Podcasts about Poetic Edda

This time we dig into a rarely discussed aspect of Norse mythology: stealing your enemy's power by eating their heart or drinking their blood. But just who's power can be stolen by way of this gory ritual? Animals? Monsters? Humans? Let's find out together.Sources:“Heimskringla Volume 1, The Beginnings to Óláfr Tryggvason” transl. by Alison Finlay and Anthony Faulkes, 2011“Gesta Danorum” transl. by Karsten Friis-Jensen and Peter Fisher, 2015“The Saga of King Hrolf Kraki” transl. By Jesse Byock, 1998“The Dating of Eddic Poetry: Evidence from Alliteration” by Haukur Þorgeirsson, 2016“Dating the Old Norse Poetic Edda” by Christopher Sapp, 2022"Eaten hearts and supernatural knowledge in Eiríks saga rauða" by Andrea Maraschi, 2018“The Poetic Edda”, transl. by Edward Pettit, 2023“The Prose Edda”, transl. by Anthony Faulkes, 1995Contact:Write in: waelhraefn (at) gmail (dot) comJoin the Discord: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://discord.gg/Nvw5hmkRsW⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Music:Celebration by Alexander Nakarada (www.serpentsoundstudios.com) Licensed under Creative Commons BY Attribution 4.0 License http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

Join Andrew Snyder and patrons of the Mythic Mind Fellowship as we work our way through the Poetic Edda. In this conversation, we discuss:The Whetting of GudrunThe Lay of HamdirBaldr's DreamsThe List of RigThe Song of HyndlaThe Song of GrottiGroa's ChantThe Sayings of FiolsvinnThe Waking of AngantyrBecome a patron of Mythic Mind at https://www.patreon.com/mythicmindEnroll in Josh Traylor's Paradise Lost course at https://www.patreon.com/JoshTraylorBecome a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/mythic-mind--5808321/support.

Join Andrew Snyder and patrons of the Mythic Mind Fellowship as we work our way through the Poetic Edda. In this conversation, we discuss A Short Poem about Sigurd, Brynhild's Ride to Hell, The Death of Niflungs, The Third Poem of Gurdun, Oddrun's Lament, The Poem of Atli, and the Greenlandic Lay of AtliTo become a patron and join these conversations and to gain access to all Mythic Mind content, including past, present, and upcoming courses, you can go to http://patreon.com/mythicmind Enroll in Hannah's Latin course at https://www.patreon.com/HannahGilmoreWatch the video of this conversation and subscribe to my YouTube channel at https://youtu.be/zQFGV3q-VCoBecome a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/mythic-mind--5808321/support.

S5E17 Volsung Poems: The Children of Giuki and Budli (Part 5)David continues his series of not so short solo episodes, deep diving into the Poems of the Poetic Edda which inspired the Saga of the Volsungs.In this episode:The Second Poem of Gudrun.The Death of the Niflungs.Oddrun's Lament.These relatively late poems bridge The First Poem of Gudrun to the poems about Atli and the early poem Lay of Hamdir (coming soon). The children of Giuki are Gunnar, Hogni, and Gudrun. And as we saw previously, Gudrun has sworn vengance against her brothers for killing her beloved Sigurd. The children of Budli are Brynhild, Atli, and Oddrun. These late poems explain that Budli wanted Brynhild to be a single shield maiden. Running her own kingdom and free from a husband. Oddrun was to be married to Gunnar to establish a peace between the clans.But Budli is dead, and Atli had other plans (perhaps the wealth of Sigurd threw off the initial plans). He married off Brynhild (likely so his sister would not have a neighboring kingdom to rival his own) and forbid the lovebirds, Gunnar and Oddrun, from marrying.We see in this episode how Gudrun wanted to grieve in peace, but the patriarchy, the brothers and parents, want her to reestablish the alliance formed by the marriage of Gunnar and Brynhild. My conclusion is that these particular poems are fan fiction. As the Poetic Edda scholar Carolyn Larrington says, these late contructions: "give more justification than seems necessary" for why the families go to war and why Atli kills Gunnar and Hogni. There are some very amusing verbal dueling between Oddrun and another lady of the court, the unwed and pregnant Borgny. A poetic battle conducted while Oddrun begrudgingly serves as her midwife. It finally answers Shawn's question from Season 1 on Havamal. Why should one not trust women serving drinks?Ways to support us:If you have been enjoying our show, please write a 5 star review on itunes to help spread our podcast to a wider audience:https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/between-two-ravens-a-norse-mythology-podcast/id1604263830Buy Shawn and David a Beer or Coffee: https://ko-fi.com/tworavenpodcastFollow us for updates or send us a message on Instagram:Instagram: (@TwoRavensPodcast): https://www.instagram.com/tworavenspodcast/Check out David's writing: Walled Garden (https://thewalledgarden.com/davidalexander)Our podcast is part of The Walled Garden Podcast Network. The Walled Garden is committed to the pursuit of Truth, Wisdom, Virtue, and the Divine, wherever it might be found. Visit thewalledgarden.com to learn more.This show is part of the Spreaker Prime Network, if you are interested in advertising on this podcast, contact us at https://www.spreaker.com/show/5910787/advertisement

Join Andrew Snyder and patrons of the Mythic Mind Fellowship as we work our way through the Poetic Edda. In this conversation, we discuss The Death of Sinfiotli, The Prophecy of Gripir, the Lays of Regin, Fafnir, and Sigrdrifa, and Fragment of a Poem about Gudrun. Subscribe to keep up with these chats, and be sure to listen to the Mythic Mind podcast on any of the standard platforms. To become a patron and join these conversations and to gain access to all Mythic Mind content, including past, present, and upcoming courses, you can go to http://patreon.com/mythicmind Enroll in Hannah's Latin course at https://www.patreon.com/HannahGilmoreBecome a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/mythic-mind--5808321/support.

