The Prose Edda
Snorri Sturluson (Rasmus Anderson translation)
1,062 passages indexed from The Prose Edda (Snorri Sturluson (Rasmus Anderson translation)) — Page 13 of 22
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The Prose Edda, passage 862
It need scarcely be brought to recollection that a commingling of the female and male character occurs in the divine and semi-divine figures of various mythological systems--including the Bearded Venus. Of decisive importance is, however, the fact of a bearded Weird Sister having apparently been believed in by our heathen German forefathers.
The Prose Edda, passage 1009
Fafner, 193-201, 263. Fal, 71. Falhofner, 73, 260. Farbaute, 91, 185. Farmagod, 81, 247. Farmatyr, 81, 165, 245. Faye, A., 257. Fenja, 206-208, 267. Fenris-wolf, 8, 87, 91-96, 104, 141, 142, 148, 149, 168. Fensaler, 97, 132. Fid, 71. File, 71. Fimafeng, 188. Fimbul, 56. Fimbulthul, 106. Fimbul-tyr, 5, 6, 8. Fimbul-winter, 7, 140, 264. Finnish, 239, 240, 241, 250. Finnsleif, 215. Fjalar, 160, 161. Fjarlaf, 45. Fjolner, 54, 81, 207, 238, 245. Fjolsvid, 81, 245, 246. Fjorgvin, 65. Fjorm, 106.
The Prose Edda, passage 835
DWARFS. Both giants and dwarfs shun the light. If surprised by the breaking forth of day, they become changed to stone. In one of the poems of the Elder Edda (the Alvismál), Thor amuses the dwarf Alvis with various questions till daylight, and then cooly says to him: With great artifices, I tell you, you have been deceived; you are surprised here, dwarf, by daylight! The sun now shines in the hall. In the Helgakvida Atle says to the giantess Hrimgerd: It is now day, Hrimgerd! But Atle has detained you, to your life’s perdition. It will appear a laughable harbor-mark, where you stand as a stone-image.
The Prose Edda, passage 429
Loud blows Heimdal His uplifted horn. Odin speaks With Mimer’s head. The straight-standing ash Ygdrasil quivers, The old tree groans, And the giant gets loose.
The Prose Edda, passage 515
The heavens stood all in flames For Uller’s step-father,[80] And the earth rocked. Svolne’s[81] widow[82] burst asunder When the span of goats Drew the sublime chariot And its divine master To the meeting with Hrungner.
The Prose Edda, passage 2
Formerly Professor of the Scandinavian Languages in the University of Wisconsin, Ex-U.S. Minister to Denmark, Author of “America Not Discovered By Columbus,” “Norse Mythology,” “Viking Tales Of The North,” etc.
The Prose Edda, passage 156
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.
The Prose Edda, passage 671
Then came King Adils’ men in and bore fuel onto the fireplace, and made a fire so great that it burnt the clothes of Rolf and his berserks, saying: Is it true that neither fire nor steel will put Rolf Krake and his berserks to flight? Then Rolf Krake and all his men sprang up, and he said:
The Prose Edda, passage 782
The vans may be connected with the Finnish Wainamoinen, and in the same manner a number of Celtic elements have been mixed with Teutonic mythology. And this is not all. There must have flourished a religious system in the North before the arrival of Odin and his apostles. This was probably either Tshudic or Celtic, or a mixture of the two. The asa-doctrine superseded it, but there still remain traces in some of the oldest records of the North.
The Prose Edda, passage 417
Skade took a serpent and fastened up over him, so that the venom should drop from the serpent into his face. But Sigyn, his wife, stands by him, and holds a dish under the venom-drops. Whenever the dish becomes full, she goes and pours away the venom, and meanwhile the venom drops onto Loke’s face. Then he twists his body so violently that the whole earth shakes, and this you call earthquakes. There he will lie bound until Ragnarok.
The Prose Edda, passage 868
In every respect, therefore, his “Witches” are an echo from the ancient Germanic creed--an echo, moreover, coming to us in the oldest Teutonic verse-form; that is, in the staff-rime.
