Ragnarok | Norse Mythology (also Ragnarök, Ragnarökk)
Ragnarok, in Norse mythology, was the
predestined death of the Germanic gods. A three-year winter led to a final
battle on the Vigrid Plain, where the gods and the frost
giants fought the epic final battle. Ragnarok marks the end of the old world,
and the beginning of the new, current world.
Odin,
who had previously attempted to prevent Ragnarok from occuring, led the gods.
They were assisted by the heroic dead, those who had died in glorious battle
and had been taken to live in Valhalla and await the final battle. The
frost giants were led by the fire god Loki
and assisted by the unworthy dead who came from Hel, and by other monsters.
Two humans, Lif and Lifthrasir, hid in a
sacred tree called Yggdrasil during the battle and didn't return until after
the battle. When they emerged, they repopulated the Earth. Other survivors of
Ragnarok included some of the gods, particularly Odin's brother Honir, Odin's
sons Vidar and Vali, Thor's sons Modi and Magni. Another of Odin's sons,
Balder, was revived from the dead after the battle.
The Vikings were particularly interested in
Ragnarok, and many of the Germanic peoples believed that the same type of
battle would again occur. Even when Christianity began to take over their
belief system, many of them still explored the idea of a Judgement Day in the
same light as Ragnarok.
No comments:
Post a Comment
Note: Only a member of this blog may post a comment.