Editing Ragnarök (section)

===''Poetic Edda''===
The ''Poetic Edda'' contains various references to {{Lang|non|Ragnarök}}:

===={{lang|non|Völuspá}}====
[[File:Then the awful fight began by George Wright.jpg|thumb|upright|''Then the Awful Fight Began'' (by [[George Hand Wright|George Wright]], 1908)]]
[[File:Odin und Fenriswolf Freyr und Surt.jpg|thumb|''Odin and Fenrir, [[Freyr]] and [[Surtr|Surt]]'' (by [[Emil Doepler]], 1905)]]
[[File:Thor und die Midgardsschlange.jpg|thumb|''Thor and the Midgard Serpent'' (by Emil Doepler, 1905)]]
[[File:Kampf der untergehenden Götter by F. W. Heine.jpg|thumb|''Battle of the Doomed Gods'' (by [[Friedrich Wilhelm Heine]], 1882)]]
[[File:The twilight of the gods by Willy Pogany.png|thumb|right|''The twilight of the gods'' (by [[Willy Pogany]], 1920)]]
In the ''Poetic Edda'' poem {{lang|non|[[Völuspá]]}}, references to {{Lang|non|Ragnarök}} begin from stanza 40 until 58, with the rest of the poem describing the aftermath. In the poem, a {{lang|non|[[völva]]}} (a female seer) recites information to [[Odin]]. In stanza 41, the {{lang|non|völva}} says:
{{verse translation|lang=non
|Fylliz fiǫrvi &nbsp; feigra manna,
rýðr ragna siǫt &nbsp; rauðom dreyra.
Svǫrt verða sólskin &nbsp; of sumor eptir,
veðr ǫll válynd. &nbsp; Vitoð ér enn, eða hvat?
|It sates itself on the life-blood &nbsp; of fated men,
paints red the powers' homes &nbsp; with crimson gore.
Black become the sun's beams &nbsp; in the summers that follow,
weathers all treacherous. &nbsp; Do you still seek to know? And what?|attr1=Normalized Old Norse{{sfn|Dronke|1997|p=18}}|attr2=Ursula Dronke translation{{sfn|Dronke|1997|p=18}}}}

The {{lang|non|völva}} then describes three [[rooster]]s crowing: In stanza 42, the {{lang|non|[[jötunn]]}} [[herder|herdsman]] [[Eggthér]] sits on a [[tumulus|mound]] and cheerfully plays his [[harp]] while the crimson rooster Fjalar ([[Old Norse]] "hider, deceiver"{{sfn|Orchard|1997|p=43}}) crows in the forest [[Gálgviðr]]. The golden rooster [[Gullinkambi]] crows to the [[Æsir]] in [[Valhalla]], and the third, unnamed soot-red rooster crows in the halls of the underworld location of [[Hel (realm)|Hel]] in stanza 43.{{sfn|Larrington|1999|p=9}}

After these stanzas, the {{lang|non|völva}} further relates that the hound [[Garmr]] produces deep howls in front of the cave of [[Gnipahellir]]. Garmr's bindings break and he runs free. The {{lang|non|völva}} describes the state of humanity:
{{verse translation|lang=non
|Brœðr muno beriaz &nbsp; ok at bǫnom verða[z]
muno systrungar &nbsp; sifiom spilla.
Hart er í heimi, &nbsp; hórdómr mikill
—skeggǫld, skálmǫld &nbsp; —skildir ro klofnir—
vindǫld, vargǫld— &nbsp; áðr verǫld steypiz.
Mun engi maðr &nbsp; ǫðrom þyrma.
|Brothers will fight &nbsp; and kill each other,
sisters' children &nbsp; will defile kinship.
It is harsh in the world, &nbsp; whoredom rife
—an axe age, a sword age &nbsp; —shields are riven—
a wind age, a wolf age— &nbsp; before the world goes headlong.
No man will have &nbsp; mercy on another.|attr1=Normalized Old Norse{{sfn|Dronke|1997|p=19}}|attr2=Ursula Dronke translation{{sfn|Dronke|1997|p=19}}}}

The "sons of [[Mímir|Mím]]" are described as being "at play," though this reference is not further explained in surviving sources.{{sfn|Larrington|1999|p=265}} Heimdall raises the [[Gjallarhorn]] into the air and blows deeply into it, and Odin converses with Mím's head. The world tree [[Yggdrasil]] shudders and groans. The {{lang|non|jötunn}} [[Hrym]] comes from the east, his shield before him. The [[Midgard]] serpent [[Jörmungandr]] furiously writhes, causing waves to crash. "The [[Hræsvelgr|eagle]] shrieks, pale-beaked he tears the corpse," and the ship [[Naglfar]] breaks free thanks to the waves made by Jörmungandr and sets sail from the east. The fire {{lang|non|[[Jötunn|jötnar]]}} inhabitants of [[Muspelheim]] come forth.{{sfn|Larrington|1999|p=10}}

The {{lang|non|völva}} continues that [[Jötunheimr]], the land of the {{lang|non|jötnar}}, is aroar, and that the Æsir are in council. The [[Dwarf (mythology)|dwarfs]] groan by their stone doors.{{sfn|Dronke|1997|p=19}} [[Surtr]] advances from the south, his sword brighter than the sun. Rocky cliffs open and the {{lang|non|jötnar}} women sink.{{sfn|Bellows|2004|p=22}}

