Norse Mythology Page 190 Who were the Norse

Norse Mythology Page 190

Who were the Norse? • The Norse were tribes that inhabited Northern Europe, specifically Norway, Sweden, Finland, and Denmark. • Historically, the Norse were know by the term “Viking” and were famous for their raids along the British Isles and continental Europe.

How Do We Know What We Know? • Norse myths existed only in oral form while they were central to religious belief. They were written down after Northern Europe had become Christian. • However this presents a few problems: – There is no coherent body of literature showing the myths and legends – There could possibly be alterations due to the influence of Christianity – The “fictionalization” of stories which originally had religious importance – Therewas a wide time span, wide geographical range, and many different sub-cultures.

Recorded Sources • There are some sources that were recorded and we are pretty sure have not been altered. • Prose Edda and Poetic Edda are where most of our ideas about the Norse religion come from. • However, unlike most myths, we know exactly who wrote these Eddas…Snorri Sturluson in the 13 th centaury.

Norse Creation Myth • Ginnungagap was the great emptiness before there was a world, or any living things in it. • Far to the South of the Ginnungagap was the fiery realm of Muspell. • With its long, hot rivers full of poison and vast lakes of fire, nothing could grow in Muspell.

Norse Creation Myth • To the North was the dark and cold realm of Niflheim, where icy fountains spewed forth freezing rivers. • Nothing could grow here either, for the sky was always dark and the mountains were blocks of solid ice.

Norse Creation Myth • Slowly, over years and years, the fiery blasts from Muspell began to melt the icy mountains of Niflheim. • Out of the melting ice, the giant Ymir emerged, the first being of the vast Ginnungagap.

Norse Creation Myth • Next to him there emerged a cow from the ice. • The cow licked the salt from the ice mountains and Ymir drank the cow’s milk. • The cow licked away entire mountains of ice. Slowly she licked the ice from two more beings, this time the god Buri and his goddess wife. • They had a son named Bor, and his son was named Odin, who became the king of all the gods.

Norse Creation Myth • Ymir was cruel and brutal. • Odin and the other gods could no longer abide by his evil acts and together the gods slew him. • Ymir’s huge body formed the earth. His blood became the sea, his flesh became the land, his bones the mountains and his hair the trees. • Odin and the other gods formed the sky with his skull, held up by four towering pillars.

Norse Creation Myth • Odin gathered sparks from the fiery depths of Muspell and created the sun and moon and set them in the sky. • As the sun and moon shone over the new world in the Ginnungagap, the ice began to melt and plants and trees began to grow.

Norse Creation Myth • The greatest tree of all was the Yggdrasil, which grew in the very center of the earth. • Its roots penetrated into the bottom of creation and its leaves reached the very top of the sky. • Odin was satisfied with the new world, and named it Midgard, ‘The Middle Land’.

Norse Creation Myth • On one of his walks, Odin found two fallen trees, an ash and an elm. • He lifted them from the mud and formed the first man and woman from them. • Odin breathed life into the beings, gave them reason and feelings, hearing and sight. • He named the man Ask and the woman Embla. From these two sprang the entire human race. • The humans had the task of looking after Midgard, while the gods ascended to Asgard (their realm in heaven).

Norse Creation Myth • Ymir’s giant sisters were still mourning his death and were looking for a way to take their revenge on the gods who killed him. • They gathered at the foot of Yggdrasil and began carving lines into it. • Each line was a human life, filled with twists and turns, beginning with a man’s birth, and ending with his death. • At the end of each line they made a deep cut to ensure that humans would never be as powerful as the gods. • These spells were so powerful that not even Odin could do anything to change them. • Thus Yggdrasil became known as ‘The Tree of Life’ and humans knew death and suffering in their world.

Different Deities • There were actually two distinct division among the gods of Norse mythology. • The Aesir make up the principle gods of the pantheon and were connected to power and war. • The Vanir appear to mainly be connected to cultivation and fertility. • Over time both groups would merge with the Aesir gods being the dominate.

Nine Worlds • There were nine separate worlds to the Norse that made up the cosmos. • Midgard (where the humans dwelt) • Asgard (this is the capitol of the Norse Gods and where most of the myths take place). • Hel (the underworld) • The other six worlds are referred to, but play no big part in the major myths.

Valhalla • Odin’s Hall • The home of those slain gloriously in battle. • There idea of heaven where you prepared to fight at the end of the world.

Gods and Goddess

Odin • Chief God • God of wisdom, war, battle and death (among other things) • Had one eye. Gave an eye for wisdom • Odin’s weapon of choice was a spear (Gungnir) and he rode Sleipnir (an eightlegged horse).

