Ragnarök

Many of the religions of the ancient world are rich in stories of what has happened, and what does happen, but few foretell what will happen. The lore of the Norsemen, however, details exactly what will happen. As well as the story of the Creation of the World, it tells us of its ultimate destruction, and the fate of men, gods and creatures alike. Throughout the stories of Norse Mythology, friendships have gradually been forged, and feuds simmered, and enemies made. An ancient prophecy revealed how things would end. It is to this showdown that we turn this week. This is Ragnarök, or the Götterdämmerung – The Twilight of the Gods.


                             “ Trembles Yggdrasill’s towering ash
                                The Old Tree wails… ”
                                        - THE COMING OF THE END

The Fall of the Aesir
Illustration by Carl Ehrenberg

There will come a time in the Nine Worlds when order will be shaken. The Aesir will sit deep in council on Asgard’s golden plains, the dwarves shall groan at the walls of the mountain, all Jötunheim shall roar, as the fury of the Giants shall boil over. In the realm of Men on Midgard, for three Winters snow shall fall without Summer. This shall be the Fimbulwinter, and Envy and Greed will grip the world of Men. Brother shall slay brother, and many of their sister’s sons will lie slain on the field of ruinous war. The bonds which fuse father and son will be shattered as readily as the shields of the fallen. Long ago shall seem the age when Midgard was verdant green, for a fell wind of chill shall blast it for three years, and thick will be the blizzards. Then cometh the sign that will herald the beginning of the end. Since the beginning of the world (click here), the Sun and her sister the Moon have been chased across the skies by the dire wolves Sköll and Hati, fated one day to be their prey. Now, at the Twilight, their time has come. Sköll will at last seize the Sun in his jaws, and despair will fall upon the realm of men, and Hati will close his jaws upon the Moon, and the stars will vanish from the skies.

Loki's Chains are Broken
Illustration by Ernst Hermann Walther

His rage at his humiliation too terrible to behold, Loki, the deceiver who was bound (click here), will shatter his bonds and declare open war upon the Aesir, and soon upon him shall follow his foul brood. The ground will quake as the World Tree groans, the mountains will be thrown down and trees torn up, and all chains will be broken. The mighty wolf Fenrir, who the Aesir once bound (click here), lying for millennia in wait, shall break free of his bonds and a world of pain shall he unleash upon they who dared restrain him. The Ocean will erupt in fury, and towering waves shall break upon the land, for the Midgard Serpent, Jörmungandr himself in his wrath will heave his vast form from the depths of the Sea. Fenrir will roar as he advances upon the Aesir, and the roof of his mouth will scrape the Heavens, and the root the Earth. Jörmungandr will spit venom into the skies, and the Nine Worlds will be awash. From the dark forests all evil creatures will leave the shadows. Deep in the inferno of Múspell, the Fire Giants will stir. Greatest among them, the mighty Surtr will charge forth, leading the fiery vanguard against the gods, his sword of purest fire more radiant than the Sun. Hel will open her gates, and Loki her father will lead the accursed dead from Niflheim in revolution. The terrible dragon, Nidhogg, will at last bite through the roots of the World Tree, and Garm the hound of Hel, no longer sated by human blood alone will utter a hideous roar that will sound throughout the Nine Worlds, as the demonic beast thirsts for the blood of gods. Jötunheim will spit forth the Giants to march on the Aesir. All Loki’s deplorable entourage shall ascend the worlds, and reach the rainbow bridge, Bifrost, ultimate revenge within their minds.


High above, Heimdall, the vigilant watchman of the gods, alone of the Aesir will see the approaching Doom (click here). Taking the mighty horn Gjäll, he shall blast with all his might the final alarm to the gods, to oppose the roar of Garm. The Aesir will then be made aware of the Death which now lies at their Gates, and each shall ready for the final war. Odin, King of the Gods, will lead them, resplendent in magnificent gold and his mighty spear Gungnir. Close behind will follow Thor the Thunderer, Tyr the brave, Freyr the fair and every last god in Asgard. The doors of Valhalla will be thrown asunder, and the Einherjar, the great champions of men who fell in battle, handpicked by the Valkyries (click here) will march forth to fight alongside the gods. To the field Vígrídr shall both sides march, and there shall begin the final battle of the gods:


