, javelins to hurl,\nspears to brandish, horses to ride, dogs to let slip, swords to draw,\nswimming to practise.\n\n33. Thither from the forest came Rig walking, Rig walking: runes he\ntaught him, his own name gave him, and his own son declared him, whom\nhe bade possess his alodial fields, his alodial fields, his ancient\ndwellings.\n\n34. Jarl then rode thence, through a murky way, over humid fells,\ntill to a hall he came. His spear he brandished, his shield he shook,\nmade his horse curvet, and his falchion drew, strife began to raise,\nthe field to redden, carnage to make; and conquer lands.\n\n35. Then he ruled alone over eight vills, riches distributed, gave\nto all treasures and precious things; lank-sided horses, rings he\ndispersed, and collars cut in pieces.[39]\n\n36. The nobles drove through humid ways, came to a hall, where\nHersir dwelt; there they found a slender maiden, fair and elegant,\nErna her name.\n\n37. They demanded her, and conveyed her home, to Jarl espoused her;\nshe under the linen[40] went. They together lived, and well throve,\nhad offspring, and old age enjoyed.\n\n38. Bur was their eldest, Barn the second, Jod and Adal, Arfi, Mog,\nNid and Nidjung. They learned games; Son and Svein swam and at tables\nplayed. One was named Kund, Kon was youngest.\n\n39. There grew up Jarl's progeny; horses they broke, curved shields,\ncut arrows, brandished spears.\n\n40. But the young Kon understood runes, \u00e6fin-runes, and aldr-runes;\nhe moreover knew men to preserve, edges to deaden, the sea to calm.\n\n41. He knew the voice of birds, how fires to mitigate, assuage and\nquench; sorrows to allay. He of eight men had the strength and energy.\n\n42. He with Rig Jarl in runes contended, artifices practised, and\nsuperior proved; then acquired Rig to be called, and skilled in runes.\n\n43. The young Kon rode through swamps and forests, hurled forth\ndarts, and tamed birds.\n\n44. Then sang the crow, sitting lonely on a bough! \"Why wilt thou,\nyoung Kon: tame the birds? rather shouldst thou, young Kon! on horses\nride * * * and armies overcome.\n\n45. Nor Dan nor Danp halls more costly had, nobler paternal seats,\nthan ye had. They well knew how the keel to ride, the edge to prove,\nwounds to inflict.\n\nThe rest is wanting.\n\nFOOTNOTES:\n\n[Footnote 39: A common practice: the pieces served as money.]\n\n[Footnote 40: The nuptial veil.]\n\n\n\n\nOEGIR'S COMPOTATION, OR LOKI'S ALTERCATION.\n\nOegir, who is also named Gymir, had brewed beer for the \u00c6sir, after he\nhad got the great kettle, as has been already related. To the\nentertainment came Odin and his wife Frigg. Thor did not come, being\nin the East, but his wife Sif was there, also Bragi and his wife Idun,\nand Ty, who was one-handed, Fenrisulf having bitten off his hand while\nbeing bound. Besides these there were Niord and his wife Skadi, Frey\nand Freyia, and Odin's son Vidar. Loki too was there, and Frey's\nattendants, Byggvir and Beyla. Many other \u00c6sir and Alfar were also\npresent.\n\nOegir had two servants, Fimafeng and Eldir. Bright gold was there used\ninstead of fire-light. The beer served itself to the guests. The place\nwas a great sanctuary. The guests greatly praised the excellence of\nOegir's servants. This Loki could not hear with patience, and so slew\nFimafeng; whereupon the \u00c6sir shook their shields, exclaimed against\nLoki, chased him into the forest, and then returned to drink. Loki\ncame again, and found Eldir standing without, whom he thus addressed:\n\n1. Tell me, Eldir! ere thou thy foot settest one step forward, on\nwhat converse the sons of the triumphant gods at their potation?\n\n_Eldir_.\n\n2. Of their arms converse, and of their martial fame, the sons of\nthe triumphant gods. Of the \u00c6sir and the Alfar that are here within\nnot one has a friendly word for thee.\n\n_Loki_.\n\n3. I will go into Oegir's halls, to see the compotation. Strife and\nhate to the \u00c6sir's sons I bear, and will mix their mead with bale.\n\n_Eldir_.\n\n4. Knowest thou not that if thou goest into Oegir's halls to see the\ncompotation, but contumely and clamour pourest forth on the kindly\npowers, they will wipe it all off on thee?\n\n_Loki_.\n\n5. Knowest thou not, Eldir, that if we two with bitter words\ncontend, I shall be rich in answers, if thou sayest too much?\n\nLoki then went into the hall, but when those present saw who was come\nin, they all sat silent.\n\n_Loki_.\n\n6. I Lopt am come thirsty into this hall, from a long journey, to\nbeseech the \u00c6sir one draught to give me of the bright mead.\n\n7. Why gods! are ye so silent, so reserved, that ye cannot speak? A\nseat and place choose for me at your board, or bid me hie me hence.\n\n_Bragi_.\n\n8. A seat and place will the \u00c6sir never choose for thee at their\nboard; for well the \u00c6sir know for whom they ought to hold a joyous\ncompotation.\n\n_Loki_.\n\n9. Odin! dost thou remember when we in early days blended our blood\ntogether? When to taste beer thou didst constantly refuse, unless to\nboth 'twas offered?\n\n_Odin_.\n\n10. Rise up, Vidar! and let the wolf's sire sit at our compotation;\nthat Loki may not utter words of contumely in Oegir's hall.\n\nVidar then rising, presented Loki with drink, who before drinking thus\naddressed the \u00c6sir:\n\n11. Hail, \u00c6sir! Hail, Asyniur! And ye, all-holy gods! all, save that\none As, who sits within there, Bragi, on yonder bench.\n\n_Bragi_.\n\n12. A horse and falchion I from my stores will give thee, and also\nwith a ring reward thee, if thou the \u00c6sir wilt not requite with\nmalice. Provoke not the gods against thee.\n\n_Loki_.\n\n13. Of horse and rings wilt thou ever, Bragi! be in want. Of the\n\u00c6sir and the Alfar, that are here present, in conflict thou art the\nmost backward, and in the play of darts most timid.\n\n_Bragi_.\n\n14. I know that were I without, as I am now within, the hall of\nOegir, I thy head would bear in my hand, and so for lying punish thee.\n\n_Loki_.\n\n15. Valiant on thy seat art thou, Bragi! but so thou shouldst not\nbe, Bragi, the bench's pride! Go and fight, if thou art angry; a brave\nman sits not considering.\n\n_Idun_.\n\n16. I pray thee, Bragi! let avail the bond of children, and of all\nadopted sons, and to Loki speak not in reproachful words, in Oegir's\nhall.\n\n_Loki_.\n\n17. Be silent, Idun! of all women I declare thee most fond of men,\nsince thou thy arms, carefully washed, didst twine round thy brother's\nmurderer.\n\n_Idun_.\n\n18. Loki I address not with opprobrious words, in Oegir's hall.\nBragi I soothe, by beer excited. I desire not that angry ye fight.\n\n_Gefion_.\n\n19. Why will ye, \u00c6sir twain, here within, strive with reproachful\nwords? Lopt perceives not that he is deluded, and is urged on by fate.\n\n_Loki_.\n\n20. Be silent, Gefion! I will now just mention, how that fair youth\nthy mind corrupted, who thee a necklace gave, and around whom thou thy\nlimbs didst twine?\n\n_Odin_.\n\n21. Thou art raving, Loki! and hast lost thy wits, in calling\nGefion's anger on thee; for all men's destinies, I ween, she knows as\nthoroughly as I do.\n\n_Loki_.\n\n22. Be silent, Odin! Thou never couldst allot conflicts between men:\noft hast thou given to those to whom thou oughtest not--victory to\ncowards.\n\n_Odin_.\n\n23. Knowest thou that I gave to those I ought not--victory to\ncowards? Thou wast eight winters on the earth below, a milch cow and a\nwoman, and didst there bear children. Now that, methinks, betokens a\nbase nature.\n\n_Loki_.\n\n24. But, it is said, thou wentest with tottering steps in Samso, and\nknocked at houses as a Vala. In likeness of a fortune teller, thou\nwentest among people. Now that, methinks, betokens a base nature.\n\n_Frigg_.\n\n25. Your doings ye should never publish among men, what ye, \u00c6sir\ntwain, did in days of yore. Ever forgotten be men's former deeds!\n\n_Loki_.\n\n26. Be thou silent, Frigg! Thou art Fiorgyn's daughter, and ever\nhast been fond of men, since Ve and Vili, it is said, thou, Vidrir's\nwife, didst both to thy bosom take.\n\n_Frigg_.\n\n27. Know thou that if I had, in Oegir's halls, a son like Baldr, out\nthou shouldst not go from the \u00c6sir's sons: thou should'st have been\nfiercely assailed.\n\n_Loki_.\n\n28. But wilt thou, Frigg! that of my wickedness I more recount? I am\nthe cause that thou seest not Baldr riding to the halls.\n\n_Freyia_.\n\n29. Mad art thou, Loki! in recounting thy foul misdeeds. Frigg, I\nbelieve, knows all that happens, although she says it not.\n\n_Loki_.\n\n30. Be thou silent, Freyia! I know thee full well; thou art not free\nfrom vices: of the \u00c6sir and the Alfar, that are herein, each has been\nthy paramour.\n\n_Freyia_.\n\n31. False is thy tongue. Henceforth it will, I think, prate no good\nto thee. Wroth with thee are the \u00c6sir, and the Asyniur. Sad shalt thou\nhome depart.\n\n_Loki_.\n\n32. Be silent, Freyia! Thou art a sorceress, and with much evil\nblended; since against thy brother thou the gentle powers excited. And\nthen, Freyia! what didst thou do?\n\n_Niord_.\n\n33. It is no great wonder, if silk-clad dames get themselves\nhusbands, lovers; but 'tis a wonder that a wretched As, that has borne\nchildren, should herein enter.\n\n_Loki_.\n\n34. Be silent, Niord! Thou wast sent eastward hence, a hostage from\nthe gods. Hymir's daughters had thee for an utensil, and flowed into\nthy mouth.[41] _Niord_.\n\n35. 'Tis to me a solace, as I a long way hence was sent, a hostage\nfrom the gods, that I had a son, whom no one hates, and accounted is a\nchief among the \u00c6sir.\n\n_Loki_.\n\n36. Cease now, Niord! in bounds contain thyself; I will no longer\nkeep it secret: it was with thy sister thou hadst such a son; hardly\nworse than thyself.\n\n_Ty_.\n\n37. Frey is best of all the exalted gods in the \u00c6sir's courts: no\nmaid he makes to weep, no wife of man, and from bonds looses all.\n\n_Loki_.\n\n38. Be silent, Ty! Thou couldst never settle a strife 'twixt two; of\nthy right hand also I must mention make, which Fenrir from thee tore.\n\n_Ty_.\n\n39. I of a hand am wanting, but thou of honest fame; sad is the lack\nof either. Nor is the wolf at ease: he in bonds must bide, until the\ngods' destruction.\n\n_Loki_.\n\n40. Be silent, Ty; to thy wife it happened to have a son by me. Nor\nrag nor penny ever hadst thou, poor wretch! for this injury.\n\n_Frey_.\n\n41. I the wolf see lying at the river's mouth, until the powers are\nswept away. So shalt thou be bound, if thou art not silent, thou\nframer of evil.\n\n_Loki_.\n\n42. With gold thou boughtest Gymir's daughter, and so gavest away\nthy sword: but when Muspell's sons through the dark forest ride, thou,\nunhappy, wilt not have wherewith to fight.\n\n_Byggvir_.\n\n43. Know that were I of noble race, like Ingun's Frey, and had so\nfair a dwelling, than marrow softer I would bray that ill-boding crow,\nand crush him limb by limb.\n\n_Loki_.\n\n44. What little thing is that I see wagging its tail, and snapping\neagerly? At the ears of Frey thou shouldst ever be, and clatter under\nmills.\n\n_Byggvir_.\n\n45. Byggvir I am named, and am thought alert, by all gods and men;\ntherefore am I joyful here, that all the sons of Hropt drink beer\ntogether.\n\n_Loki_.\n\n46. Be silent, Byggvir! Thou couldst never dole out food to men,\nwhen, lying in thy truckle bed, thou wast not to be found, while men\nwere fighting.\n\n_Heimdall_.\n\n47. Loki, thou art drunk, and hast lost thy wits. Why dost thou not\nleave off, Loki? But drunkenness so rules every man, that he knows not\nof his garrulity.\n\n_Loki_.\n\n48. Be silent, Heimdall! For thee in early days was that hateful\nlife decreed: with a wet back thou must ever be, and keep watch as\nguardian of the gods.\n\n_Skadi_.\n\n49. Thou art merry, Loki! Not long wilt thou frisk with an unbound\ntail; for thee, on a rock's point, with the entrails of thy ice-cold\nson, the gods will bind.\n\n_Loki_.\n\n50. Know, if on a rock's point, with the entrails of my ice-cold\nson, the gods will bind me, that first and foremost I was at the\nslaying, when we assailed Thiassi.\n\n_Skadi_.\n\n51. Know, if first and foremost thou wast at the slaying, when ye\nassailed Thiassi, that from my dwellings and fields shall to thee ever\ncold counsels come.\n\n_Loki_.\n\n52. Milder wast thou of speech to Laufey's son, when to thy bed thou\ndidst invite me. Such matters must be mentioned, if we accurately must\nrecount our vices.\n\nThen came Sif forth, and poured out mead for Loki in an icy cup,\nsaying:\n\n53. Hail to thee, Loki! and this cool cup receive, full of old mead:\nat least me alone, among the blameless \u00c6sir race, leave stainless.\n\nHe took the horn, drank, and said:\n\n54. So alone shouldst thou be, hadst thou strict and prudent been\ntowards thy mate; but one I know, and, I think, know him well, a\nfavoured rival of Hlorridi, and that is the wily Loki.\n\n_Beyla_.\n\n55. The fells all tremble: I think Hlorridi is from home journeying.\nHe will bid be quiet him who here insults all gods and men.\n\n_Loki_.\n\n56. Be silent, Beyla! Thou art Byggvir's wife, and with much evil\nmingled: never came a greater monster among the \u00c6sir's sons. Thou art\na dirty strumpet.\n\nThor then came in and said:\n\n57. Silence, thou impure being! My mighty hammer, Miollnir, shall\nstop thy prating. I will thy head from thy neck strike; then will thy\nlife be ended.\n\n_Loki_.\n\n58. Now the son of earth is hither come. Why dost thou chafe so,\nThor? Thou wilt not dare do so, when with the wolf thou hast to fight,\nand he the all-powerful father swallows whole.\n\n_Thor_.\n\n59. Silence, thou impure being! My mighty hammer, Miollnir, shall\nstop thy prating. Up I will hurl thee to the east region, and none\nshall see thee after.\n\n_Loki_.\n\n60. Of thy eastern travels thou shouldest never to people speak,\nsince in a glove-thumb thou, Einheri! wast doubled up, and hardly\nthoughtest thou wast Thor.\n\n_Thor_.\n\n61. Silence, thou impure being! My mighty hammer, Miollnir, shall\nstop thy prating: with this right hand I, Hrungnir's bane, will smite\nthee, so that thy every bone be broken.\n\n_Loki_.\n\n62. 'Tis my intention a long life to live, though with thy hammer\nthou dost threaten me. Skrymir's thongs seemed to thee hard, when at\nthe food thou couldst not get, when, in full health, of hunger dying.\n\n_Thor_.\n\n63. Silence, thou impure being! My mighty hammer, Miollnir, shall\nstop thy prating. Hrungnir's bane shall cast thee down to Hel, beneath\nthe gratings of the dead.\n\n_Loki_.\n\n64. I have said before the \u00c6sir, I have said before the \u00c6sir's sons,\nthat which my mind suggested: but for thee alone will I go out;\nbecause I know that thou wilt fight.\n\n65. Oegir! thou hast brewed beer; but thou never shalt henceforth a\ncompotation hold. All thy possessions, which are herein, flame shall\nplay over, and on thy back shall burn thee.\n\nAfter this Loki, in the likeness of a salmon, cast himself into the\nwaterfall of Franangr, where the \u00c6sir caught him, and bound him with\nthe entrails of his son Nari; but his other son, Narfi, was changed\ninto a wolf. Skadi took a venomous serpent, and fastened it up over\nLoki's face. The venom trickled down from it. Sigyn, Loki's wife, sat\nby, and held a basin under the venom; and when the basin was full,\ncarried the venom out. Meanwhile the venom dropped on Loki, who shrank\nfrom it so violently that the whole earth trembled. This causes what\nare now called earthquakes.\n\nFOOTNOTES:\n\n[Footnote 41: The events related in this strophe are probably a mere\nperversion, by the poet, of what we know of Niord's history.]\n\n\n\n\nTHE LAY OF FIOLSVITH.\n\n1. From the outward wall he saw one ascending to the seat of the\ngiant race.\n\n_Fiolsvith_.\n\nAlong the humid ways haste thee back hence, here, wretch! is no place\nfor thee.\n\n2. What monster is it before the fore-court standing, and hovering\nround the perilous flame? Whom dost thou seek? Of what art thou in\nquest? Or what, friendless being! desirest thou to know?\n\n_Wanderer_.\n\n3. What monster is that, before the fore-court standing, who to the\nwayfarer offers not hospitality? Void of honest fame, prattler! hast\nthou lived: but hence hie thee home.\n\n_Fiolsvith_.\n\n4. Fiolsvith is my name; wise I am of mind, though of food not\nprodigal. Within these courts thou shalt never come: so now, wretch!\ntake thyself off.\n\n_Wanderer_.\n\n5. From the eye's delight few are disposed to hurry, where there is\nsomething pleasant to be seen. These walls, methinks, shine around\ngolden halls. Here I could live contented with my lot.\n\n_Fiolsvith_.\n\n6. Tell me, youth; of whom thou art born, or of what race hast\nsprung.\n\n_Wanderer_.\n\n7. Vindkald I am called, Varkald was my father named, his sire was\nFiolkald.\n\n8. Tell me, Fiolsvith! that which I will ask thee, and I desire to\nknow: who here holds sway, and has power over these lands and costly\nhalls?\n\n_Fiolsvith_.\n\n9. Menglod is her name, her mother her begat with Svaf, Thorin's\nson. She here holds sway, and has power over these lands and costly\nhalls.\n\n_Vindkald_.\n\n10. Tell me, Fiolsvith! etc., what the grate is called, than which\namong the gods mortals never saw a greater artifice?\n\n_Fiolsvith_.\n\n11. Thrymgioll it is called, and Solblindi's three sons constructed\nit: a fetter fastens, every wayfarer, who lifts it from its opening.\n\n_Vindkald_.\n\n12. Tell me, Fiolsvith! etc., what that structure is called, than\nwhich among the gods mortals never saw a greater artifice?\n\n_Fiolsvith_.\n\n13. Gastropnir it is called, and I constructed it of Leirbrimir's\nlimbs. I have so supported it, that it will ever stand while the world\nlasts.\n\n_Vindkald_.\n\n14. Tell me, Fiolsvith! etc., what those dogs are called, that chase\naway the giantesses, and safety to the fields restore?\n\n_Fiolsvith_.\n\n15. Gifr the one is called, the other Geri, if thou that wouldst\nknow. Eleven watches they will keep, until the powers perish.\n\n_Vindkald_.\n\n16. Tell me, Fiolsvith! etc., whether any man can enter while those\nfierce assailants sleep?\n\n_Fiolsvith_.\n\n17. Alternate sleep was strictly to them enjoined, since to the\nwatch they were appointed. One sleeps by night, by day the other, so\nthat no wight can enter if he comes.\n\n_Vindkald_.\n\n18. Tell me, Fiolsvith! etc., whether there is any food that men can\nget, such that they can run in while they eat?\n\n_Fiolsvith_.\n\n19. Two repasts lie in Vidofnir's wings, if thou that wouldst know:\nthat is alone such food as men can give them and run in while they\neat.\n\n_Vindkald_.\n\n20. Tell me, Fiolsvith! etc., what that tree is called that with its\nbranches spreads itself over every land?\n\n_Fiolsvith_.\n\n21. Mimameidir it is called; but few men know from what roots it\nsprings: it by that will fall which fewest know. Nor fire nor iron\nwill harm it.\n\n_Vindkald_.\n\n22. Tell me, Fiolsvith! etc., to what the virtue is of that famed\ntree applied, which nor fire nor iron will harm?\n\n_Fiolsvith_.\n\n23. Its fruit shall on the fire be laid, for labouring women; out\nthen will pass what would in remain: so is it a creator of mankind.\n\n_Vindkald_.\n\n24. Tell me, Fioisvith! etc., what the cock is called that sits in\nthat lofty tree, and all-glittering is with gold?\n\n_Fiolsvith_.\n\n25. Vidofnir he is called; in the clear air he stands, in the boughs\nof Mima's tree: afflictions only brings, together indissoluble, the\nswart bird at his lonely meal.\n\n_Vindkald_.\n\n26. Tell me, Fiolsvith! etc., whether there be any weapon, before\nwhich Vidofnir may fall to Hel's abode?\n\n_Fiolsvith_.\n\n27. H\u00e6vatein the twig is named, and Lopt plucked it, down by the\ngate of Death. In an iron chest it lies with Sinmoera, and is with\nnine strong locks secured.\n\n_Vindkald_.\n\n28. Tell me, Fiolsvith! etc., whether he will alive return, who\nseeks after, and will take, that rod?\n\n_Fiolsvith_.\n\n29. He will return who seeks after, and will take, the rod, if he\nbears that which few possess to the dame of the glassy clay.\n\n_Vindkald_.\n\n30. Tell me, Fiolsvith! etc., whether there is any treasure, that\nmortals can obtain, at which the pale giantess will rejoice?\n\n_Fiolsvith_.\n\n31. The bright sickle that lies in Vidofnir's wings, thou in a bag\nshalt bear, and to Sinmoera give, before she will think fit to lend an\narm for conflict.\n\n_Vindkald_.\n\n32. Tell me, Fiolsvith! etc., what this hall is called, which is\ngirt round with a curious flickering flame?\n\n_Fiolsvith_.\n\n33. Hyr it is called, and it will long tremble as on a lance's\npoint. This sumptuous house shall, for ages hence, be but from hearsay\nknown.\n\n_Vindkald_.\n\n34. Tell me, Fiolsvith! etc., which of the \u00c6sir's sons has that\nconstructed, which within the court I saw?\n\n_Fiolsvith_.\n\n35. Uni and Iri, Bari and Ori, Var and Vegdrasil, Dorri and Uri,\nDelling and Atvard, Lidskialf, Loki.\n\n_Vindkald_.\n\n36. Tell me, Fiolsvith! etc., what that mount is called, on which I\nsee a splendid maiden stand?\n\n_Fiolsvith_.\n\n37. Hyfiaberg 'tis called, and long has it a solace been to the\nbowed-down and sorrowful: each woman becomes healthy, although a\nyear's disease she have, if she can but ascend it.\n\n_Vindkald_.\n\n38. Tell me, Fiolsvith! etc., how those maids are called, who sit at\nMenglod's knees in harmony together?\n\n_Fiolsvith_.\n\n39. Hlif the first is called, the second is Hlifthursa, the third\nThiodvarta, Biort and Blid, Blidr, Frid, Eir and Orboda.\n\n_Vindkald_.\n\n40. Tell me, Fiolsvith! etc., whether they protect those who offer\nto them, if it should, be needful?\n\n_Fiolsvith_.\n\n41. Every summer in which men offer to them, at the holy place, no\npestilence so great shall come to the sons of men, but they will free\neach from peril.\n\n_Vindkald_.\n\n42. Tell me, Fiolsvith! etc., whether there is any man that may in\nMenglod's soft arms sleep?\n\n_Fiolsvith_.\n\n43. There is no man who may in Menglod's soft arms sleep, save only\nSvipdag; to him the sun-bright maid is for wife betrothed.\n\n_Vindkald_.\n\n44. Set the doors open! Let the gate stand wide; here thou mayest\nSvipdag see; but yet go learn if Menglod will accept my love.\n\n_Fiolsvith_.\n\n45. Hear, Menglod! A man is hither come: go and behold the stranger;\nthe dogs rejoice; the house has itself opened. I think it must be\nSvipdag.\n\n_Menglod_.\n\n46. Fierce ravens shall, on the high gallows, tear out thy eyes, if\nthou art lying, that hither from afar is come the youth unto my halls.\n\n47. Whence art thou come? Whence hast thou journeyed? How do thy\nkindred call thee? Of thy race and name I must have a token, if I was\nbetrothed to thee.\n\n_Svipdag_.\n\n48. Svipdag I am named, Solbiart was my father named; thence the\nwinds on the cold ways drove me. Urd's decree may no one gainsay,\nhowever lightly uttered.\n\n_Menglod_.\n\n49. Welcome thou art: my will I have obtained; greeting a kiss shall\nfollow. A sight unlooked-for gladdens most persons, when one the other\nloves.\n\n50. Long have I sat on my loved hill, day and night expecting thee.\nNow that is come to pass which I have hoped, that thou, dear youth,\nagain to my halls art come.\n\n_Svipdag_.\n\n51. Longing I have undergone for thy love; and thou, for my\naffection. Now it is certain, that we shall pass our lives together.\n\n\n\n\nTHE LAY OF HYNDLA.\n\nFreyia rides with her favourite Ottar to Hyndla, a Vala, for the\npurpose of obtaining information respecting Ottar's genealogy, such\ninformation being required by him in a legal dispute with Angantyr.\nHaving obtained this, Freyia further requests Hyndla to give Ottar a\npotion (minnisol) that will enable him to remember all that has been\ntold him. This she refuses, but is forced to comply by Freyia having\nencircled her cave with flames. She gives him the potion, but\naccompanied by a malediction, which is by Freyia turned to a blessing.\n\n_Freyia_.\n\n1. Wake, maid of maids! Wake, my friend! Hyndla! Sister! who in the\ncavern dwellest. Now there is dark of darks; we will both to Valhall\nride, and to the holy fane.\n\n2. Let us Heriafather pray into our minds to enter, he gives and\ngrants gold to the deserving. He gave to Hermod a helm and corslet,\nand from him Sigmund a sword received.\n\n3. Victory to his sons he gives, but to some riches; eloquence to\nthe great, and to men, wit; fair wind he gives to traders, but poesy\nto skallds; valour he gives to many a warrior.\n\n4. She to Thor will offer, she to him will pray, that to thee he may\nbe well disposed; although he bears ill will to Jotun females.\n\n5. Now of thy wolves take one from out the stall; let him run with\nrunic rein.[42] _Hyndla_.\n\n6. Sluggish is thy hog the god's way to tread:\n\n_Freyia_.\n\n7. I will my noble palfrey saddle.\n\n_Hyndla_.\n\n8. False are thou, Freyia! who temptest me: by thy eyes thou showest\nit, so fixed upon us; while thou thy man hast on the dead-road,[43]\nthe young Ottar, Innstein's son.\n\n9. Dull art thou, Hyndla! methinks thou dreamest, since thou sayest\nthat my man is on the dead-road with me; there where my hog sparkles\nwith its golden bristles, hight Hildisvini, which for me made the two\nskilful dwarfs, Dain and Nabbi. From the saddle we will talk: let us\nsit, and of princely families discourse, of those chieftains who from\nthe gods descend. They have contested for the dead's gold, Ottar the\nyoung and Angantyr.\n\n10. A duty 'tis to act so that the young prince his paternal\nheritage may have, after his kindred.\n\n11. An offer-stead to me he raised, with stones constructed; now is\nthat stone as glass become. With the blood of oxen he newly sprinkled\nit. Ottar ever trusted in the Asyniur.\n\n12. Now let us reckon up the ancient families, and the races of\nexalted men. Who are the Skioldungs? Who are the Skilfings? Who the\nOdlings? Who the Ylfings? Who the hold-born? Who the hers-born? The\nchoicest race of men under heaven?\n\n\n_Hyndla_.\n\n13. Thou, Ottar! art of Innstein born, but Innstein was from Alf the\nOld, Alf was from Ulf, Ulf from S\u00e6fari, but S\u00e6fari from Svan the Red.\n\n14. Thy father had a mother, for her necklaces famed, she, I think,\nwas named Hledis the priestess; Frodi her father was, and her mother\nFriant: all that stock is reckoned among chieftains.\n\n15. Ali was of old of men the strongest, Halfdan before him, the\nhighest of the Skioldungs; (Famed were the wars by those chieftains\nled) his deeds seemed to soar to the skirts of heaven.\n\n16. By Eimund aided, chief of men, he Sigtrygg slew with the cold\nsteel. He Almveig had to wife, first of women. They begat and had\neighteen sons.\n\n17. From them the Skioldungs, from them the Skilfings, from them the\nOdlings, from them the Ynglings, from them the hold-born, from them\nthe hers-born, the choicest race of men under heaven. All that race is\nthine, Ottar Heimski!\n\n18. Hildegun her mother was, of Svafa born and a sea-king. All that\nrace is thine, Ottar Heimski! Carest thou this to know? Wishest thou a\nlonger narrative?\n\n19. Dag wedded Thora, mother of warriors: of that race were born the\nnoble champions, Fradmar, Gyrd, and the Frekis both, Am, Josur, Mar,\nAlf the Old. Carest thou this to know? Wishest thou a longer\nnarrative?\n\n20. Ketil their friend was named, heir of Klyp; he was maternal\ngrandsire of thy mother. Then was Frodi yet before Kari, but the\neldest born was Alf.\n\n21. Nanna was next, Nokkvi's daughter; her son was thy father's\nkinsman, ancient is that kinship. I knew both Brodd and Horfi. All\nthat race is thine, Ottar Heimski!\n\n22. Isolf, Asolf, Olmod's sons and Skurhild's Skekkil's daughter;\nthou shalt yet count chieftains many. All that race is thine, Ottar\nHeimski!\n\n23. Gunnar, Balk, Grim, Ardskafi, Jarnskiold, Thorir, Ulf, Ginandi,\nBui and Brami, Barri and Reifnir, Tind and Hyrfing, the two Haddingis.\nAll that race is thine, Ottar Heimski!\n\n24. To toil and tumult were the sons of Arngrim born, and of Eyfura:\nferocious berserkir, calamity of every kind, by land and sea, like\nfire they carried. All that race is thine, Ottar Heimski!\n\n25. I knew both Brodd and Horfi, they were in the court of Hrolf the\nOld; all descended from Jormunrek, son-in-law of Sigurd. (Listen to my\nstory) the dread of nations, him who Fafnir slew.\n\n26. He was a king, from Volsung sprung, and Hiordis from Hrodung;\nbut Eylimi from the Odlings. All that race is thine, Ottar Heimski!\n\n27. Gunnar and Hogni, sons of Giuki; and Gudrun likewise, their\nsister. Guttorm; was not of Giuki's race, although he brother was of\nthem both. All that race is thine, Ottar Heimski!\n\n28. Harald Hildetonn, born of Hr\u00e6rekir Slongvanbaugi; he was a son\nof Aud, Aud the rich was Ivar's daughter; but Radbard was Randver's\nfather. They were heroes to the gods devoted. All that race is thine,\nOttar Heimski!\n\n29. There were eleven \u00c6sir reckoned, when Baldr on the pile was\nlaid; him Vali showed himself worthy to avenge, his own brother: he\nthe slayer slew. All that race is thine, Ottar Heimski!\n\n30. Baldr's father was son of Bur: Frey to wife had Gerd, she was\nGymir's daughter, from Jotuns sprung and Aurboda; Thiassi also was\ntheir relation, that haughty Jotun; Skadi was his daughter.\n\n31. We tell thee much, and remember more: I admonish thee thus much\nto know. Wishest thou yet a longer narrative?\n\n32. Haki was not the worst of Hvedna's sons, and Hiorvard was\nHvedna's father; Heid and Hrossthiof were of Hrimnir's race.\n\n33. All the Valas are from Vidolf; all the soothsayers from\nVilmeidr, all the sorcerers from Svarthofdi; all the Jotuns come from\nYmir.\n\n34. We tell thee much, and more remember, I admonish thee thus much\nto know. Wishest thou yet a longer narrative?\n\n35. There was one born, in times of old, with wondrous might\nendowed, of origin divine: nine Jotun maids gave birth to the gracious\ngod, at the world's margin.\n\n36. Gialp gave him birth, Greip gave him birth, Eistla gave him\nbirth, and Angeia; Ulfrun gave him birth, and Eyrgiafa, Imd and Atla,\nand Jarnsaxa.\n\n37. The boy was nourished with the strength of earth, with the\nice-cold sea, and with Son's blood. We tell thee much, and more\nremember. I admonish thee thus much to know. Wishest thou a yet longer\nnarrative?\n\n38. Loki begat the wolf with Angrboda, but Sleipnir he begat with\nSvadilfari: one monster seemed of all most deadly, which from\nByleist's brother sprang.\n\n39. Loki, scorched up in his heart's affections, had found a\nhalf-burnt woman's heart. Loki became guileful from that wicked woman;\nthence in the world are all giantesses come.\n\n40. Ocean towers with storms to heaven itself, flows o'er the land;\nthe air is rent: thence come snows and rapid winds; then it is decreed\nthat the rain should cease.\n\n41. There was one born greater than all, the boy was nourished with\nthe strength of earth; he was declared a ruler, mightiest and richest,\nallied by kinship to all princes.\n\n42. Then shall another come, yet mightier, although I dare not his\nname declare. Few may see further forth than when Odin meets the wolf.\n\n\n_Freyia_.\n\n43. Bear thou the memory-cup to my guest, so that he may all the\nwords repeat of this, discourse, on the third morn, when he and\nAngantyr reckon up races.\n\n\n_Hyndla_.\n\n44. Go thou quickly hence, I long to sleep; more of my wondrous\npower thou gettest not from me. Thou runnest, my hot friend, out at\nnights, as among he-goats the she-goat goes.\n\n45. Thou hast run thyself mad, ever longing; many a one has stolen\nunder thy girdle. Thou runnest, my hot friend, out at nights, as among\nhe-goats, the she-goat goes.\n\n\n_Freyia_.\n\n46. Fire I strike over thee, dweller of the wood! so that thou goest\nnot ever away from hence.\n\n\n_Hyndla_.\n\n47. Fire I see burning, and the earth blazing; many will have their\nlives to save. Bear thou the cup to Ottar's hand, the mead with venom\nmingled, in an evil hour!\n\n_Freyia_.\n\n48. Thy malediction shall be powerless; although thou, Jotun-maid!\ndost evil threaten. He shall drink delicious draughts. All the gods I\npray to favour Ottar.\n\nFOOTNOTES:\n\n[Footnote 42: That is, with a rein inscribed with runes.]\n\n[Footnote 43: The road to Valhall.]\n\n\n\n\nTHE INCANTATION OF GROA.\n\n_Son_.\n\n1. Wake up, Groa! wake up, good woman! at the gates of death I wake\nthee! if thou rememberest, that thou thy son badest to thy grave-mound\nto come.\n\n_Mother_.\n\n2. What now troubles my only son? With what affliction art thou\nburthened, that thou thy mother callest, who to dust is come, and from\nhuman homes departed?\n\n_Son_.\n\n3. A hateful game thou, crafty woman, didst set before me, whom my\nhas father in his bosom cherished, when thou badest me go no one knows\nwhither, Menglod to meet.\n\n_Mother_.\n\n4. Long is the journey, long are the ways, long are men's desires.\nIf it so fall out, that thou thy will obtainest, the event must then\nbe as it may.\n\n_Son_.\n\n5. Sing to me songs which are good. Mother! protect thy son. Dead on\nmy way I fear to be. I seem too young in years.\n\n_Mother_.\n\n6. I will sing to thee first one that is thought most useful, which\nRind sang to Ran; that from thy shoulders thou shouldst cast what to\nthee seems irksome: let thyself thyself direct.\n\n7. A second I will sing to thee, as thou hast to wander joyless on\nthy ways. May Urd's protection hold thee on every side, where thou\nseest turpitude.\n\n8. A third I will sing to thee. If the mighty rivers to thy life's\nperil fall, Horn and Rud, may they flow down to Hel, and for thee ever\nbe diminished.\n\n9. A fourth I will sing to thee. If foes assail thee ready on the\ndangerous road, their hearts shall fail them, and to thee be power,\nand their minds to peace be turned.\n\n10. A fifth I will sing to thee. If bonds be cast on thy limbs,\nfriendly spells I will let on thy joints be sung, and the lock from\nthy arms shall start, [and from thy feet the fetter].\n\n11. A sixth I will sing to thee. If on the sea thou comest, more\nstormy than men have known it, air and water shall in a bag attend\nthee, and a tranquil course afford thee.\n\n12. A seventh I will sing to thee. If on a mountain high frost\nshould assail thee, deadly cold shall not thy carcase injure, nor draw\nthy body to thy limbs.\n\n13. An eighth I will sing to thee. If night overtake thee, when out\non the misty way, that the dead Christian woman no power may have to\ndo thee harm.\n\n14. A ninth I will sing to thee. If with a far-famed spear-armed\nJotun thou words exchangest, of words and wit to thy mindful heart\nabundance shall be given.\n\n15. Go now ever where calamity may be, and no harm shall obstruct\nthy wishes. On a stone fast in the earth I have stood within the door,\nwhile songs I sang to thee.\n\n16. My son! bear hence thy mother's words, and in thy breast let\nthem dwell; for happiness abundant shalt thou have in life, while of\nmy words thou art mindful.\n\n\n\n\nTHE SONG OF THE SUN.\n\nThis singular poem, the authorship of which is, in some manuscripts,\nassigned to S\u00e6mund himself, may be termed a Voice from the Dead, given\nunder the form of a dream, in which a deceased father is supposed to\naddress his son from another world. The first 7 strophes seem hardly\nconnected with the following ones, which, as far as the 32nd consist\nchiefly in aphorisms with examples, some closely resembling those in\nthe Havamal. In the remaining portion is given the recital of the last\nillness of the supposed speaker, his death, and the scenes his soul\npassed through on the way to its final home.\n\nThe composition exhibits a strange mixture of Christianity and\nHeathenism, whence it would seem that the poet's own religion was in a\ntransition state. Of the allusions to Heathenism it is, however, to be\nobserved that they are chiefly to persons and actions of which there\nis no trace in the Odinic mythology, as known to us, and are possibly\nthe fruits of the poet's own imagination. The title of the poem is no\ndoubt derived from the allusion to the Sun at the beginning of\nstrophes 39-45.\n\nFor an elaborate and learned commentary, with an interlinear version\nof \"the Song of the Sun,\" the reader may consult \"Les Chants de Sol,\"\nby Professor Bergmann, Strasbourg & Paris, 1858.\n\n1. Of life and property a fierce freebooter despoiled mankind; over\nthe ways beset by him might no one living pass.\n\n2. Alone he ate most frequently, no one invited he to his repast;\nuntil weary, and with failing strength, a wandering guest came from\nthe way.\n\n3. In need of drink that way-worn man, and hungry feigned to be:\nwith trembling heart he seemed to trust him who had been so\nevil-minded.\n\n4. Meat and drink to the weary one he gave, all with upright heart;\non God he thought, the traveller's wants supplied; for he felt he was\nan evil-doer.\n\n5. Up stood the guest, he evil meditated, he had not been kindly\ntreated; his sin within him swelled, he while sleeping murdered his\nwary cautious host.\n\n6. The God of heaven he prayed for help, when being struck he woke;\nbut he was doomed the sins of him on himself to take, whom sackless he\nhad slain.\n\n7. Holy angels came from heaven above, and took to them his soul: in\na life of purity it shall ever live with the almighty God.\n\n8. Riches and health no one may command, though all go smoothly with\nhim. To many that befalls which they least expect. No one may command\nhis tranquillity.\n\n9. Unnar and S\u00e6valdi never imagined that happiness would fall from\nthem, yet naked they became, and of all bereft, and, like wolves, ran\nto the forest.\n\n10. The force of pleasure has many a one bewailed. Cares are often\ncaused by women; pernicious they become, although the mighty God them\npure created.\n\n11. United were Svafud and Skarthedin, neither might without the\nother be, until to frenzy they were driven for a woman: she was\ndestined for their perdition.\n\n12. On account of that fair maid, neither of them cared for games or\njoyous days; no other thing could they in memory bear than that bright\nform.\n\n13. Sad to them were the gloomy nights, no sweet sleep might they\nenjoy: but from that anguish rose hate intense between the faithful\nfriends.\n\n14. Hostile deeds are in most places fiercely avenged. To the holm\nthey went,[44] for that fair woman, and each one found his death.\n\n15. Arrogance should no one entertain: I indeed have seen that those\nwho follow her, for the most part, turn from God.\n\n16. Rich were both, Radey and Vebogi, and thought only of their\nwell-being; now they sit and turn their sores to various hearths.\n\n17. They in themselves confided, and thought themselves alone to be\nabove all people; but their lot Almighty God was pleased otherwise to\nappoint.\n\n18. A life of luxury they led, in many ways, and had gold for\nsport. Now they are requited, so that they must walk between frost and\nfire.\n\n19. To thy enemies trust thou never, although they speak thee fair:\npromise them good: 'tis good to have another's injury as a warning.\n\n20. So it befell Sorli the upright, when he placed himself in\nVigolf's power; he confidently trusted him, his brother's murderer,\nbut he proved false.\n\n21. Peace to them he granted, with heart sincere; they in return\npromised him gold, feigned themselves friends, while they together\ndrank; but then came forth their guile.\n\n22. Then afterwards, on the second day, when they in Rygiardal rode,\nthey with swords wounded him who sackless was, and let his life go\nforth.\n\n23. His corpse they dragged (on a lonely way, and cut up piecemeal)\ninto a well, and would it hide; but the holy Lord beheld from heaven.\n\n24. His soul summoned home the true God into his joy to come; but\nthe evil doers will, I wean, late be from torments called.\n\n25. Do thou pray the Disir of the Lord's words to be kind to thee in\nspirit: for a week after, all shall then go happily, according to thy\nwill.\n\n26. For a deed of ire that thou hast perpetrated, never atone with\nevil: the weeping thou shalt soothe with benefits: that is salutary to\nthe soul.\n\n27. On God a man shall for good things call, on him who has mankind\ncreated. Greatly sinful is every man who late finds the Father.\n\n28. To be solicited, we opine, is with all earnestness for that\nwhich is lacking: of all things may be destitute he who for nothing\nasks: few heed the wants of the silent.\n\n29. Late I came, though called betimes, to the supreme Judge's door;\nthitherward I yearn; for it was promised me, he who craves it shall of\nthe feast partake.\n\n30. Sins are the cause that sorrowing we depart from this world: no\none stands in dread, if he does no evil: good it is to be blameless.\n\n31. Like unto wolves all those seem who have a faithless mind: so he\nwill prove who has to go through ways strewed with gleeds.\n\n32. Friendly counsels, and wisely composed, seven I have imparted to\nthee: consider thou them well, and forget them never: they are all\nuseful to learn.\n\n33. Of that I will speak, how happy I was in the world, and\nsecondly, how the sons of men reluctantly become corpses.\n\n34. Pleasure and pride deceive the sons of men who after money\ncrave; shining riches at last become a sorrow: many have riches driven\nto madness.\n\n35. Steeped in joys I seemed to men; for little did I see before me:\nour worldly sojourn has the Lord created in delights abounding.\n\n36. Bowed down I sat, long I tottered, of life was most desirous;\nbut He prevailed who was all-powerful: onward are the ways of the\ndoomed.\n\n37. The cords of Hel were tightly bound round my sides; I would rend\nthem, but they were strong. 'Tis easy free to go.\n\n38. I alone knew, how on all sides my pains increased. The maids of\nHel each eve with horror bade me to their home.\n\n39. The sun I saw, true star of day, sink in its roaring home; but\nHel's grated doors on the other side I heard heavily creaking.\n\n40. The sun I saw with blood-red beams beset: (fast was I then from\nthis world declining) mightier she appeared, in many ways, than she\nwas before.\n\n41. The sun I saw, and it seemed to me as if I saw a glorious god: I\nbowed before her, for the last time, in the world of men.\n\n42. The sun I saw: she beamed forth so that I seemed nothing to\nknow; but Gioll's streams roared from the other side mingled much with\nblood.\n\n43. The sun I saw, with quivering eyes, appalled and shrinking; for\nmy heart in great measure was dissolved in languor.\n\n44. The sun I saw seldom sadder; I had then almost from the world\ndeclined: my tongue was as wood become, and all was cold without me.\n\n45. The sun I saw never after, since that gloomy day; for the\nmountain-waters closed over me, and I went called from torments.\n\n46. The star of hope, when I was born, fled from my breast away;\nhigh it flew, settled nowhere, so that it might find rest.\n\n47. Longer than all was that one night, when stiff on my straw I\nlay; then becomes manifest the divine word: \"Man is the same as\nearth.\"\n\n48. The Creator God can it estimate and know, (He who made heaven\nand earth) how forsaken many go hence, although from kindred parted.\n\n49. Of his works each has the reward: happy is he who does good. Of\nmy wealth bereft, to me was destined a bed strewed with sand.\n\n50. Bodily desires men oftentimes seduce, of them has many a one too\nmuch: water of baths was of all things to me most loathsome.\n\n51. In the Norns' seat nine days I sat, thence I was mounted on a\nhorse: there the giantess's sun shone grimly through the dripping\nclouds of heaven.\n\n52. Without and within, I seemed to traverse all the seven nether\nworlds: up and down, I sought an easier way, where I might have the\nreadiest paths.\n\n53. Of that is to be told, which I first saw, when I to the worlds\nof torment came:--scorched birds, which were souls, flew numerous as\nflies.\n\n54. From the west I saw Von's dragons fly, and Gl\u00e6val's paths\nobscure: their wings they shook; wide around me seemed the earth and\nheaven to burst.\n\n55. The sun's hart I saw from the south coming, he was by two\ntogether led: his feet stood on the earth, but his horns reached up to\nheaven.\n\n56. From the north riding I saw the sons of Nidi, they were seven in\nall: from full horns, the pure mead they drank from the heaven-god's\nwell.\n\n57. The wind was silent, the waters stopped their course; then I\nheard a doleful sound: for their husbands false-faced women ground\nearth for food.\n\n58. Gory stones those dark women turned sorrowfully; bleeding hearts\nhung out of their breasts, faint with much affliction.\n\n59. Many a man I saw wounded go on those gleed-strewed paths; their\nfaces seemed to me all reddened with reeking blood.\n\n60. Many men I saw to earth gone down, who holy service might not\nhave; heathen stars stood above their heads, painted with deadly\ncharacters.\n\n61. I saw those men who much envy harbour at another's fortune;\nbloody runes were on their breasts graved painfully.\n\n62. I there saw men many not joyful; they were all wandering wild:\nthis he earns, who by this world's vices is infatuated.\n\n63. I saw those men who had in various ways acquired other's\nproperty: in shoals they went to Castle-covetous, and burthens bore of\nlead.\n\n64. I saw those men who many had of life and property bereft:\nthrough the breasts of those men passed strong venomous serpents.\n\n65. I saw those men who the holy days would not observe: their hands\nwere on hot stones firmly nailed.\n\n66. I saw those men who from pride valued themselves too highly;\ntheir garments ludicrously were in fire enveloped.\n\n67. I saw those men who had many false words of others uttered:\nHel's ravens from their heads their eyes miserably tore.\n\n68. All the horrors thou wilt not get to know which Hel's inmates\nsuffer. Pleasant sins end in painful penalties: pains ever follow\npleasure.\n\n69. I saw those men who had much given for God's laws; pure lights\nwere above their heads brightly burning.\n\n70. I saw those men who from exalted mind helped the poor to aid:\nangels, read holy books above their heads.\n\n71. I saw those men who with much fasting had their bodies wasted:\nGod's angels bowed before them: that is the highest joy.\n\n72. I saw those men who had put food into their mothers' mouth:\ntheir couches were on the rays of heaven pleasantly placed.\n\n73. Holy virgins had cleanly washed the souls from sin of those men,\nwho for a long time had themselves tormented.\n\n74. Lofty cars I saw towards heaven going; they were on the way to\nGod: men guided them who had been murdered wholly without crime.\n\n75. Almighty Father! greatest Son! holy Spirit of heaven! Thee I\npray, who hast us all created; free us all from miseries.\n\n76. Biugvor and Iyistvor sit at Herdir's doors, on resounding seat;\niron gore falls from their nostrils, which kindles hate among men.\n\n77. Odin's wife rows in earth's ship, eager after pleasures; her\nsails are reefed late, which on the ropes of desire are hung.\n\n78. Son! I thy father and Solkatla's sons have alone obtained for\nthee that horn of hart, which from the grave-mound bore the wise\nVigdvalin.\n\n79. Here are runes which have engraven Niord's daughters nine,\nRadvor the eldest, and the youngest Kreppvor, and their seven sisters.\n\n80. How much violence have they perpetrated Svaf and Svaflogi!