Loki and his family
Howard David Johnson

Howard David Johnson

Loki, in Scandinavian mythology, is a malevolent god, a malicious trickster among the Aesir, and a lover of shape-shifting. He started out with pranks and mischief, but over time he became the true embodiment of evil and accelerated Ragnarok, the death of the gods and the whole world.

Loki simply could not resist cheating and putting the gods in a difficult position. However, his ingenuity often rescued them from mortal danger, take, for example, the story of the kidnapping of the keeper of the rejuvenating apples Idunn. It was Loki who was responsible for the death of the luminous god Balder: he handed the mistletoe arrow that brought death to the blind god Höd.

Carl Hansen, 1861

Sometimes Loki, saving himself, was ready to sacrifice the life of any god, as in the case of the thunderer Thor. When Loki lured the unarmed Thor into the palace of the giant Geirrod, only the wonderful staff and iron gauntlets lent by the good giantess Grid saved Thor from death. Loki deceived his friend only because this was the price set by Geirrod for his own liberation.

Having imprudently killed Otr in the guise of an otter, Loki tried to appease the father of the murdered young man, for which he had to steal the treasures of the evil dwarf.

The same Loki came up with a risky plan to get Thor's hammer, stolen by the dwarves and falling into the hands of the giant Thrym. The evil god learned that in exchange for the giant’s hammer the goddess of fertility Freya had to be given as his wife, and persuaded Thor to go to Thrym in her clothes. When Thrym showed the hammer to the imaginary bride, Thor in the blink of an eye snatched his weapon from him and killed all the giants on the spot.

James Penrose, 1870

The gods tolerated Loki's presence in Asgard even after he engineered the murder of Odin's son, Balder. But when Loki, at a feast with the sea giant Aegir, began to harass everyone with his insults and ridicule, the patience of the gods came to an end. Trying to escape from the angry guests, Loki turned into a salmon, but from the heights of Asgard, Odin noticed a fish hiding in a waterfall. Loki grabbed and bound his own son with the intestines, and the giantess Skadi, Njord's wife, hung a snake over the god's head, which exuded a burning poison that dripped onto his face. So he waited for Ragnarok.

In the last battle of gods and monsters, Loki had to lead the army of evil and meet death at the hands of the god Heimdall. Loki was married twice, first to the giantess Angrboda, who gave birth to the monsters Fenrir, Jormungandr and Hel; all three inherited the dark sides of their father's character. His second wife was Sigunn, with whom he had two sons, Vali and Narvi. Despite all her husband’s atrocities, Sigunn remained faithful to him and eased his suffering by placing a cup under the dripping poison. But when the cup was filled and the wife went to empty it, the poison dripped onto Loki’s face, causing him to shudder desperately, which was believed to be the cause of earthquakes.

The Scandinavian god Loki is very popular; he is a bright, pathetic character who usually evokes a smile and the most positive emotions, despite the fact that the aces and people have suffered a lot because of his antics. Loki is a unique god in many ways. He lives with the Aesir in Asgard, but he himself comes from the family of Jotuns, his father is Farbauti ("cruelly striking"), and his mother is Lauveya ("island of larches"). The Ases knew Lauveya under the name Nal, which means “needle”. Nal brought little Loki to Asgard after the death of Farbauti and soon died herself, presumably from grief.

Loki is a god, but you need to understand that he is fundamentally different from those with whom he lives, from the Aesir and Vanir of Asgard. In general, this is a classic trickster, that is, a “deceiver”, “cunning”. Actually, the aces accepted him for his incredibly resourceful mind and ability to find a way out of any situation. Thus, Loki is the god of deception, witchcraft, variability, cunning, deceit, intrigue, backstage. Loki is also the god of humanity, in the sense that among all the inhabitants of Asgard, he most closely resembles a mere mortal. He is in constant search, he is interested in the secrets of the Universe, he asks questions that others simply do not think about. But his thoughts are not always sublime. Loki is a vengeful, envious, dishonest god. However, he is not so bad, because he knows compassion and sacrifice (even if forced). Suffice it to recall the corresponding episode of the Prose Edda, which tells how Loki, in the form of a mare, distracts the magical stallion Svadilfari, thanks to which the master Jotun was unable to build an impregnable wall around Midgard in one winter. So Loki saved Freya from a terrible marriage and helped the Aesir maintain their dignity.

Another Eddic song tells how Loki (the god of mischief, among other things) once again saves the honor of Asgard, becoming the only one who managed to make Skadi, the daughter of the giant Tjazzi, laugh, who stole Idunn and her golden apples, which granted immortality to the gods. In addition, it is Loki in “The Song of Sigurd” who goes to the Brisings for gold, which should be a ransom for the killed otter, thus saving Odin and Hoenir. Of course, Loki is an ambiguous god, in the sense that, unlike other heroes of Scandinavian legends, his actions are ambivalent, sometimes he helps the Aesir and people, and sometimes his actions harm them. In addition, we must not forget that during Ragnarok, Loki will fight on the side of Hel against the Aesir and will come into mortal combat with Heimdal.

