loki-in-myth

[loki-in-myth]

Perhaps I misunderstood something, but if the Rundkvist article you cited in your latest post mentions Loki, I must have missed it. What it does say, is that "the motifs of snake brooches say only “snake”, “snakes” or “amphisbaena biting itself”. Any interpretation in isolation from the rare more complex figural compositions of the time seems futile." What evidence is there that intertwined snakes were used as a symbol of Loki?

Sorry for the confusion.  There is a lot of archaeological evidence connecting the symbol to Loki, but I don't have any specific articles to recommend for that, so I simply cited archaeological evidence in general.  My citation of the Rundkvist article was more secondary in nature, simply to identify the prolific appearances of the symbol.  I'm planning to completely reformat this blog, so it can be more helpful to people trying to do their own research.  At that time, I will have combed through all of my articles/papers/texts/sources, so I will assign a more proper source than "archaeological evidence".  That won't happen for another few months though, because my current studies take up all of my time.  I'm sorry for the lack of new posts as well, but it is for the same reason.  I am so incredibly thankful for your interest though, despite the current inactivity of this blog.  I'm very excited to finish my classes, so I can get back to this!

[loki-in-myth]

The Symbol for Loki

One of the symbols used to represent Loki is that of two snakes, circling one another to form an ‘S’ shape, and biting the tail of the other (years of archaeological evidence; see Rundkvist below).

Loki is connected to the snake in a number of ways.

       Jormungandr, the giant serpent of Loki’s offspring, is said to be so big that he/she can circle the world and bite his/her own tail (Gylfaginning 34), (Thorsdrapa 1).

In an older version of the myth about Idunn’s kidnapping by Thjassi, Loki turns into a snake at one point to wriggle into the room in which the potion of longevity (similar to Idunn and her apples) is being kept (Skaldskaparmal 5).

A snake was also used to punish Loki after the events of Lokasenna.  Loki was tied down, and the snake was tied above Loki’s head, so that its venom dripped directly onto Loki (final prose section of Lokasenna).

Another notable serpent in Norse mythology is the Nidhogg, a being that feeds on the roots of the world tree Yggdrasil.  However, Nidhogg is not directly associated with Loki in any significant manner (Grimnismal 32-35), (Gylfaginning 15).

Sources: -Rundkvist, Martin. "Snake Brooches of South Scandinavia." <http://www.academia.edu/313476> -image used with permission from <http://aomiarmster.tumblr.com/post/27782533517> -Gylfaginning, Prose Edda. <http://www.sacred-texts.com/neu/pre/pre04.htm> -Thorsdrapa, Prose Edda. <http://www.nordic-life.org/nmh/thoreng.html> -Skaldskaparmal, Prose Edda. <http://www.sacred-texts.com/neu/pre/pre05.htm> -Lokasenna, Poetic Edda. <http://www.sacred-texts.com/neu/poe/poe10.htm> -Grimnismal, Poetic Edda. <http://www.sacred-texts.com/neu/poe/poe06.htm>

[loki-in-myth]

The Volcano Called Loki

The largest volcano in the solar system, located on Jupiter’s moon Io, is called Loki, named after Loki of Norse Mythology.  There are several other volcanoes on the moon of Io, and all of them are named after mythical figures, most of whom are associated with fire.

Loki generates more lava and heat than all volcanoes on Earth combined, is 202km in diameter, and under the crust, is part of a molten core as large as half of the Earth’s moon.

Above, Loki's eruption is clearly visible from space.

(Information gathered from the Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum's website, located at: http://airandspace.si.edu/ , originally obtained via NASA's Galileo Mission: http://solarsystem.nasa.gov/galileo/ )

[loki-in-myth]

Rebloggable Answers about Sources

Of course!  I hope this is a good way to do it - I'm not very tumblr-savvy...

I’ve been meaning to start sourcing everything, but it will probably take a bit of time, since a lot of the information is just kind of my accumulated knowledge (I’ll do my best though!).  About Loki’s life in Jotunheim specifically, let me see…  I know the first time I read about it was in The Norse Myths by Helena Yvette Grimes, but that book is not really an academic one, and it’s very inaccurate in some parts.  This website’s (http://shadowlight.gydja.com/loki.html) info on the subject is accurate and well-written, but this website is not academic either. Myths of the Norsemen by H.A. Guerber, an academic text, touches on Glut, Eisa, and Einmyria in chapter 22 (http://free.sbooks.net/H_A_Guerber/Myths_of_the_Norsemen/kindle.html), but not in exceptional detail.  From a cursory sweep of my sources that I expected to have the right information, that is what I’ve found.  Let me know if you want me to find more sources.  I know there ARE more, but I’d have to reread a lot of material to locate the others.  I definitely don’t mind doing this, since I should have been citing my sources from the beginning.  Also, it’s always good to refresh knowledge.  So just let me know if you’d like me to dig a little deeper.  Thanks for bearing with me!

