Questions about the Gylfaginning, the first book of the Prose Edda.
The Gulfaginning is the book of the Prose Edda that relates Norse myths.
See also prose-edda for more general questions.
The Gylfaginning was our first ever Myth of the Month.
Questions tagged [gylfaginning]
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Does Odin choose who enters Valhalla?
Ero Sɘnnin's answer in How was it decided which warriors would go to Fólkvangr and which to Valhalla? seems to suggest that Odin gets to choose who enters Valhalla:
Valhalla is presided over by Odin, and to gain entrance to it, one must be chosen…
yannis
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How are future apocalyptic events detailed so greatly?
For example,
From Wikipedia article on Ragnarök (emphasis mine):
In Norse mythology, Ragnarök is a series of future events, including a great battle foretold to ultimately result in the death of a number of major figures (including the gods Odin,…
Ero Sɘnnin
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Are dwarves and dark elves the same?
I remember reading somewhere that in Norse mythology dwarves and dark elves are the same thing. Then I started reading Gylfaginning and it sounded like they were different, but then later on they send someone to get help from the dwarves in…
Salvador
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Why does Óðr (Oder) travel away from Freyja?
In chapter 36 of the Gylfaginning, it is said that:
The sixth is Freyja, who is ranked with Frigg. She is wedded to the man whose name is Oder; their daughter's name is Hnos, and she is so fair that all things fair and precious are called, from her…
HDE 226868
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Why is Gylfe trying to deceit his way into Asgard?
In the Gylfaginning, king Gylfe travels to Asgard disguised as an old man. When asked, he introduces himself with a fake name (Ganglere). The Aesir are on to him from the start, however they don't seem to care; Gylfe gets answers to his questions,…
yannis
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Who is the sword juggler in the Gylfaginning?
In chapter 2 of the Gylfaginning, Gylfe is lead to Odin (in the form of High, Just-as-High, and Third) by a nameless sword juggler:
In the door of the hall Gylfe saw a man who played with swords so dexterously that seven were in the air at one…
yannis
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Why is Vidar silent?
In chapter 29 of the Gylfaginning, Snorri Sturluson calls Vidar "the silent asa":
Vidar is the name of the silent asa. He has a very thick shoe, and he is the strongest next after Thor. From him the gods have much help in all hard tasks.
Source:…
yannis
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Who fathered Gefjun's ox sons?
Gefjun, an Aesir, apparently had four ox sons with a giant:
But this woman was of the asa-race; her name was Gefjun. She took from the north, from Jotunheim, four oxen, which were the sons of a giant and her, and set them before the plow. Then went…
yannis
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Significance of Gylfi's choice of pseudonym
When Gylfi tries to trick the gods into entering Asgard under a false identity, he adopts the name Gangleri.
Later, during his discussion with Hár, Jafnhár, and Þriðji, it is revealed to him in stanza 20 the list of names by which Odin is known (I…
plannapus
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According to the Gylfaginning, where do giants live?
I'm reading the Gylfaginning as part of our site's myth of the month challenge, and I noticed the following line:
How was the earth fashioned? Made answer Har: The earth is round, and without it round about lies the deep ocean, and along the outer…
user62