                         “ Surtr fares from southward with switch-eating flame;
                            On his sword shimmers the Sun of the War-gods;
                            The rocks are falling, and the fiends are reeling,
                            Heroes tread Hel-way, Heaven is cloven… ”
                                     - RAGNARÖK BEGINS

Odin and Fenrir
Painting by Emil Doepler

The towering din will make the cosmos quake, as both sides hurl themselves against the other. Odin, atop Sleipnir, Lord of Horses, will ride against Fenrir, bane of the Aesir, with great valour. Alongside him shall charge his mighty son, Thor the Thunderer. But the wolf is a power beyond any of them, and the King of the Gods sees his folly, recalling that ancient prophecy of his doom. Thor sees his father will be in trouble, but to no avail, for his nemesis, Jörmungandr, will lash out at him, and god and serpent will be locked in war. The fair god Freyr will oppose the infernal Surtr, and will fight will unequalled valour. Great will be his bravery, but greater still the arms of Surtr. With a strike of pure fire will the ashen Giant fell the god, and the first of the Aesir will crumple to the ground. The monstrous hound Garm will then be unleashed, and none will stand before his dreadful visage save brave Tyr, who lost his hand to the jaws of Fenrir (click here). Their fight will shudder the field and shake the spirits of all, and when the dust will clear, both will fall, each the bane of the other.

Jörmungandr and Thor
Painting by Emil Doepler

Seeing his friends dying around him, the Thunderer redoubles his rage, taking up the mighty Hammer Mjöllnir. The World Serpent, once defied by Thor (click here), lashes out, more mighty a foe than ever the Thunderer has faced. A terrible realisation comes over Thor, as he sees that all his trials and his wars have lead to this. Bellowing in fury, the Thunderer brings down Mjöllnir one final time, for a mightier strike than ever before. The Hammer will slay Jörmungandr, terror of the seas, but No! The Serpent’s fang will pierce his arm. Nine paces will the victorious god stride before succumbing to the fiery poison, and Thor too will collapse to the Earth to die. King Odin, Lord of the Aesir, distraught by the death of his great son, will hurl himself anew at Fenrir, but alas in vain. For the mightiest of wolves will swallow him whole, and the wisest of the Aesir will be gone. His beloved Frigg will then mourn. It will be then that Vidar, youngest of Odin’s sons, will find his courage at last. “With one hand he shall seize the Wolf’s upper jaw and tear his gullet asunder”, and Fenrir will crumble to the Earth, dead. Heimdall, vigilant watchman of the gods, who always suspected the treachery of Loki, faces down the Deceiver on Vígrídr’s burning plain. The valour of Heimdall will break upon the dark rage of Loki, his betrayal at last laid bare. Loki shall pierce the watchman’s side, but not before his foe’s mighty sword crashes down upon his crown, and both shall fall to die. The greatest champions on both sides lie dying, and in that moment Surtr will swing his flaming sword hither and thither, and all-consuming fire will burn all the world:


                           “ The Sun shall be darkened, Earth sinks in the Sea,
                              Glide from the Heaven, the glittering stars;
                              Smoke-reek rages, and reddening fire,
                              The high heat licks against Heaven itself. ”
                                           - THE DESTRUCTION OF THE NINE WORLDS


Now man will be judged. They who have broken oaths, and murderers and their kind will wade in the rivers of Jörmungandr’s lethal poison, and great will be their screams. The World will be overturned in fire and crumble into the Sea. The Cosmos as it is known will end. But hope will emerge.


                           “ Unsown then the fields will grow,
                              Evil be amended;
                              Baldr is coming… ”
                                    - THE NEW WORLD

