The Poetic Edda
Henry Adams Bellows (translator)
3,671 passages indexed from The Poetic Edda (Henry Adams Bellows (translator)) — Page 44 of 74
License: Public Domain
The Poetic Edda, passage 1106
25. “Answer me, Alvis! | thou knowest all,
Dwarf, of the doom of men:
What call they the fire, | that flames for men,
In each of all the worlds?”
The Poetic Edda, passage 2245
It seems altogether likely that the twenty stanzas thus remaining are
the end of a poem entitled Sigurtharkvitha (Lay of Sigurth), and, more
specifically, the “Long” Lay of Sigurth. The extant and complete
Sigurth lay, a relatively late work, is referred to by the annotator as
the “Short” Lay of Sigurth, which, of course, presupposes the existence
of a longer poem with the same title. As the “short” lay is one of the
longest poems in the whole collection (seventy stanzas), it follows
that the other one must have been considerably more extensive in order
to have been thus distinguished by its length. It may be guessed, then,
that not less than eighty or a hundred stanzas, and possibly more, of
the “Long” Lay of Sigurth have been lost with the missing pages of
Regius.
The Poetic Edda, passage 2255
Brynhild then tells Gunnar that she had given herself wholly to Sigurth
before she had become Gunnar’s wife (the confusion between the two
stories is commented on in the note to Gripisspo, 47), and Gunnar
discusses plans of vengeance with his brother, Hogni. It is at this
point that the action of the Brot begins.
The Poetic Edda, passage 51
The forms in which the proper names appear in this translation will
undoubtedly perplex and annoy those who have become accustomed to one
or another of the current methods of anglicising old Norse names. The
nominative ending -r it has seemed best to omit after consonants,
although it has been retained after vowels; in Baldr the final -r is a
part of the stem and is of course retained. I have rendered the Norse þ
by “th” throughout, instead of spasmodically by “d,” as in many texts:
e.g., Othin instead of Odin. For the Norse ø I have used its
equivalent, “ö,” e.g., Völund; for the ǫ I have used “o” and not “a,”
e.g., Voluspo, not Valuspa or Voluspa. To avoid confusion with accents
the long vowel marks of the Icelandic are consistently omitted, as
likewise in modern Icelandic proper names. The index at the end of the
book indicates the pronunciation in each case.
The Poetic Edda, passage 2252
Sigurth the dragon | slew, and that
Will men recall | while the world remains;
But little boldness | thy brother had
To ride or leap | the raging flames.
The Poetic Edda, passage 2568
13. Cf. note on preceding stanza. Grundtvig suggests as a first line:
“Long did I bide, | my brothers awaiting.” Many editors reject line
4.
The Poetic Edda, passage 7
SCANDINAVIAN CLASSICS
VOLUMES XXI AND XXII
The Poetic Edda, passage 2026
13. “Hither the son | of Sigmund is come,
The hero eager, | here to our hall;
His courage is more | than an ancient man’s,
And battle I hope | from the hardy wolf.
The Poetic Edda, passage 1385
“What giant is here, | in front of the house,
And around him fires are flaming?”
The Poetic Edda, passage 814
60. The Arnamagnæan Codex clearly indicates Harbarth as the speaker of
this line, but Regius has no superscription, and begins the line with a
small letter not preceded by a period, thereby assigning it to Thor.
The Poetic Edda, passage 565
37. Arvak and Alsvith | up shall drag
Weary the weight of the sun;
But an iron cool | have the kindly gods
Of yore set under their yokes.
The Poetic Edda, passage 959
Then came Thor forth, and spake:
The Poetic Edda, passage 379
73–74. These seven lines are obviously a jumble. The two lines of
stanza 73 not only appear out of place, but the verse-form is unlike
that of the surrounding stanzas. In 74, the second line is clearly
interpolated, and line 1 has little enough connection with lines 3, 4
and 5. It looks as though some compiler (or copyist) had inserted here
various odds and ends for which he could find no better place.
The Poetic Edda, passage 3264
Glaths′-heim, Othin’s dwelling, 89.
The Poetic Edda, passage 390
96. Here begins the passage (stanzas 96–102) illustrating the falseness
of woman by the story of Othin’s unsuccessful love-affair with
Billing’s daughter. Of this person we know nothing beyond what is here
told, but the story needs little comment.
