CHAPTER VI.

THE VANS.

SECTION I. NJORD AND SKADE.

Two opposite elements in nature are united in order to produce life. The opposite elements are expressed in the mythology by the terms asas and vans. In our language and mode of expression that would mean the solid and the liquid, the masculine and the feminine. Water, the _par excellence_ representative of liquids, may symbolize various ideas. It may typify sorrow; it then manifests itself in tears, and sorrow is fleeting as the flowing tears. Water may symbolize gladness, happiness, and blessings, that flow in gushing streams along the pathway of life; and it may also be used as the symbol of innocence, purity, and wealth. These ideas may be regarded as a general interpretation of the vans, and we find them reflected in the triune vana-deity; Njord with his children Frey and Freyja, who rise from the sea and unite themselves with the asa-divinity in heaven and on earth.

Njord is called Vanagod, and he dwells in the heavenly region called Noatun. He rules over the winds and checks the fury of the sea and of fire, and is therefore invoked by seafarers and fishermen. He is so wealthy that he can give possessions and treasures to those who call on him for them. Yet Njord is not of the lineage of the asas, for he was born and bred in Vanaheim. But the vans gave him as hostage to the asas, receiving from them in his stead Hœner. By this means peace was reëstablished between the asas and vans. (See Part II, Chap. 1, Sec. 13.)

Njord took to wife Skade, the daughter of the giant Thjasse.[73] She preferred dwelling in the abode formerly belonging to her father, which is situated among rocky mountains in the region called Thrymheim, but Njord loved to reside near the sea. They at last agreed that they should pass together nine nights in Thrymheim and then three in Noatun. But one day when Njord came back from the mountains to Noatun, he thus sang:

Am weary 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.

To which Skade sang in reply:

Sleep could I not On my sea-strand couch For screams of the sea-fowl. _There_ wakes me When from the wave he comes Every morn the mew (gull).

Skade then returned to the rocky mountains and dwelt in Thrymheim. There fastening on her skees and taking her bow she passes her time in the chase of wild beasts, and is called Andre-dis (Skee-goddess). Thus it is said:

Thrymheim it’s called Where Thjasse dwelled, That stream-mighty giant; But Skade now dwells, Skee-bride of the gods, In her father’s old mansion.

Njord is the god of the sea; that is to say, of that part of the sea which is immediately connected with the earth, that part of the sea which is made serviceable to man, where fishing and commerce carried on. His dwelling is Noatun, which means land of ships (_nór_, ship; _tún_, yard, place). Njord’s realm is bounded on the one side by the earth, the land, and on the other by the raging ocean, where Æger with his daughters reigns. Njord’s wife is Skade (harm), the wild mountain stream, which plunges down from the high rocks, where she prefers to dwell, and pours herself into the sea. Her dwelling is Thrymheim, the _roaring home_, at the thundering waterfall. Taken as a whole, the myth is very clear and simple.

The compromise between Njord and Skate, to dwell nine nights in Thrymheim (home of uproar, storms) and three nights in Noatun, of course has reference to the severe northern latitudes, where rough weather and wintry storms prevail during the greater part of the year.

SECTION II. ÆGER AND RAN.

These do not belong to the vana-divinities, but are given here in order to have the divinities of the sea in one place. As Njord is the mild, beneficent sea near the shore, so Æger is the wild, turbulent, raging sea far from the land, where fishing and navigation cannot well be carried on; the great ocean, and yet bordering on the confines of then asas. Hence Æger’s twofold nature; he is a giant, but still has intercourse with the gods. Thus in Mimer, Æger and Njord, we have the whole ocean represented, from its origin, Mimer, to its last stage of development, to Njord, in whom, as a beneficent divinity, it unites itself with the gods; that is to say, blesses and serves the enterprises of men.

Æger visits the gods, and the latter visit him in return; and it was once when the gods visited him that his brewing-kettle was found too small, so that Thor had to go to the giant Hymer and borrow a larger one. In Æger’s hall the bright gold was used instead of fire, and there the ale passed around spontaneously. Ran is his wife. She has a net, in which she catches those who venture out upon the sea. Æger and Ran have nine daughters, the waves. Loke once borrowed Ran’s net, to catch the dwarf Andvare, who in the guise of a fish dwelt in a waterfall. With her hand she is able to hold the ships fast. It was a prevailing opinion among the ancient Norsemen that they who perished at sea came to Ran; for Fridthjof, who with his companions was in danger of being wrecked, talks about his having to rest on Ran’s couch instead of Ingeborg’s, and as it was not good to come empty-handed to the halls of Ran and Æger, he divided a ring of gold between himself and his men.

Thus Tegner has it in _Fridthjof_ at Sea:

Whirling cold and fast Snow-wreaths fill the sail; Over dock and mast Patters heavy hail.

The very stem they see so more, So thick is darkness spread, As gloom and horror hover o’er The chamber of the dead.

