The beginning of this business is that Oku-Thor set off with his goats and chariot and with him the As called Loki. In the evening they arrived at a peasant's house and were given a night's lodging there. During the evening Thor took his goats and slaughtered them both. After this they were skinned and put in the pot. When it was cooked Thor sat down to his evening meal, he and his companion. Thor invited the peasant and his wife and their children to share the meal with him. The farmer's son was called Thialfi, his daughter Roskva.
Then Thor placed the goatskins on the other side of the fire and instructed the peasants and his household to throw the bones on to the goatskins. Thialfi, the peasant's son, took hold of the goat's ham-bone and split it open with his knife to get at the marrow.
Thor stayed the night there, and in the small hours before dawn he got up and dressed, took the hammer Miollnir and raised it and blessed the goatskins. Then the goats got up and one of them was lame in the hind leg. Thor noticed this and declared that the peasant or one of his people must not have treated the goat's bones with proper care. He realized that the ham-bone was broken. There is no need to make a long tale about it, everyone can imagine how terrified the peasant must have been when he saw Thor making his brows sink down over his eyes; as for what could be seen of the eyes themselves, he thought he would collapse just at the very sight. Thor clenched his hands on the shaft of the hammer so that the knuckles went white, and the peasant did as one might expect, and all his household, they cried out fervently, begged for grace, offered to atone with all their possessions. And when he saw their terror then his wrath left him and he calmed down and accepted from them in settlement their children Thialfi and Roskva, and they then became Thor's bondservants and they have attended him ever since.
Thor & Loki continue their trip and meet Skrymir the giant
He left the goats behind there and started on his journey east to Giantland and all the way to the sea, and then he went out across the deep sea. And when he reached land he went ashore and with him Loki and Thialfi and Roskva. When they had gone a little way they were faced by a huge forest. They walked all that day until dark. Thialfi was the fastest of the runners. He carried Thor's knapsack, but there was not much in the way of lodgings to be found. When it had got dark they looked for somewhere to spend the night and came upon a certain very large building. There was an entrance at one end and it was the full width of the building. Here they sought night-quarters for themselves. But at midnight there was a great earthquake, the ground moved under them in shudders and the building shook. Then Thor got up and called to his companions and they searched around and found a side-chamber on the right hand side half-way down the building and went in. Thor positioned himself in the doorway and the others were further in behind him and they were fearful, but Thor clasped the shaft of his hammer and planned to defend himself. Then they heard a great rumbling and groaning. And when dawn came Thor went out and saw someone lying a little way from him in the forest, and he was no midget. He was asleep and snoring mightily. Then Thor realized what the cause of the noise in the night had been. He clasped on his girdle of might and his As-strength grew, but at that moment the person awoke and stood up quickly. And then they say that Thor for once was afraid to strike him with the hammer, and asked him his name. And he said his name was Skrymir. 'But I do not need,' he said, 'to ask you your name. I can tell that you are Thor of the Æsir. But have you been making off with my glove?'
Then Skrymir reached over and picked up his glove. Then Thor realized that this was what he had been using during the night as a building, and the side-chamber, that was the thumb of the glove. Skrymir asked if Thor would like to have his company, and Thor agreed. Then Skrymir went and undid his knapsack and got ready to eat breakfast, and so did Thor and his companions in a separate place. Then Skrymir suggested that they pool their food, and Thor agreed. So Skrymir tied up all their provisions in one bag and put it on his back. He went ahead during the day and took rather long strides. And then in the evening Skrymir found them a place to spend the night under a certain large oak – 'but you take the knapsack and get on with your supper.'
Then Skrymir went to sleep and snored hard, and Thor took the knapsack and was about to undo it, and the story goes, incredible thought it must seem, that no knot could he get undone and no strap-end moved so as to make it less tight than it was already. And when he realized that this labour was going to get nowhere, he got angry, grasped the hammer Miollnir in both hands and stepped forward with one foot to where Skrymir was lying and struck at his head. Skrymir awoke and asked whether some leaf of foliage had fallen on his head, and whether they had finished eating and were ready for bed. Thor said they were just about to go to sleep. They then went under another oak. To tell you the truth, it was not possible to sleep without fear.