Scandinavian god Loki: etymology, origin, family

The god Loki plays one of the key roles in Scandinavian mythology, but the question of the origin of his name still remains open. One of the main versions (which supports the idea that Loki is the god of fire, an element with a changeable disposition) is based on the assumption that the word “Loki” comes from the more ancient “log”, which means “fire” in Old Norse " It is also suggested that Loki is a derivative of the Old Icelandic "lúka", which means "to lock, complete". There are other versions according to which the Scandinavian god Loki is close to the cult of the bear (from the Lithuanian “lokys” - “bear”) or the cult of the wolf (from the Greek “Λύκος” - “wolf”).

Above was a myth that says that Loki is a god from the family of Jotuns, and not the Aesir. But there are other legends that contradict this version. Some researchers believe that the Scandinavian god Loki was the son of the primordial frost giant Ymir, probably his firstborn, who appeared long before Odin. According to this version, his brothers and sisters are Hler (water), Ran (sea), Kari (air), and then the idea that Loki himself is the god of fire seems quite logical.

The Scandinavian god Loki is not alone, in the sense that he has a family, and what a family! His first wife is a powerful giantess warrior, and his children are known to all of us - the goddess Helheim named Hel, the chthonic serpent Jormungandr, the hellish wolf Fenrir. From his second wife, Sigyn (her origins are unclear), the Scandinavian god Loki has two children - Vali and Narvi. The fate of this couple is very sad. After the god Loki (in Scandinavian mythology, this plot is an exception in many ways) finally “got” the Aesir with his antics, his eldest son (apparently Vali) was turned into a wolf and set against the younger one (Narvi). With the intestines of the murdered Narvi, Loki was tied to a rock, above which a huge poisonous snake was placed. Poison drips onto Loki’s face and he writhes in unbearable pain (the Scandinavians believed that this was the cause of earthquakes). However, this does not happen often, as Sigyn (an allegory of a faithful wife and inconsolable mother) holds a cup over Loki's face, thus protecting him from the poison. But when the cup overflows, Sigyn moves away to pour out the poison, and then the poison dripping from the snake’s mouth lands on Loki’s face.

God Loki in Scandinavian mythology: (un)justly condemned?

The god Loki plays an important plot-forming role in Scandinavian mythology. As we have already found out, he often interfered with the aces, but also helped them to the same extent. Such things as Gungnir (Odin's spear), Mjolnir (Thor's hammer), Skidbladnir (Frey's ship), Draupnir (Balder's ring), Gullinbursti (Frey's boar) appeared among the rulers of Asgard precisely thanks to the cunning and wisdom of the god Loki. In Scandinavian mythology, it is difficult to find a more successful “getter” of magical artifacts! However, the god Loki (pictures of him can be found in ancient Icelandic lists) was condemned to eternal torment. Strictly speaking, in the context of this story, it is not surprising that in the last battle he fights the Aesir on the side of his daughter.

What does the god Loki look like? The image of this cunning man is given in the Prose Edda by Snorius Sturlusson, where Loki is short and handsome, probably with long hair and a beard. This description corresponds to the famous image of the god Loki in the pages of the Edda Oblongata, a seventeenth-century Icelandic manuscript. In general, images of the god Loki are widely represented by European painters of the 18th-19th centuries, but it is difficult to say how objective they are. The English paintings of the 11th century are much more interesting, but there the emphasis is more on his wife Sigiyun, and not on the god Loki himself. Pictures of modern origin often have no relation to the historical originals, especially when we are talking about Hiddleston in the image of a charismatic Marvel villain.

In conclusion, it is worth noting that the god Loki (images from the original Icelandic sources are presented above; they are easy to distinguish from later ones by their characteristic technique) is indeed the most controversial character in Scandinavian mythology. In this sense, one cannot help but recall the famous “Squabble of Loki” from the Elder Edda. In that episode, the trickster accuses the gods and goddesses of Asgard of cowardice, lies, dishonor and unchastity, and all his accusations are fair. In addition, Loki admits his guilt for the death of Balder. We often forget this episode, although, in all likelihood, it is in it that the true image of the hero is revealed.

“In a hole in the middle of the forest I saw him tied up

The misfortune of the instigator, Loki the accursed.

Sigin sits there, dying in suffering.

Over the torment of her husband..."

"Divination of the Völva"

After Thor, interest in the image of Loki, thanks to the interesting script of the film and the excellent acting of Tom Hiddleston, increased incredibly. After The Avengers, it is already obvious that in all subsequent films of this series, Loki will be one of the heroes - he fits so firmly into the plot.

This post contains some information about who the real, Scandinavian Loki is, as well as where else you can find Loki in literature.

