The elder edda pdf

These amazing texts from a 13th-century Icelandic manuscript are of huge historical, mythological and literary importance,. The Poetic Edda comprises a treasure trove of mythic and spiritual verse holding an important place in Nordic culture, literature, and heritage. Its tales of strife and death form a repository, in poetic form, of Norse mythology and heroic lore, embodying both the ethical views and the cultural life of. Published by Good Press.

Good Press publishes a wide range of titles that encompasses every genre. Each Good Press edition. Download or read online Poems of the Vikings the Elder Edda written by Anonim, published by Unknown which was released on She sees, coming up a second time, earth from the ocean, eternally green; the waterfalls plunge, an eagle soars above them, over the mountain hunting fish.

After the terrible conflagration of Ragnarok, the earth rises serenely again from the ocean, and life is renewed. The Poetic Edda begins with The. This volume presents five Norse poems, originally of oral composition, from the late ninth to the early eleventh century. Each has a translation and commentary, intoduction, analysis of structure and meaning, provenance and date.

Get Poems of the Vikings Books now! Publication date Publisher London, New York [etc. Book digitized by Google from the library of the University of Michigan and uploaded to the Internet Archive by user tpb. From the Old Norse or Icelandic Mallet, by I. Blackwell Worldcat source edition Year Show More. There are no reviews yet. Be the first one to write a review. Thus Brage, the old skald:.

Four heads and eight eyes Bore the oxen As they went before the wide Robbed land of the grassy isle. King Gylfe was a wise man and skilled in the black art. He wondered much that the asa-folk was so mighty in knowledge, that all things went after their will. He thought to himself whether this could come from their own nature, or whether the cause must be sought for among the gods whom they worshiped.

He therefore undertook a journey to Asgard. He went secretly, having assumed the likeness of an old man, and striving thus to disguise himself. But the asas were wiser, for they see into the future, and, foreseeing his journey before he came, they received him with an eye-deceit. So when he came into the burg he saw there a hall so high that he could hardly look over it.

Its roof was thatched with golden shields as with shingles. Thus says Thjodolf of Hvin, that Valhal was thatched with shields:. Thinking thatchers Thatched the roof; The beams of the burg Beamed with gold. That man asked him what his name was.

Gylfe answered that his name was Ganglere; 10 that he had come a long way, and that he sought lodgings for the night. He also asked who owned the burg. The other answered that it belonged to their king: I will go with you to see him and then you may ask him for his name yourself.

Then the man turned and led the way into the hall. Ganglere followed, and suddenly the doors closed behind him. There he saw many rooms and a large number of people, of whom some were playing, others were drinking, and some were fighting with weapons. He looked around him, and much of what he saw seemed to him incredible. Then quoth he:.

Gates all, Before in you go, You must examine well; For you cannot know Where enemies sit In the house before you. He saw three high-seats, one above the other, and in each sat a man. He asked what the names of these chiefs were. He, who had conducted him in, answered that the one who sat 53 in the lowest high-seat was king, and hight Har; the one next above him, Jafnhar; but the one who sat on the highest throne, Thride.

Ganglere answered that he first would like to ask whether there was any wise man. Answered Har: You will not come out from here hale unless you are wiser. Ganglere then made the following question: Who is the highest and oldest of all the gods? Made answer Har: Alfather he is called in our tongue, but in Asgard of old he had twelve names. Ganglere asks again: Where is this god? What can he do?

What mighty works has he accomplished? Answered Har: He lives from everlasting to everlasting, rules over all his realm, and governs all things, great and small.

Then remarked Jafnhar: He made heaven and earth, the air and all things in them. Thride added: What is most important, he made man and gave him a spirit, which shall live, and never perish, though the body may turn to dust or burn to ashes. All who live a life of virtue shall dwell with him in Gimle or Vingolf.

The wicked, 55 on the other hand, go to Hel, and from her to Niflhel, that is, down into the ninth world. Then asked Ganglere: What was he doing before heaven and earth were made? Har gave answer: Then was he with the frost-giants. Said Ganglere: How came the world into existence, or how did it rise?