Still to sink the sailor dashes Implacable each angry wave; Gray, as if bestrewn with ashes, Yawns the endless, awful grave.

Then says Fridthjof:

For us in bed of ocean Azure pillows _Ran_ prepares, On thy pillow, Ingeborg, Thou thinkest upon me. Higher ply, my comrades, Ellida’s sturdy oars; Good ship, heaven-fashioned, Bear us on an hour.

The storm continues:

O’er the side apace Now a sea hath leapt; In an instant’s space Clear the deck is swept.

From his arm now Fridthjof hastens To draw his ring, three marks in weight; Like the morning sun it glistens, The golden gift of Bele great. With his sword in pieces cutting The famous work of pigmied art, Shares he quickly, none forgetting, Unto every man a part.

Then says Fridthjof again:

Gold is good possession When one goes a-wooing; Let none go empty-handed Down to azure _Ran_. Icy are her kisses, Fickle her embraces; But we’ll charm the sea-bride With our ruddy gold.

How eager Ran is to capture those who venture out upon her domain is also illustrated in another part of Fridthjof’s Saga, where King Ring and his queen Ingeborg ride over the ice on the lake to a banquet. Fridthjof went along on skates. Thus Tegner again:

They speed as storms over ocean speed; The queen’s prayers little King Ring doth heed.

Their steel-shod comrade standeth not still, He flieth past them as swift as he will.

Many a rune on the ice cutteth he; Fair Ingeborg’s name discovereth she.

So on their glittering course they go, But _Ran_, the traitress, lurketh below.

A hole in her silver roof she hath reft, Down sinketh the sleigh in the yawning cleft.

But, fortunately, Fridthjof was not far away. He came to their rescue, and

With a single tug he setteth amain Both steed and sleigh on the ice again.

Of Æger’s and Ran’s daughters, the waves, it is said that they congregate in large numbers according to the will of their father. They have pale locks and white veils; they are seldom mild in their disposition toward men; they are called billows or surges, and are always awake when the wind blows. They lash the sounding shores, and angrily rage and break around the holms;[74] they have a hard bed (stones and rocks), and seldom play in calm weather. The names of the daughters of Æger and Ran represent the waves in their various magnitudes and appearances. Thus Himinglœfa, the sky-clear; Duva, the diver; Blodughadda, the bloody- or purple-haired; Hefring, the swelling; Bylgja, billow; Kolga, raging sea, etc.

These myths are very simple and need no extended explanations. Æger is the Anglo-Saxon _eagor_, the sea. He is also called Hler, the shelterer (_hlé_, Anglo-Saxon _hleo_, Danish _Læ_, English _lee_), and Gymer, the concealing (_geyma_, Anglo-Saxon _gyman_, Norse _gjemme_, to conceal, to keep). These names express the sea in its uproar, in its calmness, and as the covering of the deep. The name of his wife, Ran (robbery or the robbing; _rœna_, to plunder), denotes the sea as craving its sacrifice of human life and of treasures. It is a common expression in Norseland that the sea brews and seethes, and this at once suggests Æger’s kettles. The foaming ale needs no butler but passes itself around, and there is plenty of it. That Æger, when visited by the gods, illuminated his hall with shining gold, refers of course to the phosphorescent light of the sea (Icelandic _marelldr_, Norse _morild_). Those who are familiar with the sea cannot fail to have seen the sparks of fire that apparently fly from it when its surface is disturbed in the dark. Thus the servants of Æger, Elde and Funfeng (both words meaning fire), are properly called excellent firemen. The relation between Njord and Æger seems to be the same as between Okeanos, the great water encircling the earth, and Pontus, the Mediterranean, within the confines of the earth.

Some of the old Norse heroes are represented as possessing a terrifying helmet, Æger’s helmet (_gishjálmr_); and thus, as Odin’s golden helmet is the beaming sky, and as the dwarfs cover themselves with a helmet of fog, so Æger wears on his brow a helmet made of dense darkness and heaven-reaching, terrifying breakers.

Æger and his family, it is certain, did not belong among the asas, yet they were regarded, like them, as mighty beings, whose friendship was sought by the gods themselves; and England, that proud mistress of the sea, is the reflection of the myth of Æger, showing what grand results are achieved historically, when human enterprise and heroism enter into friendly relations with the sea, making it serve the advancement of civilization,—when the gods go to Æger’s hall to banquet.

SECTION III. FREY.

Njord had two children—a son Frey and a daughter Freyju, both fair and mighty. Frey is one of the most celebrated of the gods. He presides over rain and sunshine and all the fruits of the earth, and should be invoked to obtain good harvests, and also for peace. He moreover dispenses wealth among men. He is called van and vanagod, yeargod and goods-giver (_fégjafi_). He owns the ship Skidbladner and also Goldenbristle (_gullinbursti_) or Slidrugtanne (the sharp-toothed), a boar with golden bristles, with which he rides as folk-ruler to Odin’s hall. In time’s morning, when he was yet a child, the gods gave him Alfheim (home of elves) as a present.