\nbloodshed they have excited, and wounds have sucked, after an evil\ncustom.\n\n81. This lay, which I have taught thee, thou shalt before the living\nsing, the Sun-Song, which will appear in many parts no fiction.\n\n82. Here we part, but again shall meet on the day of men's\nrejoicing. Oh Lord! unto the dead grant peace, and to the living\ncomfort.\n\n83. Wondrous lore has in dream to thee been sung, but thou hast seen\nthe truth: no man has been so wise created that has before heard the\nSun-song.\n\nFOOTNOTES:\n\n[Footnote 44: That is, _they engaged in single combat_; the spot for\nsuch encounters being called a _holm_, consisting of a circular space\nmarked out by stones.]\n\n\n\n\nTHE LAY OF VOLUND.\n\nThere was a king in Sweden named Nidud: he had two sons and a\ndaughter, whose name was Bodvild. There were three brothers, sons of a\nking of the Finns, one was called Slagfid, the second Egil, the third\nVolund. They went on snow-shoes and hunted wild-beasts. They came to\nUlfdal, and there made themselves a house, where there is a water\ncalled Ulfsiar. Early one morning they found on the border of the lake\nthree females sitting and spinning flax. Near them lay their\nswan-plumages: they were Valkyriur. Two of them, Hladgud-Svanhvit and\nHervor-Alvit, were daughters of King Hlodver; the third was Olrun, a\ndaughter of Kiar of Valland. They took them home with them to their\ndwelling. Egil had Olrun, Slagfid Svanhvit, and Volund Alvit. They\nlived there seven years, when they flew away seeking conflicts, and\ndid not return. Egil then went on snow-shoes in search of Olrun, and\nSlagfid in search of Svanhvit, but Volund remained in Ulfdal. He was a\nmost skilful man, as we learn from old traditions. King Nidud ordered\nhim to be seized, so as it is here related.\n\n1. Maids flew from the south, through the murky wood, Alvit the\nyoung, fate to fulfil. On the lake's margin they sat to repose, the\nsouthern damsels; precious flax they spun.\n\n2. One of them, of maidens fairest, to his comely breast Egil\nclasped. Svanhvit was the second, she a swan's plumage bore; but the\nthird, their sister, the white neck clasped of Volund.\n\n3. There they stayed seven winters through; but all the eighth were\nwith longing seized; and in the ninth fate parted them. The maidens\nyearned for the murky wood, the young Alvit, fate to fulfil.\n\n4. From the chase came the ardent hunters, Slagfid and Egil, found\ntheir house deserted, went out and in, and looked around. Egil went\neast after Olrun, and Slagfid west after Svanhvit;\n\n5. But Volund alone remained in Ulfdal. He the red gold set with the\nhard gem, well fastened all the rings on linden bast, and so awaited\nhis bright consort, if to him she would return.\n\n6. It was told to Nidud, the Niarars' lord, that Volund alone\nremained in Ulfdal. In the night went men, in studded corslets, their\nshields glistened in the waning moon.\n\n7. From their saddles they alighted at the house's gable, thence\nwent in through the house. On the bast they saw the rings all drawn,\nseven hundred, which the warrior owned.\n\n8. And they took them off, and they put them on, all save one, which\nthey bore away. Came then from the chase the ardent hunter, Volund,\ngliding[45] on the long way.\n\n9. To the fire he went, bear's flesh to roast. Soon blazed the\nbrushwood, and the arid fir, the wind-dried wood, before Volund.\n\n10. On the bearskin sat, his rings counted, the Alfar's companion:\none was missing. He thought that Hlodver's daughter had it, the young\nAlvit, and that she was returned.\n\n11. So long he sat until he slept; and he awoke of joy bereft: on\nhis hands he felt heavy constraints, and round his feet fetters\nclasped.\n\n12. \"Who are the men that on the rings' possessor have laid bonds?\nand me have bound?\"\n\n13. Then cried Nidud, the Niarars' lord: \"Whence gottest thou,\nVolund! Alfars' chief![46] our gold, in Ulfdal?\"\n\n14. \"No gold was here in Grani's path, far I thought our land from\nthe hills of Rhine. I mind me that we more treasures possessed, when,\na whole family, we were at home.\n\n15. Hladgud and Hervor were of Hlodver born; known was Olrun, Kiar's\ndaughter, she entered into the house, stood on the floor, her voice\nmoderated: Now is he not mirthful, who from the forest comes.\"\n\nKing Nidud gave to his daughter Bodvild the ring which had been taken\nfrom the bast in Volund's house; but he himself bore the sword that\nhad belonged to Volund. The queen said:\n\n16. His teeth he shows, when the sword he sees, and Bodvild's ring\nhe recognizes: threatening are his eyes as a glistening serpent's: let\nbe severed his sinews' strength; and set him then in S\u00e6varstad.\n\nThis was done; he was hamstrung, and then set on a certain small\nisland near the shore, called S\u00e6varstad. He there forged for the king\nall kinds of jewellery work. No one was allowed to go to him, except\nthe king. Volund said:\n\n17. \"The sword shines in Nidud's belt, which I whetted as I could\nmost skilfully, and tempered, as seemed to me most cunningly. That\nbright blade forever is taken from me: never shall I see it borne into\nVolund's smithy.\n\n18. Now Bodvild wears my consort's red-gold rings: for this I have\nno indemnity.\" He sat and never slept, and his hammer plied; but much\nmore speedy vengeance devised on Nidud.\n\n19. The two young sons of Nidud ran in at the door to look, in\nS\u00e6varstad. To the chest they came, for the keys asked; manifest was\ntheir grudge, when therein they looked.\n\n20. Many necklaces were there, which to those youths appeared of the\nred gold to be, and treasures. \"Come ye two alone, to-morrow come;\nthat gold shall be given to you.\n\n21. Tell it not to the maidens, nor to the household folk, nor to\nany one, that ye have been with me.\" Early called one the other,\nbrother, brother: \"Let us go see the rings.\"\n\n22. To the chest they came, for the keys asked; manifest was their\ngrudge, when therein they looked. Of those children he the heads cut\noff, and under the prison's mixen laid their bodies.\n\n23. But their skulls beneath the hair he in silver set, and to Nidud\ngave; and of their eyes precious stones he formed, which to Nidud's\nwily wife he sent.\n\n24. But of the teeth of the two breast-ornaments he made, and to\nBodvild sent. Then did Bodvild praise the ring: to Volund brought it,\nwhen she had broken it: \"I dare to no tell it, save alone to thee.\"\n\n_Volund_.\n\n25. \"I will so repair the fractured gold, that to thy father it\nshall fairer seem, and to thy mother much more beautiful, and to\nthyself, in the same degree.\"\n\n26. He then brought her beer, that he might succeed the better, as\non her seat she fell asleep. \"Now have I my wrongs avenged, all save\none in the wood perpetrated.\"[47]\n\n27. \"I wish,\" said Volund, \"that on my feet I were, of the use of\nwhich Nidud's men have deprived me.\" Laughing Volund rose in air:\nBodvild weeping from the isle departed. She mourned her lover's\nabsence, and for her father's wrath.\n\n28. Stood without Nidud's wily wife; then she went in through the\nhall; but he on the enclosure sat down to rest. \"Art thou awake\nNiarars' lord!\"\n\n29. \"Ever am I awake, joyless I lie to rest, when I call to mind my\nchildren's death: my head is chilled, cold are to me thy counsels.\nNow with Volund I desire to speak.\"\n\n30. \"Tell me, Volund, Alfars' chief! of my brave boys what is\nbecome?\"\n\n31. \"Oaths shalt thou first to me swear, by board of ship, by rim of\nshield, by shoulder of steed, by edge of sword, that thou wilt not\nslay the wife of Volund, nor of my bride cause the death; although a\nwife I have whom ye know, or offspring within thy court.\n\n32. To the smithy go, which thou hast made, there wilt thou the\nbellows find with blood besprinkled. The heads I severed of thy boys,\nand under the prison's mixen laid their bodies.\n\n33. But their skulls beneath the hair I in silver set, and to Nidud\ngave; and of their eyes precious stones I formed, which to Nidud's\nwily wife I sent.\n\n34. Of the teeth of the two, breast-ornaments I made, and to Bodvild\nsent. Now Bodvild goes big with child, the only daughter of you both.\"\n\n35. \"Word didst thou never speak that more afflicted me, or for\nwhich I would more severely punish thee. There is no man so tall that\nhe from thy horse can take thee, or so skilful that he can shoot thee\ndown, thence where thou floatest up in the sky.\"\n\n36. Laughing Volund rose in air, but Nidud sad remained sitting.\n\n37. \"Rise up Thakrad, my best of thralls! bid Bodvild, my\nfair-browed daughter, in bright attire come, with her sire to speak.\n\n38. Is it, Bodvild! true what has been told to me, that thou and\nVolund in the isle together sat?\"\n\n39. \"True it is, Nidud! what has been told to thee, that Volund and\nI in the isle together sat, in an unlucky hour: would it had never\nbeen! I could not against him strive, I might not against him\nprevail.\"\n\nFOOTNOTES:\n\n[Footnote 45: On snow-shoes.]\n\n[Footnote 46: The designation of Alfars' chief, or prince, applied to\nVolund, who, as we learn from the prose introduction, was a son of a\nking of the Finns, may perhaps be accounted for by the circumstance\nthat the poem itself hardly belongs to the Odinic Mythology, and was\nprobably composed when that system was in its decline and giving place\nto the heroic or romantic.]\n\n[Footnote 47: The translation of this line is founded solely on a\nconjectural emendation of the text. The wrong alluded to may be the\nhamstringing.]\n\n\n\n\nTHE LAY OF HELGI HIORVARD'S SON.\n\nThere was a king named Hiorvard, who had four wives, one of whom was\nnamed Alfhild, their son was named Hedin; the second was named S\u00e6reid,\ntheir son was Humlung; the third was named Sinriod, their son was\nHymling. King Hiorvard made a vow that he would have to wife the most\nbeautiful woman he knew of, and was told that King Svafnir had a\ndaughter of incomparable beauty, named Sigrlinn. He had a jarl named\nIdmund, whose son Atli was sent to demand the hand of Sigrlinn for the\nking. He stayed throughout the winter with King Svafnir. There was a\njarl there named Franmar, who was the foster-father of Sigrlinn, and\nhad a daughter named Alof. This jarl advised that the maiden should be\nrefused, and Atli returned home. One day when the jarl's son Atli was\nstanding in a grove, there was a bird sitting in the boughs above him,\nwhich had heard that his men called the wives which King Hiorvard had\nthe most beautiful. The bird talked, and Atli listened to what it\nsaid. The bird said:\n\n1. Hast thou seen Sigrlinn, Svafnir's daughter, of maidens fairest,\nin her pleasant home? though fair the wives of Hiorvard seem to men in\nGlasis-lund.\n\n_Atli._\n\n2. With Atli, Idmund's son, sagacious bird! wilt thou further speak?\n\n_Bird._\n\nI will if the prince will offer to me, and I may choose what I will\nfrom the king's court.\n\n_Atli._\n\n3. Choose not Hiorvard nor his sons, nor the fair daughters of that\nprince, nor the wives which the king has. Let us together bargain;\nthat is the part of friends.\n\n_Bird._\n\n4. A fane I will chose, offer steads many, gold-horned cows from the\nchief's land, if Sigrlinn sleep in his arms, and unconstrained with\nthat prince shall live.\n\nThis took place before Atli's journey; but after his return, when the\nking asked his tidings, he said:\n\n5. Labour we have had, but errand none performed; our horses failed\nus in the vast fell; we had afterwards a swampy lake to ford; then was\ndenied us Svafnir's daughter with rings adorned, whom we would obtain.\n\nThe king commanded them to go a second time, and also went himself.\nBut when they had ascended a fell, and saw in Svavaland the country on\nfire, and a great reek from the horses of cavalry, the king rode down\nthe fell into the country, and took up his night-quarters by a river.\nAtli kept watch, and crossed the river, and came to a house, on which\nsat a great bird to guard it, but was asleep. Atli shot the bird dead\nwith an arrow. In the house he found the king's daughter Sigrlinn, and\nAlof daughter of Franmar, and brought them both away with him. The\njarl Franmar had taken the form of an eagle, and protected them from a\nhostile army by sorcery. There was a king named Hrodmar, a wooer of\nSigrlinn: he had slain the king of Svavaland, and ravaged and burnt\nthe country. Hiorvard obtained Sigrlinn, and Atli Alof. Hiorvard and\nSigrlinn had a son tall and comely: he was taciturn and had no fixed\nname. As he was sitting on a mound he saw nine Valkyriur, one of whom\nwas of most noble aspect. She said:\n\n6. Late wilt thou, Helgi! rings possess, a potent warrior, or\nRodulsvellir,--so at morn the eagle sang--if thou art ever silent;\nalthough thou, prince! a fierce mood mayest show.\n\n_Helgi_.\n\n7. What wilt thou let accompany the name of Helgi, maid of aspect\nbright! since that thou art pleased to give me? Think well over what\nthou art saying. I will not accept it, unless I have thee also.\n\n_Valkyria_.\n\n8. Swords I know lying in Sigarsholm, fewer by four than five times\nten: one of them is of all the best, of shields the bale, with gold\nadorned.\n\n9. A ring is on the hilt, courage in the midst, in the point terror\nfor his use who owns it: along the edge a blood-stained serpent lies,\nand on the guard the serpent casts its tail.\n\nThere was a king named Eylimi; Svava was his daughter; she was a\nValkyria and rode through air and water. It was she who gave Helgi\nthat name, and afterwards often protected him in battle. Helgi said:\n\n10. Hiorvard! thou art not a king of wholesome counsel, leader of\npeople! renowned though thou mayest be. Thou hast let fire devour the\nhomes of princes, though harm to thee they none have done.\n\n11. But Hrodmar shall of the rings dispose, which our relations have\npossessed. That chief recks little of his life; he thinks only to\nobtain the heritage of the dead.\n\nHiorvard answers, that he will supply Helgi with an army, if he will\navenge his mother's father. Helgi thereupon seeks the sword that Svava\nhad indicated to him. Afterwards he and Atli went and slew Hrodmar,\nand performed many deeds of valour. He killed the Jotun Hati, as he\nsat on a crag. Helgi and Atli lay with their ships in Hatafiord. Atli\nkept watch in the first part of the night. Hrimgerd, Hati's daughter,\nsaid:\n\n12. Who are the chieftains in Hatafiord? With shields are your ships\nbedecked; boldly ye bear yourselves, few things ye fear, I ween: tell\nme how your king is named.\n\n_Atli_.\n\n13. Helgi is his name; but thou nowhere canst to the chief do harm;\niron forts are around the prince's fleet; giantesses may not assail\nus.\n\n_Hrimgerd_.\n\n14. How art thou named? most powerful champion! How do men call\nthee? Thy king confides in thee, since in the ship's fair prow he\ngrants thee place.\n\n_Atli_.\n\n15. Atli I am named, fierce I shall prove to thee; towards\ngiantesses I am most hostile. The humid prow I have oft occupied, and\nthe night-riders slain.\n\n16. How art thou called? corpse-greedy giantess! hag! name thy\nfather. Nine rasts shouldst thou be underground, and a forest grow on\nthy breast.\n\n_Hrimgerd_.\n\n17. Hrimgerd I am called, Hati was my father called, whom I knew the\nmightiest Jotun. He many women had from their dwellings taken, until\nhim Helgi slew.\n\n_Atli_.\n\n18. Thou wast, hag! before the prince's ships, and layest before\nthem in the fiord's mouth. The chieftain's warriors thou wouldst to\nRan consign, had a bar not crossed thee.\n\n_Hrimgerd_.\n\n19. Now, Atli! thou art wrong, methinks thou art dreaming; thy brows\nthou lettest over thy eyelids fall. My mother lay before the prince's\nships; I Hlodvard's sons drowned in the ocean.\n\n20. Thou wouldst neigh, Atli! if thou wert not a gelding. See!\nHrimgerd cocks her tail. Thy heart, methinks, Atli! is in thy hinder\npart, although thy voice is clear.\n\n_Atli_.\n\n21. I think I shall the stronger prove, if thou desirest to try;\nand I can step from the port to land. Thou shalt be soundly cudgeled,\nif I heartily begin, and let thy tail fall, Hrimgerd!\n\n_Hrimgerd_.\n\n22. Just come on shore, Atli! if in thy strength thou trustest, and\nlet us meet in Varinsvik. A rib-roasting thou shalt get, brave boy! if\nin my claws thou comest.\n\n_Atli_.\n\n23. I will not come before the men awake, and o'er the king hold\nwatch. It would not surprise me, if from beneath our ship some hag\narose.\n\n_Hrimgerd_.\n\n24. Keep watch, Atli! and to Hrimgerd pay the blood-fine for Hati's\ndeath. If one night she may sleep with the prince, she for the slain\nwill be indemnified.\n\n_Helgi_.\n\n25. Lodin is named he who shall thee possess, thou to mankind art\nloathsome. In Tholley dwells that Thurs, that dog-wise Jotun, of all\nrock-dwellers the worst: he is a fitting man for thee.\n\n_Hrimgerd_.\n\n26. Helgi would rather have her who last night guarded the port and\nmen, the gold-bright maiden. She methought had strength, she stept\nfrom port to land, and so secured your fleet. She was alone the cause\nthat I could not the king's men slay.\n\n_Helgi_.\n\n27. Hear now, Hrimgerd! If I may indemnify thee, say fully to the\nking: was it one being only, that saved the prince's ships, or went\nmany together?\n\n_Hrimgerd_.\n\n28. Three troops of maidens; though one maid foremost rode, bright,\nwith helmed head. Their horses shook themselves, and from their manes\nthere sprang dew into the deep dales, hail on the lofty trees, whence\ncomes fruitfulness to man. To me all that I saw was hateful.\n\n_Atli_.\n\n29. Look eastward now, Hrimgerd! whether Helgi has not stricken thee\nwith death-bearing words. By land and water the king's fleet is safe,\nand the chief's men also.\n\n30. It is now day, Hrimgerd! and Atli has thee detained to thy loss\nof life. A ludicrous haven-mark 'twill, indeed, be, where thou a\nstone-image standest.\n\nKing Helgi was a renowned warrior. He came to King Eylimi and demanded\nhis daughter Svava. Helgi and Svava were united, and loved each other\nardently. Svava remained at home with her father, but Helgi was\nengaged in warfare. Svava was a Valkyria as before. Hedin was at home\nwith his father, King Hiorvard in Norway. Returning home alone from\nthe forest on a Yule-eve, Hedin met a troll-wife riding on a wolf,\nwith serpents for reins, who offered to attend him, but he declined\nher offer; whereupon she said: \"Thou shalt pay for this at the\nBragi-cup.\" In the evening solemn vows were made, and the son-hog was\nled forth, on which the guests laid their hands, and then made solemn\nvows at the Bragi-cup.[48] Hedin bound himself by a vow to possess\nSvava, the beloved of his brother Helgi; but repented it so bitterly\nthat he left home and wandered through wild paths to the southern\nlands, and there found his brother Helgi. Helgi said:\n\n31. Welcome art thou, Hedin! What new tidings canst thou give from\nNorway? Why art thou, prince! from the land driven, and alone art come\nto find us?\n\n_Hedin_.\n\n32. Of a much greater crime I am guilty. I have chosen a royal\ndaughter, thy bride, at the Bragi-cup.\n\n_Helgi_.\n\n33. Accuse not thyself; true will prove words at drinking uttered by\nus both. Me a chieftain has to the strand summoned; within three\nnights I must be there. 'Tis to me doubtful whether I return; then may\nwell such befall, if it so must be.\n\n_Hedin_.\n\n34. Thou saidst, Helgi! that Hedin well deserved of thee, and great\ngifts: It would beseem thee better thy sword to redden, than to grant\npeace to thy foes.\n\nHelgi so spoke, for he had a foreboding that his death was at hand,\nand that his fylgiur (attendant spirit) had accosted Hedin, when he\nsaw the woman riding on a wolf. There was a king named Alf, a son of\nHrodmar, who had appointed a place of combat with Helgi in Sigar's\nplain within three days. Then said Helgi:\n\n35. On a wolf rode, at evening twilight, a woman who him offered to\nattend. She well knew, that the son of Sigrlinn would be slain, on\nSigar's plain.\n\nThere was a great conflict, in which Helgi got his death-wound.\n\n36. Helgi sent Sigar riding, after Eylimi's only daughter: he bade\nher quickly be in readiness, if she would find the king alive.\n\n_Sigar_.\n\n37. Helgi has me hither sent, with thee, Svava! thyself to speak.\nThee, said the king, he fain would see, ere the noble-born breathes\nforth his last.\n\n_Svava_.\n\n38. What has befallen Helgi, Hiorvard's son? I am sorely by\nafflictions stricken. Has the sea him deluded, or the sword wounded?\nOn that man I will harm inflict.\n\n_Sigar_.\n\n39. This morning fell, at Frekastein, the king who beneath the sun\nwas of all the best. Alf has complete victory, though this time it\nshould not have been!\n\n_Helgi_.\n\n40. Hail to thee, Svava! Thy love thou must divide: this in this\nworld, methinks, is our last meeting. They say the chieftain's wounds\nare bleeding. The sword came too near my heart.\n\n41. I pray thee, Svava!--weep not, my wife!--if thou wilt my voice\nobey, that for Hedin thou a couch prepare, and the young prince in thy\narms clasp.\n\n_Svava_.\n\n42. I had said, in our pleasant home, when for me Helgi rings\nselected, that I would not gladly, after my king's departure, an\nunknown prince clasp in my arms.\n\n_Hedin_.\n\n43. Kiss me, Svava! I will not return, Rogheim to behold, nor\nRodulsfioll, before I have avenged Hiorvard's son, who was of kings\nunder the sun the best.\n\nHelgi and Svava were, it is said, born again.\n\nFOOTNOTES:\n\n[Footnote 48: At guilds the Bragi-cup (Bragafull) was drunk. It was\nthe custom at the funeral feast of kings and jarls, that the heir\nshould sit on a lower seat, until the Bragafull was brought in, that\nhe should then rise to receive it, make a vow, and drink the contents\nof the cup (full). He was then led to his father's high seat. At an\noffering guild, the chief signed with the figure of Thor's hammer both\nthe cup and the meat. First was drunk Odin's cup, for victory and\npower to the king; then Niord's cup, and Frey's, for a good year and\npeace; after which it was the custom with many to drink a Bragafull.\nThe peculiarity of this cup was, that it was a cup of vows, that on\ndrinking it a vow was made to perform some great and arduous deed,\nthat might be made a subject for the song of the skalld.]\n\n\n\n\nTHE FIRST LAY OF HELGI HUNDINGCIDE.\n\n1. It was in times of yore, when the eagles screamed, holy waters\nfell from the heavenly hills; then to Helgi, the great of soul,\nBorghild gave birth in Bralund.\n\n2. In the mansion it was night: the Norns came, who should the\nprince's life determine. They him decreed a prince most famed to be,\nand of leaders accounted best.\n\n3. With all their might they span the fatal threads, when that [he]\nburghs should overthrow[49] in Bralund. They stretched out the golden\ncord, and beneath the middle of the moon's mansion fixed it.\n\n4. East and west they hid the ends, where the prince had lands\nbetween; towards the north Neri's sister cast a chain, which she bade\nlast for ever.\n\n5. One thing disquieted the Ylfing's offspring, and the woman who\nhad the child brought forth. Sitting on a lofty tree, on prey intent,\na raven to a raven said: \"I know something.\n\n6. Stands cased in mail Sigmund's son, one day old: now is our day\ncome. His eyes are piercing as a warrior's; the wolf's friend is he:\nwe shall rejoice!\"\n\n7. He to the folk appeared a noble chief to be; among men 'twas said\nthat happy times were come; went the king himself from the din of war,\nnoble garlic to bring to the young prince;\n\n8. Gave him the name of Helgi, and Hringstadir, Solfioll, Sn\u00e6fioll,\nand Sigarsvellir, Hringstad, Hatun, and Himinvangar, a sword ornate,\nto Sinfiotli's brother.\n\n9. Then grew up, in his friends' bosom, the high-born youth, in\njoyous splendour. He paid and gave gold for deserts; nor spared the\nchief the blood-stained sword.\n\n10. A short time only the leader let warfare cease. When the prince\nwas fifteen winters old, he caused the fierce Hunding to fall, who\nlong had ruled over lands and people.\n\n11. The sons of Hunding afterwards demanded from Sigmund's son\ntreasure and rings; because they had on the prince to avenge their\ngreat loss of wealth, and their father's death.\n\n12. The prince would neither the blood-fine pay, nor for the slain\nindemnity would give. They might expect, he said, a terrific storm of\ngrey arrows, and Odin's ire.\n\n13. The warriors went to the trysting place of swords, which they\nhad appointed at Logafioll. Broken was Frodi's peace between the foes:\nVidrir's hounds went about the isle slaughter-greedy.\n\n14. The leader sat under the Arastein, after he had slain Alf and\nEyiolf, Hiorvard and Havard, sons of Hunding: he had destroyed all\nGeirmimir's race.\n\n15. Then gleamed a ray from Logafioll, and from that ray lightnings\nissued; then appeared, in the field of air, a helmed band of\nValkyriur: their corslets were with blood besprinkled, and from their\nspears shone beams of light.\n\n16. Forthwith inquired the chieftain bold, from the wolf-congress of\nthe southern Disir, whether they would, with the warriors, that night\ngo home?--then was a clash of arms!\n\n17. One from her horse, Hogni's daughter, stilled the crash of\nshields, and to the leader said: \"We have, I ween, other objects than\nwith princely warriors to drink beer.\n\n18. My father has his daughter promised to the fierce son of\nGranmar; but I have, Helgi! declared Hodbrodd, the proud prince, like\nto a cat's son.\n\n19. That chief will come in a few days, unless thou him call to a\nhostile meeting; or the maiden take from the prince.\"\n\n_Helgi_.\n\n20. Fear thou not Isung's slayer; there shall be first a clash of\nfoes, unless I am dead.\n\n21. Thence sent messengers the potent prince through air and over\nwater, succours to demand, and abundance of ocean's gleam to men to\noffer, and to their sons.\n\n22. \"Bid them speedily to the ships to go, and those from Brandey to\nhold them ready.\" There the king abode, until thither came warriors in\nhundreds from Hedinsey.\n\n23. From the strands also, and from Stafnsnes, a naval force went\nout, with gold adorned. Helgi then of Hiorleif asked: \"Hast thou\nmustered the valiant people?\"\n\n24. But the young king the other answered: \"Slowly\" said he \"are\ncounted from Tronuey the long-beaked ships, under the seafarers, which\nsail without in the Oresund,--\n\n25. Twelve hundred faithful men; though in Hatun there is more than\nhalf of the king's host--We are to war inured.\"\n\n26. Then the steersman threw the ship's tents aside, that the\nprinces' people might awake, and the noble chiefs the dawn might see;\nand the warriors hauled the sails up to the mast in Varinsfiord.\n\n27. There was a dash of oars, and clash of iron, shield against\nshield resounded: the vikings rowed; roaring went, under the\nchieftains the royal fleet far from the land.\n\n28. So might be heard, when together came the tempest's sister[50]\nand the long keels, as when rock and surge on each other break.\n\n29. Higher still bade Helgi the deep sail be hauled. No port gave\nshelter to the crews; when Oegir's terrific daughter the chieftains'\nvessels would o'erwhelm,\n\n30. But from above Sigrun intrepid, saved them and their fleet also;\nfrom the hand of Ran powerfully was wrested the royal ship at\nGnipalund.\n\n31. At eve they halted in Unavagar; the splendid ships might into\nport have floated, but the crews, from Svarinshaug, in hostile mood,\nespied the host.\n\n32. Then demanded the god-born Gudmund: \"Who is the chieftain that\ncommands the fleet, and that formidable force brings to our land?\"\n\n33. Sinfiotli said, slinging up on the yard a red-hued shield with\ngolden rim;--He at the strait kept watch, and able was to answer, and\nwith nobles words exchange--\n\n34. \"Tell it at eve, when you feed your pigs, and your dogs lead to\ntheir food, that the Ylfings from the east are come, ready to fight at\nGnipalund.\n\n35. Hodbrodd will Helgi find in the fleet's midst, a king hard to\nmake flee, who has oft the eagles sated, while thou wast at the mills,\nkissing the thrall-wenches.\n\n_Gudmund_.\n\n36. Little dost thou remember of ancient saws, when of the noble\nthou falsehoods utterest. Thou hast been eating wolves' dainties, and\nof thy brother wast the slayer; wounds hast thou often sucked with\ncold mouth; every where loathed, thou hast crawled in caverns.\n\n_Sinfiotli_.\n\n37. Thou wast a Valacrone in Varinsey, cunning as a fox, a spreader\nof lies. Thou saidst thou no man wouldst ever marry, no corsleted\nwarrior, save Sinfiotli.\n\n38. A mischievous crone wast thou, a giantess, a Valkyria, insolent,\nmonstrous, in Alfather's hall. All the Einheriar fought with each\nother, deceitful woman! for thy sake. Nine wolves we begat in Sagunes;\nI alone was father of them all.\n\n_Gudmund_.\n\n39. Father thou wast not of Fenriswolves, older than all, as far as\nI remember; since by Gnipalund, the Thurs-maidens thee emasculated\nupon Thorsnes.\n\n40. Thou wast Siggeir's stepson, at home under the benches layest,\naccustomed to the wolf's howl out in the forests: calamity of every\nkind came over thee, when thou didst lacerate thy brother's breast.\nNotorious thou mad'st thyself by thy atrocious works.\n\n_Sinfiotli_.\n\n41. Thou wast Grani's bride at Bravollr, hadst a golden bit, ready\nfor the course. Many a time have I ridden thee tired, hungry and\nsaddled, through the fells, thou hag!\n\n_Gudmund_.\n\n42. A graceless lad thou wast thought to be, when Gulnir's goats\nthou didst milk. Another time thou wast a giantess's daughter, a\ntattered wretch. Wilt thou a longer chat?\n\n_Sinfiotli_.\n\n43. I rather would at Frekastein the ravens cram with thy carcase,\nthan thy dogs lead to their meat, or thy hogs feed. May the fiend deal\nwith thee!\n\n_Helgi_.\n\n44. \"Much more seemly, Sinfiotli! would it be for you both in battle\nto engage, and the eagles gladden, than with useless words to contend,\nhowever princes[51] may foster hate.\n\n45. Not good to me appear Granmar's sons, yet 'tis right that\nprinces should speak the truth: they have shown, at Moinsheimar, that\nthey have courage to draw the sword.\"--\n\n46. Rapidly they their horses made to run, Svipud and Svegiud, to\nSolheimar, over dewy dales, dark mountain-sides; trembled the sea of\nmist, where the men went.\n\n47. The king they met at the burgh's gate, to the prince announced\nthe hostile advent. Without stood Hodbrodd with helmet decked: he the\nspeed noticed of his kinsmen. \"Why have ye Hniflungs such wrathful\ncountenances?\"\n\n48. \"Hither to the shore are come rapid keels, towering masts, and\nlong yards, shields many, and smooth-shaven oars, a king's noble host,\njoyous Ylfings.\n\n49. Fifteen bands are come to land; but there are out at sea, before\nGnipalund, seven thousand blue-black ocean-beasts with gold adorned;\nthere is by far their greatest multitude. Now will Helgi not delay the\nconflict.\"\n\n_Hodbrodd_.\n\n50. \"Let a bridled steed to the chief assembly run, but Sporvitnir\nto Sparinsheid; Melnir and Mylnir to Myrkvid; let no man stay behind\nof those who swords can brandish.\n\n51. Summon to you Hogni, and the sons of Hring, Atli and Yngvi, Alf\nthe old; they will gladly engage in conflict. We will let the Volsungs\nfind resistance.\"\n\n52. It was a whirlwind, when together came the fallow[52] blades at\nFrekastein: ever was Helgi Hundingsbani foremost in the host, where\nmen together fought: ardent for battle, disdaining flight; the\nchieftain had a valiant heart.\n\n53. Then came a maid from heaven, helmed, from above--the clash of\narms increased--for the king's protection. Then said Sigrun--well\nskilled to fly to the host of heroes from Hugin's grove--[53]\n\n54. \"Unscathed shalt thou, prince! possess thy people, pillar of\nYngvi's race! and life enjoy; thou hast laid low the slow of flight,\nthe chief who caused the dread warrior's death. And thee, O king! well\nbeseem both red-gold rings and a powerful maid: unscathed shalt thou,\nprince! both enjoy, Hogni's daughter, and Hringstadir, victory and\nlands: then is conflict ended.\"\n\nFOOTNOTES:\n\n[Footnote 49: That is, when they came to spin that period of his\ndestiny.]\n\n[Footnote 50: Kolga Systir. Kolga was one of the daughters of Oeglr\nand Ran; they were the waves.]\n\n[Footnote 51: Literally _ring-breakers, or-dispensers_.]\n\n[Footnote 52: It would appear that their swords were of bronze.]\n\n[Footnote 53: Hugin's grove. The raven's grove, i.e., the battlefield,\nstrewed with corpses, the raven's food.]\n\n\n\n\nTHE SECOND LAY OF HELGI HUNDINGCIDE.\n\nKing Sigmund, son of Volsung, had to wife Borghild of Bralund. They\nnamed their son Helgi, after Helgi Hiorvard's son. Helgi was fostered\nby Hagal. There was a powerful king named Hunding, after whom the land\nwas called Hundland. He was a great warrior, and had many sons, who\nwere engaged in warfare. There was enmity, both open and concealed,\nbetween King Hunding and King Sigmund, and they slew each other's\nkinsmen. King Sigmund and his kindred were called Volsungs, and\nYlfings. Helgi went forth and secretly explored the court of King\nHunding. Heming, Hunding's son, was at home. On departing Helgi met a\nherdsman, and said:\n\n1. \"Say thou to Heming, that Helgi bears in mind who the mailed\nwarrior was, whom the men laid low, when the grey wolf ye had within,\nand King Hunding thought it was Hamal.\"\n\nHamal was the son of Hagal. King Hunding sent men to Hagal in search\nof Helgi, and Helgi had no other way to save himself than by taking\nthe clothes of a female slave and going to grind. They sought but did\nnot find him. Then said Blind the Baleful:\n\n2. Sharp are the eyes of Hagal's thrall-wench; of no churlish race\nis she who at the mill stands. The millstones are split, the receiver\nflies asunder. Now a hard fate has befallen the warrior, when a prince\nmust barley grind: much more fitting to that hand is the falchion's\nhilt than a mill-handle.\n\nHagal answered and said:--\n\n3. No wonder 'tis that the receiver rattles, when a royal damsel the\nhandle turns. She hovered higher than the clouds, and, like the\nvikings, dared to fight, until Helgi made her captive. She is a sister\nof Sigar and Hogni; therefore has fierce eyes the Ylfing maid.\n\nHelgi escaped and went on board a ship of war. He slew King Hunding,\nand was afterwards named Helgi Hundingsbani. He lay with his force in\nBrunavagar, and carried on \"strand-hogg\"[54] and ate raw flesh. There\nwas a king named Hogni, whose daughter was Sigrun: she was a Valkyria,\nand rode through the air and over the sea. She was Svava regenerated.\nSigrun rode to Helgi, and said:--\n\n4. What men cause a ship along the coasts to float? where do ye\nwarriors a home possess? what await ye in Brunavagar? whither desire\nye to explore a way?\n\n_Helgi_.\n\n5. Hamal causes a ship along the coasts to float; we have home in\nHlesey; a fair wind we await in Brunavagar; eastward we desire to\nexplore a way.\n\n_Sigrun_.\n\n6. Where, O prince! hast thou wakened war, or fed the birds of\nconflict's sisters?[55] Why is thy corslet sprinkled with blood? Why\nbeneath the helm eat ye raw flesh?\n\n_Helgi_.\n\n7. It was the Ylfings' son's last achievement,--if thou desirest to\nknow--west of the ocean, that I took bears in Bragalund, and the\neagles' race with our weapons sated. Now, maiden! I have said what the\nreasons were, why at sea we little cooked meat ate.\n\n_Sigrun_.\n\n8. To a battle thou alludest. Before Helgi has King Hunding been\ndoomed to fall. In conflict ye have engaged, when your kindred ye\navenged, and stained with blood the falchion's edge.\n\n_Helgi_.\n\n9. Why dost thou suppose, sagacious maiden! that it was they, who\ntheir kin avenged? Many a warrior's bold sons there are, and hostile\nto our kindred.\n\n_Sigrun_.\n\n10. I was not far, leader of people! eager, at many a chieftain's\nend: yet crafty I account Sigmund's son, when in val-runes[56] the\nslaughter he announces.\n\n11. A while ago I saw thee commanding the warships, when thou hadst\nstation on the bloody prow, and the cold sea waves were playing. Now,\nprince! thou wilt from me conceal it, but Hogni's daughter recognizes\nthee.\n\nGranmar was the name of a powerful prince who dwelt at Svarinshaug. He\nhad many sons: one was called Hodbrodd, the second Gudmund, the third\nStarkadr. Hodbrodd was at the assembly of kings, and there betrothed\nhimself to Sigrun, the daughter of Hogni. But when she was informed of\nit, she rode with the Valkyriur through the air and over the sea in\nquest of Helgi. Helgi was at that time at Logafioll, warring against\nthe sons of Hunding, where he slew Alf and Eyiolf, Hiorvard and\nHervard. Being over-fatigued with the conflict, he was sitting under\nthe Arastein, where Sigrun found him, and running to him, threw her\narms around his neck, and, kissing him, told him her errand so as it\nrelated in the first Volsungakvida.\n\n12. Sigrun sought the joyous prince, Helgi's hand she forthwith\ngrasped, kissed and addressed the helm-decked king.\n\n13. Then was the chieftain's mind to the lady turned. She declared\nthat she had loved, with her whole heart, Sigmund's son, before she\nhad seen him.\n\n14. \"To Hodbrodd I was in th' assembly betrothed, but I another\nprince would have: yet, chieftain! I foresee my kindred's wrath: I\nhave my father's promise broken.\"\n\n15. Hogni's daughter spoke not at variance with her heart: she said\nthat Helgi's affection she must possess.\n\n_Helgi_.\n\n16. Care thou not for Hogni's wrath, nor for the evil mind of thy\nkin. Thou shalt, young maiden! live with me: of a good race thou art,\nas I perceive.\n\nHelgi then collected a large fleet and proceeded to Frekastein, and at\nsea experienced a perilous storm. Lightnings came over them, and the\nflashes entered the ships. They saw that nine Valkyriur were riding in\nthe air, and recognized Sigrun among them. The storm then abated and\nthey reached land in safety. The sons of Granmar were sitting on a\nhill as the ships were sailing towards the land. Gudmund leapt on a\nhorse, and rode to explore on the hill by the haven. The Volsungs then\nlowered their sails, and Gudmund spoke as is before written in the\nHelgakvida:--\n\n\"Who is the leader that commands the fleet, and an appalling host\nleads to our land?\"\n\nThis said Gudmund, Granmar's son:\n\n17. Who is the warrior that commands the ships, and lets his golden\nbanner wave o'er his prow? No peace seems to me in that ship's front;\nit casts a warlike glow around the vikings.\n\nSinfiotli, Sigmund's son, answered:\n\n18. Here may Hodbrodd Helgi learn to know, the hard of flight, in\nthe fleet's midst: he the possession holds of thy race; he the fishes'\nheritage has to him subjected.\n\n_Gudmund_.\n\n19. Therefore ought we first, at Frekastein, to settle together, and\ndecide our quarrels! Hodbrodd! 'tis time vengeance to take, if an\ninferior lot we long have borne.\n\n_Sinfiotli_.\n\n20. Rather shalt thou, Gudmund! tend goats, and steep mountain-tops\nshalt climb, have in thy hand a hazel staff, that will better please\nthee than judgments of the sword.\n\nGudmund rode home with intelligence of the hostile armament; whereupon\nthe sons of Granmar collected a host, and many kings came thither.\nAmong them were Hogni, the father of Sigrun, with his sons, Bragi and\nDag. There was a great battle, and all the sons of Hogni, and all\ntheir chiefs were slain, except Dag, who obtained peace, and swore\noaths to the Volsungs. Sigrun, going among the slain, found Hodbrodd\nat the point of death. She said:\n\n23. Not will Sigrun of Sefafioll, King Hodbrodd! sink in thy arms:\nthy life is departed. Oft the axe's blade the head approaches of\nGranmar's sons.\n\nShe then met Helgi, and was overjoyed. He said:\n\n24. Not to thee, all-wise maiden! are all things granted, though, I\nsay, in somewhat are the Norns to blame. This morn have fallen at\nFrekastein Bragi and Hogni: I was their slayer.\n\n25. But at Styrkleifar King Starkadr, and at Hlebiorg the son of\nHrollaug. That prince I saw of all most fierce, whose trunk yet fought\nwhen the head was far.\n\n26. On the earth lie the greater number of thy kinsmen, to corpses\nturned. Thou hast not fought the battle, yet 'twas decreed, that thou,\npotent maiden! shouldst cause the strife.\n\nSigrun then wept. Helgi said:\n\n27. Sigrun! console thyself; a Hild thou hast been to us. Kings\ncannot conquer fate: gladly would I have them living who are departed,\nif I might clasp thee to my breast.\n\nHelgi obtained Sigrun, and they had sons. Helgi lived not to be old.\nDag, the son of Hogni, sacrificed to Odin, for vengeance for his\nfather. Odin lent Dag his spear. Dag met with his relation Helgi in a\nplace called Fioturlund, and pierced him through with his spear. Helgi\nfell there, but Dag rode to the mountains and told Sigrun what had\ntaken place.\n\n28. Loath am I, sister! sad news to tell thee; for unwillingly I\nhave my sister caused to weep. This morning fell, in Fioturlund, the\nprince who was on earth the best, and on the necks of warriors stood.\n\n_Sigrun_.\n\n29. Thee shall the oaths all gnaw, which to Helgi thou didst swear,\nat the limpid Leiptr's water, and at the cold dank wave-washed rock.\n\n30. May the ship not move forward, which under thee should move,\nalthough the wished-for wind behind thee blow. May the horse not run,\nwhich under thee should run, although from enemies thou hast to flee!\n\n31. May the sword not bite which thou drawest, unless it sing round\nthy own head. Then would Helgi's death be on thee avenged, if a wolf\nthou wert, out in the woods, of all good bereft, and every joy, have\nno sustenance, unless on corpses thou shouldst spring.\n\n_Dag_.\n\n32. Sister! thou ravest, and hast lost thy wits, when on thy brother\nthou callest down such miseries. Odin alone is cause of all the evil;\nfor between relatives he brought the runes of strife.\n\n33. Thy brother offers thee rings of red gold, all Vandilsve and\nVigdalir: have half the land, thy grief to compensate, woman\nring-adorned! thou and thy sons.\n\n_Sigrun_.\n\n34. So happy I shall not sit at Sefafioll, neither at morn nor\nnight, as to feel joy in life, if o'er the people plays not the\nprince's beam of light; if his war-steed runs not under the chieftain\nhither, to the gold bit accustomed; if in the king I cannot rejoice.\n\n35. So had Helgi struck with fear all his foes and their kindred, as\nbefore the wolf the goats run frantic from the fell, of terror full.\n\n36. So himself Helgi among warriors bore, as the towering ash is\namong thorns, or as the fawn, moistened with dew, that more proudly\nstalks than all the other beasts, and its horns glisten against the\nsky.\n\nA mound was raised for Helgi; but when he came to Valhall, Odin\noffered him the rule over all jointly with himself. Helgi said:\n\n37. Thou, Hunding! shalt for every man a foot-bath get, and fire\nkindle; shalt bind the dogs, to the horses look, to the swine give\nwash, ere to sleep thou goest.\n\nA female slave passing at evening by Helgi's mound, saw him riding\ntowards it with many men:\n\n38. Is it a delusion which methinks I see, or the powers'\ndissolution, that ye, dead men, ride, and your horses with spurs urge\non, or to warriors is a home journey granted?\n\n_Helgi_.\n\n39. 'Tis no delusion which thou thinkst to see, nor of mankind the\nend, although thou seest us, although our horses we with spurs urge\non, nor to warriors is a home-journey granted.\n\nThe slave went home and said to Sigrun:\n\n40. Sigrun! go forth from Sefafioll, if the people's chief thou\ndesirest to meet. The mound is opened, Helgi is come, his wounds still\nbleed; the prince prayed thee that thou wouldst still the trickling\nblood.\n\nSigrun entered the mound to Helgi and said:\n\n41. Now am I as glad, at our meeting, as the voracious hawks of\nOdin, when they of slaughter know; of warm prey, or, dewy-feathered,\nsee the peep of day.\n\n43. I will kiss my lifeless king, ere thou thy bloody corslet layest\naside. Thy hair is, Helgi! tumid with sweat of death; my prince is all\nbathed in slaughter-dew; cold, clammy are the hands of Hogni's son.\nHow shall I, prince! for this make thee amends?\n\n_Helgi_.\n\n43. Thou art alone the cause,[57] Sigrun of Sefafioll! that Helgi is\nwith sorrow's dew suffused. Thou weepest, gold-adorned! cruel tears,\nsun-bright daughter of the south! ere to sleep thou goest; each one\nfalls bloody on the prince's breast, wet, cold, and piercing, with\nsorrow big.\n\n44. We shall surely drink delicious draughts, though we have lost\nlife and lands. No one shall a song of mourning sing, though on my\nbreast he wounds behold. Now are women in the mound enclosed,\ndaughters of kings, with us the dead.\n\nSigrun prepares a bed in the mound.\n\n35. Here, Helgi! have I for thee a peaceful couch prepared, for the\nYlfings' son. On thy breast I will, chieftain! repose, as in my hero's\nlifetime I was wont.\n\n_Helgi_.\n\n46. Nothing I now declare unlooked for, at Sefafioll, late or early,\nsince in a corpse's arms thou sleepest, Hogni's fair daughter! in a\nmound, and thou art living, daughter of kings!\n\n47. Time 'tis for me to ride on the reddening ways: let the pale\nhorse tread the aerial path. I towards the west must go over\nVindhialm's bridge, ere Salgofnir awakens heroes.\n\nHelgi and his attendants rode their way, but Sigrun and hers proceeded\nto their habitation. The following evening Sigrun ordered her\nserving-maid to hold watch at the mound; but at nightfall, when Sigrun\ncame thither, she said:\n\n48. Now would he come, if he to come intended, Sigmund's son, from\nOdin's halls. I think the hope lessens of the king's coming, since on\nthe ash's boughs the eagles sit, and all the folk to the dreams' tryst\nare hastening.\n\n_Serving-maid_.\n\n49. Be not so rash alone to go, daughter of heroes! to the house of\ndraugs:[58] more powerful are, in the night-season, all dead warriors,\nthan in the light of day.\n\nSigrun's life was shortened by grief and mourning. It was a belief in\nancient times that men were regenerated, but that is now regarded as\nan old crone's fancy. Helgi and Sigrun are said to have been\nregenerated. He was then called Helgi Haddingiaskadi, and she Kara\nHalfdan's daughter, as it is said in the songs of Kara; and she also\nwas a Valkyria.\n\nFOOTNOTES:\n\n[Footnote 54: Slaughtering and carrying off the cattle on the\nsea-shore.]\n\n[Footnote 55: The Valkyriur.]\n\n[Footnote 56: Dark words of deadly import.]\n\n[Footnote 57: The superstition commemorated In this strophe is, no\ndoubt, the origin of some very beautiful ballads in the later\nliterature of Scandinavia and Germany referring to this superstition:\n\n \"When thou, my dear, art cheerful,\n And easy in thy mind,\n The coffin where I slumber\n Is all with roses lined.\n\n But oft as thou'rt in sorrow,\n And bow'd with grief so sore,\n Is all the while my coffin\n Brim full of blood and gore.\"\n\n]\n\n[Footnote 58: Probably house of draffs; place of swine, swill, lees.]\n\n\n\n\nSINFIOTLI'S END.