S5E13 Volsung Poems: The Poems of Brynhild and Gudrun (Part 4) David continues his series of not so short solo episodes, deep diving into the Poems of the Poetic Edda which inspired the Saga of the Volsungs.This is the story of the meeting of the hero with the beloved. The Valkyrie. I had to analyze the tragedy of Tristan and Iseult to find the archetypes which may be at play with the meeting of the hero with the beloved, and the meaning of the love triangle where the hero betrays his first love, in order to attempt to make an earthly love work. Is Sigurd "heartless" in his betrayal? Powerless to the dark agreements of others? Or does he have an acceptance of fate that is difficult for us to fathom?This episode explores the poems focusing on the meeting of Sigurd with his beloved and the tragedy when he finds himself with both Brynhild and Gudrun in love with him.Gripir's prophecyThe "short" poem of SigurdA fragment about Sigurd The First Poem of GudrunBrynhild's Ride to HellThe Saga of Volsung gives a convoluted meeting of Sigurd with Brynhild. Gripir's Prophecy gives what I find to be an oversimplified version. The other poems give multiple possible meetings as we attempt to sort out what was the most likely meeting and what did the earliest authors intend to be the meeting.I also contrast the Norse Version of the archetypal meeting of the hero and the beloved, which is filled with Shadow, Cursed Fate, and Insecurities, with the ideal meeting from Shahname, the Persian Book of Kings.Writing this episode has helped me a great deal to understand a relatively coherent and tragic story of Sigurd following his fate and playing out the curse of Andvari and Fafnir's gold. And I have gained a great deal of respect and understanding for Gudrun. I hope you enjoy coming along on the journey and I will return to the poems of Gudrun and Atli in the near future.Ways to support us:If you have been enjoying our show, please write a 5 star review on itunes to help spread our podcast to a wider audience:https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/between-two-ravens-a-norse-mythology-podcast/id1604263830Buy Shawn and David a Beer or Coffee: https://ko-fi.com/tworavenpodcastFollow us for updates or send us a message on Instagram:Instagram: (@TwoRavensPodcast): https://www.instagram.com/tworavenspodcast/Check out David's writing: Walled Garden (https://thewalledgarden.com/davidalexander)Our podcast is part of The Walled Garden Podcast Network. The Walled Garden is committed to the pursuit of Truth, Wisdom, Virtue, and the Divine, wherever it might be found. Visit thewalledgarden.com to learn more.This show is part of the Spreaker Prime Network, if you are interested in advertising on this podcast, contact us at https://www.spreaker.com/show/5910787/advertisement

The Mythic Mind Fellowship is currently working its way through the Poetic Edda! In the fourth of these chats, we discuss the next four texts: All-wise's Sayings, The First and Second Poems of Helgi Hundingsbani, and The Poem of Helgi Hiorvardson.Watch this conversation on YouTube: https://youtu.be/8XFYWQ0x3GMJoin the Mythic Mind Fellowship at patreon.com/mythicmindBecome a Tier 3 patron to participate in The Philosophy of Tolkien: The Lord of the Rings!Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/mythic-mind--5808321/support.

The Mythic Mind Fellowship is currently working its way through the Poetic Edda! In the third of these chats, we discuss the next four texts: Hymnir's Poem, Loki's Quarrel, Thrym's Poem, and The Poem of Volund.Become a patron at patreon.com/mythicmindBecome a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/mythic-mind--5808321/support.

The Mythic Mind Fellowship is currently working its way through the Poetic Edda! In the second of these chats, we discuss the next four texts: Vafthrudnir's Sayings, Grimnir's Saying, Skirnir's Journey, and Harbard's Song.Patrons of any tier are invited to participate in these chats. Become a patron at patreon.com/mythicmindEnroll in the upcoming Lord of the Rings Study at https://andrewsnyder.podia.com/the-wisdom-of-middle-earth-the-lord-of-the-rings or become a Tier 3 patron through Patreon.Find the video of this Fellowship chat here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CVlLAuD9XQUBecome a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/mythic-mind--5808321/support.

The Mythic Mind Fellowship is currently working its way through the Poetic Edda! In the first of these chats, we discuss the first two texts, Völuspá and Hávamál.Patrons of any tier are invited to participate in these chats. Reading along is definitely helpful, but all patrons are welcome to join! Check Discord for the details or send me a message.Become a patron at patreon.com/mythicmindFind the video of this Fellowship chat here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R4T1yDVRn_0&t=202sBecome a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/mythic-mind-legacy-podcast--5808321/support.

The Mythic Mind Fellowship is currently working its way through the Poetic Edda! In the third of these chats, we discuss the next four texts: Hymnir's Poem, Loki's Quarrel, Thrym's Poem, and The Poem of VolundPatrons of any tier are invited to participate in these chats. Reading along is definitely helpful, but all patrons are welcome to join! Check Discord for the details or send me a message.Enroll in "The Wisdom of Middle-earth: The Lord of the Rings" today! You can also participate by becoming a tier 3 patron or higher.Become a patron at patreon.com/mythicmindWatch the video of this conversation here: https://youtu.be/I59vm9ChlmM

Support Midgard Musings By Clicking Here: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://linktr.ee/MidgardMusings⁠. Some sources where runes are mentioned in magical contexts: Sigdrifumal, st. 7 (use of Nauthiz rune on nails) The Lindholmen amulet found in Denmark has the Ansuz, Thurisaz and Nauthiz runes repeated multiple times. On the Bülach fibula, the Laguz rune is added as a charm, spell or amulet to add great power. You can find more examples in Walter McGrory's book "Call Of The Runes", available on ⁠Amazon⁠. The Poetic Edda translation i referenced in this episode by Thorstein Mayfield is also available on Amazon. ⁠https://www.amazon.com/Poetic-Edda-Heathen-Study-Mythological/dp/1687815305⁠

The Mythic Mind Fellowship is currently working its way through the Poetic Edda! In the second of these chats, we discuss the next four texts: Vafthrudnir's Sayings, Grimnir's Saying, Skirnir's Journey, and Harbard's Song.Join the fellowship at patreon.com/mythicmindEnroll in "The Wisdom of Middle-earth: The Lord of the Rings" here: https://andrewsnyder.podia.com/the-wisdom-of-middle-earth-the-lord-of-the-rings

In this episode, we delve into the rich traditions of Samhain in Contemporary Paganism. Often referred to as the "Witches' New Year," Samhain is celebrated as a time when the veil between the worlds of the living and the dead is thinnest, making it ideal for communicating with ancestors and performing powerful rituals of transformation. We explore how Gerald Gardner, the founder of modern Wicca, revived Samhain within the Pagan Wheel of the Year, blending folklore, ceremonial magic, and the seasonal cycles to craft a new esoteric meaning for this ancient festival. We cover the significance of ancestor veneration, divination practices, shadow work during Samhain, and how Pagans set up their altars with symbols of death and renewal. We also look closer at public and private Samhain celebrations, the roles of death deities like Hecate, the Morrigan, and Anubis, and unique rituals such as the Dumb Supper. CONNECT & SUPPORT

