106 thorsdrapa
plan. They would frighten Thor by making a huge clay giant, nine leagues high. They named the clay giant Mokkurkalfi and put inside it the heart of a mare, which was the biggest heart they could find.
Hrungnir’ s heart was made of stone, sharp-edged and three-cornered. His head, too, was made of stone, and so were his shield and club. Together, Mokkurkalfi and Hrungnir made a fearful sight as Thor and his servant, Thjalfi, drew near.
Thjalfi was quick-witted as well as fast. He ran up to the giant and advised him to hold his shield low rather than high, in case Thor attacked him from below. The stone-headed giant flung his shield to the ground and stood on it with his big feet. Then he threw his club at Thor.
Thor threw his thunderbolt hammer at the giant’ s head at the same time. Club and hammer met in midair with an awesome crack and a sizzling bolt of lightning.
The giant’ s stone club shattered into a thousand pieces and fell to the Earth, where to this day, it is said, the splinters may be found in quarries. But Thor’ s hammer zoomed on and struck the giant, who immediately fell dead. His outflung leg pinned Thor’ s head to the ground.
Thjalfi, who had already hacked Mokkurkalfi to pieces, tried to release Thor, but the giant’ s leg was so huge and heavy that even when Odin and the other gods came to help, they could not move it. Thor lay groaning, for a piece of Hrungnir’ s club( made of whetstone) was stuck in his head.
Along came Magni, Thor’ s son, who was only three years old but already enormous. He lifted Hrungnir’ s leg easily, and Thor was at last able to roll free. Thor gave Magni Hrungnir’ s horse, Gullfaxi, as a reward.
Thor’ s head still hurt, so he sent for the clever witch, Groa. She cast some runestones, and whispered some magic words, and the pain went away. Thor was so relieved that he wanted to make Groa happy. He told her that he had rescued her lost husband, Aurvandil. He had carried him across the poisonous stream Elivagar. Now Aurvandil was safe and waiting for Groa.
Groa was so happy at the news that she ran from the hall. In her excitement she forgot to cast a magic spell that would remove the stone from Thor’ s head.
Hrungnir was the strongest of Thor’ s adversaries, so the giants were uneasy about the outcome of the battle. With the defeat of Hrungnir, the war between the gods and the giants came to a turning point. Some mythologists believe that the giants now gave up hope of killing Thor and of storming Asgard.
Thorsdrapa( Þorsdrapa) A late 10th-century poem by Eilif Guthrunarson. Snorri Sturluson included Thorsdrapa in his Prose Edda for an alternative version of the myth“ Thor and the Giant Geirrod”( see under Thor).
Thrall( Slave) The first son conceived by Rig, who was the god Heimdall as he journeyed through Midgard, the land of humans, according to the poem
Rigsthula, a part of the Poetic Edda. In his first stop on this journey, Rig slept between the humans Ai and Edda( great-grandfather and great-grandmother). Thrall was born nine months later. He was an ugly baby with a twisted back, thick fingers, and dark hair. But he was strong and spent his days carrying home bundles of firewood. Thrall grew up to sire, with Thir, the human race of thralls, or slaves and servants.( See also Karl and Jarl.)
Thrivaldi Thrivaldi was a giant with nine heads, one of the many giants and giantesses killed by Thor, who was known for slaying many of the Jotun. Little is known of Thrivaldi. His name survives in the
Skaldskaparmal by Snorri Sturluson, who quotes the work of an early poet, Bragi Broddason, one of the oldest skalds.
Thrud( Strength) Most likely the daughter of the god thor and his golden-haired wife, Sif. Little is known of Thrud, whose name survives in the kennings, or metaphors, used by Old Norse writers of skaldic poetry. In one poem Thor is described as“ father of Thrud.” Scholars speculate from these kennings that the giant Hrungnir abducted Thrud, for he is referred to in one poem as the“ thief of Thrud.” As Thor’ s daughter, Thrud would be a half-sister of Magni and of Modi and a full sister of Lora. Some experts also believe she is the person described in the
Poetic Edda as the betrothed to the dwarf Alvis.
Thrudheim( ÞruÐheimr; Plains of Strength) Thor’ s realm in Asgard, the realm of the gods, according to Grimnismal. Traditionally, it lies near the edge of Asgard and very close to the land of the elves. However, Snorri Sturluson says in Gylfaginning and Hymskringla that the name of Thor’ s realm was Thrudvang.