The Prose Edda, passage 790
In the Younger Edda the winds are called the sons of Fornjot, the sea is called the son of Fornjot, and the brother of the fire and of the winds, and Fornjot is named among the old giants. This makes it clear that Fornjot and his offspring are not historical persons, but cosmological impersonations. And additional proof of this is found by an examination of the beginning of the Saga of Thorstein, Viking’s Son. (See Viking Tales of the North, pp. 1 and 2).
The Prose Edda, passage 925
The man with the ham thanked the old man for this valuable information, and rapped at the devil’s door.
The Prose Edda, passage 927
“It is true my wife and I were to have it for our Christmas dinner, but, seeing that you are so eager for it, I suppose I will have to let you have it,” said the man. “But if I am to sell it, I want that hand-mill that stands behind the door there for it.”
The Prose Edda, passage 743
Now when Odin heard that things were in a prosperous condition in the land to the east beside Gylfe, he went thither, and Gylfe made a peace with him, for Gylfe thought he had no strength to oppose the people of Asaland. Odin and Gylfe had many tricks and enchantments against each other; but the Asaland people had always the superiority.
The Prose Edda, passage 952
Gudrun’s husband after the death of Sigurd. ATRID. A name of Odin. AUD. The son of Night and Naglfare. AUDHUMBLA. The cow that nourished the giant Ymer. AUDUN. A name derived from Odin. AURGELMER. A giant; grandfather of Bergelmer; the same as Ymer. AURVANG. A dwarf. AUSTRE. A dwarf.
The Prose Edda, passage 479
Bauge complained of what had happened to his household, saying that his nine thralls had slain each other, and that he did not know where he should get other workmen. Odin called himself Bolverk. He offered to undertake the work of the nine men for Bauge, but asked in payment therefor a drink of Suttung’s mead. Bauge answered that he had no control over the mead, saying that Suttung was bound to keep that for himself alone.
The Prose Edda, passage 552
How shall the tongue Pay an ample reward For the sonorous shield Which I received from Thorleif, Foremost ’mong soldiers? On the splendidly made shield I see the unsafe journey Of three gods and Thjasse.
The Prose Edda, passage 149
All who live a life of virtue shall dwell with him in Gimle or Vingolf. The wicked, 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.
The Prose Edda, passage 1047
Ydaler, 259. Yg, 81, 246. Ygdrasil, 6, 8, 15, 29, 72, 73-78, 108, 142, 143, 252, 263. Ylg, 56, 248. Ymer, 5, 24, 58-63, 70, 128, 179, 240, 249, 250. Ynglinga saga, 50, 243. Ynglings, 47, 238. Yngve, 47, 230, 238. Yngve-Frey, 186. Yrsa, 213-216. Yvigg, 46.
The Prose Edda, passage 497
[Footnote 76: This part of the Younger Edda corresponds to the Latin Ars Poetica, and contains the rules and laws of ancient poetry.]
The Prose Edda, passage 65
About the name Edda there has also been much learned discussion. Some have suggested that it may be a mutilated form of the word Odde, the home of Sæmund the Wise, who was long supposed to be the compiler of the Elder Edda. In this connection, it has been argued that possibly Sæmund had begun the writing of the Younger Edda, too. Others derive the word from _óðr_ (mind, soul), which in poetical usage also means song, poetry.
The Prose Edda, passage 761
[Footnote 126: In the mythology this ship belongs to Frey, having been made for him by the dwarfs.]
The Prose Edda, passage 100
3. The world was divided into three parts, one from the south, westward to the Mediterranean Sea, which part was called Africa; but the southern portion of this part is hot and scorched by the sun. The second part, from the west and to the north and to the sea, is that called Europe, or Enea. The northern portion of this is cold, so that grass grows not, nor can anyone dwell there. From the north around the east region, and all to the south, that is called Asia.