I’m so sorry for not responding sooner!  The Laugardag/Saturday is also primarily from H.A. Guerber’s Myths of the Norsemen.  Loki’s parentage is a bit trickier, because nearly every piece about Loki will mention Loki’s parentage, but they all say different things.  It’s because no one is quite in agreement on Loki’s true origins.  For that reason, what I’ve posted here might not even be the most accurate answer.

The H.A. Guerber text cites the three different possibilities of Loki’s parentage, in chapter 22 like the information on Eisa, Einmyria, and Glut.  [1]One possibility is that Loki was among the family of original gods with Odin and Hoenir, since the three make up a common triad.  There is also the possibility that Loki was:

          “[2]the son of the great giant Fornjotnr (Ymir), his brothers being Kari (air) and Hler (water), and his sister Ran, the terrible goddess of the sea. Other mythologists, however, make him [3]the son of the giant Farbauti, who has been identified with Bergelmir, the sole survivor of the deluge, and of Laufeia (leafy isle) or Nal (vessel), his mother” (Guerber).

I’m sorry to keep suggesting the Guerber text, but many other mainstream texts are painfully inaccurate (with respect to older sources and artefacts) and suffer from some form of factual distortion.  This is one of the few that doesn’t, so it’s a good source of information.

This (http://shadowlight.gydja.com/loki.html) well-informed/written but non-academic site that I’ve suggested before details Loki’s descent from Farbauti and Laufey.

I’m fairly certain that Rudolf Simek’s Dictionary of Norse Mythology provides a good explanation on Loki’s parentage, but I don’t know on which page it is.

Otherwise, you can always use more original sources, like Snorri’s Prose Edda Gylfaginning, in which it is explicitly stated that Farbauti and Laufey are Loki’s father and mother.  It also describes their escape from the flood.  The Prose Edda Skaldskaparmal calls Loki “son of Farbauti and Laufey”, “Farbauti’s son”, and “Farbauti’s sly son”.

I owe you a lot more sources than this, but I study this field for leisure only, so I haven’t kept very good record of my sources.  I am currently going through all texts/research papers/articles/websites I have saved up, so that I can properly document everything on here (It may take a while though).  Until then, I hope this will do!

[loki-in-myth]

ohh, thank you very much! do you perhaps have your sources on Loki's being the namesake of Laugardag/Saturday, and of Loki's parentage? There's more, but, ack, I'm not even sure what I need at this point...

I'm so sorry for not responding sooner!  The Laugardag/Saturday is also primarily from H.A. Guerber's Myths of the Norsemen.  Loki's parentage is a bit trickier, because nearly every piece about Loki will mention Loki's parentage, but they all say different things.  It's because no one is quite in agreement on Loki's true origins.  For that reason, what I've posted here might not even be the most accurate answer.

The H.A. Guerber text cites the three different possibilities of Loki's parentage, in chapter 22 like the information on Eisa, Einmyria, and Glut.  [1]One possibility is that Loki was among the family of original gods with Odin and Hoenir, since the three make up a common triad.  There is also the possibility that Loki was:

          "[2]the son of the great giant Fornjotnr (Ymir), his brothers being Kari (air) and Hler (water), and his sister Ran, the terrible goddess of the sea. Other mythologists, however, make him [3]the son of the giant Farbauti, who has been identified with Bergelmir, the sole survivor of the deluge, and of Laufeia (leafy isle) or Nal (vessel), his mother" (Guerber).

I'm sorry to keep suggesting the Guerber text, but many other mainstream texts are painfully inaccurate (with respect to older sources and artefacts) and suffer from some form of factual distortion.  This is one of the few that doesn't, so it's a good source of information.

This (http://shadowlight.gydja.com/loki.html) well-informed/written but non-academic site that I've suggested before details Loki's descent from Farbauti and Laufey.

