thE poEtic Edda

A Dual-Language Edition
Edward pEttit
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© 2023 Edward Pettit

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Front cover image: ‘The Two Corbies’ by Arthur Rackham, from Some British Ballads (London, [1919])
Back cover image: The god Heimdallr blowing his horn, from a seventeenth-century Icelandic manuscript
(AM 738 4to, fol. 35v)
Images on pp. 27 and 861: ‘Two Ravens’ (CC-BY 4.0) by M. Barran, https://www.etsy.com/uk/shop/
MarleenaBarranDesign
Cover design by Katy Saunders.
 Sigrdrífumál

The title Sigrdrífumál (Sd.) ‘The Sayings of Sigrdrífa’ is not found in R, but supplied
editorially, following modern convention. The distinction between Fm. and Sd. is itself
an editorial intervention, made on the basis of later, paper manuscripts. Some of these
have a different title for Sd.: Brynhildarkviða Buðladóttur in fyrsta ‘The First Poem of
Brynhildr, Buðli’s Daughter’.
The text of Sd. is incomplete in R (fol. 31v–32v), due to the loss of a gathering: it
ends amid st. 29. Fortunately, paper manuscripts of the seventeenth and eighteenth
centuries preserve the rest of the poem, the full text having apparently been copied
before the loss occurred. Additionally, the second half of st. 8 is supplied from VS
21. A version of Sd. was obviously a source for VS, as the same chapter also quotes
stt. 5–13 and 15–21, albeit in a different order and with some significant variants, in
its corresponding description of the meeting of Sigurðr and the valkyrie Brynhildr.
Brynhildr is the saga’s name for the valkyrie called Sigrdrífa in the prose following st. 4
of Sd.1 Hlr. may also identify the two figures. The basis of the equation is uncertain,
however.
Sd. is another prosimetrum, possibly stitched together from different sources. Its
verses, comprising the words exchanged by Sigurðr and Sigrdrífa, are mostly in the
usual Eddic metre for wisdom dialogue, ljóðaháttr. There are, however, also instances
of fornyrðislag and galdralag.
After some arresting opening stanzas, in which Sigrdrífa awakens from a magically
induced sleep induced by Óðinn and addresses gods and goddesses, she identifies the
different types of rune-magic that Sigurðr must know, albeit with few specifics about
the actual runes. These details are possibly contained within the magical beer that she
brings him, which represents another manifestation of the theme (also present in Vsp.,
Háv., Vm., Grm., Fm. and Hdl.) of the acquisition, retention or revelation of knowledge
by imbibing liquid, and which presumably reflects the belief of a largely illiterate
society that knowledge, principally released from the mouth as speech (enabled by
saliva and sometimes projected with it), was acquired through the mouth in the form
of a liquid. Sigrdrífa also describes the Óðinnic origin of certain runes in an otherwise
unknown episode, and confers more general advice in a manner similar to Háv.

1 Sigrdrífa does not appear as a name in the verses of Sd. It appears in verse only in Fm. 44.

© 2023 Edward Pettit, CC BY-NC 4.0 https://doi.org/10.11647/OBP.0308.19

520 The Poetic Edda

As John McKinnell has observed, structural and verbal correspondences to the

second half of Háv. raise the possibility of influence by Háv., in which case Sd. may be
a relatively late composition.2 With this possible relationship may be compared the
potential echo of Háv. 112 (et seq.) in Fm. 20, as well as the broad parallels between Fm.
and both Vm. and Grm., the wisdom poems which follow Háv. in R.
Events described in Sd. are touched on in Grp., Fm. and Hlr. They are also treated in
prose and verse in VS 21–22, and briefly in prose in SnESkáld (I, 41, p. 47) and chapter
6 of Norna-Gests þáttr.
Comparison may also be made with the Faroese ballad Brynhildar táttur ‘Brynhild’s
Story’.

Synopsis
Prose: Sigurðr rode up to Hindarfjall where he saw a light shining up to the sky and
then, as he approached it, a stronghold. He went inside the stronghold and saw an
armoured man lying there. He removed the man’s helmet and saw that it was actually
a woman. He cut off her mail-coat with his sword, whereupon she awoke and spoke
to him.

Verse: She asks what cut through her mail-coat, why she has awoken, and who freed
her. Sigurðr tells her (1). She reveals that she has slept long, due to the magic of the
god Óðinn (2).

Prose: Sigurðr sat down and asked her name. She gave him a drink to strengthen his
memory.

Verse: She greets the personified day, night and earth, as well as the gods and goddesses.
She requests their favour for herself and for Sigurðr (3–4).

Prose: She named herself Sigrdrífa. She was a valkyrie who had disobeyed Óðinn’s
command by killing a king called Hjálm-Gunnarr in battle. Óðinn punished her by
piercing her with a magical thorn which sent her to sleep, and said, in addition, that
she would never again win victory in battle and that she would marry. She replied
that she had vowed to marry no man who knew fear. Sigurðr asks her to teach him
wisdom.

