PART ONE

Knowledge of secret magical techniques and the search for hidden wisdom were frequent concerns for the ancient heroes in the Norse pantheon of Gods. The “Seeress’s Prophecy,” also known as the “Prophecy of the Völva,” is one of the most famous epic poems from pre-Christian Norse mythology; part of an ancient text referred to as the Völuspá.

The Völuspá embodies many of the fundamental magical elements encoded in Norse mythology from the pre-Christian, early middle ages. Scholars have described the Völuspá as a kind of ‘sacred text’ of pagan Scandinavian religion, composed during a time when Pagan beliefs were intended to be eradicated by Christianity.

The Codex Regius is the primary source for this brief examination: an ancient manuscript compiled in the mid-thirteenth century by unknown, anonymous authors. The vellum parchment dates from approximately 1270; The text’s organization by theme and topic lead some scholars to believe it was copied from earlier sources which no longer exist. Many of the Völuspá’s stanzas are quoted or paraphrased in Snorri Sturluson’s Prose Edda, composed in the year 1220.

The Völuspá is preserved in both the Codex Regius and Hauksbók manuscripts, while parts of it are quoted in Snorri’s Prose Edda. The Hauksbók is one of the few medieval Norse manuscripts where the author is actually known. His name was Haukr Erlendsson, and it was partly written by Haukr himself, partly by his assistants. The book contains versions – sometimes the only remaining editions – of many old Icelandic texts.

Snorri gives a summary of the Völuspá in his seminal work, Gylfaginning. He was clearly aware of its existence although his version does not contain the last few ‘Christianized’ stanzas.

The Völuspá is regarded as one of the most important primary sources for the study of Norse mythology. Some anonymous editors of the original manuscript appear to have rearranged certain material, however.

The oldest manuscript of the Völuspá still in existence dates from 1302 to 1310. The order and number of stanzas varies in each of these sources. The Codex Regius, (Latin for “King’s Book”), contains 29 poems commonly designated by scholars as the Poetic Edda, or Elder Edda. It is the oldest such collection, the best-known of all Icelandic books, and is considered an Icelandic national treasure.

Völuspá opens the Poetic Edda. It was composed in Iceland during a period of significant social upheaval, when Christianity was replacing the traditional beliefs of the Nordic people. The content of the Völuspá implies the poet’s expectation that his audience is intimately familiar with the folklore and cosmology of Northern paganism. The poem’s anonymous authors seem to have envisioned the Völuspá as a kind of literary response to the demise of the ancient Norse religion; a reassertion of the old gods in the face of their imminent downfall as objects of living worship.

Nordic women who practiced magic and soothsaying were called Völva (‘Seeress’). The word “volva,” is a gender-specific term which translates as ‘staff-bearer’ or ‘wand bearer.’ The name refers to the magical staff of the völva; the phallic staff she carries as she wanders from place to place. The term völva is phonetically similar to vulva, and both terms originate from words of similar meaning. The Germanic word walwōn, and volvere (from Latin) mean “to roll”, referring to the labia of the vagina.

With a combination of hallucinations, visions and dreams, völvas opened up their consciousness to the spiritual and magical realms. To acquire this supernatural power, the völva would often sit out in the open air for several nights, where she then received revelations from Odin, or from other spirits and the dead.

Those who claimed special knowledge of the divine or supernatural realms have appeared in many Germanic myths, folktales, and religious traditions. These people had the ability to predict the future and speak for the gods. Others with similar magical gifts have been called diviners, oracles, prophets, and shamans. They were understood to have received special wisdom, power, or knowledge from magical deities and spirits, and they played a significant role in the ancient Norse community.

The most common and generic word for “magic” was fjölkyngi, which is derived from the verb ‘kunna,’ meaning “great knowledge.” Kunna literally means ‘to know,’ to understand or ‘to know by heart,’ as well as ‘to have insight in the old traditions and lore.’

The Norse people held magic in high regard. Even though the men fought the wars with their blood and sweat, Nordic women were equally powerful on a spiritual level, being able to practice magic (Seid, or seiðr in Old Norse) just as well as, or even better than, most men.

The status of women as passive holders of amazing power is reflected in Nordic Mythology. A völva was an emancipated woman who was unencumbered by the strong family and community bonds which normally surrounded women in Norse society. She traveled the land sometimes accompanied by young students, and she was summoned in times of crisis. She had immense authority and was paid well for her services.

Ancient Germanic sources describe the völva as highly professional; wise in folklore and history; as healers, rune users and prophets. As the Viking era became more patriarchal and dangerous for women, a völva sometimes attached herself to an aristocratic household, giving her even greater authority.

The völva interprets present and future happenings, touching on various Norse myths: she describes the origin of the worlds, of day, night, and the beginning of time. Included as well is the story of the creation of mankind: the first humans were named Ash and Embla. Ultimately, the Völuspá depicts the total destruction of the world, known as Ragnarok or “Twilight of the Gods”: the “Gotterdammerung.”

The ability to discern and shape one’s destiny was a constant theme in the epic sagas, and the Völuspá is no exception. In the epic poem, the great god Odin seeks out the völva in order to gain wisdom from the ancient past, learn the truth about the present, and discover the secrets of the future. Odin conjures up a very old Völva, one of the original ‘nine sisters.’

The cosmology of Norse mythology contains nine “home worlds”, unified by the world tree Yggdrasil. Mapping the nine worlds is nearly impossible, however, because the Poetic Edda only vaguely alludes to them, and the Prose Edda was likely influenced by medieval Christian cosmology. Yggdrasil could be considered an analogy for the “tree of life” as a descriptive term for Jesus Christ.