ǪrvOdd Lv 26VIII (Ǫrv 60)
Margaret Clunies Ross (ed.) 2017, ‘Ǫrvar-Odds saga 60 (Ǫrvar-Oddr, Lausavísur 26)’ in Margaret Clunies Ross (ed.), Poetry in fornaldarsögur. Skaldic Poetry of the Scandinavian Middle Ages 8. Turnhout: Brepols, p. 875.
Oddr ‘Oddr’
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oddr (noun m.; °-s, dat. -i; -ar): point of weapon
brendi ‘burned’
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3. brenna (verb; (weak, transitive)): to burn (weak, intr.)
[1] brendi: brennir 344a
hof ‘the temples’
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1. hóf (noun n.; °-s; -): court, temple
ok ‘and’
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3. ok (conj.): and, but; also
hörga ‘sanctuaries’
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hǫrgr (noun m.; °; -ar): cairn, shrine
braut ‘broke up’
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brjóta (verb; °brýtr; braut, brutu; brotinn): to break, destroy
ok ‘and’
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3. ok (conj.): and, but; also
tré ‘wooden’
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tré (noun n.; °-s; tré/trjó, gen. trjá, dat. trjóm/trjám): tree < trégoð (noun n.)
notes
[3] trégoðum ‘wooden gods’: Cf. ǪrvOdd Ævdr 68/3 (Ǫrv 138), where the same cpd is used. The cpd is otherwise a hap. leg. but refers to carved wooden figures of pagan gods such as are mentioned in a number of early sources. The tone of this stanza is particularly reminiscent of the early C14th narrative of the fugitive Gunnarr helmingr ‘Half’ who hides with a priestess of Freyr in Sweden and pretends to be the god himself. In this narrative stress is laid on the fact that the idol in the temple is just a piece of wood (tréstokkr) which splits open to reveal the devil (sá fjándi) that has taken up residence inside; (see Ǫgm, ÍF 9, 111-15).
goðum ‘gods’
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goð (noun n.): (pagan) god < trégoð (noun n.)
notes
[3] trégoðum ‘wooden gods’: Cf. ǪrvOdd Ævdr 68/3 (Ǫrv 138), where the same cpd is used. The cpd is otherwise a hap. leg. but refers to carved wooden figures of pagan gods such as are mentioned in a number of early sources. The tone of this stanza is particularly reminiscent of the early C14th narrative of the fugitive Gunnarr helmingr ‘Half’ who hides with a priestess of Freyr in Sweden and pretends to be the god himself. In this narrative stress is laid on the fact that the idol in the temple is just a piece of wood (tréstokkr) which splits open to reveal the devil (sá fjándi) that has taken up residence inside; (see Ǫgm, ÍF 9, 111-15).
týndi ‘destroyed’
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týna (verb): lose, destroy
þínum ‘your’
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þinn (pron.; °f. þín, n. þitt): your
Gerðu ‘did’
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1. gera (verb): do, make
þau ‘They’
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hann (pron.; °gen. hans, dat. honum; f. hon, gen. hennar, acc. hana): he, she, it, they, them...
notes
[5-6] ekki góðs ‘nothing good’: Lit. ‘nothing of good’. The alternative reading gott ‘good’ n. acc. sg. is also possible.
notes
[5-6] ekki góðs ‘nothing good’: Lit. ‘nothing of good’. The alternative reading gott ‘good’ n. acc. sg. is also possible.
í ‘in’
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í (prep.): in, into
heimi ‘the world’
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heimr (noun m.; °-s, dat. -i/-; -ar): home, abode; world
þau ‘they’
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hann (pron.; °gen. hans, dat. honum; f. hon, gen. hennar, acc. hana): he, she, it, they, them...
[7] er þau ór eldi: er eigi orði 344a
eldi ‘the fire’
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eldr (noun m.; °-s, dat. -i/-(HómÍsl¹(1993) 24v²⁴); -ar): fire
[7] er þau ór eldi: er eigi orði 344a
ösla ‘escape’
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ǫsla (verb)
[8] ösla né máttu: ösla máttu 344a, ösla eigi máttu 471, ei ösla mega 173ˣ
notes
[8] ösla ‘escape’: Lit. ‘wade, splash’. Seemingly a curious choice to use of escaping from fire, but all mss have this verb.
né ‘not’
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né (conj.): nor
[8] ösla né máttu: ösla máttu 344a, ösla eigi máttu 471, ei ösla mega 173ˣ
máttu ‘could’
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mega (verb): may, might
[8] ösla né máttu: ösla máttu 344a, ösla eigi máttu 471, ei ösla mega 173ˣ
Interactive view: tap on words in the text for notes and glosses
See Introduction to stanzas 59-70.
Oddr’s reply to his interlocutor justifies his action of burning the cult houses of Álfr and Gyðja in terms familiar to Christian apologetic for the destruction of places of pagan worship, in that they did no good in the world and were powerless to save themselves from the fire because they were just pieces of wood. Earlier in the saga (Ǫrv 1888, 9), Oddr has been represented as a ‘noble pagan’ (cf. Lönnroth 1969) who has a natural understanding of Christian beliefs and morals. While in Southern Europe, he accepted preliminary baptism as a Christian (cf. Ǫrv 37 and 123 and Notes). The terms hof ‘temple’ (l. 1) and hörgr ‘sanctuary’ (l. 2) are used exclusively in skaldic poetry to refer to places of pagan cult; cf. Anon Pl 59/2VII, Hfr Óldr 1/2I and Mark Eirdr 17/1II. — [1-2]: Line 1 is unmetrical, the alliteration falling in metrical position 4 in a D4/E-line. A change of word order to Hof brendi Oddr would restore a metrical line, but the first position emphasis of the p. n. Oddr would then be lost.
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