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CHAPTER XI.

EUROPE.

SCANDINAVIAN EDDAS.*

PROSE EDDAS.

The first and oldest of the Aesir is Odin. He governs all things, and although the other gods are powerful, they all serve and obey him, as children do their Father. Frigga is his wife. She foresees the destinies of men, but never reveals what is to *

come.

*

Odin is called Alfadir (All-father) because he chooses for his sons all those who fall in combat. * * The mightiest of the other gods is Thor, strongest of Gods and men.

* *

Baldur is the second son of Odin, ** the best, and all mankind are loud in his praise. So fair and dazzling is he in form and feature, that rays of light seem to issue from him. * Baldur is the mildest, the wisest, and most eloquent of all the Aesirs, yet such is his nature that the judgment he has pronounced can never be altered. *

*

The Alfadir liveth from all ages, governeth all realms, and swayeth all things, great and small. He hath formed heaven and earth, and the air, and all things thereunto belonging.

And what is more, he hath made man, and given him a soul which shall live and never perish, though the body shall have mouldered away, or have been burned to ashes. And all that are righteous shall dwell with him in the place called Gimli, or Vingolf; but the wicked shall go to hell, and thence to Niflhel, which is below, in the ninth world.

The Eddas are very old as songs and traditions, and the poetic Eddas were first collected in the eleventh century, by Saemund of Iceland, a Christian priest. The prose Eddas were collected by a distinguished man of Iceland, Snorro Stureleson, about A. D. 1200. They contain the main ideas and traditions of Scandinavian religion which bore sway over Iceland, Sweden and Norway, the homes of the Norsemen.

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I command the devout attention of all noble souls,

Of all the high and the low-of the race of Heimdall;
I tell the doings of the All-Father,

In the most ancient Sagas which come to my

There was an age in which Ymir lived,

When was no sea, nor shore, nor salt waves;

No earth below, nor heaven above,

No yawning abyss and no grassy land.

mind.

Till the sons of Bors lifted the dome of heaven,
Aud created the vast Midgard (earth) below;
Then the sun of the south rose above the mountains,
And green grasses made the ground verdant.

Then the sun of the south, companion of the moon,
Held the horses of heaven with his right hand;
The sun knew not what its course should be,
The moon knew not what her power should be,
The stars knew not where their places were.

Then the councillors went into the hall of judgment,
And the all-holy gods held a council,

They gave names to the night and new moon;

They called to the morning and to midday,

To the afternoon and evening, arranging the time.

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Then comes the mighty one to the council of the gods,
He with strength from on high who guides all things,

He decides the strife, he puts an end to struggle,
He ordains eternal laws.

HAVAMAL, OR PROVERBS OF "EDDAS."

The guest who enters

Needs water, a towel, and hospitality.

A kind reception secures a return

In word and in deed.

* The Vala was a prophetess of great power, held the same as the Fates, or Nomor, by

many.

Do not mock at a stranger

Who comes trusting in your kindness;

For when he has warmed himself at your fire,
He may easily prove a wise man.

No worse companion can a man take on his journey
Than drunkenness ;

Not as good as many believe

Is beer to the sons of men.

The more one drinks the less he knows,

And less power has he over himself.

It is better to depart betimes,

And not go too often to the same house;

Love tires and turns to sadness

When one sits too often at another man's table.

One's own house, though small, is better;

At home thou art the master.

Two goats and a thatched roof

Are better than begging.

Two burning sticks placed together

Will burn entirely away.

Man grows bright by the side of man;
Alone, he remains stupid.

THE LOGOS, OR UNIVERSAL REASON.

One article of our faith then is that Christ is the first begotten of God, and we have already proved him to be the very Logos (or universal reason) of which mankind are all partakers; and therefore those who live according to the Logos are Christians, notwithstanding they may pass with you for Atheists: Such among the Greeks were Socrates and Herakleitos and the like; and such among the Barbarians were Abraham and Ananias, and Azarias and Elias, and many others. So, on the other side, those who have lived in former times in defiance of the Logos, or Reason, were evil and enemies to

Christ; but they who have made the Logos, or Reason, the rule of their action, are Christians and men without fear.-Fustin Martyr, A. D. 139.

THE TRUE RELIGION.

What is called the Christian religion has existed among the ancients, and was not absent from the beginning of the human race until Christ came in the flesh; from which time the true religion which existed already, began to be called Christian.— St. Augustine, 4th Century.

TO THE SELF-EXISTENT Light.

Eternal God, Thou self-existent Light, which wast from the beginning, Maker of all creatures, Fountain of Mercy, Ocean of goodness, Thou fathomless Abyss of loving-kindness: suffer now the light of Thy countenance to arise upon us. Shine into our hearts, O Thou true Sun of Righteousness, and fill our souls with Thy beauty. Teach us evermore to think and talk of Thy judgments, and acknowledge Thee at every moment as our Lord and Benefactor. Direct according to Thy will the work of our hands, and lead us in the right way to do that which is pleasing in Thy sight; so that through us, unworthy though we be, Thy holy Name may be glorified, the Name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost, to whom alone be praise, honor, and glory, for ever and ever. Amen.-Basil, A. D., 379.

REST IN GOD.

Thee, O Lord, who fillest the heavens and the earth; Thee who upholdest all things by Thine ever present might; Thee, most merciful God, do I now invoke to descend into my soul, which Thou hast prepared for Thy reception by the desire which Thou hast breathed into it. Enter into it, and renew it in Thy likeness, that Thou mayest possess it and that I may

have Thee as a seal upon my heart. Ere ever I cried to Thee, Thou, most Merciful, hadst called and sought me, that I might find Thee, and finding love Thee. Even so I sought and found Thee, Lord, and desire to love Thee. Increase my desire, and grant me what I ask. Bestow Thyself upon me, my God. Yield Thee unto me; see, I love Thee, but too little; strengthen my love; let love to Thee alone inflame my heart, and let the thought of Thee be all my joy. When my spirit aspires to Thee, and meditates on Thine unspeakable goodness, the burden of the flesh becomes less heavy, the tumult of thought is stilled, the weight of mortality is less oppressive. Then fain would my soul find wings, that she might rise in tireless flight ever upwards to Thy glorious throne, and there be filled with the refreshing solace that belongs to the citizens of heaven. Let soul thus ever seek Thee, and never grow weary of my seeking; for he who seeketh Thee not is miserable, and he who refuses to live to Thee is dead. Therefore, O Thou full of compassion, do I commit and commend myself unto Thee, in Whom I am, and live, and know. May my soul be occupied with Thee only. Be Thou the goal of my pilgrimage, and my rest by the way. Let my soul take refuge from the crowding turmoil of worldly thoughts beneath the shadow of Thy wings; let my heart, this sea of restless waves, find peace in Thee, O God. Thou bounteous Giver of all good gifts, give to him who is weary refreshing food; gather our distracted thoughts and powers into harmony again; and set the prisoner free. See, he stands at thy door and knocks; be it opened to him, that he may enter with a free step, and be quickened by Thee. For Thou art the Well-spring of Life, the Light of eternal Brightness, wherein the just live who love Thee. Be it unto me according to Thy word! Amen.—St. Augustine, A. D. 350.

SPIRITUAL LIFE.

The more a man is devoted to internal exercises, and advanced in singleness and simplicity of heart, the more sublime and diffusive will be his knowledge. A spirit pure, simple,

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