\n\nSigmund Volsung's son was a king in Frankland. Sinfiotli was the\neldest of his sons, the second was Helgi, the third Hamund. Borghild,\nSigmund's wife, had a brother named Gunnar; but Sinfiotli her stepson\nand Gunnar both courted one woman, on which account Sinfiotli slew\nGunnar. When he came home, Borghild bade him go away, but Sigmund\noffered the blood-fine, which it was incumbent on her to accept. At\nthe funeral feast Borghild presented the beer: she took a large horn\nfull of poison, and offered it to Sinfiotli; who, when he looked into\nthe horn, and saw that there was poison in it, said to Sigmund: \"the\ndrink ferments!\" Sigmund took the horn and drank up the contents. It\nis said that Sigmund was so strong that no poison could hurt him,\neither outwardly or inwardly; but that all his sons could endure\npoison outwardly. Borghild bore another horn to Sinfiotli, and prayed\nhim to drink, when all took place as before. Yet a third time she\noffered him the horn, using reproachful words on his refusing to\ndrink. He said as before to Sigmund, but the latter answered: \"Let it\npass through thy lips, my son.\" Sinfiotli drank and instantly died.\nSigmund bore him a long way in his arms, and came to a long and narrow\nfirth, where there was a little vessel and one man in it. He offered\nSigmund to convey him over the firth; but when Sigmund had borne the\ncorpse into the vessel, the boat was full-laden. The man then said\nthat Sigmund should go before through the firth. He then pushed off\nhis boat and instantly departed.\n\nKing Sigmund sojourned long in Denmark, in Borghild's kingdom, after\nhaving espoused her. He then went south to Frankland, to the kingdom\nhe there possessed. There he married Hiordis, the daughter of Eylimi.\nSigurd was their son. King Sigmund fell in a battle with the sons of\nHunding. Hiordis was afterwards married to Alf, son of King Hialprek,\nwith whom Sigurd grew up in childhood. Sigmund and his sons exceeded\nall other men in strength, and stature, and courage, and all\naccomplishments, though Sigurd was foremost of all; and in old\ntraditions he is mentioned as excelling all men, and as the most\nrenowned of warlike kings.\n\n\n\n\nTHE FIRST LAY OF SIGURD FAFNICIDE, OR GRIPIR'S PROPHECY.\n\nGripir was the name of the son of Eylimi, the brother of Hiordis. He\nruled over lands, and was of all men wisest and prescient of the\nfuture. Sigurd rode alone, and came to Gripir's dwelling. Sigurd was\nof a distinguished figure. He found a man to address outside the hall,\nwhose name was Geitir. Sigurd applied to him, and asked:\n\n1. Who here inhabits, in these towers? what nation's king do people\nname him?\n\n_Geitir_.\n\nGripir is named the chief of men, he who rules a firm realm and\npeople.\n\n_Sigurd_.\n\n2. Is the wise king of the land at home? Will the chief with me come\nand converse? With him needs speech an unknown man: I desire speedily\nGripir to see.\n\n_Geitir_.\n\n3. The glad king will of Geitir ask, who the man is that demands\nspeech of Gripir.\n\n_Sigurd_.\n\nSigurd I am named, born of Sigmund, and Hiordis is the chieftain's\nmother.\n\n4. Then went Geitir, Gripir to inform: \"Here is a man without, a\nstranger, come; of aspect he is most distinguished. He desires, king!\nwith thee to speak.\"\n\n5. Goes from the hall the lord of men, and the stranger prince\nkindly greets: \"Welcome, Sigurd! better had it been earlier: but do\nthou, Geitir! take charge of Grani.\"\n\n6. They began to talk, and much to tell, when the sagacious men\ntogether met. \"Tell me, if thou knowest, my mother's brother! how will\nSigurd's life fall out?\"\n\n_Gripir_.\n\n7. Thou wilt foremost be of men beneath the sun, exalted high above\nevery king; liberal of gold, but of flight sparing, of aspect comely,\nand wise of words.\n\n_Sigurd_.\n\n8. Say thou, sage king! more than I ask, thou wise one, to Sigurd,\nif thou thinkst to see it: what will first happen for my advancement,\nwhen from thy dwelling I shall have departed?\n\n_Gripir_.\n\n9. First wilt thou, prince! avenge thy father, and for the wrongs of\nEylimi wilt retaliate; thou wilt the cruel sons of Hunding boldly lay\nlow; thou wilt have victory.\n\n_Sigurd_.\n\n10. Say, noble king! kinsman mine! with all forethought, as we hold\nfriendly converse; seest thou of Sigurd those bold achievements, that\nwill highest soar under heaven's regions?\"\n\n_Gripir_.\n\n11. Thou alone wilt slay that glistening serpent, which greedy lies\non Gnitaheid; thou shalt of both the slayer be, Regin and Fafnir.\nGripir tells truly.\n\n_Sigurd_.\n\n12. Riches will abound, if I so bring conflict among men, as thou\nfor certain sayest. Apply thy mind, and at length say what will yet my\nlife befall.\n\n_Gripir_.\n\n13. Thou wilt find Fafnir's lair, and thence wilt take splendid\nriches, with gold wilt load Grani's back. Thou wilt to Giuki ride, the\nwar-famed prince.\n\n_Sigurd_.\n\n14. Yet must thou, prince! in friendly speech, foresighted king!\nmore relate. I shall be Giuki's guest, and I shall thence depart: what\nwill next my life befall?\n\n_Gripir_.\n\n15. A king's daughter will on a mountain sleep, fair, in corslet\ncased, after Helgi's death. Thou wilt strike with a keen sword, wilt\nthe corslet sever with Fafnir's bane.\n\n_Sigurd_.\n\n16. The corslet is ript open, the maid begins to speak. When\nawakened from her sleep, on what will she chiefly with Sigurd converse\nhold, which to the prince's benefit may tend?\n\n_Gripir_.\n\n17. She to thee, powerful one! runes will teach, all those which\nmen ought to know; and in every man's tongue to speak, and medicines\nfor healing. May good await thee, king!\n\n_Sigurd_.\n\n18. Now that is past, the knowledge is acquired, and I am ready\nthence away to ride. Apply thy mind, and at length say what more will\nmy life befall.\n\n_Gripir_.\n\n19. Thou wilt find Heimir's dwellings, and the glad guest wilt be of\nthat great king. Vanished is, Sigurd! that which I foresaw; no further\nmayest thou Gripir question.\n\n_Sigurd_.\n\n20. Now bring me grief the words thou speakest; for thou foreseest,\nking! much further; thou knowest of too great calamity to Sigurd;\ntherefore thou, Gripir! wilt not utter it.\n\n_Gripir_.\n\n21. Of thy life the early portion lay before me clearest to\ncontemplate. I am not truly accounted sage, nor of the future\nprescient: that which I knew is gone.\n\n_Sigurd_.\n\n22. No man I know on the earth's surface, who greater prescience has\nthan thou, Gripir! Thou mayest not conceal it, unhappy though it be,\nor if ill betide my life.\n\n_Gripir_.\n\n23. Not with vices will thy life be sullied; let that, noble\nprince! in thy mind be borne; for while mankind exists, thy name,\ndirector of the spear-storm! will be supreme.\n\n_Sigurd_.\n\n24. The worst seems to me, that Sigurd is compelled from the king to\npart in such uncertainty. Show me the way--all is decreed\nbefore--great chieftain! if thou wilt, my mother's brother!\n\n_Gripir_.\n\n25. To Sigurd I will now openly tell, since the chieftain me thereto\ncompels: thou wilt surely find that I lie not. A certain day is for\nthy death decreed.\n\n_Sigurd_.\n\n26. I would not importune the mighty prince, but rather Gripir's\ngood counsel have. Now I fain would know, though grateful it may not\nbe, what prospect Sigurd has lying before him.\n\n_Gripir_.\n\n27. There is with Heimir a maiden fair of form, she is by men\nBrynhild named, daughter of Budli; but the dear king Heimir nurtures\nthe hard-souled damsel.\n\n_Sigurd_.\n\n28. What is it to me, although the maiden be of aspect fair?\nnurtured with Heimir? That thou, Gripir! must fully declare; for thou\nforeseest my whole destiny.\n\n_Gripir_.\n\n29. She will thee bereave of almost every joy, the fair-faced\nfoster-child of Heimir. Thou wilt not sleep, nor of affairs\ndiscourse, nor men regard; only this maiden thou wilt see.\n\n_Sigurd_.\n\n30. What remedy for Sigurd will be applied; tell me that, Gripir! if\nit seem good to thee. Shall I obtain the damsel? with dowry purchase\nthe lovely royal daughter?\n\n_Gripir_.\n\n31. Ye will each swear unnumbered oaths, solemnly binding, but few\nwill keep. Hast thou been Giuki's guest one night, thou wilt have\nforgotten the fair ward of Heimir.\n\n_Sigurd_.\n\n32. How is that, Gripir! explain it to me: seest thou such\nfickleness in the king's mind, that with that maiden I shall my\nengagement break, whom with my whole heart I thought to love?\n\n_Gripir_.\n\n33. Prince! thou wilt be snared in another's wiles, thou wilt pay\nthe penalty of Grimhild's craft; the bright-haired maiden, her\ndaughter, she to thee will offer. This snare for the king she lays.\n\n_Sigurd_.\n\n34. Shall I then with Gunnar form relationship, and with Gudrun join\nin wedlock? Well wived then the king would be, if the pangs of perjury\ncaused me no pain.\n\n_Gripir_.\n\n35. Thee will Grimhild wholly beguile; she will implore thee\nBrynhild to demand for the hand of Gunnar, king of Goths: the journey\nthou wilt forthwith promise to the king's mother.\n\n_Sigurd_.\n\n36. Evils are at hand, I can that perceive; Sigurd's wits will have\nwholly perished, if I shall demand for another's hand, a noble maiden\nwhom I well love.\n\n_Gripir_.\n\n37. All of you will swear mutual oaths, Gunnar, and Hogni, and thou\nthe third; and ye will forms exchange, when on the way ye are, Gunnar\nand thou: Gripir lies not.\n\n_Sigurd_.\n\n38. To what end is that? why shall we exchange forms and manners,\nwhen on the way we are? Another fraud will surely follow this,\naltogether horrible. But say on, Gripir!\n\n_Gripir_.\n\n39. Thou wilt have Gunnar's semblance, and his manners, thy own\neloquence, and great sagacity: there thou wilt betroth the high-minded\nward of Heimir: no one can that prevent.\n\n_Sigurd_.\n\n40. To me that seems worst, that among men I shall be a false\ntraitor called, if such take place. I would not deception practise on\na royal maid the most excellent I know.\n\n_Gripir_.\n\n41. Thou wilt repose, leader of hosts! pure with the maiden, as she\nthy mother were; therefore exalted, lord of men! while the world\nendures thy name will be.\n\n42. The nuptials will of both be solemnized, of Sigurd and of\nGunnar, in Giuki's halls; then will ye forms exchange, when ye home\nreturn; yet to himself will have each his own senses.\n\n_Sigurd._\n\n43. Will then Gunnar, chief among men, the noble woman wed? Tell me\nthat, Gripir! although three nights by me the chieftain's bride glad\nof heart has slept? The like has no example.\n\n44. How for happiness shall hereafter be this affinity? Tell me\nthat, Gripir! Will the alliance for Gunnar's solace henceforth prove,\nor even for mine?\n\n_Gripir._\n\n45. Thou wilt the oaths remember, and must silence keep, and let\nGudrun enjoy a happy union. Brynhild nathless will herself think an\nill-married woman. She will wiles devise to avenge herself.\n\n_Sigurd._\n\n46. What atonement will that woman take, for the frauds we shall\nhave practised on her? From me the maiden has oaths sworn, but never\nkept, and but little joy.\n\n_Gripir._\n\n47. She to Gunnar will plainly declare, that thou didst not well the\noaths observe, when the noble king, Giuki's heir, with his whole soul,\nin thee confided.\n\n_Sigurd._\n\n48. What will then follow? let me know that. Will that tale appear\nas true, or that the noble woman falsely accuses me, and herself also.\nTell me that, Gripir!\n\n_Gripir_.\n\n49. From spite towards thee, and from o'erwhelming grief, the\npowerful dame will not most wisely act. To the noble woman do thou no\nfurther harm, though thou the royal bride with guiles hast\ncircumvented.\n\n_Sigurd_.\n\n50. Will the prudent Gunnar, Guthorm, and Hogni, at her instigation,\nthen proceed? Will Giuki's sons on their relative redden their swords?\nTell me further, Gripir!\n\n_Gripir_.\n\n51. Then will Gudrun be furious at heart, when her brothers shall on\nthy death resolve. In nothing then will that wise woman take delight.\nSuch is Grimhild's work.\n\n52. In this thou shalt find comfort, leader of hosts! This fortune\nis allotted to the hero's life: a more renowned man on earth shall\nnever be, under the sun's abode, than thou wilt be accounted.\n\n_Sigurd_.\n\n53. Now part we, now farewell! Fate may not be withstood. Now hast\nthou, Gripir! done as I prayed thee: thou wouldst have fain a happier\nend foretold me of my life's days, hadst thou been able.\n\n\n\n\nTHE SECOND LAY OF SIGURD FAFNICIDE.\n\nSigurd went to Hialprek's stud and chose himself a horse, which was\nafterwards named Grani. Regin, Hreidmar's son, was then come to\nHialprek; he was the most skilful of men, and a dwarf in stature; he\nwas wise, cruel, and versed in magic. Regin undertook the rearing and\ninstruction of Sigurd, and bore him great affection. He informed\nSigurd of his parentage, and how it befell that Odin, and Hoenir, and\nLoki came to Andvarafors (the waterfall of Andvari). In the fall there\nwas an abundance of fish. There was a dwarf named Andvari, who had\nlong lived in the fall in the likeness of a pike, and in which he\nsupplied himself with food. \"Our brother,\" continued Regin, \"was named\nOtr, who often went into the fall in the likeness of an otter. He had\ncaught a salmon, and was sitting on the bank of the river with his\neyes shut eating it, when Loki killed him with a stone. The \u00c6sir\nthought themselves very lucky, and stripped off the otter's skin. That\nsame evening they sought entertainment with Hreidmar, and showed their\nprize. Thereupon we laid hands on them, and imposed on them, as the\nredemption of their lives, that they should fill the otter's skin with\ngold, and cover it over with red gold. They thereupon sent Loki to\nprocure gold. He went to Ran, and obtained her net, and thence\nproceeded to Andvarafors, and cast the net before a pike, which leapt\ninto the net. Whereupon Loki said:\n\n1. What fish is this, that in the river swims, and cannot from harm\nitself protect? Redeem thy life from Hel, and find me the water's\nflame.[59] _The Pike_.\n\n2. Andvari I am named, Oin was my father named; many a cataract have\nI passed. A luckless Norn in times of old decreed, that in the water I\nshould wade.\n\n_Loki_.\n\n3. Tell me, Andvari! if thou wilt enjoy life in the halls of men,\nwhat retribution get the sons of mortals, if with foul words they\nassail each other.\n\n_Andvari_.\n\n4. Cruel retribution get the sons of mortals, who in Vadgelmir wade:\nfor the false words they have against others uttered, the punishments\ntoo long endure.\n\nLoki viewed all the gold that Andvari owned; but when he had produced\nthe gold, he retained a single ring, which Loki also took from him.\nThe dwarf went into his stone and said:\n\n5. That gold which the dwarf possessed, shall to two brothers be\ncause of death, and to eight princes, of dissension. From my wealth no\none shall good derive.\n\nThe \u00c6sir produced the gold to Hreidmar, and with it crammed the\notter's skin full, and set it up on the feet. They then had to heap up\nthe gold and cover it; but when that was done, Hreidmar, stepping\nforward, observed a whisker, and required it to be covered; whereupon\nOdin drew forth the ring \"Andvaranaut,\" and covered the hair. Loki\nsaid:\n\n6. There is gold for thee, and thou hast a great redemption for my\nlife. For thy son no blessing is decreed; of both it shall prove the\nbane.\n\n_Hreidmar_.\n\n7. Gifts thou hast given, friendly gifts thou hast given not; with a\nkind heart thou hast not given. Of your lives ye should have been\ndeprived, had I foreknown that peril.\n\n8. But that is worse, what I seem to know,--a strife of kinsmen for\na woman. Princes yet unborn I think them to be, for whose hate that\ngold is destined.\n\n9. The red gold, I trust, I shall possess while I am living: of thy\nthreats I entertain no fear; so take yourselves hence home.\n\nFafnir and Regin demanded of Hreidmar their share of the blood-fine\nfor their slain brother Otr, which he refused, and Fafnir stabbed his\nfather with a sword while sleeping. Hreidmar called out to his\ndaughters:\n\n10. Lyngheid and Lofnheid! Know my life is departing. To many things\nneed compels.[60] _Lyngheid_.\n\nFew sisters will, although they lose a father, avenge a brother's\ncrime.\n\n_Hreidmar_.\n\n11. Then bring forth a daughter, wolf-hearted fury! If by a chief\nthou have not a son. Get for the maid a spouse, in thy great need;\nthen will her son thy wrong avenge.\n\nHreidmar then died, and Fafnir took all the gold. Regin then requested\nto have his share of the patrimony, but met with a refusal from\nFafnir. Regin thereupon sought counsel of his sister Lyngheid, how he\nmight obtain his patrimony. She said:\n\n12. Thou of thy brother shalt mildly demand thy patrimony and a\nbetter spirit. It is not seemly, that with the sword thou shouldst\ndemand thy property of Fafnir.\n\nThe foregoing is what Regin related to Sigurd. One day, when he came\nto Regin's dwelling, he was kindly received, and Regin said:\n\n13. Hither is come the son of Sigmund to our Hall, that man of\nenergy: courage he has greater than I aged man: now of a conflict have\nI hope from the fierce wolf.[61]\n\n14. I will nurture the bold-hearted prince: now Yngvi's kinsman is\nto us come; he will be a king under the sun most powerful; over all\nlands will his destinies resound.\n\nSigurd was thence forward constantly with Regin, who related to him\nhow Fafnir lay on Gnitaheid in the likeness of a serpent. He had an\n\"Oegis-helm,\"[62] at which all living beings were terror-stricken.\nRegin forged a sword for Sigurd, that was named Gram, and was so sharp\nthat immersing it in the Rhine, he let a piece of wool down the\nstream, when it clove the fleece asunder as water. With that sword\nSigurd clove in two Regin's anvil. After that Regin instigated Sigurd\nto slay Fafnir. He said:\n\n15. Loud will laugh Hunding's sons, they who Eylimi of life\ndeprived, if the prince is more desirous to seek red rings, than to\navenge his father.\n\nKing Hialprek collected a fleet to enable Sigurd to avenge his father.\nThey encountered a great storm, and were driven past a certain\npromontory. A man was standing on the cliff who said:\n\n16. Who ride yonder, on R\u00e6vils horses, the towering billows, the\nroaring main: the sail-steeds are with sweat bedewed, the\nwave-coursers will not the wind withstand.\n\n_Regin_.\n\n17. Here am I and Sigurd in sea-trees; a fair wind is given us for\ndeath itself: higher than our prows the steep waves dash, the rolling\nhorses plunge. Who is it that inquires?\n\n_Hnikar_.\n\n18. They called me Hnikar, when I Hugin gladdened, young Volsung!\nand battles fought. Now they mayest call me the ancient of the rock,\nFeng, or Fiolnir.--I desire a passage.\n\nThey turn to the land, the old man goes on board, and the storm\nabates. Sigurd said:\n\n19. Tell me, Hnikar! since thou knowest the omens both of gods and\nmen, which omens are the best--if to fight 'tis needful--at the swing\nof glaves?\n\n_Hnikar_.\n\n20. Good omens there are many, if men but knew them, at the swing of\nglaves, a faithful fellowship, I think, is the dark raven's, with the\nsworded warrior.\n\n21. The second is, if, when thou art gone out, and about to depart,\nthou seest two renown-seeking men standing in the fore-court.\n\n22. The third omen is, if wolves thou hearest howl under the\nash-boughs, it will victory to thee announce over helmed warriors, if\nthou seest them go before thee.\n\n23. No man should fight against the moon's late-shining sister. They\nhave victory, who can see keenly at the play of swords, or to form the\nwedge-array.\n\n24. Most perilous it is, if with thy foot thou strikest, when thou\nto battle goest. Wily Disir stand on either side of thee, and wish to\nsee thee wounded.\n\n25. Combed and washed let every brave man be, and at morning fed;\nfor 'tis uncertain whither he at eve may come. 'Tis bad to succumb to\nfate.\n\nSigurd fought a great battle with Lyngvi, Hunding's son, and his\nbrothers, in which Lyngvi and his three brothers fell. After the\nbattle Regin said:\n\n26. Now is the bloody eagle, with the trenchant blade, graven on the\nback of Sigmund's slayer. No son of king, who the earth reddens, and\nthe raven gladdens, is more excellent.\n\nSigurd returned home to Hialprek, when Regin instigated him to slay\nFafnir.\n\nFOOTNOTES:\n\n[Footnote 59: One of many periphrases for gold.]\n\n[Footnote 60: To wit, _to avenge my death on your brothers_.]\n\n[Footnote 61: Sigurd.]\n\n[Footnote 62: A terrific helm or headpiece.]\n\n\n\n\nTHE LAY OF FAFNIR.\n\nSigurd and Regin went up to Gnitaheid, and there found Fafnir's slot,\nor track, along which he crawled to the water. There on the way Sigurd\nmade a large pit, and went down into it. When Fafnir crawled from the\ngold he blew forth venom, but it flew over Sigurd's head. When Fafnir\ncrept over the pit, Sigurd with his sword pierced him to the heart.\nFafnir shook himself, and beat with his head and tail. Sigurd leapt\nfrom the pit, and each looked at the other. Fafnir said:\n\n1. Young fellow! young fellow! by what fellow art thou begot? of\nwhat people are thou the son? that thou in Fafnir reddenst thy\nglittering falchion? Thy sword has pierced my heart.\n\nSigurd concealed his name, because it was the belief in those times,\nthat the words of dying persons were of great power, if they cursed an\nenemy by his name.\n\n_Sigurd_.\n\n2. Gofugt-dyr I am called, but I have wandered a motherless child;\nnor have I a father like the sons of men: alone I wander.\n\n_Fafnir_.\n\n3. If thou hast no father like the sons of men, by what wonder art\nthou begotten?\n\n_Sigurd_.\n\n4. My race, I tell thee, is to thee unknown, and myself also.\nSigmund was my father named, my name is Sigurd, who with weapon have\nassailed thee.\n\n_Fafnir_.\n\n5. Who has incited thee? why hast thou suffered thyself to be\nincited to take my life? youth of the sparkling eyes! Thou hadst a\ncruel father-- * * * *\n\n_Sigurd_.\n\n6. My heart incited me, my hands gave me aid, and my keen sword.\nRarely a man is bold, when of mature age, if in childhood he was\nfaint-hearted.\n\n_Fafnir_.\n\n7. I know if thou hadst chanced to grow in the lap of friends, they\nwould have seen thee fierce in fight. Now thou art a captive, taken in\nwar, and, 'tis said, slaves ever tremble.\n\n_Sigurd_.\n\n8. Why Fafnir! dost thou upbraid me that I am far from my paternal\nhome? I am not a captive, although in war I was taken: thou hast found\nthat I am free.\n\n_Fafnir_.\n\n9. Thou wilt account only as angry words all I to thee shall say,\nbut I will say the truth. The jingling gold, and the gleed-red\ntreasure, those rings, shall be thy bane.\n\n_Sigurd_.\n\n10. Treasure at command every one desires, ever till that one day;\nfor at some time each mortal shall hence to Hel depart.\n\n_Fafnir_.\n\n11. The Norns' decree thou wilt hold in contempt as from a witless\nwight: In water thou shalt be drowned, if in wind thou rowest. All\nthings bring peril to the fated.\n\n_Sigurd_.\n\n12. Tell me, Fafnir! as thou art wise declared, and many things to\nknow: who those Norns are, who help in need, and from babes loose the\nmothers.\n\n_Fafnir_.\n\n13. Very diversely born I take those Norns to be: they have no\ncommon race. Some are of \u00c6sir-race, some of Alfar-race, some are\nDvalin's daughters.\n\n_Sigurd_.\n\n14. Tell me, Fafnir! as thou art wise declared, and many things to\nknow, how that holm is called, where Surt and the \u00c6sir will\nsword-liquor together mingle?\n\n_Fafnir_.\n\n15. Oskopnir it is called; there shall the gods with lances play;\nBifrost shall be broken, when they go forth, and their steeds in the\nriver swim.\n\n16. An Oegis-helm I bore among the sons of men, while I o'er the\ntreasures lay; stronger than all I thought myself to be; stronger I\nfound not many!\n\n_Sigurd_.\n\n17. An Oegis-helm is no protection, where men impelled by anger\nfight: soon he finds, who among many comes, that no one is alone the\nboldest.\n\n_Fafnir_.\n\n18. Venom I blew forth, when on my father's great heritage I lay.\n\n_Sigurd_.\n\n19. Thou, glistening serpent! didst a great belching make, and wast\nso hard of heart. Fierceness so much the greater have the sons of men,\nwhen they possess that helm.\n\n_Fafnir_.\n\n20. Sigurd! I now counsel thee, do thou take my counsel; and hence\nride home. The jingling gold, and the gleed-red treasure, those rings,\nshall be thy bane.\n\n_Sigurd_.\n\n21. Counsel regarding thee is taken, and I to the gold will ride, on\nthe heath that lies. But lie thou, Fafnir! in the pangs of death,\nuntil Hel have thee!\n\n_Fafnir_.\n\n22. Regin betrayed me, he will thee betray, he of us both will be\nthe bane. Fafnir must, I trow, let forth his life: thine was the\ngreater might!\n\nRegin had gone away while Sigurd slew Fafnir, but came back as Sigurd\nwas wiping the blood from his sword. He said:\n\n23. Hail to thee now, Sigurd! Now hast thou victory won and Fafnir\nslain: of all the men who tread the earth, thou art, I say, the\nbravest born.\n\n_Sigurd_.\n\n24. Uncertain 'tis to know, when we all come together, sons of\nvictorious heroes, which is the bravest born. Many a one is bold, who\nsword has never broken in another's breast.\n\n_Regin_.\n\n25. Glad are thou now, Sigurd! and in thy gain rejoicing, while\nGram, in the grass thou driest. My brother thou to death hast wounded,\nyet in some degree was I the cause.\n\n_Sigurd_.\n\n26. Thou didst me counsel, that I should ride o'er high fells\nhither. Treasure and life had still possess'd that glistening serpent,\nhadst thou my anger not excited.\n\nRegin then approached Fafnir and cut out his heart with a sword named\nRidill, and afterwards drank blood from his wound. He said:\n\n27. Sit now, Sigurd!--but I must go to sleep--and Fafnir's heart\nhold to the fire. Of this refection I would fain partake, after that\ndrink of blood.\n\n_Sigurd_.\n\n28. Thou wentst far off, while I in Fafnir my keen sword reddened.\nWith my strength I strove against the serpent's might, while in the\nling thou layest.\n\n_Regin_.\n\n29. Long hadst thou allowed in the ling to lie that Jotun old, hadst\nthou the sword not used that I forged for thee, thy keen-edged glave.\n\n_Sigurd_.\n\n30. Valour is better than might of sword, when foes embittered\nfight; for a brave man I have ever seen gain victory with a dull\nsword.\n\n31. For the brave 'tis better than for the timid to join in the game\nof war; for the joyous it is better than for the sad, let come\nwhatever may.\n\nSigurd took Fafnir's heart and roasted it on a stick. When he thought\nit roasted enough, and the blood frothed from it, he touched it with\nhis finger, to try whether it were quite done. He burnt his finger and\nput it in his mouth; and when Fafnir's heart's blood touched his\ntongue he understood the language of birds. He heard the eagles\nchattering among the branches. One eagle said:\n\n38. There sits Sigurd sprinkled with blood; Fafnir's heart at the\nfire he roasts. Wise methinks were the ring-dispenser, if he the\nglistening life-pulp ate.\n\n_Second eagle_.\n\n33. There lies Regin communing with himself; he will beguile the\nyouth, who in him trusts: in rage he brings malicious words together,\nthe framer of evil will avenge his brother.\n\n_Third eagle_.\n\n34. By the head shorter, let him the hoary babbler send hence to\nHel; then can he all the gold possess alone, the mass that under\nFafnir lay.\n\n_Fourth eagle_.\n\n35. He would, methinks, be prudent, if he could have your friendly\ncounsel, my sisters! If he would bethink himself, and Hugin gladden.\nThere I expect the wolf, where his ears I see.\n\n_Fifth eagle_.\n\n36. Not so prudent is that tree of battle, as I that martial leader\nhad supposed, if he one brother lets depart, now he the other has of\nlife bereft.\n\n_Sixth eagle_.\n\n37. He is most simple, if he longer spares that people's pest. There\nlies Regin, who has betrayed him.--He cannot guard against it.\n\n_Seventh eagle_.\n\n38. By the head shorter let him make the ice-cold Jotun, and of his\nrings deprive him; then of that treasure thou,[63] which Fafnir owned,\nsole lord wilt be!\n\n_Sigurd_.\n\n39. Fate shall not so resistless be, that Regin shall my death-word\nbear; for the brothers both shall speedily go hence to Hel.\n\nSigurd cut off the head of Regin, and then ate Fafnir's heart, and\ndrank the blood of both Regin and Fafnir. He then heard the eagles\nsaying:\n\n40. Bind thou, Sigurd! the red-gold rings. It is not kingly many\nthings to fear. I a maid know by far the fairest, with gold adorned.\nCouldst thou but her obtain!\n\n_Second eagle_.\n\n41. To Giuki lead all-verdant ways; the fates point out to\nwayfarers where the good king a born daughter has; her wilt thou,\nSigurd! purchase with bridal gifts.\n\n_Third eagle_.\n\n42. There stands a hall on the high Hindarfiall, without 'tis all\nwith fire surrounded; sagacious men have it constructed of the\nresplendent radiance of the flood.[64] _Fourth eagle_.\n\n43. On the fell I know a warrior maid to sleep, over her waves the\nlinden's bane.[65] Ygg whilom stuck a sleep-thorn in the robe of the\nmaid who would heroes choose.\n\n44. Thou, youth! mayest see the helmed maiden, her whom Vingskornir\nfrom battle bore. May not Sigrdrifa's slumber break the son of\nwarriors,[66] against the Norns' decrees.\n\nSigurd rode along Fafnir's track to his lair, which he found open. The\ndoors and door-posts were of iron; of iron also were all the beams in\nthe house; but the treasure was buried in the earth. Sigurd found\nthere a great quantity of gold, and filled two chests with it. He took\nthence the Oegis-helm, a golden corslet, the sword named Hrotti, and\nmany precious things, all which he laid on Grani; but the horse would\nnot proceed until Sigurd had mounted on his back.\n\nFOOTNOTES:\n\n[Footnote 63: I.e., Sigurd; a transition from the 3d person to the\n2nd.]\n\n[Footnote 64: Another periphrasis for gold.]\n\n[Footnote 65: A periphrasis for fire.]\n\n[Footnote 66: Of Skioldungs.]\n\n\n\n\nTHE LAY OF SIGRDRIFA.\n\nSigurd rode up the Hindarfiall, and directed his course southwards\ntowards Frankland. In the fell he saw a great light, as if a fire were\nburning, which blazed up to the sky. On approaching it, there stood a\n\"skialdborg,\" and over it a banner. Sigurd went into the skialdborg,\nand saw a warrior lying within it asleep, completely armed. He first\ntook the helmet off the warrior's head, and saw that it was a woman.\nHer corslet was as fast as if it had grown to her body. With his sword\nGram he ripped the corslet from the upper opening downwards, and then\nthrough both sleeves. He then took the corslet off from her, when she\nawoke, sat up and, on seeing Sigurd, said:\n\n1. What has my corslet cut? why from sleep have I started? who has\ncast from me the fallow bands?\n\n_Sigurd_.\n\nSigmund's son has just now ript the raven's perch,[67] with Sigurd's\nsword.\n\n_She_.\n\n2. Long have I slept, long been with sleep oppressed, long are\nmortals' sufferings! Odin is the cause that I have been unable to cast\noff torpor.\n\nSigurd sat down and asked her name. She then took a horn filled with\nmead, and gave him the _minnis-cup_.\n\n_She_.\n\n3. Hail to Day! Hail to the sons of Day! To Night and her daughter\nhail! With placid eyes behold us here, and here sitting give us\nvictory.\n\n4. Hail to the \u00c6sir! Hail to the Asyniur! Hail to the bounteous\nearth! Words and wisdom give to us noble twain, and healing hands[68]\nwhile we live.\n\nShe was named Sigrdrifa, and was a Valkyria. She said that two kings\nhad made war on each other, one of whom was named Hialmgunnar; he was\nold and a great warrior, and Odin had promised him victory. The other\nwas Agnar, a brother of Hoda, whom no divinity would patronize.\nSigrdrifa overcame Hialmgunnar in battle; in revenge for which Odin\npricked her with a sleep-thorn, and declared that henceforth she\nshould never have victory in battle, and should be given in marriage.\n\"But I said to him, that I had bound myself by a vow not to espouse\nany man who could be made to fear.\" Sigurd answers, and implores her\nto teach him wisdom, as she had intelligence from all regions:\n\n_Sigrdrifa_.\n\n5. Beer I bear to thee, column[69] of battle! with might mingled,\nand with bright glory: 'tis full of song, and salutary saws, of potent\nincantations, and joyous discourses.\n\n6. Sig-runes thou must know, if victory (sigr) thou wilt have, and\non thy sword's hilt grave them; some on the chapes, some on the guard,\nand twice name the name of Ty.\n\n7. Ol- (beer-) runes thou must know, if thou wilt not that another's\nwife thy trust betray, if thou in her confide. On the horn must they\nbe graven, and on the hand's back, and Naud[70] on the nail be scored.\n\n8. A cup must be blessed, and against peril guarded, and garlick in\nthe liquor cast: then I know thou wilt never have mead with treachery\nmingled.\n\n9. Biarg- (help-) runes thou must know, if thou wilt help, and loose\nthe child from women. In the palm they must be graven, and round the\njoints be clasped, and the Disir prayed for aid.\n\n10. Brim- (sea-) runes thou must know, if thou wilt have secure\nafloat thy sailing steeds. On the prow they must be graven, and on the\nhelm-blade, and with fire to the oar applied. No surge shall be so\ntowering, nor waves so dark, but from the ocean thou safe shalt come.\n\n11. Lim- (branch-) runes thou must know, if thou a leech wouldst be,\nand wounds know how to heal. On the bark they must be graven, and on\nthe leaves of trees, of those whose boughs bent eastward.\n\n12. Mal- (speech-) runes thou must know, if thou wilt that no one\nfor injury with hate requite thee. Those thou must wind, those thou\nmust wrap round, those thou must altogether place in the assembly,\nwhere people have into full court to go.\n\n13. Hug- (thought-) runes thou must know, if thou a wiser man wilt\nbe than every other. Those interpreted, those graved, those devised\nHropt, from the fluid, which had leaked from Heiddraupnir's head, and\nfrom Hoddropnir's horn.\n\n14. On a rock he stood, with edged sword, a helm on his head he\nbore. Then spake Mim's head its first wise word, and true sayings\nuttered.\n\n15. They are, it said, on the shield graven, which stands before the\nshining god, on Arvakr's ear, and on Alsvid's hoof, on the wheel which\nrolls under Rognir's car, on Sleipnir's teeth, and on the sledge's\nbands.\n\n16. On the bear's paw, and on Bragi's tongue, on the wolf's claws,\nand the eagle's beak, on bloody wings, and on the bridge's end, on the\nreleasing hand, and on healing's track.\n\n17. On glass and on gold, on amulets of men, in wine and in wort,\nand in the welcome seat, on Gungnir's point, and on Grani's breast, on\nthe Norn's nail, and the owl's neb.\n\n18. All were erased that were inscribed, and mingled with the sacred\nmead, and sent on distant ways: they are with the \u00c6sir, they are with\nthe Alfar, some with the wise Vanir, some human beings have.\n\n19. Those are bok-runes,[71] those are biarg-runes, and all\nol- (beer-) runes, and precious megin- (power-) runes, for those who\ncan, without confusion or corruption, turn them to his welfare. Use,\nif thou hast understood them, until the powers perish.\n\n20. Now thou shalt choose, since a choice is offered thee, keen\narmed warrior! my speech, or silence: think over it in thy mind. All\nevils[72] have their measure.\n\n_Sigurd_.\n\n21. I will not flee, though thou shouldst know me doomed. I am not\nborn a craven. Thy friendly counsels all I will receive, as long as\nlife is in me.\n\n_Sigrdrifa_.\n\n22. This I thee counsel first: that towards thy kin thou bear thee\nblameless. Take not hasty vengeance, although they raise up strife:\nthat, it is said, benefits the dead.\n\n23. This I thee counsel secondly: that no oath thou swear, if it be\nnot true. Cruel bonds follow broken faith: accursed is the\nfaith-breaker.\n\n24. This I thee counsel thirdly: that in the assembly thou contend\nnot with a fool; for an unwise man oft utters words worse than he\nknows of.\n\n25. All is vain, if thou holdest silence; then wilt thou seem a\ncraven born, or else truly accused. Doubtful is a servant's testimony,\nunless a good one thou gettest. On the next day let his life go forth,\nand so men's lies reward.\n\n26. This I counsel thee fourthly: if a wicked sorceress dwells by\nthe way, to go on is better than there to lodge, though night may\novertake thee.\n\n27. Of searching eyes the sons of men have need, when fiercely they\nhave to fight: oft pernicious women by the way-side sit, who swords\nand valour deaden.\n\n28. This I thee counsel fifthly: although thou see fair women on the\nbenches sitting, let not their kindred's silver over thy sleep have\npower. To kiss thee entice no woman.\n\n29. This I thee counsel sixthly: although among men pass offensive\ntipsy talk, never while drunken quarrel with men of war: wine steals\nthe wits of many.\n\n30. Brawls and drink to many men have been a heartfelt sorrow; to\nsome their death, to some calamity: many are the griefs of men!\n\n31. This I thee counsel seventhly: if thou hast disputes with a\ndaring man, better it is for men to fight than to be burnt within\ntheir dwelling.\n\n32. This I thee counsel eighthly: that thou guard thee against evil,\nand eschew deceit. Entice no maiden, nor wife of man, nor to\nwantonness incite.\n\n33. This I thee counsel ninthly: that thou corpses bury, wherever on\nthe earth thou findest them, whether from sickness they have died, or\nfrom the sea, or are from weapons dead.\n\n34. Let a mound be raised for those departed; let their hands and\nhead be washed, combed, and wiped dry, ere in the coffin they are\nlaid: and pray for their happy sleep.\n\n35. This I thee counsel tenthly: that thou never trust a foe's\nkinsman's promises, whose brother thou hast slain, or sire laid low.\nthere is a wolf in a young son, though he with gold be gladdened.\n\n36. Strifes and fierce enmities think not to be lulled, no more than\ndeadly injury. Wisdom and fame in arms a prince not easily acquires,\nwho shall of men be foremost.\n\n37. This I counsel thee eleventhly: that thou at evil look, what\ncourse it may take. A long life, it seems to me the prince may [not]\nenjoy;--fierce disputes will arise.\n\nSigurd said: \"A wiser mortal exists not, and I swear that I will\npossess thee, for thou art after my heart.\" She answered: \"Thee I will\nhave before all others, though I have to choose among all men.\" And\nthis they confirmed with oaths to each other.\n\nFOOTNOTES:\n\n[Footnote 67: The original words, hrafns hr\u00e6lundir, _the raven's\ncorpse-trees._ So Grimm understands the line; because that bird hops\nabout upon the armour as upon a tree.]\n\n[Footnote 68: The superstition of the _healing hand_ is not yet\nextinct in Iceland. Dr. Maurer relates a story of a man in Reykjavik\nto whom it would seem to have been communicated by an elfin, in a\ndream.]\n\n[Footnote 69: Literally _apple-tree_.]\n\n[Footnote 70: The name of a rune.]\n\n[Footnote 71: Literally beech- (book-) runes, from being used for book\nwriting or graving on thin leaves of beech (bok), whence our _book_.\nBok also signifies _acupictile_, vel _acupictum (velum, auloeum_).]\n\n[Footnote 72: An allusion to Sigurd's unhappy end.]\n\n\n\n\nFRAGMENTS OF THE LAY OF SIGURD AND BRYNHILD.[73]\n\n[Sigurd then rides away from Hindarfiall, and journeys on till he\ncomes to the habitation of Heimir, who was married to Beckhild,\nBrynhild's sister. Alsvid, Heimir's son, who was at play when Sigurd\narrived at the mansion, received him kindly, and requested him to stay\nwith him. Sigurd consented, and remained there a short time. Brynhild\nwas at that time with Heimir, and was weaving within a gold border the\ngreat exploits of Sigurd.\n\nOne day, when Sigurd was come from the forest, his hawk flew to the\nwindow at which Brynhild sat employed on weaving. Sigurd ran after it,\nsaw the lady, and appeared struck with her handiwork and beauty. On\nthe following day Sigurd went to her apartment, and Alsvid stood\noutside the door shafting arrows. Sigurd said: \"Hail to thee, lady!\"\nor \"How fares it with thee?\" She answered: \"We are well, my kindred\nand friends are living, but it is uncertain what any one's lot may be\ntill their last day.\" He sat down by her. Brynhild said: \"This seat\nwill be allowed to few, unless my father comes.\" Sigurd answered: \"Now\nis that come to pass which thou didst promise me.\" She said: \"Here\nshalt thou be welcome.\" She then arose, and her four maidens with her,\nand, approaching him with a golden cup, bade him drink. He reached\ntowards her and took hold of her hand together with the cup, and\nplaced her by him, clasped her round the neck, kissed her, and said:\n\"A fairer than thou was never born.\" She said: \"It is not wise to\nplace faith in women, for they so often break their promise.\" He said:\n\"Better days will come upon us, so that we may enjoy happiness,\"\nBrynhild said: \"It is not ordained that we shall live together, for I\nam a shield-maiden (skjaldm\u00e6r).\" Sigurd said: \"Then will our happiness\nbe best promoted, if we live together; for harder to endure is the\npain which herein lies than from a keen weapon.\" Brynhild said: \"I\nshall be called to the aid of warriors, but thou wilt espouse Gudrun,\nGiuki's daughter.\" Sigurd said: \"No king's daughter shall ensnare me,\ntherefore have not two thoughts on that subject; and I swear by the\ngods that I will possess thee and no other woman.\" She answered to the\nsame effect. Sigurd thanked her for what she had said to him, and gave\nher a gold ring. He remained there a short time in great favour.\n\nSigurd now rode from Heimir's dwelling with much gold, until he came\nto the palace of King Giuki, whose wife was named Grimhild. They had\nthree sons, Gunnar, Hogni, and Guthorm. Gudrun was the name of their\ndaughter. King Giuki entreated Sigurd to stay there, and there he\nremained a while. All appeared low by the side of Sigurd. One evening\nthe sorceress Grimhild rose and presented a horn to Sigurd, saying:\n\"Joyful for us is thy presence, and we desire that all good may befall\nthee. Take this horn and drink.\" He took it and drank, and with that\ndrink forgot both his love and his vows to Brynhild. After that,\nGrimhild so fascinated him that he was induced to espouse Gudrun, and\nall pledged their faith to Sigurd, and confirmed it by oaths. Sigurd\ngave Gudrun to eat of Fafnir's heart, and she became afterwards far\nmore austere than before. Their son was named Sigmund.\n\nGrimhild now counselled her son Gunnar to woo Brynhild, and consulted\nwith Sigurd, in consequence of this design. Brynhild had vowed to wed\nthat man only who should ride over the blazing fire that was laid\naround her hall. They found the hall and the fire burning around it.\nGunnar rode Goti, and Hogni Holknir. Gunnar turns his horse towards\nthe fire, but it shrinks back. Sigurd said: \"Why dost thou shrink\nback, Gunnar?\" Gunnar answers: \"My horse will not leap this fire,\"\nand prays Sigurd to lend him Grani. \"He is at thy service,\" said\nSigurd. Gunnar now rides again towards the fire, but Grani will not go\nover. They then changed forms. Sigurd rides, having in his hand the\nsword Gram, and golden spurs on his heels. Grani runs forward to the\nfire when he feels the spur. There was now a great noise, as it is\nsaid:\n\n1. The fire began to rage, and the earth to tremble, high rose the\nflame to heaven itself: there ventured few chiefs of people through\nthat fire to ride, or to leap over.\n\n2. Sigurd Grani with his word urged, the fire was quenched before\nthe prince, the flame allayed before the glory-seeker with the bright\nsaddle that Rok had owned.\n\nBrynhild was sitting in a chair as Sigurd entered. She asks who he is,\nand he calls himself Gunnar Giuki's son. \"And thou art destined to be\nmy wife with thy father's consent. I have ridden through the\nflickering flame (vafrlogi) at thy requisition.\" She said: \"I know not\nwell how I shall answer this.\" Sigurd stood erect on the floor resting\non the hilt of his sword. She rose embarrassed from her seat, like a\nswan on the waves, having a sword in her hand, a helmet on her head,\nand wearing a corslet. \"Gunnar,\" said she, \"speak not so to me, unless\nthou art the foremost of men; and then thou must slay him who has\nsought me, if thou hast so much trust in thyself.\" Sigurd said:\n\"Remember now thy promise, that thou wouldst go with that man who\nshould ride through the flickering flame.\" She acknowledged the truth\nof his words, stood up, and gave him a glad welcome. He tarried there\nthree nights, and they prepared one bed. He took the sword Gram and\nlaid it between them. She inquired why he did so. He said that it was\nenjoined him so to act towards his bride on their marriage, or he\nwould receive his death. He then took from her the ring called\nAndvaranaut, and gave her another that had belonged to Fafnir. After\nthis he rode away through the same fire to his companions, when Gunnar\nand he again changed forms, and they then rode home.\n\nBrynhild related this in confidence to her foster-father Heimir, and\nsaid: \"A king named Gunnar has ridden through the flickering flame,\nand is come to speak with me; but I told him that Sigurd alone might\nso do, to whom I gave my vow at Hindarfiall, and that he only was the\nman.\" Heimir said that what had happened must remain as it was.\nBrynhild said: \"Our daughter Aslaug thou shalt rear up here with\nthee.\" Brynhild then went to her father, King Budli, and he with his\ndaughter Brynhild went to King Giuki's palace. A great feasting was\nafterwards held, when Sigurd remembered all his oaths to Brynhild, and\nyet kept silence. Brynhild and Gunnar sat at the drinking and drank\nwine.\n\nOne day Brynhild and Gudrun went to the river Rhine, and Brynhild went\nfarther out into the water. Gudrun asked why she did so? Brynhild\nanswered: \"Why shall I go on along with thee in this more than in\nanything else?\" \"I presume that my father was more potent than thine,\nand my husband has performed more valorous deeds, and ridden through\nthe blazing fire. Thy husband was King Hialprek's thrall.\" Gudrun\nanswered angrily: \"Thou shouldst be wiser than to venture to vilify my\nhusband, as it is the talk of all that no one like to him in every\nrespect has ever come into the world; nor does it become thee to\nvilify him, as he was thy former husband, and slew Fafnir, and rode\nthrough the fire, whom thou thoughtest was King Gunnar; and he lay\nwith thee, and took from thee the ring Andvaranaut, and here mayest\nthou recognize it.\" Brynhild then looking at the ring, recognized it,\nand turned pale as though she were dead. Brynhild was very taciturn\nthat evening, and Gudrun asked Sigurd why Brynhild was so taciturn. He\ndissuaded her much from making this inquiry, and said that at all\nevents it would soon be known.\n\nOn the morrow, when sitting in their apartment, Gudrun said: \"Be\ncheerful, Brynhild! What is it that prevents thy mirth?\" Brynhild\nanswered: \"Malice drives thee to this; for thou hast a cruel heart.\"\n\"Judge not so,\" said Gudrun. Brynhild continued: \"Ask about that only\nwhich is better for thee to know; that is more befitting women of high\ndegree. It is good, too, for thee to be content, as all goes according\nto thy wishes.\" Gudrun said: \"It is premature to glory in that: this\nforebodes something; but what instigates thee against us?\" Brynhild\nanswered: \"Thou shalt be requited for having espoused Sigurd; for I\ngrudge thee the possession of him.