The Rise of the Morning Star

We return today to the story of Paradise Lost, and the story of how Satan, once the brightest of the Archangels of Heaven, foiled in open rebellion against God, turned to other means to topple the Highest Throne (for the previous episode of this saga, please click here). Recalling an ancient prophecy they once heard as loyal Seraphim in Heaven, the Fallen Angels resolved to seek out and corrupt God's new creation - Man. With no other brave enough to walk the path of the abyss, and break out from the confines of Hell, Satan himself volunteers to carry out this dark deed, to tumultuous applause.

Satan confronts Sin and Death

Engraving by Gustave Doré

Leaving the gathered Fallen Angels to explore the dank depths of their infernal new prison, Satan takes flight through the endless reaches of Hell. Passing over the fire, mountains and sorrowful dales which are to one day be home to the cruellest of men and most savage of beasts, proud Satan soars to the summit of his new domain, bent on vengeance against the Most High. Reaching the boundaries of the Accursed Pit, the Morning Star finds his way blocked by thrice threefold gates, three of brass, three of iron and three of adamantine, all wreathed in fire. Before the gateway, however, stood two figures. On one side stood what seemed a woman to the waist, yet ending in a serpent's coils, with demonic hounds snapping at from her chest. The other was a shape, yet also shapeless, a shadow black as the Night, yet bearing a crown upon its head. The dark creature and Satan approached one another, as Hell itself trembled with each stride. Satan warns the being to back down, that nothing will stand in his way, that nothing can stand before the Spirits of Heaven. The dark creature, dauntless, replied:

                         " Art thou that traitor angel, art thou He who first broke

                           peace in Heav'n and faith, till then unbroken? "

                                                 - DEATH CONFRONTS SATAN

Roused to indignation by the grisly creature's challenge, Satan raised his spear, driven to battle rage. So too did the ghastly being, both terrible spirits poised to strike. Just then, the creature's companion called out in anguish, chastising Satan for daring to strike his own son. Bemused, Satan demands she explain her charge, for he has no son. Saddened, the monstrous lady reveals herself to be his daughter too, that at the moment of Satan's rebellion against God, she was born, fully armed, from his head. Alarmed at her sight, the loyal angels of Heaven gave her the name Sin, born a living incarnation of Satan's pride. As the glorious plains of Heaven turned to war, she writhed in the pangs of childbirth, and a son was born of her and Satan's dark deeds, the grim shadow he now confronts. For he is Death himself, a name Hell fears to speak. Sin's existence is one of endless pain, as fearsome demons claw their way from her womb, the Furies, spirits which will one day pursue and torture the minds of murderers. Softened by her words, Satan demands passage out of Hell, pledging to regain Paradise once more, and honour her in the lush fields of Heaven. She relents, and brandishes the keys to the nine doors. Death, all powerful, who senses what is to come, smiled wide, as his ravenous hunger yearns for the souls of men.

Omniscient Chaos

Engraving by Gustave Doré

Passing through the mouth of Hell, Satan passes into the realm of Chaos, a world between worlds. Above an endless ocean endless anarchy plays out. Here in the days when the cosmos are beginning to come into existence, the elements strive for mastery amid confused screams. Undaunted, the Morning Star soars through the dark desert realm to the thrones of the spirits of Chaos, lord of this world, Night, his consort, Rumour and Chance, Tumult and Discord all bawling with a thousand mouths. Turning to Chaos, Satan boldly states his purpose, vowing passage through this realm, which borders on the Heavenly cosmos. Satan's reputation is already legend even here, Chaos replies in confused speech, all here know of the defiant stand against God. It was through this dimension that the Fallen Angels fell when cast from the gates of Heaven. Go forth, Chaos bids the Fallen One, for "Havoc and spoil and ruin are my gain". Relentless, Satan takes flight, rising through the warring elements, the ancestors of Nature, the endless abyss far below. Feeling old energy in his wings, Satan reaches the boundaries of the Heavenly realm, where Chaos begins to weaken and order prevails. Satan, triumphant, has broken free of Hell.

