#suttung

[sarenth]

Day Seven of Nine Days of Devotionals for Oðinn

Inspired by Cat Heath who spoke about nine days of devotional work for Oðinn until 9/9, I decided to take this up. It has been a long time since I have done a set number of days making devotionals, and this seemed a good time to start. Inspiration drives desire To find the mead and set the fire Break the back The skin will bleed Find if you can do the deed Sharpened scythe The red…

[poeticnorth]

I'm not sure if I'll be writing any more for Odin in my current project, barring the Chthonic Hymn To Odin, but here's the last addition to my ongoing project

[haljathefangirlcat]

In the academic articles you've read, have you found anything that talks about how the Nibelungs are associated with eagle imagery? Kriemhild/Gudrun's dream has them represented by eagles, and in the Lay of Atli, it says many times the Nibelung brothers wear "eagle-gripped helmets". Is it just because the eagle is a noble animal? Or is there some sort of historical significance where the Nibelung Dynasty of the Kingdom of the Burgundians was associated with eagles?

Hey! Sorry it took me a while to answer this! Real life... *eyeroll*

I've searched a bit through my files and my bookmarks, but unfortunately, I couldn't find anything on eagles in the Nibelung/Volsung Cycle or on any specific associations between them and the Burgundians. As it is, I get the impression (even if, obviously, I might be missing something, especially if either of those topics has been covered in German...) that it simply goes back to the representation of birds of prey in Medieval literature.

To start with, eagles are about as likely to be fed or slake their thirst on battlefields as ravens and hawks in Norse poetry, so that's already an association between them and war/warriors/brave men with a chance to meet a gorey end. And if we look at the Eddas, Suttung and Odin both take the shape of eagles in the story of the creation and theft(s) of the Mead of Poetry, Thjazi does the same when bothering Odin, Loki, and Hoenir and then again when kidnapping Idun, and there's also the eagle sitting on Yggdrasil having beef with Nidhogg as well as Hraesvelg, the giant eagle or jotun-in-eagle-form that creates the winds by flapping its winds... all images that don't exactly paint a unified picture (then again, when do we ever get anything like that in Norse mythology? lol) but imo still add up to a general idea of "eagles are important/strong/majestic when you're on their good side and menacing when you aren't/just kind of badass."

However, in the case of the Nibelungenlied and specifically of Kriemhild's dream... now, please take this with a grain, or rather a bucket, of salt, because it's just my idea and it's not backed up by any kind of academic research. But I do feel that there the eagles might function as a stark, purposeful contrast with the falcon representing Siegfried, and not just in a "I'm gonna go out a limb and say domesticating eagles is probably harder/more time-consuming and expensive than falcons or the trained eagles of Mongolia's hunters probably wouldn't sound so special and exotic to us" way.

See, the eagle and the falcon/hawk are both associated with war and warriors, as I was saying above. They both appear in mythological and legendary contexts, too. But falcons/hawks also seems have a bit of a different symbolic value. In the Volsunga Saga, Sigurd has his second meeting with Brynhild, the more "courtly romance" one, while out hunting with his hawk, and, many years and misfortunes later, Randver, the son of Jormunrek who is executed for hooking up with Svanhild despite her being his dad's new bride, sends Jormunrek his own hawk, with its feathers plucked and unable to fly, to point out to him that all he's really doing is depriving their kingdom of a young, brave heir. Back to Middle High German literature, then, you have the Falkenlied, a poem where love and passion are represented by the flight of a falcon the poet has tamed and cared for himself. And if we move just a bit farther away geographically, yet stay roughly in the same time period as the Falkenlied, you also have Marie de France composing Yonec, a lai where an unhappy noblewoman gets entangled in a tragic romance with a falcon who turns out to be actually a handsome knight, and loses him before his time because of a jealous, tyrannical husband...

Ofc, my "theory," if you can even call it that, about hawks/falcons being strapping young lads with a penchant for passionate romances and a tendency to die bloody deaths before their time, as well as eagles being more martial, morally amiguous, and less "romantic hero" types, only applies to the later sources of the Sigurd/Siegfried tale. Atlakvida might actually date all the way back to the early 9th century, so that's obviously not included into these musings. My stance on that one's still "eagle badass," essentially.

