by Roger Green
The Æsir at once set to work, using the shape in the ashes as a model, and very soon they had a net long enough to draw the river in one sweep.
Then Thor took one end and all the rest of the Æsir the other, and they drew it through the water of the river and through the falls. But Loki darted away in front of it and hid between two stones: however, he touched the net in passing, and the Æsir knew that something was there.
So they weighted the net so that nothing could pass under it, and drew it once again from the falls right down-stream until they came near the sea. And when Loki saw the great ocean where no salmon could live, he was afraid and leapt suddenly over the net, and sped back upstream to hide once more under the Frananger Falls.
But they had seen him, and once more they prepared to draw the river. But this time half the Æsir were at each end of the net and Thor waded along in mid-stream just behind it. So they went down again toward the sea, and presently Loki realized that he had only two chances of escape: either to leap back over the net, hoping that Thor would miss him, or else to dare the dangers of the sea.
At the last moment he was afraid, for he knew that Ægir, Lord of the Sea, would have many a monster waiting there for him. So he leapt suddenly back over the net.
But Thor saw him and with a shout seized him by the tail and held tight, squeezing so hard that salmon have narrow tails to this day.
Now Loki took his own form again; and as he had been captured outside Asgard and in no place where the laws of hospitality protected him, he knew that he could expect nothing but his just punishment from the Æsir for the murder of Baldur the beautiful.
They dragged him away to a cave far below the world of men, and there they set three sharp slabs of stone on edge and bound Loki upon them. And one stone was under his shoulders, one under his thighs and one under the calves of his legs.
To find fetters that would hold him the Æsir turned Loki’s evil son Ali into a wolf, and he at once killed his brother Narfi and tore him to pieces. Out of Narfi’s sinews they made thongs with which they bound Loki, drawing the fetters through a hole which they made in each of the three stones. And then by magic they turned the sinews into iron.
To complete the punishment of Loki the Evil One, Skadi took a venomous serpent and hung it above his head so that the poison dripped upon him and he writhed in pain.
But even Loki was not without one person in all the world to love him, and that was his faithful wife, the Giantess called Sigyn. She came hastening to his side and held a cup to catch the drips of venom. But when the cup was full she had to turn away to empty it; and every time she did so Loki writhed in pain as the venom fell on his face, and the whole earth shook and trembled.
Only once did a man of Midgard find his way to the cavern where Loki lay waiting for Ragnarok, and that man was Thorkill the great traveller. Through a sunless land he sailed where no stars shone at night and there was deep gloom at midday; and at last the fuel grew short so that he and his crew were forced to eat their meat raw. Then a plague smote them so that many died; and at length when hope seemed dead they saw a fire at a great distance and in time came to a cave of the sea where two Giants sat cooking fish.
With a jewel set at his mast-head to reflect the light, Thorkill sailed past them, after bandying riddles which he was quick-witted enough to answer, and he came to the unsailed, untrodden regions beyond the world.
Here he landed in the deep gloom and set out with his companions until they came to a rock of an enormous size; and there he caused his men to make a fire by striking flint stones and iron together, and saw the entrance to a cavern.
Through the narrow cleft in the rock he went, his men bearing torches before and behind him, and they picked their way among gliding, glistening serpents. Next he crossed a sluggish stream of black water, and came to a place where, in a foul and gloomy cavern, Loki lay bound upon his three rocks.
It seemed to them that he was a huge and terrible Giant, held by mighty chains, with the hairs standing out on his head like twigs of dogwood. When they put up their hands to draw out one of these hairs as proof that Loki indeed lived, he moved in his bonds, and immediately the black venom of the great snake began to drip from the roof above.
In terror Thorkill and his men covered themselves in their cloaks and turned to steal away from that dreadful cavern. But only five of them came out of it unhurt. For one man peeping out from under his cloak, the poison touched his head, which it took off at the neck as if it had been severed with a sword. Another glanced from beneath his hand, and was immediately blinded; and a third, putting forth his hand to save himself from falling, lost his whole arm on the instant.
