THE SCENE: Norse mythology is filled with scenes of strange unease, like the following passage where strange supernatural wolves are destined to wreck great destruction upon the worlds of gods and men.
THE TEXT: “But the sun,” said Gangler, speeds at such a rate as if she feared that some one was pursuing her for her destruction.”
“And well she may,” replied Har, “for he that seeks her is not far behind, and she has no way to escape than to run before him.”
“But who is he,” asked Gangler, “that causes her this anxiety?”
“There are two wolves,” answered Har; “the one called Skoll pursues the sun, and it is he that she fears, for he shall one day overtake and devour her; the other, called Hati, the son of Hrodvitnir, runs before her, and as eagerly pursues the moon that will one day be caught by him.”
“Whence come these wolves?” asked Gangler.
“A hag,” replied Har, “dwells in a wood, to the eastward of Midgard, called the Iron Wood, which is the abode of a race of witches called Jarnvidjur. This old hag is the mother of many gigantic sons, who are all of them shaped like wolves, two of whom are the wolves thou askest about. There is one of that race, who is said to be the most formidable of all, called Managarm: he will be filled with the life-blood of men who draw near their end, and will swallow up the moon, and stain the heavens and the earth with blood. Then shall the sun grow dim, and the winds howl tumultuously to and fro.”
– The Prose Edda, Snorri Sturluson, 13th Century AD