Of Frey’s ship Skidbladner, we have before seen (see p. 220) how it was made by the dwarfs, sons of Ivald, and presented to Frey. It was so large that all the gods with their weapons and war stores could find room on board it. As soon as the sails are set a favorable breeze arises and carries it to its place of destination, and it is made of so many pieces, and with so much skill, that when it is not wanted for a voyage Frey may fold it together like a piece of cloth and put it into his pocket.

Njord had the consolation, when he was sent as hostage to the gods, that he begat a son whom no one hates, but who is the best among the gods. Thus the Elder Edda, in Æger’s banquet to the gods, where Loke also was present:

NJORD:

It is my consolation— For I was from a far-off place Sent as a hostage to the gods— That I begat that son Whom no one hates, And who is regarded Chief among the gods.

To which LOKE makes reply:

Hold thy tongue, Njord! Subdue thy arrogance; I will conceal it no longer That with thy sister A son thou didst beget Scarcely worse than thyself.

But TYR defends Frey:

Frey is the best Of all the chiefs Among the gods. He causes not tears To maids or mothers: His desire is to loosen the fetters Of those enchained.

LOKE:

Hold thy tongue, Tyr! Never thou couldst Use both hands, Since thy right one, As I now remember, The wolf Fenrer took from you.

TYR:

I lack a hand, Thou lackest good reputation,— Sad it is to lack such a thing; Nor does the wolf fare well,— In chains he pines Till the end of the world.

LOKE:

Hold thy tongue, Tyr! Thy wife and I Had a son together, But thou, poor fellow, Received not a farthing In fine from me.

FREY:

The wolf I see lie At the mouth of the river Until the powers perish. Mischief-maker! If thou dost not hold thy tongue Thou also shalt be bound.

LOKE:

For gold thou bought’st Gymer’s daughter, And sold thy sword At the same time; But when the sons of Muspel Come riding from the dark woods, What hail thou, poor fellow, To rely upon?

Frey has a servant by name BYGVER, who responds to Loke:

Know that, were I born Of so noble a race As Ingun’s Frey, And had I So glorious a hall, I would crush the evil crow, Break his bones to the marrow!

LOKE then turns upon Bygver, and calls him a little impertinent thing, that always hangs about Frey’s ears and cries under the millstone (can the reader help thinking at this moment of Robert Burns’ famous poem, _John Barleycorn?_); a good-for-nothing fellow, who never would divide good with men, and when the heroes fought they could not find him, for he was concealed in the straw of the bed.

Frey’s maid-servant is Beyla, Bygver’s wife, whom Loke calls the ugliest and filthiest hag that can be found among the offspring of the gods. Of course Loke exaggerates and uses abusive language, but it was in truth a sorry thing for Frey that he traded his sword away, for it is to this fact he owes his defeat when he encounters Surt in Ragnarok.

Frey’s wife was Gerd, a daughter of Gymer, and their son was Fjolner. Frey was worshiped throughout the northern countries. In the common formula of the oath his name was put first: HJÁLPI MÉR SVÁ FREYR OK NJÖRÐR OK HINN ALMÁTTKI ÁS! that is, So help me Frey and Njord and the almighty Asa (Odin). On Jul-eve (Christmas eve) it was customary to lead out a boar, which was consecrated to Frey, and which was called the atonement boar. On this the persons present laid their hands and made solemn vows; and at the feast, where the flesh of the sacrificed animal was eaten by the assembled guests, there was drunk, among other horns, a horn to Njord and Frey for prosperous seasons and for peace.

Everything about Frey goes to show that he is the god of the earth’s fruitfulness. The sea, Njord, rises as vapor and descends in rain upon the land, making it fruitful. There has been much dispute about the etymological meaning of the word Frey. Finn Magnússon derives it from _frœ_, Norse _frö_, meaning seed. Grimm, on the other hand, thinks the fundamental idea is mildness, gladness (compare German _froh_, Norse _fryd_). A derived meaning of the word is man, masculine of Freyja (German _frau_), meaning woman.

SECTION IV. FREY AND GERD.

Frey had one day placed himself in Hlidskjalf, and looked out upon all the worlds. He also saw Jotunheim, and perceived a large and stately mansion which a maid was going to enter, and as she raised the latch of the door so great a radiancy was thrown from her hand, that the air and waters and all worlds were illuminated by it. It was Gerd, a daughter of the giant Gymer and Aurboda, relatives of Thjasse. At this sight Frey, as a just punishment for his audacity in mounting on that sacred throne, was struck with sudden sadness, so that on his return home he could neither speak nor sleep nor drink, nor did any one dare to inquire the cause of his affliction. Frey’s messenger was named Skirner. Njord sent for him and requested of him, as did also Skade, that he should ask Frey why he thus refused to speak to any one.

Thus the Elder Edda, in the lay of Skirner:

SKADE:

Skirner, arise, and swiftly run Where lonely sits our pensive son; Bid him to parley, and inquire ’Gainst whom he teems with sullen ire.