What was before? Earth there was not, Nor heaven above. The Ginungagap was, But grass nowhere. Jafnhar remarked: Many ages before the earth was made, Niflheim had existed, in the midst of which is the well called Hvergelmer, whence flow the following streams: Svol, Gunnthro, Form, Fimbul, Thul, Slid and Hrid, Sylg and Ylg, Vid, Leipt and Gjoll, the last of which is nearest the gate of Hel. Then added Thride: Still there was before a world to the south which hight Muspelheim.

It is light and hot, and so bright and dazzling that no stranger, who is not a 57 native there, can stand it. Surt is the name of him who stands on its border guarding it. He has a flaming sword in his hand, and at the end of the world he will come and harry, conquer all the gods, and burn up the whole world with fire. Surt from the south fares With blazing flames; From the sword shines The sun of the war-god. Rocks dash together And witches collapse, Men go the way to Hel And the heavens are cleft.

Said Ganglere: What took place before the races came into existence, and men increased and multiplied? Replied Har, explaining, that as soon as the streams, that are called the Elivogs, had come so far from their source that the venomous yeast which flowed with them hardened, as does dross that runs from the fire, then it turned into ice. And when this ice stopped and flowed no more, then gathered over it the drizzling rain that arose from the venom and froze into rime, and one layer of ice was laid upon the other clear into Ginungagap.

Then said Jafnhar: All that part of Ginungagap that turns toward the north was filled with thick and heavy ice and rime, and everywhere within were 58 drizzling rains and gusts. But the south part of Ginungagap was lighted up by the glowing sparks that flew out of Muspelheim.

Added Thride: As cold and all things grim proceeded from Niflheim, so that which bordered on Muspelheim was hot and bright, and Ginungagap was as warm and mild as windless air. And when the heated blasts from Muspelheim met the rime, so that it melted into drops, then, by the might of him who sent the heat, the drops quickened into life and took the likeness of a man, who got the name Ymer.

But the Frost giants call him Aurgelmer. Thus it is said in the short Prophecy of the Vala the Lay of Hyndla :. Whence came Aurgelmer Originally to the sons Of the giants? From the Elivogs Sprang drops of venom, And grew till a giant was made. Thence our race Are all descended, Therefore are we all so fierce. Then asked Ganglere: How were the races developed from him? Or what was done so that more men were made?

Or do you believe him to be god of whom you now spake? Made answer Har: By no means do we believe him to be god; evil was he and all his offspring, them we call frost-giants. It is said that when he slept he fell into a sweat, and then there grew under his left arm a man and a woman, and one of his feet begat with the other a son. From these come the races that are called frost-giants. The old frost-giant we call Ymer. Then said Ganglere: Where did Ymer dwell, and on what did he live?

Answered Har: The next thing was that when the rime melted into drops, there was made thereof a cow, which hight Audhumbla. Four milk-streams ran from her teats, and she fed Ymer.

Thereupon asked Ganglere: On what did the cow subsist? This Bor married a woman whose name was Bestla, the daughter of the giant Bolthorn; they had three sons,—the one hight Odin, the other Vile, and the third Ve.

And it is my belief that this Odin and his brothers are the rulers of heaven and earth. We think that he must be so called.

That is the name of the man whom we know to be the greatest and most famous, and well may men call him by that name. Ganglere asked: How could these keep peace with Ymer, or who was the stronger?

Then answered Har: The sons of Bor slew the giant Ymer, but when he fell, there flowed so much blood from his wounds that they drowned therein the whole race of frost giants; excepting one, who escaped with his household. Him the giants call Bergelmer. He and his wife went on board his ark and saved themselves in it. From them are come new races of frost-giants, as is here said:.

Countless winters Ere the earth was made, Was born Bergelmer. Then said Ganglere: What was done then by the sons of Bor, since you believe that they were gods? Answered Har: About that there is not a little to be said. They took the body of Ymer, carried it into the midst of Ginungagap and made of him the earth. Of his blood they made the seas and lakes; of his flesh the earth was made, but of his bones the rocks; of his teeth and jaws, and of the bones that were broken, they made stones and pebbles.

Jafnhar remarked: Of the blood that flowed from the wounds, and was free, they made the ocean; they fastened the earth together and around it they laid this ocean in a ring without, and it must seem to most men impossible to cross it. Thride added: They took his skull and made thereof the sky, and raised it over the earth with four sides.

