The Book of Viking Myths

by Peter Archer

  Frigg

  Of all the goddesses, Frigg has primacy. She is the wife of Odin and has great power in her own right.

  Days of the Week

  Among the most lasting legacies of Norse myth are the names of the days of the week. Some are named for Greek or Roman gods—Saturday, for example, is named for Saturn—but others are names for gods of the north. Wednesday takes its name from Wotan, the German version of Odin; Thursday is, of course, Thor’s Day; and Friday is the day belonging to Frigg.

  Frigg is the mother of Baldr, and his death is a great grief to her. Later, when she hears that Odin will die in Ragnarök, this becomes her second great grief. The parentage of the Æsir is somewhat confusing and contradictory. According to some sources, Thor is the son of Frigg and Odin, while other sources give him other antecedents.

  Frigg’s hall is Fensalir (derived from the word for “wetlands”). She has considerable power of foreknowledge, but this often brings her sorrow.

  Freyja

  Freyja is the goddess of beauty; she is also associated with fertility, gold, and war. She rides in a chariot drawn by cats and weeps tears of gold. Like her brother Freyr, she is of the Vanir rather than the Æsir. She receives half of those who die in battle (the other half belong to Odin) and receives them in her hall, Sessrúmnir. She is married to Ódr but because of his absence, she weeps tears of red gold for him.

  Ódr or Odin?

  Some scholars argue that in fact Ódr is simply Odin by another name, although this seems to contradict the idea that Odin is married to Frigg, something that is widely supported in the source material.

  Freyja, like her counterpart in Classical myth, Aphrodite, is often vain and capricious. Both qualities are on display in the tale of her acquisition of the necklace of the Brísings (see Chapter 9). Nonetheless, because of her connection to fertility, worship of her was widespread. Many plants in the north bore her name, although as often as not they were renamed with the coming of Christianity. To a degree, early Christians among the northern peoples may have identified her with the Virgin Mary.

  Other Goddesses

  Snorri, in the Gylfaginning, names a number of other goddesses with brief descriptions of them. They include:

  Soka. She lives in a hall at Sokkvabekk.

  Eir. She is described by Snorri as “the best of doctors.”

  Gefjun. She is a virgin, and women who die as virgins are said to serve her.

  Fulla. She is a handmaiden of Frigg and carries about the goddess’s accouterments in an ash box. She also looks after Frigg’s footwear.

  Sjofn. She is concerned with love, and lovers pray to her, as well as to Freyja. Snorri says that the word for “lover,” sjafni, comes from her name.

  Lofn. She is a sweet, loving goddess. On account of her gentle goodness, Odin has given her permission to arrange unions between men and women even if these have been forbidden by men.

  Var. She listens to the contracts and agreements made between men and takes vengeance upon those who break their oaths.

  Vor. She is careful and knowledgeable, and nothing can be hidden from her. The word “aware” (vor) comes from her name.

  Syn. She is the guardian against those who ought not to enter a hall. She also defends legal cases that the prosecution should not win.

  Hlin. Those whom Frigg wishes to be protected from danger are watched over by this goddess.

  Snotra. She is wise and courteous and gives her name to a man or woman who is wise (snort).

  Gna. She is Frigg’s messenger, traveling throughout the nine worlds on her horse Hofvarpnir, which can ride on sea and on land.

  These, then, are the northern gods and goddesses, worshipped by the Vikings and many others until the coming of Christianity.

  Chapter Eight

  The Exploits of Thor

  Loki was sly and not particularly strong—he relied for his triumphs on his craftiness and his ability as a shape-shifter. Thor, on the other hand, was a mass of brawn that left relatively little room for brains. After Odin, he was perhaps the most widely venerated of the Norse gods. This is hardly surprising among a people known for their prowess in battle. Thor is described as huge and red bearded with a great thundering voice (indeed, Thor was occasionally referred to as the Thunderer).

  Thor’s Origins

  Snorri Sturluson, in the Poetic Edda, claims that Thor was descended from the line of the kings of the city of Troy. According to Snorri, King Priam’s daughter Troan married a man named Mennon, and they had a son whom they named “Tror, the one we call Thor.”