I'm fairly certain that Rudolf Simek's Dictionary of Norse Mythology provides a good explanation on Loki's parentage, but I don't know on which page it is.

Otherwise, you can always use more original sources, like Snorri's Prose Edda Gylfaginning, in which it is explicitly stated that Farbauti and Laufey are Loki's father and mother.  It also describes their escape from the flood.  The Prose Edda Skaldskaparmal calls Loki "son of Farbauti and Laufey", "Farbauti's son", and "Farbauti's sly son".

I owe you a lot more sources than this, but I study this field for leisure only, so I haven't kept very good record of my sources.  I am currently going through all texts/research papers/articles/websites I have saved up, so that I can properly document everything on here (It may take a while though).  Until then, I hope this will do!

[loki-in-myth]

pssst can you maybe source your stuff? im doing a senior thesis and would really like to know. particularly the post about Loki's life in Jotunheim, I could really use that and haven't found a proper source anywhere

I've been meaning to start sourcing everything, but it will probably take a bit of time, since a lot of the information is just kind of my accumulated knowledge (I'll do my best though!).  About Loki's life in Jotunheim specifically, let me see...  I know the first time I read about it was in The Norse Myths by Helena Yvette Grimes, but that book is not really an academic one, and it's very inaccurate in some parts.  This website's (http://shadowlight.gydja.com/loki.html) info on the subject is accurate and well-written, but this website is not academic either. Myths of the Norsemen by H.A. Guerber, an academic text, touches on Glut, Eisa, and Einmyria in chapter 22 (http://free.sbooks.net/H_A_Guerber/Myths_of_the_Norsemen/kindle.html), but not in exceptional detail.  From a cursory sweep of my sources that I expected to have the right information, that is what I've found.  Let me know if you want me to find more sources.  I know there ARE more, but I'd have to reread a lot of material to locate the others.  I definitely don't mind doing this, since I should have been citing my sources from the beginning.  Also, it's always good to refresh knowledge.  So just let me know if you'd like me to dig a little deeper.  Thanks for bearing with me!

[loki-in-myth]

This sounds like the perfect explanation of the situation.  Thanks for the head canon, with which I agree wholeheartedly (Sorry it's taken so long to reply - I shall try to make this blog more active, now that I'm on holiday from classes).

Warning: this post is pure speculation.

Since there are many gaps in modern knowledge of Norse mythology, some of the posts here will be more contemplative than informative. If you have some ideas to contribute to the topic, please feel free to reply to the post. :)

Why did Loki cut off Sif’s…

[loki-in-myth]

Question: The Birth-Mother of Loki's Brood, The Cause of Loki's Ultimate Punishment

The birth-mother of Fenrir, Hel, and Jormungandr is, for the most part, said to be Angrboda, with Loki as the father.  I disagree with this claim, and believe Loki to be the birth-mother.  There is support for both the former and latter, but that point is not made clear enough in our surviving sources to make a proper conclusion.

The idea of Angrboda as mother of the brood has merit in its simplicity.  Most people assume the female to be the mother, and the male to be the father.  Angrboda is female, Loki is male.  The mother/father is not explicitly stated, so perhaps the simplest explanation should be assumed.

This claim also tends to go hand-in-hand with the assertion that Angrboda is Loki's mistress or other wife in Jotunheimr, but this seems completely unfounded to me.  There is really no evidence of a relationship having ever existed between the two, or that they even knew one another.  I suppose Loki's self-professed promiscuity could explain him fathering children with a completely arbitrary woman, but casting Angrboda as Loki’s wife seems to be too lazy an assumption.

The incident on which Loki eats a woman’s heart comes from Hyndluljod, a source more dated than Snorri, in the Poetic Edda; as such, I feel the references therein are more accurate to authentic Norse mythology.  The account is incredibly vague, and all that is revealed is that Loki eats the half-cooked heart of an “evil woman” that he takes from the embers.  He becomes pregnant from this, and gives birth to “the monsters” (flagð).  It is not made clear to which “evil woman” the heart belongs, or to what beings “the monsters” refers.

 “The monsters” may refer to Fenrir, Jormungandr, and Hel – they are indeed the most suited for the title, among Loki’s other offspring.

These three “monsters” are usually attributed to the union of Angrboda and Loki, so if it is assumed these three are “the monsters”, then it must also be assumed that the heart belonged to Angrboda.  One section of Hyndluljod states that Loki gained the wolf (Fenrir) by Angrboda, which may imply that it was Loki impregnated by Angrboda.

