Chapter VII: Part I: The Poetic Edda (5)

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37. He stood and cast | from his back the kettle,
And Mjollnir, the lover | of murder, he wielded;
. . . . . . . . | . . . . . . . .
So all the whales | of the waste he slew.

38. Not long had they fared | ere one there lay
Of Hlorrithi’s goats | half-dead on the ground;
In his leg the pole-horse | there was lame;
The deed the evil | Loki had done.

39. But ye all have heard,— | for of them who have
The tales of the gods, | who better can tell?—
What prize he won | from the wilderness-dweller,
Who both his children | gave him to boot.

40. The mighty one came | to the council of gods,
And the kettle he had | that Hymir’s was;
So gladly their ale | the gods could drink
In Ægir’s hall | at the autumn-time.

NOTES

1. Twigs: Vigfusson comments at some length on “the rite practised in the heathen age of inquiring into the future by dipping bunches of chips or twigs into the blood (of sacrifices) and shaking them.” But the two operations may have been separate, the twigs being simply “divining-rods” marked with runes. In either case, the gods were seeking information by magic as to where they could find plenty to drink. Ægir: a giant who is also the god of the sea; little is known of him outside of what is told here and in the introductory prose to the Lokasenna, though Snorri has a brief account of him, giving his home as Hlesey (Läsö, cf. Harbarthsljoth, 37). Grimnismol, 45, has a reference to this same feast.

2. Mountain-dweller: the giant (Ægir). Line 2: the principal word in the original has defied interpretation, and any translation of the line must be largely guesswork. Ygg: Othin; his son is Thor. Some editors assume a gap after this stanza.

3. Word-wielder: Thor. The giant: Ægir. Sif: Thor’s wife; cf. Harbarthsljoth, 48. The kettle: Ægir’s kettle is possibly the sea itself.

4. Tyr: the god of battle; his two great achievements were thrusting his hand into the mouth of the wolf Fenrir so that the gods might bind him, whereby he lost his hand (cf. Voluspo, 39, note), and his fight with the hound Garm in the last battle, in which they kill each other. Hlorrithi: Thor.

5. Elivagar (“Stormy Waves”): possibly the Milky Way; cf. Vafthruthnismol, 31, note. Hymir: this giant figures only in this episode. It is not clear why Tyr, who is elsewhere spoken of as a son of Othin, should here call Hymir his father. Finnur Jonsson, in an attempt to get round this difficulty, deliberately changed the word “father” to “grandfather,” but this does not help greatly.

6. Neither manuscript has any superscriptions, but most editors have supplied them as above. From this point through stanza 11 the editors have varied considerably in grouping the lines into stanzas. The manuscripts indicate the third lines of stanzas 7, 8, 9, and 10 as beginning stanzas, but this makes more complications than the present arrangement. It is possible that, as Sijmons suggests, two lines have been lost after stanza 6.

7. Egil: possibly, though by no means certainly, the father of Thor’s servant, Thjalfi, for, according to Snorri, Thor’s first stop on this journey was at the house of a peasant whose children, Thjalfi and Roskva, he took into his service; cf. stanza 38, note. The Arnamagnæan Codex has “Ægir” instead of “Egil,” but, aside from the fact that Thor had just left Ægir’s house, the sea-god can hardly have been spoken of as a goat-herd.

8. The youth: Tyr, whose extraordinary grandmother is Hymir’s mother. We know nothing further of her, or of the other, who is Hymir’s wife and Tyr’s mother. It may be guessed, however, that she belonged rather to the race of the gods than to that of the giants.

11. Two or three editors give this stanza a superscription (“The concubine spake,” “The daughter spake”). Line 3 is commonly regarded as spurious. The foeman of Hroth: of course this means Thor, but nothing is known of any enemy of his by this name. Several editors have sought to make a single word meaning “the famous enemy” out of the phrase. Concerning Thor as the friend of man, particularly of the peasant class, cf. introduction to Harbarthsljoth. Veur: another name, of uncertain meaning, for Thor.

13. Eight: the giant’s glance, besides breaking the beam, knocks down all the kettles with such violence that all but the one under which Thor and Tyr are hiding are broken.

14. Hymir’s wrath does not permit him to ignore the duties of a host to his guests, always strongly insisted on.

15. Thor’s appetite figures elsewhere; cf. Thrymskvitha, 24.

16. The comrade of Hrungnir: Hymir, presumably simply because both are giants; cf. Harbarthsljoth, 14 and note.

17. The manuscripts indicate no lacuna, and many editors unite stanza 17 with lines 1 and 2 of 18. Sijmons and Gering assume a gap after these two lines, but it seems more probable that the missing passage, if any, belonged before them, supplying the connection with the previous stanza.

18. The manuscripts have no superscription. Many editors combine lines 3 and 4 with lines 1 and 2 of stanza 19. In Snorri’s extended paraphrase of the story, Hymir declines to go fishing with Thor on the ground that the latter is too small a person to be worth bothering about. “You would freeze,” he says, “if you stayed out in mid-ocean as long as I generally do.” Bait (line 4): the word literally means “chaff,” hence any small bits; Hymir means that Thor should collect dung for bait.

19. Many editors combine lines 3 and 4 with stanza 20. Fortress, etc.: the ox’s head; cf. introductory note concerning the diction of this poem. Several editors assume a lacuna after stanza 19, but this seems unnecessary.

20. The manuscripts have no superscription. Steerer of ships: probably merely a reference to Thor’s intention to go fishing. The lacuna after stanza 20 is assumed by most editors.

21. Lord of the goats: Thor, because of his goat-drawn chariot. Ape-begotten: Hymir; the word “api,” rare until relatively late times in its literal sense, is fairly common with the meaning of “fool.” Giants were generally assumed to be stupid. Steed of the rollers: a ship, because boats were pulled up on shore by means of rollers.

23. Warder of men: Thor; cf. stanza 11. Worm’s destroyer: likewise Thor, who in the last battle slays, and is slain by, Mithgarthsorm; cf. Voluspo, 56. The foe of the gods: Mithgarthsorm, who lies in the sea, and surrounds the whole earth.