Verse: After bringing Sigurðr a magically beneficial drink (5), Sigrdrífa lists the runes
that he needs to know, along with details of their purpose and use: victory-runes (6);
ale-runes (7–8); protection-runes (for women in childbirth) (9); surf-runes (10); limb-
runes (11); speech-runes (12); mind-runes, which originated from Óðinn (13). Óðinn

2 J. McKinnell, Meeting the Other in Norse Myth and Legend (Cambridge, UK: D. S. Brewer, 2005), pp.
210–13.
 Sigrdrífumál  521

(probably), we learn, once stood on a cliff with a sword, when Mímr’s head spoke
wisdom (14), apparently concerning the many different things on which runes were
(or should be) carved (15–17), and their dispersion, within mead, among gods, elves
and humans (18). Sigurðr is then urged to use these runes, if he learns them (19), and
to decide whether to speak or remain silent (20). He declares that he will not flee as he
knows no cowardice, and that he wants all of Sigrdrífa’s advice (21). She advises him
to be blameless toward his kin (22); to avoid breaking oaths (23); to avoid disputing
with fools at assemblies (24); to answer when spoken to, and postpone revenge until
an opportune moment (25); to avoid staying with a witch (26); to be watchful when
men fight and to beware of evil women at roadsides (27); to avoid fixating on dowries
and luring women for kissing (28); to avoid disputing when drunk (29); to remember
that the combination of song and ale is often a source of misery (30); to fight, if he has
to, rather than be burned alive inside a house (31); to guard against evil and deceit,
and avoid seducing women (32); to bury corpses (33); to prepare the dead for the
coffin (34); to distrust a criminal’s son (35); to remember that lawsuits and hatreds
never sleep, so intelligence and weapons are necessary to get ahead in life (36); to
guard against evil in every way, as strong dissensions have arisen (37).

Further Reading

Andersson, T. M., The Legend of Brynhild (Ithaca, NY: Cornell University Press, 1980).
Andersson, T. M., ‘The Lays in the Lacuna of Codex Regius’, in U. Dronke, Guðrún P. Helgadóttir,
G. W. Weber and H. Bekker-Nielsen, ed., Speculum Norroenum: Norse Studies in Memory of
Gabriel Turville-Petre (Odense: Odense University Press, 1981), pp. 6–26.
Haimerl, E., ‘Sigurðr, a Medieval Hero: A Manuscript-Based Interpretation of the “Young Sigurðr
Poems”’, in P. Acker and C. Larrington, ed., Revisiting the Poetic Edda: Essays on Old Norse Heroic
Legend (New York: Routledge, 2013), pp. 32–52, https://doi.org/10.4324/9780203098608-11
Jón Helgason, Eddadigte (Copenhagen: Ejner Munksgaard, 1952–56).
Larrington, C., A Store of Common Sense: Gnomic Theme and Style in Old Icelandic and Old English
Wisdom Poetry (Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1993).
Lassen, A., Odin’s Ways: A Guide to the Pagan God in Medieval Literature (New York: Routledge,
2022).
McKinnell, J., Meeting the Other in Norse Myth and Legend (Cambridge, UK: D. S. Brewer, 2005).
Price, N., The Viking Way: Magic and Mind in Late Iron Age Scandinavia (Oxford: Oxbow, 2019),
https://doi.org/10.2307/j.ctvhhhgz3
Quinn, J., ‘Liquid Knowledge: Traditional Conceptualisations of Learning in Eddic Poetry’,
in S. Rankovic, L. Melve and E. Mundal, ed., Along the Oral-Written Continuum: Types of
Texts, Relations and Their Implications (Turnhout: Brepols, 2010), pp. 175–217, https://doi.
org/10.1484/m.usml-eb.3.4283
Von See, K., B. La Farge, W. Gerhold, E. Picard and K. Schulz, Kommentar zu den Liedern der Edda,
Bd. 5: Heldenlieder (Heidelberg: Universitätsverlag Winter, 2006).
Zotto, C. del, Edda poetica. Il Carme di Sigrdrifa (Milan: Milano Libri Scheiwiller, 2003).
 Sigrdrífumál
Sigurðr reið upp á Hindarfjall ok stefndi suðr til Frakklands. Á fjallinu sá hann ljós mikit, svá
sem eldr brynni, ok ljómaði af til himins. En er hann kom at, þá stóð þar skjaldborg ok upp ór
merki. Sigurðr gekk í skjaldborgina ok sá at þar lá maðr ok svaf með ǫllum hervápnum. Hann
tók fyrst hjálminn af hǫfði honum. Þá sá hann at þat var kona. Brynjan var fǫst, sem hon væri
holdgróin. Þá reist hann með Gram frá hǫfuðsmátt brynjuna í gǫgnum niðr, ok svá út í gǫgnum
báðar ermar. Þá tók hann brynju af henni, en hon vaknaði, ok settisk hon upp ok sá Sigurð ok
mælti:

1. ‘Hvat beit brynju?   Hví brá ek svefni?