The heart that Loki ate is a mystery all on its own, and its origins should be considered before attributing it to Angrboda.  It came from an “evil woman”, Loki took it from the embers, and it was half-cooked.  The Voluspa, another entry in the Poetic Edda, mentions the Aesir-Vanir war, which came about when an “evil woman” named Gullveig was thrust with spears and burned by the Aesir in Odin’s hall.  We are told she was burnt and reborn three times over, and even that was not enough to destroy her.  Perhaps a half-cooked heart remained, and this was the one Loki ate?  Angrboda’s heart was said to be frozen like the sea spray, so this may be why the heart did not burn when the rest of the body did.  Loki’s reason for eating the heart may have been to prevent further resurrection, which is very similar to Loki’s countless outlandish solutions to unsolvable problems facing the Aesir.

There is a great deal of evidence, although still not fully accepted, that Gullveig and Angrboda are one and the same.  I’ll go into Angrboda/Gullveig/Heid in detail in a later post – I need to answer your question first and foremost, and if I start talking about Angrboda, I’ll never get around to it.  Angrboda is written as Aurboda in Svipdagsmal, which gives the name the exact same meaning as Gullveig.  “Aur” and “Gull” both mean gold, and “boda” and “veig” both refer to a strong alcoholic drink.  From the above, although there is no concrete proof, there is a clear possibility that Loki was impregnated by eating Angrboda’s heart, and thus gave birth to his famous monstrous brood.

It is simplest to assume the female Angrboda as the mother, and the male Loki as the father, but we also have evidence to the contrary.  There is a bit of confusion on this point, and it seems to be intentional.  Angrboda is sometimes called the father, and Loki the mother, and then vice versa.  Perhaps this is intended to call attention to the fact that the parentage is different from what is expected.  Loki’s androgyny is definitely a theme in many of his myths, and Angrboda’s androgyny is also mentioned at one point (An observer cannot decide if Angrboda is a woman, or a man disguised as a woman).  This may be further evidence of their mismatched parental roles.

Furthermore, in Helgakvida Hundingsbane I of the Poetic Edda, two characters are insulting one another by comparing one to Loki, and the other to Angrboda.  The character comparing himself to Loki says to his Angrboda-like opponent that they produced the wolf together, and that he was the father.  The Angrboda companion corrects him, saying that Loki is not the true father, and that he was emasculated by giving birth to the wolf.  If Loki became pregnant by eating Angrboda’s heart, then it was Angrboda’s seed that fertilised Loki, making Angrboda the true father.

So there you go.  We don’t know for sure whether the father is Loki or Angrboda, but I believe it was Angrboda, and there is indeed a good deal of support for this idea.  There is some more evidence, but it requires a lot more explanation, so I might go into it again once I’ve properly explained Angrboda on this blog.

As for Loki’s banishment/getting bound, it was caused by the events of Lokasenna.  For the most part, it seems that the gods bound Loki because they were really angry that he had slandered all of them.  Granted, some of the slander was pretty bad, but a lot of it, if not all, was true.  Loki knew everybody’s dirty little secrets, and when he revealed them all at the Lokasenna, he got into some trouble.  I will write a post on Baldr’s death, and another on Lokasenna as soon as I can – sorry it’s taking so long!  I’m pretty busy with university right now, and my major is Chemistry, which is about as far from Norse mythology as you can get…

[loki-in-myth]

Is there any description of Loki in the Edda? Because I see many pagans consider him as being a redhead with long hair

I really wish I could help you out, but as far as I have seen, there is very little description of Loki's physical appearance.  Snorri Sturluson explicitly states that Loki is handsome, but that's about it, and it's unclear from where such a statement would have originated.  Loki fights only with words and cunning, so I think it is a valid assumption that he is of a leaner build than those hardened by battle.

Speaking of hair though...  Thor definitely has red hair, as that's one of his kennings, but Loki's hair colour, as far as I know, is not mentioned.

I imagine the pagans consider Loki a redhead because of his connection to fire, which I guess is a valid decision.  However, Thor was specifically singled out as the red-haired god.  If Loki was also red-haired, it wouldn't make sense for Thor to be distinguished with such a nickname.  It would get a bit confusing, especially since Loki and Thor always hung out together, and quite possibly lived together when in Asgard.  I'm a bit hesitant to think of Loki as a red-head for this reason, but it's as valid an assumption as any, really.