24. Hill of the hair: head,—a thoroughly characteristic skaldic phrase. Brother of Fenrir: Mithgarthsorm was, like the wolf Fenrir and the goddess Hel, born to Loki and the giantess Angrbotha (cf. Voluspo, 39 and note), and I have translated this line accordingly; but the word used in the text has been guessed as meaning almost anything from “comrade” to “enemy.”

25. No gap is indicated in the manuscripts, but that a line or more has been lost is highly probable. In Snorri’s version, Thor pulls so hard on the line that he drives both his feet through the flooring of the boat, and stands on bottom. When he pulls the serpent up, Hymir cuts the line with his bait-knife, which explains the serpent’s escape. Thor, in a rage, knocks Hymir overboard with his hammer, and then wades ashore. The lines of stanzas 25 and 26 have been variously grouped.

26. No gap is indicated in the manuscripts, but line 2 begins with a small letter. A second wind: another direction, i.e., he put about for the shore.

27. No superscription in the manuscripts. In its place Bugge supplies a line—“These words spake Hymir, | the giant wise.” The manuscripts reverse the order of lines 2 and 3, and in both of them line 4 stands after stanza 28. Goat of the flood: boat.

28. Sea-horse: boat. Surf-swine: the whales.

29. Snorri says nothing of this episode of Hymir’s cup. The glass which cannot be broken appears in the folklore of various races.

31. The loved one: Hymir’s wife and Tyr’s mother; cf. stanza 8 and note. The idea that a giant’s skull is harder than stone or anything else is characteristic of the later Norse folk-stories, and in one of the so-called “mythical sagas” we find a giant actually named Hard-Skull.

32. Helmet-stem: head.

33. The manuscripts have no superscription. Line 4 in the manuscripts is somewhat obscure, and Bugge, followed by some editors, suggests a reading which may be rendered (beginning with the second half of line 3): “No more can I speak / Ever again | as I spoke of old.”

35. The father of Mothi and Sif’s husband: Thor.

36. The many-headed: The giants, although rarely designated as a race in this way, sometimes had two or more heads; cf. stanza 8, Skirnismol, 31 and Vafthruthnismol, 33. Hymir’s mother is, however, the only many-headed giant actually to appear in the action of the poems, and it is safe to assume that the tradition as a whole belongs to the period of Norse folk-tales of the märchen order.

37. No gap is indicated in the manuscripts. Some editors put the missing line as 2, some as 3, and some, leaving the present three lines together, add a fourth, and metrically incorrect, one from late paper manuscripts: “Who with Hymir | followed after.” Whales of the waste: giants.

38. According to Snorri, when Thor set out with Loki (not Tyr) for the giants’ land, he stopped first at a peasant’s house (cf. stanza 7 and note). There he proceeded to cook his own goats for supper. The peasant’s son, Thjalfi, eager to get at the marrow, split one of the leg-bones with his knife. The next morning, when Thor was ready to proceed with his journey, he called the goats to life again, but one of them proved irretrievably lame. His wrath led the peasant to give him both his children as servants (cf. stanza 39). Snorri does not indicate that Loki was in any way to blame.

39. This deliberate introduction of the story-teller is exceedingly rare in the older poetry.

40. The translation of the last two lines is mostly guesswork, as the word rendered “gods” is uncertain, and the one rendered “at the autumn-time” is quite obscure.

LOKASENNA

LOKI’S WRANGLING

INTRODUCTORY NOTE

The Lokasenna is found only in Regius, where it follows the Hymiskvitha; Snorri quotes four lines of it, grouped together as a single stanza.

The poem is one of the most vigorous of the entire collection, and seems to have been preserved in exceptionally good condition. The exchange or contest of insults was dear to the Norse heart, and the Lokasenna consists chiefly of Loki’s taunts to the assembled gods and goddesses, and their largely ineffectual attempts to talk back to him. The author was evidently well versed in mythological lore, and the poem is full of references to incidents not elsewhere recorded. As to its date and origin there is the usual dispute, but the latter part of the tenth century and Iceland seem the best guesses.

The prose notes are long and of unusual interest. The introductory one links the poem closely to the Hymiskvitha, much as the Reginsmol, Fafnismol and Sigrdrifumol are linked together; the others fill in the narrative gaps in the dialogue—very like stage directions,—and provide a conclusion by relating Loki’s punishment, which, presumably, is here connected with the wrong incident. It is likely that often when the poem was recited during the two centuries or so before it was committed to writing, the speaker inserted some such explanatory comments, and the compiler of the collection followed this example by adding such explanations as he thought necessary. The Lokasenna is certainly much older than the Hymiskvitha, the connection between them being purely one of subject-matter; and the twelfth-century compiler evidently knew a good deal less about mythology than the author whose work he was annotating.

Ægir, who was also called Gymir, had prepared ale for the gods, after he had got the mighty kettle, as now has been told. To this feast came Othin and Frigg, his wife. Thor came not, as he was on a journey in the East. Sif, Thor’s wife, was there, and Bragi with Ithun, his wife. Tyr, who had but one hand, was there; the wolf Fenrir had bitten off his other hand when they had bound him. There were Njorth and Skathi his wife, Freyr and Freyja, and Vithar, the son of Othin. Loki was there, and Freyr’s servants Byggvir and Beyla. Many were there of the gods and elves.

Ægir had two serving-men, Fimafeng and Eldir. Glittering gold they had in place of firelight; the ale came in of itself; and great was the peace. The guests praised much the ability of Ægir’s serving-men. Loki might not endure that, and he slew Fimafeng. Then the gods shook their shields and howled at Loki and drove him away to the forest, and thereafter set to drinking again. Loki turned back, and outside he met Eldir. Loki spoke to him:

1. “Speak now, Eldir, | for not one step
Farther shalt thou fare;
What ale-talk here | do they have within,
The sons of the glorious gods?”

Eldir spake:

2. “Of their weapons they talk, | and their might in war,
The sons of the glorious gods;
From the gods and elves | who are gathered here
No friend in words shalt thou find.”