  Trojan Origin Stories

  By the time Snorri was writing in the thirteenth century, many European peoples had origin myths that connected to Troy. The British, for example, were said by the twelfth-century author Geoffrey of Monmouth to be descended from Brutus, a prince of Troy. The most famous of these origin stories was contained in the Roman Virgil’s poem the Aeneid; Virgil, writing in the first century B.C.E., had claimed that the Romans were descendants of Aeneas of Troy.

  By the time Thor was twelve years old, Snorri says, he had reached his full strength, demonstrated by the fact that he could lift ten bear skins in a pile. He traveled widely, killing giants, warriors, and a fierce dragon.

  In another account, Thor is the son of Odin and the goddess Jord, which means “Earth.” He married a prophetess named Sif, and they live in a 540-room mansion, the largest building ever constructed. He traveled in a chariot drawn by two magical goats, Tooth-gnasher and Tooth-gritter. These goats had magical properties, as we shall see shortly.

  Widespread Popularity

  Thor was the thunder god—as his chariot passed through the sky, the Vikings said, it made the noise of thunder. He was the god of travelers, which may account for the fact that his cult spread throughout all the lands traversed by the Vikings. Of the population of Iceland, 25 percent had names that in some way featured the name “Thor.” When the Icelandic parliament, Althing, met, he was considered to be present. There are numerous depictions of him, and in almost all of them he can be identified by his most important weapon: his hammer.

  Thor’s Hammer, Mjollnir

  As with many Viking myths, the story of how Thor obtained his great hammer begins with a joke of Loki’s. Sif, Thor’s wife, was among the most beautiful of the goddesses; she was particularly noteworthy for her shining golden hair, which glowed with a light all its own. One night as she and Thor lay sleeping side by side in their bed, Loki entered the room. With a sweep of his knife, he sheared off Sif’s golden hair, leaving it in pile on the floor.

  Sif was desolate when she awoke and saw what the Trickster had done. Thor raged at Loki, who cried that it was merely a joke. “I will replace it,” he whined. “I will get help from the dwarves!”

  Loki sought out two dwarves and persuaded them to make Sif a new head of hair, this one made of real gold. In return, he promised them the friendship and goodwill of the gods of Asgard. Grudgingly, the dwarves agreed and built a blaze beneath their forge. Using its heat, they fashioned strand after strand of shining gold. Soon, they had a great mass of golden hair, which rustled and fluttered when the dwarves blew on it.

  But the two dwarves did not stop there. Wishing to cement their friendship with the gods, they fashioned two other marvelous items—a spear for Odin and a ship for Freyr.

  The spear was called Gungnir and would never miss whatever target at which Odin hurled it. The ship, which was called Skidbladnir, was large enough to hold all the gods but it could be taken apart and stored in a size no bigger than a piece of cloth.

  The Other Dwarves

  Loki thanked the brothers, but he did not go straight back to Asgard. Instead, he turned aside to the dwelling of two more dwarves: Brokk and Eitri. These dwarves were fascinated by the treasures Loki bore, but they boasted that they could outdo them.

  The Trickster sneered at their claim, but the dwarves kindled their own fire at their own forge and began work. Eitri soon produced a statue of a boar wi
th bristles of gold. Then the dwarves created an arm ring, also of gold. Finally, they brought forth a hammer of iron with a short handle and a massive head. The two dwarves told Loki to take the treasures back to Asgard and let the gods decide which were greater. But if their treasures were deemed superior, Brokk would claim Loki’s head as a reward.

  The gods were overwhelmed by the treasures (and Sif was very glad to get her hair back). The dwarves told Odin that the arm ring, called Draupnir, was for him. “Every ninth night,” they said, “eight rings of similar weight and value will fall from him.” To Thor, they said, “The hammer is Mjollnir. No matter where you hurl it, it will always come back to you, and if you want to hide it, it will become small.” Then they asked the gods what was the most valuable of the six treasures laid before them.

