Norse Mythology: The Creation

The term "myth" is frequently used to describe something false, such as the representation of the sacred in words or narratives about social institutions or behavior. However, myths and mythology can tell so much about communities from their beliefs, thinking, customs, and social and traditional behaviors.

Whenever we consider mythology, most of us recall either Greek mythology or a very brief part of Norse mythology, mostly based on the representations in Marvel movies. These representations in popular culture are not entirely true, and there are many levels to the origins and myths of Norse mythology. For instance, Thor's mother is originally a jötunn called Jörd (earth), not Frigg, and Loki is one of the blood brothers of Odin. Also, Thor initially had red hair and a beard, representing his short temper, and ironically, Heimdall in Norse mythology is referred to as "the whitest of the gods."

To understand Norse mythology, we should know about the Viking Age and later Middle Ages, which tell of the origin of the cosmos and human beings but also describe an enduring struggle between two groups of beings: the gods and giants.

According to the important medieval interpreter, Snorri Sturluson, the gods are often referred to as "People of Asia," while the giants are larger than the gods and aim for the destruction of the cosmos. The world where the aesir (gods) and jötnar (giants) play out their struggle is essentially recognizable as Scandinavia, with rivers, mountains, forests, oceans, storms, cold weather, fierce warriors, eagles, ravens, salmon, and snakes. The Norse mythology is divided into three time periods. The first one is the mythic past, in which the gods created and ordered the world. The second one is the mythic present, in which the gods and giants fight over resources, precious objects, and women. Finally, in the mythic future, the world order will come to a fiery end as gods and giants destroy each other and the cosmos, but a new world order will be reborn and inhabited by a new generation of aesir.

The Creation

Even though some of the myths in Norse mythology have chronological gaps and parachronism, Snorri Sturluson's collective myths are one of the most chronologically traceable, and they start with creation. According to "The Creation," life comes from fire and ice. As you may also see from the further reading, there is frequent use of binary oppositions in Norse mythology.

There's a place in the south called Muspell that is filled with flames and a place in the north called Niflheim that is filled with blocks of ice. At the center of these two places lies a spring called Hvergelmir, which is the source of eleven other springs. Between these two realms, there is a void called Ginnungagap, and the rivers that sprang from Hvergelmir drowned into that void. These two elements from two different realms streamed into the same place, and in time, they combined to create a life form, which was the frost giant, Ymir. While Ymir was sleeping, he started to sweat, and from that sweat, he fathered men and women under his armpits and the back of his knee. Then the ice in Ginnungagap melted and created a cow called Audumla. Ymir fed on her, and she also created the first man at the end of the third day by licking a block of ice. The man was called Buri. He had a son called Bor, and he married Bestla, and they had three children: Odin, Vili, and Ve. These three children did not like Ymir because he was a giant, and giants were evil due to their nature. Soon after, their hatred grew, and they attacked and killed Ymir. The blood that came through his wounds caused a flood, and all the frost giants (except for two) drowned. After the death of Ymir, three sons of Bor created the realms from the scrapes in Ymir's body. Odin, Allfather, assembled all of the gods and goddesses, put Asgard (the realm of the Aesir) on top, and put Bifrost (the rainbow bridge) between Midgard (the realm of humans, the Earth) and Asgard. The sacred tree known as Yggdrasil connects all of these realms, and it will remain that way until the serpent/dragon Nidhogg consumes its roots.

Sources Cited:

• Snorri Sturluson, "Prose Edda", The Creation
• John Lindow, "Norse Mythology A Guide to Gods, Heroes, Rituals, and Beliefs", Introduction, Historical Background.