Loki (also Loft, Lodur, Hvedrung) is one of the “main heroes” of Scandinavian mythology. He appears in many stories as an important element - sometimes these are stories about Loki himself, sometimes about abstract things. In any case, the figure of Loki is one of the central ones within the framework of the ancient Scandinavian picture of the world.

There are, in fact, two Lokis, no matter how strange it may sound. They differ from each other in character, deeds and, even more importantly, origin.

Thus, Loki, who became the prototype for the hero of the movie “Thor” and “The Avengers,” was the son of the jotun Farbauti and the citizen Lauveya.

Another Loki, the one who is Lodur, and who, in addition, is also Yafnhar and Odin knows who else, is a figure so dark that about him I will write only what I managed to understand from various sources: this is Odin’s brother (he had two brothers , who are considered his own hypostases, and who, nevertheless, ruled in his absence and even shared one wife with him, their names were Vili and Ve), he is the lord of Fire and he, together with Odin, created Midgard from the body of the defeated giant Ymir, and then a man and a woman. Let’s finish with this about the other Loki, and we will simply no longer confuse him with the “real” Loki, who was not an ace, the lord of Fire and did not create Midgard (Earth), as well as men and women.

The “real” Loki had a lot of other, more important things to do.

What did Loki do?

Among Loki's important matters is fatherhood. So, Loki is the father of the following creatures:

• Hel is the mistress of the world of the dead.
• Fenrir is the wolf who eats the sun during Ragnarok.
• Jörmungard is the world Serpent, which appears in literature even more often than Loki himself.

These three were born from his union with the giantess Angrboda.

• Nari and Narvi are two less colorful children from his wife Sigyn.

Besides, Loki is a mother. Once he had to cover the backs of the Aesir in a small conflict related to the extradition of Freya. Anyway, he turned into a mare and met the horse (whose name went down in history, unlike many other names in Scandinavian mythology...) Svadilfari. As a result, after some time, Loki gave birth to the eight-legged stallion Sleipnir, which Odin now rides.

Loki is also known as a good deceiver. He cheated:

• Actually, the builder of Asgard, who broke up with Freya after Loki’s shocking act, which resulted in Sleipnir.
• The brightest of the aces, citizen Balder, the son of Odin, whom Loki first killed at the hands of the blind Höd, and then refused to mourn in the guise of the giantess Tokk, as a result of which Balder remained in the kingdom of the dead (despite the petition of the aesir, henpecked by Odin).
• Poor dwarf Andvari, who swam in the guise of a pike and did not touch anyone at all, and whom Loki not only caught, but also cleaned to the skin to pay for his own mistake in killing an otter, who turned out to be the son of an authoritative citizen.

Loki is also known for an act that he did not commit, but which was destined for him by the Norns. In the völva's prediction, Loki "opens" Ragnarök with his children. He will fight Heimdall (who will blow the horn signaling the beginning of Ragnarok) and they will kill each other.

Who could Loki turn into?

Loki had the ability to completely change his appearance, so that no one living, including the Aesir, could recognize him. Among the most curious transformations of Loki:

• Flea - to steal Freya's jewelry.
• Salmon - to escape from the aces.
• Horse - to lure Svadilfari.

In general, Loki’s talents for transformation are unlimited and he made full use of them.

Loki's Punishment

After one day (apparently due to a severe nervous breakdown) Loki told all the gods who they are and where they belong (that is, in Russian speaking, he sent them to three letters), the entire royal cavalry and the entire royal army chased after him .

They caught up with Loki, despite the fact that he managed to become a salmon, tied his own son Nari (the one from his legal wife) with the intestines, then chained him to a rock, to three stones (why not to twenty-six, actually?), after which the skier Skadi (who is also a frosty giantess and Njord’s wife) hung a snake over him, the poison of which drips onto his face, causing incredible suffering. The vengeful woman, apparently, could not forget how Loki danced near her in the clothes his mother gave birth to (covering the painful spot with a goatee) to make her laugh, for this was precisely the condition the giantess set as her dowry.

Loki's faithful wife Sigyn could not bear her husband's suffering and began to hold the cup over his head so that the poison would drip into it. When the cup overflows, Sigyn pours out the poison, but during this time the poison gets on Loki's face - it was believed that this is what causes earthquakes, because poison in the face is painful.

The role of Loki in myths

Actually, Loki was a prankster. As it is now fashionable to say, a trickster. Everyone loved him because he joked so cheerfully, but when he joked with his superiors, he was asked to leave the stage.

Simultaneously with jokes and pranks, Loki commits much more serious deceptions and setups. He has no reasons for this, but he doesn’t need them. The image of Loki was and remains synonymous with duplicity and deceit, although the mythological Loki does not perceive the concepts of “lies” and “truth” at all. Loki misbehaves not because he’s a scoundrel, but because he’s supposed to be in a fairy tale.