\" Gudrun said: \"We knew not of your\nsecret.\" Brynhild answered: \"We have had no secret, though we have\nsworn oaths of fidelity; and thou knowest that I have been deceived,\nand I will avenge it.\" Gudrun said: \"Thou art better married than thou\ndeservest to be, and thy violence must be cooled.\" \"Content should I\nbe,\" said Brynhild, \"didst thou not possess a more renowned husband\nthan I.\" Gudrun answered: \"Thou hast as renowned a husband; for it is\ndoubtful which is the greater king.\" Brynhild said: \"Sigurd overcame\nFafnir, and that is worth more than all Gunnar's kingdom, as it is\nsaid:\n\n\"Sigurd the serpent slew, and that henceforth shall be by none\nforgotten, while mankind lives: but thy brother neither dared through\nthe fire to ride, nor over it to leap.\"\n\nGudrun said: \"Grani would not run through the fire under King Gunnar:\nbut he [Gunnar] dared to ride.\" Brynhild said: \"Let us not contend: I\nbear no good will to Grimhild.\" Gudrun said: \"Blame her not; for she\nis towards thee as to her own daughter.\" Brynhild said: \"She is the\ncause of all the evil which gnaws me. She presented to Sigurd the\npernicious drink, so that he no more remembered me.\" Gudrun said:\n\"Many an unjust word thou utterest, and this is a great falsehood.\"\nBrynhild said: \"So enjoy Sigurd as thou hast not deceived me, and may\nit go with thee as I imagine.\" Gudrun said: \"Better shall I enjoy him\nthan thou wilt wish; and no one has said he has had too much good with\nme at any time.\" Brynhild said: \"Thou sayest ill and wilt repent of\nit. Let us cease from angry words, and not indulge in useless prattle.\nLong have I borne in silence the grief that dwells in my breast: I\nhave also felt regard for thy brother. But let us talk of other\nthings.\" Gudrun said: \"Your imagination looks far forward.\"\n\nBrynhild then lay in bed, and King Gunnar came to talk with her, and\nbegged her to rise and give vent to her sorrow; but she would not\nlisten to him. They then brought Sigurd to visit her and learn whether\nher grief might not be alleviated. They called to memory their oaths,\nand how they had been deceived, and at length Sigurd offered to marry\nher and put away Gudrun; but she would not hear of it. Sigurd left the\napartment, but was so greatly affected by her sorrow that the rings of\nhis corslet burst asunder from his sides, as is said in the\nSigurdarkvida:\n\n\"Out went Sigurd from that interview into the hall of kings, writhing\nwith anguish; so that began to start the ardent warrior's iron-woven\nsark off from his sides.\"\n\nBrynhild afterwards instigated Gunnar to murder Sigurd, saying that he\nhad deceived them both and broken his oath. Gunnar consulted with\nHogni, and revealed to him this conversation. Hogni earnestly strove\nto dissuade him from such a deed, on account of their oaths. Gunnar\nremoved the difficulty, saying: \"Let us instigate our brother Guthorm;\nhe is young and of little judgment, and is, moreover, free of all\noaths; and so avenge the mortal injury of his having seduced\nBrynhild.\" They then took a serpent and the flesh of a wolf, and had\nthem cooked, and gave them to him to eat, and offered him gold and a\nlarge realm, to do the deed, as is said:\n\n\"The forest-fish they roasted, and the wolf's carcase took, while\nsome to Guthorm dealt out gold; gave him Geri's[74] flesh with his\ndrink, and many other things steeped therein.\"\n\nWith this food he became so furious, that he would instantly\nperpetrate the deed. On this it is related as in the Sigurdarkvida,\nwhen Gunnar and Brynhild conversed together.]\n\nFOOTNOTES:\n\n[Footnote 73: These fragments from the Volsunga-Saga, which are\ninserted in some paper manuscripts of the Edda, and containing matter\nprobably derived from the lost poems relative to Sigurd and Brynhild,\nare printed in the Stockholm edition of the Edda. They are also given\nby Afzelius in his Swedish version, and partially in Danish by Finn\nMagnusen in his edition. A complete translation into Danish of the\nentire Saga has since been given, by Prof. Rafn at Copenhagen.]\n\n[Footnote 74: The name of one of Odin's wolves; here used poetically\nfor _wolf_ in general.]\n\n\n\n\nTHE THIRD LAY OF SIGURD FAFNICIDE.\n\n1. It was of old that Sigurd, the young Volsung, Giuki sought, after\nhis conflict, received the pledge of friendship from the two brothers;\noaths exchanged the bold of deed.\n\n2. A maid they offered him, and treasures many, Gudrun, Giuki's\nyouthful daughter. Drank and conversed, many days together, Sigurd the\nyoung and Giuki's sons.\n\n3. Until they went to woo Brynhild, and with them Sigurd, the\nyouthful Volsung, rode in company, who knew the way. He would have\npossessed her, if her possess he might.\n\n4. Sigurd the southern laid a naked sword, a glittering falchion,\nbetween them; nor the damsel did he kiss, nor did the Hunnish king to\nhis arm lift her. He the blooming maid to Giuki's son delivered.\n\n5. She to herself of body was of no sin conscious, nor at her\ndeath-day, of any crime, that could be a stain, or thought to be:\nintervened therein the grisly fates.\n\n6. Alone she sat without, at eve of day, began aloud with herself to\nspeak: \"Sigurd must be mine; I must die, or that blooming youth clasp\nin my arms.\"\n\n7. \"Of the words I have uttered I now repent; he is Gudrun's\nconsort, and I am Gunnar's. The hateful Norns long suffering have\ndecreed us.\"\n\n8. Oftentimes she wandered, filled with evil thoughts, o'er ice and\nicebergs, every eve, when he and Gudrun had to their couch withdrawn,\nand Sigurd her in the coverings wrapt, the Hunnish king his wife\ncaressed.\n\n9. \"Devoid I go of spouse and pleasure; I will beguile myself with\nvengeful thoughts.\"\n\n10. By those fits of fury she was impelled to murder. \"Thou, Gunnar!\nshalt wholly lose my land, and myself also. Never shall I be happy,\nking! with thee.\n\n11. I will return thither from whence I came, to my near kindred, my\nrelations; there will I remain, and slumber life away, unless thou\nSigurd cause to be slain, and a king become than the other greater.\n\n12. Let the son go together with the father, the young wolf may not\nlonger be fostered. For whom will vengeance be the easier to appease,\nif the son lives?\"\n\n13. Wroth was Gunnar, and with grief borne down; in his mind\nrevolved, sat the whole day; he knew not well, nor could devise, what\nwere most desirable for him to do, or were most fitting to be done,\nwhen he should find himself of the Volsung bereft, and in Sigurd a\ngreat loss sustain.\n\n14. Much he thought, and also long, that it did not often happen,\nthat from their royal state women withdrew. Hogni he then to counsel\nsummoned, in whom he placed the fullest trust.\n\n15. \"Of all to me Brynhild, Budli's daughter, is the dearest; she is\nthe chief of women: rather will I my life lay down than that fair\none's treasures lose.\n\n16. \"Wilt thou the prince for his wealth circumvent? good 'tis to\ncommand the ore of Rhine, and at ease over riches rule, and in\ntranquillity happiness enjoy.\"\n\n17. This alone Hogni for answer gave: \"It beseems us not so to do,\nby the sword to break sworn oaths, oaths sworn, and plighted faith.\n\n18. \"We know not on earth men more fortunate, while we four over the\npeople rule, and the Hun lives, that warlike chief; nor on earth, a\nrace more excellent, if we five sons long shall foster, and the good\nprogeny can increase.\n\n19. I know full well whence the causes spring: Brynhild's\nimportunity is over-great.\n\n20. We will Guthorm, our younger brother, and not over-wise, for the\ndeed prepare: he is free from sworn oaths, sworn oaths, and plighted\nfaith.\"\n\n21. Easy it was to instigate the ferocious spirit: in the heart of\nSigurd stood his sword.\n\n22. On vengeance bent, the warrior in his chamber hurled his brand\nafter the fierce assassin; to Guthorm flew dartlike Gram's gleaming\nsteel from the king's hand.\n\n23. Fell the murderer in two parts, arms and head flew far away, but\nhis feet's part fell backwards on the place.\n\n24. Sunk in sleep was Gudrun, in her bed, void of cares, by Sigurd's\nside: but she awoke of joys bereft, when in the blood of Frey's friend\nshe swam.\n\n25. So violently struck she her hands together, that the stout of\nheart rose in his bed. \"Weep not, Gudrun! so cruelly, my blooming\nbride! thy brothers live.\n\n26. An heir I have, alas! too young; he cannot flee from the hostile\nhouse; among themselves they recently have dark and evil counsels\ndevised.\n\n27. Never henceforth, although seven thou bear, will such a son to\nthe trysting with them ride. Full well I know how this has befallen:\nBrynhild the sole cause is of all the evil.\n\n28. Me the maiden loved more than any man; but towards Gunnar I\nsinned not; affinity I held sacred, and sworn oaths; thence forward I\nwas called his consort's friend.\"\n\n29. The woman gave forth sighs, and the king his life. So violently\nshe struck her hands together, that the beakers on the wall responsive\nrang, and in the court the geese loudly screamed.\n\n30. Laughed then Brynhild, Budli's daughter, once only, from her\nwhole soul, when in her bed she listened to the loud lament of Giuki's\ndaughter.\n\n31. Then said Gunnar, the hawk-bearing prince: \"Laugh not thereat,\nthou barbarous woman! glad on thy couch, as if good awaited thee. Why\nhast thou lost that beauteous colour? authoress of crime! Methinks to\ndeath thou art doomed.\n\n32. Well dost thou deserve, above all women, that before thy eyes,\nwe should lay Atli low, that thou shouldst see thy brother's\nblood-streaming sore, his gory wounds shouldst have to bind.\"\n\n33. Then said Brynhild, Budli's daughter: \"No one provokes thee,\nGunnar! complete is thy work of death. Little does Atli thy hatred\nfear; his life will outlast thine, and his might be ever greater.\n\n34. Gunnar! will tell thee, though thou well knowest it, how early\nwe resolved on crimes. I was o'er-young and unrestrained, with wealth\nendowed, in my brother's house.\n\n35. Nor did I desire to marry any man, before ye Giukungs rode to\nour dwelling, three on horseback, powerful kings: would that journey\nhad never been!\n\n36. Then myself I promised to the great king, who with gold sat on\nGrani's back. In eyes he did not you resemble, nor was at all in\naspect like: yet ye thought yourselves mighty kings.\n\n37. And to me apart Atli said, that he would not have our heritage\ndivided, nor gold nor lands, unless I let myself be married, nor grant\nme any part of the acquired gold, which he to me a girl had given to\npossess, and to me a child in moneys counted.\n\n38. Then distracted was my mind thereon, whether I should engage in\nconflict, and death dispense, valiant in arms, for my brother's\nquarrel. That would then be world-widely known, and to many a one\nbring heartfelt anguish.\n\n39. Our reconciliation we let follow: to me it had been more\npleasing the treasures to accept, the red-gold rings of Sigmund's\nson: nor did I another's gold desire; him alone I loved, none other.\nMenskogul[75] had not a changing mind.\n\n40. All this will Atli hereafter find, when he shall hear of my\nfuneral rites completed; for never shall the heavy-hearted woman with\nanother's husband pass her life. Then will my wrongs be all avenged.\"\n\n41. Up rose Gunnar, prince of warriors, and round his consort's neck\nlaid his hands; all drew nigh, yet each one singly, through honest\nfeeling, to dissuade her.\n\n42. She from her neck those about her cast; she let no one stay her\nfrom her long journey.\n\n43. He then called Hogni to consultation. \"I will that all our folk\nto the hall be summoned, thine with, mine--now 'tis most needful--to\nsee if we can hinder my consort's fatal course, till from our speech a\nhindrance may come: then let us leave necessity to rule.\"\n\n44. To him Hogni answer gave: \"Let no one hinder her from the long\njourney, whence may she never born again return. Unblest she came on\nher mother's lap, born in the world for ceaseless misery, for many a\nman's heartfelt sorrow.\"\n\n45. Downcast he from the meeting turned to where the lady treasures\ndistributed. She was viewing all she owned: hungry female thralls and\nchamber-women. She put on her golden corslet--no good meditated--ere\nherself she pierced, with the sword's point.\n\n46. On the pillow she turned to the other side, and, wounded with\nthe glave, on her last counsels thought.\n\n47. \"Now let come those who desire gold, and aught less precious, to\nreceive from me. To every one I give a gilded necklace,[76]\nneedle-work and coverlets, splendid weeds.\"\n\n48. All were silent, thought on what to do, and all together answer\ngave: \"Too many are there dead: we will yet live, still be hungry\nhall-servants, to do what fitting is.\"\n\n49. At length after reflection, the lady linen-clad, young in years,\nwords in answer uttered: \"I desire that none, dead to entreaty, should\nby force, for our sake, lose their life.\n\n50. Yet o'er your bones will burn fewer ornaments, Menia's good\nmeal,[77] when ye go hence me to seek.\n\n51. Gunnar! sit down, I will tell to thee, that of life now hopeless\nis thy bright consort. Thy vessel will not be always afloat, though I\nshall have my life resigned.\n\n52. With Gudrun thou wilt be reconciled, sooner than thou thinkest:\nthat wise woman has by the king sad memorials, after her consort's\ndeath.\n\n53. There is born a maid, which her mother rears; brighter far than\nthe clear day, than the sun's beam, will Svanhild be.\n\n54. Gudrun thou wilt give to an illustrious one, a warrior, the bane\nof many men: not to her wish will she be married; Atli will come her\nto espouse, Budli's son, my brother.\n\n55. Much have I in memory how I was treated, when ye me so cruelly\nhad deceived: robbed I was of happiness, while my life lasted.\n\n56. Thou wilt desire Oddrun to possess, but Atli will permit it not;\nin secret ye will each other meet. She will love thee, as I had done,\nif us a better fate had been allotted.\n\n57. Thee will Atli barbarously treat; in the narrow serpent-den wilt\nthou be cast.\n\n58. It will too come to pass, not long after, that Atli will his\nsoul resign, his prosperity, and cease to live; for Gudrun in her\nvengeance him in his bed will slay, through bitterness of spirit, with\nthe sword's sharp edge.\n\n59. More seemly would appear our sister Gudrun, had she in death her\nfirst consort followed, had but good counsel been to her given, or she\na soul possessed resembling mine--\n\n60. Faintly I now speak--but for our sake she will not lose her\nlife. She will be borne on towering billows to King Jonakr's paternal\nsoil. Doubts will be in the resolves of Jonakr's sons.\n\n61. She will Svanhild send from the land, her daughter, and\nSigurd's. Her will destroy Bikki's counsel; for Jormunrek for evil\nlives. Then will have passed away all Sigurd's race, and Gudrun's\ntears will be the more.\n\n62. One prayer I have to thee yet to make, in this world 'twill be\nmy last request: Let in the plain be raised a pile so spacious, that\nfor us all like room may be, for those who shall have died with\nSigurd.\n\n63. Bedeck the pile about with shields and hangings, a variegated\ncorpse-cloth, and multitude of slain. Let them burn the Hun[78] on the\none side of me;\n\n64. Let them with the Hun burn on the other side, my household\nslaves, with collars splendid, two at our heads, and two hawks; then\nwill all be equally distributed.\n\n65. Let also lie between us both the sword with rings adorned, the\nkeen-edged iron, so again be placed, as when we both one couch\nascended, and were then called by the name of consorts.\n\n66. Then will not clang against his heel the hall's bright gates,\nwith splendid ring, if my train him hence shall follow. Then will our\nprocession appear not mean.\n\n67. For him will follow five female thralls, eight male slaves of\ngentle birth, fostered with me, and with my patrimony, which to his,\ndaughter Budli gave.\n\n68. Much I have said, and more would say, if the sword would grant\nme power of speech. My voice fails, my wounds swell: truth only I have\nuttered; so I will cease.\"\n\nFOOTNOTES:\n\n[Footnote 75: That is, Skogul with the necklace; Brynhild applies this\nname to herself, which is a compound of men, _necklace, monile_, and\nSkogul, the name of a Valkyria.]\n\n[Footnote 76: Necklaces usually consisted in gold and silver chains or\nlaces with ornaments attached to them; if these resembled the sun or\nmoon they were called Sigli, _suns_ (such were those here spoken of);\nand such was the necklace worn by Freyia, the bright goddess of the\nVanir.]\n\n[Footnote 77: Menia's meal, or flour, is gold.]\n\n[Footnote 78: Sigurd.]\n\n\n\n\nFRAGMENTS OF THE LAY OF BRYNHILD.\n\n_Gunnar_.\n\n1. \"Why art thou, Brynhild! Budli's daughter! absorbed in evil and\nmurderous thoughts? What injury has Sigurd done thee, that thou the\nhero wilt of life bereave?\"\n\n_Brynhild_.\n\n2. \"Sigurd to me oaths has sworn, oaths sworn, all falsehoods. He at\na time deceived me when he should have been of all oaths most\nobservant.\"\n\n_Hogni_.\n\n3. \"Thee Brynhild has in anger instigated evil to perpetrate, harm\nto execute. She grudges Gudrun her happy marriage, and thee,\npossession of herself.\" * * *\n\n4. Some a wolf roasted, some a snake cut up, some to Guthorm served\nthe wolf, before they might, eager for crime, on the mighty man lay\ntheir hands.\n\n5. Without stood Gudrun, Giuki's daughter, and these words first of\nall uttered: \"Where is now Sigurd, lord of warriors, seeing that my\nkinsmen foremost ride?\"\n\n6. Hogni alone to her answer gave: \"Asunder have we Sigurd hewed\nwith our swords; his grey steed bends o'er the dead chief.\"\n\n7. Then said Brynhild, Budli's daughter: \"Well shall ye now enjoy\narms and lands. Sigurd would alone over all have ruled, had he a\nlittle longer life retained.\n\n8. Unseemly it had been that he should so have ruled over Giuki's\nheritage and the Goths' people, when he five sons, for the fall of\nhosts, eager for warfare, had begotten.\"\n\n9. Then laughed Brynhild--the whole burgh resounded--once only from\nher whole heart: \"Well shall ye enjoy lands and subjects, now the\ndaring king ye have caused to fall.\"\n\n10. Then said Gudrun, Giuki's daughter: \"Much thou speakest, things\nmost atrocious: may fiends have Gunnar, Sigurd's murderer! Souls\nmalevolent vengeance awaits.\"\n\n11. Sigurd had fallen south of Rhine: loud from a tree a raven\nscreamed: \"With your blood will Atli his sword's edges redden; the\noaths ye have sworn your slaughter shall dissolve.\"\n\n12. Evening was advanced, much was drunken, then did pleasant talk\nof all kinds pass: all sank in sleep, when to rest they went. Gunnar\nalone was wakeful longer than all:\n\n13. He began his foot to move, and much with himself to speak; the\nwarlike chief in his mind pondered, what during the conflict the raven\nand the eagle were ever saying, as they rode home.\n\n14. Brynhild awoke, Budli's daughter, daughter of Skioldungs, a\nlittle ere day: \"Urge me or stay me--the mischief is perpetrated--my\nsorrow to pour forth, or to suppress it.\"\n\n15. All were silent at these words; few understood the lady's\nconduct, that weeping she should begin to speak of what she laughing\nhad desired.\n\n16. \"In my dream, Gunnar! all seemed so horrid, in the chamber all\nwas dead; my bed was cold; and thou, king! wast riding of joy bereft,\nwith fetters loaded, to a hostile host. So will ye all, race of\nNiflungs! be of power deprived, perjurers as ye are!\n\n17. Ill Gunnar! didst thou remember, when blood ye in your footsteps\nboth let flow; now hast thou him ill for all that requited, because he\nwould prove himself foremost.\n\n18. Then was it proved, when the hero had ridden to see me, to woo\nme, how the warlike chief whilom held sacred his oath towards the\nyouthful prince.\n\n19. Laid his sword, with gold adorned, the illustrious king between\nus both: outward its edges were with fire wrought, but with venom\ndrops tempered within.\"\n\nFrom this lay, in which the death of Sigurd is related, it appears\nthat he was slain without doors, while some relate that he was slain\nsleeping in his bed: but the Germans say he was slain out in the\nforest; and it is told in the \"Gudrunarkvida hin Forna,\" that Sigurd\nand the sons of Giuki had ridden to the public assembly (thing) when\nhe was slain. But it is said by all, without exception, that they\nbroke faith with him, and attacked him while lying down and\nunprepared.\n\n\n\n\nTHE FIRST LAY OF GUDRUN.\n\nGudrun sat over Sigurd dead; she wept not as other women, although\nready to burst with sorrow. Both men and women, came to console her,\nbut that was not easy. It is said by some that Gudrun had eaten of\nFafnir's heart, and therefore understood the talk of birds. This is\nalso sung of Gudrun:\n\n1. Of old it was that Gudrun prepared to die, when she sorrowing\nover Sigurd sat. No sigh she uttered, nor with her hands beat, nor\nwailed, as other women.\n\n2. Jarls came forward of great sagacity, from her sad state of mind\nto divert her. Gudrun could not shed a tear, such was her affliction;\nready she was to burst.\n\n3. Sat there noble wives of jarls, adorned with gold, before Gudrun;\neach of them told her sorrows, the bitterest she had known.\n\n4. Then said Giaflaug, Giuki's sister: \"I know myself to be on earth\nmost joyless: of five consorts I the loss have suffered; of two\ndaughters, sisters three, and brothers eight; I alone live.\"\n\n5. Gudrun could not shed a tear, such was her affliction for her\ndead consort, and her soul's anguish for the king's fall.\n\n6. Then said Herborg, Hunaland's queen: \"I a more cruel grief have\nto recount: my seven sons, in the south land, my spouse the eighth, in\nconflict fell.\n\n7. My father and my mother, my brothers four, on the sea the wind\ndeluded; the waves struck on the ship's timbers.\n\n8. Their last honours 'twas mine to pay, 'twas mine to see them\ntombed, their funeral rites to prepare was mine. All this I underwent\nin one half-year, and to me no one consolation offered.\n\n9. Then I became a captive, taken in war, at the close of the same\nhalf-year. Then had I to adorn, and tie the shoes, of the Hersir's\nwife, each morn.\n\n10. From jealousy she threatened me, and with hard blows drove me:\nnowhere master found I a better, but mistress no where a worse.\"\n\n11. Gudrun could not shed a tear, such was her affliction for her\ndead consort, and her soul's anguish for the king's fall.\n\n12. Then said Gullrond, Giuki's daughter: \"Little canst thou, my\nfosterer, wise as thou art, with a young wife fittingly talk.\" The\nking's body she forbade to be longer hidden.\n\n13. She snatched the sheet from Sigurd's corpse, and turned his cheek\ntowards his wife's knees: \"Behold thy loved one, lay thy mouth to his\nlip, as if thou wouldst embrace the living prince.\"\n\n14. Gudrun upon him cast one look: she saw the prince's locks\ndripping with blood, the chief's sparkling eyes closed in death, his\nkingly breast cleft by the sword.\n\n15. Then sank down Gudrun back on her pillow, her head-gear was\nloosed, her cheeks grew red, and a flood of tears fell to her knees.\n\n16. Then wept Gudrun, Giuki's daughter, so that the tears\nspontaneously flowed, and at the same time screamed the geese in the\ncourt, the noble birds, which the lady owned.\n\n17. Then spake Gullrond, Giuki's daughter: \"Your loves I know were\nthe most ardent among living beings upon earth: thou hadst delight\nnowhere, sister mine! save with Sigurd.\"\n\n18. Then said Gudrun, Giuki's daughter: \"Such was my Sigurd among\nGiuki's sons, as is the garlick out from the grass which grows, or a\nbright stone on a thread drawn, a precious gem on kings.\n\n19. I also seemed to the prince's warriors higher than any of\nHerian's Disir; now I am as little as the leaf oft is in the\nstorm-winds, after the chieftain's death.\n\n20. Sitting I miss, and in my bed, my dearest friend. Giuki's sons\nhave caused, Giuki's sons have caused my affliction, and their\nsister's tears of anguish.\n\n21. So ye desolate the people's land, as ye have kept your sworn\noaths. Gunnar! thou wilt not the gold enjoy; those rings will be thy\nbane, for the oaths thou to Sigurd gavest.\n\n22. Oft in the mansion was the greater mirth, when my Sigurd Grani\nsaddled, and Brynhild they went to woo, that which accursed, in an\nevil hour!\"\n\n23. Then said Brynhild, Budli's daughter: \"May the hag lack spouse\nand children, who thee, Gudrun! has caused to weep, and this morning\ngiven thee runes of speech!\"[79]\n\n24. Then said Gullrond, Giuki's daughter: \"Cease, thou loathed of\nall! from those words. The evil destiny of princes thou hast ever\nbeen; thee every billow drives of an evil nature; thou sore affliction\nof seven kings, the greatest bane of friendship among women!\"\n\n25. Then said Brynhild, Budli's daughter: \"Atli my brother, Budli's\noffspring, is the sole cause of all the evil;\n\n26. When in the hall of the Hunnish folk, with the king we beheld\nthe fire of the serpent's bed.[80] Of that journey, I have paid the\npenalty, that sight I have ever rued.\"\n\n27. She by a column stood, the wood violently clasped. From the eyes\nof Brynhild, Budli's daughter, fire gleamed forth; venom she snorted,\nwhen she beheld the wounds of Sigurd.\n\nGudrun then went away to the forest and deserts, and travelled to\nDenmark, where she stayed seven half-years with Thora, Hakon's\ndaughter. Brynhild would not outlive Sigurd. She caused her eight\nthralls and five female slaves to be killed, and then slew herself\nwith a sword, as it is related in the \"Sigurdarkvida in Skemma\" (the\nShort Lay of Sigurd).\n\nFOOTNOTES:\n\n[Footnote 79: Power of speech.]\n\n[Footnote 80: A periphrasis for gold.]\n\n\n\n\nBRYNHILD'S HEL-RIDE.\n\nAfter Brynhild's death two piles were made, one for Sigurd, which was\nthe first burnt; but Brynhild was burnt afterwards, and she was in a\nchariot, which was hung with precious tapestry; so that it was said\nthat Brynhild drove in a chariot on the way to Hel, and passed through\na place in which a giantess dwelt. The giantess said:\n\n1. \"Thou shalt not pass through my stone-supported dwelling place.\nBetter had it beseemed thee to work broidery, than to seek after\nanother's husband.\n\n2. Why dost thou, vagrant woman! from Valland, my dwelling visit?\nThou hast, golden dame! if thou desirest to know, gentle one! from thy\nhands washed human blood.\"\n\n_Brynhild_.\n\n3. \"Upbraid me not, woman of the rock! although I have in warfare\nbeen. Of us, I trow, I shall the better seem, wherever men our\nconditions know.\"\n\n_Giantess_.\n\n4. \"Thou, Brynhild! Budli's daughter! wast in evil hour born in the\nworld; thou hast been the bane of Giuki's children, and their happy\nhouse subverted.\"\n\n_Brynhild_.\n\n5. \"From my chariot I will truly tell thee, thou witless crone! if\nthou desirest to know, how Giuki's heirs made me both lovelorn and\nperjured.\n\n6. The bold-hearted king[81] caused the garbs of us eight sisters\nunder an oak to be borne. Twelve years old was I, if thou desirest to\nknow, when to the youthful king oaths I gave.\n\n7. By all in Hlymdalir I was called Hild with the helm, by all who\nknew me.\n\n8. Then caused I next, in the Gothic realm, the old Hialmgunnar to\nHel to journey: I gave victory to the youthful brother of Oda, whereat\nOdin became hostile to me.\n\n9. He with shields encompassed me, red and white, in Skatalund;\ntheir surfaces enclosed me; him he ordained my sleep to break, who in\nno place could be made to fear.\n\n10. He made around my hall, towards the south, towering burn the\ndestroyer of all wood: then bade that man only over it to ride, who me\nthe gold should bring, that under Fafnir lay.\n\n11. On Grani rode the chief, the gold-disperser, to where my\nfoster-father ruled o'er the dwellings. He alone seemed there to all\nsuperior, the Danish warrior, of the court.\n\n12. We slept and were content in the same bed, as if he had my born\nbrother been; neither of us might on the other, for eight nights, lay\na hand.\n\n13. Reproached me Gudrun, Giuki's daughter, that I had slept in\nSigurd's arms; then was I made aware of what I fain would not,--that\nthey had deceived me, when a mate I took.\n\n14. To calamities all too lasting men and women, ever will be while\nliving born. We two shall now, Sigurd and I pass our life together.\nSink thou of giant-kind!\"\n\nFOOTNOTES:\n\n[Footnote 81: By depriving them of the swan-plumage, for they were\nValkyriur like the wives of Volund and his brothers, Agnar reduced\nthem under his subjection.]\n\n\n\n\nTHE SLAUGHTER OF THE NIFLUNGS.\n\nGunnar and Hogni then took all the gold, Fafnir's heritage. Dissension\nprevailed afterwards between the Giukungs and Atli. He charged them\nwith being the cause of Brynhild's death. By way of reconciliation, it\nwas agreed that they should give him Gudrun in marriage, to whom they\nadministered an oblivious potion, before she would consent to espouse\nAtli. Atli had two sons, Erp and Eitil, but Svanhild was the daughter\nof Sigurd and Gudrun. King Atli invited Gunnar and Hogni to his\nresidence, and sent to them Vingi, or Knefrod. Gudrun was aware of\ntreachery, and sent them word in runes not to come; and to Hogni, as a\ntoken, she sent the ring Andvaranaut, in which she had tied some\nwolf's hair. Gunnar had sought the hand of Oddrun, Atli's sister, but\ndid not obtain it. He then married Glaumvor, and Hogni took Kostbera\nto wife. Their sons were Solar, Sn\u00e6var, and Giuki. When the Giukungs\ncame to Atli, Gudrun besought his sons to intercede for their lives,\nbut they would not. The heart of Hogni was cut out, and Gunnar was\ncast into a pen of serpents. He struck his harp and lulled the\nserpents, but an adder stung him to the liver.\n\n\n\n\nTHE SECOND LAY OF GUDRUN.\n\nKing Theodric was with Atli, and had there lost the greater number of\nhis men. Theodric and Gudrun mutually bewailed their afflictions. She\nrelated to him and said:\n\n1. A maid above all maids I was; my mother reared me bright in her\nbower; my brothers I much loved, until me Giuki, with gold adorned,\nwith gold adorned, to Sigurd gave.\n\n2. Such was Sigurd above Giuki's sons, as the green leek is,\nspringing from the grass, or the high-limbed hart above the savage\nbeasts, or gleed-red gold above grey silver.\n\n3. Until my brothers the possession grudged me of a consort to all\nsuperior. They could not sleep, nor on affairs deliberate, before they\nSigurd had caused to die.\n\n4. Grani to the assembly ran, his tramp was to be heard; but Sigurd\nthen himself came not. All the saddle-beasts were splashed with blood,\nand with sweating faint, from the murderers.\n\n5. Weeping I went to talk to Grani, with humid cheeks, I prayed the\nsteed to tell: then Grani shuddered, in the grass bowed down his\nhead. The steed knew that his master was no more.\n\n6. Long I wandered, long was my mind distracted, ere of the people's\nguardian I inquired for my king.\n\n7. Gunnar hung his head, but Hogni told me of Sigurd's cruel death.\n\"Beyond the river slaughtered lies Guthorm's murderer, and to the\nwolves given.\n\n8. Yonder behold Sigurd, towards the south, there thou wilt hear the\nravens croak, the eagles scream, in their feast exulting; the wolves\nhowling round thy consort.\"\n\n9. \"Why wilt thou, Hogni! to a joyless being such miseries recount?\nMay thy heart by ravens be torn and scattered over the wide world,\nrather than thou shouldst walk with men.\"\n\n10. Hogni answered, for once cast down, from his cheerful mood by\nintense trouble: \"Gudrun! thou wouldst have greater cause to weep, if\nthe ravens should tear my heart.\"\n\n11. Alone I turned from that interview to the wolves' scattered\nleavings. No sigh I uttered, nor with my hands beat, nor wailed, as\nother women, when I heartbroken sat by Sigurd.\n\n12. Night seemed to me of blackest darkness, when I sorrowing sat by\nSigurd. Better by far it seemed to me had the wolves taken my life, or\nI had been burnt as a birchen tree.\n\n13. From the fell I journeyed five long days and nights, until the\nlofty hall of Half I recognized. Seven half-years I with Thora\nstayed, Hakon's daughter, in Denmark.\n\n14. She for my solace wrought in gold southern halls, and Danish\nswans.\n\n15. We had in pictures the game of warriors, and in handiworks a\nprince's nobles; red shields, Hunnish heroes, a sworded host, a helmed\nhost, a prince's following.\n\n16. Sigmund's ships from the land sailing, with gilded heads, and\ncarved prows. We on our canvas wrought how Sigar and Siggeir both\ncontended southward in Fyen.\n\n17. When Grimhild, the Gothic woman, heard how greatly I was\nafflicted, she cast aside her needle-work, and her sons called oft and\nearnestly, that she might know, who for her son would their sister\ncompensate, or for her consort slain the blood-fine pay?\n\n18. Gunnar was ready gold to offer, for the injuries to atone, and\nHogni also. * * * She then inquired who would go the steeds to saddle,\nthe chariot to drive, on horseback ride, the hawk let fly, arrows\nshoot from the yew bow?\n\n19. Valdar and the Danes with Jarizleif, Eymod the third with\nJarizkar, then entered, to princes like. Red mantles had the\nLangbard's men, corslets ornamented, towering helms; girded they were\nwith falchions, brown were their locks.\n\n20. For me each one would choose precious gifts, precious gifts, and\nto my heart would speak, if for my many woes they might gain my\nconfidence, and I would in them trust.\n\n21. Grimhild to me brought a potion to drink cold and bitter, that I\nmy injuries might forget; it was mingled with Urd's power, with cold\nsea-water, and with Son's blood.\n\n22. In that horn were characters of every kind graven and red-hued;\nnor could I comprehend them: the long lyng-fish[82] of the Haddings'\nland, an uncut ear of corn: the wild-beasts' entrance.\n\n23. In that potion were many ills together, a herb from every wood,\nand the acorn, the fire-stead's dew,[83] entrails of offerings,\nswine's liver seethed; for that deadens strife.\n\n24. And then I forgot, when I had taken it, all the king's words in\nthe hall spoken. There to my feet three kings came, before she herself\nsought to speak with me.\n\n25. \"Gudrun! I will give thee gold to possess, of all the riches\nmuch of thy dead father; rings of red gold, Hlodver's halls, all the\nhangings left by the fallen king.\n\n26. Hunnish maids, those who weave tapestry, and in bright gold\nwork, so that it may delight thee. Over Budli's wealth thou alone\nshalt rule, adorned with gold, and given to Atli.\"\n\n27. \"I will not have any man, nor Brynhild's brother marry: it\nbeseems me not with Budli's son to increase a race, or life enjoy.\"\n\n28. \"Take care not to pay the chiefs with hate; for 'tis we who have\nbeen the aggressors: so shouldst thou act as if yet lived Sigurd and\nSigmund, if sons thou bearest.\"\n\n29. \"Grimhild! I cannot in mirth indulge, nor, for my hero's sake,\ncherish a hope, since the bloodthirsty [wolf and] raven have together\ncruelly drunk my Sigurd's heart's blood.\"\n\n30. \"Him[84] of all I have found to be a king of noblest race, and\nin much most excellent: him shalt thou have until age lays thee low,\nor mateless be, if him thou wilt not take.\"\n\n31. \"Cease to offer that cup of ills so pertinaciously, that race to\nme: he will Gunnar's destruction perpetrate, and will cut out Hogni's\nheart. I will not cease until the exulting strife-exciter's life I\nshall have taken.\"\n\n32. Weeping Grimhild caught the words, by which to her sons Gudrun\nforeboded evil, and to her kindred dire misfortunes. \"Lands I will\nalso give thee, people and followers, Vinbiorg and Valbiorg, if thou\nwilt accept them; for life possess them, and be happy, daughter!\"\n\n33. \"Him then I will choose among the kings, and from my relatives\nreluctantly receive him. Never will he be to me a welcome consort, nor\nmy brothers' bale a protection to our sons.\"\n\n34. Forthwith on horseback was each warrior to be seen; but the\nWalish women were in chariots placed. For seven days o'er a cold land\nwe rode; but the second seven, we beat the waves; and the third seven,\nwe reached dry land.\n\n35. There the gate-wards of the lofty burgh the latticed entrance\nopened, ere the court we entered.\n\n36. Atli waked me, but I seemed to be full of evil thoughts, for my\nkinsmen's death.\n\n37. \"So me just now[85] have the Norns waked,--a grateful\ninterpretation I fain would have. Methought that thou, Gudrun! Giuki's\ndaughter! with a treacherous sword didst pierce me through.\"\n\n38. \"Fire it forebodes,[86] when one of iron dreams, arrogance and\npleasure, a woman's anger. Against evil I will go burn thee, cure and\nmedicate thee, although to me thou art hateful.\"\n\n39. \"Seemed to me here in the garden[87] that young shoots had\nfallen, which I wished to let grow: torn up with their roots, reddened\nwith blood, to table they were brought, and offered me to eat.\n\n40. \"Seemed to me that hawks flew from my hand, lacking their\nquarry, to the house of woes; seemed to me I ate their hearts with\nhoney swollen with blood, with sorrowing mind.\n\n41. \"Seemed to me from my hand whelps I let slip; lacking cause of\njoy, both of them howled: seemed to me their bodies became dead\ncarcases: of the carrion I was compelled to eat.\"\n\n42. \"There will warriors[88] round thy couch converse, and of the\nwhite-locked ones take off the head; death-doomed they are within a\nfew nights, a little ere day: thy court will eat of them.\"\n\n43. \"Lie down I would not,[89] nor sleep after, obstinate in my\nfate--That I will execute!\"\n\nFOOTNOTES:\n\n[Footnote 82: That is the long fish of the heath, or Ung, a snake or\nserpent.]\n\n[Footnote 83: Soot.]\n\n[Footnote 84: Atli: Grimhild speaks.]\n\n[Footnote 85: Atli speaks.]\n\n[Footnote 86: Gudrun answers.]\n\n[Footnote 87: Atli speaks.]\n\n[Footnote 88: Gudrun answers.]\n\n[Footnote 89: Atll speaks.]\n\n\n\n\nTHE THIRD LAY OF GUDRUN.\n\nAtli had a serving-woman named Herkia,[90] who had been his concubine.\nShe informed Atli that she had seen Thiodrek and Gudrun together;\nwhereat Atli was much afflicted. Then Gudrun said:\n\n1. What ails thee ever, Atli! Budli's son! Hast thou sorrow in thy\nheart? Why never laughest thou? To thy jarls it would seem more\ndesirable, that thou with men wouldst talk, and on me wouldst look.\n\n_Atli_.\n\n2. It grieves me, Gudrun! Giuki's daughter! that in my palace here,\nHerkia has said, that thou and Thiodrek have under one covering slept,\nand wantonly been in the linen wrapt.\n\n_Gudrun_.\n\n3. For all this charge I will give my oaths by the white sacred\nstone, that with me and Thiodrek nothing has passed, which to man and\nwife only belongs;\n\n4. Save that I embraced the prince of armies, the honoured king, a\nsingle time. Other were our cogitations, when sorrowful we two sat to\nconverse.\n\n5. Hither came Thiodrek, with thirty warriors; now there lives not\none of those thirty men. Surround me with thy brothers, and with\nmailed warriors; surround me with all thy noblest kinsmen.\n\n6. Send to Saxi the Southmen's prince; he can hallow the boiling\ncauldron.\"\n\n7. Seven hundred men entered the hall, ere in the cauldron the queen\ndipt her hand.\n\n8. \"Now Gunnar comes not, nor call I Hogni: I shall not see again my\nloved brothers: with his sword would Hogni such wrong avenge: now I\nmust myself purify from crime.\"\n\n9. She to the bottom, plunged her snow-white hand, and up she drew\nthe precious stones.[91] \"See now, ye men! I am proved guiltless in\nholy wise, boil the vessel as it may.\"\n\n10. Laughed then Atli's heart within his breast, when he unscathed\nbeheld the hand of Gudrun. \"Now must Herkia to the cauldron go, she\nwho Gudrun had hoped to injure.\" No one has misery seen who saw not\nthat, how the hand there of Herkia was burnt. They then the woman led\nto a foul slough.[92] So were Gudrun's wrongs avenged.\n\nFOOTNOTES:\n\n[Footnote 90: Herkia, the Erka or Helche of the German tradition, who\nhere appears as a slave or servant, is, according to that tradition,\nthe queen of Etzel or Atli, who did not marry Kreimhilt (Gudrun) until\nafter her death. The falsification of the story, the pitiful\nsubordinate part acted by Thiodrek, the perfect silence of all the\nother poems on this event, and the ordeal of the cauldron,\nsufficiently show that the poem is a later composition. P.E. Muller\n(II., p. 319) ascribes it to S\u00e6mund himself.]\n\n[Footnote 91: The iarknastein of the original was a milk-white opal.]\n\n[Footnote 92: This punishment was known to the old Germans.]\n\n\n\n\nODDRUN'S LAMENT.\n\nThere was a king named Heidrek, who had a daughter named Borgny. Her\nlover was named Vilmund. She could not give birth to a child until\nOddrun, Atli's sister, came. She had been the beloved of Gunnar,\nGiuki's son. Of this story it is here sung:\n\n1. I have heard tell, in ancient stories how a damsel came to the\neastern land: no one was able, on the face of earth, help to afford to\nHeidrek's daughter.\n\n2. When Oddrun, Atli's sister, heard that the damsel had great\npains, from the stall she led her well-bridled steed, and on the swart\none the saddle laid.\n\n3. She the horse made run on the smooth, dusty way, until she came\nto where a high hall stood. She the saddle snatched from the hungry\nsteed, and in she went along the court, and these words first of all\nuttered:\n\n4. \"What is most noteworthy in this country? or what most desirable\nin the Hunnish land?\"\n\n_Borgny_.\n\n5. Here lies Borgny with pains overwhelmed, thy friend, Oddrun! See\nif thou canst help her.\n\n_Oddrun_.\n\n6. What chieftain has on thee brought this dishonour? Why so acute\nare Borgny's pains?\n\n_Borgny_.\n\n7. Vilmund is named the falcon-bearer's friend: he the damsel wrapt\nin a warm coverlet five whole winters, so that from her father she was\nhidden.\n\n8. They, I ween, spoke not more than this: kindly she went to sit at\nthe damsel's knee. Vehemently sang Oddrun, fervently sang Oddrun songs\nof power over Borgny.\n\n9. A girl and boy might then tread the mould-way, gentle babes, born\nof Hogni's bane. Then began to speak the death-sick damsel, who before\nhad no word uttered.\n\n10. \"So may thee help the benignant genii, Frigg and Freyia, and\nother gods besides, as thou hast from me peril removed!\"\n\n11. \"I was not inclined to give thee help, because thou never wast\nof succour worthy: I vowed, and have performed what I then said--when\nthe princes the heritage divided, that I would ever help afford.\"\n\n_Borgny_.\n\n12. Mad art thou, Oddrun! and hast lost thy wits, when in hostile\nspirit most of thy words thou utterest; for I have been thy companion\nupon the earth, as if from brothers we both were born.\n\n_Oddrun_.\n\n13. I remember yet what thou one evening saidst, when I for Gunnar,\na compotation made. Such a case, saidst thou, would not thenceforth\nhappen, to any maiden, save to me alone.\"\n\n14. Then sat down the sorrowing lady to tell her woes, from her\ngreat grief:\n\n15. \"I was nurtured in the kingly hall, I was the joy of many in the\ncouncil of men. Life I enjoyed, and my father's wealth, five winters\nonly, while my father lived.\n\n16. These last words the noble-hearted king strove to utter, ere he\ndeparted hence.\n\n17. He bade me be endowed with ruddy gold, and in the south be given\nto Grimhild's son. He said no maiden could more excellent in the world\nbe born, if fate willed it not otherwise.\n\n18. Brynhild in her bower was occupied in broidery: she had people\nand lands around her. Earth slumbered, and the heavens above, when\nFafnir's bane her burgh first saw.\n\n19. Then was conflict waged with the Walish sword, and the burgh\ntaken which Brynhild owned. It was not long--which was not\nsurprising--ere she discovered all those frauds.\n\n20. These she caused cruelly to be avenged, so that we all have\ngreat afflictions. Known it will be through every land of men, that\nshe caused herself to die with Sigurd.\n\n21. But I for Gunnar, rings' dispenser, love conceived, such as\nBrynhild should. But he Brynhild bade a helmet take, said she a\nValkyria should become.\n\n22. They forthwith offered[93] ruddy rings to my brother, and\nindemnity not small. He[94] besides offered for me fifteen vills, and\nthe load of Grani's sides, if he would accept them.\n\n23. But Atli said he never would a marriage-gift receive from\nGiuki's son. Still we could not our loves withstand, but I my head\nmust lay upon the ring-breaker.\n\n24. Many things said my relations; declared they had surprised us\nboth together; but Atli said, that I would not crime commit, nor\nscandal perpetrate. But such should no one for another ever deny, when\nlove has part.\n\n25. Atli sent his emissaries about the Murkwood, that he might prove\nme; and they came to where they ought not to have come, to where we\nhad one couch prepared.\n\n26. To the men we offered red-gold rings, that they it might not to\nAtli tell; but they forthwith hastened home, and it quickly to Atli\ntold.\n\n27. But they from Gudrun carefully concealed it, yet rather by half\nshe should have known it.[95]\n\n28. A sound was heard of gold-shod hoofs, when into the court rode\nGiuki's heirs. * * * Of Hogni they the heart cut out, and into a\nserpent-pen the other cast.\n\n29. I had gone yet once again to Geirmund, to prepare a banquet. * *\n* The brave king[96] began the harp to sound; for the prince of noble\nrace hoped that I to his aid might come.\n\n30. I it heard from Hlesey, how of trouble there the harp-strings\nsang.\n\n31. I my thralls bade all be ready: I the prince's life would save.\nThe vessel we let float past the forest,[97] until I saw all Atli's\ncourts.\n\n32. Then came Atli's miserable mother crawling forth:--may she\nperish!--she Gunnar pierced to the heart; so that the hero I could not\nsave.\n\n33. Oftentimes I wonder, woman gold-adorned![98] how I after can\nlife retain; for I seemed the formidable sword-dispenser as myself to\nlove:\n\n34. Thou sitst and listenest, while I recount to thee many an evil\nfate, my own and theirs.\" Each one lives as he best may. Now is ended\n_Oddrun's lament_.\n\nFOOTNOTES:\n\n[Footnote 93: For Brynhild's death.]\n\n[Footnote 94: Gunnar.]\n\n[Footnote 95: From here the narrative appears to be very fragmentary.]\n\n[Footnote 96: Gunnar while in the serpent-pen.]\n\n[Footnote 97: For \"lund\" (_forest, wood_), which is the reading of the\nMSS., the Copenhagen editor favors the correction to sund (a _sound_\nor _strait, the Sound_)?]\n\n[Footnote 98: Borgny.]\n\n\n\n\nTHE LAY OF ATLI.\n\nGudrun, Giuki's daughter, avenged her brothers, as is well known. She\nfirst killed Atli's sons, and afterwards Atli himself, and burnt the\npalace with all the household. On these events was this lay composed.\n\n1. Atli sent riding a messenger to Gunnar, a crafty man, Knefrud was\nhis name. To Giuki's courts he came, and to Gunnar's hall, to the\nseats of state,[99] and the glad potation:\n\n2. There drank the courtiers wine in their Valhall--but the guileful\nones[100] silence kept--the Huns' wrath they[101] feared. Then said\nKnefrud, with chilling voice:--the southern warrior on a high bench\nsat--\n\n3. \"Atli has sent me hither on his errand riding on a bit-griping\nsteed, through the unknown Murkwood, to pray you, Gunnar! that to his\nbench ye come, with helms of state, Atli's home to visit.