Loki spake:

3. “In shall I go | into Ægir’s hall,
For the feast I fain would see;
Bale and hatred | I bring to the gods,
And their mead with venom I mix.”

Eldir spake:

4. “If in thou goest | to Ægir’s hall,
And fain the feast wouldst see,
And with slander and spite | wouldst sprinkle the gods,
Think well lest they wipe it on thee.”

Loki spake:

5. “Bethink thee, Eldir, | if thou and I
Shall strive with spiteful speech;
Richer I grow | in ready words
If thou speakest too much to me.”

Then Loki went into the hall, but when they who were there saw who had entered, they were all silent.

Loki spake:

6. “Thirsty I come | into this thine hall,
I, Lopt, from a journey long,
To ask of the gods | that one should give
Fair mead for a drink to me.

7. “Why sit ye silent, | swollen with pride,
Ye gods, and no answer give?
At your feast a place | and a seat prepare me,
Or bid me forth to fare.”

Bragi spake:

8. “A place and a seat | will the gods prepare
No more in their midst for thee;
For the gods know well | what men they wish
To find at their mighty feasts.”

Loki spake:

9. “Remember, Othin, | in olden days
That we both our blood have mixed;
Then didst thou promise | no ale to pour,
Unless it were brought for us both.”

Othin spake:

10. “Stand forth then, Vithar, | and let the wolf’s father
Find a seat at our feast;
Lest evil should Loki | speak aloud
Here within Ægir’s hall.”

Then Vithar arose and poured drink for Loki; but before he drank he spoke to the gods:

11. “Hail to you, gods! | ye goddesses, hail!
Hail to the holy throng!
Save for the god | who yonder sits,
Bragi there on the bench.”

Bragi spake:

12. “A horse and a sword | from my hoard will I give,
And a ring gives Bragi to boot,
That hatred thou makst not | among the gods;
So rouse not the great ones to wrath.”

Loki spake:

13. “In horses and rings | thou shalt never be rich,
Bragi, but both shalt thou lack;
Of the gods and elves | here together met
Least brave in battle art thou,
(And shyest thou art of the shot.)”

Bragi spake:

14. “Now were I without | as I am within,
And here in Ægir’s hall,
Thine head would I bear | in mine hands away,
And pay thee the price of thy lies.”

Loki spake:

15. “In thy seat art thou bold, | not so are thy deeds,
Bragi, adorner of benches!
Go out and fight | if angered thou feelest,
No hero such forethought has.”

Ithun spake:

16. “Well, prithee, Bragi, | his kinship weigh,
Since chosen as wish-son he was;
And speak not to Loki | such words of spite
Here within Ægir’s hall.”

Loki spake:

17. “Be silent, Ithun! | thou art, I say,
Of women most lustful in love,
Since thou thy washed-bright | arms didst wind
About thy brother’s slayer.”

Ithun spake:

18. “To Loki I speak not | with spiteful words
Here within Ægir’s hall;
And Bragi I calm, | who is hot with beer,
For I wish not that fierce they should fight.”

Gefjun spake:

19. “Why, ye gods twain, | with bitter tongues
Raise hate among us here?
Loki is famed | for his mockery foul,
And the dwellers in heaven he hates.”

Loki spake:

20. “Be silent, Gefjun! | for now shall I say
Who led thee to evil life;
The boy so fair | gave a necklace bright,
And about him thy leg was laid.”

Othin spake:

21. “Mad art thou, Loki, | and little of wit,
The wrath of Gefjun to rouse;
For the fate that is set | for all she sees,
Even as I, methinks.”

Loki spake:

22. “Be silent, Othin! | not justly thou settest
The fate of the fight among men;
Oft gavst thou to him | who deserved not the gift,
To the baser, the battle’s prize.”

Othin spake:

23. “Though I gave to him | who deserved not the gift,
To the baser, the battle’s prize;
Winters eight | wast thou under the earth,
Milking the cows as a maid,
(Ay, and babes didst thou bear;
Unmanly thy soul must seem.)”

Loki spake:

24. “They say that with spells | in Samsey once
Like witches with charms didst thou work;
And in witch’s guise | among men didst thou go;
Unmanly thy soul must seem.”

Frigg spake:

25. “Of the deeds ye two | of old have done
Ye should make no speech among men;
Whate’er ye have done | in days gone by,
Old tales should ne’er be told.”

Loki spake:

26. “Be silent, Frigg! | thou art Fjorgyn’s wife,
But ever lustful in love;
For Vili and Ve, | thou wife of Vithrir,
Both in thy bosom have lain.”

Frigg spake:

27. “If a son like Baldr | were by me now,
Here within Ægir’s hall,
From the sons of the gods | thou shouldst go not forth
Till thy fierceness in fight were tried.”

Loki spake:

28. “Thou wilt then, Frigg, | that further I tell
Of the ill that now I know;
Mine is the blame | that Baldr no more
Thou seest ride home to the hall.”

Freyja spake:

29. “Mad art thou, Loki, | that known thou makest
The wrong and shame thou hast wrought;
The fate of all | does Frigg know well,
Though herself she says it not.”

Loki spake:

30. “Be silent, Freyja! | for fully I know thee,
Sinless thou art not thyself;
Of the gods and elves | who are gathered here,
Each one as thy lover has lain.”

Freyja spake:

31. “False is thy tongue, | and soon shalt thou find
That it sings thee an evil song;
The gods are wroth, | and the goddesses all,
And in grief shalt thou homeward go.”

Loki spake:

32. “Be silent, Freyja! | thou foulest witch,
And steeped full sore in sin;
In the arms of thy brother | the bright gods caught thee
When Freyja her wind set free.”

Njorth spake:

33. “Small ill does it work | though a woman may have
A lord or a lover or both;
But a wonder it is | that this womanish god
Comes hither, though babes he has borne.”

Loki spake:

34. “Be silent, Njorth; | thou wast eastward sent,
To the gods as a hostage given;
And the daughters of Hymir | their privy had
When use did they make of thy mouth.”

