Symbolism
Ragnarök symbolizes the battles between the forces of Order and Chaos, the eternal conflict of polarities and dualities, light/darkness, day/night, masculine/feminine, recreating the primordial condition of the start of Creation as an act of perpetual continuity. It also stands for the cyclic life of organisms along their journey through the seasons: Summer and Winter. In the latter darkness prevails, being a necessary condition to dictate the end. Light is the dominant element of change attesting to the fact that nothing ever ends, an eternal return to the original Void.
The apocalyptic confrontation in Ragnarök serves to establish a new order, at the same time symbolizing the confrontation between Winter and Summer, and the individual inner fight – spirit and soul search for a common dialogue towards the freedom of human conscience. The achievement of balance in dichotomy is necessary in any steps towards evolution.
In Nordic mythology the gods are prey to the same human destiny, they also die, and like humans, they are susceptible to vices and corruption. The cleansing is imposed upon them so that a new pantheon or order can emerge, perfected through the integration of opposites.
In the end of Time, the divinities are consumed by their own destructive and instinctive nature. They struggle in order to not succumb to the deformities that can make them too much like Humanity with its mortal condition.
Odin faces Fenris, the giant wolf, Odin is the god of wrath, ecstasy, drunken states, of altered states of conscience. It's the inspiration behind the idea of the immortality of the warrior, the feeling that convinces any warrior that he can surpass his own limits.
Odin is forced to fight the Wolf, his own totemic animal which, is associated with anger, and wild instincts and appetites. Such qualities are used as metaphors in great Sagas, to represent death and violence in the battlefield.
Vindar avenges his father's death, Odin, granting himself as the loyal successor as the god of warriors.
The sun god Frey dwindles when he faces up to the destructive force of the giant Surtr. As a giant from the kingdom of fire, Surtr represents the sun's destructive aspect.
Fire and Sun share the same characteristics but on different levels. Both give light and warmth but they also have a destructive power. The sun's intense heat dehydrates all plant life.
Heimdall “the brilliant one” and Loki destroy each other. Whilst Heimdall is a symbol of the brilliance of light and the beauty of rainbows, Loki has the fire's incandescence which, due to his blinding powers brings both to extinction.
Tyr and Garm's combat: Garm is a dog from the world of the dead, he sets on a journey to fight Tyr, the god of war who also for a very long time kept the power of chaos under control.
In a brutal fight, Tyr succumbs to the power of death, from which he often protected warriors.
Thor decapitates Jormungandr, the great serpent. Thor is the god of thunder and lightning bolts and in his obsessive chase of Jormungandr, he would strike the serpent with his hammer, and when he did so it caused the lightning bolts for which he is associated for.
Jormungandr is sent to the depths of the sea in order to not disturb the stability of the earth. But in it's muddy bed it grew larger twisting its body around the Earth until it united head with tail, and this way sustained the Earth's structure. In the end of Times, Thor cuts the serpents head off but dies in the serpent's poison.
Both Thor and the serpent Jormungandr act as protective forces but they are also capable of dertroying the Earh.
Thor is seen as impetuous and stupid, often reacting impulsively, whilst Jormungandr is a stable element, but once it is disturbed it causes great Floods.
Geographic and climatic factors as metaphors for the Myth
The Scandinavian mythology was written by erudite writers in the 11th century, who were inspired by Icelandic geography and climate, they saw in it's volcanos and ice sheets the ultimate paradox.
Therefore Ice and Fire are the main elements of the Myth of Creation. The actions of the “Giants of Fire” personifies the volcanic eruptions that melt the ice sheets provoking great floods.
The giant waves caused by Jormungandr and the invasion of the “Giants of Ice land” are the symbols of displacement of the glacial blocks caused by the heat of volcanic lava.
The ash clouds darken the skies (the wolves swallow the Sun and Moon).
The volcanic movements of Iceland result in sub-glacial eruptions and cool-down lava enriches the soils mineral content. The island's sulphurous waters resist the action of the glacial cold.
The eruption of Eyjafjallajökull in March 2010 is an excellent example of the chaos that inspired Icelandic myth writers.
Jotunheim is the habitat of the “Cold giants”, personified by the harshness of the landscape. The enormous mountains and extensive glacials represent immense obstacles to life and survival, hence personified as diabolic elements.
Original texts written by Cristina Valquíria Aguiar
Below is a link to an amazing site with the full mythological texts, that is, if you can stomach it!