SKIRNER:

Ill words I fear my lot will prove, If I your son attempt to move; If I bid parley, and inquire Why teems his soul with savage ire.

Reluctantly Skirner then proceeded to Frey, and thus addressed him:

SKIRNER:

Prince of the gods, and first in fight! Speak, honored Frey, and tell me right: Why spends my lord the tedious day In his lone hall, to grief a prey?

FREY:

Oh, how shall I, fond youth, disclose To you my bosom’s heavy woes? The ruddy god shines every day, But dull to me his cheerful ray.

SKIRNER:

Your sorrows deem not I so great That you the tale should not relate: Together sported we in youth, And well may trust each other’s truth.

FREY:

In Gymer’s court I saw her move, The maid who fires my breast with love; Her snow-white arms and bosom fair Shone lovely, kindling sea and air. Dear is she to my wishes, more Than e’er was maid to youth before; But gods and elves, I wot it well, Forbid that we together dwell.

SKIRNER:

Give me that horse of wondrous breed To cross the nightly flame with speed; And that self-brandished sword to smite The giant race with strange affright.

FREY:

To you I give this wondrous steed To pass the watchful fire with speed; And this, which borne by valiant wight, Self-brandished will his foemen smite.

Frey, having thus given away his sword, found himself without arms when he on another occasion fought with Bele, and hence it was that he slew him with a stag’s antlers. This combat was, however, a trifling affair, for Frey could have killed him with a blow of his fist, had he felt inclined; but the time will come when the sons of Muspel will sally forth to the fight in Ragnarok, and then indeed will Frey truly regret having parted with his falchion. Having obtained the horse and sword, Skirner set out on his journey, and thus he addressed his horse:

Dark night is spread; ’t is time, I trow, To climb the mountains hoar with snow; Both shall return, or both remain In durance, by the giant ta’en.

Skirner rode into Jotunheim, to the court of Gymer. Furious dogs were tied there before the gate of the wooden inclosure which surrounded Gerd’s bower. He rode toward a shepherd, who was sitting on a mound, and thus addressed him:

Shepherd, you, that sit on the mound, And turn your watchful eyes around, How may I lull these bloodhounds? say; How speak unharmed with Gymer’s may?

THE SHEPHERD:

Whence and what are you? doomed to die? Or, dead, revisit you the sky? For ride by night or ride by day, You ne’er shall come to Gymer’s may.

SKIRNER:

I grieve not, I, a better part Fits him who boasts a ready heart: At hour of birth our lives were shaped; The doom of fate can ne’er be ’scaped.

But Gerd inside hears the stranger, and thus speaks to her maid-servant:

What sounds unknown my ears invade, Frightening this mansion’s peaceful shade; The earth’s foundation rocks withal, And trembling shakes all Gymer’s hall.

THE MAID-SERVANT:

Dismounted stands warrior sheen; His courser crops the herbage green.

GERD:

Haste! bid him to my bower with speed, To quaff unmixed the pleasant mead; And good betide us; for I fear My brother’s murderer is near.

Skirner having entered, Gerd thus addresses him:

What are you, elf or asas’ son? Or from the wiser vanas sprung? Alone to visit our abode, O’er bickering flames, why have you rode?

SKIRNER:

Nor elf am I, nor asas’ son; Nor from the wiser vanas sprung: Yet o’er the bickering flames I rode Alone to visit your abode. Eleven apples here I hold, Gerd, for you, of purest gold; Let this fair gift your bosom move To grant young Frey your precious love.

GERD:

Eleven apples take not I From man as price of chastity: While life remains, no tongue shall tell That Frey and I together dwell.

SKIRNER:

Gerd, for you this wondrous ring, Burnt on young Balder’s pile, I bring, On each ninth night shall other eight Drop from it. all of equal weight.

GERD:

I take not, I, that wondrous ring, Though it from Balder’s pile you bring: Gold lack not I, in Gymer’s bower; Enough for me my father’s dower.

SKIRNER:

Behold this bright and slender wand, Unsheathed and glittering in my hand! Refuse not, maiden! lest your head Be severed by the trenchant blade.

GERD:

Gerd will ne’er by force be led To grace a conqueror’s hateful bed; But this I trow, with main and might Gymer shall meet your boast in fight.

SKIRNER:

Behold this bright and slender wand, Unsheathed and glittering in my hand! Slain by its edge your sire shall lie, That giant old is doomed to die.