Far beyond, upon the Highest throne, the Lord in his radiant glory sees the Fallen Archangel borne on wings toward this world, and points him out to the Son who sits at his right side. Omnipotent, God sees Satan's dark designs, foretelling with sorrow the coming perversion of man. But the Lord is irresolute, he has granted by the laws of Heaven free will to man, and none shall be denied his grace. For Satan fell of his own malice, but men will fall from Satan's seduction. What grace is there in praise from slavish obedience, compared with the prayers of free mortals? The Son turns to the Father in admiration of his grace, yet troubled. Must the Adversary be allowed to corrupt mankind unhindered? Must he take the human race entirely down to Hell? Never shall man be lost, the Lord replies, never shall repentance be in vain. For within all men the spirit of the Lord will be bound, and those who heed it will find Paradise, and all who scorn it will find no mercy. Satan has brought Death to the cosmos, and only upon Death will man be redeemed. The Heavenly host stood silent, but moved by pity, the Son offers himself in their place:

                   " Behold me then, me for him, life for life

                     I offer, on me let thine anger fall;

                     Account me man; I for his sake will leave

                     Thy bosom, and this glory next to thee

                     Freely put off, and for him lastly die... "

                              - THE SON OFFERS HIMSELF IN PLACE OF MAN

Death will never hold him for long, he declares, as Heaven will triumph over Death in the end, and at the end of times, graves will open, the dead shall be summoned forth, and man will be judged by Him, and the multitude of the redeemed shall march unto Heaven. Not a spirit in Heaven stood unmoved with admiration at these words, as even the Lord looked fondly upon his Son. The full power of Heaven will be in Him, and the Lord, God commands, until the day comes when the King of Heaven needs his royal sceptre no more. Heaven was given over to joy as the angelic host began to sing in exultation.

Satan looks down upon the Garden of Eden

Engraving by Gustave Doré

Far below, the sounds of joy fell deaf on the mind of Satan, gliding through the ethereal plain. Seeing vast orbs hang in the cosmos, Satan soars through the outer reaches of the Universe, searching for the World of Men. Powering beyond the realm of Limbo, and past the stairs to Heaven, Satan passes the stars, eventually coming to rest upon the brilliant glare of the orb men would one day call the Sun. Gazing upon the newly born Universe, Satan spots a glorious angel in the distance, a spirit whose pure back was turned. Conceiving a daring plan, Satan cast aside his dread visage, assuming the persona of a bright angel of Heaven, something of his former light. Drawing before the angel, Satan recognises the spirit as Uriel, one of the Seven Archangels of Heaven, and once his comrade in the days before his rebellion. Uriel greeted the stranger, unawares of his dark nature. Satan greeted Uriel, and spoke of reverence for God's grace, and his desire to honour his new creation, praising the hosts of Heaven. Bowing, he asked of the whereabouts of the World of Men, so that he might pay homage to the blessed race. Deceived, Uriel welcomed the Cherub before him, inviting him to rejoice with him, beckoning at the World in the distance, where even now Adam strode in the Garden. Eyes glinting with malice, Satan bowed low to Uriel, and sped forth with all speed to the world before him, leaving the archangel unaware of the grave danger he had unknowingly unleashed. Coming to rest upon Mount Niphates, Satan looked down in triumph upon the Garden of Eden, ready to unleash an eternity of agony upon the first Man...

United Kingdom

Penguin Classics:

Paradise Lost (Penguin Classics)

(Paradise Lost is written in English, so text choice is personal preference)

Oxford World's Classics:

Paradise Lost (Oxford World's Classics)

(Paradise Lost is written in English, so text choice is personal preference)

United States

Penguin Classics:

Paradise Lost (Penguin Classics)

(Paradise Lost is written in English, so text choice is personal preference)

Oxford World's Classics:

Paradise Lost (Oxford World's Classics)

(Paradise Lost is written in English, so text choice is personal preferece)

The Body of Ymir

The worship of elemental gods and songs of heroes did not die out with the rise of Christendom. In the Norse lands, the pagan gods endured. Even as late as the thirteenth century AD, the adventures of Thor and the stories of giants, terrible monsters, gods, Dwarfs and Elves flourished. Indeed many words in the English language are more Norse than Roman. The day of the week, Thursday, takes its name from the thunder god Thor and means Thor’s Day. The time of year, Easter, takes its name from the Northern goddess Ēostre, and it is indeed from the worship of this goddess that the tradition of the Easter egg has been drawn. Thriving long after the mythologies of Greece, Rome and Egypt, Norse mythology is as diverse and enthralling as it is influential. So let us begin at the beginning itself, and discover how the world came into being.

At the birth of time, there was a great void of nothingness, and it was called Ginnungagap. To the north of Ginnungagap were the dark and frozen wastes of that place called Niflheim, in which all evil things would dwell. In the south lay Múspell, a fiery domain which burned with heat so intense that only the Fire Giants could live there. One day the fires of Múspell met the ice of Niflheim:

         “ And when the breath of heat met the rime, so that it melted and dripped,

           life was quickened from the yeast-drops, by the power of that which sent the heat,

           and became a man’s form. And that man is named Ymir. ”

                                                                             - THE BIRTH OF YMIR

Audumla suckles Ymir
Painting by Nicolai Abraham Abildgaard.

