Page:Norse mythology or, the religion of our forefathers, containing all the myths of the Eddas, systematized and interpreted with an introduction, vocabulary and index.djvu/276

 Soon shall increase The band of the gods: To Odin's feast Hakon is bidden.

The king beheld The beautiful maids Sitting on their horses In shining armor, Their shields before them, Solemnly thoughtful.

The king heard The words of their lips, Saw them beckon With pale hands, And thus bespoke them: Mighty goddesses, Were we not worthy You should choose us A better doom?

Skogul answered: Thy foes have fallen, Thy land is free, Thy fame is pure; Now we must ride To greener worlds, To tell Odin That Hakon comes.

An interpretation of the valkyries is not necessary. The god of war sends his thoughts and his will to the carnage of the battle-field in the form of mighty armed women, in the same manner as he sends his ravens over all the earth.

Ethically considered, then, Odin symbolizes the matchless hope of victory that inspired the Norsemen, and from which their daring exploits sprang; and we know that this hope of victory did not leave the hero