The children of Loki (Fenrir, Hel, Sleipnir, Jörmungard) appear very often in a variety of guises in Western culture. Their names have literally become household names; more and more often, the authors do not explain what exactly is meant in their text by the word “Jormungard”, etc.

Books dedicated to the canonical image of Loki:

• "Elder Edda", Samund the Wise (possibly)
• Prose Edda, Snorri Sturluson
• “Asgard - the city of the gods”, Vladimir Shcherbakov
• "Gods and Heroes of the North" by Patrick Colum

Fiction books with Loki in one of the central roles:

• Asgard Unlimited, Michael Stackpole
• Rune Magic by Joanne Harris
• The Mask of Loki, Roger Zelazny
• "Roaring Trumpet" by Sprague de Camp

Fiction books in which Loki is present, but is not the central character:

• American Gods, Neil Gaiman
• "My Ragnarok", Max Fry
• “Castle at the junction of worlds”, Viktor Chirkov

Useful links:

Gallery of jen-and-kris - artists who have a lot of very beautiful or funny works based on Marvel's Thor and Loki.

The wiki has a good article on Loki, although some facts are confused there.

Del Tashlin

And really, who is this Loki?

Not an easy task, huh? It is difficult to describe even a person in such a way as not to lose sight of a single trait of his character, so as to carefully take into account all areas of his interests, manners, habits, inclinations and preferences, and so that none of his acquaintances feel that his relationship with him has been left behind. And how much more difficult it is to describe a many-faced god who interacts with people in a wide variety of ways! But I will still try, if we immediately agree to admit that His nature is indeed difficult to express in words and images, in sensations, guesses, thoughts, poetry and prose. Agreed?

Then first I’ll tell you who Loki, the Scandinavian trickster god, is definitely Not is, namely, the villain under whose guise He was portrayed in the well-known series of comic books and films based on it. Loki is not Tom Hiddleston, although if He appears to you in this image, it’s not for me to judge. Loki is not Thor's sibling or even half-brother. Loki's father is not Odin and not "Lauvey" (Lauvey, if anything, is his mother's name). Loki doesn't walk around in stupid green and gold outfits with antennas on his head. Loki doesn't command legions of aliens bent on taking over the world. And He himself urgently asks to add: no matter what this Hulk of yours thinks, He is not some “pathetic god.”

Loki is primarily a descendant of the Jotuns, as giants are called in northern mythology. His wife or lover was the wolf woman Angrboda, who bore him three monstrous children: the serpent Jormungandr, who encircles the world with his body, the wolf Fenris, whom Tyr chained so that he would not devour all living things; and Hel, the half-living, half-dead goddess of the dead, into whose power a part of Niflheim was given. The Children of Loki are strange in appearance and indeed monstrous, but They all have important roles to play in Norse cosmology.

At some stage in his history, Loki fraternized with Odin and settled among the Aesir, in Asgard (the abode of the gods). In the Eddas He is ranked among the Aesir, although many northern pagan reconstructionists and groups derived from the reconstructionist groups view Him as an Enemy. This may be partly due to the biased portrayal of the gods in the writings of Snorri, who presented Norse mythology from a Christian perspective. But this is a controversial issue, and I will not go into it here. Just know, dear readers, that it is not safe to honor Loki at a general holiday without first finding out how other participants feel about Him: you can be kicked out in no time. I warned you.

Loki's appearance is not described in the sources, but most spirit-seers who encountered Him claim that he has red hair; perhaps this is due to ancient superstitions, according to which all redheads are witches, sorcerers, tricksters and generally troublemakers. Loki is usually portrayed as tall, thin and somewhat androgynous (in short, something like David Bowie). It is said that He often appears in the forms of various animals, including a wolf, a spider, a fox, a raven or crow, a horse and a snake.

In most Eddic stories, Loki first places the Aesir in some kind of, let's say, interesting situation, and then he himself comes to their rescue. In this regard, He performs the same function as many other tricksters in the myths of different peoples: firstly, without tricksters the gods would simply sit idly by and would never have known the taste of epic adventures, and secondly, without tricksters there would be no one would indicate that the king is naked.