Hverr feldi af mér   fǫlvar nauðir?’

Hann svaraði:
‘Sigmundar burr —   sleit fyr skǫmmu
hrafns hrælundir   hjǫrr Sigurðar.’

2. ‘Lengi ek svaf,   lengi ek sofnuð var,

lǫng eru lýða læ;
Óðinn því veldr,   er ek eigi máttak
bregða blunnstǫfum.’

Sigurðr settisk niðr ok spyrr hana nafns. Hon tók þá horn fullt mjaðar ok gaf honum minnisveig.

3. ‘Heill, Dagr!   Heilir, Dags synir!

Heil, Nótt ok nipt!
Óreiðum augum   lítið okkr þinig,
ok gefið sitjǫndum sigr!

4. ‘Heilir, Æsir!   Heilar, Ásynjur!

Heil, sjá in fjǫlnýta fold!
Mál ok manvit   gefið okkr mærum tveim,
ok læknishendr meðan lifum!’

Hon nefndisk Sigrdrífa, ok var valkyrja. Hon sagði at tveir konungar bǫrðusk. Hét annarr
Hjálm-Gunnarr. Hann var þá gamall ok inn mesti hermaðr, ok hafði Óðinn honum sigri heitit.
En annarr hét Agnarr, Hauðu bróðir, er vætr engi vildi þiggja. Sigrdrífa feldi Hjálm-Gunnar í
orrostunni. En Óðinn stakk hana svefnþorni í hefnd þess ok kvað hana aldri skyldu síðan sigr
vega í orrostu ok kvað hana giptask skyldu. ‘En ek sagðak honum at ek strengðak heit þar í mót,
at giptask øngum þeim manni er hræðask kynni.’

Hann segir ok biðr hana kenna sér speki, ef hon vissi tíðindi ór ǫllum heimum.
 The Sayings of Sigrdrífa
Sigurðr rode up to Hindarfjall1 and headed south to Frakkland.2 On the fell he saw a great light,
as if a fire were burning, and it shone up to the sky. But when he came there, then a shield-
stronghold3 stood there and above it a standard. Sigurðr went into the shield-stronghold and
saw that a man lay there and was sleeping with all war-weapons. First he took the helm from
his4 head. Then he saw that it was a woman. The mail-coat was stuck fast, as if it were flesh-
grown. Then he cut through with Gramr5 from the head-opening of the mail-coat downwards,
and so out through both sleeves. Then he took the mail-coat off her; and she awoke, and she sat
herself up and saw Sigurðr and said:

1. ‘What bit the mail-coat? Why have I shaken off sleep?

Who caused the pale constraints6 to fall from me?’

He answered:7
‘Sigmundr’s son — a short time ago
Sigurðr’s sword slit a raven’s corpse-morsels.’8

2. ‘Long I slept, long was I asleep,

long are the misfortunes of men;
Óðinn caused this, that I couldn’t
shake off sleep-staves.’9

Sigurðr sat himself down and asked her name. She then took a horn full of mead and gave him
a memory-drink.10

3.11 ‘Hail, Dagr!12 Hail, Dagr’s sons!13

Hail, Nótt14 and her kinswoman!15
Look upon us both here with unwrathful eyes,
and give victory to those sitting [here]!

4. ‘Hail, Æsir!16 Hail, Ásynjur!17

Hail, the multiply-helpful earth!
Give eloquence and commonsense to us two glorious ones,
and healing hands as long as we live!’

She named herself Sigrdrífa,18 and she was a valkyrie. She said that two kings had fought each
other. One was called Hjálm-Gunnarr.19 He was by then old and the greatest warrior, and Óðinn
had promised him victory. And the other was called Agnarr, Hauða’s20 brother, whom no one
wanted to receive.21 Sigrdrífa felled Hjálm-Gunnarr in the battle. But Óðinn pierced her with a
sleep-thorn in revenge for this and told her that she would never win victory in battle thereafter
and said that she would marry. ‘But I said to him that I had sworn an oath to the contrary, to
marry no man who could be afraid.’22

He23 speaks and asks her to teach him wisdom, if she knew tidings from all worlds.
524 Sigrdrífumál

Sigrdrífa kvað:
5. ‘Bjór fœri ek þér,   brynþings apaldr,
magni blandinn   ok megintíri;
fullr er hann ljóða   ok líknstafa,
góðra galdra   ok gamanrúna!

6. ‘Sigrúnar þú skalt rísta   ef þú vilt sigr hafa,

ok rísta á hjalti hjǫrs,
sumar á véttrimum,   sumar á valbǫstum,
ok nefna tysvar Tý.

7. ‘Ǫlrúnar skaltu kunna   ef þú vill annars kvæn

vélit þik í tryggð,   ef þú trúir;
á horni skal þær rísta   ok á handar baki
ok merkja á nagli Nauð.

