The Poetic Edda: A Study Guide
The Speech of the Masked One
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MS No. 2365 4to [R]
AM 748 I 4to [A]
Normalized Text:
þar er en gullbjarta
Valhlall* við of þrvmir;
en þar Hroftr kýss
hverjan dag
vápndauða vera.
*Corrected to ‘(v)alhall’ in the margin. The initial ‘v’ is not visible.
8. Glaðsheimr ær hinn fimti,
þar er hin gullbjarta
Valhöll víð of þrumir;
en þar Hroftr kýss
hverjan dag
vápndauða vera.
8. Glaðsheimr heitir inn fimmti,
þar er in gullbjarta
Valhöll víð of þrumir;
en þar Hroftr kýss
hverjan dag
vápndauða vera.
in Icelandic Poetry
“The Song of Grimnir”
The Yale Magazine, Vol. 16
“The Song of Grimner”
VIII.
Gladsheimer next succeeds --- the land,
Where bright Valhalla's towers stand:
In burnish'd gold they proudly rise,
And lose their radiance in the skies.
Hropter there with potent word,
Dooms myriads daily to the sword.
The fifth is Gladsheim, where, brilliant as gold,
Ariseth Valhalla's spacious dome, whither
Hropter daily calleth men slain by the sword.
in Edda Sæmundar Hinns Frôða
“The Lay of Grimnir”
in Corpus Poeticum Boreale
“The Sayings of the Hooded One”
8. Gladsheim the fifth is named,
there the golden-bright
Valhall stands spacious,
there Hropt selects
each day those men
who die by weapons.
where the gold-bright wide Walhall towers;
there the Sage (Woden) chooses every day weapon-dead men.
in Edda Saemundar
“The Sayings of Grimnir”
in The Poetic Edda
“Grimnismol: The Ballad of Grimnir”
8. The fifth is called Glad-home, and gold-bright Valholl,
spacious, lies in its midst :
there Odin shall choose his own each day
of the warriors fallen in war.
8. Odin, here called Hropt
8. The fifth is Glathsheim, and gold-bright there
Stands Valhall stretching wide;
And there does Othin each day choose
The men who have fallen in fight.
in The Poetic Edda
“The Lay of Grimnir”
in The Elder Edda
“The Lay of Grimnir”
8. Gladhome is hight the fifth where golden
shimm'ring
Valholl is widely spread out;
here Othin chooses every day
weapon-slain warriors.
8. The fifth Glad-Home where, golden-bright
The Hall of Valhalla stands:
There Hropt, the Doomer, daily chooses
Warriors slain by weapons.
in The Poetic Edda
“Grimnir’s Sayings”
in The Eddas: The Keys to the Mysteries of the North
The Lay of Grimnir
8. Gladsheim a fifth is called, there gold-bright Valhall
rises peacefully, seen from afar;
there Odin chooses every day
those dead in combat.
8. The fifth is called Gladhome
There stands Valhalla fast and wide,
where Hropt chooses
the weapon slain every day.
2011 Andy Orchard
The Elder Edda: A Book of Viking Lore
'The Lay of Grimnir"
in The Poetic Edda, Vol. III: Mythological Poems
“The Lay of Grimnir”
8. ‘Happy-home the fifth is called, where, gold-bright
Slain-hall quietly lies;
there Hropt makes his choice each day
from men weapon-dead.
where, gleaming with gold,
the Hall of the Slain Men stretches
into space,
and there the Hidden One
each day elects
the men who met death by weapons.
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Valhall: References in Eddic Poetry
The environment of and way to Valhall soon become a major theme
in this poem. here are all of the references to Valhalla in the sources.
Surprisingly few Eddic poems mention Valhall by name. According to
Robert Kellogg’s Concordance to Eddic Poetry, they are:
Voluspa 33:
He [Vali] never washed hands
never combed head,
till he bore to the pyre
Baldr’s adversary—
while Frigg wept
In Fen Halls
for Valhöll’s woe. [Ursula Dronke tr.]
