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Norse legends and mythsThe early Scandinavian peoples, who lived in the countries now called Sweden, Denmark, Norway and Iceland, invented a series of tales about the formation of the Earth and the activities of the gods and goddesses they believed in. These tales, which make up the Norse mythology, are contained in large collections, known as the Eddas.
Norse legends and mythsNibelungs. About this mysterious people is told in Viking mythology and "Song of the Nibelungs" which was written about 1200 years ago by an unknown bards from Germany and Scandinavia. According to the Eddas, before the Earth was formed, there were only two vague divisions of the Universe - a world of mist and a world of light. Fountains in the world of mist froze into ice. Warm winds from the other world melted some of the ice to vapor. From this vapor, so the story goes, sprang the giant Ymir and his children. Later, a god was created. He married a giant and they had three children: Odin, Vili and Ve. The legends relate how these three killed Ymir and created from his body the homes of the gods, the giants, and man, and a region of darkness where the dead who had not died in battle were forced to dwell. By Norse legends and myths, Odin became chief among the gods, and was said to inhabit a magnificent palace, Valhalla. There he sat with two ravens perched on his shoulders. The Norsemen had a demon god, called Loki. Many stories tell of his treachery. Balder, son of Odin, was handsome, wise and popular. His mother, Frigga, made all living and non-living things swear never to harm Balder. But Loki found out that Frigga had forgotten to ask one plant - the mistletoe - to spare Balder. He tricked Hod, the blind god of night, into killing Balder by throwing a piece of mistletoe at him. The death of Balder was the beginning of the end. Loki led the giants and demons in a gigantic war against the gods. One by one the gods perished, even Odin and Thor. The end of the gods brought the doom of mankind. Earth, sky, stars and all things collapsed into the dark nothingness from which everything had come. You can read these articles also: |
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Wikipedy.com @ - Online Encyclopedia |
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