The Poetic Edda, passage 1772
49. Here the scene shifts to the shore among Hothbrodd’s followers.
Sviputh and Sveggjuth (“Swift” and “Lithe”): horses’ names. Mist’s
horse: the Valkyrie’s name is the same as the English word “mist,” and
the “horse” on which the mist rides is the earth. The two lines in
parenthesis may be interpolated, or line 5 may begin a new stanza, as
the manuscript indicates.
The Poetic Edda, passage 662
23. “Seest thou, maiden, | this keen, bright sword
That I hold here in my hand?
Thy head from thy neck | shall I straightway hew,
If thou wilt not do my will.”
The Poetic Edda, passage 92
36. From the east there pours | through poisoned vales
With swords and daggers | the river Slith.
. . . . . . . . | . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . . | . . . . . . . .
The Poetic Edda, passage 406
134. Presumably the last four lines have been added to this stanza, for
the parallelism in the last three makes it probable that they belong
together. The wrinkled skin of the old man is compared with the dried
skins and bellies of animals kept for various purposes hanging in an
Icelandic house.
The Poetic Edda, passage 3565
Slag′-fith, brother of Völund, 254–257.
The Poetic Edda, passage 3414
Ing′-un, sister of Njorth (?), 165.
The Poetic Edda, passage 1012
59. Lines 1–2 are abbreviated in the manuscript, as also in stanzas 61
and 63.
The Poetic Edda, passage 1444
16. At this point Groa’s song ends, and Svipdag, thus fortified, goes
to seek Mengloth. All the link that is needed between the poems is
approximately this: “Then Svipdag searched long for Mengloth, and at
last he came to a great house set all about with flames. And before the
house there was a giant.”
The Poetic Edda, passage 3128
An′-gan-tȳr, a warrior, 218, 220, 232.
The Poetic Edda, passage 1609
28. “Thrice nine there were, | but one rode first,
A helmed maid white of hue;
Their horses quivered, | there came from their manes
Dew in the dales so deep,
(Hail on the woods so high,
Thence men their harvest have,
But ill was the sight I saw.)”
The Poetic Edda, passage 3501
Orv′-and-il, husband of Groa, 234.
The Poetic Edda, passage 1384
17. Before the house | he beheld one coming
To the home of the giants high.
The Poetic Edda, passage 432
2. “Heerfather here | at home would I keep,
Where the gods together dwell;
Amid all the giants | an equal in might
To Vafthruthnir know I none.”
The Poetic Edda, passage 1916
Of the origin of Sigurth himself we know absolutely nothing. No
historical analogy can be made to fit in the slightest degree. If one
believes in the possibility of resolving hero stories into nature
myths, he may be explained in that fashion, but such a solution is not
necessary. The fact remains that from very early days Sigurth (Sifrit)
was a great traditional hero among the Franks. The tales of his
strength and valor, of his winning of a great treasure, of his wooing a
more or less supernatural bride, and of his death at the hands of his
kinsmen, probably were early features of this legend.
The Poetic Edda, passage 871
14. Hymir’s wrath does not permit him to ignore the duties of a host to
his guests, always strongly insisted on.
The Poetic Edda, passage 591
8. Glathsheim (“the Place of Joy”): Othin’s home, the greatest and most
beautiful hall in the world. Valhall (“Hall of the Slain”): cf.
Voluspo, 31 and note. Valhall is not only the hall whither the slain
heroes are brought by the Valkyries, but also a favorite home of Othin.
The Poetic Edda, passage 2642
20. “Fifteen dwellings | fain would he give
For me, and the burden | that Grani bore;
But Atli said | he would never receive
Marriage gold | from Gjuki’s son.
The Poetic Edda, passage 125
3. Ymir: the giant out of whose body the gods made the world; cf.
Vafthruthnismol, 21. In this stanza as quoted in Snorri’s Edda the
first line runs: “Of old was the age | ere aught there was.”
Yawning gap: this phrase, “Ginnunga-gap,” is sometimes used as a proper
name.
The Poetic Edda, passage 2184
10. Branch-runes learn, | if a healer wouldst be,
And cure for wounds wouldst work;
On the bark shalt thou write, | and on trees that be
With boughs to the eastward bent.