[system-help-things]

Hey could you help us? One of my Dalek alters wants to change their name because the name that they currently have was given to them by a bad person. Do you have any space/galaxy/cosmic themed names to give me? All options you post will be given to them for them to decide ^_^

⚞ Oh boy do I have some names for you! (This is just a huge list of space themed names and sense there is so many I disregarded putting the meanings next to each one but they are names of stars, planets, galaxies, and other space related things!)

Blitzar (a neutron star that spins so fast it collapses into a black hole)

Nash (name of a star)

Oberon

Amalthea

Cosmos

Cosmo/Cozmo

Nebula

Moonshine

Luna

Lyra

Juno

Solar

Jupiter

Saturn

Sol

Aries

Cepheus

Europa

Comet

Zodiac

Celeste/Celestine

Constellation

Starry

Cassiopeia

Orian

Celestia

Galaxy/Galazie

Moon

Cosmic

Pulsar

Quasar

Space

Deimos

Phobos

Adrastea

Aitne

Ananke

Aoede

Arche

Autonoe

Callisto

Stella

Sunny

Carme

Callirrhoe

Carpo

Chaldene

Cyllene

Elara

Erinome

Euanthe

Eukelade

Euporie

Europa

Eurydome

Ganymede

Harpalyke

Hegemone

Helike

Hermippe

Himalia

Locaste

Isonone

Kleyna

Kallichore

Kalyke

Kore

Leda

Magaclite

Metis

Mneme

Orthosie

Pasiphae

Pasithee

Praxidike

Sinope

Sponde

Taygete

Thebe

Thelxinoe

Themisto

Thyone

Asteria

Aegir

Albiorix

Anthe

Atlas

Bebhionn

Bergelmir

Bestla

Calypso

Daphnis

Dione

Enceladus

Epimetheus

Erriapo

Farbauti

Fenrir

Fornjot

Greip

Hati

Helene

Hyperion

Hyrokkin

Janus

Jarnsaxa

Kari

Kiviuq

Loge

Methone

Mimas

Mundilfari

Narvi

Astro

Paaliaq

Pallene

Pan

Pandora

Phoebe

Polydeuces

Prometheus

Rhea

Siarnaq

Skathi

Surtur

Suttung

Tarqeq

Tarvos

Telesto

Tethys

Thrymr

Titan

Ymir

Ophelia

Perdita

Portia

Prospero

Rosalind

Setebos

Stephano

Sycorax

Titania

Trinculo

Despina

Larissa

Kavelaars

Nereid

Neso

Proteus

Psamathe

Thalassa

Nix

Hydra

Kerberos

Dysnomia

Namaka

Pegasi

Leonis

Cephei

Ophiuchi

Leporis

Cassiopeiae

Arietis

Aurvandill

Antares

Zeta

Ceti

Gamma

Epsilon

Aquarii

Leonis

Corvi

Epsilon

Sagittarii

Draconis

Pegasi

Denebola

Canis

Minoris

Aldebaran

Tauri

Eridani

Herculis

Altair

Borealis

Sirius

Taurus 

Gemini

Leo 

Virgo

Libra

Scorpius

Sagittarius

Capricornus

Aquarius

Pisces 

⚞ Apologies if there are any repeats! And sorry I know its a lot....

[randalbf]

SEX 4 HOMEWORK SUTTUNG IN DETENTION!!!!