8. ‘Full skal signa   ok við fári sjá,

ok verpa lauki í lǫg:
þá ek þat veit,   at þér verðr aldri
meinblandinn mjǫðr.

9. ‘Bjargrúnar skaltu kunna   ef þú bjarga vilt

ok leysa kind frá konum;
á lófa þær skal rísta   ok of liðu spenna,
ok biðja þá dísir duga.

10. ‘Brimrúnar skaltu rísta   ef þú vilt borgit hafa

á sundi seglmǫrom;
á stafni skal rísta   ok á stjórnar blaði
ok leggja eld í ár;
era svá brattr breki,   né svá blár unnir,
þó kømztu heill af hafi.

11. ‘Limrúnar skaltu kunna   ef þú vilt læknir vera

ok kunna sár at sjá;
á berki skal þær rísta   ok á baðmi viðar,
þeim er lúta austr limar.

12. ‘Málrúnar skaltu kunna   ef þú vilt at mangi þér

heiptum gjaldi harm;
þær um vindr,   þær um vefr,
þær um setr allar saman,
á því þingi,   er þjóðir skulu
í fulla dóma fara.
 The Sayings of Sigrdrífa  525

Sigrdrífa said:
5.24 ‘I bring you beer, apple-tree of the mail-coat-assembly,25
mixed with might and great glory;
it’s full of spells and helpful staves,26
good incantations and pleasure-runes!27

6.28 ‘Victory-runes you must inscribe29 if you want to have victory,

and inscribe them on a sword’s hilt,
some on the battle-boards(?), some on the slaughter-cords(?),30
and name Týr31 twice.

7.32 ‘Ale-runes33 you must know if you desire that another’s wife
shouldn’t betray you, if you trust [her];
on a horn one must carve them and on the back of the hand
and mark Nauðr34 on the nail.

8.35 ‘A full goblet one must sign36 and guard against mischief,
and throw leek37 into the liquid:
then I know it, that never for you
will mead be mixed with harm.

9.38 ‘Protection-runes you must know if you want to protect

and loosen children from women;39
on the palms one must carve them40 and clasp them around the limbs,41
and then ask the dísir42 to do good.43

10.44 ‘Surf-runes you must carve if you want to have protected

sail-steeds45 at sea;
on the stem one must carve them and on the rudder’s blade,
and burn them into the oar;46
the breaker isn’t so high, nor the waves so dark-blue,47
that you won’t come safe from the sea.

11.48 ‘Limb49-runes you must know if you want to be a healer

and to know how to look at wounds;
on bark one must cut them and on a tree of the wood,
one whose limbs incline eastward.

12.50 ‘Speech-runes you must know if you desire that no one

should repay you for a harm with hateful deeds;
one winds them, one weaves them,
one sets them all together,
at the assembly, when people must proceed
into full courts of justice.
526 Sigrdrífumál

13. ‘Hugrúnar skaltu kunna   ef þú vilt hverjum vera

geðsvinnari guma;
þær of réð,   þær of reist,
þær um hugði Hroptr,
af þeim legi   er lekit hafði
ór hausi Heiðdraupnis
ok ór horni Hoddrofnis.

14. ‘Á bjargi stóð   með Brimis eggjar,

hafði sér á hǫfði hjálm;
þá mælti Míms hǫfuð
fróðlikt it fyrsta orð
ok sagði sanna stafi.

15. ‘Á skildi, kvað, ristnar,   þeim er stendr fyr skínanda goði,

á eyra Árvakrs   ok á Alsvinns hófi,
á því hvéli   er snýsk undir reið Rungnis,
á Sleipnis tǫnnum   ok á sleða fjǫtrum,

16. ‘á bjarnar hrammi   ok á Braga tungu,

á úlfs klóm   ok á arnar nefi,
á blóðgum vængjum   ok á brúar sporði,
á lausnar lófa   ok á líknar spori,

17. ‘á gleri ok á gulli   ok á gumna heillum,

í víni ok virtri   ok vilisessi,
á Gungnis oddi   ok á Grana brjósti,
á Nornar nagli   ok á nefi uglu.

18. ‘Allar váru af skafnar,   þær er váru á ristnar,

ok hverfðar við inn helga mjǫð,
ok sendar á víða vega;
þær ru með Ásum,   þær ru með álfum,
sumar með vísum Vǫnum,
sumar hafa mennskir menn.