In connection with the latter role, “Loki’s Quarrel” immediately comes to mind - one of the songs of the Elder Edda, in which Loki occupies a central place. It is sometimes claimed that Christians contributed to this text in order to demonize Loki and eradicate the cult of the trickster. After all, Christians themselves portray their trickster (Lucifer/devil) as one hundred percent evil, while most other cultures approach entities of this kind in a more nuanced and ambiguous manner (if you are interested in this topic, read Lewis Hyde’s excellent book “The Trickster Made the World”) . However, this is a moot point, so let’s return to Loki’s Quarrel itself. One day the Aesir threw a big feast, but forgot to invite Loki. Instead of tossing a golden apple with the inscription “To the Fairest” to the feasters (as one of his fellow tricksters did), Loki simply showed up at the feast uninvited and began to expose the vices and secrets of everyone who ignored Him. For this terrible, monstrous offense (is it a joke to say that even the gods can be not without sin!) He was subjected to no less terrible punishment: the Aesir turned one of the sons of Loki and His innocent wife Sigyn into a ferocious wolf, and he tore their second son to pieces. Then Loki himself was thrown into an underground cave and tied to a stone with the intestines of this dead son, and a poisonous snake was hung over His head so that the poison from its fangs would drip onto His face until the end of time. However, His devoted wife, who did not deserve such a fate with anything other than her love for her husband, shared the punishment with Him: Sigyn stands next to Loki and holds a cup, collecting drops of poison into it. There is no relief for Her torments; and every time She moves away to empty the overflowing cup, burning poison drips onto Loki’s face, causing terrible pain.

However, there was a known prophecy according to which at the end of the world Loki would lead a ship of the dead against Asgard. So it is possible that the aces imprisoned him in a cave simply in order to protect themselves from such a formidable enemy. However, there are disagreements on this score: some researchers argue that it was not Loki at all, but some other jotun who was destined to become the helmsman of Naglfar, but again, I will not go into this discussion: just know that this is another controversial issue.

Anyway, if you want to understand who Loki is, all these details are important to know, because different people deal with different layers of his mythological image. Some fall in love with a cunning rogue who always gets away with it; others pray to a magician and a werewolf, capable of subjugating both living beings and inanimate matter to his will; still others write books about Loki as the loving wife of Angrboda or Sigyn; the fourth suffer the torment of the “Crusher of Worlds” - Loki, maddened by torture. But all these people worship the same deity: as I said at the beginning, it is difficult to squeeze even a person into the framework of one archetypal model that interacts with everyone and everything in exactly the same way, and in the case of gods and other entities, too huge for our mortal consciousness, this task becomes more complicated many times over.

It seems to me that any introductory Internet article about Loki would be incomplete without mentioning His countless wives who have flooded the blogosphere in recent years. Honestly, I don’t understand why He needs such mortal lovers, wives and husbands (yes, I didn’t make a reservation: He really is not limited to women) and why many of them write about relationships with Him in LiveJournal, WordPress, Tumblr and other blogs, but I can confirm that there are indeed a lot of them and they are not silent. Maybe they are attracted to the image of a “bad boy”, or maybe He is so sexy that even across the border separating people from gods, this is felt more strongly than with many other deities. One way or another, Loki has mortal spouses, there are many of them and they are quite categorical. I'm not one of them. This will probably sound stupid, but I constantly have to repeat in response to questions: with the King of Jesters Can establish a relationship of a different kind - non-sexual and non-marital; for Him such relationships will be no less important, necessary and precious. He values ​​every mortal who remembers Him, retells His story to new listeners, leaves gifts for Him on the altar, and pours libations in His honor—whatever form His relationship with that mortal may take. If you have established a marital relationship with Him, this does not mean that you are better than His other servants or are in any special position. Also, keep in mind that He chooses the form of relationship with you, not you. Of course, you can offer Him your sexual energy as a gift or make a vow of fidelity to Him if you wish, but marriage with God is a two-way relationship, and it will be much better if the deity takes the first step in it.

One way or another, keep in mind, dear readers, that among us Lokians there are plenty of those who worship Him without being in a marital relationship with Him. Some consider themselves His children (sometimes monstrous), some as priests and servants, some as His personal storytellers and poets, and some simply honor Him among many other gods. Loki needs everyone equally and accepts service in any form, although, in my experience, He is especially pleased by the worship of transgender people, homosexuals and other carriers of non-traditional sexual orientation and/or gender identity. Perhaps this information will be useful to you.

The most controversial character in Scandinavian mythology. The great source of trouble in all nine worlds.

Hello, dear reader. Glad to see you here. This is not just a greeting. I really enjoy it when people read my posts. My name is Gavrilov Kirill . I am passionate about the history, mythology and culture of medieval Scandinavia. This is my “Northern Diary” - .

Today I will tell you about Loki Lauvaison. The magnificent illustrations of a talented artist from St. Petersburg will help me - Olga Levina. You can read the interview with Olga.

Briefly about Loki

1. Loki is the god of fire and deceit. One of the main characters of Scandinavian mythology.
2. He is considered the main villain, but in fact, Loki constantly balances between good and evil, committing both good and bad deeds.
3. Loki is the most popular god. He is involved in almost all the myths of medieval Scandinavia.
4. Loki's parents are the giant Farbauti and the goddess Lauveya.
5. Loki is not an adopted son, but his adopted brother. They are connected by the ancient rite of twinning.
6. After numerous deeds in various myths and stories, Loki arranges the murder of Odin's son Balder. As punishment for this murder, the gods chain Loki for life in a cave deep underground.
7. When the end of the world begins, Loki is freed from his shackles and takes part in the last battle on the side of darkness.
8. In this battle, Loki fights and both of them die from mortal wounds. Thus ends the story of the fire god.