Ragnarök symbolizes the battles between the forces of Order and Chaos, the eternal conflict of polarities and dualities, light/darkness, day/night, masculine/feminine, recreating the primordial condition of the start of Creation as an act of perpetual continuity. It also stands for the cyclic life of organisms along their journey through the seasons: Summer and Winter. In the latter darkness prevails, being a necessary condition to dictate the end. Light is the dominant element of change attesting to the fact that nothing ever ends, an eternal return to the original Void.
The apocalyptic confrontation in Ragnarök serves to establish a new order, at the same time symbolizing the confrontation between Winter and Summer, and the individual inner fight – spirit and soul search for a common dialogue towards the freedom of human conscience. The achievement of balance in dichotomy is necessary in any steps towards evolution.
In Nordic mythology the gods are prey to the same human destiny, they also die, and like humans, they are susceptible to vices and corruption. The cleansing is imposed upon them so that a new pantheon or order can emerge, perfected through the integration of opposites.
In the end of Time, the divinities are consumed by their own destructive and instinctive nature. They struggle in order to not succumb to the deformities that can make them too much like Humanity with its mortal condition.
Odin faces Fenris, the giant wolf, Odin is the god of wrath, ecstasy, drunken states, of altered states of conscience. It's the inspiration behind the idea of the immortality of the warrior, the feeling that convinces any warrior that he can surpass his own limits.
Odin is forced to fight the Wolf, his own totemic animal which, is associated with anger, and wild instincts and appetites. Such qualities are used as metaphors in great Sagas, to represent death and violence in the battlefield.
Vindar avenges his father's death, Odin, granting himself as the loyal successor as the god of warriors.
The sun god Frey dwindles when he faces up to the destructive force of the giant Surtr. As a giant from the kingdom of fire, Surtr represents the sun's destructive aspect.
Fire and Sun share the same characteristics but on different levels. Both give light and warmth but they also have a destructive power. The sun's intense heat dehydrates all plant life.
Heimdall “the brilliant one” and Loki destroy each other. Whilst Heimdall is a symbol of the brilliance of light and the beauty of rainbows, Loki has the fire's incandescence which, due to his blinding powers brings both to extinction.
Tyr and Garm's combat: Garm is a dog from the world of the dead, he sets on a journey to fight Tyr, the god of war who also for a very long time kept the power of chaos under control.
In a brutal fight, Tyr succumbs to the power of death, from which he often protected warriors.
Thor decapitates Jormungandr, the great serpent. Thor is the god of thunder and lightning bolts and in his obsessive chase of Jormungandr, he would strike the serpent with his hammer, and when he did so it caused the lightning bolts for which he is associated for.
Jormungandr is sent to the depths of the sea in order to not disturb the stability of the earth. But in it's muddy bed it grew larger twisting its body around the Earth until it united head with tail, and this way sustained the Earth's structure. In the end of Times, Thor cuts the serpents head off but dies in the serpent's poison.
Both Thor and the serpent Jormungandr act as protective forces but they are also capable of dertroying the Earh.
Thor is seen as impetuous and stupid, often reacting impulsively, whilst Jormungandr is a stable element, but once it is disturbed it causes great Floods.
Geographic and climatic factors as metaphors for the Myth
The Scandinavian mythology was written by erudite writers in the 11th century, who were inspired by Icelandic geography and climate, they saw in it's volcanos and ice sheets the ultimate paradox.
Therefore Ice and Fire are the main elements of the Myth of Creation. The actions of the “Giants of Fire” personifies the volcanic eruptions that melt the ice sheets provoking great floods.
The giant waves caused by Jormungandr and the invasion of the “Giants of Ice land” are the symbols of displacement of the glacial blocks caused by the heat of volcanic lava.
The ash clouds darken the skies (the wolves swallow the Sun and Moon).
The volcanic movements of Iceland result in sub-glacial eruptions and cool-down lava enriches the soils mineral content. The island's sulphurous waters resist the action of the glacial cold.
The eruption of Eyjafjallajökull in March 2010 is an excellent example of the chaos that inspired Icelandic myth writers.
Jotunheim is the habitat of the “Cold giants”, personified by the harshness of the landscape. The enormous mountains and extensive glacials represent immense obstacles to life and survival, hence personified as diabolic elements.
Original texts written by Cristina Valquíria Aguiar
Below is a link to an amazing site with the full mythological texts, that is, if you can stomach it!