Fafnir

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Sigurd, Reginn and Fafnir.  Portal of Hylestad stave church (destroyed) from the second half of the 12th century (?), Setesdal, Norway. Sigurd, Reginn and Fafnir.  Portal of Hylestad stave church (destroyed) from the second half of the 12th century (?), Setesdal, Norway.
Sigurd, Reginn and Fafnir. Portal of Hylestad stave church (destroyed) from the second half of the 12th century (?), Setesdal, Norway .
Dragon Fafnir at the Kaiserbrücke in Mainz

Fáfnir (also Fafner , dt. The hugger , the griffin ) is a dragon figure of Norse mythology , which is handed down in the hero song Fáfnismál of the Liederedda and in the Völsunga saga . The figure also appears as Fafner in Richard Wagner's "Ring" .

Fáfnir in the Völsunga saga

According to the Icelandic Völsunga saga, Fafnir is the son of the dwarf king Hreidmar . His brothers are called Otr (also Otur ) and Reginn . Fafnir is described as a talented dwarf who, with the help of a powerful weapon and his fearless disposition, guards his father's house, which is decorated with precious stones and shimmering in gold. He is the strongest and most aggressive of the three brothers.

Reginn's story

Reginn tells Sigurd how the Aesi gods Odin , Loki and Hönir (Hœnir) meet his brother Ótr, who during the day looks like an otter, while fishing. Loki kills the otter with a stone, and the three Aesir (sir) skin their catch. The gods arrive at Hreidmar's residence in the evening and are happy to be able to show off the otter skin. Hreidmar and his two sons present immediately grab the gods when they see the remains of their brother. They keep Odin and Hönir prisoner while Loki is supposed to bring in the wergeld , a kind of ransom. The gold is supposed to fill the hide of the otter and its skin is to be covered with red gold. Loki accomplishes the task by procuring the cursed gold of the dwarf Andvari, as well as the ring Andvaranaut , although Loki was entrusted that both the gold and the ring would bring the death of its illegitimate owner. Out of greed, because Hreidmar does not want to give his two sons any of the wergeld, Fafnir kills his father in order to snatch all the gold for himself. Reginn flees and later becomes the mentor of his foster son Sigurd . Fafnir retreats to a cave in the wilderness on the Gnitaheide , where he lies on his gold to guard it. Gradually it takes on the form of a dragon , with the oegishjalmr - a horror helmet that changes its appearance - making its face even more appalling.

Reginn swears vengeance on his brother Ótr and encourages his foster son Sigurd Fåvnesbane to destroy the dragon. Reginn advises Sigurd to dig a pit under Fafnir's tail to wait there. If Fafnir glided over it to drink water by a stream, he would be able to thrust his sword, Gram, into Fafnir's heart. Reginn then disappears and lets Sigurd carry out the deed. When Sigurd dug the pit, Odin appears in the form of an old man with a long beard and advises him to dig more trenches so that Fafnir's blood can drain. He wants to protect Sigurd from drowning in the dragon's blood. The earth trembles when Fafnir appears, spitting poison as he snakes to the water. Sigurd, unimpressed, stabs Fafnir in the heart with his sword Gram as he crawls over the pit, and wounds the dragon so fatally.

Sigurd's story

The dying dragon speaks to Sigurd and wants to know his name, as well as the names of his father and mother. He still wants to know who sent the hero to kill such a terrible dragon as him. Fafnir realizes that his own brother Reginn is behind the conspiracy and predicts that Reginn will also cause Sigurd's death. Sigurd tells Fafnir that he will go back to the monster's lair to take the treasure. Fafnir warns Sigurd that anyone who owns the gold is doomed to die. However, Sigurd replies that all people must die once and that it is the dream of many people to be rich until they die, which is why he will take the gold without fear.

Reginn returns to Sigurd after he slays the dragon. Reginn greedily plans to kill Sigurd after he has cooked Fafnir's heart for him. Fafnir's blood accidentally reaches Sigurd's lips when he tries to find out whether the heart is cooked, which gives him the gift of understanding the language of birds. He learns from the birds of Odin about Reginn's imminent plan to kill him, and then beheads Reginn, eats Fafnir's heart and drinks Reginn's blood.

In some versions, Sigurd not only takes the treasure, but also the swords Ridill and Hrotti, the horror helmet Oegishjalmr and the golden camouflage cloak.

Scenes of the legend are u. a. depicted on the four Sigurd Slabs on the Isle of Man .

Wagner's adaptation

In Richard Wagner's adaptation of the subject with the opera cycle Der Ring des Nibelungen , the whole story is played out quite similarly, albeit slightly modified.

Hreidmar is omitted, Fafnir is now called Fafner, his brother Fasolt . The hoard (treasure) is the payment due by the giant brothers for the construction of Valhalla , and the whole thing is connected to the history of the Rhine gold. As in some versions of the Edda and the Nibelungenlied , the cursed ring becomes the central plot in Wagner's opera cycle. In Wagner's name Sigurd Siegfried, and Oegishjalmr is not a horror helmet, but a "camouflage helmet" called an invisibility cap , with the help of which the wearer can take on any shape, especially invisible.

Pop Culture

The Swedish metal band Amon Amarth tells the story of the dwarf Reginn and the dragon Fafnir in their song Fafner's Gold on the album Berserker (album) .

literature

Web links

Commons : Fafnir  - collection of images, videos and audio files