Loki and the eight-legged Sleipnir

Birth of the god Loki

One day, the giant Farbauti and the goddess Lauveya gave birth to a red-haired boy who was named Loki.

Besides Loki, Lauveya had two more sons. These were the giants Büleist and Helblindi. But nothing more is known about them.

After the birth of Loki, the giant Farbauti died and Lauveya was left alone with her newborn child. The grief-stricken mother threw Loki to Asgard, and she herself lost her life by throwing herself off a cliff onto the rocks.

Loki in Asgard

The people of Asgard accepted Loki and raised him as one of their own. Every year Loki became smarter and more cunning. The wise Odin knew that this power could be used for his own purposes and decided on the ritual of twinning with the son of Lauveya. To always feel connected to Loki and easily follow him.

They stood in a circle of poured earth, cut their hands and sealed their future brotherhood with blood. Since then, this is the way the Scandinavians have fraternized with each other.

Role of Loki in mythology

You ask me, what is it about this god Loki and what did he do? In general, the entire Scandinavian mythology can be described in one sentence - Loki messed up and Loki fixed it. When it presses, of course.

Gods and the change of Day and Night

Even the old bearded pagans called the supreme god Odin, the god of beginning and creation. Because it was Odin who created the nine worlds and participated in the creation of the first people - Aska and Embla.

Loki, on the contrary, was called the god of the end and the god of destruction - through his fault Ragnarok began - the end of the world. And the main monsters on the side of evil in the final battle will be its children.

• In this entry - - I will tell you with great pleasure about all its events and participants. This is, after all, the last chapter of all Scandinavian mythology, and it’s worth reading.

While the libertine Loki lived in Jotunheim, he whiled away the long winter nights with the old giantess Angrboda. Yes, he whiled away such an interesting time that she bore him three children. Only from the kids there is one name:

1. - stillborn girl. Half alive, half dead. Poor little humble thing. You can't look without tears. But it’s better not to joke with her - this is the future mistress of Helheim - the world of the dead.
2. - a small poisonous snake, which the gods will throw into the sea so that it does not bother anyone. Do you know who has wrapped a ring around Midgard and is scaring the lost Vikings and fishermen? This is a small Jormungandr who grew into a giant sea serpent.
3. - a completely different story. The little wolf cub, who will grow into a huge monster, will bite off Tyur’s hand, and will devour Odin altogether.

They're just kids, what can you do? Angrboda was not a beauty, and Loki was generally a god. And the children of the gods are always somehow strange. By the way, I have separate entries in my diary about all three monsters. If you want to read it, click on the name in the previous list.

Loki riding Fenrir

But besides Angrboda, Loki also had another woman - Sigyn. Smart and beautiful, slender as a reed. She has no equal in fidelity among other women. It's a pity she wasn't lucky with her husband. Because the reveler and drunkard Loki can hardly be called a family man and an ideal husband - he is never at home, and you have to ask for help half a year in advance, and even then he will forget.

The modest Sigyn gave birth to two sons from Loki:

1. Narvi is a quiet and calm child, I would say too calm for a child. Sometimes it’s not clear what you can think about so seriously at his age.
2. Vali is a funny toddler, he always pretended to be a wolf and ran after his brother. In general, two opposites. By the way, both are redheads - in the folder.

They loved daddy, even though he didn’t spend much time with them, he constantly ran away somewhere. And other gods often came to the house with serious faces and asked: “Has Loki appeared?” - to nag him for all sorts of things.

And he ran away on business no less important than raising his sons. Loki is involved in almost every event. And no matter how pretentious it may sound, the red-haired rogue plays a key role in Scandinavian mythology.

Loki and the Treasures of the Gods

One day, when Thor was throwing heavy spears at the wooden statue of the giant king Hrungnir. His beautiful wife, the golden-haired goddess Siv, ran up to him. Yes, but without hair. Shaved head and wildly angry. “This Loki of yours stole my hair,” and points to his smooth head shining in the sun. “In general, it was necessary to drive him away and why did they just leave him, they lived before without any tricks,” Siv did not calm down.

“Calm down, I’ll return everything,” the husband replied, sighing. Thor was not very surprised, because he was used to the constant antics of Loki the trickster. I took a hefty club and went to the northern forest...

I will tell you the whole story in a separate post so as not to overload this one.

• In the meantime, you can read about Thor - also an interesting character. Especially in childhood. Little Thor was generally so capricious and always broke everything.