The gods then do battle with the invaders: [[Odin]] is swallowed whole and alive fighting the wolf [[Fenrir]], causing his wife [[Frigg]] her second great sorrow (the first being the death of her son, the god [[Baldr]]).{{sfn|Larrington|1999|p=266}} Odin's son [[Víðarr]] avenges his father by rending Fenrir's jaws apart and stabbing it in the heart with his spear, thus killing the wolf. The serpent [[Jörmungandr]] opens its gaping maw, yawning widely in the air, and is met in combat by [[Thor]]. Thor, also a son of Odin and described here as protector of the earth, furiously fights the serpent, defeating it, but Thor is only able to take nine steps afterwards before collapsing dead from the Serpent's venom. The god [[Freyr]] fights [[Surtr]] and loses. After this, people flee their homes, and the sun becomes black while the earth sinks into the sea, the stars vanish, steam rises, and flames touch the heavens.{{sfn|Bellows|2004|p=23}}

The {{lang|non|völva}} sees the earth reappearing from the water and an eagle over a waterfall hunting fish on a mountain. The surviving Æsir meet together at the field of [[Iðavöllr]]. They discuss Jörmungandr, great events of the past, and the [[runic alphabet]]. In stanza 61, in the grass, they find the golden game pieces that the gods are described as having once happily enjoyed playing games with long ago (attested earlier in the same poem). The reemerged fields grow without needing to be sown. The gods [[Höðr]] and [[Baldr]] return from Hel and live happily together.{{sfn|Larrington|1999|p=12}}

The {{lang|non|völva}} says that the god [[Hœnir]] chooses wooden slips for divination and that the sons of two brothers will widely inhabit the windy world. She sees a hall thatched with gold in [[Gimlé]], where nobility will live and spend their lives pleasurably.{{sfn|Larrington|1999|p=12}} Stanzas 65, found in the {{lang|non|[[Hauksbók]]}} version of the poem, refers to a "powerful, mighty one" that "rules over everything" and who will arrive from above at the court of the gods (Old Norse {{lang|non|regindómr}}),{{sfn|Simek|2007|p=262}} which has been interpreted as a [[Christianity|Christian]] addition to the poem.{{sfn|Lindow|2001|p=257}} In stanza 66, the {{lang|non|völva}} ends her account with a description of the dragon [[Níðhöggr]], corpses in his jaws, flying through the air. The {{lang|non|völva}} then "sinks down."{{sfn|Larrington|1999|p=13}} It is unclear if stanza 66 indicates that the {{lang|non|völva}} is referring to the present time or if this is an element of the post-{{Lang|non|Ragnarök}} world.{{sfn|Larrington|1999|p=3}}

===={{lang|non|Vafþrúðnismál}}====
[[File:Vidar by Collingwood.jpg|thumb|right|An illustration of Víðarr stabbing Fenrir while holding his jaws apart (by [[W. G. Collingwood]], inspired by the [[Gosforth Cross]], 1908)]]
[[File:Fenrir and Odin by Frølich.jpg|thumb|''Fenrir and Odin'' (by [[Lorenz Frølich]], 1895)]]

The [[Vanir]] god [[Njörðr]] is mentioned in relation to {{Lang|non|Ragnarök}} in stanza 39 of the poem ''[[Vafþrúðnismál]]''. In the poem, Odin, disguised as [[List of names of Odin|Gagnráðr]], faces off with the wise {{lang|non|jötunn}} [[Vafþrúðnir]] in a battle of wits. Vafþrúðnismál references Njörðr's status as a hostage during the earlier [[Æsir–Vanir War]], and that he will "come back home among the wise Vanir" at "the doom of men."{{sfn|Larrington|1999|p=46}}

In stanza 44, Odin poses the question to Vafþrúðnir as to who of mankind will survive the "famous" {{lang|non|[[Fimbulwinter]]}} ("Mighty Winter"{{sfn|Lindow|2001|p=115}}). Vafþrúðnir responds in stanza 45 that those survivors will be [[Líf and Lífþrasir]] and that they will hide in the forest of {{lang|non|[[Hoddmímis holt]]}}, that they will consume the morning dew, and will produce generations of offspring. In stanza 46, Odin asks what sun will come into the sky after Fenrir has consumed the sun that exists. Vafþrúðnir responds that [[Sól (Sun)|Sól]] will bear a daughter before Fenrir assails her and that after {{Lang|non|Ragnarök}} this daughter will continue her mother's path.{{sfn|Larrington|1999|p=47}}

In stanza 51, Vafþrúðnir states that, after Surtr's flames have been sated, Odin's sons [[Víðarr]] and [[Váli]] will live in the temples of the gods, and that Thor's sons [[Móði and Magni]] will possess the hammer Mjolnir. In stanza 52, the disguised Odin asks the {{lang|non|jötunn}} about his fate. Vafþrúðnir responds that "the wolf" will consume Odin, and that Víðarr will avenge him by sundering its cold jaws in battle. Odin ends the duel with one final question: what did Odin say to [[Baldr|his son]] before preparing his funeral pyre? With this, Vafþrúðnir realizes that he is dealing with none other than Odin, whom he refers to as "the wisest of beings," adding that Odin alone could know this.{{sfn|Larrington|1999|pages=48–49}} Odin's message has been interpreted as a promise of resurrection to Baldr after {{Lang|non|Ragnarök}}.{{sfn|Larrington|1999|p=269}}

===={{lang|non|Helgakviða Hundingsbana II}}====
{{Lang|non|Ragnarök}} is briefly referenced in stanza 40 of the poem {{lang|non|[[Helgakviða Hundingsbana II]]}}. Here, the [[valkyrie]] [[Sigrún]]'s unnamed maid is passing the deceased hero [[Helgi Hundingsbane]]'s [[Tumulus|burial mound]]. Helgi is there with a retinue of men, surprising the maid. The maid asks if she is witnessing a delusion since she sees dead men riding, or if {{Lang|non|Ragnarök}} has occurred. In stanza 41, Helgi responds that it is neither.{{sfn|Larrington|1999|p=139}}