The New World
Painting by Emil Doepler

There will come a time when the Earth will be born anew from beneath the Ocean, and it shall be green and fair, and abundant will be the fruits of Heaven. Vidar and Váli, the sons of Odin shall survive, for neither the fires of Surtr nor the power of the Sea shall claim them. Where once there stood Asgard in the days of the Aesir there will stand the plains of splendour, called Ida, and they shall reside there. To there shall come also Módi and Magni, the sons of Thor, and they shall find waiting there Mjöllnir, ready to serve new masters. Released now from the bonds below the Earth, he shall come to rule them, Baldr the fair, restored to glorious life. With him shall be Höðr his brother, redeemed of Loki’s taint, and he shall sit with his brother and the sons of Odin and Thor on the gentle grass and hold speech. They shall find the golden chess pieces of the Aesir, and they shall speak of the end of the last Age. It will be revealed that before the Fimbulwinter, a woman and a man, Lif and Lifþrasir sought shelter in the wood of an ancient tree, Hoddmímis Holt. Emerging from their sanctuary, the morning dew shall sustain them, and the human race will be born anew. The goddess Sól, lady of the Sun swallowed by Sköll, will bequeath to the World a daughter as beautiful as she, and she will take up the mantle of her mother, and her rays will bathe all the world in a radiant glow.

                                            “ She a hall see standing,
                                               Brighter than the Sun,
                                               With gold bedecked,
                                               There shall good people,
                                               Household build,
                                               And in a long time,
                                               Happiness enjoy… ”
                                                  - THE BEGINNING

United Kingdom

The Prose Edda:
The Prose Edda: Norse Mythology (Penguin Classics)
(Contains many of the original tales of Norse Mythology, written a thousand years ago)

The Poetic Edda:
The Poetic Edda (Oxford World's Classics)
(The heroic poetry of the Norsemen, written a thousand years ago)

United States

The Prose Edda:
The Prose Edda: Norse Mythology (Penguin Classics)
(Contains many of the original tales of Norse Mythology, written a thousand years ago)

The Poetic Edda:
The Poetic Edda (Oxford World's Classics)
(The heroic poetry of the Norsemen, written a thousand years ago)

The Dwarven Wager

Ever the deceiver, tranquility and peace was a balance only ever to be overturned in the mind of Loki (for more about him, click here). Through cruel intelligence and expertly crafted trickery, even the mightiest of gods and beings had been lead astray by Loki's sleight of hand. Though friend to the Aesir of Asgard, Loki was never truly one of them. There were times, however, when the god paid the price for his mischief. This is the story of Loki's wager with the dwarves.

Sif - goddess of the fertile Earth
Drawing by John Charles Dollman.

Of all the Aesir, there existed a curious friendship between Loki and Thor, son of Odin and Thunder god. The two frequently adventured together to the realm of the giants, in the name of honour, or sometimes simply for sport (for the story of one such adventure, please click here). The powerful Jötunn (giants), and even other gods were jealous of Thor for the renowned beauty of his wife, the goddess Sif, patron of the fertile earth. Renowned particularly for her hair, gold as the wheat fields which abound on the earthly plains, Sif was also admired for her virtue. Ever thirsting for anarchy however, was Loki. One night, with mischievous designs, Loki quitely crept up behind the sleeping goddess and cut off her hair. When the thunder god received word of this, he was under no illusions as to who the perpetrator was. Seizing the god in rage, Thor would have broken every bone in Loki's body, had the trickster not sworn to travel to the land of the dwarves to acquire new hair of gold.

The anger of Thor soon sped Loki on his way. Coming to the searing heat of the dwarven forge, Loki encountered two dwarves, hard at work at the bellows and the anvil. The dwarves were brothers, Brokk and Eitri, the sons of Ívaldi and famous for their skill as craftsmen. Asking the dwarves if they would forge new hair worthy of the goddess Sif, the brothers got to work. Soon after, Brokk presented Loki with three gifts. First, the magnificent new hair of shining gold for Sif, second a magical ship, called Skíðblaðnir for Freyr (a fertility god), and finally, a mighty enchanted spear for Odin, King of the Gods, called Gungnir. Greedy for more wonders, Loki's spiteful nature came to a head once more. Loki flattered the dwarf, and said that Eitri could never make three gifts so marvellous as those of Brokk. Sensing the deception at work, Brokk said that if Eitri could, then he would take Loki's head. Loki agreed, as long as the dwarf take only his head and not the neck. The dwarves happily accepted, knowing that Loki would soon be humbled.

The Dwarves and their gifts
Print by Elmer Boyd Smith.