Grimnismal 8:
Gladsheim a fifth is called, there gold-bright Valhall
rises peacefully, seen from afar;
there Odin chooses every day
those dead in combat. [Carolyne Larrington tr.]
Grimnismal 23:
Five hundred doors and forty
I think are in Valhall;
Eight hundreds of warriors will go together from one door
When they go to fight the wolf. [Carolyne Larrington tr.]
Hyndluljod 1:
“Wake up, girl of girls, wake up my friend,
Hyndla, sister, who lives in a rock cave!
Now it’s the darkest of darkness, we two shall ride
To Valhall, to the sacred sanctuary. [Carolyne Larrington tr.]
[Larrington also slips the phrases “the road to Valhall” and “on the way
to Valhall” into verses 5 and 6 of this poem, but they do not appear in
the Old Icelandic]
This doesn’t exhaust our eddic references to Valhall, however. It is
referred to in other passages as well, but not by name. It is called
“Odin’s hall”, commonly using an epithet of Odin:
Grimnismal 25 and 26 refer to it as “höllu á Herjaföðrs”— the hall of
the Father-of-Hosts. Although it appears (in variant) in both
manuscripts, the name Herjaföðr does not fit the meter and is usually
omitted in modern Icelandic editions. It is thought to be a later
addition.
Vafthrudnismal 40-41 refer to it as Óðins túnum, “Odin’s courtyards.”
Helgakvida Hundingsbana II, 49-50, make a fairly clear reference to
Valhalla as sölum Óðins “Odin’s hall.” A rooster wakes the heroes there.
Havamal 111 may refer to the same place as Háva höllu, “the High One’s
hall”
Snorri mentions Glaðsheimr in Gylfaginning 14. The U manuscript of
Snorri’s text reads Glaðheimr.
Gylfaginning 14: “In the beginning he established rulers and bade them
decide with him the destinies of men and be in charge of the government
of the city. This was in the place called Idavoll in the centre of the
city. It was the first act to build the temple that their thrones stand
in, twelve in addition to the throne that belongs to All-father. This
building is the best that is built on earth and the biggest. Outside and
inside it seems like nothing but gold. This building is the best that is
built on earth and the place is called Gladsheim. They built another
hall, this was the sanctuary that belonged to the goddesses, and it was
very beautiful. This building they called Vingolf.” [Anthony Faulkes’
tr.]
[Vingolf does not occur in the generally accepted Eddic canon of poems.
The name does appear in Hrafnagaldur Odins 17, however, as a general
hall for the gods.
|
Vingólf tóku |
Arrived at
Vingólf Viðar's thains, (Odin’s men—Heimdall, Bragi and Loki) by Fornjót's sons (wind and sea) both transported; they walk within, greet the Æsir forthwith at Yggur's (Odin’s) merry ale-feast: |
|
Bekkjarsett
|
Seated on benches at Bölverk's (Odin’s) bidding the tribe of gods were with Sæhrímnir sated; Skögul, at the tables, with horns meted out Mímir's mead from Hnikar's (Odin’s) vat. |
Valhall: References in Snorri's Edda
Many of Snorri’s references to Valhalla are based on verses of
Grimnismal. Often Snorri cites the verse as evidence of his prose
description.
The Prose Edda,
Gylfaginning (Arthur Broeder translation):
2. “…he saw there a hall so high that he could not easily make out the
top of it: its thatching was laid with golden shields after the fashion
of a shingled roof. So also says Thjódólfr of Hvin, that Valhall was
thatched with shields:
On their backs they let beam, | sore battered with stones,
Odin's hall-shingles, | the shrewd sea-farers.
20. “Odin is called Allfather because he is father of all the gods. He
is also called Father of the Slain, because all those that fall in
battle are the sons of his adopt on; for them he appoints Valhall ("Hall
of the Slain") and Vingólf ("Friendly Floor"), and they are then called
Champions. He is also called God of the Hanged, God of Gods, God of
Cargoes; and he has also been named in many more ways, after he had come
to King Geirrödr.”