\n\n4. \"Shields ye there can choose, and smooth-shaven spears, gold-red\nhelms, and of Huns a multitude, silver-gilt saddle-cloths, sarks\ngory-red, the dart's obstruction, and bit-griping steeds.\n\n5. \"The plain he will also give you, the broad Gnitaheid, whistling\njavelins, and gilded prows, vast treasures, and Danp's towns, with\nthat famed forest, which men the Murkwood call.\"\n\n6. Gunnar his head then turned, and to Hogni said: \"What counselest\nthou, bold warrior? now suchlike we hear? Of no gold I knew on Gnita's\nheath, to which we possess not other equal.\n\n7. \"Seven halls have we filled with swords, of each of which the\nhilt is gold. My horse I know the best, and my sword the keenest; my\nbow adorns my seat, my corslets are of gold, my helm and shield the\nbrightest, brought from the hall of Kiar: mine alone are better than\nall the Hunnish ones.\n\n8. \"What thinkest thou the woman[102] means, by sending us a ring in\na wolf's clothing wrapt? I think that she caution enjoins. Wolf's hair\nI found twined in the red-gold ring: wolfish is the way we on our\nerrand ride.\"\n\n9. No sons persuaded Gunnar, nor other kinsman, interpreters nor\ncounsellors, nor those who potent were. Then spake Gunnar, as beseemed\na king, great in his mead-hall, from his large soul:\n\n10. \"Rise now up, Fiornir! let along the benches pass the golden\ncups of heroes, from the attendants' hands.\n\n11. \"The wolf shall rule the Niflungs' heritage, O bearded sages! if\nGunnar perish; black-coated bears earth's fruit tear with their teeth,\nto the dogs' delight, if Gunnar come not back.\"\n\n12. Honoured men, weeping led the land's ruler from the Huns'\ncourt. Then said Hogni's youthful heir: \"Go now, prudent and\nprosperous, whither your wishes lead.\"\n\n13. The warriors made their bit-griping steeds over the mountains\nfly, through the unknown Murkwood. The whole Hunnish forest trembled\nwhere'er the warriors rode; over the shrubless, all-green plains they\nsped.\n\n14. Atli's land they saw, and the high watch-towers; Bikki's people\nstood on that lofty fortress; the south people's hall was round with\nbenches set, with well-bound bucklers, and white shields, the\njavelin's obstruction. There Atli drank wine in his Valhall: his\nguards sat without, Gunnar and his men to watch, lest they there\nshould come with yelling dart, to excite their prince to conflict.\n\n15. Their sister forthwith saw, when the hall they had entered, her\nbrothers both--beer had she little drunken--\"Betrayed art thou now,\nGunnar! though strong, how wilt thou contend with the Huns' deadly\nwiles? Go quickly from this hall!\n\n16. \"Better hadst thou, Gunnar! in corslet come, than with helm of\nstate, to see the home of Atli; thou in the saddle wouldst have sat\nwhole sun-bright days, and o'er the pallid dead let the Norns weep,\nthe Hunnish shield-maids misery suffer; but Atli himself thou shouldst\ninto the serpent-pen have cast; but now the serpent-pen is for you two\nreserved.\"\n\n17. \"Sister! 'tis now too late the Niflungs to assemble, long 'tis\nto seek the aid of men, of valiant heroes, over the rugged fells of\nRhine.\"\n\n18. Then the Burgundians' friends[103] Gunnar seized, in fetters\nlaid, and him fast bound.\n\n19. Hogni hewed down seven, with the keen sword, but the eighth he\nthrust into the raging fire. So should a valiant man defend himself\nfrom foes.\n\n20. Hogni had Gunnar's hands[104] protected. The bold chief they\nasked, if the Goths' lord would with gold his life redeem?\n\n21. \"Hogni's heart in my hand shall lie, cut bloody from the breast\nof the valiant chief, the king's son, with a dull-edged knife.\" * * *\nThey the heart cut out from Hialli's breast; on a dish bleeding laid\nit, and it to Gunnar bare.\n\n23. Then said Gunnar, lord of men: \"Here have I the heart of the\ntimid Hialli, unlike the heart of the bold Hogni; for much it trembles\nas in the dish it lies: it trembled more by half, while in his breast\nit lay.\"\n\n24. Hogni laughed, when to his heart they cut the living\ncrest-crasher; no lament uttered he. All bleeding on a dish they laid\nit, and it to Gunnar bare.\n\n25. Calmly said Gunnar, the warrior Niflung: \"Here have I the heart\nof the bold Hogni, unlike the heart of the timid Hialli; for it little\ntrembles, as in the dish it lies: it trembled less, while in his\nbreast it lay.\n\n26. \"So far shalt thou, Atli! be from the eyes of men as thou wilt\nfrom the treasures be. In my power alone is all the hidden Niflungs'\ngold, now that Hogni lives not.\n\n27. \"Ever was I wavering, while we both lived; now am I so no\nlonger, as I alone survive. Rhine shall possess men's baleful metal,\nthe mighty stream, the As-known Niflungs' heritage. In the rolling\nwater the choice rings shall glitter, rather than on the hands of the\nHuns' children shine.\n\n28. \"Drive your wheel-chariots, the captive is now in bonds.\"\n\n29. Atli the mighty, their sister's husband, rode with resounding\nsteeds, with strife-thorns[105] surrounded. Gudrun perceived the\nheroes' peril, she from tears refrained, on entering the hall of\ntumult.\n\n30. \"So be it with thee, Atli! as towards Gunnar thou hast held the\noft-sworn oaths, formerly taken--by the southward verging sun, and by\nSigty's hill, the secluded bed of rest, and by Ullr's ring.\" Yet\nthence the more did the bit-shaker[106] the treasure's guardian, the\nwarrior chief, drag to death.\n\n31. The living prince then did a host of men into a pen cast down,\nwhich was within with serpents over-crawled. But Gunnar there alone a\nharp in wrathful mood with his hand struck: the strings resounded. So\nshould a daring chief, a ring-dispenser, gold from men withhold.\n\n32. Atli turned his brass-shod[107] steed, his home to revisit, back\nfrom the murder. Din was in the court with horses thronged, men's\nweapon-song, from the heath they were come.\n\n33. Out then went Gudrun, Atli to meet, with a golden cup to do her\nduty to the king. \"Thou canst, O King! joyful in thy hall receive\nfrom Gudrun the arms of the departed.\"\n\n34. The drinking-cups of Atli groaned with wine heavy, when in the\nhall together the Huns were counted. Long-bearded, bold, the warriors\nentered.\n\n35. Hastened the bright-faced dame to bear their potions to them,\nthe wondrous lady to the chiefs; and reluctantly to the pallid Atli\nthe festal dainties offered, and uttered words of hate.\n\n36. \"Thou, swords' dispenser! hast thy two sons' hearts,\nslaughter-gory, with honey eaten. I resolved that thou, bold chief!\nshouldst of a human dish eat at thy feasting, and to the place of\nhonour send it. Henceforth thou wilt not to thy knees call Erp and\nEitil, joyous with beer the two: thou wilt not henceforth, see them\nfrom thy middle seat, gold-dispersing, javelins shafting, manes\nclipping, or horses urging.\"\n\n38. Uproar was on the benches, portentous the cry of men, noise\nbeneath the costly hangings. The children of the Huns wept, all wept\nsave Gudrun, who never wept, or for her bear-fierce brothers, or her\ndear sons, young, simple, whom she had borne to Atli.\n\n39. Gold scattered the swan-fair dame; with ruddy rings the\nhousehold gifted. Fate she let ripen, but the bright gold flow. The\nwoman spared not the treasure-houses.\n\n40. Atli incautious had himself drunk weary; weapon he had none, nor\nwas 'gainst Gudrun guarded. Oft had their sport been better, when they\nlovingly embraced each other before the nobles.\n\n41. With the sword's point she gave the bed of blood to drink with\ndeath-bent hand, and the dogs loosed, out at the hall-door drove them,\nand the lady wakened the household with burning brand. That vengeance\nshe for her brothers took.\n\n42. To fire she then gave all that were therein, and from her\nbrothers' murder were from the dark den[108] returned. The old\nstructures fell, the treasure-houses smoked, the Budlungs' dwelling.\nBurnt too were the shield-maids within, their lives cut short; in the\nraging fire they sank.\n\n43. Of this enough is said. No such woman will henceforth arms again\nbear, to avenge her brothers. That bright woman had to three kings of\nmen the death-doom borne, before she died.\n\nYet more clearly is this told in \"Atlamalum inum Groenlenzkum\" (the\nGroenland lay of Atli).\n\nFOOTNOTES:\n\n[Footnote 99: The epithet aringreypr is applied both to benches and\nhelmets (see Strophes 3 and 16). Its meaning is doubtful: it has been\nrendered _iron-bound_, _brass-bound_, _hearth-encircling_, _curved\nlike an eagle's beak_, etc. Benches and helmets of ceremony are\nevidently intended, probably ornamented with brass-work or figures of\neagles. But to whichever substantive applied, I take its meaning to be\nthe same.]\n\n[Footnote 100: The messengers of Atli.]\n\n[Footnote 101: The Giukungs.]\n\n[Footnote 102: Gudrun: she had sent, by Atli's messengers, a ring to\nher brothers, as a warning, in which a wolf's hair was entwined,\ntogether with a note in runes, which were falsified by Vingi.]\n\n[Footnote 103: Atli's men.]\n\n[Footnote 104: That is Gunnar himself.]\n\n[Footnote 105: Spears.]\n\n[Footnote 106: The horse.]\n\n[Footnote 107: The original word is eyrskan, a word of doubtful\nsignification.]\n\n[Footnote 108: The serpent-pen.]\n\n\n\n\nTHE GROENLAND LAY OF ATLI.\n\n\n1. Of those misdeeds men have heard tell, when warriors of old a\ncompact made, which by pledges they confirmed, a secret consultation\nheld: terrible it was to them after, and to Giuki's sons likewise, who\nwere betrayed.\n\n2. The warriors' fate ripened, they were death-doomed: ill advised\nwas Atli, though he possessed sagacity: he felled a mighty column,\nstrove hardly against himself; with speed he messengers despatched,\nthat his wife's brothers should come quickly.\n\n3. Wise was the house-dame, prudently she thought; the words in\norder she had heard, that in secret they had said: the sage lady was\nat a loss: fain would she help them; they[109] o'er the sea must sail,\nbut she herself could not go.\n\n4. Runes she graved, Vingi them falsified, before he gave them from\nhim; of ill he was the bearer. Then departed Atli's messengers,\nthrough the branched firth, for where the bold warriors dwelt.\n\n5. They with beer were cheered, and fires they kindled, naught\nthought they of guile, when they were come; they the gifts accepted,\nwhich the prince sent them, on a column hung them, and of no evil\nthought.\n\n6. Then came Kostbera, she was Hogni's wife, a woman greatly\ncautious, and them both greeted. Glad was also Glaumvor, Gunnar's\nconsort, the prudent dame her duty forgot not, she to the guests' need\nattended.\n\n7. Hogni they home invited, if he would be pleased to go. Treachery\nwas manifest, had they but reflected! Gunnar then promised, if only\nHogni would, but Hogni refused what the other proposed.\n\n8. The noble dames bore mead, of many things there was abundance,\nmany horns passed round, until it seemed they had full drunken.\n\n9. The household prepared their couches, as to them seemed best.\nCunning was Kostbera, she could runes interpret; she the letters read\nby the bright fire;--her tongue she had to guard between both her\ngums--so perverted were they, it was difficult to understand them.\n\n10. To their bed they went, she and Hogni. The gentle lady dreamed,\nand concealed it not, to the prince wisely said it as soon as she\nawoke.\n\n11. \"From home thou art going, Hogni! give ear to counsel; few are\nfully prudent: go another time.\n\n12. I have the runes interpreted, which thy sister graved: that fair\ndame has not this time invited thee. At one thing I wonder most, I\ncannot even conceive, why so wise a woman so confusedly should grave;\nfor it is so set down as if it intimated death to you both, if you\nshould straightway come. Either she has left out a letter, or others\nare the cause.\"[110]\n\n13. \"They are,\" said Hogni, \"all suspicious; I have no knowledge of\nthem, nor will I into it inquire, unless we have to make requital.\nThe king will gift us with gleed-red gold. I never fear, though we may\nhear of terror.\"\n\n14. \"Tottering ye will go, if thitherward ye tend. No kind\nentertainment there will ye at this time find. Hogni! I have dreamed,\nI will not conceal it: in an evil hour ye will go, or so at least I\nfear.\n\n15. \"Methought thy coverlet was with fire consumed; that the\ntowering flame rushed through my dwelling.\"\n\n_Hogni_.\n\n16. \"Here lie linen cloths, which thou hadst little noticed: these\nwill quickly burn where thou the coverlet sawest.\"\n\n_Kostbera_.\n\n17. \"Methought a bear came in, and broke down the columns; and so\nhis talons shook, that we were terror-stricken; by his mouth held many\nof us, so that we were helpless: there, too, was a din far from\nlittle.\"\n\n_Hogni_.\n\n18. \"A tempest there will be furious and sudden: the white bear thou\nsawest will be a storm from the east.\"\n\n_Kostbera_.\n\n19. \"Methought an eagle flew herein, all through the house: that\nwill largely concern us. He sprinkled all with blood: from his threats\nI thought it to be the 'ham'[111] of Atli.\"\n\n_Hogni_.\n\n20. \"We often slaughter largely, and then red we see: often are oxen\nmeant, when we of eagles dream. Sound is the heart of Atli, dream thou\nas thou mayest.\" With this they ended: all speeches have an end.\n\n21. The high-born awoke, there the like befell: Glaumvor had\nperceived that her dreams were ill-boding, adverse to Gunnar's going\nto and fro.\n\n22. \"Methought a gallows was for thee erected,[112] thou wentest to\nbe hanged, that serpents ate thee, that I inter'd thee living, that\nthe Powers' dissolution came--Divine thou what that portends.\n\n23. \"Methought a bloody glave from thy sark was drawn--ill 'tis such\na dream to a consort to recount--methought a lance was thrust through\nthy middle: wolves howled on every side.\"\n\n_Gunnar_.\n\n24. \"Where dogs run they are wont to bark: oft bodes the bay of dogs\nthe flight of javelins.\"\n\n_Glaumvor_.\n\n25. \"Methought a river ran herein, through the whole house, that it\nroared violently, rushed o'er the benches, brake the feet of you\nbrothers twain; nothing the water spared: something will that portend!\n\n26. \"Methought dead women in the night came hither; not ill-clad\nwere they: they would choose thee, forthwith invited thee to their\nseats. I ween thy Disir have forsaken thee.\"\n\n_Gunnar_.\n\n27. \"Too late it is to speak, it is now so resolved; from the\njourney we shall not shrink, as it is decreed to go: very probable it\nseems that our lives will be short.\"\n\n28. When colours were discernible, those on journey bent all rose\nup: the others fain would stay them. The five journeyed together, of\n\"hus-carls\" there were present twice that number--it was ill\ndevised--Sn\u00e6var and Solar, they were Hogni's sons; Orkning he was\nnamed, who them accompanied, a gentle shield-bearer was he, the\nbrother of Hogni's wife.\n\n29. They went fair-appointed, until the firth them parted: ever\nwould their wives have stayed them, they would not be stayed.\n\n30. Glaumvor then spake, Gunnar's consort, Vingi she addressed, as\nto her seemed fitting: \"I know not whether ye will requite us as we\nwould: with treachery came the guest, if aught of ill betide.\"\n\n31. Then Vingi swore, little spared he himself: \"May him the Jotuns\nhave, if towards you he lies! the gallows hold him, if aught against\npeace he meditates!\"\n\n32. Bera took up the word, she of gentle soul: \"Sail ye prosperous,\nand may success attend you: may it be as I pray, and if nothing\nhinder!\"\n\n33. Hogni answered--he to his kin meant well--\"Be of good cheer, ye\nprudent! whatever may befall. Many say the same, though with great\ndifference; for many little care how they depart from home.\"\n\n34. On each other then they looked before they parted: then, I ween,\ntheir fates were severed, and their ways divided.\n\n35. Vigorously they rowed, their bark was well nigh riven; backward\nbending the waves they beat, ardently plied: their oar-bands were\nbroken, the rowlocks shattered. They made not the vessel fast before\nthey quitted it.[113]\n\n36. A little after--I will the end relate--they saw the mansion\nstand that Budli had possessed. Loud creaked the latticed gates, when\nHogni knocked.\n\n37. Then said Vingi, what he had better not, \"Go far from the house,\n'tis perilous to enter; I quickly enticed you to perdition; ye shall\nforthwith be slain. With fair words I prayed your coming, though guile\nwas under them. But just bide here, while a gallows I prepare.\"\n\n38. Hogni answered--little thought he of yielding, or of aught\nfearful that was to be proved:--\"Think not to frighten us: try that\nseldom. If one word thou addest, thou wilt thy harm prolong.\"\n\n39. They rushed on Vingi, and struck him dead, laid on their axes,\nwhile life within him throbbed.\n\n40. Atli his men assembled, in their byrnies they issued forth, went\nprepared so that a fence was between them. Words they bandied, all\nwith rage boiling: \"Already had we resolved to take your lives away.\"\n\n_Hogni_.\n\n41. \"It looks but ill, if ye before have counselled: e'en now ye are\nunprepared, and we one have felled, smitten to death: one of your host\nwas he.\"\n\n42. Furious they became, when those words they heard; their fingers\nthey stretched forth, and their bowstrings seized; sharply shot, and\nwith shields themselves protected.\n\n43. In then came the tale of what without was passing; loud before\nthe hall they a thrall heard speak.\n\n44. Then incensed was Gudrun, when the sad news she heard: adorned\nwith necklaces, she tore them all asunder; so hurled the silver, that\nthe rings in shivers flew.\n\n45. Then she went out, not gently moved the doors; went forth, void\nof fear, and the comers hailed, turned to the Niflungs: that was her\nlast greeting, truth attended it; more words she said:\n\n46. \"I sought by symbols to prevent your leaving home,--fate may no\none resist--and yet must you come hither.\" Wisely she asked: might\nthey not be appeased? No one consented, all answered no.\n\n47. Saw then the high-born lady that a hard game they played; a\ndeadly deed she meditated, and her robe dashed aside, a naked falchion\nseized, and her kinsmen's lives defended: skilful she was in warfare,\nwhere her hand she applied.\n\n48. Giuki's daughter caused two warriors to fall; Atli's brother she\nstruck down,--he must henceforth be borne--so she the conflict\nmanaged, that she his foot struck off. Another too she smote, so that\nhe never rose, to Hel she sent him: her hand trembled not.\n\n49. A conflict then ensued, which was widely famed, but that\nexcelled all else which Giuki's sons performed. So 'tis said the\nNiflungs, while yet they lived, with swords maintained the fight,\ncorslets rent, helmets hewed, as their hearts prompted.\n\n50. At morning most they fought, until mid-day had passed; all early\nmorn, and the forenoon, ere the fight was ended, the field flowed with\nblood, until eighteen had fallen: Bera's two sons, and her brother,\nhad them overcome.\n\n51. Then the fierce Atli spoke, wroth though he was: \"'Tis ill to\nlook around; this is long of you. We were thirty warlike thanes,\neleven survive: the chasm is too great. We were five brothers, when\nBudli died; now has Hel the half, two lie slain.\n\n52. \"A great affinity I obtained, that I cannot deny, pernicious\nwoman! of which I have no benefit: peace we have seldom had, since\nthou among us camest. Of kinsmen ye have bereft me, of riches often\nwronged. To Hel my sister ye have sent; that is to me most bitter.\"\n\n_Gudrun_.\n\n53. \"This thou callest to mind, Atli! but thou so first didst act:\nmy mother thou didst take, and for her treasures murder; my gifted\nniece with hunger thou didst cause to perish. Laughable to me it\nseems, when thou sorrows dost recount. The gods are to be thanked,\nthat it goes ill with thee.\"\n\n_Atli_.\n\n54. Jarls! I exhort you the sorrow to augment of that presumptuous\nwoman: I would fain see it. Strive so to do, that Gudrun may lament.\nMight I but see that in her lot she joys not!\n\n55. Take ye Hogni, and with a knife hack him: cut out his heart:\nthis ye shall do. Gunnar the fierce of soul to a gallows fasten; do\nthe work thoroughly, lure up the serpents.\n\n_Hogni_.\n\n56. Do as thou listest, glad I will await it; stout I shall prove\nmyself: I have ere now things much harder proved. Ye had a hindrance\nwhile unscathed we were: now are we so wounded that our fate thou\nmayest command.\n\n57. Beiti spake,--he was Atli's steward--Take we Hialli, but Hogni\nlet us save. Let us do half the work; he is death-worthy. As long as\nhe lives a slug he will ever be.\n\n58. Terrified was the kettle-watcher, the place no longer held him:\nhe could be a whiner, he clomb into every nook: their conflict was his\nbane, as he the penalty must pay; and the day sad, when he must from\nthe swine die, from all good things, which he had enjoyed.\n\n59. Budli's cook they took, and the knife brought towards him.\nHowled the wretched thrall, ere the point he felt; declared that he\nhad time the gardens to manure, the vilest offices to do, if from\ndeath he might escape. Joyful indeed was Hialli, could he but save his\nlife.\n\n60. Hogni all this observed--few so act, as for a slave to\nintercede, that he may escape!--\"Less 'tis, I say, for me to play this\ngame myself. Why shall we here desire to listen to that screaming?\"\n\n61. Hands on the good prince they laid. Then was no option for the\nbold warriors, the sentence longer to delay. Then laughed Hogni;\nheard the sons of day how he could hold out: torment he well endured!\n\n62. A harp Gunnar took, with his foot-branches touched it. He could\nso strike it, that women wept, and the men sobbed, who best could hear\nit. He the noble queen counselled: the rafters burst asunder.\n\n63. There died the noble, as the dawn of day; at the last they\ncaused their deeds to live.\n\n64. Atli thought himself great: over them both he strode, to the\nsagacious woman told the evil, and bitterly reproached her. \"It is now\nmorning, Gudrun! thy loved ones thou hast lost; partly thou art the\ncause that it has so befallen.\"\n\n_Gudrun_.\n\n65. Joyful art thou, Atli! slaughter to announce: repentance shall\nawait thee, when thou hast all proved. That heritage shall be left\nthee--that I can tell thee--that ill shall never from thee go, unless\nI also die.\n\n_Atli_.\n\n66. That I can prevent; another course I see, easier by half: the\ngood we oft reject. With slaves I will console thee, with things most\nprecious, with snow-white silver, as thou thyself mayest desire.\n\n_Gudrun_.\n\n67. Of that there is _no_ hope; I will all reject; atonement I have\nspurned for smaller injuries. Hard I was ever thought, now will that\nbe aggravated. I every grudge concealed, while Hogni lived.\n\n68. We were both nurtured in one house; many a play we played, and\nin the wood grew up; Grimhild us adorned with gold and necklaces; for\nmy brothers' death never wilt thou indemnify me, nor ever do what\nshall to me seem good.\n\n69. Men's too great power women's lot oppresses; on the knee the\nhand sinks, if the arms wither; the tree inclines, if its root-fibres\nare severed. Now, Atli! thou mayest alone over all here command.\n\n70. Most unwise it was, when to this the prince gave credit: the\nguile was manifest, had he been on his guard. Dissembling then was\nGudrun, against her heart she could speak, made herself gay appear,\nwith two shields she played.[114]\n\n71. A banquet she would prepare, her brothers' funeral feast; the\nsame would Atli also for his own do.\n\n72. With this they ended; the banquet was prepared; the feasting was\ntoo luxurious. The woman great of heart was stern, she warred on\nBudli's race; on her spouse she would cruel vengeance wreak.\n\n73. The young ones she enticed, and on a block laid them, the fierce\nbabes were terrified, and wept not, to their mother's bosom crept,\nasked what she was going to do.\n\n74. \"Ask no questions, both I intend to kill; long have I desired to\ncut short your days.\"\n\n75. \"Slay as thou wilt thy children, no one hinders it; thy rage\nwill have short peace, if thou destroyest us in our blooming years,\nthou desperate woman!\" It fell out accordingly: she cut the throats of\nboth.\n\n76. Atli oft inquired whither his boys were gone to play, as he\nnowhere saw them?\n\n_Gudrun._\n\n77. Over I am resolved to go, and to Atli tell it. Grimhild's\ndaughter will not conceal it from thee. Little glad, Atli! wilt thou\nbe, when all thou learnest; great woe didst thou raise up, when thou\nmy brother slewest.\n\n78. Very seldom have I slept since they fell. Bitterly I threatened\nthee: now I have reminded thee. \"It is now morning,\" saidst thou: I\nyet it well remember; and it now is eve, when thou the like shalt\nlearn.\n\n79. Thou thy sons hast lost, as thou least shouldest; know that\ntheir skulls thou hast had for beer-cups; thy drink I prepared, I\ntheir red blood have shed.\n\n80. I their hearts took, and on a spit staked them, then to thee\ngave them. I said they were of calves,--it was long of thee\nalone--thou didst leave none, voraciously didst devour, well didst ply\nthy teeth.\n\n81. Thy children's fate thou knowest, few a worse awaits. I have my\npart performed, though in it glory not.\n\n_Atli._\n\n82. Cruel wast thou, Gudrun! who couldst so act, with thy children's\nblood my drink to mingle. Thou hast destroyed thy offspring, as thou\nleast shouldest; and to myself thou leavest a short interval from ill.\n\n_Gudrun._\n\n83. I could still desire thyself to slay; rarely too ill it fares\nwith such a prince. Thou hast already perpetrated crimes unexampled\namong men of frantic cruelty, in this world: now thou hast added what\nwe have just witnessed. A great misdeed hast thou committed, thy\ndeath-feast thou hast prepared.\n\n_Atli._\n\n84. On the pile thou shalt be burnt, but first be stoned; then wilt\nthou have earned what thou hast ever sought.\n\n_Gudrun._\n\n85. Tell to thyself such griefs early to-morrow: by a fairer death I\nwill pass to another light.\n\n86. In the same hall they sat, exchanged hostile thoughts, bandied\nwords of hate: each was ill at ease.\n\n87. Hate waxed in a Hniflung, a great deed he meditated; to Gudrun\nhe declared that he was Atli's deadly foe.\n\n88. Into her mind came Hogni's treatment; happy she him accounted,\nif he vengeance wreaked. Then was Atli slain, within a little space;\nHogni's son him slew, and Gudrun herself.\n\n89. The bold king spake, roused up from sleep; quickly he felt the\nwounds, said he no binding needed. \"Tell me most truly who has slain\nBudli's son. I am hardly treated: of life I have no hope.\"\n\n_Gudrun._\n\n90. I, Grimhild's daughter, will not from thee hide, that I am the\ncause that thy life passes away; but partly Hogni's son, that thy\nwounds make thee faint.\n\n_Atli._\n\n91. To the slaughter thou hast rushed, although it ill beseemed\nthee; 'tis bad to circumvent a friend, who well confided in thee.\nBesought I went from home, to woo thee, Gudrun!\n\n92. A widow thou was left, fierce thou wast accounted, which was no\nfalsehood, as we have proved. Hither home thou earnest, us a host of\nmen attended; all was splendid on our journey.\n\n93. Pomp of all kinds was there, of illustrious men, beeves in\nabundance: largely we enjoyed them. Of all things there was plenty\npartaken of by many.\n\n94. A marriage gift to my bride I gave, treasures for her\nacceptance, thralls thrice ten, seven fair female slaves: in such\nthings was honour; silver there was yet more.\n\n95. All seemed to thee as it were naught, while the lands untouched\nlay, which Budli had left me. So didst thou undermine, dist allow me\nnothing to receive. Thou didst my mother let often sit weeping: with\nheart content I found not one of my household after.\n\n_Gudrun._\n\n96. Now, Atli! thou liest, though of that I little reck. Gentle I\nseldom was, yet didst thou greatly aggravate it. Young brothers ye\nfought together, among yourselves contended; to Hel went the half from\nthy house: all went to ruin that should be for benefit.\n\n97. Brothers and sisters we were three, we thought ourselves\ninvincible: from the land we departed, we followed Sigurd. We roved\nabout, each steered a ship; seeking luck we went, till to the east we\ncame.\n\n98. The chief king we slew, there a land obtained, the \"hersar\"\nyielded to us; that manifested fear. We from the forest freed him whom\nwe wished harmless, raised him to prosperity who nothing had\npossessed.\n\n99. The Hun king[115] died, then suddenly my fortune changed: great\nwas the young wife's grief, the widow's lot was hers. A torment to me\nit seemed to come living to the house of Atli. A hero had possessed\nme: sad was that loss!\n\n100. Thou didst never from a contest come, as we had heard, where\nthou didst gain thy cause, or others overcome; ever wouldst thou give\nway, and never stand, lettest all pass off quietly, as ill beseemed a\nking.\n\n_Atli._\n\n101. Gudrun! now thou liest. Little will be bettered the lot of\neither: we have all suffered. Now act thou, Gudrun! of thy goodness,\nand for our honour, when I forth am borne.\n\n_Gudrun._\n\n102. I a ship will buy, and a painted cist;[116] will the\nwinding-sheet well wax, to enwrap thy corpse; will think of every\nrequisite, as if we had each other loved.\n\n103. Atli was now a corpse, lament from his kin arose: the\nillustrious woman did all she had promised. The wise woman would go to\ndestroy herself; her days were lengthened: she died another time.\n\n104. Happy is every one hereafter who shall give birth to such a\ndaughter famed for deeds, as Giuki begat: ever will live, in every\nland, their oft-told tale, wherever people shall give ear.\n\nFOOTNOTES:\n\n[Footnote 109: The messengers.]\n\n[Footnote 110: It would seem that the original runes, as graved by\nGudrun, had not been so completely erased as to leave no traces of\nthem; but that they were still sufficiently legible to enable Kostbera\nto ascertain the real purport of the communication.]\n\n[Footnote 111: Ham (hamr. _fem._ hamingia) a guardian angel, an\nattendant spirit.]\n\n[Footnote 112: Here a gallows in our sense of the word, but usually a\nstake on a scaffold, to which the condemned to a death of torture was\nbound hand and foot.]\n\n[Footnote 113: So great was their haste to land.]\n\n[Footnote 114: She played a double game.]\n\n[Footnote 115: Sigurd.]\n\n[Footnote 116: The ancient usage of laying the body in a ship and\nsending it adrift, seems inconsistent with the later custom of\ndepositing it in a cist or coffin.]\n\n\n\n\nGUDRUN'S INCITEMENT.\n\nHaving slain Atli, Gudrun went to the sea-shore. She went out into the\nsea, and would destroy herself, but could not sink. She was borne\nacross the firth to the land of King Jonakr, who married her. Their\nsons were Sorli, Erp, and Hamdir. There was reared up Svanhild, the\ndaughter of Sigurd. She was given in marriage to Jormunrek the\nPowerful. With him lived Bikki, who counselled Randver, the king's\nson, to take her. Bikki told that to the king, who caused Randver to\nbe hanged, and Svanhild trodden under horses' feet. When Gudrun heard\nof this she said to her sons:--\n\n1. Then heard I tell of quarrels dire, hard sayings uttered from\ngreat affliction, when her sons the fierce-hearted Gudrun, in deadly\nwords, to slaughter instigated.\n\n2. \"Why sit ye here? why sleep life away? why does it pain you not\njoyous words to speak, now Jormunrek your sister young in years has\nwith horses trodden, white and black, in the public way, with grey and\nway-wont Gothic steeds?\n\n3. Ye are not like to Gunnar and the others, nor of soul so valiant\nas Hogni was. Her ye should seek to avenge, if ye had the courage of\nmy brothers, or the fierce spirit of the Hunnish kings.\"\n\n4. Then said Hamdir, the great of heart: \"Little didst thou care\nHogni's deed to praise, when Sigurd he from sleep awaked. Thy\nblue-white bed-clothes were red with thy husband's gore, with\ndeath-blood covered.\n\n5. \"For thy brothers thou didst o'er-hasty vengeance take, dire and\nbitter, when thou thy sons didst murder. We young ones[117] could on\nJormunrek, acting all together, have avenged our sister.\n\n6. \"Bring forth the arms of the Hunnish kings: thou hast us\nstimulated to a sword-mote.\"\n\n7. Laughing Gudrun to the storehouse turned, the kings' crested\nhelms from the coffers drew, their ample corslets, and to her sons\nthem bore. The young heroes loaded their horses' shoulders.\n\n8. Then said Hamdir, the great of heart: \"So will no more come his\nmother to see, the warrior felled in the Gothic land, so that thou the\nfuneral-beer after us all may drink, after Svanhild and thy sons.\"\n\n9. Weeping Gudrun, Giuki's daughter, sorrowing went, to sit in the\nfore-court, and to recount, with tear-worn cheeks, sad of soul, her\ncalamities, in many ways.\n\n10. \"Three fires I have known, three hearths I have known, of three\nconsorts I have been borne to the house. Sigurd alone to me was better\nthan all, of whom my brothers were the murderers.\n\n11. \"Of my painful wounds I might not complain; yet they even more\nseemed to afflict me, when those chieftains to Atli gave me.\n\n12. \"My bright boys I called to speak with me; for my injuries I\ncould not get revenge, ere I had severed the Hniflungs' heads.\n\n13. \"To the sea-shore I went, against the Norns I was embittered; I\nwould cast off their persecution; bore, and submerged me not the\ntowering billows; up on land I rose, because I was to live.\n\n14. \"To the nuptial couch I went--as I thought better for me,--for\nthe third time, with a mighty king. I brought forth offspring,\nguardians of the heritage, guardians of the heritage, Jonakr's sons.\n\n15. \"But around Svanhild bond-maidens sat; of all my children her I\nloved the best. Svanhild was, in my hall, as was the sun-beam, fair to\nbehold.\n\n16. \"I with gold adorned her, and with fine raiment, before I gave\nher to the Gothic people. That is to me the hardest of all my woes,\nthat Svanhild's beauteous locks should in the mire be trodden under\nhorses' feet.\n\n17. \"But that was yet more painful, when my Sigurd they ingloriously\nslew in his bed; though of all most cruel, when of Gunnar the\nglistening serpents to the vitals crawled; but the most agonizing,\nwhich to my heart flew, when the brave king's heart they while quick\ncut out.\n\n18. \"Many griefs I call to memory, many ills I call to memory.\nGuide, Sigurd! thy black steed, thy swift courser, hither let it run.\nHere sits no son's wife, no daughter, who to Gudrun precious things\nmay give.\n\n19. \"Remember, Sigurd! what we together said, when on our bed we\nboth were sitting, that thou, brave one, wouldst come to me from Hel's\nabode, but I from the world to thee.\n\n20. \"Raise, ye Jarls! an oaken pile; let it under heaven the highest\nbe. May it burn a breast full of woes! the fire round my heart its\nsorrows melt!\"\n\n21. May all men's lot be bettered, all women's sorrow lessened, to\nwhom this tale of woes shall be recounted.\n\nFOOTNOTES:\n\n[Footnote 117: Themselves and the two sons of Atli.]\n\n\n\n\nTHE LAY OF HAMDIR.\n\n\n1. In that court[118] arose woeful deeds, at the Alfar's doleful\nlament;[119] at early morn, men's afflictions, troubles of various\nkinds; sorrows were quickened.\n\n2. It was not now, nor yesterday, a long time since has passed\naway,--few things are more ancient, it was by much earlier--when\nGudrun, Giuki's daughter, her young sons instigated Svanhild to\navenge.\n\n3. \"She was your sister, her name Svanhild, she whom Jormunrek with\nhorses trod to death, white and black, on the public way, with grey\nand way-wont Gothic steeds.\n\n4. \"Thenceforth all is sad to you, kings of people! Ye alone\nsurvive,\n\n5. \"Branches of my race. Lonely I am become, as the asp-tree in the\nforest, of kindred bereft, as the fir of branches; of joy deprived, as\nis the tree of foliage, when the branch-spoiler comes in the warm\nday.\"\n\n6. Then spake Hamdir, the great of soul, \"Little, Gudrun! didst thou\ncare Hogni's deed to praise, when Sigurd they from sleep awaked on the\nbed thou satst, and the murderers laughed.\n\n7. \"Thy bed-clothes, blue and white, woven by cunning hands, swam in\nthy husband's gore. When Sigurd perished, o'er the dead thou satst,\ncaredst not for mirth--so Gunnar willed it.\n\n8. \"Atli thou wouldst afflict by Erp's murder, and by Eitil's life's\ndestruction: that proved for thyself the worse: therefore should every\none so against others use, for life's destruction, a sharp-biting\nsword, that he harm not himself.\"\n\n9. Then said Sorli--he had a prudent mind--\"I with my mother will\nnot speeches exchange: though words to each of you to me seem wanting.\nWhat, Gudrun! dost thou desire, which for tears thou canst not utter?\n\n10. \"For thy brothers weep, and thy dear sons, thy nearest kin,\ndrawn to the strife: for us both shalt thou, Gudrun! also have to\nweep, who here sit fated on our steeds, far away to die.\"\n\n11. From the court they went, for conflict ready. The young men\njourneyed over humid fells, on Hunnish steeds, murder to avenge.\n\n12. Then said Erp, all at once--the noble youth was joking on his\nhorse's back--\"Ill 'tis to a timid man to point out the ways.\" They\nsaid the bastard[120] was over bold.\n\n13. On their way they had found the wily jester. \"How will the\nswarthy dwarf afford us aid?\"\n\n14. He of another mother answered: so he said aid he would to his\nkin afford, as one foot to the other[121] [or, grown to the body, one\nhand the other].\n\n15. \"What can a foot to a foot give; or, grown to the body, one hand\nthe other?\"\n\n16. From the sheath they drew the iron blade, the falchion's edges,\nfor Hel's delight. They their strength diminished by a third part,\nthey their young kinsman caused to earth to sink.\n\n17. Their mantles then they shook, their weapons grasped; the\nhigh-born were clad in sumptuous raiment.\n\n18. Forward lay the ways, a woeful path they found, and their\nsister's son wounded on a gibbet, wind-cold outlaw-trees,[122] on the\ntown's west. Ever vibrated the ravens' whet: there to tarry was not\ngood.\n\n19. Uproar was in the hall, men were with drink excited, so that the\nhorses' tramp no one heard, until a mindful man winded his horn.\n\n20. To announce they went to Jormunrek that were seen helm-decked\nwarriors. \"Take ye counsel, potent ones are come; before mighty men ye\nhave on a damsel trampled.\"\n\n21. Then laughed Jormunrek, with his hand stroked his beard, asked\nnot for his corslet; with wine he struggled, shook his dark locks, on\nhis white shield looked, and in his hand swung the golden cup.\n\n22. \"Happy should I seem, if I could see Hamdir and Sorli within my\nhall. I would them then with bowstrings bind, the good sons of Giuki\non the gallows hang.\"\n\n23. Then said Hrodrglod, on the high steps standing; \"Prince\" said\nshe to her son--for that was threatened which ought not to\nhappen--\"shall two men alone bind or slay ten hundred Goths in this\nlofty burgh?\"\n\n24. Tumult was in the mansion, the beer-cups flew in shivers, men\nlay in blood from the Goths' breasts flowing.\n\n25. Then said Hamdir, the great of heart: \"Jormunrek! thou didst\ndesire our coming, brothers of one mother, into thy burgh:[123] now\nseest thou thy feet, seest thy hands Jormunrek! cast into the glowing\nfire.\"\n\n26. Then roared forth a godlike[124] mail-clad warrior, as a bear\nroars: \"On the men hurl stones, since spears bite not, nor edge of\nsword, nor point, the sons of Jonakr.\"\n\n27. Then said Hamdir, the great of heart: \"Harm didst thou, brother!\nwhen thou that mouth didst ope. Oft from that mouth bad counsel\ncomes.\"\n\n28. \"Courage hast thou, Hamdir! if only thou hadst sense: that man\nlacks much who wisdom lacks.\n\n29. \"Off would the head now be, had but Erp lived, our brother bold\nin fight, whom on the way we slew, that warrior brave--me the Disir\ninstigated--that man sacred to us, whom we resolved to slay.\n\n30. \"I ween not that ours should be the wolves' example, that with\nourselves we should contend, like the Norns' dogs, that voracious are\nin the desert nurtured.\"\n\n31. \"Well have we fought, on slaughtered Goths we stand, on those\nfallen by the sword, like eagles on a branch. Great glory we have\ngained, though now or to-morrow we shall die. No one lives till eve\nagainst the Norns' decree.\"\n\n33. There fell Sorli, at the mansion's front; but Hamdir sank at the\nhouse's back.\n\nThis is called the Old Lay of Hamdir.\n\nFOOTNOTES:\n\n[Footnote 118: See Str. 10, and Ghv. 9, and. Luning, Glossar.]\n\n[Footnote 119: \"The Alfar's Lament\" is the early dawn, and is in\napposition to \"early morn,\" in the following line. The swart Alfar are\nmeant, who were turned to stone if they did not flee from the light of\nday. This is the best interpretation I can offer of this obscure\nstrophe.]\n\n[Footnote 120: In this and the four following strophes the person\nalluded to is their half-brother Erp, of whose story nothing more is\nknown. He, it appears, had preceded or outridden the others.]\n\n[Footnote 121: Malmesbury relates a similar story of King \u00c6thelstan\nand his cupbearer.]\n\n[Footnote 122: Lit. wolf-trees; a fugitive criminal being called vargr\n_wolf_.]\n\n[Footnote 123: According to the Skalda it would appear that they cut\noff his hands and feet while he was asleep. Erp, had they not murdered\nhim, was to have cut off his head.]\n\n[Footnote 124: Odin, as in the battle of Bravalla.]\n\n\n\n\nTHE YOUNGER EDDAS OF STURLESON.\n\n\n\n\nTHE DELUDING OF GYLFI.\n\nGEFJON'S PLOUGHING.[125]\n\n1. King Gylfi ruled over the land which is now called Svithiod\n(Sweden). It is related of him that he once gave a wayfaring woman, as\na recompense for her having diverted him, as much land in his realm as\nshe could plough with four oxen in a day and a night. This woman was,\nhowever, of the race of the \u00c6sir, and was called Gefjon. She took four\noxen from the north, out of Jotunheim (but they were the sons she had\nhad with a giant), and set them before a plough. Now the plough made\nsuch deep furrows that it tore up the land, which the oxen drew\nwestward out to sea until they came to a sound. There Gefjon fixed the\nland, and called it S\u00e6lund. And the place where the land had stood\nbecame water, and formed a lake which is now called \"The Water\"\n(Laugur), and the inlets of this lake correspond exactly with the\nheadlands of Sealund. As Skald Bragi the Old saith:--\n\n \"Gefjon drew from Gylfi,\n Rich in stored up treasure,\n The land she joined to Denmark.\n Four heads and eight eyes bearing,\n While hot sweat trickled down them,\n The oxen dragged the reft mass\n That formed this winsome island.\"\n\n\nGYLFI'S JOURNEY TO ASGARD.\n\n\n2. King Gylfi was renowned for his wisdom and skill in magic. He\nbeheld with astonishment that whatever the \u00c6sir willed took place; and\nwas at a loss whether to attribute their success to the superiority of\ntheir natural abilities, or to a power imparted to them by the mighty\ngods whom they worshipped. To be satisfied in this particular, he\nresolved to go to Asgard, and, taking upon himself the likeness of an\nold man, set out on his journey. But the \u00c6sir, being too well skilled\nin divination not to foresee his design, prepared to receive him with\nvarious illusions. On entering the city Gylfi saw a very lofty\nmansion, the roof of which, as far as his eye could reach, was covered\nwith golden shields. Thiodolf of Hvina thus alludes to Valhalla being\nroofed with shields.\n\n \"Warriors all care-worn,\n (Stones had poured upon them),\n On their backs let glisten\n Valhalla's golden shingles.\"\n\nAt the entrance of the mansion Gylfi saw a man who amused himself by\ntossing seven small-swords in the air, and catching them as they fell,\none after the other. This person having asked his name, Gylfi said\nthat he was called Gangler, and that he came from a long journey, and\nbegged for a night's lodging. He asked, in his turn, to whom this\nmansion belonged. The other told him that it belonged to their king,\nand added, \"But I will lead thee to him, and thou shalt thyself ask\nhim his name.\" So saying he entered the hall, and as Gylfi followed\nthe door banged to behind him. He there saw many stately rooms crowded\nwith people, some playing, some drinking, and others fighting with\nvarious weapons. Gangler, seeing a multitude of things, the meaning of\nwhich he could not comprehend, softly pronounced the following verse\n(from the Havamal, st. i.):--\n\n \"Scan every gate\n Ere thou go on,\n With greatest caution;\n\n For hard to say 'tis\n Where foes are sitting\n In this fair mansion.\"\n\nHe afterwards beheld three thrones raised one above another, with a\nman sitting on each of them. Upon his asking what the names of these\nlords might be, his guide answered: \"He who sitteth on the lowest\nthrone is a king; his name is Har (the High or Lofty One); the second\nis Jafnhar (_i.e_. equal to the High); but he who sitteth on the\nhighest throne is called Thridi (the Third).\" Har, perceiving the\nstranger, asked him what his errand was, adding that he should be\nwelcome to eat and drink without cost, as were all those who remained\nin Hava Hall. Gangler said he desired first to ascertain whether there\nwas any person present renowned for his wisdom.\n\n\"If thou art not the most knowing,\" replied Har, \"I fear thou wilt\nhardly return safe. But go, stand there below, and propose thy\nquestions, here sits one who will be able to answer them.\"\n\n\nOF THE SUPREME DEITY.\n\n3. Gangler thus began his discourse:--\"'Who is the first, or eldest\nof the gods?\"\n\n\"In our language,\" replied Har, \"he is called Alfadir (All-Father, or\nthe Father of all); but in the old Asgard he had twelve names.\"\n\n\"Where is this God?\" said Gangler; \"what is his power? and what hath\nhe done to display his glory?\"\n\n\"He liveth,\" replied Har, \"from all ages, he governeth all realms and\nswayeth all things great and small.\"\n\n\"He hath formed,\" added Jafnhar, \"heaven and earth, and the air, and\nall things thereunto belonging.\"\n\n\"And what is more,\" continued Thridi, \"he hath made man, and given him\na soul which shall live and never perish though the body shall have\nmouldered away, or have been burnt to ashes. And all that are\nrighteous shall dwell with him in the place called Gimli, or Vingolf;\nbut the wicked shall go to Hel, and thence to Niflhel, which is below,\nin the ninth world.\"\n\n\"And where did this god remain before he made heaven and earth?\"\ndemanded Gangler.\n\n\"He was then,\" replied Har, \"with the Hrimthursar.\"[126]\n\n\nOF THE PRIMORDIAL STATE OF THE UNIVERSE.\n\n4. \"But with what did he begin, or what was the beginning of\nthings?\" demanded Gangler.\n\n\"Hear,\" replied Har, \"what is said in the Voluspa.\"\n\n \"'Twas time's first dawn,\n When nought yet was,\n Nor sand nor sea,\n Nor cooling wave;\n Earth was not there,\n\n Nor heaven above.\n Nought save a void\n And yawning gulf.\n But verdure none.'