As this has no effect upon Gerd’s mind, Skirner heaps blows upon her with a magic wand, and at the same time he begins his incantations, scoring runic characters as he sings:

E’en as I list, the magic wand Shall tame you! Lo, with charmed hand I touch you, maid! There shall you go Where never man shall learn your woe. On some high, pointed rock, forlorn Like eagle, shall you sit at morn; Turn from the world’s all-cheering light, And seek the deep abyss of night. Food shall to you more loathly show Than slimy serpent creeping slow, When forth you come, a hideous sight, Each wondering eye shall stare with fright; By all observed, yet sad and lone; ’Mongst shivering giants wider known Than him who sits unmoved on high, The guard of heaven with sleepless eye. ’Mid charms and chains and restless woe, Your tears with double grief shall flow. Now sit down, maid, while I declare Your tide of sorrow and despair. Your bower shall be some giant’s cell, Where phantoms pale shall with you dwell; Each day to the frosty giant’s hall, Comfortless, wretched, shall you crawl; Instead of joy, and pleasure gay, Sorrow and tears and sad dismay; With some three-headed giant wed, Or pine upon a lonely bed; From morn to morn love’s secret fire Shall gnaw your heart with vain desire; Like barren root of thistle pent In some high ruined battlement. O’er shady hill, through greenwood round, I sought this wand; the wand I found. Odin is wroth, and mighty Thor; E’en Frey shall now your name abhor. But ere o’er your ill-fated head The last dread curse of heaven be spread, Giants and Thurses far and near, Suttung’s sons, and ye asas, hear How I forbid with fatal ban This maid the joys, the fruit of man. Cold Grimner is that giant hight Who you shall hold in realms of might; Where slaves in cups of twisted roots Shall bring foul beverage from the goats; Nor sweeter draught, nor blither fare Shall you, sad virgin, ever share. ’Tis done! I wind the mystic charm; Thus, thus I trace the giant form; And three fell characters below, Fury and Lust and restless Woe. E’en as I wound, I straight unwind This fatal spell, if you are kind.

GERD:

Now hail, now hail, you warrior bold! Take, take this cup of crystal cold, And quaff the pure metheglin old. Yet deemed I ne’er that love could bind To vana-youth my hostile mind.

SKIRNER:

I turn not home to bower or hall Till I have learnt mine errand all; Where you will yield the night of joy To brave Njord’s, the gallant boy.

GERD:

Bar-isle is hight, the seat of love; Nine nights elapsed, in that known grove Shall brave Njord’s, the gallant boy, From Gerd take the kiss of joy.

Then Skirner rode home. Frey stood forth and hailed him and asked what tidings.

FREY:

Speak, Skirner, speak and tell with speed! Take not the harness from your steed, Nor stir your foot, till you have said, How fares my love with Gymer’s maid!

SKIRNER:

Bar-isle is hight, the seat of love; Nine nights elapsed, in that known grove To brave Njord’s, the gallant boy, Will Gerd yield the kiss of joy.

FREY:

Long is one night, and longer twain; But how for three endure my pain? A month of rapture sooner flies Than half one night of wishful sighs.

This poem illustrates how beautifully a myth can be elaborated. Gerd is the seed; Skirner is the air that comes with the sunshine. Thus the myth is easily explained: The earth, in which the seed is sown, resists the embrace of Frey; his messenger Skirner, who brings the seed out into the light, in vain promises her the golden ears of harvest and the ring, the symbol of abundance. She has her giant nature, which has not yet been touched by the divine spirit; she realizes not the glory which she can attain to by Frey’s love. Skirner must conjure her, he must use incantations, he must show her how she, if not embraced by Frey, must forever be the bride of the cold frost, and never experience the joys of wedded life. She finally surrenders herself to Frey, and they embrace each other, when the buds burst forth in the grove. This myth then corresponds to Persephone, the goddess of the grain planted in the ground. Demeter’s sorrow on account of the naked, forsaken field, from which the sprout shall shoot forth from the hidden reed, is Frey’s impatient longing; and Skirner is Mercurius, who brings Proserpina up from the lower world.

But the myth has also a deeper ethical signification. Our forefathers were not satisfied with the mere shell; and Frey’s love to Gerd, which is described so vividly in the Elder Edda, is taken from the nature of love, with all its longings and hopes, and is not only a symbol of what takes place in visible nature. As the warmth of the sun develops the seed, thus love develops the heart; love is the ray of light (Skirner) sent from heaven, which animates and ennobles the clump of earth. Gerd is the maid, who is engaged in earthly affairs and does not yet realize anything nobler than her every-day cares. Then love calls her; in her breast awakens a new life; wonderful dreams like gentle breezes embrace her, and when the dreams grow into consciousness her eyes are opened to a higher sphere of existence. This myth is most perfectly reflected in the love-story of Fridthjof’s Saga, an old Norse romance moulded into a most fascinating Epic Poem by Tegner. A good English translation of this poem appeared a few years ago in London, and was republished in this country under the auspices of Bayard Taylor. It is also translated into almost every other European language, and is justly considered one of the finest poetical productions of this century.

SECTION V. WORSHIP OF FREY.

The Sagas tell us, as has already been stated, that Frey was worshiped extensively throughout the northern countries.

In Throndhjem there was during the reign of Olaf Tryggvesson a temple in which Frey was zealously worshiped. When the king, having overthrown the statue of the god, blamed the bondes for their stupid idolatry, and asked them wherein Frey had evinced his power, they answered: Frey often talked with us, foretold us the future, and granted us good seasons and peace.

