The Regeneration After Ragnarok
In Norse mythology, Ragnarok was the event that brought the glorious time of Gods to a halt. The meaning of the word “Ragnarok” was either the Dissolution or the Destiny (Rok) of the Gods or Rulers (Ragna).
During the disastrous events of Ragnarok, Midgard experienced the total chaos, brothers killing brothers, murdering, looting, etc. The gods, too, suffered the fear of facing their final destiny, living all day long with scared and horror. No matter how carefully the Gods prevented Ragnarok, they could not escape their destiny. The days of Ragnarok finally arrived, blood was set, and many fell down. As what had been prophesied, the gods could not impressively win this battle. Many of them were slain during the Ragnarok and so were the giants. The entirety of the world was buried in the flame of fire giant Surt. Nearly everything was doomed on that Ragnarok day.
Odin was swallowed by wolf Fenrir who then was killed by Vidar son of Odin. Loki and Heimdall slew each other. Thor killed Jormungandr and then died of the venom from this Midgard Serpent. Freyr was slain by fire giant Surtr
However, it was not the end of the world. There followed the Regeneration of the World though.
Few gods did survive. Baldur came from the land of Helheim after Ragnarok, leading his blind brother Hodur. Another Odin’s sons Vidar and Vali also survived. Thor’s children whose names respectively were Modi and Magni were alive and they inherited the treasure of his father – the Mjolnir hammer. Together they went to the unscorched land of Idavoll and building their new stronghold. The greatest palace was Gimle which was a beautiful golden-roofed building. Other splendid palaces were Brimir and Sindri. There was a place like Helheim in this new period, of course. It was known as Nastrond, the shore of corpses. This place was the afterlife for people guilty of murder, thieves, oath-breaking, etc. The surviving dragon Niddhog lived there, feeding upon the corpses and drinking the blood.
Before being swallowed by the wolf Skoll, Sol whose duty was mainly related to the Sun gave birth to her daughter. Sol’s daughter then became the new Sun of the cosmos. As this new Sun shone through the branches and leaves, it presented that the new period of the cosmos was to begin.
Two humans known as Lif (human man) and Lifthrasir (human woman) made themselves through the Ragnarok safe and sound. They hid inside the hole of Yggdrasil. As they saw the light from the Sun, they knew that days of Ragnarok had passed and they could step out from Yggdrasil. Lif and Lifthrasir bore the responsibilities of repopulating the world. They had children and their children would bear children. The new life was seen in every corner of the cosmos. Ragnarok was the end, in fact. But it only ended one certain period and signaled the beginning of another. It was time to start something new and believe the magic of beginning.
Read more about Ragnarok Twilight of Gods HERE
