Dastaan World Chapter 10 - Journey | Page 11

Essence of Norse Mythology Norse tradition, drawn from various sources, describes four general phases for the world: 1. the creation of the world, and everything in it 2. the beginning of time 3. Ragnarök - the destruction of the world 4. the rise of a new world from the sea Snorri’s account tells of two opposing realms before there was anything else: Niflheim and Muspelheim, representing ice and fire respectively. Between them lay Ginnungagap, an empty void which should have kept the two realms apart but didn’t. Once they met, the fires of Muspelheim melted Niflheim’s ice, and from it issued, dripping wet, Ymir the giant and Audhumla the cow. Audhumla uncovered the forefather of the gods, Búri, by licking the ice. Borr, son of Búri, and the giantess Bestla sired the first gods: Odin, Vili, and Vé. The three gods combined to kill Ymir, and taking advantage of his size, used his remains to fashion the world. Ymir’s flesh became the earth, and his skull the sky. His bones were raised as mountains, and his blood became the sea. Out of two trees - or pieces of wood - were the first human couple created: Ask and Embla.