In English, this bright light is called a sundog. When this happens they can refract the sun’s light outward, giving the appearance of bright points of light to the left and right of the sun itself. Sometimes ice crystals float downward from the higher regions of the atmosphere. This makes them particularly common in colder climates. While high clouds can be cold enough to form ice crystals in any region, halos can also be formed by freezing air at lower levels. Similar rings, known as moon rings or winter halos, can also appear around the moon at night. This is most often visible as a ring of light around the sun that can appear white, blue, or even red depending on conditions. When sunlight refracts through ice crystals in the atmosphere it can sometimes produce what is known as a halo. Instead, they believe that the two wolves may have been inspired by a specific optical phenomenon that is sometimes seen in the atmosphere in cold weather. Some scholars, however, believe that Sköll and Hati may not have been entirely unseen. Norse mythology, however, places particular emphasis on the sun and moon being chased and eventually devoured by unseen entities. Other examples include the Greek Helios and Selene, Chandra and Surya in Hinduism, and the boat of Ra in Egyptian mythology. Sól and Máni belong to a very well-known archetype of deities who personify the sun and moon, often as charioteers or boaters. This new goddess would grow to be as lovely as her mother and soon take her place to give light to the reborn world. A few gods would survive to establish a new pantheon and one human couple would hide in Yggdrasil’s branches until the danger passed.īefore being caught, Sól would give birth to a daughter. The Prose Edda, however, ends the story of Ragnarök with the promise that the world will be reborn after its destruction. He would come down to land and eat all the dead of the world as Ragnarök killed them. Hati would swallow Sól and Sköll would devour Máni, bringing darkness to the world.Īfterward, Norse poets claimed that Hati’s hunger would still not be abated. Not only would their father escape when Ragnarök came, but the two wolves in the sky would also succeed in their quest. Many were the wolves and monsters who prowled the world but the two strongest, Hati and Sköll, were sent after Sól and Máni. Loki’s son was so well-known for the danger he presented that he was given the alternative name Hróðvitnit, or “Famous Wolf.” Hati was called Hróðvitnisson, “Son of the Famous Wolf.”įenrir had, presumably before his binding, fathered many children with an unnamed giantess who lived in the forests of eastern Midgard. Odin and the warriors of Valhalla would all be killed fighting him until he would finally be slain by Odin’s son Viðarr.
NIDHOGG NORSE MYTHOLOGY FREE
It was said that Fenrir would break free as Ragnarök began. He was so vicious that he bit off Tyr’s hand as the gods tried to capture him. Realizing he was dangerous, the gods had bound him with chains. Sköll and Hati were not the only giant wolves who threatened the gods.įenrir was one of the monstrous children of Loki. Every day and night Sól and Máni raced to avoid capture by the wolves at their heels. Sól, called Sunni in German, drove the sun while her brother Máni drove the moon.Īs they each went across the sky they were chased by one of the giant wolves. Hati chased the moon and Sköll went after the sun.Įach of these sources of light was personified by a chariot-driving deity. Hati and Sköll were two wolves, brother and sister, who ran across the sky. At Ragnarök, they would finally catch their prey and darkness would come over the ruins of the world. Sköll and Hati were a sister and brother who chased the sun and moon across the sky. The Norse people believed that Fenrir was bound by strong chains until that day came, however. The most famous of these was Fenrir, Loki’s vicious son who would kill Odin and the armies of Valhalla on the day of Ragnarök. Many of the enemies faced by the Norse gods took the form of wargs, or giant wolves.
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