Myth Index
THE GOD'S FIRST EXPLOITS
THE FIRST WAR
The Vanir gods originally had magic powers which the Aesir did not. GuIlveig was a Vanir witch. She could predict the future and make gold. One day she visited the Aesir and boasted of her skills, but would not share her secrets. Infuriated, the Aesir killed her and threw her body on a fire.She rose from the flames unharmed, however. The Aesir tried to kill her twice more but she revived each time. Finally, they were ashamed and left her alone. They gave her a new name, Heid, meaning gleaming one.
When the Vanir heard how Gullveig had been mistreated they were very angry. They protested and the argument turned to blows.
In the ensuing fight, the Vanir destroyed Asgard's walls and the Aesir did equal damage to Vanaheim but neither side could claim a victory so they declared a truce.
The gods decided to swap leaders as a sign of peace. Three of the greatest Vanir- Njord, Freyr and Freyja - joined the Aesir. Only two Aesir went to Vanaheim in return and it was soon clear that they were not of the same quality, These were the warrior, Honir and Mimir, guardian of the Fountain of Knowledge.
Honir was very brave and Mimir was extremely wise so the Vanir welcomed them at first. But although they worked well together, Honir on his own became confused and could not make intelligent decisions.
The Vanir felt cheated and in revenge they chopped off Mimir's head and sent it back to Odin. He preserved it with magic herbs and gave it the power of speech so it could still pass on Mimir's wisdom. He kept it by the Fountain of Knowledge.
Despite these problem, the peace held and the Aesir learned the magic of the Vanir.
REBUILDING ASGARD'S WALL
The Aesir were anxious to rebuild Asgard's wall. It had been ruined in the war with the Vanir (see left). But they could not find anyone to do the job. Then one day a rider came to Asgard, saying he had a proposal for the gods. He offered to repair the wall. His price was the moon, the sun and Freyja as his wife.The gods (especially Freyja) were outraged but sly Loki suggested the gods should accept on condition the work was completed, without help, in six months. They knew this would be impossible, but if the builder agreed, they would get most of the wall mended without paying since the contract would be broken. The stranger agreed to the terms as long as he could have the help of his horse, Svadilfari, which the gods allowed.
The horse dragged huge rocks to the wall in a net and the stranger worked so hard it began to seem he would complete the work in time. The gods were furious and told Loki he must get them out of the bargain. Loki, the Shape-Changer, had an idea. As the stranger took Svadilfari to fetch a final load of rocks on the last day of the six months, Loki appeared disguised as a beautiful mare and pranced around playfully. Svadilfari ran after the mare into the woods and could not be caught. The workman could not finish the job without him, so he failed.
In his furt the builder burst out of his magic disguise, revealing his true shape as a RockGiant. The gods then had no qualms about killing him for trying to f ool them.
Loki wisely stayed away from Asgard for a while. When he returned he brought a fantastic, eight-legged horse, called Sleipnir. Sleipnir was the son of Svadilfari and the mare Loki had been. He could gallop over land, sea and air. Loki gave the horse to Odin to regain his favour.
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