19. ‘Þat eru bókrúnar,   þat eru bjargrúnar,

ok allar ǫlrúnar,
ok mætar meginrúnar,
hveim er þær kná óviltar   ok óspilltar
sér at heillum hafa;
njóttu, ef þú namt,
unz rjúfask regin!
 The Sayings of Sigrdrífa  527

13.51 ‘Mind-runes you must know if you want to be

of wiser mind than any [other] man;
he52 read them, he carved them,
Hroptr53 thought them up,
from the liquid which had leaked
from Heiðdraupnir’s skull54
and from Hoddrofnir’s horn.55

14. ‘On a cliff he56 stood with Brimir’s edges,57

he had a helmet on his head;
then Mímr’s head58 spoke
wisely the first word
and said true staves.59

15.60 ‘On a shield, he61 said, [runes were] carved,62 the one which stands
before the shining god,63
on Árvakr’s ear and on Alsvinnr’s hoof,64
on the wheel which turns under Rungnir’s chariot,65
on Sleipnir’s teeth66 and on a sledge’s fetters,67

16.68 ‘on a bear’s paw and on Bragi’s tongue,69

on a wolf’s claws and on an eagle’s beak,
on bloody wings70 and on a bridge’s fish-tail,71
on a midwife’s palm72 and on a helper’s footprint,73

17.74 ‘on glass and on gold and on men’s amulets,

in wine and wort75 and a favoured seat,
on Gungnir’s point76 and on Grani’s breast,77
on a Norn’s nail and on an owl’s nose.78

18.79 ‘All were scraped off, those which were carved on,
and mixed with the holy mead,
and sent on wide ways;
they are with Æsir, they are with elves,
some with wise Vanir,
some human beings have.

19.80 ‘Those are book-runes,81 those are protection-runes,

and all ale-runes,
and worthy might-runes,
for anyone who can have them, unconfused and unspoilt,
for himself as amulets;
use [them], if you learn them [them],
until the powers are ripped apart!82
528 Sigrdrífumál

20. ‘Nú skaltu kjósa,   allz þér er kostr um boðinn,

hvassa vápna hlynr:
sǫgn eða þǫgn —   hafðu þér sjálfr í hug!
Ǫll eru mein of metin.’

21. ‘Munka ek flœja,   þótt mik feigan vitir,

emka ek með bleyði borinn;
ástráð þín   ek vil ǫll hafa,
svá lengi sem ek lifi!’

22. ‘Þat ræð ek þér it fyrsta,   at þú við frœndr þína

vammalaust verir;
síðr þú hefnir,   þótt þeir sakar gøri —
þat, kveða, dauðum duga.

23. ‘Þat ræð ek þér annat,   at þú eið né sverir,

nema þann er saðr sé;
grimmir símar   ganga at tryggðrofi;
armr er vára vargr!

24. ‘Þat ræð ek þér þriðja,   at þú þingi á

deilit við heimska hali;
þvíat ósviðr maðr   lætr opt kveðin
verri orð en viti.

25. ‘Allt er vant   ef þú við þegir —

þá þikkir þú með bleyði borinn
eða sǫnnu sagðr;
hættr er heimiskviðr,
nema sér góðan geti;
annars dags   láttu hans ǫndu farit,
ok launa svá lýðum lygi!

26. ‘Þat ræð ek þér it fjórða   ef býr fordæða,

vammafull, á vegi:
ganga er betra   en gista sé,
þótt þik nótt um nemi.

27. ‘Fornjósnar augu   þurfu fira synir,

hvars skulu vreiðir vega;
opt bǫlvísar konur   sitja brautu nær,
þær er deyfa sverð ok sefa.

28. ‘Þat ræð ek þér it fimmta,   þóttu fagrar sér

brúðir bekkjum á:
sifja silfr   látaðu þínum svefni ráða;
teygjattu þér at kossi konur!
 The Sayings of Sigrdrífa  529

20.83 ‘Now you must choose, since a choice is offered to you,

maple of sharp weapons:84
speech or silence — keep it in mind yourself!85
All misfortunes are measured.’86

21.87 ‘I won’t flee, even if you know me to be doomed,

I wasn’t born with cowardice;
I want to have all your loving counsel,
as long as I live!’

22.88 ‘I advise you this as the first thing, that you be

faultless toward your kin;
[that you] avenge less,89 even if they give cause —
that, they say, does good for the dead.90

23. ‘I advise you this second, that you don’t swear an oath,
unless it’s a true one;
grim bonds follow upon a breach of troth;
wretched is the wolf91 of vows!92

24. ‘I advise you this third, that you don’t dispute

with stupid men at an assembly;
because an unwise man often lets slip
a word that’s worse than he knows.93

25. ‘All is wanting if you’re silent in response94 —

then you seem [to have been] born with cowardice,
or [to be] accused in truth;
home-repute95 is risky,
unless one gets oneself a good one;
have his breath destroyed another day,96
and so repay his lying to people!

26. ‘I advise you this as the fourth thing if a witch dwells,97

full of vices, on your way:
it’s better to walk on than be her guest,
even if night should overtake you.

27. ‘The sons of men need scouting eyes,

wherever wrathful ones shall fight;98
often women wise in evil99 sit near the way,
they who blunt sword and spirit.100

28. ‘I advise you this as the fifth thing, even though you see
fair brides101 on the benches:
don’t let [their] relatives’ silver102 rule your sleep;103
don’t lure women to you for kissing!
530 Sigrdrífumál

29. ‘Þat ræð ek þér it sétta,   þótt með seggjum fari

ǫlðrmál til ǫfug:
drukkinn deila   skalattu við dólgviðu —
margan stelr vín viti.