Njorth spake:

35. “Great was my gain, | though long was I gone,
To the gods as a hostage given;
The son did I have | whom no man hates,
And foremost of gods is found.”

Loki spake:

36. “Give heed now, Njorth, | nor boast too high,
No longer I hold it hid;
With thy sister hadst thou | so fair a son,
Thus hadst thou no worse a hope.”

Tyr spake:

37. “Of the heroes brave | is Freyr the best
Here in the home of the gods;
He harms not maids | nor the wives of men,
And the bound from their fetters he frees.”

Loki spake:

38. “Be silent, Tyr! | for between two men
Friendship thou ne’er couldst fashion;
Fain would I tell | how Fenrir once
Thy right hand rent from thee.”

Tyr spake:

39. “My hand do I lack, | but Hrothvitnir thou,
And the loss brings longing to both;
Ill fares the wolf | who shall ever await
In fetters the fall of the gods.”

Loki spake:

40. “Be silent, Tyr! | for a son with me
Thy wife once chanced to win;
Not a penny, methinks, | wast thou paid for the wrong,
Nor wast righted an inch, poor wretch.”

Freyr spake:

41. “By the mouth of the river | the wolf remains
Till the gods to destruction go;
Thou too shalt soon, | if thy tongue is not stilled,
Be fettered, thou forger of ill.”

Loki spake:

42. “The daughter of Gymir | with gold didst thou buy,
And sold thy sword to boot;
But when Muspell’s sons | through Myrkwood ride,
Thou shalt weaponless wait, poor wretch.”

Byggvir spake:

43. “Had I birth so famous | as Ingunar-Freyr,
And sat in so lofty a seat,
I would crush to marrow | this croaker of ill,
And beat all his body to bits.”

Loki spake:

44. “What little creature | goes crawling there,
Snuffling and snapping about?
At Freyr’s ears ever | wilt thou be found,
Or muttering hard at the mill.”

Byggvir spake:

45. “Byggvir my name, | and nimble am I,
As gods and men do grant;
And here am I proud | that the children of Hropt
Together all drink ale.”

Loki spake:

46. “Be silent, Byggvir! | thou never couldst set
Their shares of the meat for men;
Hid in straw on the floor, | they found thee not
When heroes were fain to fight.”

Heimdall spake:

47. “Drunk art thou, Loki, | and mad are thy deeds,
Why, Loki, leavst thou this not?
For drink beyond measure | will lead all men
No thought of their tongues to take.”

Loki spake:

48. “Be silent, Heimdall! | in days long since
Was an evil fate for thee fixed;
With back held stiff | must thou ever stand,
As warder of heaven to watch.”

Skathi spake:

49. “Light art thou, Loki, | but longer thou mayst not
In freedom flourish thy tail;
On the rocks the gods bind thee | with bowels torn
Forth from thy frost-cold son.”

Loki spake:

50. “Though on rocks the gods bind me | with bowels torn
Forth from my frost-cold son,
I was first and last | at the deadly fight
There where Thjazi we caught.”

Skathi spake:

51. “Wert thou first and last | at the deadly fight
There where Thjazi was caught,
From my dwellings and fields | shall ever come forth
A counsel cold for thee.”

Loki spake:

52. “More lightly thou spakest | with Laufey’s son,
When thou badst me come to thy bed;
Such things must be known | if now we two
Shall seek our sins to tell.”

Then Sif came forward and poured mead for Loki in a crystal cup, and said:

53. “Hail to thee, Loki, | and take thou here
The crystal cup of old mead;
For me at least, | alone of the gods,
Blameless thou knowest to be.”

He took the horn, and drank therefrom:

54. “Alone thou wert | if truly thou wouldst
All men so shyly shun;
But one do I know | full well, methinks,
Who had thee from Hlorrithi’s arms,—
(Loki the crafty in lies.)”

Beyla spake:

55. “The mountains shake, | and surely I think
From his home comes Hlorrithi now;
He will silence the man | who is slandering here
Together both gods and men.”

Loki spake:

56. “Be silent, Beyla! | thou art Byggvir’s wife,
And deep art thou steeped in sin;
A greater shame | to the gods came ne’er,
Befouled thou art with thy filth.”

Then came Thor forth, and spake:

57. “Unmanly one, cease, | or the mighty hammer,
Mjollnir, shall close thy mouth;
Thy shoulder-cliff | shall I cleave from thy neck,
And so shall thy life be lost.”

Loki spake:

58. “Lo, in has come | the son of Earth:
Why threaten so loudly, Thor?
Less fierce thou shalt go | to fight with the wolf
When he swallows Sigfather up.”

Thor spake:

59. “Unmanly one, cease, | or the mighty hammer,
Mjollnir, shall close thy mouth;
I shall hurl thee up | and out in the East,
Where men shall see thee no more.”

Loki spake:

60. “That thou hast fared | on the East-road forth
To men shouldst thou say no more;
In the thumb of a glove | didst thou hide, thou great one,
And there forgot thou wast Thor.”

Thor spake:

61. “Unmanly one, cease, | or the mighty hammer,
Mjollnir, shall close thy mouth;
My right hand shall smite thee | with Hrungnir’s slayer,
Till all thy bones are broken.”

Loki spake:

62. “A long time still | do I think to live,
Though thou threatenest thus with thy hammer;
Rough seemed the straps | of Skrymir’s wallet,
When thy meat thou mightest not get,
(And faint from hunger didst feel.)”

Thor spake:

63. “Unmanly one, cease, | or the mighty hammer,
Mjollnir, shall close thy mouth;
The slayer of Hrungnir | shall send thee to hell,
And down to the gate of death.”

Loki spake:

64. “I have said to the gods | and the sons of the gods
The things that whetted my thoughts;
But before thee alone | do I now go forth,
For thou fightest well, I ween.

65. “Ale hast thou brewed, | but, Ægir, now
Such feasts shalt thou make no more;
O’er all that thou hast | which is here within
Shall play the flickering flames,
(And thy back shall be burnt with fire.)”

