The title of this collection of poetic proverbs in the original is Hávamál, which means literally the Words of theHigh One. The High One is Odin (or Woden), the foremost of the Norse gods. Odin is the Northern equivalent tothe Greek Zeus and the Roman Jupiter.
In Hávamál, or the Words of the High One, the god gives advice to us mortals on how to behave and manage inorder to lead a prosperous and worthy life.
The title of this English version, The Sayings of the Vikings, refers to the fact that this poem is perhaps thepurest example of the ethics of the Vikings, of all the literature of the Viking era. This poem with its pearls ofshrewd wisdom, of terse humour and of noble sentiment is the kernel of the spirit of the Vikings.
Hávamál is one of the more famous and certainly oneof the most popular of the so-called Eddaic poems.The part of Hávamál which is published here is uniqu among the Eddaic poems in its being neither heroic nor mythological, but rather a poem of didactic nature.
The Eddas signify for the northern culture what the Vedas mean to India and the Homeric poems are for the Greeks. Their variety and wealth are such, that they have been a source of inspiration and delight for generations, and still are.
Scholars do not agree on where the Hávamál was written,nor when; some argue it originated in Norway, some hold it was composed in Iceland, others still inthe British Isles. Apart from the problem of discovering where the Hávamál was composed, there is the question of origination.
Is it a collection of ancient sayings, which were hovering in the cultural atmosphere of the ancestors of the Vikings, and finally written down by a scribe in one of these countries? Is it a mixture of Latin proverbs and the old heathen wisdom bound together in the metre of the Edda?
The question of the age of the Hávamál is of course related to the questions of where and how. There is almost a consensus that it was composed in the period around AD700-900, though it could have been written down for the first time later.
One thing is certain, however. The spirit of the poem,at least, has been greatly influenced by the attitudeand culture of the Viking era culminating in the period AD800- 1000.
The first two lines in each unit (1 & 2 and 4 & 5, respectively) have two stresses, while the last line (3 and 6 resp.) has two to four stresses.
For example:
1. Better a humble
2. house than none.
3. A man is master at home.
4. A pair of goats
5. and a patched roof
6. are better than begging.
The reader can best realize the effect of Hávamál by reciting it aloud. The melody and rhythm arise not just from the alliterative echoes, but from the contrast of the alliterating and non-alliterating stressed sounds. To quote Charles W. Dunn, of Harvard University: “The ear is constantly affected by the unpredictable alternations of similarities and dissimilarities; and, because of the freedom of the syllabic count, the placement of the beat in each half-line is also unpredictably varied. One can train oneself to hear such music; and music it is.”
The Hávamál is written in a metre called Ljóðaháttur, which means literally Poetic Metre, indicating a certain seniority among the metres of old times. The stanza of ljóðaháttur contains typically six lines or two units of three lines each. The first two lines in each unit are tied together by alliteration, and the third is also decorated with alliteration.
What is alliteration? Alliteration means that a vowel or a consonant of a stressed syllable is echoed by repeating the same consonant or vowel (in alliteration, any two vowels alliterate).
For example:
1. Better a humble
2. house than none.
3. A man is master at home.
4. A pair of goats
5. and a patched roof
6. are better than begging.
Advice to a Visitor
How to Seat a Guest
HospitalityCourtesy
Worldliness
Attending a Feast
Seeking Knowledge
Independence
Opinion of Others
Wisdom
Alertness
Drinking
Responsibility
Self-Deceit
Bad Manners
Experience
Good Manners
Self-Discipline
Moderation
Happiness
Worry
Face Value
The Dangers of Naivety
False Security
When to Keep Silent
The Nature of Gossip
Talking Too Much
How to Treat a Fellow
How to Avoid Making Enemies
Quarrels
When and How to Eat
The Nature of Friendship
How to Preserve Friendship
A Home Is a Castle Poverty
Caution
Generosity
Financial Sense
Lasting Friendship
How to Be Cunning Beware of Enemies
How to Cultivate Friendship
How to Treat False Friends
Dissimulation
Solitude and Company
Prosperity
The Importance of Appearances
Loneliness
False Peace
Extravagance
Spiritual Grandeur
Moderation and Prosperity
Moderation and Happiness
To Know One´s Fate
Shyness
The Early Bird . . .Agility
Foresight
Pride and Prejudice
How Not to Behave
The Nature of Secrecy
The Use of Power
The Unwelcome Guest
The Nature of Hospitality
The Basics of Life
Look on the Bright Side
Poor – but Alive . . .Everyone Has His Use
Do Not Be Governed by Money
Keeping Your Name Alive
Renown