Over Him then shall come Another woe, When Odin goes forth The wolf to combat.
.
All men Abandon the earth.
The sun darkens, The earth sinks into the ocean;The lucid stars From heaven vanish;
Fire and vapor Rage toward heaven;
High flames Involve the skies.
Loud barks Garm At Gnipa-eave:
The fetters are severed, The wolf is set free,--Vala knows the future.
More does she see Of the victorious gods, Terrible fall.
Hel's dog.
Vala, the prophetess.
The winter.
Naglfar, a ship of the gods.
The brother of Byleist, Loke.
Surt, a fire-giant.
Hlin, a name sometimes used for the goddess, Frigg.--Tr.by Thorpe.
The conclusion of the "Voluspa "is the following picture of the regenerated earth.
She sees arise, The second time, From the sea, the earth Completely green:
Cascades do fall;
The eagle soars, That on the hills Pursues his prey.
The gods convene On Ida's plains, And talk of man, The worm of dust:
They call to mind Their former might, And the ancient runes Of Fimbultyr.
The fields unsown Shall yield their growth;All ills shall cease;
Balder shall come, And dwell with Hauthr
In Hropt's abodes.
Say, warrior-gods, Conceive ye yet?
A hall she sees Outshine the sun, Of gold its roof, It stands in heaven:
The virtuous there Shall always dwell, And evermore Delights enjoy.
Fimbultyr, Odin.
Balder, the god of the summer.
Hauthr, Hoder, the brother of Balder.
Hropt, Odin.of Odinic morality and precepts of wisdom, in the form of social and moral maxims.--Tr.by Henderson.
HAVAMAL.
The High-Song of Odin.This is the second song in the Elder Edda.
Odin himself is represented as its author.It contains a pretty complete code.
All door-ways Before going forward, Should be looked to;For difficult it is to know Where foes may sit Within a dwelling.
.
Of his understanding No one should be proud, But rather in conduct cautious.
When the prudent and taciturn Come to a dwelling, Harm seldom befalls the cautious;For a firmer friend No man ever gets Than great sagacity.
.
One's own house is best, Small though it be;At home is every one his own master.
Though he but two goats possess, And a straw-thatched cot, Even that is better than begging.
One's own house is best, Small though it be;At home is every one his own master.
Bleeding at heart is he Who has to ask For food at every meal-tide.
.
A miserable man, And ill-conditioned, Sneers at everything:
One thing he knows not, Which he ought to know, That he is not free from faults.
.
Know if thou hast a friend Whom thou fully trustest, And from whom thou would'st good derive;Thou should'st blend thy mind with his, And gifts exchange, And often go to see him.
If thou hast another Whom thou little trustest, Yet would'st good from him derive, Thou should'st speak him fair, But think craftily, And leasing pay with lying.
But of him yet further Whom thou little trustest, And thou suspectest his affection, Before him thou should'st laugh, And contrary to thy thoughts speak;Requital should the gift resemble.
I once was young, I was journeying alone And lost my way;Rich I thought myself When I met another:
Man is the joy of man.
Liberal and brave Men live best, They seldom cherish sorrow;But a bare-minded man Dreads everything;
The niggardly is uneasy even at gifts.
My garments in a field I gave away To two wooden men:
Heroes they seemed to be When they got cloaks:
Exposed to insult is a naked man.
.
Something great Is not always to be given, Praise is often for a trifle bought.
With half a loaf And a tilted vessel I got myself a comrade.
Little are the sand grains, Little the wits, Little the minds of men;For all men Are not wise alike:
Men are everywhere by halves.
Moderately wise Should each one be, But never over-wise;For a wise man's heart Is seldom glad, If he is all-wise who owns it.
.
Much too early I came to many places, But too late to others;The beer was drunk, or not ready:
The disliked seldom hits the moment.
.
Cattle die, Kindred die, We ourselves also die;But the fair fame Never dies of him who has earned it.
Cattle die, Kindred die, We ourselves also die;But I know one thing That never dies, Judgment on each one dead.
The tailor makes the man.--Tr.by Thorpe.
VAFTHRUDNISMAL.THE SONG OF VAFTHRUDNER.
From the third poem in the Elder Edda came the following lines, describing the day and the night:
Delling called is he Who the Day's father is, But Night was of Norve born;The new and waning moons The beneficent powers created To count years for men.
Skinfaxe he is named That the bright day draws Forth over human kind;Of coursers he is best accounted Among faring men;Ever sheds light that horse's mane.
Hrimfaxe he is called That each night draws forth Over the beneficent powers;He from his bit lets fall Drops every morn Whence in the dells comes dew.--Tr.by Thorpe Skinfaxe (shining mane), the horse of Day.
Hrimfaxe (Rime mane), the horse of Night.