Other deeds of Loki

And now, I will briefly tell you about the myths in which Loki participated. There are a lot of them and they are all voluminous. Therefore, over time, I will write them into full-fledged interesting stories, and insert links here. In general, here is a brief summary of all of Loki’s deeds:

1. First people- under the name Lodur, together with Odin and Hoenir, Loki cut out the first people Ask and Embla from fallen trees washed ashore.
2. Great Builder- a nameless giant, disguised as a mason, builds a wall for the aces on a dare. To prevent the giant builder from making it on time and losing the argument, Loki turns into a beautiful mare and distracts the giant horse, Svadilfari, who was helping to carry stones for the wall. The builder fails to meet the deadline and the gods triumph. Because they don't have to give up the sun and the moon. And after much distraction, Loki gives birth to an eight-legged stallion - the future steed for his brother Odin.
3. Treasures of the Gods- Loki steals Sif, Thor’s beloved wife, her magnificent hair. Thor forces Loki to return them back, but this is impossible - after all, he stole them along with the roots. Therefore, Loki asks the underground dwarves to make new golden hair for Siv and starts a big dispute between the dwarf blacksmiths for this. The brothers Sindri and Brokk argue against the sons of master Ivaldi for the right to be called the best masters in all nine worlds. As a result of the competition of masters, such famous treasures of the gods appear as: Thor's Hammer Mjolnir, Odin's Spear, Odin's Ring Draupnir, Skidbladnir's Ship, Siv's Golden Hair and the Golden Boar for Frey.
4. Apples of youth- one day, Loki is captured by the giant Tjatsi. And in exchange for his release, he lures the goddess Idunn, the keeper of the golden apples of youth, into a trap for the giant. Then, realizing his guilt, he himself saves her from the giant’s cave. The giant Tjazi turns into a huge eagle and pursues Loki and Idunn. But when he reaches Asgard, he burns in a trap that the warned gods had prepared for him.
5. Make Skadi laugh- to avenge his father Tjatsi, his daughter Skadi comes to Asgard. To avoid revenge, she asks one of the gods to be her husband, and then asks to make her laugh. To make Skadi laugh, Loki ties the goat to his scrotum and plays tug-of-war with it, screaming and groaning wildly, and then falling onto Skadi's lap. This causes her to burst into thunderous laughter and forgive her father's murder.
6. Andvari Gold- Loki accidentally kills the son of the sorcerer Hreidmar, who was walking in the guise of an otter. To pay for the murder, the grieving father asks for enough gold to cover an otter's skin. Loki finds a mountain of golden treasures from the dwarf Andvari. And he takes them away to pay off Hreidmar. This myth is also called the cursed gold, and many other events in Scandinavian mythology are associated with it.
7. Freya's decoration- Turning into a flea, Loki steals Freya Brisingamen's necklace. rushes after him. And then, Heimdall and Loki fight each other in the guise of seals, near the Singastein memorial stone.
8. Freya's wedding- To get to Jotunheim and return the stolen hammer from the giant king Geirrod, Loki dresses Thor as a bride for Geirrod, and he himself turns into her maid. A very funny and unusual story.

The Killing of Balder

And now, I’ll tell you about less fun events. Once upon a time there lived a handsome man, Balder, the god of spring and beauty. He was one of the sons of Odin and everyone loved him very much. But Balder himself was unhappy; at night he had nightmares: about the death of his father, about a big wolf and a snake, about an army of giants and the death of worlds.

This worried Balder's parents - Odin and Frigg. They wanted to save their son from the dreams of these blacks. But they just didn’t know how. You should have asked someone who knew for advice. And he was such a man. A long time ago, there lived the all-knowing seer Völva, but she had just died. And her grave was located at the very edge of the world.

The All-Father decided that only this seer would tell the truth about the disturbing dreams and set off on a long journey. Odin rode for a long time along snow-covered paths, overgrown caves and high mountains. For a long time I searched for a hidden grave among the ancient mounds. It took him a long time to return the seer from the world of the dead; the greybeard used all his dark knowledge.

From the dead seer Völva, Odin learned that Balder would soon die. And his dreams are the near future. And nothing will help him - this is his fate. The king of the gods returned home angry and with bad news. But Frigga, like any mother, did not want to put up with such a fate for her beloved son. I decided to save him from impending death. Protect from the clawed hand of the goddess of death.

The loving mother walked around all nine worlds and took an oath from all living beings, plants and animals, diseases and illnesses. Everyone swore not to harm Balder, but only Frigga missed a small sprig of mistletoe. What grows near Valhalla.

The gods had fun all day long. They threw and hit Balder with all sorts of weapons. Spears broke, swords became dull, hammers crumbled into powder - nothing could harm Balder. Everyone rejoiced at this happiness and celebrated. Our favorite Balder is immortal.

Only two were not happy about what was happening: Loki, who stood in the shadow, and Balder’s blind brother, Hod. Loki did not like this injustice, because whoever is destined to die, let him die. There is no reason to deceive fate. And Höd did not share the general joy, because he did not see what was happening and why everyone was so happy. He should still be happy. Your brother is handsome, the favorite of the gods, the god of the sun and spring. And you are blind, scary and no one notices you and they didn’t even invite you to the feast. But Hed did not hold a grudge against his brother, although he did not like to sit alone.

