Borrow Sleipnir

‘Hod took the mistletoe and shot at Baldr at Loki’s direction.
The missile flew through him and he fell dead to the ground, and
this was the unluckiest deed ever done among gods and men.
When Baldr had fallen, then all the Æsir’s tongues failed them, as
did their hands for lifting him up, and they all looked at each other
and were all of one mind towards the one who had done the deed.
But no one could take vengeance, it was a place of such sanctuary.
When the Æsir tried to speak then what happened first was that
weeping came out, so that none could tell another in words of his
grief. But it was Odin who took this injury the hardest in that he
had the best idea what great deprivation and loss the death of
Baldr would cause the Æsir. And when the gods came to themselves
then Frigg spoke, and asked who there was among the Æsir
who wished to earn all her love and favour and was willing to ride
the road to Hel and try if he could find Baldr, and offer Hel a
ransom if she would let Baldr go back to Asgard. Hermod the
Bold, Odin’s boy, is the name of the one who undertook this
journey. Then Odin’s horse Sleipnir was fetched and led forward
and Hermod mounted this horse and galloped away. So the Æsir
took Baldr’s body and carried it to the sea. Hringhomi was the
name of Baldr’s ship. It was the biggest of all ships. This the Æsir
planned to launch and perform on it Baldr’s funeral. But the ship
refused to move. So they sent to Giantland for a giantess called
Hyrrokkin. And when she arrived, riding a wolf and using vipers
as reins, she dismounted from her steed, and Odin summoned
four berserks to look after the mount, and they were unable to
hold it without knocking it down. Then Hyrrokkin went to the
prow of the boat and pushed it out with the first touch so that
flame flew from the rollers and all lands quaked. Then Thor
became angry and grasped his hammer and was about to smash
her head until all the gods begged for grace for her. Then Baldr’s
body was carried out on to the ship, and when his wife Nanna
Nep’s daughter saw this she collapsed with grief and died. She was
carried on to the pyre and it was set fire to. Then Thor stood by
and consecrated the pyre with Miollnir. But a certain dwarf ran in
front of his feet. His name was Lit. Thor kicked at him with his
foot and thrust him into the fire and he was burned.

‘This burning was attended by beings of many different kinds:
firstly to tell of Odin, that with him went Frigg and valkyries and
his ravens, while Freyr drove in a chariot with a boar called
Gullinbursti or Slidrugtanni. But Heimdall rode a horse called
Gulltopp, and Freyia her cats. There came also a great company of
frost-giants and mountain-giants. Odin laid on the pyre a gold
arm-ring called Draupnir. It afterwards had the property that
every ninth night there dripped from it eight gold rings of the same
weight. Baldr’s horse was led on to the pyre with all its harness.
But there is this to tell of Hermod that he rode for nine nights
through valleys dark and deep so that he saw nothing until he
came to the river Gioll and rode on to Gioll bridge. It is covered
with glowing gold. There is a maiden guarding the bridge called
Modgud. She asked him his name and lineage and said that the
other day there had ridden over the bridge five battalions of dead
men.

‘“But the bridge resounds no less under just you, and you do
not have the colour of dead men. Why are you riding here on the
road to Hel?”

‘He replied: “I am to ride to Hel to seek Baldr. But have you
seen anything of Baldr on the road to Hel?”

‘And she said that Baldr had ridden there over Gioll bridge,
“but downwards and northwards lies the road to Hel.”

‘Then Hermod rode on until he came to Hel’s gates. Then he
dismounted from the horse and tightened its girth, mounted and
spurred it on. The horse jumped so hard and over the gate that it
came nowhere near. Then Hermod rode up to the hall and
dismounted from his horse, went into the hall, saw sitting there in
the seat of honour his brother Baldr; and Hermod stayed there the
night. In the morning Hermod begged from Hel that Baldr might
ride home with him and said what great weeping there was among
the Æsir. But Hel said that it must be tested whether Baldr was as
beloved as people said in the following way,

‘“And if all things in the world, alive and dead, weep for him,
then he shall go back to the Æsir, but be kept with Hel if any
objects or refuses to weep.”

‘Then Hermod got up and Baldr went with him out of the hall
and took the ring Draupnir and sent it to Odin as a keepsake, and
Nanna sent Frigg a linen robe and other gifts too; to Fulla a
finger-ring. Then Hermod rode back on his way and came to
Asgard and told all the tidings he had seen and heard.

‘After this the Æsir sent over all the world messengers to
request that Baldr be wept out of Hel. And all did this, the people
and animals and the earth and the stones and trees and every
metal, just as you will have seen that these things weep when they
come out of frost and into heat.


- Prose Edda, Gylfaginning