Tuesday, February 02, 2010

Tuesday - Named After a Poor, Pathetic God

Tyr glanced down at his right arm which ended at the wrist. Even handicapped, he could not be defeated in one on one battle. He clasped his sword in his left hand, as he contemplated his current situation.

Once known as the father of the Norse gods, he had been the head of their pantheon. His name meant god, for goodness’ sake. Now, look at him. His only legacy consisted of the name of a mediocre day of the week, Tuesday. Big whoop.

He once judged human kind, determining whether they lived or died. He stood for glory, heroism and victory in individual struggles. But it all came down to PR. Odin, the upstart, acted like a big kid, with his hunting and magic and poetry. Thor made a lot of noise with his thunder and that silly hammer.

Did anyone even remember the story of how Tyr lost his hand?

Fenrir, the great wolf, terrorized the gods and humans alike. The demonic animal broke every chain placed upon it.

The dwarves made a magical ribbon called Gleipnir to shackle the beast. It looked like silk but consisted of the sound of a cat's footfall, the beard of a woman, the roots of a mountain, the bear's feelings, fish's breath and bird's spittle, none of which exist anymore once the ribbon had been made.

Sensing a trap, Fenrir refused to have the ribbon placed around his neck unless one of the gods would put his hand in the wolf’s mouth. Being the bravest and noblest of gods, Tyr agreed. The wolf was bound but at the cost of Tyr’s right hand.




20 comments:

  1. Nightmare stuff. I'm afraid to go to sleep now!

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  2. Ha! Exactly why I don't volunteer for ANYTHING!

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  3. So glad I'm not the bravest nor the noblest :)

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  4. I'm also glad I don't have to be the one who volunteers for lousy jobs. I really like the stuff the magical ribbon was made of, though. Intriguing post, Nessa.

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  5. Have you read American Gods by Neil Gaiman?!?!? I think you'd love it.

    This was a super interesting post! Loved it. Thanks for sharing that story with me. I always love a good storyteller.

    JM

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  6. I loved your version of this Norse tale. Well done.

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  7. Tuesday will be a way more interesting day for me from now on.

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  8. Very cool, I love when I learn something new!

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  9. Loved the description of the magical ribbon!

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  10. I think I'd do that if someone asked me to. Not because I'm brave, but just because I want people to like me. Plus I want a day named after me.

    Scoday.

    Sounds good.

    Plus it would be a weekend day because all days that start with S are the weekend.

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  11. Interesting story; a great take on the Norse mythology.;)
    xo
    Zuzana

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  12. Tuesday will never be the same for me! :)

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  13. Good fill someone in on and this fill someone in on helped me alot in my college assignement. Thank you for your information.

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  14. I did not know that. Great story.

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  15. Her's a historical tidbit - Quakers don't use the month or day names because they are tied to various gods. Instead, they say First Month, Second Month, and so on. Sunday school is called First Day school.

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  16. Time for Ragnarok, for blizzards, storms, Donner und Blitzen.
    You sure it isn’t Loki up to his mean old tricks?

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  17. Great history lesson. Poor, poor Tyr!

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