Poetic Edda Voluspá Discussion I:I-II

Voluspá Discussion I:I-II

Hear me, all ye hallowed beings,

both high and low of Heimdall's children:

thou wilt, Valfather, that I well set forth

the fates of the world which as first I recall.

First, a quick explanation. Odin, the king of the Gods has called forth a "Seeress" to tell the tale of the cycle of the world from before the creation to after the battle of Ragnarok. One could see this as the story teller almost acting in the place of Odin setting the stage for the story that is about to be told. This is a very simple stanza, calling out to the gods and goddesses of Asgard, the children of Heimdall (the guardian of the Bifrost bridge which is the link between Midgard, this world, and Asgard, the world of the Æsir, the gods.)

Now for a little game of conjecture and entertaining random wandering thoughts.

Heimdall, known by, among others, the kenning "The White God" or "The Bright God." He is the guardian of Asgard by way of either (or both) the rainbow bridge Bifrost and/or the world tree Yggdrasil. Heimdall is linked with the God Rig who is known for coming to Midgard, and creating, with three different human women, the classes of mankind. The thrall, the freeman, and the lord, hence the idea that the children of Heimdall are mankind. Now, to Yggdrasil. It is an Ash tree, the link between the nine worlds (mentioned later). What variety? I don't know, but I suppose it is possible that Yggdrasil is a White Ash. If not, there are other descriptions of the tree which state that it is an Ash tree covered with white mud, thereby making it a white ash tree even if it isn't of the White Ash variety. A link. The White God, the White Tree. In later stanzas, the Gods Odin, Vili, and Ve create the first man and first woman out of Ask and Embla. Ask is an ash tree, and some believe Embla to be an Elm. A link. The children of Heimdall, mankind, The world tree Yggdrasil an ash, the first man created from an ash. Now, let's draw some patterns out of the random ideas. Heimdall, the White God, guardian of the link between the worlds, the progenitor of the classes of men. Yggdrasil, the white tree, the entity that links the Nine Worlds. The tree that is of the same species as the tree from which the first man was created.

With this in mind is it unreasonable to think that in this aspect, Heimdall is Yggdrasil itself? If so, then it would follow that to understand aspects of Heimdall would begin one on the path to gaining the knowledge that Odin himself sought. Further, as mankind, being descended from The tree, one could then begin to see the idea that we hold within ourselves the key to the runes. One might even say that though we, ourselves, are not the runes, we are the source. I will expand on this idea later in discussions about Odin's discovery of the runes.

One more thing that caught my eye, consider the following:

Hør mig alle hellige Slægter,

Heimdals Sønner store og smaa!

Valfader vil det, vel skal jeg nævne

Slægters Skjæbner, jeg skued først.

To the point, this is a Danish translation of the above stanza, a language that is arguably closer to the original Old Norse than modern English. Note the second line, Heimdals Sønner...Heimdal's Sons. Now here's while I think this is interesting. My understanding is that the seeress was raised from the dead by Odin. My further understanding is that necromancy is a form of magic called seidh, and is a primarily feminine form of magic taught to Odin by his wife, Frigga. So far, we're fine. I get it. The part that makes me wonder is the part where we're calling forth Heimdal's sons. Why, if Odin is working a primarily feminine magic, is the seeress specifically calling out Heimdal's sons? Of course, the Danish translation is from 1895, so it may just be a reflection of the times.

I call to mind the kin of etins

which long ago did give me life.

Nine worlds I know, the nine abodes

of the glorious world-tree the ground beneath.

Etin, giant. I see these creatures as somewhat complex beings. On the one hand, these guys tend to be known as the enemies of Thor, and with Thor being the protector of the Gods and mankind, the enemies of the Gods and mankind. At the same time the first two lines of the second stanza clearly show that the seeress herself is of etin blood. As we'll later see, the Gods themselves are of etin blood. Further, if we are to accept that mankind are the descendants of the Gods, mankind, we, are of the blood of etins. We, ourselves, share blood with our mortal enemies. It is through these creatures that the seeress has gained the knowledge that she is about to share.

Nine worlds she knows...

• Asgard, the home of the Æsir, the Gods and Goddesses. I tend to see these as having reign over knowledge, emotion, creativity, and generally those things that we see as "human," I suppose.
• Alfheim, the home of the Light Elves. I'll learn more about these as time goes on.
• Vanaheim, the home of the Vanier. I tend to see these as the Gods and Goddesses of nature.
• Midgard, the place where we live. Incedentially, if you've ever read (or seen) The Lord of the Rings you know of this term. "Middle Earth." You'll find that these stories and these people have a surprising influence on the lives of those of us who live in the Western world.
• Jotunheim/Etinheim, the home of the giants.
• Muspellheim, the home of the fire giants.
• Niflheim, the world of primal ice.
• SvartAlfheim, the home of the dark elves, or dwarves.
• Hel, the land of the dead. Another impact on our world. Yes, this is the origin of the place known as Hell. No, it is not necessarily a place of torment. It would be better understood as a land of the dead.

The world tree, the ash. Yggdrasil. The tree itself has a rich mythology, but for now it is enough to know that this is the link between the Nine worlds.

In essence what we're seeing here is the seeress making a statement about the extent of her knowledge. Through her etin lineage she has gained a great deal of knowledge, and this knowledge includes the secrets of the Tree, the worlds that it connects, and the reference to the ground beneath hints at the fact that she knows of the secrets that are hidden around the roots of that tree. She is bragging of her heritage and her knowledge. At the same time, this is a bit of insight in to the mentality of the people of the time. She first tells of her lineage. A blood line that is not always loved, but respected for various things including their ability to see and know. If this were not the case, it would not be mentioned. Once establishing herself as a knowledgeable being, she then goes on to describe the extent of her knowledge.

That's enough for now, more later.