30. ‘Sǫngr ok ǫl   hefr seggjum verit

mǫrgum at móðtrega:
sumum at bana,   sumum at bǫlstǫfum;
fjǫlð er þat er tregr fira.

31. ‘Þat ræð ek þér it sjaunda   ef þú sakar deilir

við hugfulla hali:
berjask er betra   en brenna sé
inni auðstǫfum.

32. ‘Þat ræð ek þér it átta,   at þú skalt við illu sjá

ok firrask flærðarstafi;
mey þú teygjat   né manns konu,
né eggja ofgamans!

33. ‘Þat ræð ek þér it níunda,   at þú nám bjargir,

hvars þú á foldum finnr,
hvárts eru sóttdauðir   eða eru sædauðir
eða eru vápndauðir verar.

34. ‘Laug skal gøra   þeim er liðnir eru,

þvá hendr ok hǫfuð,
kemba ok þerra,   áðr í kistu fari,
ok biðja sælan sofa.

35. ‘Þat ræð ek þér it tíunda,   at þú trúir aldri

várum vargdropa,
hvártstu ert bróður bani
eða hafir þú feldan fǫður:
úlfr er í ungum syni,
þótt sé hann gulli gladdr.

36. ‘Sakar ok heiptir,   hyggjat svefngar vera,

né harm in heldr;
vits ok vápna   vant er jǫfri at fá,
þeim er skal fremstr með firum.

37. ‘Þat ræð ek þér it ellipta,   at þú við illu sér

hvern veg at vegi;
langt líf   þikkjumsk ek lofðungs vita,
rǫmm eru róg of risin!’
 The Sayings of Sigrdrífa  531

29. ‘I advise you this as the sixth thing, even if ale-talk

turns too hostile among men:
when drunk, you mustn’t dispute with a battle-tree104 —
wine steals the wits from many.

30. ‘Song and ale have for many men

been a source of mood-sorrow:
for some through death, for some through evil-staves;105
many’s the thing that grieves men.

31. ‘I advise you this as the seventh thing if you dispute cases106
against courageous men:
for treasure-staves,107 it’s better to fight
than to be burned inside.108

32. ‘I advise you this as the eighth thing, that you must guard against evil
and distance yourself from deceit-staves;109
don’t seduce a maiden or a man’s wife,
or incite them to excessive pleasure!110

33. ‘I advise you this as the ninth thing, that you protect corpses,111
wherever you encounter them on earth,
whether they are sickness-dead or are sea-dead
or are weapon-dead men.

34. ‘One must prepare a bath for those who have passed away,
wash their hands and head,
comb and dry them, before they go in the coffin,
and pray that they sleep blessedly.

35. ‘I advise you this as the tenth thing, that you never trust
the vows of an outlaw’s112 offspring,
whether you’re his brother’s slayer
or you have felled his father:
there’s a wolf in a young son,
even if he’s gladdened with gold.

36. ‘Lawsuits and hatreds, don’t think that they’re sleepy,113

nor sorrow114 any the more;
there’s a need for a boar115 to obtain wit and weapons,
for the one who shall be foremost among men.

37. ‘I advise you this as the eleventh thing, that you guard against evil
in every way along the way;116
I believe I know the praiseworthy one’s life will be long;117
strong are the strifes that have arisen!’
532 The Poetic Edda

Textual Apparatus to Sigrdrífumál

Sigrdrífumál] This title is not in R, nor does this manuscript contain any other indication that
a new text begins at this point. The distinction between Fm. and Sd. is an editorial perception,
which has become traditional, on the basis of later, paper manuscripts. Some of these have
a different title: Brynhildarkviða Buðladóttur in fyrsta ‘The First Poem of Brynhildr, Buðli’s
Daughter’.
Stefndi] R stefni
1/4 nauðir] R nauþr
8/4–6 þá ... mjǫðr] R absent; supplied from VS 21
9/4 lófa] R lofo
12/2 mangi] R magni
27/3 vreiðir] R reiþir
29/2 fari] After this word comes a major lacuna in R. The text of the remaining stanzas of Sd. is
based on texts in paper manuscripts of the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries, which seem
to derive from R before the lacuna’s occurrence, as recorded in the third part of Jón Helgason,
Eddadigte (Copenhagen: Ejnar Munksgaard, 1952–56). For details of these manuscripts and of
emendations, see that work.