[lyrics365]

Suttungs Mjod (Suttungs Mead) / Perkulator (outro)

[incl. Outro “Perkulator”] [Tekst: Trad.] [104] Jotungubben eg fann er no attende komen der få ting eg teiande fekk med mange ord eg mykje til gagn vann meg i Suttungs salar [105] Gunnlòd meg gav på gullstolen drykk av den dyre mjød vesal løn let eg ho få ho gav meg trygt si tru, ho gav meg heile sin hug [106] Rata-Tonni rudde meg veg gardt grjot ho gnog over og under var jotunvegar, då gjekk det…

[leanstooneside]

Pretending to more romantic or spiritual experience than you possess

- LAYERED EAGLE

- LAYERED MIMER'S HEAD

- LAYERED SUTTUNG

- LAYERED MOUNTAINS OF THE EARTH

- LAYERED REMAINING

- LAYERED MEAD

- LAYERED GATE

- LAYERED FOLK

- LAYERED ROOTS

- LAYERED FOUNDNOT

- LAYERED PAYMENT

- LAYERED APPLES

- LAYERED GUILE

[nimblermortal]

Bragi: ...and that is why we call poetry Kvasir's blood or dwarfs' drink or the contents (or some term of liquid) of Odrerir or Bodn or Son - Ægir: um - Bragi: - or dwarfs' transportation (because this mead brought them deliverance from the skerry) or Suttung's mead or the liquid of Hnitbjorg. Ægir: I think it is an obscure way to talk, to call poetry by these names.

[jeffreystewart]

Norsery Rhymes from A to Z Fjalarr - The Holder of the Mead of Poetry Well here we are on another ThorsDay with another 20 min sketch of a Norse (and Germanic, sometimes Celtic) mythological characters.  This week it’s a thrid and final version of Fajalarr / Fajallar / Falr / Fálr / Falur / Fal / Fjalar of the Jotnar (Jötunn / Jotun / Jotunn / Jetten / Eoten / Giant mentioned in the Havamal, and Harbardsljod the Eddas.

His name translated to ‘hide’ from the Old Norse Fela’ and ‘pipe’, ‘tube’, ‘board’, ‘plank’ or most specifically ‘spearhead socket’ from the old Norse ‘Falr’, possibly by way of the Proto Germanic ‘Falhuz’ meaning ‘to hide’ or ‘to conceal’. It’s the hold at the back of a spearhead that the shaft or handle is fit into.

Given as another name for Suttungr, son of Gilling, and father Gunnlod, grandfather of Bragi, and brother to Baugi.

The use of Fajalar for Suttungr confuses the tale of the mead of peotry and the murder of Gilling and his wife, as one of the the dverg who kills them is also names Fjalar. And its use is likely some kind of mix up over time.

Suttunger discovers that after killing Kvasir and making the mead of poetry from his blood. A drink that can turn anyone into a fact knowing verse speaking and Skaldic scholar. The Dverg Fjalar and Galar kill Gilling and his wife who were visiting them, possibly to keep the existence of the mead secret. When Suttungr finds out he strands them on a rock far out to sea at low tide. expecting them to drown and be dashed on the rocks. But they beg for mercy and give hi the mead in exchange for their lives.

Eventually Odin learns of the mead, gets a job with Buagi, sneaks into Suttungr fortified home Hnitborg in three casks Bodn, Son, and Odroerir that is guarded by his Daughter Gunlodd. Odin bores a hole into the home, turns into a snake to sneak in. Odin seduces Suttungr’s daughter Gunlodd, and steals the mead of poetry from him. Transforming into an eagle to fly back to Asgard with it. Pursued by Suttungr also in the form on an eagle, due to his magic cloak of the Black Eagle. But fails to catch him.

I’ll likely write out a more full story of this when I get to the S’s and draw Suttungr again.

[sonofcoulson]

Tales of Asgard

Season 2, Episode 2

Utgardaloki

Thor's journey to the land of the Giants (This will be in Utgard? Niflheim? Perhaps Utgard can be part of Niflheim, just to simplify things)

Preceded by the story of Odin's quest to get the mead of poetry, focusing on Odin's trickery (abridged). In the norse legend there is a war between the Aesir (Asgardians) and Vanir, Frey and Freya are involved and there's another god who gets killed and some evil dwarves who get killed and Frigga and Thor and Loki are there. Complicated...

This version is before Odin has married Frigga, and Sif and Volstagg (who replaced Frey and Freya) and Thor and Loki don't exist yet. There is no mention of the war or the extra god or the dwarves and begins thusly:

Odin is visited by his ravens who tell him of the mead of poetry and how it is kept in a deep dark cave in Utgard where no one but Suttung, the giant, can ever use it. He dons his cloak and hat. He tells the royal family and courtiers that he will wander the world. They know he's up to something but they don't know what. He tells them to build three huge vats and leave them by the gates of Asgard. He asks for the finest whetstone they have and Rati, the finest drill.