38. “Then said Gangleri: "Thou sayest that all those men who have fallen
in battle from the beginning of the world are now come to Odin in
Valhall. What has he to give them for food? I should think that a very
great host must be there." Then Hárr answered: "That which thou sayest
is true: a very mighty multitude is there, but many more shall be,
notwithstanding which it will seem all too small, in the time when the
Wolf shall come. But never is so vast a multitude in Valhall that the
flesh of that boar shall fail, which s called Sæhrímnir; he is boiled
every day and is whole at evening. But this question which thou askest
now: I think it likelier that few may be so wise as to be able to report
truthfully concerning it. His name who roasts is Andhrímnir, and the
kettle is Eldhrímnir; so it is said here:
Andhrímnir | has in Eldhrímnir
Sæhrímnir sodden,
Best of hams; | yet how few know
With what food the champions are fed."
Then said Gangleri: "Has Odin the same fare as the champions?" Hárr
answered: "That food which stands on his board he gives to two wolves
which he has, called Geri ("Ravener") and Freki ("Glutton, greedy"); but
no food does he need; wine is both food and drink to him; so it says
here:
Geri and Freki | the war-mighty glutteth,
The glorious God of Hosts;
But on wine alone | the weapon-glorious
Odin aye liveth.
[Dead warriors on the battlefield are known as “food of wolves” and
“food of ravens”. Odin feeds the meat of the boar Sæhrimnir to his
wolves, thus equating them with the animal sacrifice. The Einherjar who
die in battle can be seen as human sacrifices, in a manner of speaking.
With that food (i.e. human bodies) the Einherjar are “fed”. In other
words, by this means their numbers are increased. They eat the sacrifice
and are the sacrifice, symbolically speaking.
This makes the prefixes, And- Eld- and Sæ- subject to closer
examination, to see if they carry symbolic meaning as well. And- means
spirit. Eld-means fire and Sæ- means sea. See
Grímnismál 18]
39. “Then said Gangleri: "What have the champions to drink, that may
suffice them as abundantly as the food? Or is water drunk there?"' Then
said Hárr: "Now thou askest strangely; as if Allfather would invite to
him kings or earls or other men of might and would give them water to
drink! I know, by my faith! that many a man comes to Valhall who would
think he had bought his drink of water dearly, if there were not better
cheer to be had there, he who before had suffered wounds and burning
pain unto death. I can tell thee a different tale of this. The she-goat,
she who is called Heidrún, stands up in Valhall and bites the needles
from the limb of that tree which is very famous, and is called Lærádr;
and from her udders mead runs so copiously, that she fills a tun every
day.”
[See Grímnismál 25. Heiðrún provides eternal drink, just as Sæhrimnir provides eternal
meat for the Einherjar. Thor’s goats play a similar role. Even the
Einherjar themselves regenerate whole again after a day’s combat.
Heidrun’s position on the roof of Valhalla and eating leaves of
Yggdrassil, suggest that Valhall is built around the bole of the Tree,
like the hall described in
Volusungasaga 1-2.]
40. “Then said Gangleri: "These are marvellous tidings which thou now
tellest. A wondrous great house Valhall must be; it must often be
exceeding crowded before the doors." Then Hárr answered: "Why dost thou
not ask how many doors there are in the hall, or how great? If thou
hearest that told, then thou wilt say that it is strange indeed if
whosoever will may not go out and in; but it may be said truly that it
is no more crowded to find place therein than to enter into it; here
thou mayest read in Grímnismál:
Five hundred doors | and forty more
So I deem stand in Valhall;
Eight hundred champions | go out at each door
When they fare to fight with the Wolf."