When Loki turned into a mare, he was a white mare, so perhaps we could take this to mean he is of fair hair or complexion?  Shape shifting rules aren't so clear-cut, but it's a thought.  Heimdallr was known for being the whitest god, and a great amount of emphasis was placed on Baldr's fairness (of complexion, not behaviour), so would it not have also been mentioned, if Loki was among the fair Aesir?  It's difficult to say.

There is also something to be said for depicting Loki with pale skin and dark hair.  I know nothing of horse breeding, but Loki and Svadilfari were both white horses, but their offspring Sleipnir somehow came out grey.  That's definitely clutching at straws, but I'm just tossing out ideas.  Loki is also associated often with the Svartalfar,who are known for being swarthy (of dark complexion).  Loki isn't a Svartalf, so the association may amount to nothing, but the fire Jotnar seemed to be swarthy as well i.e. Surtr.  Loki allegedly had a connection to fire, so this could be viable; however, Loki seems to have been of hrimthursar (Rime Jotnar) ancestry, so again, the details don't exactly line up.

Well, I think Loki's physical appearance is a bit of a mystery.  Loki spent all his time doing such crazy things that no one noticed his hair colour or length - they only described him by his actions and posterity.  Or, since no attention is called to Loki's hair, maybe it was simply brown (which, although a beautiful colour for hair, does not stand out as much as others).

For the most part, I think a lot of these myths are intended to be filled in with our own imagination.  They were passed down via oral tradition, and changed a lot over time, so Loki may have never even had a consistently decided hair length/colour.

I took a while to respond to this, because I really felt bad that I didn't have a good answer for you.  But after poring over all my my notes and texts for a few days, this is the best I can give you.  I will keep looking, and I will definitely post a description if I make any discoveries in that vein.  That's a great question, even if I'm not able to answer it, so thank you so much for asking!

[loki-in-myth]

Cutting Sif's Hair: Some Musings on Loki's Motive

Warning: this post is pure speculation.

Since there are many gaps in modern knowledge of Norse mythology, some of the posts here will be more contemplative than informative.  If you have some ideas to contribute to the topic, please feel free to reply to the post.  :)

Why did Loki cut off Sif's hair?

It is a bit of a strange thing to do.  Loki and Thor are close companions, and it is well known that Thor has a tendency to resort to violence far too quickly when angered.  This clearly would not end well for Loki, so why do it?

One explanation is that Sif's hair was something in which she and Thor had great pride, and therefore Loki in his role as a trickster figure interfered with this contentedness (tricksters often work to bring humility to the prideful).

Another characteristic of tricksters is that they are unpredictable, and do not need a reason to do anything; so there is also the possibility that Loki simply cut Sif's hair because the opportunity arose. However, contemplating a motive for Loki based on the assumption that he acts in the same way as other trickster archetypes may not yield accurate conclusions, as Loki's behaviour is not identical to tricksters of other mythologies.

A further thought: it was custom to cut a woman's hair when she had been unfaithful to her husband.  Was Loki punishing Sif for adultery?  With whom would Sif have committed adultery?

In Lokasenna, when Loki is drunkenly revealing all the dirty secrets of his fellow gods (which may or may not be true), Loki accuses Sif of cheating on Thor with none other than himself.  It seems a bit weird for Loki to lie with Sif, and then to cut her hair in punishment for it.

However, it does provide an explanation for how Loki accomplished the hair-cutting in the first place.  Sif would need to have been asleep, Thor would need to be gone, and Loki would need to be alone with Sif - the perfect opportunity would arise after a bout of secret mingling.

[loki-in-myth]

The Possible Meanings of Loki's Name

The exact etymology and meaning of Loki's name is not fully understood, but many researchers have guessed at different root words that may stem from or make up Loki's name.  Here are a few of the possible root words, and their meanings:

Loki

loca - prison

leug - to break

lok - end

logi - fire

luka/ljuka - to close, to bring to an end (most likely meaning, in my opinion, and from what I've read)*

Lodur

laða - to attract

laudi - shape

liudan - to grow

ljóðar - people

lóð - fruit, land

lodern - to blaze

luhþurar - fire bringer

Loptr

lopt - air

lopteldr - lightning

*The final and closing day of the week, which we now call Saturday, was a day held sacred to solely Loki, among all other gods. This may support the idea that Loki is connected with endings, and that therefore his name corresponds to luka (to end/close).