\"\n\n\"Many ages before the earth was made,\" added Jafnhar, \"was Niflheim\nformed, in the middle of which lies the spring called Hvergelmir, from\nwhich flow twelve rivers, Gjoll being the nearest to the gate of the\nabode of death.\"\n\n\"But, first of all,\" continued Thridi, \"there was in the southern\nregion (sphere) the world called Muspell. It is a world too luminous\nand glowing to be entered by those who are not indigenous there.[127]\nHe who sitteth on its borders (or the land's-end) to guard it is named\nSurtur. In his hand he beareth a flaming falchion, and at the end of\nthe world shall issue forth to combat, and shall vanquish all the\ngods, and consume the universe with fire.\"\n\n\nORIGIN OF THE HRIMTHURSAR, OR FROST-GIANTS.\n\n5. \"Tell me,\" said Gangler, \"what was the state of things ere the\nraces mingled, and nations came into being.\"\n\n\"When the rivers that are called Elivagar had flowed far from their\nsources,\" replied Har, \"the venom which they rolled along hardened, as\ndoes dross that runs from a furnace, and became ice. When the rivers\nflowed no longer, and the ice stood still, the vapour arising from the\nvenom gathered over it, and froze to rime, and in this manner were\nformed, in Ginnungagap, many layers of congealed vapour, piled one\nover the other.\"\n\n\"That part of Ginnungagap,\" added Jafnhar, \"that lies towards the\nnorth was thus filled with heavy masses of gelid vapour and ice,\nwhilst everywhere within were whirlwinds and fleeting mists. But the\nsouthern part of Ginnungagap was lighted by the sparks and flakes that\nflew into it from Muspellheim.\"\n\n\"Thus,\" continued Thridi, \"whilst freezing cold and gathering gloom\nproceeded from Niflheim, that part of Ginnungagap looking towards\nMuspellheim was filled with glowing radiancy, the intervening space\nremaining calm and light as wind-still air. And when the heated blast\nmet the gelid vapour it melted it into drops, and, by the might of him\nwho sent the heat, these drops quickened into life, and took a human\nsemblance. The being thus formed was named Ymir, but the Frost-giants\ncall him Orgelmir. From him descend the race of the Frost-giants\n(Hrimthursar), as it is said in the Voluspa, 'From Vidolf come all\nwitches; from Vilmeith all wizards; from Svarthofdi all\npoison-seethers; and all giants from Ymir.' And the giant Vafthr\u00fbdnir,\nwhen Gangrad asked, 'Whence came Orgelmir the first of the sons of\ngiants?' answered, 'The Elivagar cast out drops of venom that\nquickened into a giant. From him spring all our race, and hence are we\nso strong and mighty.'\"\n\n\"How did the race of Ymir spread itself?\" asked Gangler; \"or dost thou\nbelieve that this giant was a god?\"\n\n\"We are far from believing him to have been a god,\" replied Har, \"for\nhe was wicked as are all of his race, whom we call Frost-giants. And\nit is said that, when Ymir slept, he fell into a sweat, and from the\npit of his left arm was born a man and a woman, and one of his feet\nengendered with the other a son, from whom descend the Frost-giants,\nand we therefore call Ymir the old Frost-giant.\"\n\n\nOF THE COW AUDHUMLA, AND THE BIRTH OF ODIN.\n\n6. \"Where dwelt Ymir, and on what did he live?\" asked Gangler.\n\n\"Immediately after the gelid vapours had been resolved into drops,\"\nreplied Kar, \"there was formed out of them the cow named Audhumla.\nFour streams of milk ran from her teats, and thus fed she Ymir.\"\n\n\"But on what did the cow feed?\" questioned Gangler.\n\n\"The cow,\" answered Har, \"supported herself by licking the stones that\nwere covered with salt and hoar frost. The first day that she licked\nthese stones there sprang from them, towards evening, the hairs of a\nman, the second day a head, and on the third an entire man, who was\nendowed with beauty, agility and power. He was called Bur, and was the\nfather of Bor, who took for his wife Besla, the daughter of the giant\nBolthorn. And they had three sons, Odin, Vili, and Ve; and it is our\nbelief that this Odin, with his brothers, ruleth both heaven and\nearth, and that Odin is his true name, and that he is the most mighty\nof all the gods.\"\n\n\nHOW THE SONS OF BOR SLEW YMIR AND FROM HIS BODY MADE HEAVEN AND EARTH.\n\n7. \"Was there,\" asked Gangler, \"any kind of equality or any degree\nof good understanding between these two races?\"\n\n\"Far from it,\" replied Har; \"for the sons of Bor slew the giant Ymir,\nand when he fell there ran so much blood from his wounds, that the\nwhole race of Frost-giants was drowned in it, except a single giant,\nwho saved himself with his household. He is called by the giants\nBergelmir. He escaped by going on board his bark, and with him went\nhis wife, and from them are descended the Frost-giants.\"\n\n8. \"And what became of the sons of Bor, whom ye look upon as gods?\"\nasked Gangler.\n\n\"To relate this,\" replied Har, \"is no trivial matter. They dragged the\nbody of Ymir into the middle of Ginnungagap, and of it formed the\nearth. From Ymir's blood they made the seas and waters; from his flesh\nthe land; from his bones the mountains; and his teeth and jaws,\ntogether with some bits of broken bones, served them to make the\nstones and pebbles.\"\n\n\"With the blood that ran from his wounds,\" added Jafnhar, \"they made\nthe vast ocean, in the midst of which they fixed the earth, the ocean\nencircling it as a ring, and hardy will he be who attempts to pass\nthose waters.\"\n\n\"From his skull,\" continued Thridi, \"they formed the heavens, which\nthey placed over the earth, and set a dwarf at the corner of each of\nthe four quarters. These dwarfs are called East, West, North, and\nSouth. They afterwards took the wandering sparks and red hot flakes\nthat had been cast out of Muspellheim, and placed them in the heavens,\nboth above and below, to give light unto the world, and assigned to\nevery other errant coruscation a prescribed locality and motion. Hence\nit is recorded in ancient lore that from this time were marked out the\ndays, and nights, and seasons.\"\n\n\"Such are the events that took place ere the earth obtained the form\nit now beareth.\"\n\n\"Truly great were the deeds ye tell me of!\" exclaimed Gangler; \"and\nwondrous in all its parts is the work thereby accomplished. But how is\nthe earth fashioned?\"\n\n\"It is round without,\" replied Har, \"and encircled by the deep ocean,\nthe outward shores of which were assigned for a dwelling to the race\nof giants. But within, round about the earth, they (the sons of Bor)\nraised a bulwark against turbulent giants, employing for this\nstructure Ymir's eyebrows. To this bulwark they gave the name of\nMidgard[128] They afterwards tossed Ymir's brains into the air, and\nthey became the clouds, for thus we find it recorded.\n\n\"Of Ymir's flesh was formed the earth; of his sweat (blood), the seas;\nof his bones, the mountains; of his hair the trees; of his skull, the\nheavens; but with his eyebrows the blithe gods built Midgard for the\nsons of men, whilst from his brains the lowering clouds were\nfashioned.\"\n\n\nOF THE FORMATION OF THE FIRST MAN AND WOMAN.\n\n9. \"To make heaven and earth, to fix the sun and the moon in the\nfirmament, and mark out the days and seasons, were, indeed, important\nlabours,\" said Gangler; \"but whence came the men who at present dwell\nin the world?\"\n\n\"One day.\" replied Har, \"as the sons of Bor were walking along the\nsea-beach they found two stems of wood, out of which they shaped a man\nand a woman. The first (Odin) infused into them life and spirit; the\nsecond (Vili) endowed them with reason and the power of motion; the\nthird (Ve) gave them speech and features, hearing and vision. The man\nthey called Ask, and the woman, Embla. From these two descend the\nwhole human race whose assigned dwelling was within Midgard. Then the\nsons of Bor built in the middle of the universe the city called\nAsgard, where dwell the gods and their kindred, and from that abode\nwork out so many wondrous things, both on the earth and in the heavens\nabove it. There is in that city a place called Hlidskjalf, and when\nOdin is seated there on his lofty throne he sees over the whole world,\ndiscerns all the actions of men, and comprehends whatever he\ncontemplates. His wife is Frigga, the daughter of Fjorgyn, and they\nand their offspring form the race that we call \u00c6sir, a race that\ndwells in Asgard the old, and the regions around it, and that we know\nto be entirely divine. Wherefore Odin may justly be called All-father,\nfor he is verily the father of all, of gods as well as of men, and to\nhis power all things owe their existence. Earth is his daughter and\nhis wife, and with her he had his first-born son, Asa-Thor, who is\nendowed with strength and valour, and therefore quelleth he everything\nthat hath life.\"\n\n\nOF NIGHT AND DAY.\n\n10. \"A giant called Njorvi,\" continued Har, \"who dwelt in Jotunheim,\nhad a daughter called Night (Nott) who, like all her race, was of a\ndark and swarthy complexion. She was first wedded to a man called\nNaglfari, and had by him a son named Aud, and afterwards to another\nman called Annar, by whom she had a daughter called Earth (Jord). She\nthen espoused Delling, of the \u00c6sir race, and their son was Day, (Dagr)\na child light and beauteous like his father. Then took All-father,\nNight, and Day, her son, and gave them two horses and two cars, and\nset them up in the heavens that they might drive successively one\nafter the other, each in twelve hours' time, round the world. Night\nrides first on her horse called Hrimfaxi, that every morn, as he ends\nhis course, bedews the earth with the foam that falls from his bit.\nThe horse made use of by Day is named Skinfaxi, from whose mane is\nshed light over the earth and the heavens.\"\n\n\nOF THE SUN AND MOON.\n\n11. \"How doth All-father regulate the course of the sun and moon?\"\nasked Gangler.\n\n\"There was formerly a man,\" replied Har, \"named Mundilfari, who had\ntwo children so lovely and graceful that he called the male, Mani\n(moon), and the female, Sol (sun), who espoused the man named Glenur.\nBut the gods being incensed at Mundilfari's presumption, took his\nchildren and placed them in the heavens, and let Sol drive the horses\nthat draw the car of the sun, which the gods had made to give light to\nthe world out of the sparks that flew from Muspellheim. These horses\nare called Arvak and Alsvid, and under their withers the gods placed\ntwo skins filled with air to cool and refresh them, or, according to\nsome ancient traditions, a refrigerant substance called\n_isarnkul_.[129] Mani was set to guide the moon in his course, and\nregulate his increasing and waning aspect. One day he carried off from\nthe earth two children, named Bil and Hjuki, as they were returning\nfrom the spring called Byrgir, carrying between them the bucket called\nSaegr, on the pole Simul. Vidfinn was the father of these children,\nwho always follow Mani (the moon), as we may easily observe even from\nthe earth.\"\n\n\nOF THE WOLVES THAT PURSUE THE SUN AND MOON\n\n12. \"But the sun,\" said Gangler, speeds at such a rate as if she\nfeared that some one was pursuing her for her destruction.\"\n\n\"And well she may,\" replied Har, \"for he that seeks her is not far\nbehind, and she has no way to escape than to run before him.\"\n\n\"But who is he,\" asked Gangler, \"that causes her this anxiety?\"\n\n\"There are two wolves,\" answered Har; \"the one called Skoll pursues\nthe sun, and it is he that she fears, for he shall one day overtake\nand devour her; the other, called Hati, the son of Hrodvitnir, runs\nbefore her, and as eagerly pursues the moon that will one day be\ncaught by him.\"\n\n\"Whence come these wolves?\" asked Gangler.\n\n\"A hag,\" replied Har, \"dwells in a wood, to the eastward of Midgard,\ncalled Jarnvid, (the Iron Wood,) which is the abode of a race of\nwitches called Jarnvidjur. This old hag is the mother of many gigantic\nsons, who are all of them shaped like wolves, two of whom are the\nwolves thou askest about. There is one of that race, who is said to be\nthe most formidable of all, called Managarm: he will be filled with\nthe life-blood of men who draw near their end, and will swallow up the\nmoon, and stain the heavens and the earth with blood. Then shall the\nsun grow dim, and the winds howl tumultuously to and fro.\"\n\n\nOF THE WAY THAT LEADS TO HEAVEN.\n\n13. \"I must now ask,\" said Gangler, \"which is the path leading from\nearth to heaven?\"\n\n\"That is a senseless question,\" replied Har, with a smile of derision.\n\"Hast thou not been told that the gods made a bridge from earth to\nheaven, and called it Bifrost? Thou must surely have seen it; but,\nperhaps, thou callest it the rainbow. It is of three hues, and is\nconstructed with more art than any other work. But, strong though it\nbe, it will be broken to pieces when the sons of Muspell, after having\ntraversed great rivers, shall ride over it.\"\n\n\"Methinks,\" said Gangler, \"the gods could not have been in earnest to\nerect a bridge so liable to be broken down, since it is in their power\nto make whatever they please.\"\n\n\"The gods,\" replied Har, \"are not to be blamed on that account;\nBifrost is of itself a very good bridge, but there is nothing in\nnature that can hope to make resistance when the sons of Muspell sally\nforth to the great combat.\"\n\n\nTHE GOLDEN AGE.\n\n14. \"What did All-father do after Asgard was made?\" demanded\nGangler.\n\n\"In the beginning,\" answered Har, \"he appointed rulers, and bade them\njudge with him the fate of men, and regulate the government of the\ncelestial city. They met for this purpose in a place called Idavoll,\nwhich is in the centre of the divine abode. Their first work was to\nerect a court or hall wherein are twelve seats for themselves, besides\nthe throne which is occupied by All-father. This hall is the largest\nand most magnificent in the universe, being resplendent on all sides,\nboth within and without, with the finest gold. Its name is Gladsheim.\nThey also erected another hall for the sanctuary of the goddesses. It\nis a very fair structure, and called by men Vingolf. Lastly they built\na smithy, and furnished it with hammers, tongs, and anvils, and with\nthese made all the other requisite instruments, with which they worked\nin metal, stone and wood, and composed so large a quantity of the\nmetal called gold that they made all their moveables of it. Hence that\nage was named the Golden Age. This was the age that lasted until the\narrival of the women out of Jotunheim, who corrupted it.\"\n\n\nORIGIN OF THE DWARFS.\n\n15. \"Then the gods, seating themselves upon their thrones,\ndistributed justice, and bethought them how the dwarfs had been bred\nin the mould of the earth, just as worms are in a dead body. It was,\nin fact, in Ymir's flesh that the dwarfs were engendered, and began to\nmove and live. At first they were only maggots, but by the will of the\ngods they at length partook both of human shape and understanding,\nalthough they always dwell in rocks and caverns.\n\n\"Modsognir and Durin are the principal ones. As it is said in the\nVoluspa--\n\n \"'Then went the rulers there,\n All gods most holy,\n To their seats aloft,\n And counsel together took,\n Who should of dwarfs\n The race then fashion,\n From the livid bones\n And blood of the giant.\n\n Modsognir, chief\n Of the dwarfish race,\n And Durin too\n Were then created.\n And like to men\n Dwarfs in the earth\n Were formed in numbers\n As Durin ordered.'\"\n\n\nOF THE ASH YGGDRASILL, MIMIR'S WELL., AND THE NORNS OR DESTINIES.\n\n16. \"Where,\" asked Gangler, \"is the chief or holiest seat of\nthe gods?\"\n\n\"It is under the ash Yggdrasill,\" replied Har, \"where the gods\nassemble every day in council.\"\n\n\"What is there remarkable in regard to that place?\" said Gangler.\n\n\"That ash,\" answered Jafnhar, \"is the greatest and best of all trees.\nIts branches spread over the whole world, and even reach above heaven.\nIt has three roots very wide asunder. One of them extends to the \u00c6sir,\nanother to the Frost-giants in that very place where was formerly\nGinnungagap, and the third stands over Nifelheim, and under this root,\nwhich is constantly gnawed by Nidhogg, is Hvergelmir. But under the\nroot that stretches out towards the Frost-giants there is Mimir's\nwell, in which wisdom and wit lie hidden. The owner of this well is\ncalled Mimir. He is full of wisdom, because he drinks the waters of\nthe well from the horn Gjoll every morning. One day All-father came\nand begged a draught of this water, which he obtained, but was obliged\nto leave one of his eyes as a pledge for it.\n\n\"The third root of the ash is in heaven, and under it is the holy\nUrdar-fount. 'Tis here that the gods sit in judgment. Every day they\nride up hither on horseback over Bifrost, which is called the \u00c6sir\nBridge. These are the names of the horses of the \u00c6sir. Sleipnir is the\nbest of them; he has eight legs, and belongs to Odin. The others are\nGladr, Gyllir, Gl\u00e6r, Skeidbrimir, Silfrintoppr, Synir, Gils,\nFalhofnir, Gulltoppr, and Lettfeti. Baldur's horse was burnt with his\nmaster's body. As for Thor, he goes on foot, and is obliged every day\nto wade the rivers called Kormt and OErmt, and two others called\nKerlaung.\n\n\"Through these shall Thor wade every day, as he fares to the doomstead\nunder Yggdrasill's ash, else the \u00c6sir Bridge would be in flames, and\nboiling hot would become the holy waters.\"[130] \"But tell me,\" said\nGangler, \"does fire burn over Bifrost?\"\n\n\"That,\" replied Har, \"which thou seest red in the bow, is burning\nfire; for the Frost-giants and the Mountain-giants would go up to\nheaven by that bridge if it were easy for every one to walk over it.\nThere are in heaven many goodly homesteads, and none without a\ncelestial ward. Near the fountain, which is under the ash, stands a\nvery beauteous dwelling, out of which go three maidens, named Urd,\nVerdandi, and Skuld.[131] These maidens fix the lifetime of all men,\nand are called Norns. But there are, indeed, many other Norns, for,\nwhen a man is born, there is a Norn to determine his fate. Some are\nknown to be of heavenly origin, but others belong to the races of the\nelves and dwarfs; as it is said--\n\n\"'Methinks the Norns were born far asunder, for they are not of the\nsame race. Some belong to the \u00c6sir, some to the Elves, and some are\nDvalin's daughters.\"\n\n\"But if these Norns dispense the destinies of men,\" said Gangler,\n\"they are, methinks, very unequal in their distribution; for some men\nare fortunate and wealthy, others acquire neither riches nor honours,\nsome live to a good old age, while others are cut off in their prime.\"\n\n\"The Norns,\" replied Har, \"who are of a good origin, are good\nthemselves, and dispense good destinies. But those men to whom\nmisfortunes happen ought to ascribe them to the evil Norns.\"\n\n17. \"What more wonders hast thou to tell me,\" said Gangler,\n\"concerning the ash?\"\n\n\"What I have further to say respecting it,\" replied Har, \"is, that\nthere is an eagle perched upon its branches who knows many things:\nbetween his eyes sits the hawk called Vedurfolnir. The squirrel named\nRatatosk runs up and down the ash, and seeks to cause strife between\nthe eagle and Nidhogg. Four harts run across the branches of the tree,\nand bite the buds. They are called Dainn, Divalinn, Duneyr, and\nDurathror. But there are so many snakes with Nidhogg in Hvergelmir\nthat no tongue can recount them.\"\n\n\"It is also said that the Norns who dwell by the Urdar-fount draw\nevery day water from the spring, and with it and the clay that lies\naround the fount sprinkle the ash, in order that its branches may not\nrot and wither away. This water is so holy that everything placed in\nthe spring becomes as white as the film, within an eggshell. As it is\nsaid in the Voluspa--\n\n \"'An Ash know I standing,\n Named Yggdrasill,\n A stately tree sprinkled\n With water the purest;\n\n Thence come the dewdrops\n That fall in the dales;\n Ever blooming, it stands\n O'er the Urdar-fountain.\"'\n\n\"The dew that falls thence on the earth men call honey-dew, and it is\nthe food of the bees. Two fowls are fed in the Urdar-fount; they are\ncalled swans, and from them are descended all the birds of this\nspecies.\"\n\n\nOF THE VARIOUS CELESTIAL REGIONS.\n\n18. \"Thou tellest me many wonderful things of heaven,\" said Gangler,\n\"but what other homesteads are to be seen there?\"\n\n\"There are many other fair homesteads there,\" replied Har; \"one of\nthem is named Elf-home (Alfheim), wherein dwell the beings called the\nElves of Light; but the Elves of Darkness live under the earth, and\ndiffer from the others still more in their actions than in their\nappearance. The Elves of Light are fairer than the sun, but the Elves\nof Darkness blacker than pitch. There is also a mansion called\nBreidablik, which is not inferior to any other in beauty; and another\nnamed Glitnir, the wall, columns and beams of which are of ruddy gold,\nand the roof of silver. There is also the stead called Himinbjorg,\nthat stands on the borders where Bifrost touches heaven, and the\nstately mansion belonging to Odin, called Valaskjalf, which was built\nby the gods, and roofed with pure silver, and in which is the throne\ncalled Hlidskjalf. When All-father is seated on this throne, he can\nsee over the whole world. On the southern edge of heaven is the most\nbeautiful homestead of all, brighter than the sun itself. It is called\nGimli, and shall stand when both heaven and earth have passed away,\nand good and righteous men shall dwell therein for everlasting ages.\"\n\n\"But what will preserve this abode when Surtur's fire consumes heaven\nand earth?\" asked Gangler.\n\n\"We are told,\" replied Har, \"that towards the south there is another\nheaven above this called Andlang, and again above this a third heaven\ncalled Vidblain. In this last, we think Gimli must be seated, but we\ndeem that the Elves of Light abide in it now.\"\n\n\nOF THE WIND AND THE SEASONS.\n\n19. \"Tell me,\" said Gangler, \"whence comes the wind, which is so\nstrong that it moves the ocean and fans fire to flame, yet, strong\nthough it be, no mortal eye can discern it? wonderfully, therefore,\nmust it be shapen.\"\n\n\"I can tell thee all about it,\" answered Har; \"thou must know that at\nthe northern extremity of the heavens sits a giant called Hr\u00e6svelgur,\nclad with eagles' plumes. When he spreads out his wings for flight,\nthe winds arise from under them.\"\n\n20. \"Tell me further,\" said Gangler, \"why the summer should be hot,\nand the winter cold.\"\n\n\"A wise man would not ask such a question, which every one could\nanswer,\" replied Har; \"but, if thou hast been so dull as not to have\nheard the reason, I will rather forgive thee for once asking a foolish\nquestion than suffer thee to remain any longer in ignorance of what\nought to have been known to thee. The father of Summer is called\nSvasuth, who is such a gentle and delicate being that what is mild is\nfrom him called sweet. The father of Winter has two names, Vindloni\nand Vindsval. He is the son of Vasad, and, like all his race, has an\nicy breath, and is of a grim and gloomy aspect.\"\n\n\nOF ODIN.\n\n21. \"I must now ask thee,\" said Gangler, \"who are the gods that men\nare bound to believe in?\"\n\n\"There are twelve gods,\" replied Har, \"to whom divine honours ought to\nbe rendered.\"\n\n\"Nor are the goddesses,\" added Jafnhar, \"less divine and mighty.\"\n\n\"The first and eldest of the \u00c6sir,\" continued Thridi, \"is Odin. He\ngoverns all things, and, although the other deities are powerful, they\nall serve and obey him as children do their father. Frigga is his\nwife. She foresees the destinies of men, but never reveals what is to\ncome. For thus it is said that Odin himself told Loki, 'Senseless\nLoki, why wilt thou pry into futurity, Frigga alone knoweth the\ndestinies of all, though she telleth them never?'\n\n\"Odin is named Alfadir (All-father), because he is the father of all\nthe gods, and also Valfadir (Choosing Father), because he chooses for\nhis sons all of those who fall in combat. For their abode he has\nprepared Valhalla and Vingolf, where they are called Einherjar (Heroes\nor Champions). Odin is also called Hangagud, Haptagud, and Farmagud,\nand, besides these, was named in many ways when he went to King\nGeirraudr,\" forty-nine names in all.\n\n\"A great many names, indeed!\" exclaimed Gangler; \"surely that man must\nbe very wise who knows them all distinctly, and can tell on what\noccasions they were given.\"\n\n\"It requires, no doubt,\" replied Har, \"a good memory to recollect\nreadily all these names, but I will tell thee in a few words what\nprincipally contributed to confer them upon him. It was the great\nvariety of languages; for the various nations were obliged to\ntranslate his name into their respective tongues, in order that they\nmight supplicate and worship him. Some of his names, however, have\nbeen owing to adventures that happened to him on his journeys, and\nwhich are related in old stories. Nor canst thou ever pass for a wise\nman if thou are not able to give an account of these wonderful\nadventures.\"\n\n\nOF THOR.\n\n22. \"I now ask thee,\" said Gangler, \"what are the names of the other\ngods. What are their functions, and what have they brought to pass?\"\n\n\"The mightiest of them.\" replied Har, \"is Thor. He is called Asa-Thor\nand Auku-Thor, and is the strongest of gods and men. His realm is\nnamed Thrudvang, and his mansion Bilskirnir, in which are five hundred\nand forty halls. It is the largest house ever built.\"\n\n\"Thor has a car drawn by two goats called Tanngniost and Tanngrisnir.\nFrom his driving about in this car he is called Auku-Thor\n(Charioteer-Thor). He likewise possesses three very precious things.\nThe first is a mallet called Mjolnir, which both the Frost and\nMountain Giants know to their cost when they see it hurled against\nthem in the air; and no wonder, for it has split many a skull of their\nfathers and kindred. The second rare thing he possesses is called the\nbelt of strength or prowess (Megingjardir). When he girds it about\nhim his divine might is doubly augmented; the third, also very\nprecious, being his iron gauntlets, which he is obliged to put on\nwhenever he would lay hold of the handle of his mallet. There is no\none so wise as to be able to relate all Thor's marvellous exploits,\nyet I could tell thee so many myself that hours would be whiled away\nere all that I know had been recounted.\"\n\n\nOF BALDUR.\n\n23. \"I would rather,\" said Gangler, \"hear something about the other\n\u00c6sir.\"\n\n\"The second son of Odin,\" replied Har, \"is Baldur, and it may be truly\nsaid of him that he is the best, and that all mankind are loud in his\npraise. So fair and dazzling is he in form and features, that rays of\nlight seem to issue from him; and thou mayst have some idea of the\nbeauty of his hair, when I tell thee that the whitest of all plants is\ncalled Baldur's brow. Baldur is the mildest, the wisest, and the most\neloquent of all the \u00c6sir, yet such is his nature that the judgment he\nhas pronounced can never be altered. He dwells in the heavenly mansion\ncalled Breidablik, in which nothing unclean can enter.\"\n\n\n\nOF NJORD.\n\n24. \"The third god,\" continued Har, \"is Njord, who dwells in the\nheavenly region called Noatun. He rules over the winds, and checks the\nfury of the sea and of fire, and is therefore invoked by sea-farers\nand fishermen. He is so wealthy that he can give possessions and\ntreasures to those who call on him for them. Yet Njord is not of the\nlineage of the \u00c6sir, for he was born and bred in Vanaheim. But the\nVanir gave him as hostage to the \u00c6sir, receiving from them in his\nstead Hoenir. By this means was peace re-established between the \u00c6sir\nand Vanir. Njord took to wife Skadi, the daughter of the giant\nThjassi. She preferred dwelling in the abode formerly belonging to her\nfather, which is situated among rocky mountains, in the region called\nThrymheim, but Njord loved to reside near the sea. They at last agreed\nthat they should pass together nine nights in Thrymheim, and then\nthree in Noatun. One day, when Njord came back from the mountains to\nNoatun, he thus sang--\n\n \"'Of mountains I'm weary,\n Not long was I there,\n Not more than nine nights;\n\n But the howl of the wolf\n Methought sounded ill\n To the song of the swan-bird.'\n\n\"To which Skadi sang in reply--\n\n \"'Ne'er can I sleep\n In my couch on the strand,\n For the screams of the sea-fowl,\n The mew as he comes\n Every morn from the main\n Is sure to awake me.'\n\n\"Skadi then returned to the rocky mountains, and abode in Thrymheim.\nThere, fastening on her snow-skates and taking her bow, she passes her\ntime in the chase of savage beasts, and is called the Ondur goddess,\nor Ondurdis. As it is said--\n\n \"'Thrymheim's the land\n Where Thjassi abode\n That mightiest of giants.\n But snow-skating Skadi\n Now dwells there, I trow,\n In her father's old mansion.'\"\n\n\nOF THE GOD FREY, AND THE GODDESS FREYJA.\n\n25. \"Njord had afterwards, at his residence at Noatun, two children,\na son named Frey, and a daughter called Freyja, both of them beauteous\nand mighty. Frey is one of the most celebrated of the gods. He\npresides over rain and sunshine, and all the fruits of the earth, and\nshould be invoked in order to obtain good harvests, and also for\npeace. He, moreover, dispenses wealth among men. Freyja is the most\npropitious of the goddesses; her abode in heaven is called Folkvang.\nTo whatever field of battle she rides, she asserts her right to one\nhalf of the slain, the other half belonging to Odin. As it is said--\n\n \"'Folkvang 'tis called\n Where Freyja hath right\n To dispose of the hall seats\n\n Every day of the slain,\n She chooseth the half,\n And half leaves to Odin.'\n\n\"Her mansion, called Sessrumnir, is large and magnificent; thence she\nsallies forth in a car drawn by two cats. She lends a very favourable\near to those who sue to her for assistance. It is from her name that\nwomen of birth and fortune are called in our language Freyjor. She is\nvery fond of love ditties, and all lovers would do well to invoke\nher.\"\n\n\nOF TYR.\n\n26. \"All the gods appear to me,\" said Gangler, \"to have great power,\nand I am not at all surprised that ye are able to perform so many\ngreat achievements, since ye are so well acquainted with the\nattributes and functions of each god, and know what is befitting to\nask from each, in order to succeed. But are there any more of them\nbesides those you have already mentioned?\"\n\n\"Ay,\" answered Har, \"there is Tyr, who is the most daring and intrepid\nof all the gods. 'Tis he who dispenses valour in war, hence warriors\ndo well to invoke him. It has become proverbial to say of a man who\nsurpasses all others in valour that he is _Tyr-strong_, or valiant as\nTyr. A man noted for his wisdom is also said to be 'wise as Tyr.' Let\nme give thee a proof of his intrepidity. When the \u00c6sir were trying to\npersuade the wolf, Fenrir, to let himself be bound up with the chain,\nGleipnir, he, fearing that they would never afterwards unloose him,\nonly consented on the condition that while they were chaining him he\nshould keep Tyr's right hand between his jaws. Tyr did not hesitate to\nput his hand in the monster's mouth, but when Fenrir perceived that\nthe \u00c6sir had no intention to unchain him, he bit the hand off at that\npoint, which has ever since been called the wolf's joint. From that\ntime Tyr has had but one hand. He is not regarded as a peacemaker\namong men.\"\n\n\nOF THE OTHER GODS.\n\n27. \"There is another god,\" continued Har, \"named Bragi, who is\ncelebrated for his wisdom, and more especially for his eloquence and\ncorrect forms of speech. He is not only eminently skilled in poetry,\nbut the art itself is called from his name _Bragr_, which epithet is\nalso applied to denote a distinguished poet or poetess. His wife is\nnamed Iduna. She keeps in a box the apples which the gods, when they\nfeel old age approaching, have only to taste of to become young again.\nIt is in this manner that they will be kept in renovated youth until\nRagnarok.\"\n\n\"Methinks,\" interrupted Gangler, \"the gods have committed a great\ntreasure to the guardianship and good faith of Iduna.\"\n\n\"And hence it happened,\" replied Har, smiling, \"that they once ran the\ngreatest risk imaginable, as I shall have occasion to tell thee when\nthou hast heard the names of the other deities.\n\n28. \"One of them is Heimdall, called also the White God. He is the\nson of nine virgins, who were sisters, and is a very sacred and\npowerful deity. He also bears the appellation of the Gold-toothed, on\naccount of his teeth being of pure gold, and also that of\nHallinskithi. His horse is called Gulltopp, and he dwells in\nHiminbjorg at the end of Bifrost. He is the warder of the gods, and is\ntherefore placed on the borders of heaven, to prevent the giants from\nforcing their way over the bridge. He requires less sleep than a bird,\nand sees by night, as well as by day, a hundred miles around him. So\nacute is his ear that no sound escapes him, for he can even hear the\ngrass growing on the earth, and the wool on a sheep's back. He has a\nhorn called the Gjallar-horn, which is heard throughout the universe.\nHis sword is called Hofud (Head).\n\n\nHODUR THE BLIND, ASSASSIN OF BALDUR\n\n29. \"Among the \u00c6sir,\" continued Har, \"we also reckon Hodur, who is\nblind, but extremely strong. Both gods and men would be very glad if\nthey never had occasion to pronounce his name, for they will long have\ncause to remember the deed perpetrated by his hand.[132]\n\n30. \"Another god is Vidar, surnamed the Silent, who wears very thick\nshoes. He is almost as strong as Thor himself, and the gods place\ngreat reliance on him in all critical conjunctures.\n\n31. \"Vali, another god, is the son of Odin and Rinda, he is bold in\nwar, and an excellent archer.\n\n32. \"Another is called Ullur, who is the son of Sif, and stepson of\nThor. He is so well skilled in the use of the bow, and can go so fast\non his snow-skates, that in these arts no one can contend with him. He\nis also very handsome in his person, and possesses every quality of a\nwarrior, wherefore it is befitting to invoke him in single combats.\n\n33. \"The name of another god is Forseti, who is the son of Baldur\nand Nanna, the daughter of Nef. He possesses the heavenly mansion\ncalled Glitnir, and all disputants at law who bring their cases before\nhim go away perfectly reconciled.\n\n\"His tribunal is the best that is to be found among gods or men.\n\n\nOF LOKI AND HIS PROGENY.\n\n34. \"There is another deity,\" continued Har, \"reckoned in the number\nof the \u00c6sir, whom some call the calumniator of the gods, the contriver\nof all fraud and mischief, and the disgrace of gods and men. His name\nis Loki or Loptur. He is the son of the giant Farbauti. His mother is\nLaufey or Nal; his brothers are Byleist and Helblindi. Loki is\nhandsome and well made, but of a very fickle mood, and most evil\ndisposition. He surpasses all beings in those arts called Cunning and\nPerfidy. Many a time has he exposed the gods to very great perils, and\noften extricated them again by his artifices. His wife is called\nSiguna, and their son Nari.\n\n35. \"Loki,\" continued Har, \"has likewise had three children by\nAngurbodi, a giantess of Jotunheim. The first is the wolf Fenrir; the\nsecond Jormungand, the Midgard serpent; the third Hela (Death). The\ngods were not long ignorant that these monsters continued to be bred\nup in Jotunheim, and, having had recourse to divination, became aware\nof all the evils they would have to suffer from them; their being\nsprung from such a mother was a bad presage, and from such a sire was\nstill worse. All-father therefore deemed it advisable to send one of\nthe gods to bring them to him. When they came he threw the serpent\ninto that deep ocean by which the earth is engirdled. But the monster\nhas grown to such an enormous size that, holding his tail in his\nmouth, he encircles the whole earth. Hela he cast into Nifelheim, and\ngave her power over nine worlds (regions), into which she distributes\nthose who are sent to her, that is to say, all who die through\nsickness or old age. Here she possesses a habitation protected by\nexceedingly high walls and strongly barred gates. Her hall is called\nElvidnir; Hunger is her table; Starvation, her knife; Delay, her man;\nSlowness, her maid; Precipice, her threshold; Care, her bed; and\nBurning Anguish forms the hangings of her apartments. The one half of\nher body is livid, the other half the colour of human flesh. She may\ntherefore easily be recognized; the more so, as she has a dreadfully\nstern and grim countenance.\n\n\"The wolf Fenrir was bred up among the gods; but Tyr alone had the\ndaring to go and feed him. Nevertheless, when the gods perceived that\nhe every day increased prodigiously in size, and that the oracles\nwarned them that he would one day become fatal to them, they\ndetermined to make a very strong iron fetter for him, which they\ncalled L\u00e6ding. Taking this fetter to the wolf, they bade him try his\nstrength on it. Fenrir, perceiving that the enterprise would not be\nvery difficult for him, let them do what they pleased, and then, by\ngreat muscular exertion, burst the chain and set himself at liberty.\nThe gods, having seen this, made another fetter, half as strong again\nas the former, which they called Dromi, and prevailed on the wolf to\nput it on, assuring him that, by breaking this, he would give an\nundeniable proof of his vigour.\n\n\"The wolf saw well enough that it would not be so easy to break this\nfetter, but finding at the same time that his strength had increased\nsince he broke L\u00e6ding, and thinking that he could never become famous\nwithout running some risk, voluntarily submitted to be chained. When\nthe gods told him that they had finished their task, Fenrir shook\nhimself violently, stretched his limbs, rolled on the ground, and at\nlast burst his chains, which flew in pieces all around him. He then\nfreed himself from Dromi, which gave rise to the proverb, 'to get\nloose out of L\u00e6ding, or to dash out of Dromi,' when anything is to be\naccomplished by strong efforts.\n\n\nBINDING THE WOLF FENIR\n\n\"After this, the gods despaired of ever being able to bind the wolf;\nwherefore All-father sent Skirnir, the messenger of Frey, into the\ncountry of the Dark Elves (Svartalfaheim) to engage certain dwarfs to\nmake the fetter called Gleipnir. It was fashioned out of six things;\nto wit, the noise made by the footfall of a cat; the beards of women;\nthe roots of stones; the sinews of bears; the breath of fish; and the\nspittle of birds. Though thou mayest not have heard of these things\nbefore, thou mayest easily convince thyself that we have not been\ntelling thee lies. Thou must have seen that women have no beards, that\ncats make no noise when they run, and that there are no roots under\nstones. Now I know what has been told thee to be equally true,\nalthough there may be some things thou art not able to furnish a proof\nof.\"\n\n\"I believe what thou hast told me to be true,\" replied Gangler, \"for\nwhat thou hast adduced in corroboration of thy statement is\nconceivable. But how was the fetter smithied?\"\n\n\"This can I tell thee,\" replied Har, \"that the fetter was as smooth\nand soft as a silken string, and yet, as thou wilt presently hear, of\nvery great strength. When it was brought to the gods, they were\nprofuse in their thanks to the messenger for the trouble he had given\nhimself; and taking the wolf with them to the island called Lyngvi, in\nthe Lake Amsvartnir, they showed him the cord, and expressed their\nwish that he would try to break it, assuring him at the same time that\nit was somewhat stronger than its thinness would warrant a person in\nsupposing it to be. They took it themselves, one after another, in\ntheir hands, and after attempting in vain to break it, said, 'Thou\nalone, Fenrir, art able to accomplish such a feat.'\n\n\"'Methinks,' replied the wolf, 'that I shall acquire no fame in\nbreaking such a slender cord; but if any artifice has been employed in\nmaking it, slender though it seems, it shall never come on my feet.'\n\n\"The gods assured him that he would easily break a limber silken cord,\nsince he had already burst asunder iron fetters of the most solid\nconstruction. 'But if thou shouldst not succeed in breaking it,' they\nadded, 'thou wilt show that thou art too weak to cause the gods any\nfear, and we will not hesitate to set thee at liberty without delay.'\n\n\"'I fear me much,' replied he wolf, 'that if ye once bind me so fast\nthat I shall be unable to free myself by my own efforts, ye will be in\nno haste to unloose me. Loath am I, therefore, to have this cord wound\nround me; but in order that ye may not doubt my courage, I will\nconsent, provided one of you put his hand into my mouth as a pledge\nthat ye intend me no deceit.'\n\n\"The gods wistfully looked at each other, and found that they had\nonly the choice of two evils, until Tyr stepped forward and intrepidly\nput his right hand between the monster's jaws. Hereupon the gods,\nhaving tied up the wolf, he forcibly stretched himself as he had\nformerly done, and used all his might to disengage himself, but the\nmore efforts he made the tighter became the cord, until all the gods,\nexcept Tyr, who lost his hand, burst into laughter at the sight.\n\n\"When the gods saw that the wolf was effectually bound, they took the\nchain called Gelgja, which was fixed to the fetter, and drew it\nthrough the middle of a large rock named Gjoll, which they sank very\ndeep into the earth; afterwards, to make it still more secure, they\nfastened the end of the cord to a massive stone called Thviti, which\nthey sank still deeper. The wolf made in vain the most violent efforts\nto break loose, and opening his tremendous jaws endeavoured to bite\nthem. The gods seeing this, thrust a sword into his mouth, which\npierced his under-jaw to the hilt, so that the point touched the\npalate. He then began to howl horribly, and since that time the foam\nflows continually from his mouth in such abundance that it forms the\nriver called Von. There will he remain until Ragnarok.\"\n\n\"Verily,\" said Gangler, \"an evil progeny is that of Loki, yet most\nmighty and powerful; but since the gods have so much to fear from the\nwolf, why did they not slay him?\"\n\n\"The gods have so much respect for the sanctity of their\npeace-steads,\" replied Har, \"that they would not stain them with the\nblood of the wolf, although prophecy had intimated to them that he\nmust one day become the bane of Odin.\"\n\n\nOF THE GODDESSES.\n\n36. \"Tell me now,\" said Gangler, \"which are the goddesses?\"\n\n\"The first,\" replied Har, \"is Frigga, who has a magnificent mansion\ncalled Fensalir. The second is Saga, who dwells at Sokkvabekk, a very\nlarge and stately abode. The third is Eir, the best of all in the\nhealing art. The fourth, named Gefjon, is a maid, and all those who\ndie maids become her hand-maidens. The fifth is Fulla, who is also a\nmaid, and goes about with her hair flowing over her shoulders, and her\nhead adorned with a gold ribbon. She is entrusted with the toilette\nand slippers of Frigga, and admitted into the most important secrets\nof that goddess. Freyja is ranked next to Frigga: she is wedded to a\nperson called Odur, and their daughter, named Hnossa, is so very\nhandsome that whatever is beautiful and precious is called by her name\n(_hnosir_.) But Odur left his wife in order to travel into very remote\ncountries. Since that time Freyja continually weeps, and her tears are\ndrops of pure gold. She has a great variety of names, for having gone\nover many countries in search of her husband, each people gave her a\ndifferent name. She is thus called Mardoll, Horn, Gefn, and Syr, and\nalso Vanadis. She possesses the necklace Brising. The seventh goddess\nis Sjofna, who delights in turning men's hearts and thoughts to love;\nhence a wooer is called, from her name, _Sjafni_. The eighth, called\nLofna, is so mild and gracious to those who invoke her, that by a\npeculiar privilege which either All-Father himself or Frigga has given\nher, she can remove every obstacle that may prevent the union of\nlovers sincerely attached to each other. Hence her name is applied to\ndenote love, and whatever is beloved by men. Vora, the ninth goddess,\nlistens to the oaths that men take, and particularly to the troth\nplighted between man and woman, and punishes those who keep not their\npromises. She is wise and prudent, and so penetrating that nothing\nremains hidden from her. Syn, the tenth, keeps the door in the hall,\nand shuts it against those who ought not to enter. She presides at\ntrials when any thing is to be denied on oath, whence the proverb,\n'Syn (negation) is set against it,' when ought is denied. Hlina, the\neleventh, has the care of those whom Frigga intends to deliver from\nperil. Snotra, the twelfth, is wise and courteous, and men and women\nwho possess these qualities have her name applied to them. Gna, the\nthirteenth, is the messenger that Frigga sends into the various worlds\non her errands. She has a horse that can run through air and water,\ncalled Hofvarpnir. Once, as she drove out, certain Vanir saw her car\nin the air, when one of them exclaimed,\n\n \"'What flieth there?\n What goeth there?\n In the air aloft what glideth?'\n\n\"She answered,\n\n \"'I fly not though I go,\n And glide through the air\n On Hofvarpnir,\n Whose sire's Hamskerpir,\n And dam Gardrofa.'\n\n\"Sol and Bil are also reckoned among the goddesses, but their nature\nhas already been explained to thee.\n\n37. \"There are besides these a great many other goddesses, whose\nduty it is to serve in Valhalla; to bear in the drink and take care of\nthe drinking-horns and whatever belongs to the table. They are named\nin Grimnismal, and are called Valkyrjor. Odin sends them to every\nfield of battle, to make choice of those who are to be slain, and to\nsway the victory. Gudur, Rota, and the youngest of the Norns, Skuld,\nalso ride forth to choose the slain and turn the combat. Jord (earth),\nthe mother of Thor, and Rinda, the mother of Vali, are also reckoned\namongst the goddesses.\"\n\n\nOF FREY AND GERDA.\n\n38. \"There was a man,\" continued Har, \"named Gymir, who had for wife\nAurboda, of the race of the Mountain-giants. Their daughter is Gerda,\nwho is the most beautiful of all women. One day Frey having placed\nhimself in Hlidskjalf, to take a view of the whole universe,\nperceived, as he looked towards the north, a large and stately mansion\nwhich a woman was going to enter, and as she lifted up the latch of\nthe door so great a radiancy was thrown from her hand that the air and\nwaters, and all worlds were illuminated by it. At this sight, Frey, as\na just punishment for his audacity in mounting on that sacred throne,\nwas struck with sudden sadness, insomuch so, that on his return home\nhe could neither speak, nor sleep, nor drink, nor did any one dare to\ninquire the cause of his affliction; but Njord, at last, sent for\nSkirnir, the messenger of Frey, and charged him to demand of his\nmaster why he thus refused to speak to any one. Skirnir promised to do\nthis, though with great reluctance, fearing that all he had to expect\nwas a severe reprimand. He, however, went to Frey, and asked him\nboldly why he was so sad and silent. Frey answered, that he had seen a\nmaiden of such surpassing beauty that if he could not possess her he\nshould not live much longer, and that this was what rendered him so\nmelancholy. 