This recording from September 28, 2024. Signum University presents Thesis Theater with Peter DeVault on Saturday, September 28, 2024 at 10am ET. Modern metrical analysis of Germanic alliterative poetry (GAP) has invariably proceeded from edited texts in which the poem is represented visually as verses on a printed page or screen. Of course, that is not how these poems came down to us. The manuscript form of a GA poem is typically indistinguishable from prose, the words (and abbreviations) inscribed margin to margin on parchment, with little or no indication of where one verse ends and another begins. This manuscript arrangement is a trove for learning how medieval poets and scribes assembled and presented their materials. Remarkably, the abstract structure of a GAP poem can be recovered from manuscript “storage” by someone having no prior familiarity with the poem. Hitherto, to present the poem has been to lose the manuscript. I propose an alternative that illuminates on the one hand the continuity between manuscript and poetic text, and on the other, the versecraft of the poet as evidenced in the text. The annotation scheme and processing method outlined in this thesis allow us to create a TEI/Menota compatible xml document based on a medieval germanic poem realized in a particular manuscript. This document can contain several overlapping layers of information: the layout of the words on the manuscript page along with their linguistic and morphological features and decomposition into syllables; the organization of those words into poetic lines and verses; and a projection of metrical features onto this abstract structure. While being itself a data source for further programmatic analytic and comparative work, this document can in turn be transformed into an interactive html representation showing any of these layers of information. In this presentation, you will see how these methods and tools work in the context of selections from five poetic manuscripts including portions of Beowulf and the Poetic Edda. About the Presenter: Peter DeVault hails from the upper Midwest of the United States, where he works at a healthcare software company leading a team developing applications for clinical genomics. Having discovered Signum University in 2019 while tracking down linguistic resources for Tolkien's invented languages, he has since immersed himself in a world of medieval Germanic languages and texts. When he isn't grappling with philology and metrics, Peter composes and records music and talks with his grandchild about dragons. Benjamin Bagby's "Beowulf: The Epic Performance": https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2WcIK_8f7oQ&t=0s About Signum Thesis Theaters: Each of our master's students writes a thesis at the end of their degree program, exploring a topic of their choice. The Thesis Theater is their opportunity to present their research to a general audience, and answer questions. All are welcome to attend! Registration is open for the Spring 2025 semester (term begins January 13th)! To view our upcoming courses: https://signumuniversity.org/degree-programs/graduate/upcoming-courses/. Learn about Signum University's mission, leadership and more: https://signumuniversity.org/about/. Want to enjoy Signum's educational offerings? Start here! https://signumuniversity.org/non-degree-programs/.

The Mythic Mind Fellowship is currently working its way through the Poetic Edda! In the first of these chats, we discuss the first two texts, Völuspá and Hávamál.To join these conversations, become a patron at any tier at patreon.com/mythicmind. Reading along is helpful, but not necessarily required for participation.Patronage also provides you with ad-free episodes of all Mythic Mind content!

Join the Mythic Mind Fellowship here: patreon.com/mythicmindPurchase the Poetic Edda: https://amzn.to/3Z9dxKMWatch the video for the Saga of the Volsungs here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qp_ZLiaFFX4Shop Middleborn Arms with the promo code "MYTHIC" here: https://www.middlebornearms.com/

Heists are all fun and games until somebody gets caught. Or was the person getting caught part of the REAL plan? And what happens if you're stealing from the god of thunder himself? Join Sparrow as she explores The Lay of Thrym from the Poetic Edda.     Enjoying the Podcast? We want to hear from you! Leave us a review on Podchaser or follow us on Goodpods and tell us what story you want us to cover next! Show notes can be found on our website at: www.talesfromtheenchantedforest.com You can also find us on: Twitter @FromEnchanted Bluesky Mastodon Instagram   TikTok

After a nice, long break, NMTUG is back to cover a relatively obscure topic in Norse mythology: the dísir. What makes the dísir distinct from valkyries, norns, and other death-entangled women? Let's fin Sources: “The Merseburg Spells” by Joseph S. Hopkins, 2023 “Dísir” by John Lindow in Pre-Christian Religions of the North volume III, 2020  “Dictionary of Northern Mythology” by Rudolf Simek, 2007 “Norse Mythology: A Guide to the Gods, Heroes, Rituals, and Beliefs”, by John Lindow, 2002 “The Poetic Edda”, transl. by Carolyne Larrington, 2014 “The Prose Edda”, transl. by Anthony Faulkes, 1995 Contact: Write in: waelhraefn (at) gmail (dot) com Join the Discord: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://discord.gg/Nvw5hmkRsW⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Music: Celebration by Alexander Nakarada (www.serpentsoundstudios.com) Licensed under Creative Commons BY Attribution 4.0 License http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

S5E7 Volsung Poems: Sigurd the Dragon Slayer (Solo Short Part 3 of 5) David continues his series of shorts, deep diving into the Poems of the Poetic Edda which inspired the Saga of the Volsungs.Sigurd is the primary "hero's journey" story of Saga of the Volsungs. He is the dragon slayer, the man without fear, and he is destined to be the greatest of kings. But Sigurd's story is a tragedy, he never becomes the greatest of all kings. He becomes ensnared in a love triangle with witches curses and betrayal. This short explores the poems Lay of Regin, Lay of Fafnir, and Lay of Sigrdrifa. Lay of Regin and Lay of Fafnir are very similar to the story of Saga of the Volsungs, but Lay of Sigrdrifa presents Sigurd's meeting with the the Valkyrie, Sigrdrifa, rather than Brunhilde. I explore the commentaries of Carolyn Larrington's translation of Poetic Edda, which include theories on which of these sources are the oldest versions of the legend of Sigurd. I contrast with the Saga of the Volsungs and Wagner's Opera, as well as explore some ideas on similar heroes with romantic tragedies from other cultural traditions. An idea which I hope to return to.Ways to support us:If you have been enjoying our show, please write a 5 star review on itunes to help spread our podcast to a wider audience:https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/between-two-ravens-a-norse-mythology-podcast/id1604263830Buy Shawn a Beer or Coffee: https://ko-fi.com/tworavenpodcastFollow us or leave a message on Instagram:Instagram: (@BetweenTwoRavens): https://www.instagram.com/betweentworavens/Check out David's writing: Prosoche Project (www.prosocheproject.com).Walled Garden (https://thewalledgarden.com/davidalexander)Our podcast is part of The Walled Garden Podcast Network. The Walled Garden is committed to the pursuit of Truth, Wisdom, Virtue, and the Divine, wherever it might be found. Visit thewalledgarden.com to learn more.This show is part of the Spreaker Prime Network, if you are interested in advertising on this podcast, contact us at https://www.spreaker.com/show/5910787/advertisement

S5E6 Volsung Poems: Sinfjotli and Helgi (Solo Short Part 2 of 4)David continues his series of shorts, deep diving into the Poems of the Poetic Edda which inspired the Saga of the Volsungs.Sinfjotli and Helgi were the older half brothers of Sigurd the dragon slayer. They were Sigmund's first sons and set the stage for the fate which led Sigurd to become a hero.Helgi has three poems, The first Poem of Helgi Hundingsbani, The Poem of Helgi Hiorvardsson, and A second Poem of Helgi Hundingsbani.The Helgi poems feature different takes on the same story. The hero Helgi meeting his valkyrie lover on the battlefield and going to war with her suitor to gain her hand in marriage.Helgi's poem also features a flyting dis-battle between Sinfiotli and the leader of the opposing army.The Death of Sinfjotli is the final poem and shows the pattern we see repeated in the life of Sigurd. Dark agreements and insecurities trying to poison the hero and turn father against son or the hero against himself.Ways to support us:If you have been enjoying our show, please write a 5 star review on itunes to help spread our podcast to a wider audience:https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/between-two-ravens-a-norse-mythology-podcast/id1604263830Buy Shawn a Beer or Coffee: https://ko-fi.com/tworavenpodcastFollow us or leave a message on Instagram:Instagram: (@BetweenTwoRavens): https://www.instagram.com/betweentworavens/Check out David's writing: Prosoche Project (www.prosocheproject.com).Walled Garden (https://thewalledgarden.com/davidalexander)Our podcast is part of The Walled Garden Podcast Network. The Walled Garden is committed to the pursuit of Truth, Wisdom, Virtue, and the Divine, wherever it might be found. Visit thewalledgarden.com to learn more.This show is part of the Spreaker Prime Network, if you are interested in advertising on this podcast, contact us at https://www.spreaker.com/show/5910787/advertisement

Jan-Ove Tuv sits down with Jon White from the Crecganford YouTube-channel and Sturla Ellingvåg from the Viking Stories YouTube-channel to discuss the nature of myths.