He approaches the lands of the giant Baugi, Suttung's brother. He tricks the (giant) farmers who guard Baugi's land into letting him sharpen their scythes with his whetstone to better cut the grass for hay making. They are delighted at the ease with which they can now cut the grass.

When Odin (calling himself Bolverkr) reveals what he is there for (the mead of poetry) they attack him. He nimbly avoids them and the finely sharpened scythe blades mean the guards/farmers kill each other instead.

He then offers to work for Baugi in their place (keeping the means of their death a secret). Baugi is skeptical at this tiny being claiming to do the work of nine giants. But Bolverkr does it and more (secretly thanks to his Asgardian physiology and the Odinforce too).

As a reward he asks to drink from the mead of poetry. Baugi agrees to take him to his brother.

Suttung is not having it, which embarrasses Baugi. So Bolverkr convinces Baugi to steal the mead from Suttung, to bring him down a peg or two. They drill into the mountain with ease (thanks Rati). When they finally break through to the secret cave inside the mountain, Baugi tries to kill Bolverkr (meaning to take the mead for himself). Expecting this betrayal, Bolverkr transforms into a snake and slips down the drill hole. Baugi slinks off hoping his brother never finds out.

Popping out into the cavern where the mead was kept he takes the form of a giant to flatter Gunlodd, Suttung's daughter, who guards the mead of poetry. He convinces her that three sips of the mead would help him create three ageless odes to her beauty. He, of course, takes the lot in three sips and transforms into an eagle to escape. Suttung and Gunlodd are no magical slouches and they transform into eagles too to give chase.

Bolverkr, now unashamedly proclaiming to be Odin manages to spit the mead into the vats at the gates of Asgard as the eagle giants draw close.

Odin takes great delight in telling his boys how he wet farted some foul smelling mead into their faces to throw them off. And how if you hear a bad poet, you know which mead they tasted.

Odin, of course, shared the mead wisely, his intention all along.

The link to the main story being defeating Utgard giants takes some cunning. Odin tells them they have his blessing to go to Utgard for talks, but be careful. And don't beat anyone else up. And don't start a war. And you can't have any Einherjar to back you up. They are busy doing important things.

Thor wants to have words with the Utgard giants as stealing his hammer is not on (notwithstanding he already pulverised an entire wedding party full of giants as punishment).

He assembles a crew (Loki, Volstagg and Hogun). Loki refuses to be part of the Warriors Three, bristling at the idea that he might be thought of as Thor's sidekick.

Balder can't go as he has become more serious about the Einherjar. Sif refuses to go as this is all very machismo, bravado and ego driven.

Undeterred Thor, Loki and the Warriors Two set off for Utgard. They can't use the bifrost as the giants would see them coming. They stop at the last lodgings before Utgard and are reintroduced to Fandral, son of two courtiers. He can run impressively fast.

You can forget the goat eating/resurrecting thing from the legend (little too crazy, little too cruel). Fandral upsets Thor somehow at Loki's tricking and offers to become his bondservant.

Utgardaloki (a nickname I imagine), the trickster giant will use some ruse to see through Loki's illusions. He disguises himself as an even bigger giant to trick the team, but promises to take them to Utgard. Thor feels threatened by the giant giant and bashes him with Mjölnir while he sleeps, to seemingly no effect.

When they arrive at Utgardaloki's house he challenges them to a competition to settle the matter of the stolen Hammer. Loki is revealed as the thief (but not as a Laufeyson). Thor is livid but the gang break it up.

Utgardaloki reveals the theft was in retaliation for the incident where a giant built Asgard a fortifying wall and Loki had to distract his horse so Asgard didn't have to pay him. He did this by becoming a female horse and ended up birthing Sleipnir who Odin would take from Loki as he was a fine steed; strong and fast. The giants felt this was unfair. Loki is upset by this story as he lost his (horse) son to his father. Then Thor teases him for getting pregnant with and giving birth to a horse. Loki is livid, the gang break it up.