If there are any other root word theories circulating out there, feel free to share them!

[loki-in-myth]

Loki's Day

Each day of the seven day week held a special significance to a god.  Sunday was the day sacred to the Sun, Monday the Moon, Tuesday Tyr, Wednesday Odin, Thursday Thor, Friday Frigga, and Saturday Loki.  The name of each day sounds fairly similar to its corresponding god, with the exception of Saturday, which is often mistakenly assumed to be named for the Roman god Saturn.

Saturday, the final day of the week, was originally known as Laugardag (formed from Loki's name, but it translates to wash-day).  When adapted to English, the day did in fact maintain its connection to Loki.  The word Saturday is based on Sataere (the thief in ambush).  This is simply another one of Loki's names, used when referring to Loki as a god of agriculture (each of the gods presided over several different aspects of the universe, and Loki was no exception).  So, although few know of it, the final day of the week is still named for Loki.

Incidentally, I've seen a lot of campaigns online prompting people to begin calling Saturday "Lokisday".  Most people have no idea Saturday is named after Loki, so Loki's significance to the day is forgotten.  This campaign to call Saturday Lokisday seeks to reinforce Loki's connection to the day. This is an interesting idea, and I will definitely attempt to use Lokisday as often as I can remember.

[loki-in-myth]

Referring to Loki

Many of the figures in Norse mythology are known by several different names, as well as different phrases that describe them (called kennings).  The following is a list of some that refer to Loki, and I will update the post accordingly as I find or am informed of others.  A lot of the kennings provided by Snorri are found nowhere else, and are somewhat inconsistent, so I only included a few.  

Loki's Names: Bekki, Blind, Gammleid (leader of amusement), Haloge, Hvedrung (roarer), Lodur, Logaþore, Loge, Lôgna, Logi, Lokkji, Lopt (lofty), Sataere

Loki's Kennings: brother of Byleistr, brother of Helblindi, blood brother of Odin, confidant of Thor, friend of Odin, friend of Thor, fromkveda flaerdanna (seductive speaking), gift bearer, harmer of Sif's hair, laugaz (blazing god), laugatjanaz (blazing one), prisoner of Geirrodr, rogur (slanderer), scar lip, sea thread's father (the sea thread is a kenning for the Midgard serpent), sky walker, slaegi (sly), slaegurtyr (sly god), staunch friend of Hoenir, thief of brisingamen, thief of giants, thief of Idunn's apples, vaelandi (debasing), villi-eldr (blazing), wolf's father

Bonus: One kenning used to identify Thor is bragdmilldr Loka (compassionate to Loki)

[loki-in-myth]

Creation to Loki's Conception

In the Norse creation mythology, the worlds were created mainly through the clashing of fire and ice, heat and moisture.  Among the first beings in existence were the fire giant/deity Surtr, the hrimthurs (ice giant/deity) Ymir, and the giant nourishing cow Audhumla.  From heat and moisture on his body, Ymir begat other beings, and they in turn produced their own offspring.  Odin was closely descended from Ymir on his mother’s side, and Odin’s paternal grandfather, Buri, was considered the first god.  Buri had been different from Ymir’s creations in that he had been created from the cow Audhumla’s licking of a block of ice (creation was again achieved through a meeting of heat and ice).

Odin and his immediate family, although partially descended from Ymir, considered themselves set apart from Ymir’s creations, dubbed the Jotnar.  Odin and his brothers saw Ymir as an enemy, and, fearing his immense power, they caught him unaware and slew him.

Ymir had been an enormous being, so his death did not come without collateral damage.  The blood that poured from Ymir’s body created a flood that killed Odin’s parents and all the Jotnar but one, Bergelmir (also known as Farbauti).  It is generally believed that the longstanding feud between the Aesir and Jotnar arose from this near destruction of all Jotnar and complete destruction of Ymir, as committed by the Aesir, and the ultimate battle of Ragnarok was to be the Jotnar’s revenge for the act.