Then they took glowing sparks, that were loose and had been cast out from Muspelheim, and placed them in the midst of the boundless heaven, both above and below, to light up heaven and earth. They gave resting-places to all fires, and set some in heaven; 62 some were made to go free under heaven, but they gave them a place and shaped their course. In old songs it is said that from that time days and years were reckoned.

Thus in the Prophecy of the Vala:. The sun knew not Where her hall she had; The moon knew not What might he had; The stars knew not Their resting-places. Thus it was before these things were made. Then said Ganglere: Wonderful tidings are these I now hear; a wondrous great building is this, and deftly constructed.

How was the earth fashioned? Made answer Har: The earth is round, and without it round about lies the deep ocean, and along the outer strand of that sea they gave lands for the giant races to dwell in; and against the attack of restless giants they built a burg within the sea and around the earth.

They also took his brains and cast them into the air, and made therefrom the clouds, as is here said:. Of his brains All the melancholy Clouds were made. Then said Ganglere: Much had been done, it seemed to me, when heaven and earth were made, when sun and moon were set in their places, and when days were marked out; but whence came the people who inhabit the world?

These trees they took up and made men of them. The first gave them spirit and life; the second endowed them with reason and power of motion; and the third gave them form, speech, hearing and eyesight. They gave them clothes and names; the man they called Ask, and the woman Embla. From them all mankind is descended, and a dwelling-place was given them under Midgard.

In the next place, the sons of Bor made for themselves in the middle of the world a burg, which is called Asgard, and which we call Troy. There dwelt the gods and their race, and thence were wrought many tidings and adventures, both on earth and in the sky.

In Asgard is a place called Hlidskjalf, and when 65 Odin seated himself there in the high-seat, he saw over the whole world, and what every man was doing, and he knew all things that he saw. His wife hight Frigg, and she was the daughter of Fjorgvin, and from their offspring are descended the race that we call asas, who inhabited Asgard the old and the realms that lie about it, and all that race are known to be gods.

And for this reason Odin is called Alfather, that he is the father of all gods and men, and of all things that were made by him and by his might. Jord earth was his daughter and his wife; with her he begat his first son, and that is Asa-Thor. To him was given force and strength, whereby he conquers all things quick. Norfe, or Narfe, hight a giant, who dwelt in Jotunheim. He had a daughter by name Night. She was swarthy and dark like the race she belonged to.

She was first married to a man who hight Naglfare. Their son was Aud. Afterward she was married to Annar. Jord hight their daughter. Her last husband was Delling Daybreak , who was of asa-race. Their son was Day, who was light and fair after his father. Then took Alfather Night and her son Day, gave them two horses and two cars, and set them up in heaven to drive around the earth, each in twelve hours by turns.

Night rides first on the horse which is called Hrimfaxe, and every morning he bedews 66 the earth with the foam from his bit. The horse on which Day rides is called Skinfaxe, and with his mane he lights up all the sky and the earth. Then said Ganglere: How does he steer the course of the sun and the moon?

Answered Har: Mundilfare hight the man who had two children. They were so fair and beautiful that he called his son Moon, and his daughter, whom he gave in marriage to a man by name Glener, he called Sun. But the gods became wroth at this arrogance, took both the brother and the sister, set them up in heaven, and made Sun drive the horses that draw the car of the sun, which the gods had made to light up the world from sparks that flew out of Muspelheim.

These horses hight Arvak and Alsvid. Moon guides the course of the moon, and rules its waxing and waning. He took from the earth two children, who hight Bil and Hjuke, as they were going from the well called Byrger, and were carrying on their shoulders the bucket called Sager and the pole Simul.

These children always accompany Moon, as can be seen from the earth. Then said Ganglere: Swift fares Sun, almost as if she were afraid, and she could make no more haste in her course if she feared her destroyer. Near is he who pursues her, and there is no escape for her but to run before him. Then asked Ganglere: Who causes her this toil? Answered Har: It is two wolves. The one hight Skol, he runs after her; she fears him and he will one day overtake her.

Said Har; A hag dwells east of Midgard, in the forest called Jarnved Ironwood , where reside the witches called Jarnvidjes. Thence come these two wolves. It is said that of this wolf-race one is the mightiest, and is called Moongarm. He is filled with the life-blood of all dead men. He will devour the moon, and stain the heavens and all the sky with blood.

