agusta

How I made my profile:
I used MyWackoSpace.com 's amazing MySpace Editor .

How I made my profile:
I used MyWackoSpace.com 's amazing MySpace Editor .Thor features strongly in the Prose Edda of Snorri Sturluson, in which Thor's many conflicts with the race of giants are a main source of plots. Thor is the most physically powerful Norse god. He uses his superior physical power to protect Asgard and Midgard.[edit] Family Thor is the son of Odin and the giantess Jörd (Jord, the Earth). His wife is called Sif, and little is known of her except that she has golden hair, which was made for her by the dwarves after Loki had cut off her hair. With his mistress, the giantess Járnsaxa, Thor had a son Magni and with Sif he had his daughter Thrud. There is nothing in the myths that states the identity of the mother of his son Modi. The euhemeristic prologue of the Prose Edda also indicates he has a son by Sif named Lóriði, along with an additional 17 generations of descendants but the prologue is apocryphal and was meant to give a plausible explanation on how the Aesir came to be worshipped even though they were not gods in order to appease the church. Thor also has a stepson called Ullr who is a son of Sif. Skáldskaparmál mentions a figure named Hlóra who was Thor's foster mother, corresponding to Lora or Glora from Snorre's prologue, although no additional information concerning her is provided in the book.[edit] Possessions Thor, travels in a chariot drawn by the goats Tanngrisnir and Tanngnjóstr and with his servant and messenger Þjálfi and his sister Röskva. The skaldic poem Haustlöng relates that the earth was scorched and the mountains cracked as Thor travelled in his wagon. According to the Prose Edda, when Thor is hungry he can roast the goats for a meal. When he wants to continue his travels, Thor only needs to touch the remains of the goats and they will be instantly restored to full health to resume their duties, assuming that the bones have not been broken.Thor owns a short-handled hammer, Mjolnir, which, when thrown at a target, returns magically to the owner. His Mjolnir also has the power to throw lightning bolts. To wield Mjolnir, Thor wears the belt Megingjord, which boosts the wearer's strength and a pair of special iron gloves, Jarn Griepr, to lift the hammer.The old Germanic tribes knew Thor as Donner and the German word for thunder is Donnerschlag (i.e. Thor's strike). It is the strike of the hammer that causes thunderclaps; schlagen meaning to hit in German. Mjolnir is also his main weapon when fighting giants.Thor lives in the palace Bilskirnir in the kingdom Þrúðheimr or Þrúðvangr.[edit] Surviving representations[edit] Stories and myths Most of the surviving myths centre on Thor's exploits, and from this and inscriptions on monuments we can deduce that Thor was the favorite deity of ancient Scandinavians.According to one myth in the Prose Edda, Loki was flying as a hawk one day and was captured by Geirrod. Geirrod, who hated Thor, demanded that Loki bring his enemy (who did not yet have his magic belt and hammer) to Geirrod's castle. Loki agreed to lead Thor to the trap. Grid was a giantess at whose home they stopped on the way to Geirrod's. She waited until Loki left the room then told Thor what was happening and gave him her iron gloves and magical belt and staff. Thor killed Geirrod and all other frost giants he could find (including Geirrod's daughters, Gjálp and Greip).According to Alvíssmál, Thor's daughter was promised to Alvis, a dwarf. Thor devised a plan to stop Alvis from marrying his daughter. He told Alvis that, because of his small height, he had to prove his wisdom. Alvis agreed and Thor made the tests last until after the sun had risen--all dwarves turned to stone when exposed to sunlight, so Alvis was petrified.Thor was once outwitted by a giant king, Útgarða-Loki. The king, using his magic, tricked Thor. The king raced Thought itself against Thor's fast servant, Þjálfi (nothing being faster than thought, which can leap from land to land, and from time to time, in an instant). Then, Loki (who was with Thor) was challenged by Útgarða-Loki to an eating contest with one of his servants, Logi. Loki lost, eventually. The servant even ate up the trough containing the food. The servant was an illusion of "Wild-Fire", no living thing being able to equal the consumption rate of fire. He called Thor weak when he only lifted the paw of a cat, the cat being the illusion of the Midgard Serpent. Thor was challenged to a drinking contest, and could not empty a horn which was filled not with mead but was connected to the ocean. This action started tidal changes. And here, Thor wrestled an old woman, who was Old Age, something no one could beat, to one knee. It was only later that Thor was told that he had in fact performed impressively doing as well as he did with those challenges.Þunor gave his name to the Old English day Þunresdæg, meaning the day of Þunor, known in Modern English as Thursday. Þunor is also the source of the modern word thunder. Many writers (Saxo, Adam of Bremen, Snorre Sturlason, Ælfric of Eynsham) identified Thor with Jupiter. The comparison can be borne: both are gods of the sky that control thunder and lightning, are children of the mother Earth and were at some time considered the most powerful of the gods. The oak tree was sacred to both gods and they had mysterious powers. Thor is to kill the Midgard Serpent and Jupiter, the dragon Typhon. Tacitus identified Thor with the Greco-Roman hero-god Hercules because of his force, aspect, weapon and his role as protector of the world.Another noted story of Thor was the time when Thrym, King of the Thurse (Giants), stole his hammer, Mjölnir. Thor went to Loki in hopes to find the culprit responsible for the theft. Loki and Thor went to Freyja for council. She gave Loki the Feather-robe so he could travel to the land of the giants to speak to their king. The king admitted to stealing the hammer and would not give it back unless Freyja gave her hand in marriage.Freyja refused when she heard the plan so the gods decided to think of a way to trick the King. Heimdall, the fairest of the gods (and possibly one of the prophetic Vanir), suggested dressing up Thor in a bridal gown so he can take Freyja's place. Thor at first refused to do such a thing as it would portray him as a coward and womanish, but Loki insisted that he do so or the Giants would attack Asgard and win it over if he were not to retrieve the hammer in time. Thor reluctantly agreed in the end and took Freyja's place.Odin rode Thor to the land of the Giants and a celebration ensued. The king noticed a few odd things that his bride was committing. He noted that she ate and drank more than what he would expect from a bride. Loki, who was in disguise as the false Freyja's servant, commented that she rode for 8 full nights without food eager to take his hand. He then asked why his bride's eyes so terrifying, they seemed to be aglow with fire, again Loki responded with the fact that she did not sleep for 8 full nights eager for his hand. Then the giant commanded that the hammer be brought to his wife and placed on her lap. Once it was in Thor's possession he threw off his disguise and attacked all the giants in the room. Due to this ruse the giants were careful not to make the same mistake again.[edit] Norse literature The two biggest works are the Elder Edda (or Poetic Edda) and the Younger Edda (also Snorre's Edda, Prose Edda). Thor is a very common figure, probably more common than Odin.Thor appears as the central figure in the following works of Norse literature:Þórsdrápa (summarised by Snorre Sturlason in Skáldskaparmál) Hárbarðsljóð which details a contest between Thor and Odin in the guise of Harbarth as to who is the most accomplished.Melissa Etheridge

Add to My Profile | More Videos