Bergelmir and his wife had taken refuge on a small wooden boat, and thus escaped from the treacherous fate that befell the rest of the Jotunnar.  It is unclear whether Bergelmir’s wife Nal (also known as Laufey) was Jotunn or god (As).  Bergelmir is said by some sources to have been the only remaining Jotunn, but in other sources his wife is included with him (although this may have simply been an assumption made because it was a Jotunn to whom Nal was wed).  Whatever Nal’s ancestry though, it was the union of Bergelmir and Nal that repopulated the world’s tree with Jotnar once more.  The land to which they escaped became Jotunnheimr.

Among Bergelmir (or Farbauti) and Nal (or Laufey)’s offspring was Loki.  The myth concerning the conception of Loki states that Loki was born from Bergelmir (or Farbauti) striking Nal (or Laufey) with lightning.  Loki was originally a fire deity before he became more closely associated with the trickster archetype, and this better explains the odd story of conception.  Farbauti, meaning “fierce strike”, was a representation of lightning.  Nal meant “pine needles”, and her other name, Laufey, meant “leaves”.  In this way, Loki – fire – was created by Farbauti – lightning – striking Nal or Laufey – pine needles or leaves.  The story describes a natural phenomenon with representative personifications.

[loki-in-myth]

Loki's Protection of the Farmer's Son

A farmer entered into a game of chess with the Jotunn Skrymsli, and if the Jotunn won, the farmer had promised his only son as payment.  Skrymsli ultimately did win, and announced he would come the next day to collect his prize.  If the boy was hidden so cleverly that Skrymsli could not find him, then he would allow the farmer to keep his son.  Not wishing to lose their son, the farmer and his wife appealed to Odin, Hoenir, and Loki for help.

Odin caused a great cornfield to grow up overnight, and he hid the farmer's son in a single kernel of one ear of corn in the middle of the vast field.  When Skrymsli arrived, he ploughed through the field, harvesting every single ear of corn in his search.  He finally grabbed the ear in which Rogner dwelt, and Rogner cried out in fear, alerting the Jotunn to his presence.  Odin snatched Rogner from harm’s way, and Skrymsli resolved to return the next day for his payment.

Hoenir was next to attempt to hide the farmer's son.  He changed the boy to a feather, and hid him on the breast of a swan.  Skrymsli came again the next day, searching diligently, and, on noticing a feather out of place on a swan, once again located his prize.  Before the boy could be seized though, Hoenir caused a gust of wind to carry the feather away to safety.  Skrymsli went home without his prize a second time.

Finally, it was Loki’s turn to hide the boy.  He stole away with the boy during the night, taking him out onto the ocean in a small boat.  Loki pulled several fish from the ocean and tossed them back until he found a female flounder.  He then proceeded to hide the farmer's son as a tiny egg in the roe of the flounder, and he tossed the fish back into the ocean.  Unfortunately, when Skrymsli came the next day, he discovered Loki returning to the shore, so he set on the sea with his own boat.  Loki insisted on accompanying Skrymsli, since he wanted to be nearby if the farmer's son was in need of further protection.  Skrymsli pulled up several fish, and eventually pulled up the very fish on which Loki's charge was hidden.  Loki feigned hunger at that point, and asked Skrymsli if he could eat of his catch.  It did not need to be a great amount of food – even the tiniest fish (on which the farmer's son was hidden) would do.

Skrymsli ignored Loki and continued searching among the fish in his catch.  Finally, he located the boy, but before Skrymsli could claim the child for his own, Loki snatched the boy away and flew him to the mainland.  Loki had also failed in hiding the boy from Skrymsli, but he was not willing to be defeated.  He instructed the boy to run away, and to be sure to run through the boathouse on his way home.  Skrymsli returned to land quickly and gave chase, following the boy across the land and through the boathouse.  In the boathouse, however, Loki had set a sharp spike in such a position that it would pierce Skrymsli’s skull as he ran through.  Loki’s trap succeeded, and Skrymsli fell to the ground defeated, but not killed.

Loki then cut off Skrymsli’s legs, but the legs reattached to the body afterward through magic.  Loki cut the legs off once more, and this time branded the severed areas with hot metal to cauterise and seal the wound.  With the wounds sealed, they could no longer reattach themselves.  Skrymsli eventually succumbed to his wounds and died.  The boy returned to his parents, finally safe from the Jotunn Skrymsli, and the family was so grateful that they thereafter honoured Loki above the other gods.

[loki-in-myth]

This is a really cool collection of stories, and the pictures are great. But where do you get your info? Do you have a particular book or website you use?