Volstagg takes on the eating challenge (Loki in the legend).

Hogun takes the wrestling challenge (Thor in the legend).

Fandral takes the running challenge (a boy called Thialfi in the legend).

Thor takes the drinking challenge and Loki the picking up of the cat challenge.

When they all fail they are shocked and humiliated. Utgardaloki then reveals it was all a trick. He was the giant giant. And reveals that Mjölnir's blows could have killed him were he not a skilled sorcerer and secretly put mountains in the way (there are now valleys beside those mountains where Mjölnir struck).

Volstagg's opponent was fire disguised as a giant. You can't eat faster than fire, though Volstagg came close.

Hogun's opponent was time, disguised as an old lady giant. You can't beat time, though she only got Hogun down to one knee.

Fandral's opponent was thought disguised as a boy giant. You can't run faster than thought, though Fandral kept up well.

The drink that Thor took was secretly from Niflheim's oceans which cannot be drained, though Thor affected the tides.

The cat was actually Jormungundr, the world serpent and impressively Loki lifted a coil of it. Loki is sad again at this as this is another of his children/pets, banished by Odin to the deepest part of the Nifelheim sea as it was prophesied that it would poison Thor at Ragnarök. Learning from his previous mistake, Thor comforts Loki instead of teasing.

Utgardaloki considers the matter settled and vows never to let such fine warriors near his real home.

As Thor reaches again for Mjölnir, Utgardaloki and his home vanish.

Chastened, the gang return home.

As the gang recount their tale to Sif and Frigga, Fandral is released from his bond and welcomed into the Warriors Three for his impressive endeavours. Loki, despite his earlier attitude, is disappointed and a little jealous. He later recounts this to Sigyn and laments the loss of Sleipnir and Jormungundr. She encourages his bitterness.

Thor quietly muses to Sif about recapturing Jormungundr as a surprise for Loki to cheer him up. Sif, astonished, asks him where he is planning to keep it.

[poeticnorth]

An excerpt of my attempt to write Hávaml in haiku metre.

[gifts-of-heimdall-runes]

THE MEAD OF POETRY III

4.   DEPARTURE

Odhinn left having won possession of the Mead of Poetry. Odhinn departed the same way he came in (Inguz ). Shapeshifting as an eagle Odhinn represented transcendental transformation (Sowilo) and contrasts to entry by horizontal snake shapeshifting (Ehwaz). Odhinn enters horizontally (snake), creates transformative energy, then escapes vertically (eagle.) Echoes of Eihwaz / Jera.

Spilled Mead of Poetry upon Odhinn’s return to Asgard symbolised the inspiration of The Poet (Ansuz) and the ability to reproduce this myth and win wisdom through sharing / exchange within ecstatic states (in sex magick, for example.)

5.   THE RITE OF ODRORIR

It is proposed there is dynamic interaction between polarised forces on all levels of existence which mirrors a fundamental process within the Futhark, the material world and surrounding multiverse. These forces are expressed as the meeting or fire and ice / exchange and containment / light and dark / insertive and receptive. The middle realm is that of Ginnungagap.

This is an expression of Odhinn’s journey horizontally (existence) and vertically (consciousness.) Transformation was similarly found hanging upon The Tree of Yggdrasil, midst horizontal & vertical planes, gifted self to self.

North:        Ice ISA

East:          Exchange GIBO

South:        Fire DAGAZ

West:         Containment INGUZ

Centre:      Transformation through consciousness: HAGALAZ

This is the process which births the rune row: JERA AND EIHWAZ.

The Mead of Inspiration:              Vertical Consciousness

The Magickal Childe:                    Horizontal Creation

Thus, the dynamic unity of the interaction between life and creation (horizontal) and consciousness (vertical.)