Thereby the sun will be darkened, the winds will grow wild, and roar hither and thither, as it is said in the Prophecy of the Vala:. He is filled with the life-blood Of men doomed to die; The seats of the gods He stains with red gore; Sunshine grows black The summer thereafter, All weather gets fickle.

Know you yet or not? Then asked Ganglere: What is the path from earth to heaven? Har answered, laughing: Foolishly do you now ask. Have you not been told that the gods made a bridge from earth to heaven, which is called Bifrost? You must have seen it. It may be that you call it the rainbow. It has three colors, is very strong, and is made with more craft and skill than other structures. Still, however strong it is, it will break when the sons of Muspel come to ride over it, and then they will have to swim their horses over great rivers in order to get on.

Then said Ganglere: The gods did not, it seems to me, build that bridge honestly, if it shall be able to break to pieces, since they could have done so, had they desired. Then made answer Har: The gods are worthy of no blame for this structure. Bifrost is indeed a good bridge, but there is no thing in the world that is able to stand when the sons of Muspel come to the fight.

Then said Ganglere: What did Alfather do when Asgard had been built? Said Har: In the beginning he appointed rulers in a place in the middle of the burg which is called Idavold, who were to judge with him the disputes of men and decide the affairs of the burg.

Their first work was to erect a court, where there were seats for all the twelve, and, besides, a high-seat for Alfather. That is the best and largest house ever built on earth, and is within and without like solid gold.

This place is called Gladsheim. Then they built another hall as a home for the goddesses, which also is a very beautiful mansion, and is called Vingolf.

Thereupon they built a forge; made hammer, tongs, anvil, and with these all other tools. Afterward they worked in iron, stone and wood, and especially in that metal which is called gold. All their household wares were of gold. That age was called the golden age, until it was lost by the coming of those women from Jotunheim. Then the gods set themselves in their high-seats and held counsel. Modsogner was one dwarf and Durin another. In the likeness of men Made they many Dwarfs in the earth, As Durin said.

But the following are also dwarfs and dwell in the rocks, while the above-named dwell in the mould:. Their names are:. Then said Ganglere: Where is the chief or most holy place of the gods? Har answered: That is by the ash Ygdrasil. There the gods meet in council every day.

Said Ganglere: What is said about this place? Answered Jafnhar: This ash is the best and greatest of all trees; its branches spread over all the world, and reach up above heaven. Three roots sustain the tree and stand wide apart; one root is with the asas and another with the frost-giants, where Ginungagap formerly was; the third reaches into Niflheim; under it is Hvergelmer, where Nidhug gnaws the root from below.

But under the second root, which extends to the frost-giants, is the well of Mimer, wherein knowledge and wisdom are concealed. The owner of the well hight Mimer.

He is full of wisdom, for he drinks from the well with the Gjallar-horn. Alfather once came there and asked for a drink from the well, but he did not get it before he left one of his eyes as a pledge. The third root of the ash is in heaven, and beneath it is the most sacred fountain of Urd. Here the gods have their doomstead. The asas ride hither every day over Bifrost, which is also called Asa-bridge.

The following are the names of the horses of the gods: Sleipner is the best one; he belongs to Odin, and he has eight feet. The second is Glad, the third Gyller, the fourth Gler, the fifth Skeidbrimer, the sixth Silfertop, the seventh Siner, the eighth Gisl, the ninth Falhofner, the tenth Gulltop, the eleventh Letfet.

Thor goes on foot to the doomstead, and wades the following rivers:. Har answered: The red which you see in the rainbow is burning fire. The frost-giants and the mountain-giants would go up to heaven if Bifrost were passable for all who desired to go there. Many fair places there are in heaven, and they are all protected by a divine defense. There stands a beautiful hall near the fountain beneath the ash. Out of it come three maids, whose names are Urd, Verdande and Skuld.

These maids shape the lives of men, and we call them norns. There are yet more norns, namely those who come to every man when he is born, to shape his life, and these are known to be of the race of gods; others, on the other hand, are of the race of elves, and yet others are of the race of dwarfs. As is here said:. Far asunder, I think, The norns are born, They are not of the same race. Some are of the asas, Some are of the elves, Some are daughters of Dvalin.