41. “Then said Gangleri: "A very mighty multitude of men is in Valhall,
so that, by my faith, Odin is a very great chieftain, since he commands
so large an army. Now what is the sport of the champions, when they are
not fighting?" Hárr replied: "Every day, as soon as they are clothed,
they straightway put on their armor and go out into the court and fight,
and fell each other. That is their sport; and when the time draws near
to undern-meal, they ride home to Valhall and sit down to drink, even as
is said here:
All the Einherjar | in Odin's court
Deal out blows every day;
The slain they choose | and ride from the strife,
Sit later in love together.
[Saxo Book 1 mentions armies of dead men in the underworld, who fight
and are renewed each day.
Sorli's Thattur speaks of an undying army, reviving to fight once they
fall, until the spell is broken by a Christian man.
The concept of reincarnation may be present here. ]
49. “Frigg: 'Neither weapons nor trees may hurt Baldr: I have taken
oaths of them all.' Then the woman asked: 'Have all things taken oaths
to spare Baldr?' and Frigg answered: 'There grows a tree-sprout alone
westward of Valhall: it is called Mistletoe; I thought it too young to
ask the oath of.' Then straightway the woman turned away; but Loki took
Mistletoe and pulled it up and went to the Thing.”
The Prose Edda,
Skáldskaparmál:
9. Odin heiti and Odin-kenningar (quotes Glúmr Geirason & Eirikrsmal)
Here is an example of this metaphor, that in poesy the earth is called
the Wife of Odin. Here is told what Eyvindr sang:
Hermódr and Bragi,
Spake Hropta-Týr.
Go ye to greet the Prince;
For a king who seemeth
A champion cometh
To the hall hither.
24. “Hrungnir was so filled with the giant's frenzy that he took no heed
until he had come in beyond the gates of Ásgard. When he came to the
hall-door, the Æsir invited him to drink. He went within and ordered
drink to be brought to him, and then those flagons were brought in from
which Thor was wont to drink; and Hrungnir swilled from each in turn.
But when he had become drunken, then big words were not wanting: he
boasted that he would lift up Valhall and carry it to Jötunheim, and
sink Ásgard and kill all the gods, save that he would take Freyja and
Sif home with him. Freyja alone dared pour for him; and he vowed that he
would drink all the ale of the Æsir. But when his overbearing insolence
became tiresome to the Æsir, they called on the name of Thor.”
41. “When the gods had sat down in their places, straightway Ægir had
bright gold brought in onto the floor of the hall, and the gold gave
forth light and illumined the hall like fire: and it was used there for
lights at his banquet, even as in Valhall swords were used in place of
fire.”
42. "Why is gold called the Needles, or Leaves; of Glasir? In Ásgard,
before the doors of Valhall, there stands a grove which is called
Glasir, and its leafage is all red gold, even as is sung here:
Glasir stands
With golden leafage
Before the High God's halls.
Far and wide, this tree is the fairest known among gods and men.
[This grove's position outside of Valhall’s door, like Heidrun’s position
on the roof, suggest that these are the golden leaves the World-Tree. In
the poem
Fjölvinnsmál, which speaks of “Mimir’s tree”
(20), we encounter the
words Vedurglasir and Aurglasir, the 'Glasir of the Weather' and the
'Glasir of the Mud' (24, 28). A golden cocks sits on the boughs of 'Weather-glasir'.
(Cf the
cock Gullinkambi in Völuspá). An ash-colored giantess with a sword sits below.
She is designated the "Eir of Aur-glasir”. The names probably refer to the top half and the
bottom half of the world-tree: one being exposed to weather and the
other planted in the mud.]
Valhall: References in Saga Literature
Icelandic Sagas:
Njals’s Saga 79:
After that they took their weapons when all men were in their
beds. Hogni takes down the bill, and it gave a sharp ringing
sound.
Rannveig sprang up in great wrath and said, "Who touches the
bill, when I forbade every one to lay hand on it?"
"I mean," says Hogni, "to bring it to my father, that he may bear
it with him to Valhalla, and have it with him when the warriors
meet."