Frigg • Wife of Odin • Patron of marriage, motherhood and fertility. • Plays little part in the myths.

Thor • Son of Odin • Red Haired and Bearded • God of thunder (as well as lightening, wind and rain) and war. • Weapon of choice was a special crafted war hammer, Mjolnir. • Hammer was crafted by the dwarfs of Asgard.

Sif • Golden haired wife of Thor. • Fertility goddess • Plays little part in the myths.

Tyr • God of single combat and heroic glory. • Bound the great wolf Fenrir. • One hand (lost the other to the wolf Fenrir) • Bravest of the Gods.

Heimdall • Guardian of the Gods • Watches over the Bifrost Bridge (connects the worlds together). • Could see perfectly for hundreds of miles in the day or night. • Needed no sleep. • Blows his warning horn if trouble approaches • Will only blow his horn once in all the myths.

Freyr • One of the most important Norse Gods • God of Fertility • Carried a magic sword

Freya • Goddess of love and fertility. • The most beautiful of the goddesses • Patron of crops and childbirth.

Baldr • God of innocence, joy, beauty and peace. • Odin’s second son. • Invulnerable to everything, except mistletoe • Killed by his blind brother Hoor, who was tricked by Loki • Death begins the prophecy for the end of the world

Hoor/Hod • God of winter and darkness • Blind • Tricked by Loki into killing Balder

Vidar • God of Silence • God of Revenge

Uller • God of the Winter. • Always dressed in animal furs. • Patron of the western mountains.

Valkyrie • Goddess of combat • Rode over the battlefields to choose those slain gloriously in battle. • They choose who got to go to Valhalla.

Forces of Chaos • There are several forces that are constantly fighting the gods but among them only six are prominent. – Frost Giants – Fire Giants – Loki’s three children

Loki • • God of Mischief Odin’s brother Prankster Has three child who are the greatest monsters in the known world.

Loki’s Brood

Fenrir • A massive wolf • Capable of breaking any bonds • Special bond was made by the gods and Tyr bound the monster.

Jörmungandr (World Serpent) • A massive snake with venomous breath. • Cast down into the oceans of Midgard where he became so large his body circled the world • The arch-enemy of Thor

Hel • A female with half a face like a beautiful woman and the other half of her face like a corpse. • Ruler of Hel (the place), the Viking underworld. • Companion her hellhound Garm.

Ragnarok • • The Viking Armageddon Introduced by the birth of Loki’s three children. Triggered by the death of Baldr. Fought during three consecutive winters.

Loki’s Punishment • Punished for the death of Baldr, Loki is tied to a rock where a snake spits venom onto his face everyday. • However a great earthquake will break all the bonds in the universe and the battle of Ragnorak will begin.

Final Battle • At Ragnarok, the sons of Muspell (fire giants) shatter the Bifrost Bridge. • Loki leads the rest of the giants toward Valhalla for the final battle of the world.

Final Battle • Odin will fight Fenrir, but after a long battle will be eaten by the great wolf. • To avenge his fallen father, Tyr kills the beast by ripping its jaws apart.

Final Battle • Thor will fight the world serpent and kill it, but will only be able to take 9 steps back before dying from the creature’s venom.

Final Battle • Tyr will fight the hellhound Garm, and the two will slay each other • With Garm dead, there is no guardian of Hel so the dead warriors not in Valhalla rise to fight.

Final Battle • Heimdall and Loki with fight and kill each other.

Final Battle • Brandishing the Sword of Vengeance, Surtr (the great fire giant) will burn all 9 worlds of the Norse universe. • The fire will destroy everything, including himself • Thus ends the world

The End? • Although Surtr destroys the world, this is not the end. • The earth reemerges and the sons of the gods as well as two humans (a male and female) emerge from Yggdrasil and begin to repopulate the world. • A newer and a fairer sun will arise symbolizing the completion of a perfect world.

Heroes

Sigurd/Seigfried the Dragon Slayer • Sigurd the Dragon Slayer is the hero of the anonymous 13 th century Icelandic prose epic, Völsunga saga, based on legends of Old Scandinavian folk culture. • Slays the dragon Fafnir to claim a dragon’s hoard.

Beowulf • An Anglo-Saxon hero chronicled in the epic poem Beowulf from the 8 th centaury. • Kills three monstrous beings: Grendel, Grendel’s Mother, and a Dragon. • Embodies the ideals of the Norse culture. • Considered the first piece of written literature of what would become English.