The Poetic Edda, passage 1814
17. “Never shall Sigrun | from Sevafjoll,
Hothbrodd king, | be held in thine arms;
Granmar’s sons | full cold have grown,
And the giant-steeds gray | on corpses gorge.”
The Poetic Edda, passage 2833
45. “For your safety I sought | that at home ye should stay;
None escapes his fate, | so ye hither must fare.”
Full wisely she spake, | if yet peace they might win,
But to nought would they hearken, | and “No” said they all.
The Poetic Edda, passage 317
123. For never thou mayst | from an evil man
A good requital get;
But a good man oft | the greatest love
Through words of praise will win thee.
The Poetic Edda, passage 3486
Njāls′-sag-a, the Saga of Njal, 399.
The Poetic Edda, passage 839
19. Swift to the wood | the hero went,
Till before him an ox | all black he found;
From the beast the slayer | of giants broke
The fortress high | of his double horns.
The Poetic Edda, passage 1165
12. The manuscript marks the third line as the beginning of a stanza;
something may have been lost. Lines 3–4 are thoroughly obscure.
According to Bugge the maidens who are to weep for Baldr are the
daughters of the sea-god Ægir, the waves, whose grief will be so
tempestuous that they will toss the ships up to the very sky. “Yards of
the sails” is a doubtfully accurate rendering; the two words, at any
rate in later Norse nautical speech, meant respectively the “tack” and
the “sheet” of the square sail.
The Poetic Edda, passage 3666
Ym′-ir, a giant, 4, 6, 17, 74, 76, 77, 100, 229, 242.
The Poetic Edda, passage 1988
33. Most editions have no comma after line 3, and change the meaning to
“Fain of thee | the fair-haired one / For her daughter is.”
Grimhild: in the northern form of the story Kriemhild, Gunther’s sister
and Siegfried’s wife, becomes Grimhild, mother of Gunnar and Guthrun,
the latter taking Kriemhild’s place. The Volsungasaga tells how
Grimhild gave Sigurth a magic draught which made him utterly forget
Brynhild. Edzardi thinks two stanzas have been lost after stanza 33,
their remains appearing in stanza 37.
The Poetic Edda, passage 3464
Mō″-ins-heim′-ar, a battlefield, 304, 322.
The Poetic Edda, passage 2901
11. Some editions make a separate stanza out of lines 1–2, or combine
them with stanza 10, and combine lines 3–4 with stanza 12 (either lines
1–4 or 1–2). The manuscript marks line 3 as beginning a new stanza.
The Poetic Edda, passage 1963
40. “Most evil it seems, | and men will say
Base is Sigurth | that so he did;
Not of my will | shall I cheat with wiles
The heroes’ maiden | whom noblest I hold.”
The Poetic Edda, passage 1381
14. “Then ninth will I chant thee, | if needs thou must strive
With a warlike giant in words:
Thy heart good store | of wit shall have,
And thy mouth of words full wise.
The Poetic Edda, passage 3287
Grot″-ta-songr′, the Song of Grotti, 436.
The Poetic Edda, passage 577
49. Grimnir they call me | in Geirröth’s hall,
With Asmund Jalk am I;
Kjalar I was | when I went in a sledge,
At the council Thror am I called,
As Vithur I fare to the fight;
Oski, Biflindi, | Jafnhor and Omi,
Gondlir and Harbarth midst gods.
The Poetic Edda, passage 30
THE EDDA AND OLD NORSE LITERATURE
The Poetic Edda, passage 2569
14. The manuscript marks line 3 as beginning a stanza, and many
editions combine lines 3–4 with lines 1–2 of stanza 15. Hoalf (or
Half): Gering thinks this Danish king may be identical with Alf, son of
King Hjalprek, and second husband of Hjordis, Sigurth’s mother (cf. Fra
Dautha Sinfjotla and note), but the name was a common one. Thora and
Hokon have not been identified (cf. Guthrunarkvitha I, concluding
prose, which is clearly based on this stanza). A Thora appears in
Hyndluljoth, 18, as the wife of Dag, one of the sons of Halfdan the
Old, the most famous of Denmark’s mythical kings, and one of her sons
is Alf (Hoalf?).