Norse Mythology Creation

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Norse Mythology Creation

• Adapted from DAulaires Norse Gods and Giants

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Creation Myth

• Early in the morning of time there was no sand,
  no grass, no lapping wave. There was no earth, no
  sun, no moon, no stars. There was Niflheim, a
  waste of frozen fog, and Muspelheim, a place of
  raging flames. And in between the fog and the
  fire there was a gaping pit Ginungagap.

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Creation myth
Niflheim
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Creation Myth
Ginungagap
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Creation Myth
Muspelheim
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Creation Myth

• Embers from Muspelheim and crystals of ice from
  Niflheim whirled together, until a spark of life
  arose.
• Ymir the frost giant, the first of the race of
  jotuns, was the ugly shape that rose roaring from
  Ginungagap.
• Audhumla, Ymirs hornless ice cow, came from the
  pit as well.
• They lived together on the rim of Ginungagap.

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Creation myth

• Ymir the jotun did not want for food, for 4
  rivers of snow-white milk flowed frothy and
  delicious from the enormous cows udder.
• Ymir drank and drank and grew to a towering
  height.
• Audhumla nourished herself by licking the salty
  brim of Ginungagap.

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Creation myth ? Ymir
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Creation myth ? Audhumla
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Creation myth

• For a long time, there remained only Ymir and
  Audhumla that is, until a male and female came
  to life (while Ymir slept) in the warmth of his
  armpit and a troll with six heads sprouted from
  his feet.
• The jotuns and trolls grew quickly and had
  offspring of their own.
• Audhumla, on the other hand, gave life to an
  altogether new and incredibly handsome creature
  life by licking the brine with her warm tongue.

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Creation myth
The jotuns
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Creation myth
trolls
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Creation myth
Audhumla brings about life
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Creation myth

• This new, handsome creature had a son who was
  even more handsome, and the son took for himself
  a beautiful jotun maiden wife (sometimes an ugly
  giant would have a beautiful wife).
• She bore her husband three sons who were so fair
  that a radiance spread from them and lit up the
  darkness.
• They were the first of the Aesir gods Odin,
  Hoenir and Lodur Spirit, Will and Warmth.
• They were high and holy and had the power to
  create a world.

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Creation myth

• The Aesir gods first order of business, though,
  was to get rid of the frost giant Ymir.
• They killed Ymir and pushed his hulking mass into
  Ginungagap.
• Brine flowed from his wounds and flooded over the
  rim of Ginungagap.
• Audhumla drowned ?, along with Ymirs offspring,
  with the exception of a very strong jotun and his
  (probably even stronger) mate.
• They clambered onto an ice floe and went to live
  on the outer shores of the sea that was created
  from Ymirs brine.
• This realm became known as Jotunheim and the
  Aesir neither pursued them nor visited.

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Creation myth
Odin, Hoenir and Lodur
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Creation myth
Y M I R S D E A T H
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Creation myth ? Jotunheim
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Creation myth

• The Aesir raised Ymirs body from the sea and
  made Midgard, the earth, from it.
• Ymirs flesh became the soil, his bones the
  mountains, his teeth boulders and stones.
• They pushed Niflheim deep underground where its
  icy fog could not freeze the earth.
• Ymirs huge skull was set over land and sea as
  the dome of the heavens.
• This prevented the sparks from the fires of
  Muspelheim from setting the new world ablaze.

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Creation myth

• They caught some of the sparks and fastened them
  to the dome that was Ymirs skull these became
  the sun, moon and stars.
• Odin, Hoenir and Lodun made two teams of horses,
  put the moon, sun and stars into a cart behind
  them, and set the horses trotting across the sky.
• First came the moon. The manes of his horses were
  covered with frost, which spread a silvery light
  over Midgard.

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Creation myth

• Then came the sun. She was so bright that she
  bathed the earth with a golden light, and she was
  so hot that the Aesir tied bellows to the flanks
  of her horses to keep them from being burned.

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Creation myth

• Jotuns and trolls are creatures of darkness. They
  could change their shape at will, so two of them
  disguised themselves as wolves and chased after
  the sun and moon in an attempt to devour them.
  The sun and moon ran for their lives.
• They ran round and round the sky, always with the
  wolves at their heels, never daring to pause.
• And so there were noon and dusk and dark and dawn
  on earth.

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Creation myth

• Related to the Aesir gods were the Vanir gods,
  who lived in Vanaheim.
• They ruled over rain and soft winds and sent
  gentle showers to the earth.

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Creation myth

• As the rains fell and the warm rays of the sun
  shone on Ymirs bones, the stubble of his beard
  sprouted as green grass and spread over the
  valleys and glens.
• His hair grew into deep forests.
• Birch, ash, and oak unfolded their leaves, and
  forests of pine and fir grew dense and dark.
• It was a beautiful, fresh, green earth and the
  Aesir began to people it.

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Creation myth
Nice job, Aesir!
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Creation Myth
First they made the light elves, shining
creatures, bright as sunbeams and light as
leaves. Their homes were not on earth, but high
up in the air in the shimmering world of Alfheim,
which the Aesir made just for them.
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Creation myth

• There were worms burrowing deep underground in
  Ymirs ore-laden veins.
• The Aesir changed them into gnomes and gave them
  tools to mine precious metals.
• Gnomes were not friendly they were grumpy and
  tricky little men who hobbled along and spoke
  with shrill, echoing voices.
• But, they were marvelous miners and smiths, and
  they kept the Aesir well-supplied with gold,
  silver and iron.

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Creation myth
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Creation myth

• Then the Aesir made sprites and spirits to
  inhabit the land and sea and care for every
  hillock, every mountain, every lake and every
  waterfall.

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Creation myth

• And last, they made the fish to swim in the sea,
  birds to soar in the sky, and animals to run
  about and prowl in the field and forests.
• The Aesir were pleased with their hard work.
• But there was something missing they had no one
  to worship them . . . so they decided to create
  man!