And after that Loki hid himself in Franang’s waterfall in the guise of a salmon, and there the gods took him. He was bound with the bowels of his son Vali, but his son Narfi was changed to a wolf. Skathi took a poison-snake and fastened it up over Loki’s face, and the poison dropped thereon. Sigyn, Loki’s wife, sat there and held a shell under the poison, but when the shell was full she bore away the poison, and meanwhile the poison dropped on Loki. Then he struggled so hard that the whole earth shook therewith; and now that is called an earthquake.

NOTES

Prose. Ægir: the sea-god; Snorri gives Hler as another of his names, but he is not elsewhere called Gymir, which is the name of the giant, Gerth’s father, in the Skirnismol. On Ægir cf. Grimnismol, 45, and Hymiskvitha, 1. Frigg: though Othin’s wife is often mentioned, she plays only a minor part in the Eddic poems; cf. Voluspo, 34, Vafthruthnismol, 1, and Grimnismol, introductory prose. Thor: the compiler is apparently a trifle confused as to Thor’s movements; the “journey in the East” here mentioned cannot be the one described in the Hymiskvitha, nor yet the one narrated by Snorri, as Loki was with Thor throughout that expedition. He probably means no more than that Thor was off killing giants. Sif: concerning Thor’s wife the chief incident is that Loki cut off her hair, and, at the command of the wrathful Thor, was compelled to have the dwarfs fashion her a new supply of hair out of gold; cf. Harbarthsljoth, 48. Bragi: the god of poetry; cf. Grimnismol, 44 and note. Ithun: the goddess of youth; cf. note on Skirnismol, 19. Ithun is not mentioned by name in any other of the Eddic poems, but Snorri tells in detail how the giant Thjazi stole her and her apples, explaining the reference in Harbarthsljoth, 19 (q. v.). Tyr: the god of battle; cf. Hymiskvitha, 4, and (concerning his dealings with the wolf Fenrir) Voluspo, 39, note. Njorth: the chief of the Wanes, and father of Freyr and Freyja; cf. (concerning the whole family) Skirnismol, introductory prose and note, also Voluspo, 21 and note. Skathi: Njorth’s wife was the daughter of the giant Thjazi; cf. Harbarthsljoth, 19, note, and Grimnismol, 11. Vithar: the silent god, the son of Othin who avenged his father by slaying the wolf Fenrir; cf. Voluspo, 54, Vafthruthnismol, 51, and Grimnismol, 17. Loki: the mischief-making fire-god; in addition to the many references to his career in the Lokasenna, cf. particularly Voluspo, 32 and 35, and notes. Byggvir and Beyla: not mentioned elsewhere in the poems; Freyr’s conspicuous servant is Skirnir, hero of the Skirnismol. Fimafeng (“The Swift Handler”) and Eldir (“The Man of the Fire”): mentioned only in connection with this incident. Glittering gold: Ægir’s use of gold to light his hall, which was often thought of as under the sea, was responsible for the phrase “flame of the flood,” and sundry kindred phrases, meaning “gold.”

6. Lopt: like Lothur (cf. Voluspo, 18) another name for Loki; cf. Hyndluljoth, 43, and Svipdagsmol, 42.

7. In the manuscript this stanza begins with a small letter, and Heinzel unites it with stanza 6.

8. Bragi: cf. note on introductory prose. Why Loki taunts him with cowardice (stanzas 11–13–15) is not clear, for poetry, of which Bragi was the patron, was generally associated in the Norse mind with peculiar valor, and most of the skaldic poets were likewise noted fighters.

9. There exists no account of any incident in which Othin and Loki thus swore blood-brotherhood, but they were so often allied in enterprises that the idea is wholly reasonable. The common process of “mingling blood” was carried out quite literally, and the promise of which Loki speaks is characteristic of those which, in the sagas, often accompanied the ceremony; cf. Brot af Sigurtharkvithu, 18 and note.

10. In stanzas 10–31 the manuscript has nothing to indicate the identity of the several speakers, but these are uniformly clear enough through the context. Vithar: cf. note on introductory prose. The wolf’s father: Loki; cf. Voluspo, 39 and note.

13. Sijmons makes one line of lines 4–5 by cutting out a part of each; Finnur Jonsson rejects 5 as spurious.

14. The text of line 4 is somewhat obscure, and has been variously emended, one often adopted suggestion making the line read, “Little is that for thy lies.”

15. Adorner of benches: this epithet presumably implies that Bragi is not only slothful, but also effeminate, for a very similar word, “pride of the benches,” means a bride.

16. Ithun: Bragi’s wife; cf. note on introductory prose. The goddesses who, finding that their husbands are getting the worst of it, take up the cudgels with Loki, all find themselves confronted with undeniable facts in their own careers; cf. stanzas 26 (Frigg), 52 (Skathi) and 54 (Sif). Gefjun and Freyja are silenced in similar fashion. Wish-son: adopted son; Loki was the son of the giant Farbauti and the giantess Laufey, and hence was not of the race of the gods, but had been virtually adopted by Othin, who subsequently had good reason to regret it.

17. We do not even know who Ithun’s brother was, much less who slew him.

19. Gefjun: a goddess, not elsewhere mentioned in the poems, who, according to Snorri, was served by the women who died maidens. Beyond this nothing is known of her. Lines 3–4 in the manuscript are puzzling, and have been freely emended.

20. Nothing is known of the incident here mentioned. There is a good deal of confusion as to various of the gods and goddesses, and it has been suggested that Gefjun is really Frigg under another name, with a little of Freyja—whose attributes were frequently confused with Frigg’s—thrown in. Certainly Othin’s answer (stanza 21, lines 3–4) fits Frigg perfectly, for she shared his knowledge of the future, whereas it has no relation to anything known of Gefjun. As for the necklace (line 3), it may be the Brisings’ necklace, which appears in the Thrymskvitha as Freyja’s, but which, in some mythological writings, is assigned to Frigg.