The Norse chieftain Ingemund Thorstenson, who in the days of the tyrant Harald Hairfair emigrated from Norway and settled in Vatnsdal, Iceland, built near his homestead a temple, which appears to have been specially dedicated to Frey, who had in a manner pointed out a dwelling-place to him; for in digging a place for his pillars of the high-seat (_öndvegis-súlur_, something similar to the Greek Hermes and Roman Penates), Ingemund found in the earth an image of Frey, which he had lost in Norway.

The Icelander Thorgrim of Seabol was a zealous worshiper of Frey, and conducted sacrificial festivals in his honor during the winter nights. He was killed in his bed by Gisle, and a famous funeral service was given him; but one thing, says the Saga of Gisle Surson, also happened, which seemed remarkable. Snow never settled on Thorgrim’s how (grave-mound) on the south side, nor did it freeze; it was thought that Frey loved him so much, because he had sacrificed to him, that he did not want it to grow cold between them.

In the vicinity of the estate Tver-aa, in Eyjafjord in Iceland, there was a temple dedicated to Frey, and the place became so holy that no guilty person dared to tarry there, for Frey did not allow it. When the chieftain Thorkel the Tall was banished from Tver-aa by Glum Eyjolfson, who is universally known as Vigaglum, he led a full-grown ox to Frey’s temple before he left, and thus addressed the god: Long have you been to me a faithful friend, O Frey! Many gifts have you received from me and rewarded me well for them. Now I give you this ox, in order that Glum may some day have to leave Tver-aa no less reluctantly than I do. And now give to me a sign to show whether you accept this offering or not. At that moment the ox bellowed loudly and fell dead upon the ground. Thorkel considered this a good omen, and moved away with a lighter heart. Afterwards (it is related in Vigaglum’s Saga) Glum in his old days became involved in a dangerous suit for manslaughter, which ended in his having to relinquish Tver-aa to Ketil, son of Thorvald Krok, whom he confessed having killed. On the night before he rode to the _thing_ (assembly, court), where his case was to be decided, he dreamed that there had congregated a number of men at Tver-aa to meet Frey; he saw many down by the river (_á_ is river in Icelandic), and there sat Frey on a bench. Glum asked who they were, and they answered: We are your departed relatives, and have come to pray Frey that you may not be driven from Tver-aa; but it avails us nothing. Frey answers us short and angrily and now remembers the ox which Thorkel the Tall gave to him. Glum awoke, and from that time he said that he was on unfriendly terms with Frey.

In the temple at Upsala, in Sweden, Frey, together with Odin and Thor, was especially worshiped; and by the story of the Norseman Gunnar Helming, who in Sweden gave himself out as Frey, it is attested that the people in some provinces of Sweden put their highest trust in this god, and even believed him sometimes to appear in human form.

The horse, it appears, was regarded as a favorite animal of Frey. At his temple in Throndhjem it is said there were horses belonging to him. It is related of the Icelander Rafnkel that he loved Frey above all other gods, and bestowed upon him an equal share in all his best possessions. He had a brown horse called Frey-fax (compare Col-fax, Fair-fax, etc.), which he loved so highly that he made a solemn vow to kill the man who should ride this horse against his will, a vow he also fulfilled. Another Icelander, Brand, also had a horse called Frey-fax, which he made so much of that he was said to believe in it as in a divinity.

Frey’s boar, Gullinburste, has been referred to in connection with the Jul or Christmas festivities, and there are found many examples of swine-sacrifice in the old Norse writings. King Hedrek made solemn vows on the atonement-boar on Jul-eve, and in one of the prose supplements to the ancient Edda poem of Helge Hjorvardson we find that the atonement-boar is mentioned as being led out on Jul-eve, in order that they might lay lands upon it and make solemn vows.

A highly valued wooden statue or image of Frey was found in a temple at Throndhjem, which king Olaf Tryggvesson hewed in pieces in the presence of the people. Kjotve the Rich, king of Agder in Norway, one of the chiefs who fought against Harald Fairhair, had a weight upon which the god Frey was sculptured in silver. This treasure, which he held in great veneration, fell after the battle into the hands of King Harald, and he presented it to his friend, the chieftain Ingemund Thorstenson, who afterwards carried the image in a purse and held it in very high esteem. This last-mentioned image was probably borne as an amulet, as was often the case, no doubt, with the gold braeteates which are found in the grave-hows and in the earth, having upon them the images of men and animals, and which are furnished with a clasp for fastening to a necklace.

SECTION VI. FREYJA.

