Page:Kickerbocker Oct 1847 vol 30 no 4.djvu/14
screams with joy over the dead bodies it tears in pieces, and the ship Nagelfar[1] floats out upon the waters.
'It approaches from the south. The sons of Muspel are upon it, and Loki at the helm. The race of monsters have associated with the wolves, and Loki is their leader.
'Alas! what fate is reserved for the race of the Asers! What will be the destiny of the Elves! The world of the giants is filled with tumult. The Asers assemble, and the dwarfs of the mountain groan at the entrance of their caverns.
'Surtur comes from the south, and brings Conflagration with him. His burning sword flashes in the sir, and the rocks are rent asunder. The Trolles wander about anxiously, and men hasten along the path of death.
'Tribulation seizes the heart of Hylna when Odin advances to meet the mighty wolf. The conqueror of Bela combats with Surtur. But the husband of Frigga is vanquished in the battle.
'Then advances the son of the God of Victory, the powerful Vidar, to struggle with the wolf. With one hand he holds him fast, while the other plunges a sword into his heart.
'Thor, too, approaches, the son of Odin. He attacks the serpent Midgard, and destroys him; but falling back nine paces, dies himself by the venom of the monster.
'The sun is clothed in darkness, and the reeling earth sinks beneath the waters. The stars shoot from the firmament, and the flames mount even to the skies.
'And the prophetess beholds a new earth, beautiful and pleasant, rising from the bosom of the waters. The waves retire within their boundaries, and the eagle that has taken fish from the meadows dies away forever.
'The Asers reässemble in the vales of Ida, and talk concerning the destruction of the world. They recall the heroic deeds of the past, and the lessons of the sovereign god.
'They find also upon the green shores of the new world the wonderful tablets of gold which the first of the gods and the race of Fjolner possessed before the birth of time.
'The fields are covered with fruits, which spring up spontaneously. Disease is banished from the earth; and Balder, returning, dwells with his brother Hander in the palaces of Odin.
'And the prophetess beholds the halls of Gimla, covered with gold, and more brilliant than the stars. The just and good live there, and their happiness extends forever.
'From the lowest abyss of darkness rises the dragon Nidhug, bearing with him the bodies of the dead. He holds his course across the vallies, falls, and disappears.'
The songs of Wafthrunder, Grinmer and Alvis finish the Voluspa; but they are little more than new representations of the same mythological opinions. In the first, Odin pays a visit to the giant Wafthrunder, and discusses various questions relative to the earth, the sun, and movement of the planets. In the second, Odin, under the name of Grimner, instructs Girrod as to the stars, heavenly bodies, and especially Valhalla. He recounts also the creation of the world, and the transactions of the gods. This song enters much into details, is extremely clear, and often recurs to the peculiar mythology of the North. Although more recent than some others, it still dates from Pagan times. In the poem of Alvis, the subject descends from the nature and attributes of the gods to describe one of those imaginary beings to whom the superstition of the age attributed so many mysterious agencies. The dwarf Alvis is engaged in marriage to Thor's daughter, and has gone to seek her for the consummation of his nuptials. Thor meanwhile appears, and forbids the ceremony, until the dwarf should answer such questions as he asked of him. He inquires particularly as to the origin of night and day, the stars and elements. Alvis answers with wonderful accuracy and promptness. Thor, indeed, pays an involuntary homage to his abilities, and repents of his interference, when the day suddenly appears, and Alvis, who as a dwarf is forced to live for the most time on the earth, vanishes with the first rays of the morning sun.
By the side of this symbolic theogony are also placed the moral and prudential maxims of the Havamal; a poem which the Scandinavians so much prized, as to have attributed its composition to
- ↑ This ship was constructed from the nails of dead men. Its completion heralded the destruction of the world.—Tr.