Welcome all to the Greyhorn Pagans Podcast! It is my pleasure to host Dustin Wilson today who over the last 1,5 years has been doing a lot of deepdiving into and researching the Bock Saga. It is an alternative to the texts that we know in the Poetic Edda and the Prose Edda. Going a little deeper in root languages and astrology. Is there truth to this text? Or are these just fairytales passed down through the generations? Find out now on this episode of the Greyhorn Pagans Podcast! --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/greyhornpagans/message Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/greyhornpagans/support

S5E3 Volsung Poems: Ottar/Otter (Solo Short Part 1)David isn't quite ready to put the Saga of the Volsungs to rest. This is the first of a series of shorts on the Poems of the Poetic Edda which inspired the Saga of the Volsungs. As Shawn and I found in Season 4, Saga of the Volsungs has a few inconsistent parts, where the author appears to have tried to reconcile multiple sources into a coherent story. So David is back to interpret the original sources to see what meaning can be found in the original poems.Part 1 looks at Otter/Ottar. Two different figures with a similar name, who both are involved in a battle between brothers over inheritance and have the ability to shape shift.The Otter of Saga of the Volsungs was the 3rd brother of Regin and Fafnir. His death at the hands of Loki led to Fafnir obtaining the cursed gold and Regin, the foster-father of Sigurd, to set Sigurd on the path to destroying the Dragon Fafnir. Lay of Hyndla features an Ottar who is a follower of Freya. This Poem is another attempt to condense ideas and themes found throughout the Poetic Edda.Ways to support us:If you have been enjoying our show, please write a 5 star review on itunes to help spread our podcast to a wider audience:https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/between-two-ravens-a-norse-mythology-podcast/id1604263830Buy Shawn a Beer or Coffee: https://ko-fi.com/tworavenpodcastFollow us or leave a message on Instagram:Instagram: (@BetweenTwoRavens): https://www.instagram.com/betweentworavens/Check out David's writing: Prosoche Project (www.prosocheproject.com).Walled Garden (https://thewalledgarden.com/davidalexander)Our podcast is part of The Walled Garden Podcast Network. The Walled Garden is committed to the pursuit of Truth, Wisdom, Virtue, and the Divine, wherever it might be found. Visit thewalledgarden.com to learn more.This show is part of the Spreaker Prime Network, if you are interested in advertising on this podcast, contact us at https://www.spreaker.com/show/5910787/advertisement

For our 100th episode (shit!!), Shawn discusses the origin of the sun and the moon, along with the origins of night and day in Norse Mythology, as told by Gylfaginning in Snorri Sturluson's Prose Edda. (Also with some stanzas from the Poetic Edda poems, Völuspá and Vafþrúðnismál.In it Shawn also explores the idea of looking to the divine when humans cannot currently explain something, and compares humans of 10,000 looking with a sense of wonder when looking at the sun and the moon, with humans today asking ourselves what happened before the universe started expanding, and what happens after we die.Also somewhat of an error --> Shawn expresses some confusion on the different wolves chasing the sun and the moon. From my understanding (which isn't smoothly discussed in this episode) is that Fenrir may be the same wolf as Skoll, and Garm may be the same wolf as Hati.Ways to support us:If you have been enjoying our show, please write a 5 star review on itunes to help spread our podcast to a wider audience:https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/between-two-ravens-a-norse-mythology-podcast/id1604263830Buy Shawn a Beer or Coffee: https://ko-fi.com/tworavenpodcastFollow us or leave a message on Instagram:Instagram: (@BetweenTwoRavens): https://www.instagram.com/betweentworavens/Check out David's writing: Prosoche Project (www.prosocheproject.com).Walled Garden (https://thewalledgarden.com/davidalexander)Our podcast is part of The Walled Garden Podcast Network. The Walled Garden is committed to the pursuit of Truth, Wisdom, Virtue, and the Divine, wherever it might be found. Visit thewalledgarden.com to learn more.This show is part of the Spreaker Prime Network, if you are interested in advertising on this podcast, contact us at https://www.spreaker.com/show/5910787/advertisement

In this special 200th episode, Dan, along with Margrethe Havgar, sits down with Carolyne Larrington to talk about how her translations of the Poetic Edda have become the most widely used translation in the scholarly world.------------------------------------------------Follow Carolyne on Twitter/X:@profcarolyne / @profcarolyne.bsky.socialFollow the Podcast on Instagram:@nordicmythologypodcastIf you like what we do, and would like to be in the audience for live streams of new episodes to ask questions please consider supporting us on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/NordicMythologypodcastCheck out Dan's company, Horns of Odin, and the wide range of handmade items inspired by Nordic Mythology and the Viking Age. Visit: https://www.hornsofodin.comSupport the show

Jan-Ove Tuv sits down with Sturla Ellingvåg to dive deep into Norse mythology. Ellingvåg is the historian behind the YouTube-channel Viking Stories . He is associated with the Max Planck Institute in Germany, and is convinced that history has to be studied in a broader context than current fashion allows. Part one: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2Q81uTkxnsY Part two: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hTXjioACKt8 We have previously released an interview with Ellingvåg on this channel: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sFeje-6fYmw

In this episode, I try to convince you to at least consider studying philosophy. “ Many words do not satisfy the soul; but a good life eases the mind and a clean conscience inspires great trust in God. The more you know and the better you understand, the more severely will you be judged, unless your life is also the more holy. Do not be proud, therefore, because of your learning or skill. Rather, fear because of the talent given you. If you think you know many things and understand them well enough, realize at the same time that there is much you do not know. Hence, do not affect wisdom, but admit your ignorance. Why prefer yourself to anyone else when many are more learned, more cultured than you?” Thomas A Kempis - On the imitation of Christ “It is clear, Lucilius, that no man can live a happy life, or even a supportable life, without the study of wisdom; you know also that a happy life is reached when our wisdom is brought to completion, but that life is at least endurable even when our wisdom is only begun”  Seneca, Letters From a Stoic, XVI. On Philosophy, The of Guide of Life    “The reason we make mistakes is because we all consider the parts of life, but never as a whole. The archer must know what he is seeking to hit; then he must aim and control the weapon by his skill. Our plans miscarry because they have no aim. When a man does not know what harbour he is making for, no wind is the right wind.” Seneca, LXXXI. On the supreme Good, Letters from a Stoic “What does the debauchee lose? Manhood. What does he lose who made him such? The qualities of a modest man, the chaste character, the good neighbor. What does the angry person lose? A coward? Each to his portion. No one is wicked without some loss or damage.” Epictetus, Discourses, Book II, Chapter 10.  “Let the part of thy soul which leads and governs be undisturbed by the movements in the flesh, whether of pleasure or of pain; and let it not unite with them, but let it circumscribe itself and limit those affects to their parts. But when these affects rise up to the mind by virtue of that other sympathy that naturally exists in a body which is all one, then thou must not strive to resist the sensation, for it is natural: but let not the ruling part add to the sensation the opinion that it is either good or bad” Marcus Aurelius, Meditations, Book V, 26. “No better burden can a man carry on the road than a store of common sense; better than riches it will seem in an unfamiliar place, such is the resort of the wicked” The Poetic Edda, Sayings of the high one, 10.”  People think that they can clear up profound matters if they consider them deeply, but they exercise perverse thoughts and come to no good because they do their reflecting with only self- interest at the center.” Hagakure: The way of the Samurai, Yamamoto Tsunetomo, Pg 3