But at midnight Thor heard that Skrymir was snoring and sleeping so deeply that the forest resounded. Then he stood up and went up to him, swung the hammer quickly and hard and struck down in the centre of his crown. He felt the face of the hammer sink deep into the head. And at that moment Skrymir woke and said: 'What's the matter now? Did an acorn or something fall on my head? And what are you doing, Thor?'
But Thor backed away quickly and replied that he had just woken up, said that it was now midnight and still time to sleep.Then Thor resolved that if he got an opportunity to strike him a third blow, he would never open his eyes again; he now lay waiting to see if Skrymir fell fast asleep. And a little before dawn, then he could hear that Skrymir must have fallen asleep, and he got up and ran at him, swung his hammer with all his might and struck at the temple that was facing upwards. Then the hammer sank in up to the handle, but Skrymir sat up and stroked his cheek and said:
'Can there be some birds sitting in a tree above me? I am sure that as I awoke some rubbish from the branches fell on my head. Are you awake, Thor? It must be time to get up and dress: And you do not now have far to go on to the castle called Utgard. I have heard you whispering among yourselves that I am a person of no small build, but you will see bigger men there if you get into Utgard. Now I will give you some good advice: don't act big. Utgarda-Loki's men will not easily put up with cheekiness from babies like you. Otherwise turn back, and that I think will be the better course for you to take. But if you are determined to go on, then make for the east, but my road now lies to the north to these mountains that you should be able to see.'
Skrymir took the knapsack and threw it on his back and turned abruptly away from them into the forest, and there is no report that the Æsir expressed hope for a happy reunion.
Arrival at the castle of the giants
Thor continued his journey with his companions and went on until midday.Then they saw a castle standing on some open ground and had to bend their heads back to touch their spines before they could see up over. They approached the castle and there was a gate across the entrance and it was shut. Thor went to the gate and was unable to open it, but by struggling to get into the castle they squeezed between the bars and thus got in, and then saw a great hall and went up to it. The door was open. They went in and saw there many people on two benches, most of them a fair size. Next they came before the king, Utgarda-Loki, and addressed him, but he was slow to turn to them and bared his teeth in a smile and said:
'News travels slowly over long distances. But am I wrong in thinking that this little fellow is Oku-Thor? You must be bigger than you look to me. And what are the feats that your party thinks they can perform? No one is allowed to stay here with us who does not have some art or skill in which he is superior to most people.'
Loki challenges Logi to an eating contest
Then the one who was in the rear of the party, which was Loki, said:
'I know a feat that I am quite prepared to have a go at, that there is no one inside here who can eat his food quicker than I.'
Then Utgarda-Loki replied: 'That is a feat if you can perform it, and we must try out these feats,'– called down the bench that some one called Logi was to come out on to the floor and compete with Loki.Then a trencher was fetched and brought in on to the floor of the hall and filled with meat. Loki sat down at one end and Logi at the other, and each ate as quickly as he could and they met in the middle of the trencher. Loki had then eaten all the meat off the bones, but Logi had also eaten all the meat and the bones too and also the trencher, and it seemed to everyone now that Loki had lost the contest.
Thialfi races with Hugi
Then Utgarda-Loki asked what that young man there could perform, and Thialfi said that he would attempt to run a race of some kind with anyone Utgarda-Loki put forward. He said, Utgarda-Loki, that this was a good feat and declared he would indeed have to be good at running if he was to achieve this feat, and yet he said he would soon put it to the test. Then Utgarda-Loki got up and went out, and there was a good course there for running over level ground. Then Utgarda-Loki called to him a certain little fellow called Hugi and bade him run a race with Thialfi.Then they began the first race, and Hugi was so far ahead that he turned back to meet him at the end of the race. Then said Utgarda-Loki:
'You will have to make a greater effort, Thialfi, if you are going to win the contest, and yet it is true that never before have people come here that have seemed to me able to run faster than that.'
