R\u00edgsthula is a mythical origin tale that presents the ordering of human society as self-evident and divinely ordained: the social order, classes, normative gender roles, and the hereditary nature of status. Precisely for that reason, the text calls for retelling, now that the world has changed and inclusive narratives are needed that resonate with the present. What follows is my brief take on the tale, told in that spirit.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The Lay of Spark the Stranger<\/em><\/strong>, by Frigga Asraaf<\/p>\n\n\n\n Once in Midgard, in the middle of ways, He saw two spouses, their hair silvered with years. They sat in the sun and told many a tale, Warmly they welcomed the stranger, Nine moons hence He came to a couple, capable and keen. Both were blithely busy, Warmly they welcomed the stranger, After their meal they felt pleasantly full Nine months hence Third, he found a pair, fair and free. Together they tilled greens and grains. Warmly they welcomed the stranger, Nine moons hence Each child was welcome and wished for. Breath and being, R\u00edgsthula is a mythical origin tale that presents the ordering of human society as self-evident and divinely ordained: the social order, classes, normative gender roles, and the hereditary nature of status. Precisely for that reason, the text calls for retelling, now that the world has changed and inclusive narratives are …<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[12,8,13],"class_list":["post-864","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-general","tag-edda","tag-inclusivity","tag-rigsthula"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/flameoffrith.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/864","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/flameoffrith.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/flameoffrith.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/flameoffrith.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/flameoffrith.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=864"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/flameoffrith.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/864\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":866,"href":"https:\/\/flameoffrith.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/864\/revisions\/866"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/flameoffrith.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=864"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/flameoffrith.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=864"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/flameoffrith.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=864"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
a god of old strode.
Spark the Stranger he called himself.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Wide open stood the door of their dwelling.\u00a0
In he went,\u00a0
hailed by the hearth flames,
and he met great-grandparents Edda and \u00c1i.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
sharing wisdom shaped by long living.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
provided him food, freshly baked bread,
soup and other savoury fare.
After their meal they felt pleasantly full
and laid themselves down to sleep.
In the middle lay Spark.
Three nights in a row,
then forward he fared
on midmost ways of his quest.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Great-Grandmother
gave birth to three babies.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Wide open stood the door of their dwelling.
In he went,
hailed by the hearth flames,
and he met Grandparent and Grandparent.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
careful they carved and crafted,\u00a0
and spun some silken skeins.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
provided him food, freshly baked bread,
soup and other savoury fare.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
and laid themselves down to sleep.
In the middle lay Spark.
Three nights in a row,
then forward he fared
on midmost ways of his mission.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
to Grandparent and Grandparent
a single baby and twins were born.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Wide open stood the door of their dwelling.\u00a0
In he went,\u00a0
hailed by the hearth flames,
and he met Parent and Parent.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Glad-hearted, they wrought and worked.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
provided him food, freshly baked bread,
soup and other savoury fare.
After their meal they felt pleasantly full
and laid themselves down to sleep.
In the middle lay Spark.
Three nights in a row,
then forward he fared
on midmost ways
back to Bifrost, the Rainbow Bridge.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
three babies to Parent were born.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Together the ninefold grew up,
with the gift to be genuinely themselves.
They tumbled and toyed to their heart\u2019s delight.
They learned to share both joy and sorrow,
to their capacity knowledge and craft,
and made many a skill their own.
They learned to live, full of fire.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
sense and hue blooming
were once given by gods
to the fair folk of Midgard.
Spirit was stirred
by the spark of the stranger.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"