Chapters 44-95 - Germanic Mythology

22). During the war between the Aesir and Vanir, Frigg espoused the cause of the Vanir
(see No. 36); thus Loki's insulting words to her (Lokasenna 26), and the tradition in
Heimskringla (Ynglingasaga 3), that Vilir and Vei took Frigg to themselves once when
Odin was far away from Asgard.
Saxo makes Lotherus fall at the hands of conspirators. The explanation of this
statement is to be sought in Mundilföri-Gevarr's fate, of which, see Nos. 91, 123.
Mundilfari's character seems at least in one respect to be the opposite of Hoenir's.
Gylfaginning 11 speaks of his ofdramb, his pride, founded, according to this record, on
the beauty of his children. Saxo mentions the insolentia 69 of Lotherus, and one of his
surnames was Dulsi, the proud. See No. 89, where a strophe is quoted, in which the
founder of the Swedish Skilfing race (the Ynglings) is called Dulsa konr, Dulsi's
descendant. 70 As was shown above in the account of the myth about Scef, the Skjoldungs,
too, are Skilfings. Both these branches of the race have a common origin; and as the
genealogy of the Skjoldungs can be traced back to Heimdall, and beyond him to
Mundilfari, it must be this personality who is mentioned for his ofdramb, that bears the
surname Dulsi.
With Odin, Véi-Hænir and Vili-Lóðurr-Mundilföri have participated in the
shaping of the world as well as in the creation of man. Of the part they took in the latter
act, and of the importance they thereby acquired in the mythical anthropology, and
especially in the conceptions concerning the continued creation of man by generation and
birth, see No. 95.
84.
NOTT, MOTHER OF THE GODS.
It has already been shown above that Nott, the mother of the gods, has her hall in
the northern part of Mimir's realm, below the southern slopes of the Nida mountains.
There has been, and still is, an interpretation of the myths as symbols. Light is
regarded as the symbol of moral goodness, and darkness as that of moral evil. That there
is something psychologically correct in this cannot be denied; but in regard to the Indo-
European religions the assumption would lead to a great error, if, as we might be tempted
to do, we should make night identical with darkness, and should refer her to the world of
evil. In the mythologies of the Rigveda-Indo-Europeans and of the Teutons, Nott is an
awe-inspiring, adorable, noble, and beneficent being. Night is said in Rigveda "to have a
fair face, to increase riches, and to be one of the mothers of order." 71 None of the
phenomena of nature seemed to the Teutons evil per se; only when they transgressed
what was thought to be their lawful limits, and thus produced injury and harm, were
69 Insolence, arrogance.
70 Dulsi also appears with the variant readings Dusli and Dysli. Egilsson states that the name form is
uncertain. Thus nothing can be inferred.
71 I cannot identify this with any Rigvedic passage; nor do the various layers of translations help the cause.
Rydberg may have had 10:127 in mind as some of these sentiments appear there.