It is a strange thing to think of death as nutritious, that death can make living things into the elemental stuff of life. But as summer's verdant life begins to succumb to an inevitable end, as death transforms the landscape, the strangeness of that thought recedes, becoming something full of sense and meaning.This is especially true as I walk through a local woodland and beneath my feet are the remains of arboreal death - humus, that dark organic matter that forms in soil when plant and animal matter decays. When leaf litter and animals remains decompose, they break down into their most basic chemical elements…elements that are nutritious to life.This breaking down of living things, particularly as autumn transitions into winter on my Northern island, inspired this episode of Mythos, which will focus on primordial giant stories - myths in which a giant is sacrificed in order to become the building blocks of creation.The first is a Norse Myth, details of which can be found in the Prose and Poetic Eddas. The Prose Edda was written in 13th century Iceland and is considered the fullest and most detailed source of Norse Mythology. Drawing upon a variety of sources, the Prose Edda also references an older source - a collection of poems known as the Poetic Edda.The second story is from the Rigveda, an ancient Indian collection of Vedic Sanskrit Hymns, one of the four sacred Hindu texts known as the vedas.Music:https://www.youtube.com/@ebanisteria.musicalehttps://www.youtube.com/@GeethanjaliClassicalMusichttps://www.youtube.com/@Nordicvibrations7979

In this episode, Shawn and David discuss another son of Sigmund of the House Volsung, Helgi Hundingsbane. As Helgi only features in 1 chapter of "The Saga of the Volsungs" (chapter 9), he isn't considered a major character. However, in the Poetic Edda, two poems feature different versions of his life and provide more context on his life.In reviewing chapter 9 of the sage and the poems "Helgakvitha Hundinsbana I/II", his main life events are the killing of a King Hunding (hence his name), then fighting a war that he eventually wins to marry Sigrún, who is a Princess and a Valkyrie. Helgi succeeds. Though as we see, the norns and Odin may have their own thoughts on his fate....Ways to support us:If you have been enjoying our show, please write a 5 star review on itunes to help spread our podcast to a wider audience: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/between-two-ravens-a-norse-mythology-podcast/id1604263830Follow us or leave a message on Instagram:Instagram: (@BetweenTwoRavens): https://www.instagram.com/betweentworavens/Check out David's writing: Prosoche Project (www.prosocheproject.com).Walled Garden (https://thewalledgarden.com/davidalexander)Our podcast is part of The Walled Garden Podcast Network. The Walled Garden is committed to the pursuit of Truth, Wisdom, Virtue, and the Divine, wherever it might be found. Visit thewalledgarden.com to learn more. This show is part of the Spreaker Prime Network, if you are interested in advertising on this podcast, contact us at https://www.spreaker.com/show/5910787/advertisementThis show is part of the Spreaker Prime Network, if you are interested in advertising on this podcast, contact us at https://www.spreaker.com/show/5910787/advertisement

Dr. Jackson Crawford, a YouTube public educator on Old Norse language, literature, and mythology and former professor at University of Colorado - Boulder, joins Lexie to discuss the unique challenges to being a full time YouTube public scholar in Old Norse studies, his opinion on consulting for major Hollywood & gaming projects, and why people associate Norway & Denmark with Vikings more than Iceland. So tuck in your togas and hop aboard Trireme Transit for this week's exciting odyssey! Don't forget to follow us on social media @The Ozymandias Project or visit our website www.theozymandiasproject.com!   Learn more about Dr. Crawford: https://jacksonwcrawford.com/ Follow him on Twitter: https://twitter.com/norsebysw Check out his YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/c/jacksoncrawford Watch the video Dr. Crawford mentioned in the episode: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-WxJPP067sg Read his translation of the Poetic Edda mentioned in the episode: https://jacksonwcrawford.com/books/the-poetic-edda/Support Dr. Crawford's Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/norsebysw Support us on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/TheOzymandiasProject Custom music by Brent Arehart of Arehart Sounds and edited by Kevin Walker.  Get exclusive bonus content (ad free episodes, early releases, and experimental content) on Patreon! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Time for another deep dive! This time into the mysterious origins of the one called Hel: the daughter of Loki and the sister of two giant monsters. Who does she own upon death? The answer may not be quite as simple as you think. Sources: “Dictionary of Northern Mythology” by Rudolf Simek, 2007 “Gesta Danorum” transl. by Karsten Friis-Jensen and Peter Fisher, 2015 “Norse Mythology: A Guide to the Gods, Heroes, Rituals, and Beliefs”, by John Lindow, 2002 “The Road to Hel” by Hilda Roderick Ellis, 1968 “Worlds of the Dead” by John Lindow and Anders Andrén in Pre-Christian Religions of the North volume II, 2020 “The Poetic Edda”, transl. by Carolyne Larrington, 2014 “The Prose Edda”, transl. by Anthony Faulkes, 1995 Contact: Write in: waelhraefn (at) gmail (dot) com Join the Discord: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://discord.gg/Nvw5hmkRsW⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Music: Celebration by Alexander Nakarada (www.serpentsoundstudios.com) Licensed under Creative Commons BY Attribution 4.0 License http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

In our final installment of Völsunga Saga (for now), it's what you've all been waiting for: We finally cover the tale of Sigurðr, the most famous of all Norse heroes who slew the dragon Fáfnir, and his tragic love with the valkyire Brynhildr. There's fire, murder, mayhem, and one ring to curse them all. Don't miss it! Sources: “Dictionary of Northern Mythology” by Rudolf Simek, 2007 “The Saga of the Volsungs”, transl. by Jesse Byock, 2004, supplemented by some of my own translations from the source text “The Poetic Edda”, transl. by Carolyne Larrington, 2014 "The Prose Edda", transl. by Anthony Faulkes, 1995 Contact: Write in: waelhraefn (at) gmail (dot) com Join the Discord: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://discord.gg/Nvw5hmkRsW⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Music: Celebration by Alexander Nakarada (www.serpentsoundstudios.com) Licensed under Creative Commons BY Attribution 4.0 License http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