The Prose Edda, passage 157
Thus it is said in the short Prophecy of the Vala (the Lay of Hyndla):
The Prose Edda, passage 66
Others, again, connect Edda with the Sanscrit word Veda, which is supposed to mean knowledge. Finally, others adopt the meaning which the word has where it is actually used in the Elder Edda, and where it means great-grandmother. Vigfusson adopts this definition, and it is certainly both scientific and poetical. What can be more beautiful than the idea that our great ancestress teaches her descendants the sacred traditions, the concentrated wisdom, of the race?
The Prose Edda, passage 623
When they came to Jormunrek, the king, in the night, while he was sleeping, they cut off both his hands and his feet. Then he awaked, called his men and bade them arise. Said Hamder then: The head would now have been off had Erp lived. The courtiers got up, attacked them, but could not overcome them with weapons. Then Jormunrek cried to them that they should stone them to death. This was done, Sorle and Hamder fell, and thus perished the last descendants of Gjuke.
The Prose Edda, passage 730
Cicero delivered his famous oration, Pro lege Manilia, and succeeded in getting Pompey appointed commander of the third war against Mithridates. The latter, by flying, had drawn Pompey after him into the wilds of Scythia. Here the king of Pontus sought refuge and new means of vengeance. He hoped to arm against the ambition of Rome all his neighboring nations whose liberties she threatened.
The Prose Edda, passage 447
Lif and Lifthraser Will lie hid In Hodmimer’s-holt. The morning dew They have for food. From them are the races descended.[74]
The Prose Edda, passage 961
FRANANGER FORCE. The waterfall into which Loke cast himself in the likeness of a salmon. FREKE. One of Odin’s wolves. FREY. Son of Njord and husband of Skade. FREYJA. The daughter of Njord and sister of Frey. FRIDLEIF. A son of Skjold. FRIGG. Wife of Odin and mother of the gods. FRODE. Grandson of Skjold. FROSTE. A dwarf. FULLA. Frigg’s attendant. FUNDIN. A dwarf. FYRE. A river in Sweden.
The Prose Edda, passage 125
10. Odin had the power of divination, and so had his wife, and from this knowledge he found out that his name would be held high in the north part of the world, and honored beyond that of all kings. For this reason he was eager to begin his journey from Turkey, and he had with him very many people, young and old, men and women, and he had with him many costly things. But wherever they fared over the lands great fame was spoken of them, and they were said to be more like gods than men.
The Prose Edda, passage 411
Oftentimes in the daytime he took on him the likeness of a salmon and concealed himself in Frananger Force. Then he thought to himself what stratagems the asas might have recourse to in order to catch him. Now, as he was sitting in his house, he took flax and yarn and worked them into meshes, in the manner that nets have since been made; but a fire was burning before him. Then he saw that the asas were not far distant. Odin had seen from Hlidskjalf where Loke kept himself.
The Prose Edda, passage 82
1. In the beginning Almighty God created heaven and earth, and all things that belong to them, and last he made two human beings, from whom the races are descended (Adam and Eve), and their children multiplied and spread over all the world.
The Prose Edda, passage 444
58. Then said Ganglere: Do any gods live then? Is there any earth or heaven? Har answered: The earth rises again from the sea, and is green and fair. The fields unsown produce their harvests. Vidar and Vale live. Neither the sea nor Surfs fire has harmed them, and they dwell on the plains of Ida, where Asgard was before. Thither come also the sons of Thor, Mode and Magne, and they have Mjolner. Then come Balder and Hoder from Hel. They all sit together and talk about the things that happened aforetime,--about the Midgard-serpent and the Fenris-wolf. They find in the grass those golden tables which the asas once had. Thus it is said:
The Prose Edda, passage 923
“I am on my way to hell, if I am on the right road,” said the poor man.
The Prose Edda, passage 45
Soon afterward Snorre married into a wealthy family, and in a short time he became one of the most distinguished leaders in Iceland, He was several times elected chief magistrate, and no man in the land was his equal in riches and prominence.