"Rather shalt thou now bear it," she answered, "and avenge thy
father; for the bill has spoken of one man's death or more."
Njal’s Saga 88:
"The gods can have naught to do with it," says the earl; "a man
must have burnt the shrine, and borne the gods out; but the gods
do not avenge everything on the spot. That man who has done this
will no doubt be driven away out of Valhalla, and never come in
thither."
Gisla Saga Surssonar 14:
“When they had decked out Vestein’s body according to the ways of the time,
Thorgrim went to Gisli and said: “It is custome to tie Hel-shoes to the men that
they may wear themn on their journey to Valhalla, and I will do that for
Vestein.” And when he had done this, he said “If these come loose, then I don’t
know how to bind Hel-shoes.”
Fornaldarsögur:
Hervarar Saga og Heidreks 3:
“Hjalmar spoke: “Wherever did we come to a battle, where you go forward in front
of me? That's why you want to fight with Angantyr, because you think that will
get you more glory. Well, I'm the leader of this dueling expedition. In Sweden I
promised the king's daughter not to let you or anyone else go into this duel in
front of me. So I should fight Angantyr.” And he drew his sword then and stepped
up towards Angantyr, and they dedicated each other to Valhall. And they didn't
leave long between each heavy stroke.
Gautreks Saga 1:
“'I'm called Snotra, because I'm the most intelligent. My sisters are called
Hjotra and Fjotra,' she said. 'There's a precipice called Gillings Bluff near
the farm, and we call its peak Family Cliff. The drop's so great there's not a
living creature could ever survive it. It's called Family Cliff simply because
we use it to cut down the size of our family whenever something extraordinary
happens, and in this way our elders are allowed to die straight off without
having to suffer any illnesses. And then they can go straight to Odin, while
their children are spared all the trouble and expense of having to take care of
them. Every member of our family is free to use this facility offered by the
cliff, so there's no need for any of us to live in famine or poverty, or put up
with other misfortunes that might happen to us.
'I hope you realize, my father thinks it quite extraordinary, your coming to our
house. It would have been remarkable enough for any stranger to take a meal with
us, but this really is a marvel, that a king, cold and naked, should have been
to our house. There's no precedent for it, so my father and mother have decided
to share out the inheritance tomorrow between me and my brothers and sisters.
After that they're going to take the slave with them and pass on over Family
Cliff on the way to Valhalla. My father feels that's the least reward he could
give the slave for trying to bar your way into the house, to let the fellow
share this bliss with him. Besides, he's quite sure Odin won't ever receive the
slave unless he goes with him."
Gautreks Saga 2:
'What an extraordinary thing to happen,' he said, 'a king has paid us a visit,
eaten us out of house and home and then taken away what we could least afford to
lose. It's clear to me that we won't be able to stay together any longer as one
family since we're reduced to poverty. That's why I've gathered together all my
things. And now I'm going to divide them up between my sons. I'm going to take
my wife along to Valhalla, and my slave as well, since it's the least I can do
to repay him for his faithful service, to let him go there with me.'
'Gilling is to have my fine ox, to share with his sister Snotra. Fjolmod and his
sister Hjotra are to have my bars of gold, Imsigull and his sister Fjotra all my
cornfields. And now I want to implore you, my children, not to add to the
family, so that you'll be able to preserve what you've inherited.'
When Skinflint had said all he wanted, the family climbed up to Gillings Bluff.
After that the young people helped their parents to pass on over Family Cliff,
and off they went, merry and bright, on the way to Odin.
Hrolfs Saga Kraka ok Kappa Hans 51:
Bodvar said, "Vast is the host of Skuld, and I suspect now that the dead move
here and rise up again and fight against us, and it won't be easy to fight with
zombies, and however many limbs may be cloven, and shields shivered, helm and
hauberk hacked apart, and however many chiefs we cut down, these dead ones are
the grimmest to contend with, and we haven't the power to combat this, but where
is that champion of King Hrolf, who most questioned my courage and kept
challenging me to come out, till I answered him? I don't see him now, and I'm
not one to criticise people."