Thorkill and the survivors struggled back to their ship, and sailed away through the darkness for weeks and weeks. They were wrecked on the homeward voyage, and only Thorkill lived to tell the tale of how he had seen Loki, the Evil One, chained to his three rocks under the northern parts of the world.
And there Loki lies, bound with bonds that cannot be broken until Ragnarok, when he shall be loosed to fight against the Æsir on the Day of the Last Great Battle.
15
Ragnarok
Even from the morning of time Odin had known, the Æsir soon knew, and even the dwellers in Midgard learnt to know also, that the whole world would perish on a day – the Day of Ragnarok, the Twilight of the Gods – the Day of the Last Great Battle.
Baldur was dead and Hodur was dead also. Loki was bound, and Valhalla was growing full of the Einheriar. There were shadows over Asgard, and in Jotunheim the Giants stirred and muttered threateningly. In Midgard men turned towards the evil Loki had taught them, treachery grew and greed and pride also.
Odin knew much of what was to happen when Ragnarok came: but there was much he did not know, for even he could not see the future. If the Norns knew, they would not speak: their task was to weave the web of each man’s life, but not the life of the whole world.
But here and there a strange woman was born or died who could see into the future, some a little way and concerning little things; but one or two with powers of sight beyond that of any other creature. Such a one was the dead Volva whom Odin had raised from her grave to tell him of the death of Baldur. Such another was born and lived her life in Midgard. Her name was Haid and she was famed among men for her prophecies.
Seated in Lidskialf, whence he could see all that happened in the Nine Worlds, Odin saw Haid, the wise sibyl, passing from house to house among men. And suddenly he knew that here was one wiser even than Volva, one who could answer what he desired most to know.
So he went down to Midgard wearing his usual disguise of wide-brimmed hat, blue cloak, and tall staff. Before he went in search of Haid, the Valkyries had visited her, bringing such gifts as the high ones of Asgard could give: cunning treasure-spells, rune sticks, and rods of divination.
Odin came to her as she sat alone before a cave overlooking the broad land of the Danes and the blue waters of the Sound. He came as a man, bringing her presents of rings and necklaces, and begging her to read the future for him. But she knew him at once and spoke to him in the deep, thrilling tones of a prophetess:
‘What ask you of me? Why would you tempt me? I know all, Odin: yes, I know where you have hidden your eye in the holy well of Mimir. I can see all things: both the world’s beginning and the world’s ending. I can see Ginnungagap as it was before the Sons of Borr raised the earth out of it: the Giant Ymir I know, and the Cow Audumla … I can see the shaft of death, the mistletoe that Loki cut from the oak; the dart that flew into Baldur’s heart, and Frigga weeping in Fensalir.’
‘You know of the past, and that I know also,’ said Odin. ‘But, since the gift is yours and yours alone, look into the future, wise Haid – you whom we in Asgard call Vola, the Sibyl – look and tell me of the World’s Ending: tell me of Ragnarok and the Great Battle on the Plain of Vigrid.’
Then he took his stand behind Haid the Vola, placing his hands above her head and murmuring the ru
nes of wisdom so that his knowledge should be mingled with hers.
And now her eyes grew wide and vacant as she gazed out across the land and over the water, seeing neither: seeing things unseen.
‘There shall come the Fimbul Winter,’ she cried, ‘after man’s evil has reached its height. For brother shall slay brother, and son shall not spare father, and honour shall be dead among men.
‘In that awful Winter snow shall drive from all quarters, frost shall not break, the winds shall be keen, and the sun give no heat. And for three years shall that Fimbul Winter last.
‘Eastward in Iron Wood an aged witch is sitting, breeding the brood of Fenris and the wolf that shall swallow the Sun. He shall feed on the lives of death-doomed mortals, spattering the heavens with their red blood.
‘Ragnarok comes: I see it far in the days to be. Yet to me, the far-seer, it is as if that day were now, and all that I see in the future is happening before me now. I see it, and I tell you what I see and hear as it rises about me until Future and Present seem as one.