Then they began again another race, and when Hugi got to the end of the course and turned back, Thialfi was still a good arrow-shot behind.Then said Utgarda-Loki:
'Thialfi has I think run a good race, but I no longer have any confidence in him that he will win the contest. But we shall see now when the run the third race.'
Then they started another race. And when Hugi had got to the end of the course and turned back, then Thialfi had not reached half-way. Then everyone said that this contest was decided.
Thor and the drinking horn
Then Utgarda-Loki asked Thor which of his accomplishments it was that he would be willing to display before them, such great stories as people had made of his exploits. Then Thor said that he would most willingly undertake to compete at drinking with someone. Utgarda-Loki said that would be fine and went inside the hall and called for his butler, bade him get the forfeit-horn that the men at court were accustomed to drink from. Next the butler came forward with the horn and handed it to Thor. Then said Utgarda-Loki:
'From this horn it is considered to be well drunk if it is drained in one draught, but some people drain it in two draughts. But no one is such a poor drinker that it is not emptied in three.'
Thor looked at the horn, and it did not seem all that big, though it was rather long. But he was very thirsty, began to drink and took great gulps and intended that it should not be necessary to address the horn again for the time being. But when he ran out of breath and straightened up from the horn and saw how his drinking was progressing, it seemed to him as though there could be very little difference by which the level in the horn was now lower than before. Then Utgarda-Loki spoke:
'That was a good drink, and not excessive. I would not have believed it if anyone had told me that Thor of the Æsir would not have drunk a greater draught, but still I know that you will be intending to drink it off in the second draught.'
Thor made no reply, put the horn to his mouth and was determined now that he was going to drink a bigger draught and struggled with the drink as long as his breath held out, and found still that the point of the horn would not go as far up as he wanted. And when he took the horn from his mouth and looked in, it now seemed to him as though it had gone down less than the previous time. The level was now far enough down for the horn to be carried easily without spilling. Then spoke Utgarda-Loki:
'What's the matter now, Thor? Are you not keeping back for one drink more than you will find easy to manage? It seems to me that if you are going to drain the horn with the third draught, then this must be intended to be the biggest one. But here among us you will not be reckoned as a great a person as the Æsir say you are, if you do not give a better account of yourself in other contests than it seems to me you are going to do with this one.'
Then Thor got angry, put the horn to his mouth and drank as hard as he could an struggled as long as possible with the drink. And when he looked into the horn, this time it had made most of all some difference. And then he handed back the horn and would drink no more. Then spoke Utgarda-Loki:
'It is obvious now that your might is not as great as we thought. Do you want to have a try at more contests? It is clear that you are going to get nowhere with this one.'
Thor tries to lift the giant's cat off the ground
Thor replied: 'I may as well have a try at yet more contests. But I would have been surprised when I was back home with the Æsir if such drinks had been reckoned so slight. And what game do you want to offer me now?'
Then spoke Utgarda-Loki: 'What the young lads here do, though it may not seem of great significance, is lift up my cat off the ground. But I would not know how to mention such a thing to Thor of the Æsir if I had not previously seen that you are a much less impressive person than I thought.'
Next a kind of grey cat ran out on to the hall floor, and it was rather big. Thor went up and took hold with his hand down under the middle of its belly and lifted it up. But the cat arched its back as much as Thor stretched up his hand. And when Thor reached as high up as the furthest he could, then the cat raised just one paw and Thor was not able to perform this feat. Then spoke Utgarda-Loki:
'This game went just as I expected: the cat is rather big, but Thor is short and small in comparison with the big fellows here with us.'
Then spoke Thor: 'Small as you say I am, just let someone come out and fight me! Now I am angry!'
Wrestling the old lady
Then Utgarda-Loki replied, looking round the benches, and said: 'I do not see anyone in here who will not think it demeaning to fight with you.' And then he went on: 'Let's see a moment. Call to me the old woman, my nurse Elli, and let Thor fight with her if he likes. She has brought down people who have seemed to me no less strong-looking than Thor is.'