What should be done about injustice? That's right - fix it. Loki went into the oak forest, cut off an unfortunate young sprig of mistletoe and made an arrow out of it. Well, like an arrow, that’s how it happened. The twig was young, and not very straight... In general, Loki tried.

Then Loki placed his creation in the hands of blind Höd and pulled out a large yew bow. Now it's time for Hyoda to have fun with the others. Test your Brother's strength and have a good laugh. Loki guided the hands of the blind god and told him when to shoot. Well, then you yourself understand what happened.

Höd killed his brother, although he himself did not want to. Loki disappeared somewhere. And in Asgard a great sorrow began.

Balder's funeral

Everyone saw off the god of spring on his last journey. Both gods and animals gathered to say goodbye to their beloved. Even the giants of Jotunheim, having forgotten all their grievances, came that day. And everyone mourned for the fallen Balder. But Odin grieved most of all, for he knew that this was only the beginning.

The gods placed Balder's body in his tall and beautiful boat and built a funeral pyre. Naina, Balder's wife, could not bear the death of her husband and died of grief. And they put her next to her, and her beloved horse, and valuable things. And the All-Father laid down his ring - Draupnir for his beloved son. So they escorted Balder to the kingdom of Hel and resigned themselves to his death.

Only Frigga could not believe that she would not see her favorite again - this could not happen. She began to look for a volunteer to go north to the kingdom of the goddess of death and pay a ransom for the release of Balder.

And everyone stood silently, not a single one raised their eyes, except one. Hermod, his name was, the brave son of Odin. The gods sighed heavily, gave him the eight-legged horse Sleipnir and saw him off on the long journey. Twice for nine nights there was no news from Hermod. But with the first ray of the new day, the messenger returned and told everything.

Hel agrees to let Balder go, but on one condition - let every living creature cry for the death of the god of spring. Then Frigga sent messengers to all corners of the nine worlds and everyone cried over the death of Balder. Except for one creature.

One day, one of the messengers came across a sleeping giantess in a dark cave. And he asked if she shared the great grief? “I don’t need your Balder, neither alive nor dead. Let him continue to sit with the goddess of death.” And this giantess was the insidious Loki. He did not save the favorite of the gods and ended another chapter.

Loki's Punishment

After Balder's funeral, the gods learned that it was Loki who carried out the fatal murder. They caught Loki along with his wife Sigyn and sons Narvi and Vali and locked him in an underground cave. The gods planned a cruel punishment for the treacherous Loki.

The wise Kvasir turned little Vali into a wolf and he cruelly killed his brother. From the intestines of the torn Narvi, the gods made a rope and tied Loki to a large stone. Skadi, the daughter of the giant Tjatsi who died through the fault of Loki, hung a poisonous snake over the deceiver’s face so that burning poison would drip into his eyes. And so the gods left Loki until the end of time.

Every day poor Sigyn stands with a large bowl over her husband’s head and collects drops of poison. And when she moves away to throw out the filled cup, Loki screams wildly and shudders in pain, because poison pours into his eyes like fire. The Scandinavians believe that Loki's wild screams are the cause of earthquakes.

The death of Balder served as the beginning of a chain of events that lead the world of Scandinavian mythology to the final chapter - Ragnarok.

Ragnarok

Ragnarok is a big and significant event. I call it the final chapter in Norse mythology. These are several important events, ending with the final battle on the great plain of Vigridr.

• I talk about them in detail in this post - if you are interested, I invite you to read.

When the Death of the Gods begins, Loki will break his terrible bonds and stand at the head of a huge army of giants. Loki will gather his relatives on board the giant Naglfar - a ship made from the nails of the dead. Loki will lead the Jotuns to the final battle to the Vigridr plain.

This battle will be long and difficult. Light and darkness, Gods and monsters will meet in it. Loki himself will fight with Heimdall Highhorn and both of them will die from mortal wounds that they inflict on each other. And then, in the middle of the battle, the fire giant Surt will gather all his power and destroy all living things - completing the last chapter. And so the gods will die. This is how Loki's story ends.

• About the ship Naglfar, I tell you in this post - a very interesting old legend.

A little more about Loki

1. Other names for Loki in Old Norse: Hveðrungr, Loptr, Lóðurr.
2. One day, Loki ate the half-burnt heart of an evil woman. This is how all witches were conceived.
3. Odin sometimes calls Loki a madman.
4. In Jotunheim lives the ruler of the city of Utgard with the name Utgard-Loki. There is a version that this is Loki himself.

And that's all for me. Thank you very much for reading this post to the end. I hope I was able to tell you something new and interesting - this is very important to me. If you liked it, come see me more often.

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