Then said Ganglere: If the norns rule the fortunes of men, then they deal them out exceedingly unevenly. Some live a good life and are rich; some get neither wealth nor praise. Some have a long, others a short life. Har answered: 75 Good norns and of good descent shape good lives, and when some men are weighed down with misfortune, the evil norns are the cause of it. Then said Ganglere: What other remarkable things are there to be said about the ash? Har answered: Much is to be said about it.

On one of the boughs of the ash sits an eagle, who knows many things. Between his eyes sits a hawk that is called Vedfolner. A squirrel, by name Ratatosk, springs up and down the tree, and carries words of envy between the eagle and Nidhug. Four stags leap about in the branches of the ash and bite the leaves. In Hvergelmer with Nidhug are more serpents than tongue can tell.

The ash Ygdrasil Bears distress Greater than men know. Stags bite it above, At the side it rots, Nidhug gnaws it below. Again, it is said that the norns, that dwell in the fountain of Urd, every day take water from the fountain and take the clay that lies around the fountain and sprinkle therewith the ash, in order that its branches may not wither or decay.

This water is so holy that all things that are put into the fountain become as white as the film of an egg-shell As is here said:. Thence come the dews That fall in the dales. The dew which falls on the earth from this tree men call honey-fall, and it is the food of bees. Then said Ganglere: Great tidings you are able to tell of the heavens. Answered Har: There are many magnificent 77 dwellings.

One is there called Alfheim. There dwell the folk that are called light-elves; but the dark-elves dwell down in the earth, and they are unlike the light-elves in appearance, but much more so in deeds. The light-elves are fairer than the sun to look upon, but the dark-elves are blacker than pitch. Another place is called Breidablik, and no place is fairer. There is also a mansion called Glitner, of which the walls and pillars and posts are of red gold, and the roof is of silver.

Furthermore, there is a dwelling, by name Himinbjorg, which stands at the end of heaven, where the Bifrost-bridge is united with heaven. And there is a great dwelling called Valaskjalf, which belongs to Odin. The gods made it and thatched it with, sheer silver. In this hall is the high-seat, which is called Hlidskjalf, and when Alfather sits in this seat, he sees over all the world. In the southern end of the world is the palace, which is the fairest of all, and brighter than the sun; its name is Gimle.

It shall stand when both heaven and earth shall have passed away. In this hall the good and the righteous shall dwell through all ages. Thus says the Prophecy of the Vala:. A hall I know, standing Than the sun fairer, Than gold better, Gimle by name. Har answered: It is said that to the south and above this heaven is another heaven, which is called Andlang. But there is a third, which is above these, and is called Vidblain, and in this heaven we believe this mansion Gimle to be situated; but we deem that the light-elves alone dwell in it now.

Then said Ganglere: Whence comes the wind? It is so strong that it moves great seas, and fans fires to flame, and yet, strong as it is, it cannot be seen. Therefore it is wonderfully made.

Then answered Har: That I can tell you well. At the northern end of heaven sits a giant, who hight Hrasvelg. Thus is it here said:. From his wings, they say, The wind does come Over all mankind. Then said Ganglere: How comes it that summer is so hot, but the winter so cold? Har answered: A wise man would not ask such a question, for all are able to tell this; but if you alone have become so stupid that you have not heard of it, then I would rather forgive you for 80 asking unwisely once than that you should go any longer in ignorance of what you ought to know.

Svasud is the name of him who is father of summer, and he lives such a life of enjoyment, that everything that is mild is from him called sweet svasligt. But the father of winter has two names, Vindlone and Vindsval.

He is the son of Vasad, and all that race are grim and of icy breath, and winter is like them. Then asked Ganglere: Which are the asas, in whom men are bound to believe? Har answered him: Twelve are the divine asas. Jafnhar said: No less holy are the asynjes goddesses , nor is their power less.

Then added Thride: Odin is the highest and oldest of the asas. He rules all things, but the other gods, each according to his might, serve him as children a father.

Frigg is his wife, and she knows the fate of men, although she tells not thereof, as it is related that Odin himself said to Asa-Loke:. Mad are you, Loke! And out of your senses; Why do you not stop? Fortunes all, Methinks, Frigg knows, Though she tells them not herself. Odin is called Alfather, for he is the father of all the gods; he is also called Valfather, for all 81 who fall in fight are his chosen sons. For them he prepares Valhal and Vingolf, where they are called einherjes heroes.