‘For I see the Wolf Skoll who in that far day swallows the Sun, and the Moon is swallowed also, while the stars are quenched with blood. Now the earth shakes, the trees and the rocks are torn up and all things fall to ruin.
‘Away in Jotunheim the red cock Fialar crows loudly; and another cock with golden crest crows over Asgard. Then all bonds are loosened: the Fenris Wolf breaks free; the sea gushes over the land as Jormungand the Midgard Serpent swims ashore. Then the ship Naglfar is loosened: it is made of dead men’s nails – therefore when a man dies, shear his nails close so that Naglfar may be long in the building. But now I see it moving over the flood, and the Giant Hymir steers it. Fenris advances with open mouth, and Jormungand blows venom over sea and air: terrible is he as he takes his place beside the Wolf Fenris.
‘Then the sky splits open and the Sons of Muspell come in fire: Surtur leads them with his flaming sword, and when they ride over Bifrost the bridge breaks behind them and falls in pieces to the earth. Loki also is set free and comes to the Field of Vigrid; he and Hymir lead the Frost Giants to the battle. But all Hela’s champions follow Loki: Garm the Hell Hound bays fiercely before the Gnipa Cave, and his jaws slobber with blood.
‘Now I hear Heimdall in the Gate of Asgard blowing upon the Giallar Horn. Its notes sound clear and shrill throughout all worlds: it is the Day of Ragnarok. The Æsir meet together; Odin rides to Mimir’s Well for the last time. Yggdrasill the World Tree trembles, and nothing shall be without fear in heaven or in earth.
‘Now I see the Æsir put on their armour and ride to the field of battle. Odin rides first in his golden helmet and his fair armour; Sleipnir is beneath him and he holds the spear Gungnir in his hand. He rides against the Fenris Wolf, and Thor stands at his side, shaking Miolnir: yet he cannot help Odin, for all his strength is needed in his own battle with Jormungand.
‘Now Frey fights against Surtur; the struggle is long, but Frey falls at the last. Ah, he would not have died had he his sword in his hand: but that sword he gave to Skirnir. Oh, how loudly Garm bays in the Gnipa Cave! Now he has broken loose and fights against Tyr: had Tyr two hands it would go hard with Garm, but now they slay and are slain the one by the other.
‘Thor slays the Midgard Serpent, and no greater deed was ever done. He strides away from the spot; nine paces only, and then he falls to the earth and dies, so deadly is the venom which Jormungand has poured upon him.
‘Odin and Fenris still fight together: but in the end the Wolf has the victory and devours Odin. But Vidar strides forward to avenge his father, and sets his foot on the lower jaw of Fenris. On that foot is the shoe made of the scraps of leather which men cut from their toes or heels: therefore should men cut often and fling away if they desire to help the Æsir. Vidar takes the Wolf by the upper jaw and tears him apart, and that is the end of Fenris.
‘Loki battles with Heimdall, and in their last struggle each slays the other and both fall.
‘Now Surtur spreads fire over the whole earth and all things perish. Darkness descends, and I can see no more.’
The voice of Haid the Vola faded away into silence. But still she sat rigid and still gazing beyond the distance, gazing into the future with wide, unseeing eyes.
Very slowly, as he stood behind her, it seemed to Odin that her power was creeping into him. His own eye grew misty – grew dark – and then on a sudden he was looking out with two eyes, with her eyes and not his own.
At first he saw only a great waste of water, tossing and tumbling over all the world. But as he watched, a new earth rose out of the sea, green and fruitful, with unfading forests and pleasant meadows smiling in the light of a new sun. Then the waters fell away, making wide rivers, and sparkling falls and a new blue sea about the land.
Then, on Ida’s Plain where Asgard had stood before, he saw Vidar and Vali, the two of the Æsir who had survived through Ragnarok. Thor’s two sons, Magni and Modi, came to join them, bearing Miolnir in their hands. After this the earth opened and back from Helheim came Baldur the Beautiful, holding his brother Hodur by the hand.