Oh, hmm, tough to answer that.  I've been studying Norse Mythology since about 2004, and it's not always easy to find the right sources.  A lot of Norse Mythology has been tainted by Euhemerism and Christianisation, so I cross reference absolutely everything I read with as many original sources as possible.  Then, even with the original sources, a lot of the myths are difficult to interpret, and information varies depending on the translation you use.  Basically...  I use pretty much every single official source I can get my hands on, including every available translation of each different source.  There are some discrepancies among so many sources, but I do my best to post what I feel is the most accurate information possible.  If you are asking because you want to do your own research, I have a few sites that I would highly recommend: http://www.mainlesson.com/display.php?author=mabie&book=norse&story=_contents, http://www.sacred-texts.com/neu/tml/index.htm, http://www.sacred-texts.com/neu/ice/coo/index.htm, http://www.heimskringla.no/wiki/Hovedside, https://notendur.hi.is/eybjorn/ugm/skindex/skin10.html, http://www.septentrionalia.net/index.php, https://notendur.hi.is/eybjorn/gg/, http://shadowlight.gydja.com/loki.html

[loki-in-myth]

The Fate of Fenrir

When Loki gave birth to the wolf Fenrir, it was foretold that Fenrir would kill Odin one day in battle.

Although kept among the gods at Asgard, Fenrir was designated their enemy before he had even opened his eyes.  The gods sought to bind Fenrir in such a way that he could never escape, but if they failed, Fenrir would surely attack them for such actions.

As such, the gods bound Fenrir in fetters under the pretence that it was just a game.  Fenrir would be bound by the fetters, and he was to try to break free.  Fenrir agreed to the game, and was bound as tightly as the gods could manage.  However, much to their surprise, Fenrir broke free of his bonds.  The gods returned after that with increasingly stronger bonds, hoping to trap Fenrir, but each time Fenrir successfully broke free.

Finally, the gods sought the help of the dvergues, master craftsmen.  The dvergues did not disappoint, and created for them an unbreakable fetter called Gleipnir.  It was made of the beard of a woman, the breath of a fish, the sinew of a bear, the root of a mountain, the spittle of a bird, and the sound of a cat's footfall.  All of these things, each one supposedly impossible, gave the fetter its indestructibility.

The gods approached Fenrir again, this time with Gleipnir, and asked to play the binding game with him once more.  Fenrir was wary about the ribbon-thin fetter they held.  The fetters had been increasing in size until now, but given the appearance of this one, it was surely strengthened by magic.  It was difficult to miss the gods' hatred for him, and Fenrir suspected that the gods truly meant to bind him, despite the pretence of a game.

Fenrir agreed to play the game once more, but only on the condition that one of the gods stick his hand in Fenrir's mouth.  He hoped the prospect of losing a hand would keep the gods from foul play.  The brave god of war, Tyr, volunteered to comply with Fenrir's request.

So Fenrir was bound with the unbreakable fetter, with Tyr's hand in his mouth.  Once Fenrir was bound, he struggled to break free, but found that he could not.  The gods had indeed tricked him, and they intended to keep him trapped there forever.  In anger at the trickery, Fenrir bit off Tyr's hand.

But the gods had not averted Fenrir's fate.  They had ensured it.  In binding Fenrir, they had made Fenrir their enemy.  When Fenrir broke free at the outset of Ragnarok, he was filled with anger at the gods who had kept him prisoner his entire life.  It had been foretold that Fenrir would kill Odin, and his treatment from the gods was what had driven him to it.

Loki is conspicuously absent on all occasions when the gods attempted to bind Fenrir.  Given that Loki plays a prominent role in most myths, and that he was the mother of Fenrir, his absence is somewhat strange.  It may have been that Loki was kept from the proceedings, so that he would not interfere for the sake of his son.

Furthermore, it was at this time that the gods began to mistrust Loki, and to see him as an enemy.  Loki had always been mischievous, but the gods had considered him an ally until this point.  It may have happened simply because of Loki's relation to the killer of Odin, or perhaps because Loki had protested against Fenrir's treatment, and they saw anyone who desired Fenrir's freedom to be an enemy of Asgard.  A further possibility is that Loki was entirely guilty of becoming mistrustful, and an enemy of Asgard.  Perhaps, after seeing Asgard's treatment of his son, who had done nothing, Loki could no longer feel loyalty to the Asgard that had once been his home.