21. Snorri quotes line 1; cf. note on stanza 29.

23. There is no other reference to Loki’s having spent eight years underground, or to his cow-milking. On one occasion, however, he did bear offspring. A giant had undertaken to build the gods a fortress, his reward being Freyja and the sun and moon, provided the work was done by a given time. His sole helper was his horse, Svathilfari. The work being nearly done, and the gods fearing to lose Freyja and the sun and moon, Loki turned himself into a mare, and so effectually distracted Svathilfari from his task that shortly afterwards Loki gave birth to Othin’s eight-legged horse, Sleipnir. In such contests of abuse a man was not infrequently taunted with having borne children; cf. Helgakvitha Hundingsbana I, 39–45. One or two of the last three lines may be spurious.

24. Samsey: perhaps the Danish island of Samsö. Othin was the god of magic, but there is no other reference to his ever having disguised himself as a witch.

25. Frigg: Othin’s wife; cf. note to introductory prose.

26. Fjorgyn: Othin; cf. Voluspo, 56 and note. Vili and Ve: Othin’s brothers, who appear merely as, with Othin, the sons of Bur and Bestla; cf. Voluspo, 4. The Ynglingasaga says that, during one of Othin’s protracted absences, his two brothers took Frigg as their mistress. Vithrir: another name for Othin.

27. On the death of Baldr, slain through Loki’s cunning by the blind Hoth, cf. Voluspo, 32 and note.

29. Freyja: daughter of Njorth and sister of Freyr; cf. note on introductory prose. Snorri, in speaking of Frigg’s knowledge of the future, makes a stanza out of Lokasenna, 21, 1; 47, 2; 29, 3–4, thus: “Mad art thou, Loki, | and little of wit, / Why, Loki, leavst thou this not? / The fate of all | does Frigg know well, / Though herself she says it not.”

30. According to Snorri, Freyja was a model of fidelity to her husband, Oth.

32. Before each of stanzas 32–42 the manuscript indicates the speaker, through the initial letter of the name written in the margin. Thy brother: Freyr; there is no other indication that such a relation existed between these two, but they themselves were the product of such a union; cf. stanza 36 and note.

33. Njorth: father of Freyr and Freyja, and given by the Wanes as a hostage, in exchange for Hönir, at the close of the first war; cf. Voluspo, 21 and note, also Skirnismol, introductory prose and note. Babes: cf. stanza 23 and note. Bugge suggests that this clause may have been a late insertion.

34. Daughters of Hymir: we have no clue to who these were, though Hymir is doubtless the frost-giant of the Hymiskvitha (q.v.). Loki’s point is that Njorth is not a god, but the product of an inferior race (the Wanes).

35. The son: Freyr.

36. Thy sister: the Ynglingasaga supports this story of Njorth’s having had two children by his sister before he came among the gods. Snorri, on the other hand, specifically says that Freyr and Freyja were born after Njorth came to the gods.

37. Tyr: the god of battle; cf. notes on Hymiskvitha, 4, and Voluspo, 39. Freyr; concerning his noble qualities cf. Skirnismol, introductory prose and note.

38. Snorri mentions Tyr’s incompetence as a peacemaker. Fenrir: the wolf, Loki’s son; cf. Voluspo, 39.

39. Hrothvitnir (“The Mighty Wolf”): Fenrir, who awaits in chains the final battle and death at the hands of Vithar. The manuscript has a metrical error in line 3, which has led to various emendations, all with much the same meaning.

40. Thy wife: there is no other reference to Tyr’s wife, nor do we know who was the son in question.

41. The mouth of the river: according to Snorri, the chained Fenrir “roars horribly, and the slaver runs from his mouth, and makes the river called Vam; he lies there till the doom of the gods.” Freyr’s threat is actually carried out; cf. concluding prose.

42. The daughter of Gymir: Gerth, heroine of the Skirnismol, which gives the details of Freyr’s loss of his sword. Muspell’s sons: the name Muspell is not used elsewhere in the poems; Snorri uses it frequently, but only in this same phrase, “Muspell’s sons.” They are the dwellers in the fire-world, Muspellsheim, led by Surt against the gods in the last battle; cf. Voluspo, 47 and 52 and notes. Myrkwood: here the dark forest bounding the fire-world; in the Atlakvitha (stanza 3) the name is used of another boundary forest.

43. Byggvir: one of Freyr’s two servants; cf. introductory prose. Ingunar-Freyr: the name is not used elsewhere in the poems, or by Snorri; it may be the genitive of a woman’s name, Ingun, the unknown sister of Njorth who was Freyr’s mother (cf. stanza 36), or a corruption of the name Ingw, used for Freyr (Fro) in old German mythology.

44. Beginning with this stanza, the names of the speakers are lacking in the manuscript. The mill: i.e., at slaves’ tasks.

45. Nothing further is known of either Byggvir’s swiftness or his cowardice. Hropt: Othin.

47. Heimdall: besides being the watchman of the gods (cf. Voluspo, 27), he appears also as the god of light (cf. Thrymskvitha, 14), and possibly also as a complex cultural deity in the Rigsthula. He was a son of Othin, born of nine sisters; cf. Hyndluljoth, 37–40. In the last battle he and Loki slay one another. Line 2 is quoted by Snorri; cf. stanza 29, note.

49. Skathi: the wife of Njorth, and daughter of the giant Thjazi, concerning whose death cf. Harbarthsljoth, 19, note. Bowels, etc.: according to the prose note at the end of the Lokasenna, the gods bound Loki with the bowels of his son Vali, and changed his other son, Narfi, into a wolf. Snorri turns the story about, Vali being the wolf, who tears his brother to pieces, the gods then using Narfi’s intestines to bind Loki. Narfi—and presumably Vali—were the sons of Loki and his wife, Sigyn. They appear only in this episode, though Narfi (or Nari) is named by Snorri in his list of Loki’s children. Cf. concluding prose, and note.

52. Laufey’s son: Loki; not much is known of his parents beyond their names. His father was the giant Farbauti, his mother Laufey, sometimes called Nal. There is an elaborate but far-fetched hypothesis explaining these three on the basis of a nature-myth. There is no other reference to such a relation between Skathi and Loki as he here suggests.

