By T.J. LaMoille, The Current 1884
While every nation has a mythology, that of the Norsemen is one of the most interesting. Although the Norsemen were heathen, their mythology, more than any other, seems to hint of the true religion. The Norse, like other mythologies, told of the forces and workings of nature; as, in the thunder-storm, Thor rides in his chariot and strikes with his hammer (Mjolner). In the growth of fresh grass, Loke (heat) cuts off Sifs hair (grass) and the gods force him to make dwarfs forge her golden hair anew. The coming of winter was because Loke (heat) had the blind god Hod (winter) slay Balder (summer). The aurora was Loke's tears over the desolation caused by him.
From giving personal attributes to the causes and effects of nature, the system of mythology expanded into describing the characteristics of those gods; as, Thor's strength was doubled whenever he put on his gloves of steel; double strength was also conferred on him by gilding himself with his belt of steel. Odin had two ravens: Hugin (reflection) and Munin (memory) which perched upon his shoulders and whispered in his ears.
At one time the Norse mythology extended over the present Scandinavia, including Iceland, England, and much of France and Germany. Only in Iceland was written anything like a complete record of it. The Grimms and their school have done much to revive interest in, and increase knowledge of, Norse mythology. The two Eddas, embalmed in Runic, reveal the soul of the history of the early Gothic and Teutonic nations. What an immense influence the Norse and Greek mythologies have had upon Europe's social, political and literary destinies!
Mythologies are developed like languages. Greek mythology grew and nourished in sunny climes. It was nourished by genial influences. Norse mythology also partook of the nature of its parentage and surroundings, being strong and rugged. The Greek mythology is an epic poem; the Norse, a tragedy. The Greek is more human; the Norse, more supernatural. While the Greek has many beautiful parts, it lacks unity; the Norse has more central ideas. The Greek is diffuse in treatment of subjects and results; the Norse, concentrated. The Greek has more grace and beauty; the Norse, more power and grandeur. The Greek is like a vine; the Norse, like an oak.
Comparative mythology is an interesting study. It is curious to note the resemblance of ideas in the three great mythologies: Vedic, Greek, and Norse. From the most important to us, a few examples must here suffice. In the Greek, memory is Mnemosyne, mother of the muses; in the Norse it is Munin, one of the ravens perched upon Odin's shoulders. In the Norse the rainbow is the masculine Heimdal; in the Greek, the feminine Iris. The Norse Balder is the Greek Adonis; Frigg, Balder's mother, mourns his death, while Aphrodite laments for her lover. The Norse Thor, protector of heaven and earth, is the Greek Zeus, father of gods and men. The Greek gods are deathless; the Norse divinities are mortal: Odin falls and is swallowed by the Fenriswolf; Thor vanquishes the Midgard serpent, retreats only nine paces, and dies, poisoned by the serpent's breath; the good and beautiful Balder is slain, at last, by the charm of the fatal mistletoe. The Greek gods abode on the earth, on the crown of Mount Olympus, pavilioned by clouds. The Norse Valhal is in the sky. Above Odin there is a god, of whom chants the skald in Hyndla's Lay of the Elder Edda:
Then comes another
Yet more mighty;
But him I dare not
Venture to name.
Compare that with Paul's words on Mars Hill.
In the Greek mythology the wicked are punished in various ways; as, Tityus, Ixion, Tantalus, Sisyphus, and the Danaides. In the Norse, the wicked suffer in one place: in Nastrand, far from the sun, in a cave whose walls are the wattled bodies of serpents, with their heads all turned into the cave, and emitting streams of poison, in which wade the tormented perjurers, murderers, and adulterers, the Norse's three kinds of sinners.
One great reason for the Norse mythology being superior to the Greek is its decency. It is just as poetical as the Greek. It gives an insight of the thoughts and deeds of the Northern peoples. These three reasons, although others might be given, should commend the study of Norse mythology.
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