The goddess of love is Freyja, also called Vanadis or Vanabride. She is the daughter of Njord and the sister of Frey. She ranks next to Frigg. She is very fond of love ditties, and all lovers would do well to invoke her. It is from her name that women of birth and fortune are called in the Icelandic language _hús freyjur_ (compare Norse _fru_ and German _frau_). Her abode in heaven is called Folkvang, where she disposes of the hall-seats. To whatever field of battle she rides she asserts her right to one half the slain, the other half belonging to Odin. Thus the Elder Edda, in Grimner’s lay:

Folkvang ’tis called Where Freyja has right To dispose of the hall-seats. Every day of the slain She chooses the half And leaves half to Odin.

Her mansion, Sessrymner (having many or large seats), is large and magnificent; thence she rides out in a car drawn by two cats. She lends a favorable ear to those who sue for her assistance. She possesses a necklace called Brisingamen, or Brising. She married a person called Oder, and their daughter, named Hnos, is so very handsome that whatever is beautiful and precious is called by her name _hnossir_ (that means, nice things). It is also said that she had two daughters, Hnos and Gerseme, the latter name meaning precious. But Oder left his wife in order to travel into very remote countries. Since that time Freyja continually weeps, and her tears are drops of pure gold; hence she is also called the fair-weeping goddess (_it grátfagra goð_). In poetry, gold is called Freyja’s tears, the rain of Freyja’s brows or cheeks. She has a great variety of names, for, having gone over many countries in search of her husband, each people gave her a different name. She is thus called Mardal, Horn, Gefn, Syr, Skjalf and Thrung. It will also be remembered, from the chapter about Thor, that Freyja had a falcon-guise, and how the giant Thrym longed to possess her. In the lay of Hyndla, in the Elder Edda, Freyja comes to her friend and sister, the giantess Hyndla, and requests her to ride to Valhal, to ask for success for her favorite Ottar; promising the giantess to appease Odin and Thor, who of course were enemies to the giants. Hyndla is inclined to doubt Freyja’s remarks, especially as she comes to her with Ottar in the night. Who this Ottar was we do not know, excepting that he was a son of the Norse hero, Instein, and hence probably a Norseman. He was heir to an estate, but his right to it was disputed by Angantyr. It was therefore necessary to make his title good, and to enumerate his ancestors, but for this he was too ignorant. Meanwhile he had always been a devout worshiper of the asynjes (goddesses), and had especially worshiped Freyja by making sacrifices, images, and erecting altars to her. Hence it is that she wishes to help him in this important case, but finds that she is not able, and it was for this reason she saddled her golden boar and went to the wise giantess Hyndla, who was well posted in regard to the pedigrees, origin and fates of gods, giants and men. Hyndla consents to giving the information asked for, and so she enumerates first the immediate ancestors of Ottar on his father’s and mother’s side, then speaks of the king so famous in olden times, Halfdan Gamle, the original progenitor of the Skjolds and several other noble families of the North. And as these royal families were said to be descended from the gods and the latter again from the giants, Hyndla gives some of their genealogies also. Thus she gets an opportunity to speak of Heimdal and his giant mothers, then of Loke and of the monsters descended from him, which shall play so conspicuous a part in Ragnarok, then of the mighty god of thunder, and finally of a god yet more mighty, whom she ventures not to name, and here she ends her tale. She will not prophesy further than to where Odin is swallowed by the Fenris-wolf and the world by the yawning abyss. Freyja after this asks her for a drink of remembrance to give to Ottar, her guest and favorite, in order that he might be able to remember the whole talk and the pedigree two days afterwards, when the case between him and Angantyr should be decided by proofs of this kind. Hyndla refuses to do this, and upbraids her with abusive language. By this Freyja is excited to wrath and threatens to kindle a fire around the giantess, from which she would not be able to escape, if she did not comply with her request. When the threat begins to be carried out (at the breaking forth of the flaming aurora in the morning) Hyndla gives the requested drink, but at the same time curses it. Freyja is not terrified by this, but removes the curse by her blessing and earnest prayers to all divinities for the success of her beloved Ottar.

We should like to give the lay in full, as it is found in the Elder Edda, but having quoted several strophes from it before, and it being quite long, we reluctantly omit it. We advise our readers, however, by all means to read the ELDER EDDA. There is more profound thought in it than in any other human work, not even Shakespeare excepted. What a pity that it is so little known!

Women came after death to Freyja. When Egil Skallagrimson had lost his young son, and was despairing unto death on this account, his daughter Thorgerd, who was married to Olaf in Lax-aa-dal, comes to console him; and when she hears that he will neither eat nor drink, then she also says that she has not and will not eat or drink before she comes to Freyja. With _her_, lovers who have been faithful unto death are gathered; therefore Hagbard sings: Love is renewed in Freyja’s halls.

Freyja is the goddess of love between man and woman. Hence we find in her nature, beauty, grace, modesty, the longings, joys, and tears of love, and we find also that burning love in the heart which breaks out in wild flames. She rules in _Folk_vang, in the human dwellings, where there are seats enough for all. No one escapes her influence. Odin shares the slain equally with her, for the hero has _two_ grand objects in view—to conquer his enemy and to win the heart of the maiden.