Notes to the Translation

1 ‘Hind’s Fell’, as in Fm. and VS. Chapter 6 of Norna-Gests þáttr has Hindarheiðr ‘Hind’s
Heath’.
2 Francia, kingdom of the Franks.
3 A protective wall made from shields placed side by side, a shield-wall.
4 I.e., the man’s.
5 Sigurðr’s sword.
6 This term denotes the grey rings of her mail-coat, but may also suggest the metaphorical
fetters of the woman’s magically induced, death-like sleep (cf. Akv. 16).
7 Sigurðr’s answer is treated as st. 2 in Jónas Kristjánsson and Vésteinn Ólason, Eddukvæði,
Íslenzk fornrit, 2 vols. (Reykjavík: Hið íslenzka bókmenntafélag, 2014), II.
8 Or perhaps ‘a raven’s corpse-strips’ (i.e., shrouds on a dead body). The precise meaning of
this passage is uncertain. It might allude to Sigurðr’s killing of Fáfnir and Reginn, whose
unburied bodies would have become food for ravens, or to his cutting of the sleeping
woman’s mail-coat, which is compared to the white windings around a corpse.
9 Sleeping spells carved in runes on a thorn. See below and Fm. 43–44.
10 I.e., a drink to strengthen his memory. Cf. Sd. 5 and Hdl. 45.
11 This stanza and the next are presumably spoken by the newly awoken woman, Sigrdrífa.
12 ‘Day’, personified. In SnEGylf (10, p. 13), Dagr’s mother is Nótt ‘Night’.
13 Presumably gods or men; cf. HH. I 7.
14 ‘Night’, personified.
 Sigrdrífumál  533

15 Possibly Jǫrð ‘Earth’, whom SnEGylf (10, p. 13) identifies as Nótt’s daughter; cf. Sd. 4.
16 Gods, sometimes specifically the tribe led by Óðinn.
17 Goddesses.
18 ‘Victory Driver’ or perhaps ‘Victory Snowdrift’ (i.e., ‘Battle’). In VS 21 she is called
Brynhildr. The question of her name is further complicated by SnESkáld (I, 41, p. 47), which
does not mention the name Sigrdrífa but records that vaknaði hon ok nefndisk Hildr. Hon er
kǫlluð Brynhildr ok var valkyrja ‘she awoke and named herself Hildr. She is called Brynhildr
and was a valkyrie.’ In Hlr 7 Brynhildr says she was formerly called ‘Hildr under helm’.
19 ‘Helmet Gunnarr’.
20 Or Hǫða’s. In Hlr. 8 and VS 21 the name is Auða.
21 Some editors present this sentence as a half-stanza of fornyrðislag, with emendation of
Hauðu to Auðu: Annarr hét Agnarr, Auðu bróðir, / er vætr engi vildi þiggja.
22 Cf. Hlr. 9.
23 Sigurðr.
24 VS 21 has a close variant of this stanza; instead of gamanrúna ‘pleasure-runes’ (cf. Háv. 120,
130), it has gamanrœðna ‘pleasing talks’.
25 A kenning for ‘warrior’, the ‘assembly’ of mail-coats being battle.
26 I.e., infused with magical songs and helpful runes.
27 Cf. Háv. 120, 130.
28 VS 21 has a variant of this stanza (7); notably, instead of ef þú vilt sigr hafa ‘if you want to
have victory’, it has ef þú vill snotr vera ‘if you want to be wise’.
29 It would perhaps be better to replace this stanza’s first instance of rísta ‘to inscribe’ with
kunna ‘to know’.
30 Véttrim and valbǫst are obscure terms for parts of a sword. If they are parts of the hilt,
perhaps the former is a metal plate or ring, the latter (also in HHv. 9) a winding around
the grip.
31 A god of victory, one of the Æsir.
32 VS 21 has a close variant of this stanza (10).
33 Presumbly with a secondary or underlying sense of ‘good-fortune runes’, alu being an
early Norse word for ‘good luck’.
34 Presumably an ‘n’ rune, Nauðr being its name. It means ‘need’, ‘necessity’ or distress’.
35 VS 21 has a variant of this stanza, from which the second half is here supplied.
36 Consecrated by marking with a holy sign.
37 A plant of supposedly magical power.
38 VS 21 has a variant of this stanza.
39 I.e., hasten childbirth. Cf. Od. 7.
40 Cf. Sd. 16.
41 Or ‘joints’.
42 Supernatural women similar to, or identifiable with, the Nornir, who were associated with
fate and childbirth; cf. Fm. 12.
43 I.e., to help.
534 The Poetic Edda