Conclusion

In summation, myth of the Mead of Poetry in Norse mythology can be interpreted using runes and rune energies. This section was an attempt to suggest how these rune energies can be utlised into practices for personal initiation and transformation. It used a model of the horizontal realm of creation with the vertical realm of consciousness and their respective dynamic interactions. This theory was based upon a stream of inspiration received whilst meditating on the runes over some years. It was the intention of this writer that though the myth of The Mead of Poetry describes a heterosexual sexual encounter, the energies herein are trans-gender & trans-sexuality, developed by encouraging transformative exploration within intimate, loving and consensual sexual relationships.

Finally, in remembrance, ‘a gift demands a gift’. The ideas here, I believe, were gifted thirty years ago and are finally shared in the hope that they will stimulate further reflection and inspiration for others who follow The Runes. I doubt if any of this could ever have reached other eyes without social media, and thus I extend my grateful thanks to Tumblr for providing for the platform for this material to be published.

On a final personal reflection, the life of this writer has been changed and transformed by sex and sexuality in many tumultuous ways since these ideas were first written down in 1988. I hope my reflections aid others seeking to learn and grow through love and sharing

Remember. Learn. Love. Grow. Share. Protect. ALGIZ. Oh yeah and have fun too… safely.

ML

April 2019.

[teesmosambijoos]

i dislike this person so much

[clouds-of-wings]

Oh! That even makes sense! Odin is the son of the giant Bor, and male giants can often transform into eagles, which Odin can also do (and does in the story where he retrieves the mead of poetry from Suttung). Odin's blood brother Loki transforms into a falcon a couple of times and falcons are often colloquially referred to as hawks. And Odin's spear Gungnir can be referred to as a "long stick", sure.

Give me a riddle

You may be known as the Raven King, but your ancestor was a raven, your father was an eagle, your brother was a hawk. Still, you yourself are content to hunt with no other weapon than a long stick. What is your true name, which we dare not utter except in metaphor?

[srda-sabre]