He is also called Hangagod, Haptagod, Farmagod; and he gave himself still more names when he came to King Geirrod:. Then said Ganglere: A very great number of names you have given him; and this I know, forsooth, that he must be a very wise man who is able to understand and decide what chances are 82 the causes of all these names.

Har answered: Much knowledge is needed to explain it all rightly, but still it is shortest to tell you that most of these names have been given him for the reason that, as there are many tongues in the world, so all peoples thought they ought to turn his name into their tongue, in order that they might be able to worship him and pray to him each in its own language.

Other causes of these names must be sought in his journeys, which are told of in old sagas; and you can lay no claim to being called a wise man if you are not able to tell of these wonderful adventures. Then said Ganglere: What are the names of the other asas? What is their occupation, and what works have they wrought? Har answered: Thor is the foremost of them.

He is called Asa-Thor, or Oku-Thor. His hall is called Bilskirner. Therein are five hundred and forty floors, and it is the largest house that men have made. Five hundred floors And forty more, Methinks, has bowed Bilskirner. The goats draw the chariot; wherefore he is called Oku-Thor. One of them is the hammer Mjolner, which the frost-giants and mountain-giants well know when it is raised; and this is not to be wondered at, for with it he has split many a skull of their fathers or friends.

The second treasure he possesses is Megingjarder belt of strength ; when he girds himself with it his strength is doubled. No one is so wise that he can tell all his great works; but I can tell you so many tidings of him that it will grow late before all is told that I know.

Thereupon said Ganglere: I wish to ask tidings of more of the asas. He is the best, and all praise him. From this you can judge of the beauty both of his hair and of his body.

He is the wisest, mildest and 84 most eloquent of all the asas; and such is his nature that none can alter the judgment he has pronounced. He inhabits the place in heaven called Breidablik, and there nothing unclean can enter. The third asa is he who is called Njord.

He dwells in Noatun, which is in heaven. He rules the course of the wind and checks the fury of the sea and of fire. He is invoked by seafarers and by fishermen. He is so rich and wealthy that he can give broad lands and abundance to those who call on him for them. He was fostered in Vanaheim, but the vans 37 gave him as a hostage to the gods, and received in his stead as an asa-hostage the god whose name is Honer. He established peace between the gods and vans. Njord took to wife Skade, a daughter of the giant Thjasse.

She wished to live where her father had dwelt, that is, on the mountains in Thrymheim; Njord, on the other hand, preferred to be near the sea. They therefore agreed to pass nine 85 nights in Thrymheim and three in Noatun. But when Njord came back from the mountains to Noatun he sang this:.

Weary am I of the mountains, Not long was I there, Only nine nights. The howl of the wolves Methought sounded ill To the song of the swans. Sleep I could not On my sea-strand couch, For the scream of the sea-fowl. There wakes me, As he comes from the sea, Every morning the mew. Then went Skade up on the mountain, and dwelt in Thrymheim.

She often goes on skees snow-shoes , with her bow, and shoots wild beasts. She is called skee-goddess or skee-dis. Thus it is said:. Thrymheim it is called Where Thjasse dwelt, That mightiest giant. Njord, in Noatun, afterward begat two children: a son, by name Frey, and a daughter, by name Freyja. They were fair of face, and 86 mighty. Frey is the most famous of the asas. He rules over rain and sunshine, and over the fruits of the earth.

It is good to call on him for harvests and peace. He also sways the wealth of men. Freyja is the most famous of the goddesses. She has in heaven a dwelling which is called Folkvang, and when she rides to the battle, one half of the slain belong to her, and the other half to Odin. Folkvang it is called, And there rules Freyja. Her hall is Sesrynmer, and it is large and beautiful.

When she goes abroad, she drives in a car drawn by two cats. She lends a favorable ear to men who call upon her, and it is from her name the title has come that women of birth and wealth are called frur. Then said Ganglere: Of great importance these asas seem to me to be, and it is not wonderful that you have great power, since you have such excellent knowledge of the gods, and know to which of them to address your prayers on each 87 occasion.

But what other gods are there? Har answered: There is yet an asa, whose name is Tyr.