44 VS 21 has a variant of this stanza.

45 Ships.
46 Literally ‘lay fire in (the) oar’.
47 A colour associated with death in Old Norse literature.
48 VS 21 has a variant of this stanza.
49 Either the limb of a tree (i.e., a branch or twig) or that of a person—or both.
50 VS 21 also has this stanza.
51 VS 21 has a shorter version of this stanza, ending at Hroptr.
52 Hroptr.
53 An alias of Óðinn. It might mean ‘Cryptic/Hidden One’ or ‘Invoker’.
54 The identity of Heiðdraupnir is obscure. The name appears to mean ‘Bright/Honour/
Heath Dripper’. Cf. Grm. 25.
55 Hoddrofnir’s identity is also obscure. The name might mean ‘Hoard/Treasure Destroyer’.
Cf. Grm. 26.
56 Probably Óðinn.
57 Cf. HH. II 10. Brimir is here presumably the name of a sword; cf. Grm. 44. The events of this
stanza are obscure.
58 Mímr is probably better known as Mímir; see note to Vsp. 45.
59 ‘Staves’ as in runic wisdom, words about runic letters.
60 VS 21 has a variant of this stanza.
61 Presumably Mímr’s head.
62 VS 21 explicitly has váru ristnar ‘were carved’.
63 The shining god is the sun. For the shield, see Grm. 38.
64 Árvakr and Alsvinnr (Alsviðr) are the horses that draw the sun; see Grm. 37.
65 The Old Norse line’s lack of alliteration suggests textual corruption. The identity of Rungnir
(Raugnir or Rǫgnir in VS 21) is uncertain. Possibilities include the giant Hrungnir, Þórr and
Óðinn.
66 Sleipnir is Óðinn’s horse.
67 B. La Farge and J. Tucker, Glossary to the Poetic Edda (Heidelberg: Carl Winter
Universitätsverlag, 1992), p. 62 defines these as ‘metal clamps or pieces of wood which
attach the upper parts of a sleigh to the runners’.
68 VS 21 also has this stanza.
69 Bragi is a god of poetry.
70 Perhaps an allusion to the gruesome ‘blood-eagle’, supposedly a rite associated with
sacrifices to Óðinn; see Rm. 26. If so, the ‘bloody wings’ are the victim’s splayed lungs.
71 The foot of a bridge.
72 Cf. Sd. 9.
73 Or ‘trail’.
74 VS 21 has a significantly different version of this stanza: Á gleri ok á gulli ok á góðu silfri, / i
víni ok í virtri ok á vǫlu sessi, í guma holdi ok Gaupnis oddi ok á g‎ýgjar brjósti, / á nornar nagli ok
á nefi uglu ‘On glass and on gold and on good silver, in wine and in wort and on a seeress’s
 Sigrdrífumál  535

seat, in men’s flesh and on Gaupnir’s point and on a giantess’s breast, on a Norn’s nail and
on an owl’s nose’.
75 Unfermented beer.
76 Gungnir ‘Wavering/Shaking One’ is Óðinn’s spear.
77 Grani is Sigurðr’s horse.
78 Beak.
79 VS 21 has a close variant of this stanza.
80 VS 21 has a close variant of this stanza.
81 Or ‘beech-runes’; another possibility is a mistake for bótrunar ‘remedy-runes’.
82 The ruling gods, including Óðinn, will die violently at Ragnarok.
83 VS 21 has a variant of this stanza.
84 A kenning for ‘warrior’.
85 The sense and significance of this line are not entirely clear.
86 I.e., they are (proportionately?) preordained. VS 21 has mál ‘words, speeches’ instead of
mein ‘misfortunes’.
87 That Sigurðr speaks this stanza is explicit in VS 21, where a close variant is quoted.
88 Sigrdrífa resumes speaking.
89 I.e., take no revenge against them (probably).
90 Presumably because one’s kin will then dispose of one’s body properly and recall one with
affection.
91 Or ‘criminal’.
92 I.e., an oath-breaker.
93 Literally, ‘lets a worse word [or ‘speech’] be spoken than he knows’.
94 I.e., to an accusation.
95 Probably a rumoured reputation about oneself.
96 I.e., kill your false accuser another day.
97 Instead of a fordæða ‘evil-doer,’ ‘witch’, VS 22 refers to vándar vættir ‘evil (female) creatures/
spirits’.
98 For the Old Norse line to alliterate, it requires an East Norse or preliterary West Norse form
of reiðr, namely *vreiðr; cf. Fm. 7, 17, 30; Ls. 15, 18. 27.
99 VS 22 refers to illar vættir ‘evil (female) creatures/spirits’.
100 These women may well be supernatural. Cf. Rm. 24, Hm. 15, 28.
101 Presumably potential brides, young women.
102 I.e., for a dowry.
103 I.e., dominate your dreams, or, perhaps, keep you awake at night.
104 Warrior.
105 Evil runes or words.
106 Lawsuits.
107 Wealthy men.
536 The Poetic Edda

108 I.e., inside your house, like, most famously, Njáll and members of his family in the
thirteenth-century Icelandic Brennu-Njáls saga ‘Saga of Burnt-Njáll’.
109 Perhaps runic charms for seduction, or simply deceitful or wanton words or ways.
110 I.e., excessive sexual pleasure.
111 Presumably by burying them.
112 Vargr can also mean ‘wolf’.
113 I.e., dormant.
114 Or ‘harm’.
115 Prince, warrior.
116 The interpretation of this line is uncertain.
117 Possibly þikkjumsk should be emended to þikkjumska to give the meaning ‘I don’t believe I
know ...’ (i.e., ‘I know the praiseworthy one’s life will be short’).