53. Sif: Thor’s wife; cf. Harbarthsljoth, 48, where her infidelity is again mentioned. The manuscript omits the proper name from the preceding prose, and a few editors have, obviously in error, attributed the speech to Beyla.

54. Hlorrithi: Thor. Line 5 is probably spurious.

55. Beyla: Freyr’s servant, wife of Byggvir; cf. introductory prose and note.

57. Mjollnir: concerning Thor’s famous hammer see particularly Thrymskvitha, 1 and note. Shoulder-cliff: head; concerning the use of such diction in the Edda, cf. introductory note to Hymiskvitha. The manuscript indicates line 3 as the beginning of a stanza, but this is apparently a scribal error.

58. Son of Earth: Thor, son of Othin and Jorth (Earth). The manuscript omits the word “son,” but all editors have agreed in supplying it. The wolf: Fenrir, Loki’s son, who slays Othin (Sigfather: “Father of Victory”) in the final battle. Thor, according to Snorri and to the Voluspo, 56, fights with Mithgarthsorm and not with Fenrir, who is killed by Vithar.

59. Lines 1–2 are abbreviated in the manuscript, as also in stanzas 61 and 63.

60. Loki’s taunt that Thor hid in the thumb of Skrymir’s glove is similar to that of Othin, Harbarthsljoth, 26, in the note to which the story is outlined. Line 4 is identical with line 3 of Harbarthsljoth, 26.

61. Hrungnir’s slayer: the hammer; the story of how Thor slew this stone-headed giant is indicated in Harbarthsljoth, 14–15, and outlined in the note to stanza 14 of that poem.

62. On the day following the adventure of the glove, Thor, Loki and Thor’s servants proceed on their way in company with Skrymir, who puts all their food in his wallet. At evening Skrymir goes to sleep, and Thor tries to get at the food, but cannot loosen the straps of the wallet. In a rage he smites Skrymir three times on the head with his hammer, but the giant—who, it subsequently appears, deftly dodges the blows—is totally undisturbed. Line 5 may well be spurious.

65. The flames: the fire that consumes the world on the last day; cf. Voluspo, 57. Line 5 may be spurious.

Prose: Snorri tells the same story, with minor differences, but makes it the consequence of Loki’s part in the slaying of Baldr, which undoubtedly represents the correct tradition. The compiler of the poems either was confused or thought the incident was useful as indicating what finally happened to Loki. Possibly he did not mean to imply that Loki’s fate was brought upon him by his abuse of the gods, but simply tried to round out the story. Franang: “Gleaming Water.” Vali and Narfi: cf. stanza 49 and note. Sigyn: cf. Voluspo, 35, the only other place where she is mentioned in the poems. Snorri omits the naive note about earthquakes, his narrative ending with the words, “And there he lies till the destruction of the gods.”

THRYMSKVITHA

THE LAY OF THRYM

INTRODUCTORY NOTE

The Thrymskvitha is found only in the Codex Regius, where it follows the Lokasenna. Snorri does not quote from it, nor, rather oddly, does the story occur in the Prose Edda.

Artistically the Thrymskvitha is one of the best, as it is, next to the Voluspo, the most famous, of the entire collection. It has, indeed, been called “the finest ballad in the world,” and not without some reason. Its swift, vigorous action, the sharpness of its characterization and the humor of the central situation combine to make it one of the most vivid short narrative poems ever composed. Of course we know nothing specific of its author, but there can be no question that he was a poet of extraordinary ability. The poem assumed its present form, most critics agree, somewhere about 900, and thus it is one of the oldest in the collection. It has been suggested, on the basis of stylistic similarity, that its author may also have composed the Skirnismol, and possibly Baldrs Draumar. There is also some resemblance between the Thrymskvitha and the Lokasenna (note, in this connection, Bugge’s suggestion that the Skirnismol and the Lokasenna may have been by the same man), and it is not impossible that all four poems have a single authorship.

The Thrymskvitha has been preserved in excellent condition, without any serious gaps or interpolations. In striking contrast to many of the poems, it contains no prose narrative links, the story being told in narrative verse—a rare phenomenon in the poems of the Edda.

1. Wild was Vingthor | when he awoke,
And when his mighty | hammer he missed;
He shook his beard, | his hair was bristling,
As the son of Jorth | about him sought.

2. Hear now the speech | that first he spake:
“Harken, Loki, | and heed my words,
Nowhere on earth | is it known to man,
Nor in heaven above: | our hammer is stolen.”

3. To the dwelling fair | of Freyja went they,
Hear now the speech | that first he spake:
“Wilt thou, Freyja, | thy feather-dress lend me,
That so my hammer | I may seek?”

Freyja spake:

5. Thrym sat on a mound, | the giants’ master,
Leashes of gold | he laid for his dogs,
And stroked and smoothed | the manes of his steeds.

Thrym spake:

6. “How fare the gods, | how fare the elves?
Why comst thou alone | to the giants’ land?”

Loki spake:

“Ill fare the gods, | ill fare the elves!
Hast thou hidden | Hlorrithi’s hammer?”

Thrym spake:

7. “I have hidden | Hlorrithi’s hammer,
Eight miles down | deep in the earth;
And back again | shall no man bring it
If Freyja I win not | to be my wife.”

9. “Hast thou found tidings | as well as trouble?
Thy news in the air | shalt thou utter now;
Oft doth the sitter | his story forget,
And lies he speaks | who lays himself down.”

Loki spake:

10. “Trouble I have, | and tidings as well:
Thrym, king of the giants, | keeps thy hammer,
And back again | shall no man bring it
If Freyja he wins not | to be his wife.”

11. Freyja the fair | then went they to find;
Hear now the speech | that first he spake:
“Bind on, Freyja, | the bridal veil,
For we two must haste | to the giants’ home.”

13. Then were the gods | together met,
And the goddesses came | and council held,
And the far-famed ones | a plan would find,
How they might Hlorrithi’s | hammer win.