  The gods were of one mind: Mjollnir, because with it, they knew, Thor could defeat their mortal enemy the giants and keep the walls of Asgard safe.

  Loki’s Defeat

  Since the gods had chosen one of the treasures he and his brother had wrought, Brokk laid claim to Loki’s head. Thinking fast, the Trickster told the dwarf, “Very well, but the head only. Don’t take any part—even the slightest—of my neck.” (Students of Shakespeare’s The Merchant of Venice will recognize this trick, which in the play is used by Portia to save Antonio from the evil Shylock.) Recognizing that he’d been tricked, Brokk angrily declared that he would sew Loki’s lips shut and proceeded to do so with the aid of his brother’s awl. Although Loki tore out the stitches, he howled in pain.

  Thor and Loki’s Journey to Utgard

  One of the central myths that Snorri Sturluson recounts in the Poetic Edda is the story of a journey that Thor and Loki made to Utgard, a dwelling place of giants. At this time, there was not war between the giants and Asgard. The two gods traveled in Thor’s chariot, drawn by the goats Tooth-gnasher and Tooth-gritter. Toward evening, they came to the house of a farmer and his family. The gods asked for shelter, and while the farmer was happy to provide it, he warned them that he had no food to give them.

  “No matter,” replied Thor. He took his goats and slaughtered them, while the farmer’s family looked on, astonished that he would casually destroy the beasts that drew his chariot. The farmer’s wife cooked the goat meat, and then Thor invited the family to feast. But, he warned, they should throw the bones onto the goatskins, which he spread before the fire.

  The family fell upon the meal heartily, since they were very hungry. As they had been bade, they threw the bones onto the skins. But when the god’s back was turned, the father, who was still hungry, took one of the leg bones and cracked it with his knife so he could suck out the marrow. Then the family and the gods lay down by the fire and went to sleep.

  The next morning, Thor consecrated the goatskins with his hammer. Behold, the goats stood up again, as alive as ever. But as they walked toward the chariot, Thor noticed that one of the goats was limping. Turning on the farmer, he roared, “Who has done this thing? Who has broken my goat’s thighbone?” Trembling, the farmer confessed what he had done.

  Thor lifted his hammer above his head, and the farmer, in terror, pleaded, “Please don’t kill me! Take anything else! Take my family!”

  Thor’s rages, like summer lightning storms, were spectacular but never lasted long. Lowering his hammer, he growled, “Very well. Your children will accompany us as servants.” Thus the boy, Thjalfi, and the girl, Roskva, went forward with Loki and Thor and, according to Snorri, remained Thor’s bonded servants ever since.

  Thor and Skrymir

  When darkness overtook the four travelers, they searched for a place to rest. They found a hall with a long passageway and a door at the end of it. Grateful for the shelter, they lay down, but in the night they were woken by a great earthquake. The hall shook and trembled, and even Thor and Loki were startled by the suddenness of the earth’s movements.

  In the morning, Thor went out to explore, taking with him the belt of strength, which enabled his divine power to make him larger. He beheld a great man sleeping, whose snoring was fit to wake the gods themselves. When he awoke, Thor asked his name, and the man replied it was Skrymir. He recognized Thor and greeted him respectfully. However, Thor does not appear to have returned the favor. He was more shocked when the great man showed him his glove, and Thor realized that this was what he and his companions had been sleeping in the night before. The glove’s thumb was the hall in which they’d slept.

  “Let’s pool our provisions,” Skrymir suggested, “and tonight we’ll both feast well.” Thor agreed, and the two piled their food into a common sack. All day they walked, Thor and Loki and their companions trailing after the tirelessly striding giant. When they finally stopped for the night, Thor was ravaged with hunger. “Come,” Skrymir said. “Untie the bag and take what you want,” and he lay down and went to sleep. Thor picked up the bag, thinking that he and his companions would have a hearty feast. But try as he might, the god could not undo the bag. His anger grew with his frustration, and he took his hammer, Mjollnir, and struck the giant in the head. Skrymir turned over and opened one eye at the god. “I think a leaf from a tree fell on my forehead,” he told the god. “You should bed down and take your sleep.”