Story time continues with our second installment of the Saga of the Volsungs wherein another character goes to Valhöll without dying in battle, a valkyrie causes countless deaths for her own gain, and Sigmund's magic sword finally receives a name. Don't miss it! Sources: “The Saga of the Volsungs”, transl. by Jesse Byock, 2004, supplemented by some of my own translations from the source text “The Poetic Edda”, transl. by Carolyne Larrington, 2014 "The Prose Edda", transl. by Anthony Faulkes, 1995 Contact: Write in: waelhraefn (at) gmail (dot) com Join the Discord: ⁠⁠⁠⁠https://discord.gg/Nvw5hmkRsW⁠⁠⁠⁠ Music: Celebration by Alexander Nakarada (www.serpentsoundstudios.com) Licensed under Creative Commons BY Attribution 4.0 License http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

It's story time again! And this time we're digging into what might be the most famous legendary saga ever to come out of Scandinavia: The Saga of the Vǫlsungs. As we dig in, it'll become clear how all of the principles we've talked about on the show so far come together to produce a story with a distinct Norse flavor, and one that has inspired tropes that have been repeated in story after story for the last thousand years. It's a long one this time, and I hope you enjoy it! Sources: “The Saga of the Volsungs”, transl. by Jesse Byock, 2004, supplemented by some of my own translations from the source text “The Poetic Edda”, transl. by Carolyne Larrington, 2014 "The Prose Edda", transl. by Anthony Faulkes, 1995 Contact: Write in: waelhraefn (at) gmail (dot) com Join the Discord: ⁠⁠⁠https://discord.gg/Nvw5hmkRsW⁠⁠⁠ Music: Celebration by Alexander Nakarada (www.serpentsoundstudios.com) Licensed under Creative Commons BY Attribution 4.0 License http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

In Season 1 (2021) of Birdsong, Imelda Almqvist join us. In Season 1 (2021) of Birdsong, Imelda Almqvist join us. Imelda Almqvist is an international teacher of Sacred Art and Seidr/Old Norse Traditions (the ancestral wisdom teachings of Northern Europe). She has published three books: Natural Born Shamans: A Spiritual Toolkit for Life (Using shamanism creatively with young people of all ages) in 2016, Sacred Art: A Hollow Bone for Spirit (Where Art Meets Shamanism) in 2019 and Medicine of the Imagination - Dwelling in possibility (an impassioned plea for fearless imagination) in 2020. She has presented her work on both The Shift Network and Sounds True. She appears in a TV program, titled Ice Age Shaman, made for the Smithsonian Museum, in the series Mystic Britain, talking about Neolithic arctic deer shamanism. She is currently finishing up her fourth book, about the pre-Christian spirituality of The Netherlands and Low Countries. She has already started her fifth book: about the runes of the Futhark/Uthark. Her response to the 2020 pandemic was starting an on-line school on Teachable called Pregnant Hag Teachings, to make more of her classes available on-line. Imelda's website: http://www.shaman-healer-painter.co.uk Imelda's YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/user/imeldaalmqvist Pregnant Hag Teachings: https://pregnant-hag-teachings.teachable.com/   TIMESTAMPS: [3:39] Sigrdrifa's Prayer (or Invocation): commonly used to open sacred space in the Northern Tradition [5:42] Sacred art and the meaning of what's sacred [9:30] Norse gods, ancient books and the language of the soul [15:08] “Painting my way onto the shamanic path” [15:59] The old Norse god Baldr [17:37] Shamanic initiations [21:29] Core shamanism vs Norse shamanism [25:24] The Poetic Edda, Prose Edda & Nordic history [31:02] The shamanic characteristics of these ancient texts - prophecies, oracles, runes, chants and more… [33:05] Direct revelation and the high seat ceremony [37:33] If everything was preserved and written down things would become prescriptive [38:44] Gods are living evolving beings within their relationship to human beings [40:11] Sitting on grave mounds as a Northern European shamanic practice [49:29] Rune stones, rune magicians, and reading runes as a divinatory practice [55:10] Runic resources and books [56:19] Runes of the FUTHARK / UTHARK [1:00:14] Viking berserkers, amanita muscaria, and musings on the destabilizing nature of ayahuasca [1:06:22] Safety, boundaries, wild animal spirits and wild states of consciousness [1:09:03] Connecting with the nature beings in our own environment [1:10:23] The spirits of the trees and the great reindeer mother [1:12:40] Mystery teachings from the poison mother [1:15:17] Nordic methods and suggestions for cultivating psychic or intuitive abilities [1:19:20] Cultivating 3-5 spiritual practices for depth rather than breadth [1:21:38] Natural Born Shamans: Shamanism for young people of all ages [1:25:13] Medicine of the Imagination - Creating a healthy functional vital reality [1:27:45] Writing as a spiritual practice [1:30:00] Pregnant Hag Teachings - Rune Magicians, Intro to Seidr, and more…

How many times have you heard in the past that Loki is associated with fire? It's true, in fact, but how many people who told you Loki was associated with fire ever provided any examples of that association? In this episode, we'll dig in to why your answer to that last question is "none of them", and what this association with fire really means. By the way, are you familiar with the Ash Lad? Sources: “Loki, the Vätte, and the Ash Lad: A Study Combining Old Scandinavian and Late Material”, by Eldar Heide, 2011 “The Poetic Edda”, transl. by Carolyne Larrington, 2014 "The Prose Edda", transl. by Anthony Faulkes, 1995 Contact: Write in: waelhraefn (at) gmail (dot) com Join the Discord: ⁠⁠https://discord.gg/Nvw5hmkRsW⁠⁠ Music: Celebration by Alexander Nakarada (www.serpentsoundstudios.com) Licensed under Creative Commons BY Attribution 4.0 License http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

For our first excursion into Norse hero material, we'll be discussing two versions of a story about a character known across Norse, English, and German sources as Wayland the Smith. Prepare yourself for valkyries, dwarves, kidnapping, maiming, murder, intrigue, revenge, flying machines, and two surprising cameos from Sigurd the Dragonslayer and maybe even William Tell? Sources: “The Context of Völundarkviða” by John McKinnel, 1993 “Velents þáttr smiðs” as published on heimskringla.no “The Poetic Edda”, transl. by Edward Pettit, 2023 “The Poetic Edda”, transl. by Carolyne Larrington, 2014 Contact: Write in: waelhraefn (at) gmail (dot) com Join the Discord: ⁠https://discord.gg/Nvw5hmkRsW⁠ Music: Celebration by Alexander Nakarada (www.serpentsoundstudios.com) Licensed under Creative Commons BY Attribution 4.0 License http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

