#jotunnheimr
In the Norse creation mythology, the worlds were created mainly through the clashing of fire and ice, heat and moisture. Among the first beings in existence were the fire giant/deity Surtr, the hrimthurs (ice giant/deity) Ymir, and the giant nourishing cow Audhumla. From heat and moisture on his body, Ymir begat other beings, and they in turn produced their own offspring. Odin was closely descended from Ymir on his mother’s side, and Odin’s paternal grandfather, Buri, was considered the first god. Buri had been different from Ymir’s creations in that he had been created from the cow Audhumla’s licking of a block of ice (creation was again achieved through a meeting of heat and ice).
Odin and his immediate family, although partially descended from Ymir, considered themselves set apart from Ymir’s creations, dubbed the Jotnar. Odin and his brothers saw Ymir as an enemy, and, fearing his immense power, they caught him unaware and slew him.
Ymir had been an enormous being, so his death did not come without collateral damage. The blood that poured from Ymir’s body created a flood that killed Odin’s parents and all the Jotnar but one, Bergelmir (also known as Farbauti). It is generally believed that the longstanding feud between the Aesir and Jotnar arose from this near destruction of all Jotnar and complete destruction of Ymir, as committed by the Aesir, and the ultimate battle of Ragnarok was to be the Jotnar’s revenge for the act.
Bergelmir and his wife had taken refuge on a small wooden boat, and thus escaped from the treacherous fate that befell the rest of the Jotunnar. It is unclear whether Bergelmir’s wife Nal (also known as Laufey) was Jotunn or god (As). Bergelmir is said by some sources to have been the only remaining Jotunn, but in other sources his wife is included with him (although this may have simply been an assumption made because it was a Jotunn to whom Nal was wed). Whatever Nal’s ancestry though, it was the union of Bergelmir and Nal that repopulated the world’s tree with Jotnar once more. The land to which they escaped became Jotunnheimr.
Among Bergelmir (or Farbauti) and Nal (or Laufey)’s offspring was Loki. The myth concerning the conception of Loki states that Loki was born from Bergelmir (or Farbauti) striking Nal (or Laufey) with lightning. Loki was originally a fire deity before he became more closely associated with the trickster archetype, and this better explains the odd story of conception. Farbauti, meaning “fierce strike”, was a representation of lightning. Nal meant “pine needles”, and her other name, Laufey, meant “leaves”. In this way, Loki – fire – was created by Farbauti – lightning – striking Nal or Laufey – pine needles or leaves. The story describes a natural phenomenon with representative personifications.
A Jotunn called Rasvalg once caused a great deal of trouble for Midgard. In the form of an eagle, he fanned great gusts of wind across the land, causing plants, animals, and men to die. Loki and Thor resolved to put an end to this mischief, and set out for Jotunnheimr in Thor’s goat-drawn chariot. While passing through Midgard, they stopped to rest one night in the home of a poor farmer with a wife and two children. The family did not have enough food to properly accommodate their guests, so Thor slaughtered his two goats to feed the group. Thor asked that the bones be laid on the skins when the meal was finished, and that no one break the bones.
Sensing an opportunity for mischief, Loki suggested to the farmer’s son, Tjalfe, that he should break open the bone to eat the marrow inside, reasoning that it was the best part, and contained magical properties. Tjalfe agreed with Loki’s logic, and did as was suggested. In the morning, Thor resurrected his two goats from their bones and skin, using his hammer. But one of the goats was lame, because of Tjalfe’s actions.
Thor was furious at the insubordination, but the father eventually managed to quell Thor’s temper by offering his two children, Tjalfe and Roskva, as servants. They would accompany Thor and Loki to Jotunnheimr, and the group would return after their mission to retrieve Thor’s two goats.
They set off once more, and that night they found a cave that contained five different passages. Startled by roaring sounds outside, they hid themselves in the back of the smallest passage and stayed there for the night. When they awoke and emerged from the cave, they found that the sound had been the snoring of a giant Jotunn, and the passage of what they thought was a cave was actually the thumb of the giant’s glove. The giant introduced himself as Skrymir, and offered to accompany the group. He took it upon himself to carry their provisions, but the giant’s strides were so long that the group could not stop to rest at all, and they were not able to eat all that day.
When Skrymir finally stopped to sleep for the night, the group was famished. They attempted to open the bag to their provisions, but they could not untie the knots with which the giant had sealed it. Even Thor’s immense strength was no match. Frustrated, Thor attempted to wake Skrymir, but the task seemed impossible. Thor threw his hammer three times at the giant’s head, each time with more force than the last. But Skrymir only mumbled that a leaf or an acorn must have fallen on him, and he promptly returned to sleeping each time.
They set out again the next day, and Skrymir announced that he was going on ahead, and they quickly lost sight of him. Eventually, Thor, Loki, and Tjalfe arrived at the castle of the Jotunn Utgarda-Loki (no relation to Loki). The group proceeded to attempt a series of contests, in order to prove themselves worthy of staying at the castle. Loki, hungry from losing his provisions to Skrymir, offered that he could eat more than any Jotunn there, and thus, an eating contest was begun. Loki and his opponent Logi began eating at opposite ends of a trough, and they both reached the exact middle at the same time. However, Loki had only eaten the food, while Logi had eaten the food, the bones, the dishes, and the trough, so Loki lost.
Tjalfe fancied himself to be a swift runner, so he competed against one called Hugi in a footrace. Although Tjalfe was indeed faster than most, he too was defeated by his opponent. Thor then asserted that he could drain a drinking horn, and so a horn was provided for him. Thor drank until he was about to burst, but could only lower the level by a small amount. It was then suggested that Thor lift Utgarda-Loki’s cat, but in this task Thor could only lift one paw. Finally, a feeble, elderly woman named Elli was called out to wrestle with Thor, and in this task too Thor was defeated.
Utgarda-Loki escorted the three humbled guests out of his castle, and once they were outside, he revealed to them that they had been tricked. Fearing the strength of his visitors, Utgarda-Loki had disguised himself as Skrymir, and he had tied up their food so they would be weak with hunger when they arrived at his castle. When Thor had attempted to strike Skrymir’s skull with his hammer, the hammer blows instead had fallen on a nearby mountain, and the force of the blows had created three deep valleys. If any one of the blows had struck Utgarda-Loki, he would have died.
Loki’s eating contest had been against fire, which consumes everything in its path, so it was incredible that Loki was able to perform as well as he had against the flame. Tjalfe’s footrace had been against thought, which works quicker than anyone can run. Thor’s drinking horn had been attached to the sea itself, and Thor had actually managed to lower the level of Midgard’s oceans with the amount he drank. The cat Thor was tasked with lifting was in fact Jormungandr, the Midgard serpent so large it encircled the world, so lifting its paw was an incredible feat of strength. Finally, the old woman had been old age itself, and old age eventually brings everyone, even gods, to their knees. That Thor had lasted as long as he did was better than anyone could have achieved.
Utgarda-Loki apologised for the trickery, but confessed that he was right to do so, because the strength of the group was terrifying, and he could never have beaten them through honest means. Thor raised his hammer, frustrated that he had been made to look a fool, but before he could attack, both Utgarda-Loki and his castle had disappeared. Tjalfe and Roskva returned with Loki and Thor, and served Thor from then on.