Next there came into the hall and old crone. Then Utgarda-Loki said that she was to have a wrestling match with Thor of the Æsir. There is not a great deal to be told about it. What happened in this match was that the harder Thor strained in the wrestling, the firmer she stood. Then the old woman started to try tricks, and then Thor began to lose his footing, and there was some very hard pulling, and it was not long before Thor fell on to the knee of one leg. Then Utgarda-Loki went up, told them to stop the wrestling, and said this, that there was no point in Thor challenging any more people in his hall to a fight.
The end of the visit
It was also now late into the night. Utgarda-Loki showed Thor and his companions to places and they spent the night there with hospitable treatment. And in the morning as soon as it dawned Thor got up and so did his companions, they got dressed and were about to be off. Then Utgarda-Loki appeared and had a table laid for them. There was no lack of good cheer, food and drink. And when they had finished eating then they set off. Utgarda-Loki went out with them, and accompanied them on their road out of the castle. And as they parted, Utgarda-Loki spoke to Thor and asked how he thought his expedition had gone, and whether he had come up against any person more powerful than himself. Thor said that he could not claim that he had not suffered great loss of face in their encounter.
'And moreover I know that you will say that I am a person of little account, and it is that which irks me.'
'Now you shall be told the truth, now that you have come outside the castle, which is that if I live and can have my way you shall never again come into it. And I swear by my faith that you never would have come into it if I had known before that you had such great strength in you, and that you were going to bring us so close to great disaster. But I have deceived you by appearances, so that the first time when I discovered you in the forest it was I that came and met you. And when you tried to undo the knapsack I had fastened it with trick wire, and you could not find where it had to be unfastened. And next you struck me three blows with your hammer, and the first was the smallest and yet it was so hard that it would have been enough to kill me if it had struck its mark. But where you saw near my hall a table-mountain, and down in it you saw three square valleys, on deepest of all, these were the marks of your hammer. I moved the table-mountain in front of your blows, but you did not notice. So it was too with the games in which you competed with my men. The first was the one that Loki engaged in. He was very hungry and ate fast, but the one who is called Logi [flame] that was wildfire, and it burned the trencher just as quickly as the meat. And when Thialfi competed at running with the one called Hugi [thought], that was my thought, and Thialfi was not likely to be able to compete with its speed. And when you were drinking from the horn and it seemed to you that it was going slowly – I swear by my faith that then there took place a miracle that I would not have believed possible: the other end of the horn was out in the sea, and you did not notice, but now when you come to the sea then you will see what a lowering of the level you have made in the sea by your drinking.'
'This is now know as the tides.' And he went on:
'It did not seem to me any less impressive either when you lifted up the cat, and to tell you the truth everyone that was watching was terrified when you raised one of its feet from the ground. For that cat was not what it appeared to you: it was the Midgard serpent which lies encircling all lands, and its length was hardly enough for both its head and its tail to touch the ground. And so far did you reach up that you were not far from the sky. And that also was a great miracle with the wrestling when you stood so long and fell no further than to the knee of one leg when you were fighting Elli [old age], for there never has been anyone, and there never will be anyone, if they get so old that they experience old age, that old age will not bring them all down. And the truth I must tell you now is that we must part, and it will now be better on both sides that you do not come to see me again. I shall again next time defend my castle with similar tricks or with others so that you will not get any power over me.'
And when Thor heard this speech he snatched up his hammer and swung it in the air, but when he was about to bring it down then he found he could nowhere see Utgarda-Loki. And then he turned back towards the castle, intending to smash the castle. Then all he saw there was a wide and beautiful open landscape, but no castle. Then he turned back and went on his way until he got back to Thrudvangar. But the fact is that he had then made up his mind to seek an opportunity for a meeting to take place between him and the Midgard serpent, as later occurred. Now I think there is no one that can give you a truer account of this expedition of Thor's.
Translation by Anthony Faulkes
J.M. Dent & Sons, LTD., London, Everyman's Library
©David Campbell Publishers Ltd. 1987, ISBN 0 460 87185 4Painting, The Battle of Thor and the Giants, by Marten Eskil Winge
Drawings by Peter Madsen©
Valhalla - Au royaume des Géants
1989, Zenda Editions SARL, ISBN 2 87687078 9BACK TO:
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