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Description

Here’s my take on Nidhögg (or Nidhöggr, which can be interpreted as "malice striker"), the giant serpent (or dragon) which, in Norse mythology, gnaws the world tree Yggdrasil by the roots. More precisely, the Grímnismál (one of the components of the Poetic Edda) say that it gnaws a root located just above Niflheim, the primordial world of ice, where Helheim, the abode of the non-heroic dead, is located ; Hel, the regent of this domain, would also be the only being capable of appeasing the monster.

Through the giant squirrel Ratatosk, Nidhögg exchanges messages with Vidofnir, the enormous eagle/hawk/rooster which sits atop Yggdrasil (and which sometimes has no name). The words exchanged are never specified, but many believe that they would be messages of hatred between the serpent and the bird, whose reciprocal animosity would be maintained by Ratatosk. Another poem from the Poetic Edda, the Völuspá, relates that Nidhögg resides in Náströnd (“shore of corpses”), a place located north of Helheim. Here, murderers, adulterers and perjurers are condemned to be chewed and/or drained of their blood by the abominable serpent ; moreover, these same damned are forced to walk in a river of venom, generated by the myriads of snakes which form the walls and ceiling of their prison. However, another part of the Edda, the Gylfaginning, reports that Nidhögg inhabits Hvergelmir, a burning hot spring located in Niflheim, where all sorts of other minor ophidian creatures also lurk.

The colossal dragon is also mentioned during the Ragnarök episode. It is not certain, however, whether its arrival on the “battlefield” is an overture or a conclusion of the cosmic conflict. Nidhögg is described as flying towards the central location of the fight, coming from Nidafjöll (the "dark mountains" at the north of Helheim), and "carrying bodies/corpses in its wings". Is it at this moment a sinister omen of death, escorting Hel's subjects? Or is it, on the contrary, an agent of renewal, recovering the “souls” of the victims of Ragnarök, as a neutral psychopomp? Snorri Sturluson, for his part, declares that following this cataclysm, the dead who were good and virtuous will live in a golden palace in Nidafjöll, despite the grim situation of the place. As for the future of Nidhögg itself, it remains mysterious. According to some translations of the Völuspá, it "sinks" after Ragnarök, after having fulfilled its ultimate duty as a psychopomp, and according to others, it is the seer who reports the events of the poem who "sinks".

Some fitting music : youtu.be/wnjwqMqrkig

Description

Here’s my take on Nidhögg (or Nidhöggr, which can be interpreted as "malice striker"), the giant serpent (or dragon) which, in Norse mythology, gnaws the world tree Yggdrasil by the roots. More precisely, the Grímnismál (one of the components of the Poetic Edda) say that it gnaws a root located just above Niflheim, the primordial world of ice, where Helheim, the abode of the non-heroic dead, is located ; Hel, the regent of this domain, would also be the only being capable of appeasing the monster.

Through the giant squirrel Ratatosk, Nidhögg exchanges messages with Vidofnir, the enormous eagle/hawk/rooster which sits atop Yggdrasil (and which sometimes has no name). The words exchanged are never specified, but many believe that they would be messages of hatred between the serpent and the bird, whose reciprocal animosity would be maintained by Ratatosk. Another poem from the Poetic Edda, the Völuspá, relates that Nidhögg resides in Náströnd (“shore of corpses”), a place located north of Helheim. Here, murderers, adulterers and perjurers are condemned to be chewed and/or drained of their blood by the abominable serpent ; moreover, these same damned are forced to walk in a river of venom, generated by the myriads of snakes which form the walls and ceiling of their prison. However, another part of the Edda, the Gylfaginning, reports that Nidhögg inhabits Hvergelmir, a burning hot spring located in Niflheim, where all sorts of other minor ophidian creatures also lurk.

The colossal dragon is also mentioned during the Ragnarök episode. It is not certain, however, whether its arrival on the “battlefield” is an overture or a conclusion of the cosmic conflict. Nidhögg is described as flying towards the central location of the fight, coming from Nidafjöll (the "dark mountains" at the north of Helheim), and "carrying bodies/corpses in its wings". Is it at this moment a sinister omen of death, escorting Hel's subjects? Or is it, on the contrary, an agent of renewal, recovering the “souls” of the victims of Ragnarök, as a neutral psychopomp? Snorri Sturluson, for his part, declares that following this cataclysm, the dead who were good and virtuous will live in a golden palace in Nidafjöll, despite the grim situation of the place. As for the future of Nidhögg itself, it remains mysterious. According to some translations of the Völuspá, it "sinks" after Ragnarök, after having fulfilled its ultimate duty as a psychopomp, and according to others, it is the seer who reports the events of the poem who "sinks".

Some fitting music : youtu.be/wnjwqMqrkig