Tonight we're joined by Odin's favorite wizard, Benjamin Balderson, and the poetic paganist Rachel Maiden, for an examination of customs and philosophy selected from the Hávamál, and other works of the Poetic Eddas. These two have a great knowledge of Norse Mythology and the morality that it espouses, along with a strong grasp upon the wisdom of the runes, as they've been teaching on the Odin's Alchemy podcast. The Plus+ Extension begins with discussion on the value of difference between regional deities, and by the end we find ourselves in a hilarious set of Odin's observations about the differences between men and women. This is a truly unique second hour, worth the price of admission. Get InnerVerse Plus+ on Rokfin and Patreon!https://rokfin.com/stream/31714https://www.patreon.com/posts/80267548 Check out my new audiobook narration of Spirit Whirled: A Godsacre For Winds of the Soul, by Dylan Saccoccio - https://tinyurl.com/2p9xpdn3 EPISODE LINKSBalderson - https://rokfin.com/odinsAlchemyRachel Maiden's Sunforge - https://t.me/sunforgeRachel's Galactic Center Tea House - https://odysee.com/@LocalGoddess:9Featured Music - "Bloomphase" by VOLO - http://volovibes.com/https://www.innerversepodcast.com/season-9/ben-balderson-rachel-maiden-havamal TELEGRAM LINKShttps://t.me/innerversepodcasthttps://t.me/innerversepodcastchat GET TUNEDhttps://www.innerversepodcast.com/sound-healing SUPPORT INNERVERSEInnerVerse Merch - https://www.innerversemerch.comTippecanoe Herbs - Use INNERVERSE code at checkout - https://tippecanoeherbs.com/Spirit Whirled: July's End (Audiobook narrated by Chance) - https://tinyurl.com/2dhsarasBuy from Clive de Carle with this link to support InnerVerse with your purchase - https://clivedecarle.ositracker.com/197164/11489The Aquacure AC50 (Use "innerverse" as a coupon code for a 15% discount) - https://eagle-research.com/product/ac5 InnerVerse intro theme by Conspiracy Music Guru - https://www.conspiracymusicguru.com Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Some Norse mythology enthusiasts are strangely terrified of Christian influence in our sources. And some will even go so far as advise others to ignore some of our most important sources, believing them to be full of corruption. In this episode, we'll talk about why there is no real need to be afraid of Christian influence in Norse mythology, and about how to recognize it when you see it. Sources: “Dictionary of Northern Mythology” by Rudolf Simek, 2007 “Mímir: Two Myths or One?” by Jacqueline Simpson, 1965 “The Conversion of Scandinavia: Vikings, Merchants, and Missionaries in the Remaking of Northern Europe” by Anders Winroth, 2012 “The King, The Champion and the Sorcerer” by Lotte Motz, 1996 “The Poetic Edda”, transl. by Carolyne Larrington, 2014 “The Prose Edda”, transl. by Anthony Faulkes, 1995 Contact: Write in: waelhraefn (at) gmail (dot) com Join the Discord: https://discord.gg/Nvw5hmkRsW Music: Celebration by Alexander Nakarada (www.serpentsoundstudios.com) Licensed under Creative Commons BY Attribution 4.0 License http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

ᚠᚢᚦᚨᚱᚲ! What does it mean? On this episode we'll cover everything you ever wanted to know about pre-Christian runic writing and, maybe even better, we'll talk about how the runes were used anciently for magical practices. Be warned! We're going to be dispelling a lot of myths in this episode, so get ready to toss everything you thought you already knew right out the window. Ok, maybe it won't be that drastic, but you might be surprised. Sources: “Germania” by Publius Cornelius Tacitus, 1st century “Gesta Danorum” transl. by Karsten Friis-Jensen and Peter Fisher, 2015 “Runes: Reading the Past” by R.I. Page, 1987 “Runic Amulets and Magic Objects” by Mary MacLeod and Bernard Mees, 2006 “The Poetic Edda”, transl. by Carolyne Larrington, 2014 “The Prose Edda”, transl. by Anthony Faulkes, 1995 Contact: Write in: waelhraefn (at) gmail (dot) com Join the Discord: https://discord.gg/Nvw5hmkRsW Music: Celebration by Alexander Nakarada (www.serpentsoundstudios.com) Licensed under Creative Commons BY Attribution 4.0 License http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

Our first ever live Fireside Chat! In this episode the hosts (Shawn and David obviously) and fans discuss (over drinks) the poem Vǫlundarkviða from the Poetic Edda. The poem details the story of a talented elf's fall into a corrupted sole as he takes revenge on a king of men, Nithuth... We thank everyone for taking there time to join us for the event and we hope to see you again at the next one! Ways to support us: If you have been enjoying our show, please write a 5 star review on itunes to help spread our podcast to a wider audience: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/between-two-ravens-a-norse-mythology-podcast/id1604263830 Follow us or leave a message on Twitter or Instagram: Twitter: (@TwoRavenPodcast): https://twitter.com/TwoRavenPodcast Instagram: (@BetweenTwoRavens): https://www.instagram.com/betweentworavens/ Check out David's writing:  Prosoche Project (www.prosocheproject.com).  Walled Garden (https://thewalledgarden.com/davidalexander) Our podcast is part of The Walled Garden Podcast Network. The Walled Garden is committed to the pursuit of Truth, Wisdom, Virtue, and the Divine, wherever it might be found.  Visit thewalledgarden.com to learn more about weekly meet-ups and the other Walled Garden contributors. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

One of the more difficult things to do in Norse mythology is understanding the way the sun and moon relate to day and night. Each one seems to have its own origin, and figuring out where the distinction between a shiny object and a divine person really is can be tricky. Add to this the big mess of wolf and horse names scattered all over the story and what we have is a big recipe for confusion. In this episode, we'll go through this together, figuring out who's who, what's what, and how everyone gets killed by which particular wolf. Sources: “Dictionary of Northern Mythology” by Rudolf Simek, 2007 “Norse Mythology: A Guide to Gods, Heroes, Rituals, and Beliefs” by John Lindow, 2001 “The Historical Development of Basic Color Terms in Old Norse-Icelandic” by Jackson Crawford, 2014 “The Poetic Edda”, transl. by Carolyne Larrington, 2014 “The Prose Edda”, transl. by Anthony Faulkes, 1995 Contact: Write in: waelhraefn (at) gmail (dot) com Join the Discord: https://discord.gg/Nvw5hmkRsW Music: Celebration by Alexander Nakarada (www.serpentsoundstudios.com) Licensed under Creative Commons BY Attribution 4.0 License http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

Way back in episode 1, I mentioned that the sources are not exactly as clear on what "the nine realms" are as popular media would have us believe. In this episode, we dig into all the ways the phrase "nine realms" is used in the sources, and try our best to put together a working model of how the Norse cosmos was really shaped. Sources: “Contradictory cosmology in old norse myth and religion – but still a system?” by Eldar Heide, 2014 “The Poetic Edda”, transl. by Carolyne Larrington, 2014 “The Prose Edda”, transl. by Anthony Faulkes, 1995 Contact: Write in: waelhraefn (at) gmail (dot) com Join the Discord: https://discord.gg/Nvw5hmkRsW Music: Celebration by Alexander Nakarada (www.serpentsoundstudios.com) Licensed under Creative Commons BY Attribution 4.0 License http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

