In non-Njord news, here’s my take on deconstructing how we understand the Brisingamen myth. (Also posted in full at Patheos here.)
Brisingamen
Brisingamen, by Ann Groa Sheffield
Time for some poetry….
Brisingamen
The first looked out – his eyes were opened
At summer´s height – his heart was softened
(Sweet murmur of sunlit water;
Swaying grace of willow´s shade.)
The forge he readied; thus he wrought:
Warmth and laughter, ease and languor
This is what he learned of love.
The next looked out – his eyes were opened
At storm and sky – his heart was seized
(Reeling currents shed the clouds;
Lightning blazes; thunder bellows.)
The forge he readied; thus he wrought:
Fire and fury, fierce delight
This is what he learned of love.
The third looked out – his eyes were opened
At gentle rain – his heart was wrung
(It drips from fir trees, iron-dark,
And stains the rock a deeper rust.)
The forge he readied; thus he wrought:
Strange contentment born of sorrow
This is what he learned of love.
The last looked up – his eyes were opened
At winter´s hoard – his heart was pierced
(Dreaming stars in darkness´ throat;
Slow kiss of windless cold.)
The forge he readied; thus he wrought:
Joy and stillness, awe and silence,
Fitting for his fairest love.
–Ann Groa Sheffiled
The Lay of Thrym (or, That One Time When Thor Was a Drag Queen)
Easily one of my favorite myths. Freya’s fury; Thor in drag; Loki as Thor’s wrangler. Hilarity ensues.
I originally tried to find an good modern retelling of this myth, but they were all “off” somehow–either Freya willing went with Thor and Loki; or Loki was portrayed as evil; or Thor whined and pouted the whole time. I went back to the source text itself (or an English translation thereof), and found that the original was so much better than these retellings, it would be a crying shame not to use it.
The Hurler woke, went wild with rage,
For, suddenly, he missed his sacred Hammer:
He tore his beard, tossed his red locks,
Groped about but could grasp nothing.
Thus, then did Thor speak: ‘Loki, Loki, listen well.
Unmarked by men, unmarked by gods,
Someone has stolen my sacred Hammer!’
Silver and Gold 