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World MythologyBy Colleen Campbell |
| The Path of the Hero: A Brief Introduction
to Norse Mythology Compared to other Western mythologies such as the Greek and the Roman, we know little about the religious beliefs of Vikings. Norse mythology comes to us mainly in fragments. We learn a bit from Beowulf, and the German Nibelungenlied, but most of what we know comes from the two Icelandic Eddas, both complied between the twelfth and thirteenth centuries. The Elder Edda gives us the Norse creation myth. In the beginning there
was no life, only Muspellsheim, the land of fire, and Niflheim, the land
of ice and mist. Between the two lay Gennungagap, the chasm. From the
chasm came Ymir, a young giant, and a cow named Andumla. Ymir thrived on
Andumla’s milk and soon gave birth to three beings. |
| Odin and his brothers joined their father Bor in a struggle against the hostile frost giants and finally killed Ymir. The race of giants perished except for Bergelmir who escaped with his wife. From Ymir’s body, Odin and his brothers made the world, and Odin became its supreme ruler. The gods then created man and woman from trees and built Asgard, the god’s home. Valhalla was a great hall within Asgard and would become the home of warriors who died heroically in battle. |  |
| An array of divine beings lived at Asgard
including the the thunder god Thor; Balder, god of goodness and harmony;
Bragi, god of poetry; and Loki, an evil son of a giant. Resident goddesses
included Odin’s wife Frigg; Freyja, the goddess of love and beauty; and
Hel, goddess of the Underworld. The Valkyries lived at Asgard too, serving
in Valhalla and deciding who among the earthly warrior would be slain in
battle. |
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| At first glance the mythology of the Vikings
presents a dark and despairing worldview. The overriding theme is
unyielding heroism in the face of certain defeat. Asgard bears no
resemblance to the Western notion of heavenly paradise, nor the Eastern
attainment of bliss through enlightenment. Instead, Asgard is the dwelling
of gods who await the day their enemies destroy them. Even the warriors
who gain Vahalla arrive at their final reward not to rest, but to battle
evil alongside the gods. The Norsemen knew the cause was lost; eventually
Asgard would fall and the gods would die. As supreme god, Odin’s
responsibility was to postpone the inevitable—Ragnarok, the day of doom—as
long as possible. He was mankind’s patron, and constantly sought wisdom
at great personal price to keep the forces of evil at bay a bit longer. One wonders why the Norse bothered to get up in the morning let alone build ships, travel to the New World, and establish trade routes all over coastal Europe and upper Africa. The answer lies in the Norse ideal—heroism. To live and die heroically was the apex of Viking life. Even when pushed to the wall the Viking always had the option to yield or die. The choice was entirely his. But like the Christian martyrs, unyielding dedication to purpose was the point, not living to fight another day. A heroic death was a triumph. The hero may die, but he isn’t defeated. In some ways the Norse myths present a realistic, workable view of the
human condition. As Edith Hamilton points out in her opus, Mythology,
the Norse didn’t crumble under the weight of their heavy beliefs any
more than St. Paul’s followers who were yoked by the doctrine of
predestination did. As humans we seem fated to struggle, and many of us
struggle for what we believe is right and just. It’s no secret that
someday we will die, probably before the evil we see is eradicated. But to
struggle or not is our option, and many, it seems, find the struggle
itself worthwhile. |
| Colleen Campbell is a freelance writer whose work appears in a variety of national magazines and on the Web. She lives on the U.S. Gulf Coast. |