The Prose Edda, passage 489
But christian men should not believe in heathen gods, nor in the truth of these sagas, otherwise than is explained in the beginning of this book, where the events are explained which led men away from the true faith, and where it, in the next place, is told of the Turks how the men from Asia, who are called asas, falsified the tales of the things that happened in Troy, in order that the people should believe them to be gods.
The Prose Edda, passage 44
Snorre Sturleson[2] was born in Iceland in the year 1178. Three years old, he came to the house of the distinguished chief, Jon Loptsson, at Odde, a grandson of Sæmund the Wise, the reputed collector of the Elder Edda, where he appears to have remained until Jon Loptsson’s death, in the year 1197.
The Prose Edda, passage 177
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.
The Prose Edda, passage 804
Sad and Svipal, And Sanngetal, Herteit and Hnikar, Bileyg and Baleyg, Bolverk, Fjolner, Grim and Grimner, Glapsvid and Fjolsvid,
The Prose Edda, passage 476
For these reasons we call songship Kvaser’s blood; the drink of the dwarfs; the dwarfs’ fill; some kind of liquor of Odrarer, or Bodn or Son; the ship of the dwarfs (because this mead ransomed their lives from the rocky isle); the mead of Suttung, or the liquor of Hnitbjorg.
The Prose Edda, passage 681
Thus the battle continued from day to day; and all they who fell, and all the swords that lay on the field of battle, and all the shields, became stone. But as soon as day dawned all the dead arose again and fought, and all the weapons became new again, and in songs it is said that the Hjadnings will so continue until Ragnarok.
The Prose Edda, passage 347
Then Thor made up his mind that if he could get a chance to give him the third blow, he should never see him again, and he now lay watching for Skrymer to sleep fast. Shortly before daybreak he heard that Skrymer had fallen asleep. So he arose and ran over to him. He clutched the hammer with all his might and dashed it at his temples, which he saw uppermost. The hammer sank up to the handle. Skrymer sat up, stroked his temples, and said: Are there any birds sitting in the tree above me?
The Prose Edda, passage 767
Njord took a wife hight Skade; but she would not live with him, but married afterward Odin, and had many sons by him, of whom one was called Saming, and of this Eyvind Skaldespiller sings thus:
The Prose Edda, passage 418
55. Then said Ganglere: What tidings are to be told of Ragnarok? Of this I have never heard before. Har answered: Great things are to be said thereof. First, there is a winter called the Fimbul-winter, when snow drives from all quarters, the frosts are so severe, the winds so keen and piercing, that there is no joy in the sun. There are three such winters in succession, without any intervening summer. But before these there are three other winters, during which great wars rage over all the world. Brothers slay each other for the sake of gain, and no one spares his father or mother in that manslaughter and adultery. Thus says the Vala’s Prophecy:
The Prose Edda, passage 304
Ganglere asked: Does Odin have the same kind of food as the einherjes? Har answered: The food that is placed on his table he gives to his two wolves, which hight Gere and Freke. He needs no food himself. Wine is to him both food and drink, as is here said:
The Prose Edda, passage 629
The king saw Men so stand That a ring they made ’Round his house. Sorle and Hamder Were both at once, With slippery stones, Struck to the ground.
The Prose Edda, passage 726
Gefjun glad Drew from Gylfe The excellent land, Denmark’s increase, So that it reeked From the running beasts. Four heads and eight eyes Bore the oxen, As they went before the wide Robbed land of the grassy isle.[122]
The Prose Edda, passage 14
And yet these Forewords and Afterwords become interesting enough when taken up in connection with a study of the historical anthropomorphized Odin. With a view of giving a pretty complete outline of the founder of the Teutonic race we have in our notes given all the Heimskringla sketch of the Black Sea Odin.
The Prose Edda, passage 416
The gods took three rocks and set them up on edge, and bored a hole through each rock. Then they took Loke’s sons, Vale and Nare or Narfe. Vale they changed into the likeness of a wolf, whereupon he tore his brother Narfe to pieces, with whose intestines the asas bound Loke over the three rocks. One stood under his shoulders, another under his loins, and the third under his hams, and the fetters became iron.