'Go, therefore,' he added, 'and ask her hand for me, and\nbring her here whether her father be willing or not, and I will amply\nreward thee.' Skirnir undertook to perform the task, provided he might\nbe previously put in possession of Frey's sword, which was of such\nexcellent quality that it would of itself strew a field with carnage\nwhenever the owner ordered it. Frey, impatient of delay, immediately\nmade him a present of the sword, and Skirnir set out on his journey\nand obtained the maiden's promise, that within nine nights she would\ncome to a place called Barey, and there wed Frey. Skirnir having\nreported the success of his message, Frey exclaimed,\n\n \"'Long is one night,\n Long are two nights,\n But how shall I hold out three?\n Shorter hath seemed\n A month to me oft\n Than of this longing-time the half.'\n\n\"Frey having thus given away his sword, found himself without arms\nwhen he fought with Beli, and hence it was that he slew him with a\nstag's antlers.\"\n\n\"But it seems very astonishing,\" interrupted Gangler, \"that such a\nbrave hero as Frey should give away his sword without keeping another\nequally good for himself. He must have been in a very bad plight when\nhe encountered Beli, and methinks must have mightily repented him of\nthe gift.\"\n\n\"That combat,\" replied Har, \"was a trifling affair. Frey could have\nkilled Beli with a blow of his fist had he felt inclined: but the time\nwill come when the sons of Muspell shall issue forth to the fight, and\nthen, indeed, will Frey truly regret having parted with his falchion.\"\n\n\nOF THE JOYS OF VALHALLA.\n\n39. \"If it be as thou hast told me,\" said Gangler, \"that all men who\nhave fallen in fight since the beginning of the world are gone to\nOdin, in Valhalla, what has he to give them to eat, for methinks there\nmust be a great crowd there?\"\n\n\"What thou sayest is quite true,\" replied Har, \"the crowd there is\nindeed great, but great though it be, it will still increase, and will\nbe thought too little when the wolf cometh. But however great the band\nof men in Valhalla may be, the flesh of the boar S\u00e6hrimnir will more\nthan suffice for their sustenance. For although this boar is sodden\nevery morning he becomes whole again every night. But there are few,\nmethinks, who are wise enough to give thee, in this respect, a\nsatisfactory answer to thy question. The cook is called Andhrimnir,\nand the kettle Eldhrimnir. As it is said,--'Andhrimnir cooks in\nEldhrimnir, S\u00e6hrimnir.' 'Tis the best of flesh, though few know how\nmuch is required for the Einherjar.\"\n\n\"But has Odin,\" said Gangler, \"the same food as the heroes?\"\n\n\"Odin,' replied Har, 'gives the meat that is set before him to two\nwolves, called Geri and Freki, for he himself stands in no need of\nfood. Wine is for him both meat and drink.\n\n\"Two ravens sit on Odin's shoulders and whisper in his ear the tidings\nand events they have heard and witnessed. They are called Hugin and\nMunin.[133] He sends them out at dawn of day to fly over the whole\nworld, and they return at eve towards meal time. Hence it is that Odin\nknows so many things, and is called the Raven's God. As it is said,--\n\n 'Hugin and Munin\n Each dawn take their flight\n Earth's fields over.\n\n I fear me for Hugin,\n Lest he come not back,\n But much more for Munin.'\"\n\n40. \"What have the heroes to drink,\" said Gangler, \"in sufficient\nquantity to correspond to their plentiful supply of meat: do they only\ndrink water?\"\n\n\"A very silly question is that,\" replied Har; \"dost thou imagine that\nAll-Father would invite kings and jarls and other great men and give\nthem nothing to drink but water! In that case, methinks, many of those\nwho had endured the greatest hardships, and received deadly wounds in\norder to obtain access to Valhalla, would find that they had paid too\ngreat a price for their water drink, and would indeed have reason to\ncomplain were they there to meet with no better entertainment. But\nthou wilt see that the case is quite otherwise. For the she-goat,\nnamed Heidrun, stands above Valhalla, and feeds on the leaves of a\nvery famous tree called L\u00e6rath, and from her teats flows mead in such\ngreat abundance that every day a stoop, large enough to hold more than\nwould suffice for all the heroes, is filled with it.\"\n\n\"Verily,\" said Gangler, \"a mighty useful goat is this, and methinks\nthe tree she feeds on must have very singular virtues.\"\n\n\"Still more wonderful,\" replied Har, \"is what is told of the stag\nEikthyrnir. This stag also stands over Valhalla and feeds upon the\nleaves of the same tree, and whilst he is feeding so many drops fall\nfrom his antlers down into Hvergelmir that they furnish sufficient\nwater for the rivers that issuing thence flow through the celestial\nabodes.\"\n\n41. \"Wondrous things are these which thou tellest me of,\" said\nGangler, \"and Valhalla must needs be an immense building, but methinks\nthere must often be a great press at the door among such a number of\npeople constantly thronging in and out?\"\n\n\"Why dost thou not ask,\" replied Har, \"how many doors there are, and\nwhat are their dimensions; then wouldst thou be able to judge whether\nthere is any difficulty in going in and out. Know, then, that there is\nno lack of either seats or doors. As it is said in Grimnismal:--\n\n \"'Five hundred doors\n And forty more\n Methinks are in Valhalla.\n Eight hundred heroes through each door\n Shall issue forth\n Against the wolf to combat.'\"\n\n42. \"A mighty band of men must be in Valhalla,\" said Gangler, \"and\nmethinks Odin must be a great chieftain to command such a numerous\nhost. But how do the heroes pass their time when they are not\ndrinking?\"\n\n\"Every day,\" replied Har, \"as soon as they have dressed themselves\nthey ride out into the court (or field), and there fight until they\ncut each other to pieces. This is their pastime, but when meal-time\napproaches they remount their steeds and return to drink in Valhalla.\nAs it is said:--\n\n \"'The Einherjar all\n On Odin's plain\n Hew daily each other,\n While chosen the slain are.\n From the fray they then ride,\n And drink ale with the \u00c6sir.'\n\n\"Thou hast thus reason to say that Odin is great and mighty, for there\nare many proofs of this. As it is said in the very words of the\n\u00c6sir:--\n\n \"'The ash Yggdrasill\n Is the first of trees,\n As Skidbladnir of ships,\n Odin of \u00c6sir,\n Sleipnir of steeds,\n Bifrost of bridges,\n Bragi of bards,\n Habrok of hawks,\n And Garm of hounds is.'\n\n\nOF THE HORSE SLEIPNIR.\n\n43. \"Thou mad'st mention,\" said Gangler, \"of the horse Sleipnir. To\nwhom does he belong, and what is there to say respecting him?\"\n\n\"Thou seemest to know nothing either about Sleipnir or his origin,\"\nreplied Har, \"but thou wilt no doubt find what thou wilt hear worthy\nof thy notice. Once on a time when the gods were constructing their\nabodes, and had already finished Midgard and Valhalla, a certain\nartificer came and offered to build them, in the space of three half\nyears, a residence so well fortified that they should be perfectly\nsafe from the incursion of the Frost-giants, and the giants of the\nmountains, even although they should have penetrated within Midgard.\nBut he demanded for his reward the goddess Freyja, together with the\nsun and moon. After long deliberation the \u00c6sir agreed to his terms,\nprovided he would finish the whole work himself without any one's\nassistance, and all within the space of one winter, but if anything\nremained unfinished on the first day of summer, he should forfeit the\nrecompense agreed on. On being told these terms, the artificer\nstipulated that he should be allowed the use of his horse, called\nSvadilfari, and this, by the advice of Loki, was granted to him. He\naccordingly set to work on the first day of winter, and during the\nnight let his horse draw stone for the building. The enormous size of\nthe stones struck the \u00c6sir with astonishment, and they saw clearly\nthat the horse did one half more of the toilsome work than his master.\nTheir bargain, however, had been concluded in the presence of\nwitnesses, and confirmed by solemn oaths, for without these\nprecautions a giant would not have thought himself safe among the\n\u00c6sir, especially when Thor returned from an expedition he had then\nundertaken towards the east against evil demons.\n\n\"As the winter drew to a close the building was far advanced, and the\nbulwarks were sufficiently high and massive to render this residence\nimpregnable. In short, when it wanted but three days to summer the\nonly part that remained to be finished was the gateway. Then sat the\ngods on their seats of justice and entered into consultation,\ninquiring of one another who among them could have advised to give\nFreyja away to Jotunheim, or to plunge the heavens in darkness by\npermitting the giant to carry away the sun and moon. They all agreed\nthat no one but Loki, the son of Laufey, and the author of so many\nevil deeds, could have given such bad counsel, and that he should be\nput to a cruel death if he did not contrive some way or other to\nprevent the artificer from completing his task and obtaining the\nstipulated recompense. They immediately proceeded to lay hands on\nLoki, who, in his fright, promised upon oath that let it cost him what\nit would, he would so manage matters that the man should lose his\nreward. That very night, when the artificer went with Svadilfari for\nbuilding stone, a mare suddenly ran out of a forest and began to\nneigh. The horse being thus excited, broke loose and ran after the\nmare into the forest, which obliged the man also to run after his\nhorse, and thus between one and the other the whole night was lost, so\nthat at dawn the work had not made the usual progress. The man seeing\nthat he had no other means of completing his task, resumed his own\ngigantic stature, and the gods now clearly perceived that it was in\nreality a Mountain-giant who had come amongst them. No longer\nregarding their oaths, they, therefore, called on Thor, who\nimmediately ran to their assistance, and lifting up his mallet Mjolnir\npaid the workman his wages, not with the sun and moon, and not even by\nsending him back to Jotunheim, for with the first blow he shattered\nthe giant's skull to pieces, and hurled him headlong into Nifelhel.\nBut Loki had run such a race with Svadilfari that shortly after he\nbore a grey foal with eight legs. This is the horse Sleipnir, which\nexcels all horses ever possessed by gods or men.\"\n\n\nOF THE SHIP SKIDBLADNIR.\n\n44. \"What hast thou to say,\" demanded Gangler, \"of Skidbladnir,\nwhich thou toldst me was the best of ships? Is there no other ship as\ngood or as large?\"\n\n\"Skidbladnir,\" replied Har, \"is without doubt the best and most\nartfully constructed of any, but the ship Nagffar is of larger size.\nThey were dwarfs, the sons of Ivaldi, who built Skidbladnir, and made\na present of her to Frey. She is so large that all the \u00c6sir with their\nweapons and war stores find room on board her. As soon as the sails\nare set a favourable breeze arises and carries her to her place of\ndestination, and she is made of so many pieces, and with so much\nskill, that when she is not wanted for a voyage Frey may fold her\ntogether like a piece of cloth, and put her in his pocket.\"\n\n\"A good ship truly, is Skidbladnir,\" said Gangler, \"and many cunning\ncontrivances and spells must, no doubt, have been used in her\nconstruction.\"\n\n\nTHOR'S ADVENTURES ON HIS JOURNEY TO THE LAND OF THE GIANTS.\n\n45. \"But tell me,\" he (Gangler) continued, \"did it ever happen to\nThor in his expeditions to be overcome either by spells or by\ndownright force?\"\n\n\"Few can take upon them to affirm this,\" replied Har, \"and yet it has\noften fared hard enough with him; but had he in reality been worsted\nin any rencounter there would be no need to make mention of it, since\nall are bound to believe that nothing can resist his power.\"\n\n\"It would, therefore, appear,\" said Gangler, \"that I have asked of you\nthings that none of you are able to tell me of.\"\n\n\"There are, indeed, some such rumours current among us,\" answered\nJafnhar, \"but they are hardly credible; however, there is one sitting\nhere can impart them to thee, and thou shouldst the rather believe\nhim, for never having yet uttered an untruth, he will not now begin to\ndeceive thee with false stories.\"\n\n\"Here then will I stand,\" said Gangler, \"and listen to what ye have to\nsay, but if ye cannot answer my question satisfactorily I shall look\nupon you as vanquished.\"\n\nThen spake Thridi and said, \"We can easily conceive that thou art\ndesirous of knowing these tidings, but it behooves thee to guard a\nbecoming silence respecting them. The story I have to relate is\nthis:--\n\n46. \"One day the God Thor set out in his car drawn by two he-goats,\nand accompanied by Loki, on a journey. Night coming on, they put up at\na peasant's cottage, where Thor killed his goats, and after flaying\nthem, put them in the kettle. When the flesh was sodden, he sat down\nwith his fellow-traveller to supper, and invited the peasant and his\nfamily to partake of his repast. The peasant's son was named Thjalfi,\nand his daughter Roska. Thor bade them throw all the bones into the\ngoats' skins which were spread out near the fire-place, but young\nThjalfi broke one of the shank bones with his knife to come to the\nmarrow. Thor having passed the night in the cottage, rose at the dawn\nof day, and when he was dressed took his mallet Mjolnir, and lifting\nit up, consecrated the goats' skins, which he had no sooner done than\nthe two goats re-assumed their wonted form, only that one of them now\nlimped on one of its hind legs. Thor perceiving this, said that the\npeasant, or one of his family, had handled the shank bone of this goat\ntoo roughly, for he saw clearly that it was broken. It may readily be\nimagined how frightened the peasant was when he saw Thor knit his\nbrows, and grasp the handle of his mallet with such force that the\njoints of his fingers became white from the exertion. Fearing to be\nstruck down by the very looks of the god, the peasant and his family\nmade joint suit for pardon, offering whatever they possessed as an\natonement for the offence committed. Thor, seeing their fear, desisted\nfrom his wrath, and became more placable, and finally contented\nhimself by requiring the peasant's children, Thjalfi and Roska, who\nbecame his bond-servants, and have followed him ever since.\n\n'Leaving his goats with the peasant, Thor proceeded eastward on the\nroad to Jotunheim, until he came to the shores of a vast and deep sea,\nwhich having passed over he penetrated into a strange country along\nwith his companions, Loki, Thjalfi, and Roska. They had not gone far\nbefore they saw before them an immense forest, through which they\nwandered all day. Thjalfi was of all men the swiftest of foot. He bore\nThor's wallet, but the forest was a bad place for finding anything\neatable to stow in it. When it became dark, they searched on all sides\nfor a place where they might pass the night, and at last came to a\nvery large hall with an entrance that took up the whole breadth of one\nof the ends of the building. Here they chose them a place to sleep in;\nbut towards midnight were alarmed by an earthquake which shook the\nwhole edifice. Thor, rising up, called on his companions to seek with\nhim a place of safety. On the right they found an adjoining chamber,\ninto which they entered, but while the others, trembling with fear,\ncrept into the furthest corner of this retreat, Thor remained at the\ndoorway with his mallet in his hand, prepared to defend himself,\nwhatever might happen. A terrible groaning was heard during the night,\nand at dawn of day, Thor went out and observed lying near him a man of\nenormous bulk, who slept and snored pretty loudly. Thor could now\naccount for the noise they had heard over night, and girding on his\nBelt of Prowess, increased that divine strength which he now stood in\nneed of. The giant awakening, rose up, and it is said that for once in\nhis life Thor was afraid to make use of his mallet, and contented\nhimself by simply asking the giant his name.\n\n\"'My name is Skrymir, said the other, 'but I need not ask thy name,\nfor I know thou art the God Thor. But what hast thou done with my\nglove?' And stretching out his hand Skrymir picked up his glove, which\nThor then perceived was what they had taken over night for a hall, the\nchamber where they had sought refuge being the thumb. Skrymir then\nasked whether they would have his fellowship, and Thor consenting, the\ngiant opened his wallet and began to eat his breakfast. Thor and his\ncompanions having also taken their morning repast, though in another\nplace, Skrymir proposed that they should lay their provisions\ntogether, which Thor also assented to. The giant then put all the meat\ninto one wallet, which he slung on his back and went before them,\ntaking tremendous strides, the whole day, and at dusk sought out for\nthem a place where they might pass the night under a large oak tree.\nSkrymir then told them that he would lie down to sleep. 'But take ye\nthe wallet,' he added, 'and prepare your supper.'\n\n\"Skrymir soon fell asleep, and began to snore strongly, but incredible\nthough it may appear, it must nevertheless be told, that when Thor\ncame to open the wallet he could not untie a single knot, nor render a\nsingle string looser than it was before. Seeing that his labour was in\nvain, Thor became wroth, and grasping his mallet with both hands while\nhe advanced a step forward, launched it at the giant's head. Skrymir,\nawakening, merely asked whether a leaf had not fallen on his head, and\nwhether they had supped and were ready to go to sleep. Thor answered\nthat they were just going to sleep, and so saying, went and laid\nhimself down under another oak tree. But sleep came not that night to\nThor, and when he remarked that Skrymir snored again so loud that the\nforest re-echoed with the noise, he arose, and grasping his mallet,\nlaunched it with such force that it sunk into the giant's skull up to\nthe handle. Skrymir awakening, cried out--\n\n\"'What's the matter? did an acorn fall on my head? How fares it with\nthee, Thor?'\n\n\"But Thor went away hastily, saying that he had just then awoke, and\nthat as it was only midnight there was still time for sleep. He\nhowever resolved that if he had an opportunity of striking a third\nblow, it should settle all matters between them. A little before\ndaybreak he perceived that Skrymir was again fast asleep, and again\ngrasping his mallet, dashed it with such violence that it forced its\nway into the giant's cheek up to the handle. But Skrymir sat up, and\nstroking his cheek, said--\n\n\"'Are there any birds perched on this tree? Methought when I awoke\nsome moss from the branches fell on my head. What! Art thou awake,\nThor? Methinks it is time for us to get up and dress ourselves; but\nyou have not now a long way before you to the city called Utgard. I\nhave heard you whispering to one another that I am not a man of small\ndimensions; but if you come into Utgard you will see there many men\nmuch taller than myself. Wherefore I advise you, when you come there,\nnot to make too much of yourselves, for the followers of Utgard-Loki\nwill not brook the boasting of such mannikins as ye are. The best\nthing you could do would probably be to turn back again, but if you\npersist in going on, take the road that leads eastward, for mine now\nlies northward to those rocks which you may see in the distance.'\n\n\"Hereupon, he threw his wallet over his shoulders and turned away from\nthem, into the forest, and I could never hear that Thor wished to meet\nwith him a second time.\n\n47. \"Thor and his companions proceeded on their way, and towards\nnoon descried a city standing in the middle of a plain. It was so\nlofty that they were obliged to bend their necks quite back on their\nshoulders ere they could see to the top of it. On arriving at the\nwalls they found the gateway closed with a gate of bars strongly\nlocked and bolted. Thor, after trying in vain to open it, crept with\nhis companions through the bars, and thus succeeded in gaining\nadmission into the city. Seeing a large palace before them, with the\ndoor wide open, they went in and found a number of men of prodigious\nstature sitting on benches in the hall. Going further, they came\nbefore the king, Utgard-Loki, whom they saluted with great respect.\nTheir salutations were however returned by a contemptuous look from\nthe king, who, after regarding them for some time, said with a\nscornful smile--\n\n\"'It is tedious to ask for tidings of a long journey, yet if I do not\nmistake me, that stripling there must be Aku-Thor. Perhaps,' he added,\naddressing himself to Thor, 'thou mayst be taller than thou appearest\nto be. But what are the feats that thou and thy fellows deem\nyourselves skilled in, for no one is permitted to remain here who does\nnot, in some feat or other, excel all other men.'\n\n\"'The feat I know,' replied Loki, 'is to eat quicker than any one\nelse, and in this I am ready to give a proof against any one here who\nmay choose to compete with me.'\n\n\"'That will indeed be a feat,' said Utgard-Loki, 'if thou performest\nwhat thou promisest, and it shall be tried forthwith.'\n\n\"He then ordered one of his men, who was sitting at the further end of\nthe bench, and whose name was Logi,[134] to come forward and try his\nskill with Loki. A trough filled with flesh meat having been set on\nthe hall floor, Loki placed himself at one end, and Logi at the other,\nand each of them, began to eat as fast as he could, until they met in\nthe middle of the trough. But it was found that Loki had only eaten\nthe flesh, whereas his adversary had devoured both flesh and bone, and\nthe trough to boot. All the company therefore adjudged that Loki was\nvanquished.\n\n\"Utgard-Loki then asked what feat the young man who accompanied Thor\ncould perform. Thjalfi answered that he would run a race with any one\nwho might be matched against him. The king observed that skill in\nrunning was something to boast of, but that if the youth would win the\nmatch he must display great agility. He then arose and went with all\nwho were present to a plain where there was a good ground for running\non, and calling a young man named Hugi,[135] bade him run a match with\nThjalfi. In the first course Hugi so much outstripped his competitor\nthat he turned back and met him not far from the starting-place.\n\n\"'Thou must ply thy legs better, Thjalfi,' said Utgard-Loki, 'if thou\nwilt win the match, though I must needs say that there never came a\nman here swifter of foot than thou art.'\n\n\"In the second course, Thjalfi was a full bow-shot from the goal when\nHugi arrived at it.\n\n\"'Most bravely dost thou run, Thjalfi,' said Utgard-Loki, 'though thou\nwilt not, methinks, win the match. But the third, course must decide.'\n\n\"They accordingly ran a third time, but Hugi had already reached the\ngoal before Thjalfi had got half way. All who were present then cried\nout that there had been a sufficient trial of skill in this kind of\nexercise.\n\n50. \"Utgard-Loki then asked Thor in what feats he would choose to\ngive proofs of that dexterity for which he was so famous. Thor\nreplied, that he would begin a drinking match with any one.\nUtgard-Loki consented, and entering the palace, bade his cupbearer\nbring the large horn which his followers were obliged to drink out of\nwhen they had trespassed in any way against established usage. The\ncupbearer having presented it to Thor, Utgard-Loki said--\n\n\"'Whoever is a good drinker will empty that horn at a single draught,\nthough some men make two of it, but the most puny drinker of all can\ndo it at three.'\n\n\"Thor looked at the horn, which seemed of no extraordinary size,\nthough somewhat long; however, as he was very thirsty, he set it to\nhis lips, and without drawing breath pulled as long and as deeply as\nhe could, that he might not be obliged to make a second draught of it;\nbut when he set the horn down and looked in, he could scarcely\nperceive that the liquor was diminished.\n\n\"''Tis well drunken,' exclaimed Utgard-Loki, 'though nothing much to\nboast of; and I would not have believed had it been told me that\nAsa-Thor could not have taken a greater draught, but thou no doubt\nmeanest to make amends at the second pull.'\n\n\"Thor, without answering, went to it again with all his might, but\nwhen he took the horn from his mouth it seemed to him as if he had\ndrunk rather less than before, although the horn could now be carried\nwithout spilling.\n\n\"'How now, Thor,' said Utgard-Loki; 'thou must not spare thyself more\nin performing a feat than befits thy skill; but if thou meanest to\ndrain the horn at the third draught thou must pull deeply; and I must\nneeds say that thou wilt not be called so mighty a man here as thou\nart among the \u00c6sir, if thou showest no greater prowess in other feats\nthan, methinks, will be shown in this.'\n\n\"Thor, full of wrath, again set the horn to his lips, and exerted\nhimself to the utmost to empty it entirely, but on looking in found\nthat the liquor was only a little lower, upon which he resolved to\nmake no further attempt, but gave back the horn to the cupbearer.\n\n51. \"'I now see plainly,' said Utgard-Loki, 'that thou are not quite\nso stout as we thought thee, but wilt thou try any other feat, though,\nmethinks, thou art not likely to bear any prize away with thee hence.'\n\n\"'I will try another feat,' replied Thor, 'and I am sure such draughts\nas I have been drinking would not have been reckoned small among the\n\u00c6sir; but what new trial hast thou to propose?'\n\n\"'We have a very, trifling game here,' answered Ut-gard-Loki, 'in\nwhich we exercise none but children. It consists in merely lifting my\ncat from the ground, nor should I have dared to mention such a feat to\nAsa-Thor if I had not already observed that thou art by no means what\nwe took thee for.'\n\n\"As he finished speaking, a large grey cat sprung on the hall floor.\nThor advancing put his hand under the cat's belly, and did his utmost\nto raise him from the floor, but the cat bending his back had,\nnotwithstanding all Thor's efforts, only one of his feet lifted up,\nseeing which, Thor made no further attempt.\n\n\"'This trial has turned out,' said Utgard-Loki, 'just as I imagined it\nwould; the cat is large, but Thor is little in comparison to our men.'\n\n\"'Little as ye call me,' answered Thor, 'let me see who amongst you\nwill come hither now I am in wrath, and wrestle with me.'\n\n\"'I see no one here,' said Utgard-Loki, looking at the men sitting on\nthe benches, 'who would not think it beneath him to wrestle with thee;\nlet somebody, however, call hither that old crone, my nurse Elli,[136]\nand let Thor wrestle with her if he will. She has thrown to the\nground many a man not less strong and mighty than this Thor is.'\n\n53. \"A toothless old woman then entered the hall, and was told by\nUtgard-Loki to take hold of Thor. The tale is shortly told. The more\nThor tightened his hold on the crone the firmer she stood. At length,\nafter a very violent struggle, Thor began to lose his footing, and was\nfinally brought down upon one knee. Utgard-Loki then told them to\ndesist, adding that Thor had now no occasion to ask any one else in\nthe hall to wrestle with him, and it was also getting late. He\ntherefore showed Thor and his companions to their seats, and they\npassed the night there in good cheer.\n\n54. \"The next morning, at break of day, Thor and his companions\ndressed themselves and prepared for their departure. Utgard-Loki then\ncame and ordered a table to be set for them, on which there was no\nlack either of victuals or drink. After the repast Utgard-Loki led\nthem to the gate of the city, and, on parting, asked Thor how he\nthought his journey had turned out, and whether he had met with any\nmen stronger than himself. Thor told him that he could not deny but\nthat he had brought great shame on himself. 'And what grieves me\nmost,' he added, 'is that ye will call me a man of little worth.'\n\n55. \"'Nay,' said Utgard-Loki, 'it behooves me to tell thee the truth\nnow thou are out of the city which so long as I live, and have my way,\nthou shalt never re-enter. And by my troth, had I known beforehand\nthat thou hadst so much strength in thee, and wouldst have brought me\nso near to a great mishap, I would not have suffered thee to enter\nthis time. Know then that I have all along deceived thee by my\nillusions; first, in the forest, where I arrived before thee, and\nthere thou wert not able to untie the wallet, because I had bound it\nwith iron wire, in such a manner that thou couldst not discover how\nthe knot ought to be loosened. After this, thou gavest me three blows\nwith thy mallet; the first, though the least, would have ended my days\nhad it fallen on me, but I brought a rocky mountain before me which\nthou didst not perceive, and in this mountain thou wilt find three\nglens, one of them remarkably deep. These are the dints made by thy\nmallet. I have made use of similar illusions in the contests ye have\nhad with my followers. In the first, Loki, like hunger itself,\ndevoured all that was set before him, but Logi was, in reality,\nnothing else than ardent fire, and therefore consumed not only the\nmeat but the trough which held it. Hugi, with whom Thjalfi contended\nin running, was Thought, and it was impossible for Thjalfi to keep\npace with that. When thou, in thy turn, didst try to empty the horn,\nthou didst perform, by my troth, a deed so marvellous, that had I not\nseen it myself I should never have believed it. For one end of that\nhorn reached the sea, which thou wast not aware of, but when thou\ncomest to the shore thou wilt perceive how much the sea has sunk by\nthy draughts, which have caused what is now called the ebb. Thou didst\nperform a feat no less wonderful by lifting up the cat, and to tell\nthee the truth, when we saw that one of his paws was off the floor, we\nwere all of us terror-stricken, for what thou tookest for a cat was\nin reality the great Midgard serpent that encompassed the whole earth,\nand he was then barely long enough to inclose it between his head and\ntail, so high had thy hand raised him up towards heaven. Thy wrestling\nwith Elli was also a most astonishing feat, for there was never yet a\nman, nor ever shall be, whom Old Age, for such in fact was Elli, will\nnot sooner or later lay low if he abide her coming. But now as we are\ngoing to part, let me tell thee that it will be better for both of us\nif thou never come near me again, for shouldst thou do so, I shall\nagain defend myself by other illusions, so that thou wilt never\nprevail against me.'\n\n\"On hearing these words, Thor, in a rage, laid hold of his mallet and\nwould have launched it at him, but Utgard-Loki had disappeared, and\nwhen Thor would have returned to the city to-destroy it, he found\nnothing around him but a verdant plain. Proceeding, therefore, on his\nway, he returned without stopping to Thrudvang. But he had already\nresolved to make that attack on the Midgard serpent which afterwards\ntook place. I trust,\" concluded Thridi, \"that thou wilt now\nacknowledge that no one can tell thee truer tidings than those thou\nhast heard respecting this journey of Thor to Jotunheim.\"\n\n\nHOW THOR WENT TO FISH FOR THE MIDGARD SERPENT.\n\n56. \"I find by your account,\" said Gangler, \"that Utgard-Loki\npossesses great might in himself, though he has recourse to spells and\nillusions; but his power may be seen by his followers, being in every\nrespect so skillful and dexterous. But tell me, did Thor ever avenge\nthis affront?\"\n\n\"It is not unknown,\" replied Har, \"though nobody has talked of it,\nthat Thor was determined to make amends for the journey just spoken\nof, and he had not been long at home ere he set out again so hastily\nthat he had neither his car nor his goats, nor any followers with him.\nHe went out of Midgard under the semblance of a young man, and came at\ndusk to the dwelling of a giant called Hymir. Here Thor passed the\nnight, but at break of day, when he perceived that Hymir was making\nhis boat ready for fishing, he arose and dressed himself, and begged\nthe giant would let him row out to sea with him. Hymir answered, that\na puny stripling like he was could be of no great use to him.\n'Besides,' he added, 'thou wilt catch thy death of cold if I go so far\nout and remain so long as I am accustomed to do.' Thor said, that for\nall that, he would row as far from the land as Hymir had a mind, and\nwas not sure which of them would be the first who might wish to row\nback again. At the same time he was so enraged that he felt sorely\ninclined to let his mallet ring on the giant's skull without further\ndelay, but intending to try his strength elsewhere, he stifled his\nwrath, and asked Hymir what he meant to bait with. Hymir told him to\nlook out for a bait himself. Thor instantly went up to a herd of oxen\nthat belonged to the giant, and seizing the largest bull, that bore\nthe name of Himinbrjot, wrung off his head, and returning with it to\nthe boat, put out to sea with Hymir. Thor rowed aft with two oars, and\nwith such force that Hymir, who rowed at the prow, saw with surprise,\nhow swiftly the boat was driven forward. He then observed that they\nwere come to the place where he was wont to angle for flat fish, but\nThor assured him that they had better go on a good way further. They\naccordingly continued to ply their oars, until Hymir cried out that if\nthey did not stop they would be in danger from the great Midgard\nserpent. Notwithstanding this, Thor persisted in rowing further, and\nin spite of Hymir's remonstrances was a great while before he would\nlay down his oars. He then took out a fishing-line, extremely strong,\nfurnished with an equally strong hook, on which he fixed the bull's\nhead, and cast his line into the sea. The bait soon reached the\nbottom, and it may be truly said that Thor then deceived the Midgard\nserpent not a whit less than Utgard-Loki had deceived Thor when he\nobliged him to lift up the serpent in his hand: for the monster\ngreedily caught at the bait, and the hook stuck fast in his palate.\nStung with the pain, the serpent tugged at the hook so violently, that\nThor was obliged to hold fast with both hands by the pegs that bear\nagainst the oars. But his wrath now waxed high, and assuming all his\ndivine power, he pulled so hard at the line that his feet forced their\nway through the boat and went down to the bottom of the sea, whilst\nwith his hands he drew up the serpent to the side of the vessel. It is\nimpossible to express by words the dreadful scene that now took place.\nThor, on one hand, darting looks of ire on the serpent, whilst the\nmonster, rearing his head, spouted out floods of venom upon him. It is\nsaid that when the giant Hymir beheld the serpent, he turned pale and\ntrembled with fright and seeing, moreover, that the water was\nentering his boat on all sides, he took out his knife, just as Thor\nraised his mallet aloft, and cut the line, on which the serpent sunk\nagain under the water. Thor, however, launched his mallet at him, and\nthere are some who say that it struck off the monster's head at the\nbottom of the sea, but one may assert with more certainty that he\nstill lives and lies in the ocean. Thor then struck Hymir such a blow\nwith his fist, nigh the ear, that the giant fell headlong into the\nwater, and Thor, wading with rapid strides, soon came to the land\nagain.\"\n\n\nTHE DEATH OF BALDUR THE GOOD.\n\n57. \"Verily,\" said Gangler, \"it was a famous exploit which Thor\nperformed on that journey, but did any other such events take place\namong the \u00c6sir?\"\n\n\"Ay,\" replied Har, \"I can tell thee of another event which the \u00c6sir\ndeemed of much greater importance. Thou must know, therefore, that\nBaldur the Good having been tormented with terrible dreams, indicating\nthat his life was in great peril, communicated them to the assembled\n\u00c6sir, who resolved to conjure all things to avert from him the\nthreatened danger. Then Frigga exacted an oath from fire and water,\nfrom iron, and all other metals, as well as from stones, earths,\ndiseases, beasts, birds, poisons, and creeping things, that none of\nthem would do any harm to Baldur. When this was done, it became a\nfavourite pastime of the \u00c6sir, at their meetings, to get Baldur to\nstand up and serve them as a mark, some hurling darts at him, some\nstones, while others hewed at him with their swords and battle-axes,\nfor do they what they would none of therm could harm him, and this was\nregarded by all as a great honour shown to Baldur. But when Loki, the\nson of Laufey, beheld the scene, he was sorely vexed that Baldur was\nnot hurt. Assuming, therefore, the shape of a woman, he went to\nFensalir, the mansion of Frigga. That goddess, when she saw the\npretended woman, inquired of her if she knew what the \u00c6sir were doing\nat their meetings. She replied, that they were throwing darts and\nstones at Baldur without being able to hurt him.\n\n\"'Ay,' said Frigga, 'neither metal nor wood can hurt Baldur, for I\nhave exacted an oath from all of them.'\n\n\"'What!' exclaimed the woman, 'have all things sworn to spare Baldur?'\n\n\"'All things,' replied Frigga, 'except one little shrub that grows on\nthe eastern side of Valhalla, and is called Mistletoe, and which I\nthought too young and feeble to crave an oath from.'\n\n\"As soon as Loki heard this he went away, and, resuming his natural\nshape, cut off the mistletoe, and repaired to the place where the gods\nwere assembled. There he found Hodur standing apart, without partaking\nof the sports, on account of his blindness, and going up to him, said,\n'Why dost thou not also throw something at Baldur?\"\n\n\"'Because I am blind,' answered Hodur, 'and see not where Baldur is,\nand have, moreover, nothing to throw with.'\n\n\"'Come then,' said Loki, 'do like the rest, and show honour to Baldur\nby throwing this twig at him, and I will direct thy arm, toward the\nplace where he stands.'\n\n58. \"Hodur then took the mistletoe, and under the guidance of Loki,\ndarted it at Baldur, who, pierced through and through, fell down\nlifeless. Surely never was there witnessed, either among gods or men,\na more atrocious deed than this! When Baldur fell the \u00c6sir were struck\nspeechless with horror, and then they looked at each other, and all\nwere of one mind to lay hands on him who had done the deed, but they\nwere obliged to delay their vengeance out of respect for the sacred\nplace (Peace-stead) where they were assembled. They at length gave\nvent to their grief by loud lamentations, though not one of them could\nfind words to express the poignancy of his feelings. Odin, especially,\nwas more sensible than the others of the loss they had suffered, for\nhe foresaw what a detriment Baldur's death would be to the \u00c6sir. When\nthe gods came to themselves, Frigga asked who among them wished to\ngain all her love and good will; 'For this,' said she, 'shall he have\nwho will ride to Hel and try to find Baldur, and offer Hela a ransom\nif she will let him return to Asgard;' whereupon Hermod, surnamed the\nNimble, the son of Odin, offered to undertake the journey. Odin's\nhorse Sleipnir was then led forth, on which Hermod mounted, and\ngalloped away on his mission.\n\n59. \"The \u00c6sir then took the dead body and bore it to the seashore,\nwhere stood Baldur's ship Hringhorn, which passed for the largest in\nthe world. But when they wanted to launch it in order to make Baldur's\nfuneral pile on it, they were unable to make it stir. In this\nconjuncture they sent to Jotunheim for a certain giantess named\nHyrrokin, who came mounted on a wolf, having twisted serpents for a\nbridle. As soon as she alighted, Odin ordered four Berserkir to hold\nher steed fast, who were, however, obliged to throw the animal on the\nground ere they could effect their purpose. Hyrrokin then went to the\nship, and with a single push set it afloat, but the motion was so\nviolent that the fire sparkled from the rollers, and the earth shook\nall around. Thor, enraged at the sight, grasped his mallet, and but\nfor the interference of the \u00c6sir would have broken the woman's skull.\nBaldur's body was then borne to the funeral pile on board the ship,\nand this ceremony had such an effect on Nanna, the daughter of Nep,\nthat her heart broke with grief, and her body was burnt on the same\npile with her husband's. Thor then stood up and hallowed the pile with\nMjolnir, and during the ceremony kicked a dwarf named Litur, who was\nrunning before his feet, into the fire. There was a vast concourse of\nvarious kinds of people at Baldur's obsequies. First came Odin,\naccompanied by Frigga, the Valkyrjor and his ravens; then Frey in his\ncar drawn by a boar named Gullinbursti or Slidrugtanni; Heimdall rode\nhis horse called Gulltopp, and Freyja drove in her chariot drawn by\ncats. There were also a great many Frost-giants and giants of the\nmountains present. Odin laid on the pile the gold ring called\nDraupnir, which afterwards acquired the property of producing every\nninth night eight rings of equal weight. Baldur's horse was led to the\npile fully caparisoned, and consumed in the same flames on the body\nof his master.\n\n\nBALDUR IN THE ABODE OF THE DEAD\n\n60. \"Meanwhile, Hermod was proceeding on his mission. For the space\nof nine days, and as many nights, he rode through deep glens so dark\nthat he could not discern anything until he arrived at the river\nGjoll, which he passed over on a bridge covered with glittering gold.\nModgudur, the maiden who kept the bridge, asked him his name and\nlineage, telling him that the day before five bands of dead persons\nhad ridden over the bridge, and did not shake it so much as he alone.\n'But,' she added, 'thou hast not death's hue on thee, why then ridest\nthem here on the way to Hel?'\n\n\"'I ride to Hel,' answered Hermod, 'to seek Baldur. Hast thou\nperchance seen him pass this way?'\n\n\"'Baldur,' she replied, 'hath ridden over Gjoll's bridge, but there\nbelow, towards the north, lies the way to the abodes of death.'\n\n\"Hermod then pursued his journey until he came to the barred gates of\nHel. Here he alighted, girthed his saddle tighter, and remounting,\nclapped both spurs to his horse, who cleared the gate by a tremendous\nleap without touching it. Hermod then rode on to the palace, where he\nfound his brother Baldur occupying the most distinguished seat in the\nhall, and passed the night in his company. The next morning he\nbesought Hela (Death) to let Baldur ride home with him, assuring her\nthat nothing but lamentations were to be heard among the gods. Hela\nanswered that it should now be tried whether Baldur was so beloved as\nhe was said to be.\n\n\"'If therefore,' she added, 'all things in the world, both living and\nlifeless, weep for him, then shall he return to the \u00c6sir, but if any\none thing speak against him or refuse to weep, he shall be kept in\nHel.'\n\n\"Hermod then rose, and Baldur led him out of the hall and gave him the\nring Draupnir, to present as a keepsake to Odin. Nanna also sent\nFrigga a linen cassock and other gifts, and to Fulla a gold\nfinger-ring. Hermod then rode back to Asgard, and gave an account of\nall he had heard and witnessed.\n\n\"The gods upon this dispatched messengers throughout the world, to beg\neverything to weep, in order that Baldur might be delivered from Hel.\nAll things very willingly complied with this request, both men and\nevery other living being, as well as earths and stones, and trees and\nmetals, just as thou must have seen these things weep when they are\nbrought from a cold place into a hot one. As the messengers were\nreturning with the conviction that their mission had been quite\nsuccessful, they found an old hag named Thaukt sitting in a cavern,\nand begged her to weep Baldur out of Hel.\n\n\"It was strongly suspected that this hag was no other than Loki\nhimself who never ceased to work evil among the \u00c6sir.\"\n\n\nTHE FLIGHT AND PUNISHMENT OF LOKI.\n\n\n61. \"Evil are the deeds of Loki truly,\" said Gangler; \"first of all\nin his having caused Baldur to be slain, and then preventing him from\nbeing delivered out of Hel. But was he not punished for these crimes?\"\n\n\"Ay,\" replied Har, \"and in such a manner that he will long repent\nhaving committed them. When he perceived how exasperated the gods\nwere, he fled and hid himself in the mountains. There he built him a\ndwelling with four doors, so that he could see everything that passed\naround him. Often in the daytime he assumed the likeness of a salmon,\nand concealed himself under the waters of a cascade called\nFranangursfors, where he employed himself in divining and\ncircumventing whatever stratagems the \u00c6sir might have recourse to in\norder to catch him. One day, as he sat in his dwelling, he took flax\nand yarn, and worked them into meshes in the manner that nets have\nsince been made by fishermen. Odin, however, had descried his retreat\nout of Hlidskjalf, and Loki becoming aware that the gods were\napproaching, threw his net into the fire, and ran to conceal himself\nin the river. When the gods entered the house, Kvasir, who was the\nmost distinguished among them all for his quickness and penetration,\ntraced out in the hot embers the vestiges of the net which had been\nburnt, and told Odin that it must be an invention to catch fish.\nWhereupon they set to work and wove a net after the model they saw\nimprinted in the ashes. This net, when finished, they threw into the\nriver in which Loki had hidden himself. Thor held one end of the net,\nand all the other gods laid hold of the other end, thus jointly\ndrawing it along the stream. Notwithstanding all their precautions the\nnet passed over Loki, who had crept between two stones, and the gods\nonly perceived that some living thing had touched the meshes. They\ntherefore cast their net a second time, hanging so great a weight to\nit that it everywhere raked the bed of the river. But Loki, perceiving\nthat he had but a short distance from the sea, swam onwards and leapt\nover the net into the waterfall. The \u00c6sir instantly followed him, and\ndivided themselves into two bands. Thor, wading along in mid-stream,\nfollowed the net, whilst the others dragged it along towards the sea.\nLoki then perceived that he had only two chances of escape, either to\nswim out to sea, or to leap again over the net. He chose the latter,\nbut as he took a tremendous leap Thor caught him in his hand. Being,\nhowever, extremely slippery, he would have escaped had not Thor held\nhim fast by the tail, and this is the reason why salmons have had\ntheir tails ever since so fine and thin.