‘Hvat es þat drauma *, es ek hugðumk fyr dag lítlu
Valhǫll ryðja fyr vegnu folki?
Vakða ek einherja, bað ek upp rísa
bekki at stráa, borðker at leyðra,
valkyrjur vín bera, sem vísi komi.
‘Hvat es þat drauma *, es ek hugðumk lítlu fyr dag ryðja Valhǫll fyr vegnu folki? Vakða ek einherja, bað ek rísa upp at stráa bekki, at leyðra borðker, valkyrjur bera vín, sem vísi komi.
‘What kind of dream is this, that I thought that a little before daybreak I was preparing Valhǫll for a slain army? I awakened the einherjar, I asked them to get up to strew the benches, to rinse the drinking cups, [I asked] valkyries to bring wine, as if a leader should come.
[5] einherja ‘the einherjar’: These are the slain champions chosen to dwell in Valhǫll by Óðinn (Grí 8) and his agents the valkyries (Eyv Hák 1). They share a life of perpetual feasting and training in readiness to defend the gods (see st. 7 and SnE 2005, 21, 30, 32-4). The word seems to be compounded from einn ‘one’ and heri, pl. herjar ‘warrior(s)’, but the original sense is uncertain.