In this episode of STBYM’s The Monstrefact, Robert discusses Sleipnir, the mythical stead of the Norse god Odin.
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Hi, my name is Robert Lamb and this is the Monster Fact, a short form series from Stuff to Blow Your Mind, focusing in non mythical creatures, ideas and monsters in time. Given the tomorrow's core episode of Stuff to Blow Your Mind focuses on the horse hoof and at least one legendary account of exceptional horse anatomy, I thought it fitting to discuss Sleipnir, the fabulous eight legged steed of the Norse god Odin. In the Old Norse collection of poems, the poetic Edda slap Near is described as the best of horses, swifter than all other mortal and divine steeds. The horses eight legs propelled it at great speeds across water, land, air and ice, even to the gates of Hell. In one account quote, then Othan rose the enchanter old and the saddle he laid on Sleipner's back. Thence rode he down to nithel Diek, and the hound he met that came from Hell. Bloody he was on his breast before at the father of magic. He howled from Afar forward rode Othan the earth resounded till the house so high of hell he reached. This is via the Henry Adams Bellows translation of the poetic Getta nineteen thirty six. As for Sleipner's parentage, well, it's a bit tricky. As Carol Rose explains in Giants, Monsters and Dragons, the trickster god Loki took on the form of a mare and made it with the magical giant stallion Savadolfari, whose giant master was tasked with building a wall around Asgard. The unnamed giant agreed to finish the wall in but three winters, all for the cost of well, the sun, the moon, and the goddess Freya's hand in marriage. Now, the Norse gods the assier, thought they should probably try install completion a bit. After all, they don't want to give up the sun, the moon, and the hand in marriage of the goddess Freya. And so they turned to Loki, who took on the form of a beautiful mare to distract the giant laborer's steed, and hey, it seemed to work. The giant's progress was stalled because he had to spend a whole day chasing after his lusty stallion. That was chasing after this beautiful mayre. As a result, he did not win the Sun, the Moon, and Freya's hand in marriage, and his resulting quest for vengeance only brought about his own death at the hands or rather the hammer of Thor. But also during all this, Loki did manage to find himself impregnated in the form of a horse, and thus gave birth to the miraculous steed slept near one of Loki's many monstrous children. The horse became the chosen steed of Odin and is a common feature in old depictions of the Norse king of the Gods. As Judith tar explored in a twenty eighteen post for tour dot com, academics have made various interpretations of those eight legs, ranging from the notion of four shadow legs then enable him to move across air and water, to the interpretation that the eight legs represent the legs of pallbearers carrying the dead. After all, Sleipner was able to carry Odin to Nifflheim, the world of Fog. Tune in for additional episodes of the Monster Fact each week. As always, you can email us at contact at stuffed to Bole your Mind dot com.
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