Beckoning to Brokk to work the bellows, Eitri took up the hammer and tongs. Now, when working metal at a forge, it is vital that the heat not be too strong, or too weak, to achieve the perfect malleability of the metal. Brokk knew this, and so did Loki. Fearing that the dwarves may succeed, Loki decided to hinder them. Laying out a pigskin upon the hearth, Eitri began work with the gold, as Brokk held the bellows steady. The work went well, except that a gadfly flew in the open window, and bit Brokk on the hand, to the irritation of the dwarf. Soon, Eitri took out the new gift, a great boar made of gold - Gullinbursti. The fires of the forge roaring, Eitri laid fresh gold in the burning hearth, bidding Brokk keep up the blast of air from the bellows. The gadfly now settled upon the dwarven smith's neck, and bit down once again, yet Brokk endured the pain, faithfully working the bellows. Eitri returned and drew out from the fires a splendid gold ring, called Draupnir. Turning to the forge a final time, Eitri set iron in its heart, as he began work on a powerful weapon, a fitting gift for the god of war. Turning to his brother once again, Eitri warned Brokk that the work would be spoiled if the blast from the bellows failed. The dwarf's hammer rose and fell, and the gadfly returned. This time, it settled upon Brokk's eyelid, and bit down hard. A trickle of blood ran into Brokk's eye, causing the dwarf to twitch in agony, but still, the work was completed, and a majestic hammer rose from the forge - Mjöllnir, the famous weapon of Thor.

Valhalla
Painting by Max Brückner.

Brokk emerged from the forge laden with all six gifts, and made haste to Valhalla, the hall of Odin in Asgard, to present the gifts and settle the bet with Loki before the Aesir. To Odin was given the spear Gungnir, enchanted so that it would never miss and always kill. To Sif was given the radiant hair, which would grow to her head as soon as it came upon her flesh. To Freyr was given Skíðblaðnir, a ship which would always have a favourable breeze in its sail, and could be collapsed and folded so as to fit in the god's pouch. Now Brokk brought forth Eitri's gifts. To Odin was given the ring, enchanted that every ninth night, eight identical rings would be born from it. To Freyr was given Gullinbursti, a boar forged with expert dwarven skill of gold, which could run through sky and earth with a swiftness to match the finest horse, and the lustre of the metal was such that no cave would be too dark for Gullinbursti to find his way. The dwarf then turned to Thor. To the Thunderer he presented Mjöllnir, and showed the god its might:

          " Then he gave the hammer to Thor, and quothed that Thor might smite
             as hard as he desired, whatsoever might be before him, and the hammer
             would not fail; and if he cast it forth at a foe, never would it miss,

             and never would Mjöllnir fly forth so far that it would not return to his hand... "

                                     - BROKK PRESENTS MJÖLLNIR TO THOR

The Aesir looked on in marvel at these mighty gifts, decreeing Mjöllnir the envy of them all, most potent of weapons it was, and mighty new scourge of the Jötunn. Thus it was that Eitri's gift was considered greatest of all. Brokk turned to Loki, ready to claim the god's head in triumph. Loki however, was not so easily foiled. Loki took up Mjöllnir and pointed to the fore-haft of the weapon. It was just slightly shorter than would be most comfortable to Thor's hand. The gods suddenly noticed this flaw and murmered.

Brokk however, realised the trickster craft. The gadfly in the forge had been Loki all along, and when the blood had flowed within his eye, the split second distraction had cost him the perfection within the great hammer. The Aesir sympathised with the dwarf, knowing Loki's tricks. Brokk came forth for Loki's head, but the god attempted to flee. Brokk pleaded with Thor for help, who promptly grabbed hold of Loki. All hope of escape gone, Loki unleashed his final trickery. The dwarf could indeed take his head, as their agreement originally was, but that agreement had also said that the dwarf could not touch his neck. Brokk shouted with frustration, as it is not possible to sever a head without touching the neck. Taking a knife and string, Brokk sewed Loki's mouth shut, so that the god may never boast of his wit and utter deceit ever again. The Aesir all looked on and laughed at Loki. Unlike Thor, who learned from his humiliation, Loki was furious at the gods for their laughter, and ever thereafter swore revenge...

United Kingdom

Penguin Classics:
The Prose Edda: Norse Mythology (Penguin Classics)
(A fast paced, 'episodic' version well suited to casual reading)

United States

Penguin Classics:
The Prose Edda: Norse Mythology (Penguin Classics)
(A fast paced, 'episodic' version well suited to casual reading)