The Mythology Book

158

WHEN THE WORM

COMES TO THE

WATER, SMITE

HIM IN THE HEART

SIGURD THE DRAGON SLAYER

S

igurd Fafnisbane was

one of the most popular

legendary human heroes

in Norse mythology, and the

central character of the Saga of

the Völsungs, which was written

down in Iceland around 1260 ce.

Sigurd was the posthumous son

of the hero Sigmund—the son of

king Völsung, from whom the saga

takes its name—and was fostered

by Regin, a highly skilled dwarf

smith. One day, Regin told Sigurd

the story of Otter’s Ransom, a pile

of gold the Aesir gods paid to

Regin’s father Hreidmar, king of the

dwarves, as compensation for

killing Regin’s brother, Otter. (At

the time, Otter had been in the

form of the creature bearing that

name.) The gold, however, had been

cursed by its original owner, the

dwarf Andvari, after the trickster

Loki forced him to give up a gold

ring to complete the ransom.

Otter’s curse unfolds

Regin’s brother Fafnir murdered his

father to get the gold and turned

into a dragon to guard it. Regin

also wanted the treasure, so he

urged Sigurd to kill Fafnir, plotting

to murder the hero afterward. To

ensure Sigurd’s success, Regin

forged the magical sword Gram

and gave it to him. After killing

Fafnir, Sigurd accidentally drank

some of the dragon’s blood, gaining

the ability to understand the

speech of birds. From them he

learned of Regin’s treacherous

A carved portal from Hylestad stave

church, Norway, depicts Sigurd slaying

the dragon Fafnir. Such scenes were

popular subjects for wood and stone

carvers in the late Viking Age.

IN BRIEF

THEME

Hero versus monster

SOURCES

Völsunga Saga (“The Saga of

the Völsungs”), Anonymous,

c. 1260 ce.

SETTING

Late Iron Age; Denmark

or G er ma ny.

KEY FIGURES

Sigurd Fafnisbane Son of

the hero Sigmund.

Regin A dwarf smith.

Otter Regin’s brother.

Andvari A dwarf, who can

change into a fish.

Fafnir Regin’s brother, who

can turn into a dragon.

Brynhild A Valkyrie.

Grimhild A queen; mother of

Gudrun, Gunnar, and Guttorm.

Gudrun Sig urd’s w ife.

Gunnar Gudrun’s brother.

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159

See also: The adventures of Thor and Loki in Jötunnheim 146–47 ■ The death of Baldur 148–49 ■

The twilight of the gods 150–57

NORTHERN EUROPE

intentions and beheaded him,

taking the gold for himself. As the

new owner of the cursed treasure,

Sigurd was now doomed as well.

Having proved himself a great

warrior, Sigurd became betrothed to

the Valkyrie Brynhild. However, he

forgot Brynhild after drinking a

potion from queen Grimhild—who

wanted the treasure for her family—

and he married Grimhild’s daughter

Gudrun instead. Gunnar, Gudrun’s

brother, then sought Sigurd’s help in

winning the hand of Brynhild, whose

hall was protected by a ring of magic

fire through which only Sigurd could

pass. Made to switch forms with

Gunnar, Sigurd wooed the Valkyrie

for his brother-in-law, but Brynhild

was enraged to learn that she had

been deceived and ordered Gunnar

to kill Sigurd.

Gunnar’s brother Guttorm

agreed to do the deed and fatally

wounded Sigurd, at the cost of his

own life. Heartbroken, Brynhild

threw herself on Sigurd’s funeral

pyre. Gunnar alone avoided the

treasure’s curse by abandoning

the gold in a cave. ■

Otter’s ransom

passed hands many

times after Loki forced

Andvari to give it up.

The gold cursed all

who took possession of

it, including the Aesir,

who were doomed to

die at Ragnarök.

Andvari,

a fish dwarf,

put a curse on

the treasure as

he gave it to

the god Loki.

Regin was

beheaded by

Sigurd, who

he had plotted

to murder.

Sigurd was

murdered by

Guttorm, the

brother of

Gunnar.

The Aesir

gods paid

the ransom to

Hreidmar

for the death

of Otter.

Fafnir, a

shape-shifter,

was killed by

Sigurd for

Fafnir’s brother

Regin.

Gunnar

broke the curse

by leaving the

gold in a cave,

where Andvari

recovered it.

Hreidmar,

king of the

dwarves, was

killed in battle

by his son,

Fafnir.

Dragons in myth

Common in many mythologies,

dragons are serpentlike, often

winged, reptilian creatures

capable of breathing fire or venom.

In Indo-European stories, dragons

are usually malign creatures

eventually killed by divine or

human heroes. In Vedic Hinduism,

for example, the dragon Vritra,

a personification of drought, is

slain by the god Indra. In Norse

mythology, the god Thor kills the

world-encircling Midgard serpent.

A dragon-slaying hero appears

in Near Eastern mythologies,

including the story of the

Babylonian god Marduk slaying

the sea dragon Tiamat. The

creature also appears in early

Christian stories, such as that

of St. George and the Dragon,

where the dragon becomes a

symbol of Satan.

In contrast, the dragons

of Chinese mythology are

revered beneficent creatures,

associated with authority,

power, and wisdom. They

possess powers over natural

forces, specifically those to do

with water; they can control

rain, tsunamis, and floods.

Dragon statues mark the boundary

of the City of London, in reference to

the story of England’s patron saint

St. George and the dragon.

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