Thus the Norse mythology teaches us that the sturdy Norseman was not insusceptible to impressions from beauty nor unmoved by love. The most beautiful flowers were named after Freyja’s hair and eye-dew, and even animate objects, which, like the flowers, were remarkable for their beauty, were named after this goddess, as for instance the butterfly (Icel. _Freyjuhœna_—Freyja’s hen).

There is a semi-mythological Saga called Orvarodd’s Saga. Orvarodd signifies Arrow-odd; and as this same Arrow-odd is implicated in a large number of love exploits, it has been suggested that he may be Freyja’s husband, whose name the reader remembers was Oder, the stem of which is _od_, and hence we have in the North also not only a _goddess_ of love, but also a god of love (Cupid), with his arrows!

Freyja’s cats symbolize sly fondling and sensual enjoyment. The name of her husband, Oder, means sense, understanding, but also wild desire. The various names bestowed upon Freyja when she travels among the different nations denote the various modes by which love reveals itself in human life. The goddesses Sjofn, Lofn, and Var, heretofore mentioned, were regarded as messengers and attendants of Freyja. Friday (_dies Veneris_) is named after her. (See page 237.)

SECTION VII. A BRIEF REVIEW.

The lives and exploits of the propitious divinities have now been presented; and in presenting the myths we have not only given the forces and phenomena of nature symbolized by the myths, but we have also tried to bring the mythology down from heaven to the earth, and exhibit the value it had in the minds of our ancestors. We have tried, as Socrates did with his philosophy, to show what influence the myths have had upon the life of our forefathers; in other words, we have tried to put a kernel into the shell. We have tried to present the mythology, not as the science and laws by which the universe is governed, but as something—call it science or what you will—by which to illustrate how the contemplation of the forces and phenomena of nature have influenced human thought and action. Language is in its origin nothing but impressions from nature, which having been revolved for a time in the human mind find their expression in words. Poetry is in its origin nothing else but expressions of human thought and feeling called forth by the contemplation of the wonderful works of God. And this is also true of mythology.

We have found the propitious divinities divided into three classes, those of heaven, those of earth, and those of the sea. The union or marriage between heaven and earth has been promoted in various myths. The king of heaven is but _one_, but he embraces the earth in various forms, and the earth is, in a new form, wedded to the god of thunder; nay, the vans, or divinities of the sea, arise and fill the land with blessings in various ways. The manner in which the gods are combined and interlinked with each other in one grand system is a feature peculiar to the Norse mythology. There is not, as in the Greek, a series of separate groups and separate dwellings, but the gods come in frequent contact with each other. Odin rules in the heavens, Thor in the clouds, Heimdal in the rainbow, Balder in the realms of light, Frey with his elves of light in the earth, but the sun affects them all: it is Odin’s eye, it is Balder’s countenance, Heimdal needs it for his rainbow, and Frey governs its rays; and still the sun itself rides as a beaming maid with her horses from morning until evening. The earth has its various forms, and the seed planted in the earth has its own god (Frey), surrounded by the spirits of the groves, the forests and the fountains. And the king of heaven unites man with nature; he not only provides for his animal life, but also breathes into him a living soul and inspires him with enthusiasm. He sits with Saga at the fountain of history; he sends out his son Brage, the god of poetry and eloquence, and unites him with Idun, the rejuvenating goddess, whose carefully protected rivers meander through the grove full of fruit trees bearing golden apples; and he lets his other son, Balder, the ruler of light, marry the industrious flower-goddess, Nanna, who with her maids spreads a fragrant carpet over the earth. And as the god of thunder rules but to protect heaven and earth, so the naked desert and the impenetrable forest exist only to remind us of the incorruptible vital force of nature, safe against all attacks. The imperishableness of nature appears more strikingly in the stupendous mountains and gigantic forests than in the fertile, cultivated and protected parts of the earth. Now let us again ask: Is there nothing here for the poet or artist? Has the Norse mythology nothing that can be elaborated and clothed with beautiful forms and colors? Does this mythology not contain germs that art can develop into fragrant leaves, swelling buds and radiant blossoms? Does not this our Gothic inheritance deserve a place with the handmaids of literature? Will not our poets, public speakers, lecturers, essayists, and writers of elegant literature generally, who make so many quaint allusions to, and borrow so many elegant and suggestive illustrations from, Greek mythology; will they not, we say, do their own ancestors the honor to dip their pen occasionally into the mythology of the Gothic race? It is bad practice to borrow when we can get along without it, besides the products of the south thrive not well in our northern Gothic soil and climate. Ygdrasil grows better here, and that is a tree large enough and fruitful enough to sustain the Gothic race with enthusiasm and inspiration for centuries yet to come, and to supply a a whole race of future bards and poets and artists with a precious and animating elixir. Our next generation will comprehend this.

Footnote 73:

How Skade came to choose Njord when she was permitted to choose a husband among the gods, seeing only their feet, was related on page 277.

Footnote 74:

Rocky islands.