There's an intriguing stanza in one of our source poems mentioning a compromise between the goddess Freyja and the god Óðinn. It seems to tell us only half the slain warriors are received by Óðinn in Valhöll because the other half are chosen by Freyja for a place called Fólkvangr. But what does it really mean to choose the slain? Who decides who dies? And what happens when the god of the slain wants something that goes against the decrees of fate? This episode is a little more interpretive than others, but isn't speculation what makes the study of mythology fun? Sources: “Dictionary of Northern Mythology” by Rudolf Simek, 2007 “Norse Mythology: A Guide to the Gods, Heroes, Rituals, and Beliefs” by John Lindow, 2001 “The Ship in the Field” by Joseph S. Hopkins and Haukur Þorgeirsson, 2012 “The Poetic Edda”, transl. by Carolyne Larrington, 2014 “The Prose Edda”, transl. by Anthony Faulkes, 1995 Contact: Write in: waelhraefn (at) gmail (dot) com Join the Discord: https://discord.gg/Nvw5hmkRsW Music: Celebration by Alexander Nakarada (www.serpentsoundstudios.com) Licensed under Creative Commons BY Attribution 4.0 License http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

The moment has finally arrived! The doom of the gods (or is it, fate of the gods? ...or twilight of the gods?) is upon us! Listen as your dedicated host tirelessly strings together a narrative crafted from The Prose Edda, Völuspá, Vafþrúðnismál, Grímnismál, and Fáfnismál to finally present a full picture of Ragnarök. But what does Ragnarök really mean? Has it already happened? Are the dead gods really dead? Will there be another Ragnarök in the future? All this and more in today's episode and more to come in the future. Sources: “Dictionary of Northern Mythology” by Rudolf Simek, 2007 “Fimbulvintern, Ragnarök och klimatkrisen år 536–537” by Bo Gräslund, 2007 “Sacred Tree and Holy Grove” by Joseph S. Hopkins, 2020, on mimisbrunnr.info “The mythic theme of the great winter in ancient Iranian traditions” by Anders Hultgard, 2002 “The Poetic Edda”, transl. by Carolyne Larrington, 2014 “The Prose Edda”, transl. by Anthony Faulkes, 1995 Contact: Write in: waelhraefn (at) gmail (dot) com Join the Discord: https://discord.gg/Nvw5hmkRsW Music: Celebration by Alexander Nakarada (www.serpentsoundstudios.com) Licensed under Creative Commons BY Attribution 4.0 License http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

Previously, Loki took it upon himself to orchestrate the murder of the gods' golden boy, Baldr. In this episode, Loki's actions finally come back to haunt him as the gods exact their revenge. We'll discuss how this story differs between accounts in the two Eddas, and even dig in to a lesser-known part of the story preserved mainly in Gesta Danorum. And with this story out of the way, the stage has finally been fully set for Ragnarök. Sources: “Dictionary of Northern Mythology” by Rudolf Simek, 2007 “Relative sá and the dating of Eddic and skaldic poetry” by Christopher D. Sapp, 2019 “Studier over de nordiske gude- og heltesagns oprindelse” by Sophus Bugge, 1881 “Gesta Danorum” transl. by Karsten Friis-Jensen and Peter Fisher, 2015 “The Poetic Edda”, transl. by Carolyne Larrington, 2014 “The Prose Edda”, transl. by Anthony Faulkes, 1995 Contact: Write in: waelhraefn (at) gmail (dot) com Join the Discord: https://discord.gg/Nvw5hmkRsW Music: Celebration by Alexander Nakarada (www.serpentsoundstudios.com) Licensed under Creative Commons BY Attribution 4.0 License http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

In this episode, the most beloved of all the gods suffers a tragic death as the result of what appears to be another god's jealous rage. This story has everything: murder, zombies, flaming dwarves, and possible hints at something akin to suttee– everything except the consequences. Those will come next time. Sources: “Dictionary of Northern Mythology” by Rudolf Simek, 2007 “The Road to Hel: A Study of the Conception of the Dead in Old Norse Literature” by Hilda Ellis Davidson, published under the name Hilda Roderick Ellis, 1968 “The Poetic Edda”, transl. by Carolyne Larrington, 2014 “The Prose Edda”, transl. by Anthony Faulkes, 1995 Contact: Write in: waelhraefn (at) gmail (dot) com Join the Discord: https://discord.gg/Nvw5hmkRsW Music: Celebration by Alexander Nakarada (www.serpentsoundstudios.com) Licensed under Creative Commons BY Attribution 4.0 License http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

Today we dive into the god Freyr's most famous mistake: the time he traded his magic sword for the favor of a woman and, in so doing, sealed his fate in the coming battle of Ragnarök. We'll learn a little about rune magic, coercion, and the time-less behavior of mopey, love-sick teenagers. Sources: “Blótgyðjur, Goðar, Mimi, Incest, and Wagons: Oral Memories of the Religion(s) of the Vanir” by Terry Gunnell, 2017 “How Uniform Was the Old Norse Religion” by Stefan Brink, 2007 “Norse Mythology: A Guide to the Gods, Heroes, Rituals, and Beliefs” by John Lindow, 2001 “Origo Gentis Langobardorum”, 7th century “The Poetic Edda”, transl. by Carolyne Larrington, 2014 “The Prose Edda”, transl. by Anthony Faulkes, 1995 Contact: Write in: waelhraefn (at) gmail (dot) com Join the Discord: https://discord.gg/Nvw5hmkRsW Music: Celebration by Alexander Nakarada (www.serpentsoundstudios.com) Licensed under Creative Commons BY Attribution 4.0 License http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

Our sources for Norse mythology are pretty male-centric. But even so, when we tally up the names of all the gods we have vs. all the goddesses, it turns out we actually have a lot more goddess names than gods. Goddesses certainly played an important role in the lived religion of ancient Scandinavians, so this episode is a tribute to a few of the goddesses forgotten by time. Sources: “Germania” by Publius Cornelius Tacitus, 1st century “Great Goddess Theory in Ancient Germanic Studies” by Joseph S. Hopkins, 2019 “Goddesses Unknown I: Njǫrun and the Sister-Wife of Njǫrðr” by Joseph S. Hopkins, 2012 “Goddesses Unknown II: On the Apparent Old Norse Goddess Ilmr” by Joseph S. Hopkins, 2014 “Goddesses Unknown III: On the Identity of the Old Norse Goddess Hlín” by Joseph S. Hopkins, 2017 “Heimskringla”, transl. by Alison Finlay and Anthony Faulkes, 2011 “Meeting the Other in Norse Myth and Legend” by John McKinnell, 2005 “The Poetic Edda”, transl. by Carolyne Larrington, 2014 “The Prose Edda”, transl. by Anthony Faulkes, 1995 Contact: Write in: waelhraefn (at) gmail (dot) com Join the Discord: https://discord.gg/Nvw5hmkRsW Music: Celebration by Alexander Nakarada (www.serpentsoundstudios.com) Licensed under Creative Commons BY Attribution 4.0 License http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/