So was born the Frost Giant Ymir, first of the jötunn, or race of giants with whom the gods are at everlasting war. Ymir slept, and a sweat came upon him. From the sweat in his left armpit was born a male and female giant, from the union of his two feet another giant was born and it was from these three that all the jötunn were descended. But also from the shards of Niflheim and sparks of Múspell was born the cow Audumla. Four streams ran from her udders, and it was from this milk that Ymir found sustenance.

Odin, King of the Gods
Engraver unknown.

The primordial cow then begun to lick the salty ice blocks which had formed.  At the end of the first day, a man’s hair emerged from the ice. At the end of the second day, a whole head had emerged. Then after the third day a whole man was there. His name was Búri, the first god born into existence, and it was from him that all the Aesir (war gods) and the Vanir (fertility gods) were descended. Búri produced a son, Borr, who in turn begot three sons; Vili, Vé and Odin. Mightiest of the three brothers, it was Odin who would be the most powerful and rule one day as King of the Gods. But the jötunn were a cruel race, and Ymir was evil. Odin lead his brothers and warred upon the giants, killing Ymir and bathing the cosmos in his blood. Indeed so intense was the flow of blood from the dead giant, all the jötunn were drowned in it, except for Bergelmir, the grandson of Ymir. So ever after the jötunn and the gods were at war, and will be until the judgement. Now here we have a major difference between Norse mythology and that of the Classical civilisations. In the stories of Greece, everything happened in the past. In Norse legend however, the mythology is past, present and future. The stories lay out clearly how the world was created and how it will end, in a cataclysmic war known as Ragnarök (The Twilight of the Gods). Many feuds and enemies are made among the gods, giants and monsters, which will all be unleashed at Ragnarök. But that is for a future post, so I return to the creation.

From the body of Ymir, Odin and his brothers created the cosmos. From his blood was made the lakes and oceans which surround the world, from his flesh the Earth, from his bones the mountains and crags, from his brains the clouds and from his teeth the rocks. From the maggots which crawled in his rotten form were born the dwarfs. Odin and his brothers then took the skull of Ymir and of it crafted the Heavens, and in each corner they set a dwarf. The names of these dwarfs were North, South, East and West. The brothers then took the sparks and embers which burst forth from Múspell, and from these created the Sun, the Moon and the stars which illuminated the Heavens and the Earth. The Earth was divided into nine Worlds, each home to a different race, yet all bound in the mighty World Tree, Yggdrasill. But populated by only the gods, the jötunn, and the dwarfs, the world had not yet given birth to men.

“ When the sons of Borr were walking along the sea-strand,

   they found two trees and shaped men of them:

   the first gave them spirit and life;

   the second, wit and feeling;

   the third, form, speech, hearing and sight.

  They gave them clothing and names: the male was called Askr,

  and the female Embla, and of them mankind was begotten. ”

                                          - ODIN AND HIS BROTHERS GIVE SHAPE TO MAN

Sköll and Hati chase the Sun and Moon
Drawing by John Charles Dollman.

There was born one man called Mundilfari, who was so proud of his son and daughter that he named them Sun and Moon. The gods were angered by this insolence, and condemned Sun to drive a chariot across the Heavens which pulled the true Sun, and Moon to drive the chariot which pulled the true Moon at the end of the day. Sun is chased across the sky by Sköll, a fell wolf, and Moon by Hati, the brother of Sköll. It is written that at Ragnarök, they will finally catch their prey, and the Sun and Moon will be devoured. Now that the passage of time had been decreed, the gods created Midgard, one of the nine worlds, which was the realm of men. It was protected from Jötunheim (or ‘home of the jötunn’) by the eyebrows of Ymir, which the gods set around it. For themselves, the gods built a mighty citadel, Asgard, which is connected to Midgard by the rainbow bridge known as Bifrost. The world had now been created, and gods and men began to be born.

The stories which lay out the course of Norse mythology are all contained rather nicely in a twelfth century work, known as the Prose Edda, written by Snorri Sturluson. The whole work is very readable, and also not excessive in length. The work is therefore easily contained in one book, which is available from Amazon (There is no Oxford World's Classics version):

United Kingdom

Penguin Classics:
The Prose Edda: Norse Mythology (Penguin Classics)
(A fast paced version well suited to the casual reader)

United States

Penguin Classics:
The Prose Edda: Norse Mythology (Penguin Classics)
(A fast paced version well suited to the casual reader)