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:
Valgrind heitir,
er stendr velli á
heilog fyr helgum durum;
forn er sú grind,
en þat fáir vitu,
hve hon er lás lokin.
Valgrind heitir,
er stendr velli á
hæilög fyr helgum dýrum;
forn er sú grind,
en þat fairvi tu,
hve hon er í lás um lokin.
22. Valgrind heitir,
er stendr velli á
heilög fyr helgum dyrum;
forn er sú grind,
en þat fáir vitu,
hve hon er í lás lokin.
in Icelandic Poetry
“The Song of Grimnir”
The Yale Magazine, Vol. 16
“The Song of Grimner”
XXII. Far o'er yon hills old Valgrind stands,
Erected by no mortal hands:
Few know the dome's mysterious ways,
Or how the massy bars to raise.
Holy, in the plain
before the holy gate,
Standeth Valgrind; ancient the court, but few
Can tell how late shall close its clanging gates.
in Edda Sæmundar Hinns Frôða
“The Lay of Grimnir”
in Corpus Poeticum Boreale
“The Sayings of the Hooded One”
22. Valgrind is the lattice called,
in the plain that stands,
holy before the holy gates:
ancient is that lattice,
but few only know
how it is closed with lock.
Among “Fragments”:
Wal-gate is the gate's name: it
stands on the holy plain before the holy doors. It is an ancient gate,
but few know how it is locked.
in Edda Saemundar
“The Sayings of Grimnir”
in The Poetic Edda
“Grimnismol: The Ballad of Grimnir”
Out of Sequence:
20. Death-barrier stands, the
sacred gate,
on the plain 'fore the sacred doors ;
old is the lattice and few have learned
how it is closed on the latch.
22. There Valgrind stands, the
sacred gate,
And behind are the holy doors;
Old is the gate, but few there are
Who can tell how it tightly is locked.
in The Poetic Edda
“The Lay of Grimnir”
in The Elder Edda
“The Lay of Grimnir”
22. Valgrind is the gate
that wards the gods,
holy, nigh holy doors;
old is that wicket, nor wot many
with what bolt that gate is barred.
Gate-of-Dead before doors that are
holy
Stands upon hallowed acres:
Old is that gate, and how to bolt it
Few now know.
1969/1989 Patricia Terry
in Poems of the Elder Edda
“The Lay of Grimnir”
in The Poetic Edda
“Grimnir’s Sayings”
7. Guarding Valhalla a holy gate
defends the inner doors;
ancient it is, and few men know
what kind of lock will close it.
22. Valgrind it's called, standing
on the plain,
sacred before the holy doors:
ancient is that gate, but few know
how it is closed up with a lock.
in The Poetic Edda, Vol. III
“The Lay of Grimnir”
The Elder Edda: A Book of Viking Lore
'The Lay of Grimnir"
22. Slain's Gate it is called,
that stands on the plain,
sacred in front of the sacred door.
That gate is old,
but few know
how it is locked by its latch.
22. ‘Corpse-gate, it’s called,
that stands on the plain,
hallowed, before holy doors;
ancient is that gate, but few know,
how that bolt is barred.
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|
Svipdagur kvað: |
Svipdag said: Now tell me, Fjolsvith what I will ask you and what I wish to know: what is the name of this gate the greatest obstacle seen by mortals in the land of the gods? |
|
Fjölsviður kvað: |
Fjolsvith said: Thrymgjoll it is called, and was made by the three sons of Solblindi; a fetter will hold fast any traveller who attempts to open it. |
Here Svipdag inquires about the gate before him, just as in stanza 11 he will ask about the wall which Fjölsviðr (Odin) built from "Leirbrimir's (Ymir's) limbs." Both the gate and the wall are með goðum, "with the gods". Through this gate, which may be the gate of Asgard itself, Svipdag spies the goddess Menglad and her costly halls.
The name Þrymgjöll signifies "the one making a
resounding noise". Grímnismál 22 informs us that "few know how to
open the lock". The entrance through the walls surrounding Asgard is
restricted to a chosen few, and if Þrymgjöll is identical to Valgrind,
Fjölsvinnsmál 10 tells us that any intruders will be fettered by it,
should he attempt to open the lock.
The identity of Sólblindi ('Sun-blinded') and his three sons cannot be
established, although the name suggests that of a dwarf, who turn to
stone in sunlight.
According to the Grímnismál 43, the sons of Ívaldi were great smiths, who created the ship Skidbladnir for Frey. In Skáldskaparmál 43, where they are identifed both as dwarves and as dark-eleves, they make various treasures for the gods including Odin's spear, and golden hair for Thor's bride Sif. Viktor Rydberg has convincingly shown that these semi-divine smiths are functional parallels of the Rbhus in the Rig-Veda, who also forge treasures for the gods and were three in number. The word alf ('elf') has long been recognized as etymologically related to the Sanskrit rbhu (see Jan de Vries, Altnordisches Etymologisches Wörterbuch, 1962, s.v. alfr; J.P. Mallory and D.Q. Adams, Encyclopedia of Indo-European Culture, 1997, s.v elf).
In Viktor Rydberg's reconstruction of the mythic epic, the sons of Ívaldi are identical to the three elven brothers of Völundarkviða. Völund's brother Egil, also known as Aurvandill, is the father of Svipdag. When Svipdag ("bright countenance") ultimately reveals himself as Menglad's fated husband in Fjölsvinsmál 47, he identifes his father as Sólbjartur ("Sun-Bright"). His grandfather's name, which is not stated, but may well be Sólblindi, "Blinding Sun."
The Elves were radiantly beautiful to behold. Snorri calls them Ljósálfar "Light-Elves", stating that the are "fairer than the sun" (fegri en sól sýnum - Gylfaginning 17). In Rydberg's reconstruction, Ivaldi takes Sol as his bride and fathers the swan-maidens, 'southern girls' who are creatures of warmth and light. They become the brides of his three sons. The poem Hrafnagaldur Óðins, verse 6, identifies Idunn as one of Ivaldi's daughters:
|
Dvelur í dölum |
Dwells in dales the curious dís, from Yggdrasill's ash descended; of elven kin, Iðunn was her name, youngest of Ívaldi's elder children. |
If indeed by Sólblindi's sons, the sons of Ivaldi are meant, this indicates that they created Asgard's magical gate some time after the giant-builder constructed the wall around Asgard. In Gylfaginning 42, Snorri says that when Loki disrupted the master-builder's work, three days before the deadline by transforming himself into a mare and luring away the giant's horse Svadilfari, that the "the work had almost reached the gate of the stronghold" (þá var komit mjök at borghliði). This strongly suggests that when the master-builder was killed by Thor, the gate was left unfinished, forcing the gods to enlist other artisans to complete the work. It would make perfect sense if they asked the Sons of Ivaldi, who had previously forged treasures for them, to complete the task.
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