  Crestfallen, Thor agreed and fell into a fast sleep.

  At midnight, the giant raised the forest with his snoring; the trees shook, and animals fled the sound. Thor woke and, angered again, he lifted his hammer, and this time he struck Skrymir at the middle of his skull. But although the hammer sank deep into the head of the giant, Skrymir awoke again and said, “Has an acorn, perhaps, fallen upon my head?” He brushed his head, clearing it of the invisible missile, and went back to sleep.

  Thor was now torn between fury, hunger, and sleep. He trembled with the thought that his hammer might have found something it could not slay. As the red sun rose over the horizon, he also rose and rushed forward, crying in anger, and struck the sleeping giant on the temple with his hammer. This time the hammer sank deep, and the god was sure he had slain the sleeping giant.

  Skrymir shrugged and stretched. “Come, friend!” he said. “It’s time to get dressed. It seemed to me that some birds were cheeping above me and dropped some leaves and twigs upon me.” Sullenly, Thor dressed and prepared to resume his journey.

  Thor and Loki were on their way to Giant Land, to the stronghold of Utgarda-Loki. Skrymir gave them some advice: “The followers of Utgarda-Loki are very mighty. They won’t tolerate bragging from some tiny fellow such as yourself. My suggestion is that you turn back now while you still have all your limbs. Still, I suppose you intend to continue. Folks such as you usually do. My path, though, leads northward to the distant mountains.” So saying, he picked up his mighty food sack and stepped on his way. “In this parting,” recounts Snorri Sturluson, “there is no report that the Æsir mentioned they were looking forward to meeting him again.”

  Arriving at Utgard

  The next day the companions reached a great fortress. It was so large that they had to bend their necks all the way back to look up at it. It was far greater than anything that could have been built by the hand of man. Clearly, this was the stronghold of Utgarda-Loki.

  They tried to open the door but could not budge it. Finally, they squeezed through the bars and found themselves in a great hall in which many folk, all of them giants, were sitting. At the far end of the hall, a great giant was sitting in a wooden chair. Slowly they paced the hall and, arriving before the giant leader, hailed him as Utgarda-Loki.

  However, he ignored them at first. Finally he said, grinning contemptuously, “Am I right that this little fellow who I see before me is the famous Thor? The god of whom so many great deeds are spoken? There must be more to you than meets the eye! But all who stay in this hall with us must show they have primacy in some skill or other. What skill are you unsurpassed in?”

  Thor was silent, but Loki spoke up. “I have the skill of eating,” he said. “I can devour the meat that lies on this table”�
�he gestured to the great table at which the giants were seated—“faster than any of you.”

  Utgarda stared at him hard. “That would be an accomplishment indeed!” he said. He called to one of the giants, a being called Logi, which means “fire.” Logi and Loki seated themselves at opposite ends of the table, and when Utgarda gave the signal, they began to eat. Loki reached the middle of the table, having eaten all the meat that was on his half. But Logi had eaten not only the meat but also the bones and the table itself.

  Utgarda grunted. “It seems Loki has lost that contest,” he observed. He pointed to Thjalfi. “What can that youngster do?”

  Thjalfi had long, clean limbs. He said he would run a race against any Utgarda might name. The giant called a small fellow whom he named Hugi. The company went outdoors, where there was a broad plain. Thjalfi and Hugi crouched in their positions and when Utgarda cried the word, they ran swiftly. But Hugi ran so fast that when Thjalfi reached the end of the race, Hugi was already standing there waiting for him.

  In the second race, Thjalfi fell even farther behind his opponent; at the end, he trailed by the distance of a long bow shot. And in the third race, by the time Hugi had reached the end, the panting Thjalfi was not even at the halfway mark.

  “The lad has lost,” declared Utgarda. He turned to Thor. “Now we come to you, god of Asgard. There are many tales of your deeds. What skill do you propose to show us?”

  “Drinking!” replied Thor.