They sat down and spoke together concerning all that had happened, of the passing of Fenris and Jormungand, and other evils. Then, shining among the grass and flowers, they saw the ancient golden chessmen of the Æsir, and collecting them began to play once more on the board of life.
Presently Honir came to them out of Vanaheim, bringing great wisdom to the new Æsir. At his bidding new halls rose on Ida’s Plain, glittering palaces waiting for the souls of dead men and women from Midgard.
For in Midgard also life came again. In the deep place called Hoddminir’s Holt a man and a woman had escaped from Surtur’s fire. Now they awoke from sleep, Lif and Lifthrasir; and for food they found the morning dew was all they needed. From them were born many children so that Midgard was peopled anew. And there were children also in the new Asgard which was called Gimli the Gem Lea, where the halls were thatched with gold. There the blessed among men mingled with the new race of the Æsir, and the new Sun shone brightly, and the new world was filled with light and song.
Then Odin wept with joy, and as the tears coursed down his face, the vision faded into the greyness of the cold Northern world where Ragnarok is yet to come. The wind moaned over the chill plains, the wolves howled in the lonely mountains, and across the sea stole forth a longship hung with shields in which Viking men went out to harry and slay and burn.
The old sibyl sat alone by her cave, chanting the words of the Volo-spa, the poem of prophecy, the finest of all the old Northern poems which are still known among men.
But Odin threaded his way quietly across Midgard to Bifrost Bridge, up its gleaming arch where Heimdall stood on guard, and so brought his good news to the Æsir.
For now he knew the meaning of the mysterious word which he had whispered into Baldur’s ear as his dead son lay upon the funeral ship: the word ‘Rebirth’ which was to bring comfort and hope to the Men of Midgard as well as to the Gods of Asgard.
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Contents
AUTHOR FILE
WHO’S WHO IN MYTHS OF THE NORSEMEN
DID YOU KNOW …?
SOME THINGS TO THINK ABOUT …
SOME THINGS TO DO …
GLOSSARY
Author File
NAME: Roger Lancelyn Green
BORN: 2 November 1918 in Norwich, Norfolk
DIED: 8 October 1987 in Poulton, Cheshire
NATIONALITY: English
LIVED: in Oxford and his family home in Cheshire, which the Greens had owned for more than nine hundred years
MARRIED: to June Green
CHILDREN: two sons and one daughter: Scirard, Richard and Priscilla
What was he like?
Roger was a man who loved storytelling and was fascinated b
y traditional fairy tales, myths and legends from around the world.
Where did he grow up?
He was born in Norwich, England, and went to boarding school in Surrey. Roger was often ill, though, and couldn’t go to school – so he spent lots of time at the family’s manor house in the county of Cheshire. His family had been wealthy, and there was a huge library in their house. He spent many hours reading the old books in there, and this is probably where his love of myths and legends started.
What did he do apart from writing books?
In the course of his life Roger was a professional actor, librarian and teacher. He was also a member of the Inklings Club in Oxford, a group of friends who read, and commented on, each other’s work. Its members included C. S. Lewis (author of The Chronicles of Narnia) and J. R. R. Tolkien (author of The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings).
If it hadn’t been for Roger, The Chronicles of Narnia might never have been published. In 1949 Roger went to dinner with C. S. Lewis, who read to him two chapters of The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe. He also informed Roger that he’d read them to Tolkien a few weeks before, and Tolkien had told him that he didn’t think they were very good. Roger disagreed. He thought they were great, and he encouraged Lewis to get them published. Roger even thought of the series title, The Chronicles of Narnia, and he went on to become the very first reader of all of the other Narnia stories.
Where did Roger get the idea for Myths of the Norsemen?
Roger loved reading adventure stories and fairy tales, and as he grew up he became fascinated by the myths of ancient Greece and Egypt, and the legends of the Norse countries of Scandanavia. He went on to retell their ancient stories in his books Tales of Ancient Greece, The Tale of Troy, Tales from Ancient Egypt and Myths of the Norsemen – a continuous story gathered from the ancient Norse folktales, ballads and poems.