Then said Hjalti, "You speak true, you are no slanderer. Here stands that man,
Hjalti by name, and now I have some work at hand, and it's not far between us,
and I'm in need of gallant lads, for all my armour is hewn away, foster-brother,
although I reckon I'm battling all out, and now I'm not avenging all my blows,
but this is no time to hold back, if we're going to stay in Valhall this
evening, and we've certainly not seen the like of this before, though we've had
enough warnings of what's now come."
Sögubrot af Nokkrum Fornkonungum í Dana ok Svíaveldi 9:
Ok þá lét Hringr konungr taka þann söðul, er hann sjálfr hafði riðit í, ok gaf
þann Haraldi konungi, frænda sínum, ok bað hann gera hvárt, er hann vildi, ríða
til Valhallar eða aka.
“… and asked him if he would whether ride or drive to Valhalla.”
Heimskringla:
Ynglingasaga 8:
“Odin established the same law in his land that had been in
force
in Asaland. Thus he established by law that all dead men should be burned,
and their belongings laid with them upon the pile, and the ashes be cast into
the sea or buried in the earth. Thus, said he, every one will come to
Valhalla with the riches he had with him upon the pile; and he would also enjoy
whatever he himself had buried in the earth.”
Hakonar saga Adalsteinsfostra 32:
“They spoke over his grave, as heathen people are used to do, and wished him in
Valhal. Eyvind Skaldaspiller composed a poem on the death of King Hakon,
and on how well he was received in Valhal. The poem is called
"Hakonarmal": --
"In Odin's hall an empty place
Stands for a king of Yngve's race;
`Go, my valkyries,' Odin said,
`Go forth, my angels of the dead,
Gondul and Skogul, to the plain
Drenched with the battle's bloody rain,
And to the dying Hakon tell,
Here in Valhal shall he dwell.'
Fagrskinna:
Eiriksmal:
"Odin wakes in the morning and cries, as he opens his eyes, with his dream still
fresh in his mind: -- `What dreams are these? I thought I arose before daybreak
to make Valhal ready for a host of slain. I woke up the host of the chosen. I
bade them ride up to strew the benches, and to till up the beer-vats, and I bade
valkyries to bear the wine, as if a king were coming. I look for the coming of
some noble chiefs from the earth, wherefore my heart is glad.'
"Brage, Odin's counsellor, now wakes, as a great din is heard without, and calls
out: -- `What is that thundering? as if a thousand men or some great host were
tramping on -- the walls and the benches are creaking withal -- as if Balder was
coming back to the ball of Odin?'
"Odin answers: -- `Surely thou speakest foolishly, good Brage, although thou art
very wise. It thunders for Eirik the king, that is coming to the hall of Odin.'
"Then turning to his heroes, he cries: -- `Sigmund and Sinfjotle, rise in haste
and go forth to meet the prince! Bid him in if it be Eirik, for it is he whom I
look for.'
"Sigmund answers: -- `Why lookest thou more for Eirik, the king, to Odin's hall,
than for other kings?'
"Odin answers: -- `Because he has reddened his brand, and borne his bloody sword
in many a land.'
"Quoth Sigmund: -- `Why didst thou rob him, the chosen king of victory then,
seeing thou thoughtest him so brave?'
"Odin answered: -- `Because it is not surely to be known, when the grey wolf
shall come upon the seat of the god.'
SECOND SCENE. -- Without Valhal. Sigmund and Sinfjotle go outside the hall and
meet Eirik.
"Quoth Sigmund: -- `Hail to thee, Eirik, be welcome here, and come into the
hall, thou gallant king! Now I will ask thee, what kings are these that follow
thee from the clash of the sword edges?'
"Eirik answers: -- `They are five kings; I will tell thee all their names; I
myself am the sixth (the names followed in the song, whereof the rest is lost.)
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