Giving

This is the beginning of the ‘Song of Hyndla’, told about Ottar the simpleton.

1 ‘Wake up, girl of girls, wake up, my friend,
Hyndla, sister, who lives in the rock cave!
Now it’s the darkness of darknesses, we two shall ride
to Valhall, to the sacred sanctuary.

2 ‘Let’s ask Odin, lord of hosts, to be kindly,
he gives and pays out gold to the deserving;
he gave Hermod a helmet and corslet,
and to Sigmund a sword to keep.

3 ‘He gives victory to some, to some riches,
eloquence to many, and common sense to the living;
he gives following winds to sailors, turns of phrase to poets,
he gives manliness to many a fighter.

4 ‘She will sacrifice to Thor, she will ask for this,*
that he should always behave staunchly towards you;
though he doesn’t much care for giant women.

5 ‘Now take one of your wolves out of the stable,*
let him race beside my boar!’
‘Your boar is slow at treading the gods’ paths;
I don’t want to overload my excellent steed.

6 ‘You’re deceitful, Freyia, when you test me so,
when you look at us that way,
when you’re taking your man on the road to Valhall,
young Ottar, son of Innstein.’



- Poetic Edda, Hyndluliod


("She will sacrifice: Freyia refers to herself here in the third person." - from the Explanatory Notes section included with the translation)