\n\n\"The gods having thus captured Loki, dragged him without commiseration\ninto a cavern, wherein they placed three sharp-pointed rocks, boring a\nhole through each of them. Having also seized Loki's children, Vali\nand Nari, they changed the former into a wolf, and in this likeness he\ntore his brother to pieces and devoured him. The gods then made cords\nof his intestines, with which they bound Loki on the points of the\nrocks, one cord passing under his shoulders, another under his loins,\nand a third under his hams, and afterwards transformed these cords\ninto thongs of iron. Skadi then suspended a serpent over him in such a\nmanner that the venom should fall on his face, drop by drop. But\nSiguna, his wife, stands by him and receives the drops as they fall in\na cup, which she empties as often as it is filled. But while she is\ndoing this, venom falls upon Loki, which makes him howl with horror,\nand twist his body about so violently that the whole earth shakes, and\nthis produces what men call earthquakes. There will Loki lie until\nRagnarok.\"\n\n\nOF RAGNAROK, OR THE TWILIGHT OE THE GODS, AND THE CONFLAGRATION OF THE\nUNIVERSE.\n\n63. \"I have not heard before of Ragnarok,\" said Gangler; \"what hast\nthou to tell me about it?\"\n\n\"There are many very notable circumstances concerning it,\" replied\nHar, \"which I can inform thee of. In the first place will come the\nwinter, called Fimbul-winter, during which snow will fall from the\nfour corners of the world; the frosts will be very severe, the wind\npiercing, the weather tempestuous, and the sun impart no gladness.\nThree such winters shall pass away without being tempered by a single\nsummer. Three other similar winters follow, during which war and\ndiscord will spread over the whole globe. Brethren for the sake of\nmere gain shall kill each other, and no one shall spare either his\nparents or his children.\n\n64. \"Then shall happen such things as may truly be accounted great\nprodigies. The wolf shall devour the sun, and a severe loss will that\nbe for mankind. The other wolf will take the moon, and this too will\ncause great mischief. Then the stars shall be hurled from the heavens,\nand the earth so violently shaken that trees will be torn up by the\nroots, the tottering mountains tumble headlong from their foundations,\nand all bonds and fetters be shivered in pieces. Fenrir then breaks\nloose, and the sea rushes over the earth, on account of the Midgard\nserpent turning with giant force, and gaining the land. On the waters\nfloats the ship Naglfar, which is constructed of the nails of dead\nmen. For which reason great care should be taken to die with pared\nnails, for he who dies with his nails unpared, supplies materials for\nthe building of this vessel, which both gods and men wish may be\nfinished as late as possible. But in this flood shall Naglfar float,\nand the giant Hrym be its steersman.\n\n\"The wolf Fenrir advancing, opens his enormous mouth; the lower jaw\nreaches to the earth, and the upper one to heaven, and would in fact\nreach still farther were there space to admit of it. Fire flashes from\nhis eyes and nostrils. The Midgard serpent, placing himself by the\nside of the wolf, vomits forth floods of poison which overwhelm the\nair and the waters. Amidst this devastation heaven is cleft in twain,\nand the sons of Muspell ride through the breach. Surtur rides first,\nand both before and behind him flames burning fire. His sword\noutshines the sun itself. Bifrost, as they ride over it, breaks to\npieces. Then they direct their course to the battlefield called\nVigrid. Thither also repair the wolf Fenrir and the Midgard serpent,\nand also Loki, with all the followers of Hel, and Hrym with all the\nHrimthursar. But the sons of Muspell keep their effulgent bands apart\non the field of battle, which is one hundred miles long on every side.\n\n65. \"Meanwhile Heimdall stands up, and with all his force sounds the\nGjallar-horn to arouse the gods, who assemble without delay. Odin\nthen rides to Mimir's well and consults Mimir how he and his warriors\nought to enter into action. The ash Yggdrasill begins to shake, nor is\nthere anything in heaven or earth exempt from fear at that terrible\nhour. The \u00c6sir and all the heroes of Valhalla arm themselves and speed\nforth to the field, led on by Odin, with his golden helm and\nresplendent cuirass, and his spear called Gungnir. Odin places himself\nagainst the wolf Fenrir; Thor stands by his side, but can render him\nno assistance, having himself to combat with the Midgard serpent. Frey\nencounters Surtur, and terrible blows are exchanged ere Frey falls;\nand he owes his defeat to his not having that trusty sword he gave to\nSkirnir. That day the dog Garm, who had been chained in the Gnipa\ncave, breaks loose. He is the most fearful monster of all, and attacks\nTyr, and they kill each other. Thor gains great renown for killing the\nMidgard serpent, but at the same time, recoiling nine paces, falls\ndead upon the spot suffocated by the floods of venom which the dying\nserpent vomits forth upon him. The wolf swallows Odin, but at that\ninstant Vidar advances, and setting his foot on the monster's lower\njaw, seizes the other with his hand, and thus tears and rends him till\nhe dies. Vidar is able to do this because he wears those shoes for\nwhich stuff has been gathering in all ages, namely, the shreds of\nleather which are cut off to form the toes and heels of shoes, and it\nis on this account that those who would render a service to the \u00c6sir\nshould take care to throw such shreds away. Loki and Heimdall fight,\nand mutually kill each other.\n\n\"After this, Surtur darts fire and flame over the earth, and the\nwhole universe is consumed.\"\n\n\nOF THE ABODES OF FUTURE BLISS AND MISERY.\n\n66. \"What will remain,\" said Gangler, \"after heaven and earth and\nthe whole universe shall be consumed, and after all the gods, and the\nheroes of Valhalla, and all mankind shall have perished? For ye have\nalready told me that every one shall continue to exist in some world\nor other, throughout eternity.\"\n\n\"There will be many abodes,\" replied Thridi, \"some good, others bad.\nThe best place of all to be in will be Gimli, in heaven, and all who\ndelight in quaffing good drink will find a great store in the hall\ncalled Brimir, which is also in heaven in the region Okolni. There is\nalso a fair hall of ruddy gold called Sindri, which stands on the\nmountains of Nida, (Nidafjoll). In those halls righteous and\nwell-minded men shall abide. In Nastrond there is a vast and direful\nstructure with doors that face the north. It is formed entirely of the\nbacks of serpents, wattled together like wicker work. But the\nserpents' heads are turned towards the inside of the hall, and\ncontinually vomit forth floods of venom, in which wade all those\nwho-commit murder, or who forswear themselves.\"\n\n\nTHE RENOVATION OF THE UNIVERSE.\n\n67. \"Will any of the gods survive, and will there be any longer a\nheaven and an earth?\" demanded Gangler.\n\n\"There will arise out of the sea,\" replied Har, \"another earth most\nlovely and verdant, with pleasant fields where the grain shall grow\nunsown. Vidar and Vali shall survive; neither the flood nor Surtur's\nfire shall harm them. They shall dwell on the plain of Ida, where\nAsgard formerly stood. Thither shall come the sons of Thor, Modi and\nMagni, bringing with them their father's mallet Mjolnir. Baldur and\nHodur shall also repair thither from the abode of death (Hel). There\nshall they sit and converse together, and call to mind their former\nknowledge and the perils they underwent, and the fight of the wolf\nFenrir and the Midgard serpent. There too shall they find in the grass\nthose golden tablets (orbs) which the \u00c6sir once possessed. As it is\nsaid,--\n\n \"'There dwell Vidar and Vali\n In the gods' holy seats,\n When slaked Surtur's fire is\n But Modi and Magni\n Will Mjolnir possess,\n And strife put an end to.'\n\n\"Thou must know, moreover, that during the conflagration caused by\nSurtur's fire, a woman named Lif (Life), and a man named Lifthrasir,\nlie concealed in Hodmimir's forest. They shall feed on morning dew,\nand their descendants shall soon spread over the whole earth.\n\n\"But what thou wilt deem more wonderful is, that the sun shall have\nbrought forth a daughter more lovely than herself, who shall go in the\nsame track formerly trodden by her mother.\n\n\"And now,\" continued Thridi, \"if thou hast any further questions to\nask, I know not who can answer thee, for I never heard tell of any\none who could relate what will happen in the other ages of the world.\nMake, therefore, the best use thou canst of what has been imparted to\nthee.\"\n\nUpon this Gangler heard a terrible noise all around him: he looked\neverywhere, but could see neither palace nor city, nor anything save a\nvast plain. He therefore set out on his return to his own kingdom,\nwhere he related all that he had seen and heard, and ever since that\ntime these tidings have been handed down by oral tradition.\n\n\n\u00c6GIR'S JOURNEY TO ASGARD.\n\n68. \u00c6gir, who was well skilled in magic, once went to Asgard, where\nhe met with a very good reception. Supper time being come, the twelve\nmighty \u00c6sir,--Odin, Thor, Njord, Frey, Tyr, Heimdall, Bragi, Vidar,\nVali, Ullur, Hoenir and Forseti, together with the Asynjor,--Frigga,\nFreyja, Gefjon, Iduna, Gerda, Siguna, Fulla and Nanna, seated\nthemselves on their lofty doom seats, in a hall around which were\nranged swords of such surpassing brilliancy that no other light was\nrequisite. They continued long at table, drinking mead of a very\nsuperior quality. While they were emptying their capacious drinking\nhorns, \u00c6gir, who sat next to Bragi, requested him to relate something\nconcerning the \u00c6sir. Bragi instantly complied with his request, by\ninforming him of what had happened to Iduna.\n\n\nIDUNA AND HER APPLES.\n\n69. \"Once,\" he said, \"when Odin, Loki, and Hoenir went on a journey,\nthey came to a valley where a herd of oxen were grazing, and being\nsadly in want of provisions did not scruple to kill one for their\nsupper. Vain, however, were their efforts to boil the flesh; they\nfound it, every time they took off the lid of the kettle, as raw as\nwhen first put in. While they were endeavouring to account for this\nsingular circumstance a noise was heard above them, and on looking up\nthey beheld an enormous eagle perched on the branch of an oak tree.\n'If ye are willing to let me have my share of the flesh,' said the\neagle, 'it shall soon be boiled;' and on their assenting to this\nproposal, it flew down and snatched up a leg and two shoulders of the\nox--a proceeding which so incensed Loki, that he laid hold of a large\nstock, and made it fall pretty heavily on the eagle's back. It was,\nhowever, not an eagle that Loki struck, but the renowned giant\nThjassi, clad in his eagle plumage. Loki soon found this out to his\ncost, for while one end of the stock stuck fast to the eagle's back,\nhe was unable to let go his hold of the other end, and was\nconsequently trailed by the eagle-clad giant over rocks and forests,\nuntil he was almost torn to pieces. Loki in this predicament began to\nsue for peace, but Thjassi told him that he should never be released\nfrom his hold until he bound himself by a solemn oath to bring Iduna\nand her apples out of Asgard. Loki very willingly gave his oath to\neffect this object, and went back in a piteous plight to his\ncompanions.\n\n70. \"On his return to Asgard, Loki told Iduna that, in a forest at a\nshort distance from the celestial residence, he had found apples\ngrowing which he thought were of a much better quality than her own,\nand that at all events it was worth while making a comparison between\nthem. Iduna, deceived by his words, took her apples, and went with him\ninto the forest, but they had no sooner entered it than Thjassi, clad\nin his eagle-plumage, flew rapidly towards them, and catching up\nIduna, carried her treasure off with him to Jotunheim. The gods being\nthus deprived of their renovating apples, soon became wrinkled and\ngrey; old age was creeping fast upon them, when they discovered that\nLoki had been, as usual, the contriver of all the mischief that had\nbefallen them. They therefore threatened him with condign punishment\nif he did not instantly hit upon some expedient for bringing back\nIduna and her apples to Asgard. Loki having borrowed from Freyja her\nfalcon-plumage, flew to Jotunheim, and finding that Thjassi was out at\nsea fishing, lost no time in changing Iduna into a sparrow and flying\noff with her; but when Thjassi returned and became aware of what had\nhappened, he donned his eagle-plumage, and flew after them. When the\n\u00c6sir saw Loki approaching, holding Iduna transformed into a sparrow\nbetween his claws, and Thjassi with his outspread eagle wings ready to\novertake him, they placed on the walls of Asgard bundles of chips,\nwhich they set fire to the instant that Loki had flown over them; and\nas Thjassi could not stop his flight, the fire caught his plumage, and\nhe thus fell into the power of the \u00c6sir, who slew him within the\nportals of the celestial residence. When these tidings came to\nThjassi's daughter, Skadi, she put on her armour and went to Asgard,\nfully determined to avenge her father's death; but the \u00c6sir having\ndeclared their willingness to atone for the deed, an amicable\narrangement was entered into. Skadi was to choose a husband in Asgard,\nand the \u00c6sir were to make her laugh, a feat which she flattered\nherself it would be impossible for any one to accomplish. Her choice\nof a husband was to be determined by a mere inspection of the feet of\nthe gods, it being stipulated that the feet should be the only part of\ntheir persons visible until she had made known her determination. In\ninspecting the row of feet placed before her, Skadi took a fancy to a\npair which she flattered herself, from their fine proportions, must be\nthose of Baldur. They were however Njord's, and Njord was accordingly\ngiven her for a husband, and as Loki managed to make her laugh, by\nplaying some diverting antics with a goat, the atonement was fully\neffected. It is even said that Odin did more than had been stipulated,\nby taking out Thjassi's eyes, and placing them to shine as stars in\nthe firmament.[137]\n\n\nTHE ORIGIN OF POETRY.\n\n71. \u00c6gir having expressed a wish to know how poetry originated,\nBragi informed him that the \u00c6sir and Vanir having met to put an end to\nthe war which had long been carried on between them, a treaty of\npeace was agreed to and ratified by each party spitting into a jar. As\na lasting sign of the amity which was thenceforward to subsist between\nthe contending parties, the gods formed out of this spittle a being to\nwhom they gave the name of Kvasir, and whom they endowed with such a\nhigh degree of intelligence that no one could ask him a question that\nhe was unable to answer. Kvasir then traversed the whole world to\nteach men wisdom, but was at length treacherously murdered by the\ndwarfs, Fjalar and Galar, who, by mixing up his blood with honey,\ncomposed a liquor of such surpassing excellence that whoever drinks of\nit acquires the gift of song. When the \u00c6sir inquired what had become\nof Kvasir, the dwarfs told them that he had been suffocated with his\nown wisdom, not being able to find any one who by proposing to him a\nsufficient number of learned questions might relieve him of its\nsuperabundance. Not long after this event, Fjalar and Galar managed to\ndrown the giant Gilling and murder his wife, deeds which were avenged\nby their son Suttung taking the dwarfs out to sea, and placing them on\na shoal which was flooded at high water. In this critical position\nthey implored Suttung to spare their lives, and accept the\nverse-inspiring beverage which they possessed as an atonement for\ntheir having killed his parents. Suttung having agreed to these\nconditions, released the dwarfs, and carrying the mead home with him,\ncommitted it to the care of his daughter Gunnlauth. Hence poetry is\nindifferently called Kvasir's blood, Suttung's mead, the dwarf's\nransom, etc.\n\n\nODIN BEGUILES THE DAUGHTER OF BAUGI\n\n72. \u00c6sir then asked how the gods obtained possession of so valuable\na beverage, on which Bragi informed him that Odin being fully\ndetermined to acquire it, set out for Jotunheim, and after journeying\nfor some time, came to a meadow in which nine thralls were mowing.\nEntering into conversation with them, Odin, offered to whet their\nscythes, an offer which they gladly accepted, and finding that the\nwhetstone he made use of had given the scythes an extraordinary\nsharpness, asked him whether he was willing to dispose of it. Odin,\nhowever, threw the whetstone in the air, and in attempting to catch it\nas it fell, each thrall brought his scythe to bear on the neck of one\nof his comrades, so that they were all killed in the scramble. Odin\ntook up his night's lodging at the house of Suttung's brother, Baugi,\nwho told him that he was sadly at a loss for labourers, his nine\nthralls having slain each other. Odin, who went under the name of\nBaulverk, said that for a draught of Suttung's mead he would do the\nwork of nine men for him. The terms agreed on, Odin worked for Baugi\nthe whole summer, but Suttung was deaf to his brother's entreaties,\nand would not part with a drop of the precious liquor, which was\ncarefully preserved in a cavern under his daughter's custody. Into\nthis cavern Odin was resolved to penetrate. He therefore persuaded\nBaugi to bore a hole through the rock, which he had no sooner done\nthan Odin, transforming himself into a worm, crept through the\ncrevice, and resuming his natural shape, won the heart of Gunnlauth.\nAfter passing three nights with the fair maiden, he had no great\ndifficulty in inducing her to let him take a draught out of each of\nthe three jars, called Odhroerir, Bodn, and Son, in which the mead was\nkept. But wishing to make the most of his advantage, he pulled so deep\nthat not a drop was left in the vessels. Transforming himself into an\neagle, he then flew off as fast as his wings could carry him, but\nSuttung becoming aware of the stratagem, also took upon himself an\neagle's guise, and flew after him. The \u00c6sir, on seeing him approach\nAsgard, set out in the yard all the jars they could lay their hands\non, which Odin filled by discharging through his beak the\nwonder-working liquor he had drunken. He was however, so near being\ncaught by Suttung, that some of the liquor escaped him by an impurer\nvent, and as no care was taken of this it fell to the share of the\npoetasters. But the liquor discharged in the jars was kept for the\ngods, and for those men who have sufficient wit to make a right use of\nit. Hence poetry is also called Odin's booty, Odin's gift, the\nbeverage of the gods, &c, &c.\n\nFOOTNOTES:\n\n[Footnote 125: This chapter is probably the interpolation of an early\ncopyist, for it has evidently no connection with the following one,\nand is not found in the Upsal MS. of the Prose Edda, which is supposed\nto be the oldest extant. Gefjon's ploughing is obviously a mythic way\nof accounting for some convulsions of nature, perhaps the convulsion\nthat produced the Sound, and thus effected a junction between the\nBaltic and the Northern Ocean.]\n\n[Footnote 126: Rime Giants, or Giants of the Frost.]\n\n[Footnote 127: Literally, \"It is light and hot, insomuch so that it is\nflaming and burning, and it is impervious to those who are outlandish\n(foreign), and not indigenous there\" (or who have no home or heritage\ntherein).]\n\n[Footnote 128: More properly speaking, to the earth which it\nencircled.]\n\n[Footnote 129: A ferreous or glacial refrigeration.]\n\n[Footnote 130: _i.e._ If Thor drove over Bifrost with his thunder\nchariot.]\n\n[Footnote 131: _i.e._ Present, Past, and Future.]\n\n[Footnote 132: Namely, his having killed Baldur.]\n\n[Footnote 133: Mind or Thought, and Memory.]\n\n[Footnote 134: _i.e._ Devouring flame.]\n\n[Footnote 135: _i.e._ Spirit or thought.]\n\n[Footnote 136: _i.e._ Eld or Old Age.]\n\n[Footnote 137: Finn Magnusen's explanation of this myth is, that\nIduna--the ever-renovating Spring--being in the possession of\nThjassi--the desolating winter--all nature languishes until she is\ndelivered from her captivity. On this being effected, her presence\nagain diffuses joy and gladness, and all things revive; while her\npursuer, Winter, with his icy breath, dissolves in the solar rays\nindicated by the fires lighted on the walls of Asgard.]\n\n\n\n\nGLOSSARY.\n\n\n\u00c6GIR or OEGIR, horror, terror.\n\n\u00c6SIR, sing. AS; God, Gods. ASYNJA, ASYNJOR; Goddess, Goddesses.\n\nAI, from a, a river.\n\nALFADIR, or ALFODUR, All-Father, or the Father of All.\n\nALFR, Elf.\n\nALSVIDR, All-scorching.\n\nALTHJOFR, lit. All-thief, an accomplished rascal.\n\nALVISS, All-wise.\n\nAMSVARTNIR, grief, black, gloomy, swart.\n\nANDHRIMNIR, soul, spirit, breath: from hrim, congealed vapour, _rime_.\n\nANDLANGR, from aund, spirit, breath; and langr, long.\n\nANDVARI, prob. from aund, spirit; cautious, timid.\n\nANGURBODI, Anguish-boding, announcing or presaging calamity.\n\nARVAKR, awakening early; ar, the dawn, Aurora.\n\nASGARD, prop. ASGARDR, lit. God's-ward, or the abode of the gods.\n\nASKR, an ash-tree.\n\nAUDHUMLA, void, vacuity, darkness, tenebrosity.\n\nAUDR, rich, wealthy.\n\nAURBODA, prop. AURBODA, snow, rain, storm; to announce whence; a\nmessenger; hence an ambassador.\n\nAUSTRI, East, Oriental.\n\n\nBALDUR, prop. BALDR or BALLDR, fire, flame, bold.\n\nBALEYGR, Bale-eyed, _i.e._ endowed with a clear, piercing vision.\n\nBAREY, the Frondiferous-isle; an island.\n\nBAULVERKR, Evil-worker; producing evil, calamity.\n\nBAUMBURR, prob. cog. with bumbr, belly, cavity.\n\nBELI, prob. from belja, to bellow.\n\nBERGELMIR, Mountain-old, _i.e._ the old man of the mountain.\n\nBIFLINDI, the Inconstant: from bif, motion; and lyndi, disposition,\nmind.\n\nBIFROST, BIF-RAUST, the Tremulous-bridge of the Aerial-bridge,\nsignifying also aerial: a certain space, a mile, a rest.\n\nBIL, a moment, an interval, an interstice.\n\n\nBILEYGR, endowed with fulminating eyes, a tempest, especially a\nfulminating tempest or thunder-storm.\n\n\nBILSKIRNIR, sometimes stormy, and sometimes serene; which, as Thor's\nmansion prob. denotes the atmosphere, would be a very appropriate\nterm; or storm-stilling, _i.e._ imparting serenity to the tempest.\n\nBIVAURR, BIVORR, or BIFUR, the Tremulous.\n\nBODN, originally signified an offer-table or altar; an oblation; also\none of the jars in which the dwarfs' poetical beverage was kept.\n\nBOLTHORN, lit. Calamitous or Evil-thorn.\n\nBOR, prop. BORR, and BUR, prop. BURR or BURI, means _born_, to bear;\nwhence also the _Old G._ barn, and the _Scotch, bairn_, a child.\n\nBRAGI, the name of the God of Poetry; from braga, to glisten, to\nshine, or from bragga, to adorn; ph. cog. with _G_. pracht, splendour.\n\nBREIDABLIK: lit. Broad-blink--wide-glancing, Expanded splendour, to\nblink.\n\nBRIMIR, prob. from brimi, flame.\n\nBRISINGR, may prob. mean flaming.\n\nBYLEISTR, a dwelling, a town; to destroy, to break to pieces.\n\nBYRGIR, prob. from v. byrgja, to conceal; _E._ to bury, whence barrow,\na tumulus.\n\n\nDAINN, prob. the Soporiferous; from da, a swoon, or complete repose.\n\nDELLINGR--a _day-ling_. with the dawn, daybreak.\n\nDIS, pi. DISIR, it originally sig. a female, but was afterwards used\nin the sense of Nymph and Goddess. It enters into the composition of\nseveral female names, as Thordis, Freydis, Vegdis, &c.\n\nDOLGTHRASIR: a dolgr, a warrior; contentious, obstinate, persisting,\nfrom the v. thrasa, to litigate, to quarrel.\n\nDRAUPNIR, from the v. drupa, to droop, or the v. drjupa, to drip.\n\nDROMI, strongly binding.\n\nDUNEYRR, a hollow sound, from the v. dynja, to sound, to resound.\n\nDURATHROR. The first sylb. may be derived either from dur, a light\nsleep, or from dyr, a door; and the last, either from the v. threyja,\nto expect, to wait for; or from throa, to increase, to enlarge.\n\nDURINN, prob. from dur, a light sleep, to fall asleep; whence prob.\nthe _E._ to doze, and ph. also dusk.\n\nDVALJNN, from dvali, sleep.\n\n\nEIKINSKJALDI, furnished with an oaken shield, scarlet oak.\n\nEIKTHYRNIR. Eik is the ilex or scarlet oak; thyrnir, a thorn;\nmetaphorically for a stag's antlers.\n\nEINHERJAR, a hero; select, chosen heroes.\n\nEIR, to befriend, to tranquilize.\n\nELDHRIMNIR: eldr, elementary flre: brim, congealed vapour, rime, also\nsoot; hence (a kettle) sooty from flre.\n\nELIVAGAR, stormy waves; a storm; the sea; an estuary; water; wave.\n\nELLI, old age.\n\nELVIDNIR, ph. from el, a storm; and vidr, wide.\n\nEMBLA. The etymologies of the name of the first woman given by the\n_E.E._ are merely _conjectural_. Grimm says the word embla, emla,\nsignifies a busy woman, from amr, ambr, amil ambl, assiduous labour;\nthe same relation as Meshia and Meshiane, the ancient Persian names of\nthe first man and woman, who were also formed from trees.\n\n\nFALHOFNIR, a nail, a lamina, hoof.\n\nFARMAGUD, the God of Carriers and Sea-farers.\n\nFENRIR, FENRIS-ULFR, may mean dweller in an abyss, or the monster\nwolf.\n\nFENSALIR, lit. Fen-saloon, from fen, a fen, but which it would appear\nmay also be made to sig. the watery deep, or the sea; and salr, a\nhall, mansion, saloon. _See_ Valhalla.\n\nFIMBUL. From fimbulfambi comes the _E._ provincialism, to\nfimble-famble; and the _D._ famle, to stammer, to hesitate in\nspeaking.\n\nFIMBULTHUL. Thulr means an orator or reciter, to speechify.\n\nFIMBULVETR: vetr, winter; according to Grimm's explanation of fimbul,\n_the Great Winter_.\n\nFJALARR and FJOLNIR. Multiform: in composition fjol, many.\n\nFJOLSVIDR or FJOLSVITHR, to scorch: or ph. from svithr, wise,\npowerful, potent, strong.\n\nFJORGYN. Grimm, we think, has satisfactorily shown that fjorg is the\n_G._ berg, a mountain.\n\nFOLKVANGR, lit. the folk's field, or habitation.\n\nFORSETI, lit. the Fore-seated, _i.e._ the Judge.\n\nFRANANGURS-FORS, prob. from frann, glittering, and ongr, narrow.\n\nFREKI, _G._ frech, froward: the word has also the sig. of voracious.\n\nFREYR and FREYJA. The name of the deity who was the symbol of the\nsun--to mean Seminator, the Fructifler, Freyja--the symbolical\nrepresentation of the moon--means the Seminated, the Fructified; the\noriginal sig, is that of glad, joyful, imparting gladness, beautous,\nlovely.\n\nFRIGGA, prop. FRIGG. Grimm has shown that the root of this word is, if\nnot strictly syn., at least very nearly allied with that of the word\nFreyja, and explains it to mean the Free, the Beauteous, the Winsome.\n\nFROSTI, the _E._ frosty.\n\nFULLA, abundance; from fullr, full.\n\nFUNDINN, found; from v. finna, to find.\n\n\nGANDALFR. Alfr, an elf, prob. sig. a wolf, a serpent.\n\nGANGLER, the tired wanderer; to debilitate, to tire.\n\nGANGRAD, prop. GANGRADR, indicates a person directing his steps.\n\nGARDROFA, Fence-breaker; to break, to break through.\n\nGARMR, voracious; to gorge; gourmand.\n\nGAUTR, ph. may sig. a keeper, to keep.\n\nGEFJON, the earth; also separation, disruption.\n\nGEFN, from the v. gefa, to give.\n\nGEIROLUL, lit. Spear-alimentrix: from the v. ala, to aliment, to\nnourish.\n\nGEIRRAUDR, lit. spear-red; hence King Spear-rubifler.\n\nGEIRVIMUL, a river rushing or vibrating like a spear or javelin.\n\nGELGJA, from galgi, a gallows.\n\nGERDA, prop. GERDUR, to gird. Both gerd and gard are common\nterminations of female names, as Hildigard, Irminigard, Thorgerda, &c.\n\nGERI. Geri may be derived from gerr, covetous, greedy.\n\nGIMLI, had the same sig. as himill, heaven, the original sig. of which\nmay have been fire, but afterwards a gem, as in the _N._ word\ngimsteinn; whence also our colloquial words, gim, gimmy (neat), and\ngimcrack.\n\nGINNARR, Seducer; from v. ginna, to seduce.\n\nGINNUNGA-GAP may be rendered the gap of gaps; a gaping abyss.\n\nGJALLAR (horn); from the v. gjalla, to resound, to clang; to yell.\n\nGJOIX, prob. from gjallr, sonorous, fulgid.\n\nGLADR, glad; from v. gledja, to gladden.\n\nGLADSHEIMR: lit. Glad's-home; the abode of gladness or bliss.\n\nGL\u00c6R, from gl\u00e6r, clear, pellucid; cog. with _E._ glare.\n\nGLEIPNIR, the Devouring; from the v. gleipa, to devour.\n\nGLITNIR, the Glittering; from the v. glitra; to glitter, and to\nglisten.\n\nGLOINN, the Glowing; from v. gloa, to glow.\n\nGOD. The _Old N._ lang. has two words for God, viz. God and Gud; and\nit would appear that the n. god was used for an idol, and the m. gud.\nfor a God. Both words are, however, frequently applied to denote a\ncelestial deity. The Scandinavian Pontiff-chieftains were called Godar\n(in the sing. Godi).\n\nGOMUL, prob. from gamall, old.\n\nGRABAKR, Gray-back.\n\nGRAFJOLLUDR, Gray-skin; the skin of an animal.\n\nGRAFVITNIR, from the v. grafa, to dig, to delve; cog. with _E._ grave:\nand the v. vita, to know; _to_ wit, wist, wot.\n\nGRIMAR, and GRIMNIR, a helmet, or any kind of a covering; used\npoetically for night, the sun being then veiled or covered.\n\nGULLINBURSTI, Golden-bristles.\n\nGULLTOPPR, Golden-mane; crest, the top of anything, hence mane.\n\nGUNNTHRA. The first sylb. of this word is from gunnr, war, a combat;\nto increase, to enlarge; thra sig. grief, calamity; and thro, a\ncavity, a fosse. From gunnr is derived the _N._ gunn-fani, a\nwar-banner.\n\nGYLLIR, from gull, gold.\n\n\nHABROK. The E.E. render this word by _Altipes_, from bar, high; and\nbrok, lit. breeches, brogues, but which they assume may also sig. a\nbird's leg.\n\nHALLINSKITHI, to decline; hence it would be an appropriate term for\nthe post-meridian sun.\n\nHAMSKEKPIR, prob. from hams, hide; and the v. skerpa, to sharpen, also\nto dry, to indurate.\n\nHAPTAGUD, ph. from haupt, a nexus, a tie, a band.\n\nHAR, prop. HARR, may mean either _high_ or _hairy_. As a designation\nof Odin it has undoubtedly the former signification. As the name of a\ndwarf, the latter sig. would be more appropriate.\n\nHARBARDR, Hairy-beard.\n\nHEIDRUN, serene, etherial; a heath.\n\nHEIMDALLR: heimr, home, the world.\n\nHELA, prop. HEL., gen. HELJAR, the Goddess of the Infernal Regions,\nused instead of Helheimr for those regions themselves.\n\nHELBLINDI: hel, see the preceding word; blindi, from blundr, slumber.\n\nHEPTI, prob. means impeding, constraining; to seize, to take by force,\nto adhere to.\n\nHERFJOTUR, lit. Host's-fetter, _i.e._ having the power to impede or\nconstrain an army at will: her, an army, a host, a multitude.\n\nHERJANN, the leader of an army; from her.\n\nHERMOD, prop. HERMODR: her from her, courage, (_see_ Modgudur).\n\nHERTEITR, gay amongst warriors, a jovial soldier; glad, joyful.\n\nHILDUR (Hilda), war, a combat. Hence we find it in a number of\nTeutonic prop, names both m. and f., as Hilderic, Childeric, Hildegrim\n(the Helm of War), Brynhildr (Brunhilda), Clothild (Clothilda), &c.\n\nHIMINBJORG, the Heavenly-Mountains, the Comprehending, the\nAll-embracing.\n\nHIMINBRJOTR, Heaven-breaking: from the v. brjota, to break.\n\nHJALMBERI, Helmet-bearing.\n\nHJUKI, to keep warm, to nourish, to cherish.\n\nHLIDSKJALF, a slope, a declivity; also to waver, to tremble.\n\nHLINA, prop. HLIN, the _support_ on which a person leans, _i.e._ a\ntutelary deity.\n\nHLJODALFR, the Genius or Elf of Sound.\n\nHLODYN, the name of Frigga, as the symbol of the earth; _protectress\nof the hearth_--of the household. The Romans also worshipped a goddess\nof the earth and of fire under the common name of Fornax, dea\nfornacalis. Grimm mentions a stone found at Cleves with the remarkable\ninscription--DEAE HLUDANAE SACRVM C. TIBERIVS VERVS, and remarks that\nHludana was neither a Roman nor a Celtic goddess, and could be no\nother than Hlodyn, which shows the identity of the German and\nScandinavian Mythology.\n\nHLOKK, or HLAUKK, to exalt, to clang, to cry like an eagle.\n\nHNIKARR, or NIKARR, victor, a conqueror; to move, to agitate; to\nthrust forward, to take by violence; to repel, to impede. _G._ m. Nix,\nfern. Nixe, an aquatic genius. We may remark that the monks having\ntransformed Odin into the devil, our designation of his Satanic\nMajesty, as _Old Nick_ appears to be a mere corruption of these\nappellations of the Teutonic divinity.\n\nHNOSSA, a ball of yarn, a clew of thread, a knot.\n\nHODUR, prop. HODR. Grimm thinks that the original signification may\nhave been war, combat.\n\nHOFVARPNIR, a horse that plies well its hoofs, a good goer.\n\nHR\u00c6SVELGUR, lit. Raw-swallower, _i.e._ swallowing raw flesh like an\neagle.\n\nHRAFNAGUD, the Ravens' god; brafn; _G._ rabe; _E._ raven.\n\nHRIMFAXI: brim, rime, or hoar frost; fax, a crest, a mane. The _E._\nprop, name Fairfax, means fair-haired.\n\nHRIMTHURSAR, the Rim or Frost Giants: thurs, a giant.\n\nHRINGHORN, lit. a ringed or annulated horn.\n\nHRIST, from v. hrista, to shake, to agitate.\n\nHRYM, HRYMUR, prob. from brim, rime--hoar frost.\n\nHUGI, and HUGINN, from hugr, spirit, breath, thought, mind, reason.\n\nHVERGELMIR, the roaring cauldron; a spring of hot water.\n\nHYRROKIN, lit. Smoky-fire; utter darkness, also smoke.\n\n\nIDAVOLLR: vollr, a field, a place; to flow together; to ramble, to\ntake a pleasant walk.\n\nIDUNA, prop. IDUNN or ITHUNN. May mean one who loves either the\nconfluence of waters, or to work, or to take a pleasant ramble.\n\n\nJAFNHAR. _The Equally High_; lit. even so high.\n\nJARNVIDR, Iron-wood.\n\nJORD, JORTH, the earth.\n\nJORMUNGANDR. Gandr sig. serpent, and more prop, wolf: jormun is a word\nof uncertain origin, but appears in all the anc. Teutonic lang. to\nhave expressed the idea of great, maximus, universal. The reader will\nfind much curious information on this subject in Grimm's admirable\nwork.\n\nJOTUNHEIMR, lit. Giants'-home, the region of the Giants.\n\n\nKERLAUG: ker, any kind of vessel, cup, bowl, &c; also used to denote\nthe bed of a river.\n\nKJALARR, prob. from v. kjala, to transport, to convey; a ship, _a\nkeel_.\n\nKVASIR. This word seems to be used in the sense of a _drinking bout._\n\n\nLAUFEY, lit. Frondiferous-isle; an island.\n\nLETTFETI, Lightfoot: light.\n\nLIFTHRASIR, vital energy, longevity, life; enduring a long time.\n\nLITUR, colour, complexion, form, the face.\n\nLODURR, LODR, LOTHR, from the ob. _N._ lod, fire.\n\nLOFNA, prop. LOFN, appears allegorlcally to denote perennial and\nunchangeable love.\n\nLOGI, Flame; a log of wood burnt or to be burnt.\n\nLOKI, to shut; whence the _E._ to lock, to finish.\n\nLOPTUR, the Aerial, the Sublime; the air; whence the _E._ lofty and\naloft, also a (hay) loft.\n\nLYNGVI, from lyng or ling, the sweet broom, heath or ling.\n\n\nMAGNI, the Potent, the Powerful; force, energy.\n\nMANAGARMR, lit. the moon's wolf; a monster wolf or dog, voracious.\n\nMANI, the moon.\n\nMARDOLL, Sea-nymph; mere, the sea; whence our word mere, as\nWindermere, Buttermere, &c: doll, a nymph; poetically a woman.\n\nMEGINGJARDIR, the Girdle of Might, the Belt of Prowess.\n\nMIDGARD, middleweard, the middleward; _see_ Asgard. Middling, mean.\n\nMIMIR, or MIMER, to keep In memory; to be fanciful; mindful.\n\nMJODVITNIR, lit. knowing in mead; wine; madja, palm-wine,\n\nMJOLNIR, or MJOLLNIR, prob. from v. melja, to pound, or v. mala, to\ngrind; _E._ mill, and prob. with _L._ malleus, a mallet.\n\nMODGUDUR, a valiant female warrior, _animosa bellona_: courage; mind;\n_E._ mood; gracefulness, delectation.\n\nMODSOGNIR, lit. sucking in courage or vigour.\n\nMOINN, dwelling on a moor.\n\nMUNINN, mind; _memory_, recollection; _G._ minne, love.\n\nMUSPELLHEIMR, Muspell's region or home; used in the sense of elemental\nor empyreal fire.\n\n\nNAGLFAR, a nail from nagl, a human nail; according to the Prose Edda,\n\"constructed of the nails of dead men\"; a seafaring man.\n\nNAL. _G._ nadel; _A.S._ n\u00e6dl; _E._ a needle.\n\nNANNA. Grimm derives this word from the v. nenna, to dare.\n\nNAR, a corpse.\n\nNASTROND, a corpse; The Strand of the Dead.\n\nNAUDUR, necessity; need.\n\nNAUT, ph. from the v. njota, to make use of.\n\nNIDAFJOLL, a rock, a mountain.\n\nNIDHOGG, a phrase used to indicate the new and the waning moon.\n\nNIDI, from nidr, downwards.\n\nNIFLHEIMR, lit. Nebulous-home--the shadowy region of death.\n\nNIFLHEL, from nifi and hel. _See_ the latter word.\n\nNIFLUNGAR, the mythic-heroic ghosts of the shadowy realms of death.\n\nNIPINGR, handsome; to contract, to curve.\n\nNJORD, prop. NJORDR, humid; _Sk._ nar, nir, water; a wave; and\nNeriman, an aquatic man.\n\nNOTT; _D._ nat; _M.G._ naht; _G._ nacht; _A.S._ niht; _E._ night.\n\nNYI, these dwarfs were symbolical of the new and the waning moon.\n\n\nODIN. _E._ to _wade_ through, consequently the Omnipotent Being that\n_permeates all things_.\n\nODUR, the name of Freyja's husband. Odur may, like Kvasir, be the\npersonification of poetry.\n\nODHROERIR, Mind-exciting; the name of a vessel or kettle.\n\nOFNIR, _E._ to weave. The word would thus sig. the textile or creating\npower of Odin.\n\nOMI, from omr, a sound, a crash; a name given to Odin, when like, the\nBrahmlnlc Indra, he rattles aloft during a battle, or at daybreak.\n\nONDURDIS, Snow skates; _E._ to wander; dis, a nymph, a goddess.\n\nORGELMIR, Primordial Giant; also to roar, to howl, to clang, to\nresound.\n\nORI, delirious (with love), one of the Erotic Genii.\n\nOSKI, hence one who listens to the wishes of mankind.\n\n\nRADGRID, lit. seeking power with avidity; power, empire council.\n\nRADSVITHR, wise, powerful.\n\nRAGNAROKR. The n. ragin signified _rath_, council, the pl. of which,\nregin, Is used in the Eddaic Poems for the gods; that is to say, the\nconsulting, deliberating deities. It answers in fact fully to the _E._\nword _rack_, Indicating atmospheric nebulosity; hence Ragnarok is very\napprop. rendered by \"The Twilight of the Gods.\"\n\nRAN, to plunder; her spoil being those who were drowned at sea.\n\nRANDGRID: rand, from rond, a shield.\n\nRATATOSKR, from the v. rata; to permeate; the last sylb. may be\nderived from _G._ tasche, a pocket or pouch; hence the Permeating\nPouch?\n\nREGIN, Is often used In the sense of vast, immense; the vast sea.\n\nREGINLEIF, dear to the gods, _see_ Regin.\n\nRIGR, Rajah, a king.\n\nRINDA, prop. RINDUR, sig. symbolically, the crust of the earth.\n\nROSKA, quick, lively, active.\n\n\nSADR, SATHR, just, true, in sooth, verily.\n\nS\u00c6GR, a large vessel of any kind. The word was used by the Skalds\nmetaphorically for the sea.\n\nSAGA. The personified saga or narration, from the v. segja, to say;\n_G._ sage; _E._ a saying; _L._ Saga, a sorceress; sagax, saga-clous,\nto foretell.\n\nSANNGETALL, inquiring after; guessing at truth.\n\nSESSRUMNIR, lit. Seat-roomy, _i.e._ having room for plenty of seats.\n\nSID, declining, hanging, tending downward.\n\nSIDHOTTR, lit. Hanging-hat or hood.\n\nSIDSKEGGR, lit. Hanging-beard; _E._ shag and shaggy.\n\nSIF, signifying peace, friendship, relationship, a goddess, Sibja,\nSippia, and Sib.\n\nSIGFADIR, or SIGFODUR, the Father of Victory; _L._ pater.\n\nSILFRINTOPPR, Silver-mane; _E._ silver: toppr, _see_ Gulltoppr.\n\nSINDRI, either scintillating or producing dross.\n\nSJOFNA. F. Mag. derives it from the v. sja, to see.\n\nSKADI, the magpie received its name from this goddess.\n\nSKAFIDR, shaving, scraping.\n\nSKEGGOLD, lit. Old-beard; also denoted a particular kind of\nbattle-axe.\n\nSKEIDBRIMIR, any space of time that is elapsing.\n\nSKIDBLADNIR, lath, shingle, billet of wood, a sheath; _E._ blade, a\nblade or _leaf_ of grass.\n\nSKILFINGR, prob. to shake, to shatter.\n\nSKINFAXI, Shining-mane: skin, splendour, light.\n\nSKIRNIR, serene, pure, clear; E. sheer, which had formerly the same\nmeaning.\n\nSKOGUL, prob. from v. skaga, to jut out; whence skagi, a promontory.\n\nSKOLL, to stick to, to adhere, to strike, to smite.\n\nSLEIPNIR. _E._ slippery.\n\nSLIDRUGTANNI, cruel, fierce, savage.\n\nSNOTRA, to blow the nose; a person, even a goddess, being much more\n_tidy_ when the nostrils are thoroughly _emunctated._\n\nSOKKVABEKKR, lit. Sinking-brook; to sink; an estuary, a shore, a\nbrook.\n\nSON, sound, song, _sonus_, _cantus_.\n\nSURTUR, obscure, invisible; and invisible, unintelligible!! Surtur,\naccording to Fin Magnusen, the invisible, unintelligible being whom\nthe ancient Scandinavians regarded as \"the great First Cause least\nunderstood\" of all things.\n\nSVADILFARI, lubricity, also slippery ice.\n\nSVAFNIR, prob. from v. svefa, to cast asleep; sleep, quiet, repose.\n\nSVALINN, the Refrigerating; to cool, to refrigerate.\n\nSVARTALFAHEIMR, lit. Black or Swart Elves' home, region of the Elves\nof Darkness in contradistincition to that of the Elves of Light.\n\nSVARTHOFDI, Black-head; svartr, black, swart.\n\nSVASUTHR, Sweet-south; blithe, jocund, dear.\n\nSVIDR and SVIDRIR, from v. svida, to scorch; or wise, powerful.\n\nSVIPALL, to hasten, to vibrate; to wave, to hover; also with _E._ v.\nto sweep.\n\nSYLGR, a draught or deglutition; to swallow; to swill; to guzzle, to\nfeast.\n\nSYN, signifying equity; syn. defence, excuse, negation, impediment,\nwhich has been personified into a judicial goddess.\n\nSYNIR, having a fine appearance.\n\n\nTANNGNIOSTR, Gnashing-teeth; to bruise, crack, grind, gnash.\n\nTHEKKR, to know; _E._ to think. The adj. thekkr means also amiable.\n\nTHODNUMA, men, people, nations.\n\nTHOR, contraction of Thonar, a word indicating a God who, like Thor,\npresided over _thunder_ and atmospherical phenomena.\n\nTHORINN, from thor, audacity; whence the v. thora; to dare.\n\nTHRAINN, the Pertinacious; from the v. thra, to desire vehemently.\n\nTHRIDI, _The Third_.\n\nTHROR, ph. from v. throa, to increase, to amplify.\n\nTHRUDUR. Thrudr is an obsolete _N._ word signifying fortitude,\nfirmness; but it appears to have originally had, in most of the\nTeutonic languages the sig. of maiden, virgin; and was afterwards used\nin the sense of witch, sorceress.\n\nTHRUDVANGR, the Abode or Region or Fortitude.\n\nTHRYM. F. Mag. says the word is _undoubtedly_ derived from thruma,\nthunder.\n\nTHUNDR, can be derived from thund, a breastplate, a coat of mail.\n\nTHYN, to thunder, to make a thundering noise, as a rapid current does.\n\nTYR, signifying God; as well as the _L._ Jupiter, for which he assumes\na nom. Ju or Jus, Jupiter.\n\n\nURD, VERDANDI, and SKULD, the Present, Past, and Future. The names of\nthe Destinies of the Present and Past.\n\nUTGARD, prop. UTGARDR, lit. Outer-ward. _See_ Midgard.\n\n\nVAFTHRUDNIR, from the v. vefa, to involve, prop, to weave.\n\nVAFUDR, the Weaver, or the Constrainer.\n\nVAKR, VAKUR, alert, lively, vigilant.\n\nVALASKJALF, choice, election.\n\nVALFADIR, or VALFODUR, lit. the Choosing Father.\n\nVALHALLA, prop, VALHOLL, lit. the Hall of the Chosen: may also have\noriginally indicated a temple.\n\nVALKYRJOR, or VALKYRJUR, sing. VALKYRJA, lit. Choosers of the Slain;\ndenoted the slain in battle; a poetical word for a field of battle.\n\nVANADIS, prop, a Goddess of the Vanir. _See_ that word, and _Dis_.\n\nVANIR, beautiful; with the _L._ venustus and Venus, and ph. with the\n_E. wench_.\n\nVASADR, from vas, moisture, a word cog. with the _E._ wet and wash.\n\nVE. Was used in the m. sing, to express a particular god; that in the\npi. it would be vear, gods, idols; a temple.\n\nVEDURFOLNIR might be rendered Storm-stilling; causing serenity.\n\nVEGSVINN, lit Road-knowing.\n\nVERATYR, lit. the Man-god.\n\nVESTRI, west, occidental.\n\nVIDAR, a tree; wood; and prob. also weed and withy.\n\nVIDBLAINN, expanded azure (lit. Wide-blue).\n\nVIDFINNR, wide, vast.\n\nVIDOLFR, or VIDALFR, lit. Sylvan Elf.\n\nVIDRIR, Moderator of the weather; to still the weather.\n\nVIGRID, from vig, a battle; battle craft, the art of war.\n\nVILI, Will. To will; to choose; to elect.\n\nVILMEITHR, an old word for tree.\n\nVIN, and VINA, a friend, to love, to favour; winsome.\n\nVINDALFR, Wind Elf.\n\nVINDSVALR; vindr, wind: and svalr, cold, glacial.\n\nVINGOLF, lit. the Abode of Friends; golf means lit. a floor.\n\nVOLUNDR. The word denotes a skilful artificer, in which sense it is\nstill used by the Icelanders; he is a famous workman--a Wayland--in\niron; and they very appropriately term a labyrinth a Wayland-house.\n\nVOLUSPA, a sybil or prophetess.\n\n\nYGGDRASILL, from Ygg, one of Odin's names (see the following word) and\ndrasill, bearing; hence, according to F. Mag., it would sig. bearing\n(producing) rain, or bearing Odin.\n\nYGGR., to meditate, and also to fear; hence the word might be rendered\nby either the Meditating or the Terrible.\n\nYLG, the Howling; to howl.\n\nYMIR, a confused noise, like the rustling of trees when shaken by the\nwind; also the clang of metals.\n\n\n\n\nSIEGFRIED AWAKENS BRYNHILD.\n\n(_after the painting of R. Bung._)\n\n\nThe story of Siegfried and Brynhild constitutes the greatest epic in\nTeutonic Gothic literature. Its origin is hard to trace, but parts of\nthe legends carry the investigator back to Iranian sources. Its\ngreatest development, however, may justly be credited to Icelandic\nsagas, in which the mythology of the Norse people has a prominent\nplace. In both the Gothic and Teutonic versions, while considerable\nvariation of incident is noticeable, the awakening of Brynhild, a\nvalkyrie maiden, and daughter of Wotan, is represented as having been\naccomplished by Siegfried, who rides through a wall of flames which\nsurrounds her, and thus breaks the spell which binds her to sleep\nuntil a warrior fearless enough to brave fire shall come to claim her\nfor a bride.\n\n[Illustration]\n\n\n\n\nA FEAST IN VALHALLA.\n\n(_From a painting by Jno. Kellar._)\n\n\nAn admirable description of a feast of the gods, in Valhalla, will be\nfound on pages 293-94-95 of this volume. It was a strong belief among\nthe Goths, prior to the introduction of Christianity among them, that\nthe bodies of all warriors who met their deaths in battle were\ntransported directly to Valhalla by Valkyrie maidens on the backs of\nwinged horses. Upon reaching this mythological heaven the dead were\nrevived and ever thereafter enjoyed drinking mead, eating swine flesh,\nand in fighting their battles over again every day.\n\n[Illustration]\n\n\n\n\nTHE DEATH OF ATLI.\n\n(_From a painting by S. Goldberg._)\n\n\nAtli has been identified as Attila, called in history \"the Scourge of\nGod,\" a king of the Huns who twice defeated the Romans under\nTheodosius, and plundered the eternal city itself. He was guilty of\nmany excesses and is reported to have died of a hemorrhage on the day\nfollowing his marriage with Ildico (453). In the story of Seigfried\nand Brynhild, however, he is represented as having married Gudran,\ndaughter of Grimhild and King Giuki, who it will be recalled by\nreaders of the other volumes of this series, beguiled Siegfried by\nmeans of a magic potion, into marriage with her. Her feelings revolted\nagainst an alliance with Atli, but she accepted him for a husband in\norder thereby to obtain the power to gratify her vengeance against\nHogni (Hagan), who had assassinated Siegfried.\n\n[Illustration]","title":"The Elder Eddas of Saemund Sigfusson; and the Younger Eddas of Snorre Sturleson","tradition":"myth-cosmogony","translated_text":null,"word_count":87302}