Völuspá

Völuspá, poem consisting of about 65 short stanzas on Norse cosmogony, the history of the world of gods, men, and monsters from its beginning until the Ragnarök (“Doom of the Gods”). In spite of its clearly pagan theme, the poem reveals Christian influence in its imagery. The scenery described is that of Iceland. It is commonly thought that the poem was composed in Iceland about the year 1000, when Icelanders perceived the fall of their...