14. Then Heimdall spake, | whitest of the gods,
Like the Wanes he knew | the future well:
“Bind we on Thor | the bridal veil,
Let him bear the mighty | Brisings’ necklace;

15. “Keys around him | let there rattle,
And down to his knees | hang woman’s dress;
With gems full broad | upon his breast,
And a pretty cap | to crown his head.”

16. Then Thor the mighty | his answer made:
“Me would the gods | unmanly call
If I let bind | the bridal veil.”

17. Then Loki spake, | the son of Laufey:
“Be silent, Thor, | and speak not thus;
Else will the giants | in Asgarth dwell
If thy hammer is brought not | home to thee.”

18. Then bound they on Thor | the bridal veil,
And next the mighty | Brisings’ necklace.

19. Keys around him | let they rattle,
And down to his knees | hung woman’s dress;
With gems full broad | upon his breast,
And a pretty cap | to crown his head.

20. Then Loki spake, | the son of Laufey:
“As thy maid-servant thither | I go with thee;
We two shall haste | to the giants’ home.”

21. Then home the goats | to the hall were driven,
They wrenched at the halters, | swift were they to
run;
The mountains burst, | earth burned with fire,
And Othin’s son | sought Jotunheim.

22. Then loud spake Thrym, | the giants’ leader:
“Bestir ye, giants, | put straw on the benches;
Now Freyja they bring | to be my bride,
The daughter of Njorth | out of Noatun.

23. “Gold-horned cattle | go to my stables,
Jet-black oxen, | the giant’s joy;
Many my gems, | and many my jewels,
Freyja alone | did I lack, methinks.”

25. Then loud spake Thrym, | the giants’ leader:
“Who ever saw bride | more keenly bite?
I ne’er saw bride | with a broader bite,
Nor a maiden who drank | more mead than this!”

26. Hard by there sat | the serving-maid wise,
So well she answered | the giant’s words:
“From food has Freyja | eight nights fasted,
So hot was her longing | for Jotunheim.”

27. Thrym looked ’neath the veil, | for he longed to kiss,
But back he leaped | the length of the hall:
“Why are so fearful | the eyes of Freyja?
Fire, methinks, | from her eyes burns forth.”

28. Hard by there sat | the serving-maid wise,
So well she answered | the giant’s words:
“No sleep has Freyja | for eight nights found,
So hot was her longing | for Jotunheim.”

30. Then loud spake Thrym, | the giants’ leader:
“Bring in the hammer | to hallow the bride;
On the maiden’s knees | let Mjollnir lie,
That us both the hand | of Vor may bless.”

31. The heart in the breast | of Hlorrithi laughed
When the hard-souled one | his hammer beheld;
First Thrym, the king | of the giants, he killed,
Then all the folk | of the giants he felled.

32. The giant’s sister | old he slew,
She who had begged | the bridal fee;
A stroke she got | in the shilling’s stead.
And for many rings | the might of the hammer.

33. And so his hammer | got Othin’s son.

NOTES

1. Vingthor (“Thor the Hurler”): another name for Thor, equivalent to Vingnir (Vafthruthnismol, 51). Concerning Thor and his hammer, Mjollnir, cf. Hymiskvitha, Lokasenna, and Harbarthsljoth, passim. Jorth: Earth, Thor’s mother, Othin being his father.

2. Loki: cf. Lokasenna, passim.

3. Freyja: Njorth’s daughter, and sister of Freyr; cf. Lokasenna, introductory prose and note, also Skirnismol, introductory prose. Freyja’s house was Sessrymnir (“Rich in Seats”) built in Folkvang (“Field of the Folk”); cf. Grimnismol, 14. Feather-dress: this flying equipment of Freyja’s is also used in the story of Thjazi, wherein Loki again borrows the “hawk’s dress” of Freyja, this time to rescue Ithun; cf. Harbarthsljoth, 19 and note.

4. The manuscript and most editions have lines 1–2 in inverse order. Several editors assume a lacuna before line 1, making a stanza out of the two conjectural lines (Bugge actually supplies them) and lines 1–2 of stanza 4. Thus they either make a separate stanza out of lines 3–5 or unite them in a six-line stanza with 5. The manuscript punctuation and capitalization—not wholly trustworthy guides—indicate the stanza divisions as in this translation.

5. Thrym: a frost-giant. Gering declares that this story of the theft of Thor’s hammer symbolizes the fact that thunderstorms rarely occur in winter.

6. Line 1: cf. Voluspo, 48, 1. The manuscript does not indicate Loki as the speaker of lines 3–4. Hlorrithi: Thor.

7. No superscription in the manuscript. Vigfusson made up and inserted lines like “Then spake Loki | the son of Laufey” whenever he thought they would be useful.

9. The manuscript marks line 2, instead of line 1, as the beginning of a stanza, which has caused editors some confusion in grouping the lines of stanzas 8 and 9.

10. No superscription in the manuscript.

12. Many editors have rejected either line 2 or line 3. Vigfusson inserts one of his own lines before line 4. Brisings’ necklace: a marvelous necklace fashioned by the dwarfs, here called Brisings (i.e., “Twiners”); cf. Lokasenna, 20 and note.

13. Lines 1–3 are identical with Baldrs Draumar, 1, 1–3.

14. Heimdall: the phrase “whitest of the gods” suggests that Heimdall was the god of light as well as being the watchman. His wisdom was probably connected with his sleepless watching over all the worlds; cf. Lokasenna, 47 and note. On the Wanes cf. Voluspo, 21 and note. They are not elsewhere spoken of as peculiarly gifted with knowledge of future events.

16. Possibly a line has been lost from this stanza.

17. Laufey: Loki’s mother, cf. Lokasenna, 52 and note.

18–19. The manuscript abbreviates all six lines, giving only the initial letters of the words. The stanza division is thus arbitrary; some editors have made one stanza of the six lines, others have combined the last two lines of stanza 19 with stanza 20. It is possible that a couple of lines have been lost.

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The poetic EddaChapter VII: Part I: The Poetic Edda (5)

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