The Origin of Stories: The Magic Mead

Perhaps the only aspect of Viking society that survives to this day is their penchant of telling tales of great deeds and events. Even today, Iceland boasts the highest number of books and authors per capita. So prevalent is this tradition, that saga expert Gisli Sigurdsson recalls his father and friends gathering each weekend to share tales "hung up on various branches of their family trees - which they knew by heart, backwards and forwards. They constantly spiced up their stories with rhymed, syllabic and alliterated verse - similar to the oral art of Viking Age storytellers". But where did this tradition come from? How did men learn to weave such tale? Well let me tell you: There was a young giantess called Gunnlod Suttungsdöttir. She was buxom and very beautiful, but she had never lain with a man. One day, her father, the giant Suttung, arrived home, pulling a wagon. Inside were three vats. He beckoned Gunnlod over to see them. They were filled with a curious liquid, the colour of dark amber. "What is it?" asked Gunnlod, "Magic Mead" Suttung said. "What do you mean by magic?" Gunnlod inquired. Suttung replied "I mean that anyone who drinks this mead will find their head bursting with knowledge and stories about everything in the world". "Who brewed it?" Gunnlod asked, "Fjalar and Galar" answered Suttung, "Two despicable dwarfs". Gunnlod sniffed and said "It smells like stale blood". "It's the blood of a man named Kvasir, the gods themselves created him from their own spittle, and moulded him to be wiser than anyone in all the worlds. Fjalar and Galar were so jealous of his talents that they murdered him, stole his blood and mixed it with honey. In this way, they brewed the magic mead" said Suttung. "How did you get hold of it?" inquired Gunnlod. "It's a long story" replied Suttung, "Remember how your grandfather, giant Gilling, was drowned at sea? And how, while your grandmother was still grieving for him, a millstone fell on her head? The truth is, neither of these tragedies happened by accident: Fjalar and Galar killed your grandparents too". "So you took revenge on them?" asked Gunnlod. "Of course, I chucked both dwarfs down a sheer cliff. But instead of falling into the sea and getting washed away as I intended, the little rats landed on a skerry and started cravenly pleading for their lives. In the end, we struck a bargain: I set them free and in return, they gave me the magic mead" replied Suttung. "Have you tasted it?" asked Gunnlod, "No" replied Suttung, "and I'm not letting anyone taste it either. It's much too valuable. For now, I'm just going to store it somewhere safe, deep inside a mountain". "But if the mead is so precious" exclaimed Gunnlod, "Surely there's a danger of someone breaking into the mountain and stealing it. Who will you set to guard it?", "You" Suttung said. So he lead the young giantess down long, secret tunnels to a cave in the very heart of the mountain. There he carved her a bed on a rocky ledge and gave her a pile of soft sheepskins to cover it. He set lamps to burn in crannies around the cold rock walls. He showed her where a freshwater spring dripped from the ceiling, and gave her enough dry biscuits and salted meat to last her many months. Finally, he set the three vats of magic mead in the centre of the floor. "I forbid you ever to touch them" he said, "and if anyone ever finds you here, no matter whether it's a giant, a man or a dwarf, don't you dare let him drink any of it, protect the mead with your life". "But...what is the point of owning it, if you never use the mead or even see it?" Gunnlod asked. "To increase my prestige, of course" replied Suttung, and with those words, he turned his back on his daughter, strode out of the cave, sealed up the entrance and hurried back to the sunshine. How long did the gentle giantess languish in that dreary, shadowy solitude? How did she pass her time there? Did she have wool to spin or a loom to work at? No one can tell. But at length she was wakened from restless slumber by a curious sound, creaking and twisting like an auger boring through wood. Soon this gave way to a soft hissing, growing closer and closer. At last, from a tiny hole in the rock wall, a snake slithered out and thrust itself into the cave. Gunnlod screamed. The snake rose up, shook itself - and suddenly transformed into a handsome, powerfully built young man. He spoke softly, soothing away Gunnlod's fear. After a while, he came to her rock bed, lay down beside her and took her in his arms. They spent three very pleasant nights together. Then the man asked Gunnlod if he had healed her loneliness, and whether she loved him. She said he had, and that she did. "Then will you give me a gift?" he asked her. She said that she would like to, only she had nothing to offer. "But you do" he said, "you have the magic mead". "I can't give you that" Gunnlod exclaimed, "I've sworn an oath to my father that I would never let a single drop of it pass the lips of a giant, man or dwarf". He laughed. "What giant can slip through an auger's hole? What man can shape-shift into a snake and back again? What dwarf can love a giantess so sweetly? You won't break your oath, Gunnlod, for the one who asks for this drink is a god". She glanced again at her lover - and saw now that his handsome features were a mere illusion. There was a dark void in his face, where one eye was missing. There were claw marks on his cloak, where ravens had roosted. She gasped and shuddered. "Are you... Odin?". "Let me taste it, Gunnlod" Odin replied. She dared not refuse, but, desperately seeking a way to avoid her father's anger, she cried, "Only three draughts, Odin, I beg you - no more!" Odin nodded. He seized the first vat and emptied it dry in one mouthful. He seized the second vat and did likewise. He seized the third vat and emptied this too in a single draught. His mouth was awash with magic mead. Gunnlod was helpless. In the gloom, Odin seemed to shimmer, then suddenly he transformed again - this time, into an eagle. The mountain then split asunder, revealing a dark, star-spangled sky, the eagle rose and Gunnlod saw no more. In the world outside, in the icy wastes of Jötunheim, Suttung spied the eagle. He knew it was Odin; he guessed his daughter had been seduced and tricked. Suttung too had shape-shifting powers; he too mutated into the form of an eagle, then rose into the sky, winging his way after Odin, heading towards Asgard, closing in fast. The gods saw them both coming, they hastened out with a great cauldron and placed it in an open spot amidst their golden halls. As Odin sank down to land, he caught sight of the cauldron and disgorged the magic mead into it. However, in his hurry, he spilt some. It trickled down the great walls that surrounded Asgard, and from there fell like dew into our realm. These drops of magic mead are the liquid seeds from which all great tales are born.

[anastasiaoftheironwood]

Draw for February 12, 2017 Active Influence: Suttung/Six of Coins Rune: Eihwaz/Defense Hidden Influence: Loki, Angrboda & Sigyn/The Lovers

As the saying goes, “It’s complicated”.