Ginnunga-gap: The misleading gap

2010-01-01

Last revision 2024-02-22

In the beginning:

Ginnunga-gap

The misleading gap

A great nothingness

According to old Icelandic texts, the universe started with a great void, a misleading gap. Then ice and fire started the creation of the visible world. This gap was called Ginnungagap.

Ginnungagap or gap var ginnunga

The Icelandic skalds were wordsmiths: they forged words and sounds together into kennings. A kenning is a word in which the meaning of the object or an aspect of the object is revealed. Thus 'branch-eater' is a kenning for fire, it reveals an aspect of fire. 'Water heater' could also be a kenning for fire, but (nowadays) also for an electric kettle or a central heating boiler.

The Völuspá 3 states: gap var ginnunga. This means: The gap was ginnunga, where ginnunga can be interpreted as mighty and young or as deception, joking. Space can be seen as a gap with galaxies.

The beginning of everything is ginnunga gap. This is a kenning for the universe. It is a deceptive (ginna, ginning) hole. It is also the open space (gap) for the great jester (ginnungr): Óðinn. At the same time it is the great young chaos: great (ginn) young (ungr) chaos (agi). You can compare these meanings with the maya concept of the Brahmins. According to the ancient indo-european insights, creation is a deception and you can only find the truth within yourself.

Zarvan Akarana

The idea that the creation started with an empty void is old and predates the separation between the Germanic peoples and 'the zoro-astrians'. See Edda means wit and Where did Germanic peoples come from.

According the oldest cosmology of the zoro-astrians the universe began as Zarvan Akarana. Zurvan is assumed to be 'a god' without gender and beyond (or before) good and bad. I believe, that Zarvan Akarana refers to empty space without time. Time is measured by the change of things. But when there is only an empty gap with nothing in it, then you can not measure time. So empty space is always timeless.

In my opinion it is a mistake to imagine Zurvan as a god or deity. Zurvan refers to something before the creation started. In the terminology of astrophysics: It refers to that what caused 'the big bang'. Any speculation of that 'something' seems pointless to me. (See: A modern vision of man and god)

Further reading: Iranian encyclopedia, Brittanica, zoroaster

Het grote gein gat (The great joke hole)

If I had to translate Ginnunga-gap into Dutch, I would call it 'Het grote gein gat' or in English 'The great joke hole'. Without any evidence it is stated on several websites, that the Dutch woord 'gein' comes from the Yiddish word 'chein'. See etymologisch-woordenboek: gein. But 'een geintje uithalen' has a strong relation with deception as a joke. So 'gein' could also be similar to 'ginna' and 'ginning'.

The Dutch language also has the word 'ginnegappen'. The oldest form of this word is in a sentence dated 1613: 'wat let u te ginnegabben?' (Why would you not laugh mockingly?) See etymologisch-woordenboek: ginnegappen. Ginnegappen generally means making verbal jokes and laugh mockingly.

The Great Young Chaos

The description of Ginnunga-gap in the old Icelandic texts show a picture of an enormous expanse that is young and chaotic. So I like to believe, that Ginnunga-gap also means 'The Great Young Chaos'.

According to astrophysicists, the Universe started with a big bang. They do not supply any evidence for the bigness of the bang. Nor do they dare to speculate about the cause of the bang. Perhaps the creator of the Universe ate beans and onions and he let out a string of farts. And one of these farts could be our Universe. Was it a big bang or perhaps a small bang? Perhaps our whole Universe is nothing more than a tiny bang. That would be a good joke.

But it seems likely, that in the beginning the Universe was a Great Young Chaos.

Völuspá 3

In the Völuspá we read:

ár var alda

at the beginning was old cycle

þar er ymir byggði

that place which ymir colonized

empty space was mighty and young

en gras hvergi

and grass nowhere

At the beginning of the old cycle

the place were Ymir lived

there was no sand or sea

and no cool waves.

Jörð was not created

nor the sky above

empty space was mighty and young

and there was no grass.

The last line gives evidence, that this story is ancient. The old Germanic peoples probably came from tribal people that lived on horseback in Central Asia. No grass means no horses. See: Where did Germanic peoples come from.

I interpret 'ginnunga' as 'ginn ungr' which translates to mighty, great and young. When we read 'Ginnunga' then it translates to deception, joking. Then the translation of the 7th line would be:

empty space was deceptive

The word Maya in Indian religion refers to the same deceptiveness of the Universe.

Völuspá 4

In the Völuspá we read:

When the sons of Bur raised the ground (above sea-level)

they who shaped glorious Middle Earth.

The sun shines from the south upon a hall of stone (Middle Earth).

The ground thawed and became grassy and green with leek. (So there was food for the horses.)

gylfaginning 4

In the gylfaginning we read:

Gangleri said: "What was the beginning. How did things start? What was before?"

Hárr answered: "As is told in Völuspá:"

This text is not equal to the text in the Völuspá that we know. In gylfaginning 5 this unknown Völuspá is called 'other shorter Völuspá'.

At the beginning of the old cycle

then there was nothing

there was no sand or sea

and no cool waves.

Jörð was not created

nor the sky above

empty space was mighty and young

and there was no grass.

þá mælti jafnhár

then spake Just-as-high

fyrr var þat mörgum öldum

before where so many ages

en jörð var sköpuð

when jörð (the earth, Mother Earth) was shaped

er niflheimr var görr

which niflheimr (home of mist) was ready

ok í honum miðjum liggr bruðr

and in its center lies spring

sá er hvergelmir heitir

that is hvergelmir named

ok þaðan af falla þær ár er svá heita

and from that origin flow these rivers which thus named

svöl gunnþrá fjörm fimbul þul slíðr ok hríð sylgr ok ylgr víð leiptr

svöl gunnþrá fjörm fimbul thul fierce and storm a drink and ylgr wide lightning flash

gjöll er næst hel grindum

barker is nearest to Hal gate

Then said Just-as-high

Before there were so many cycles

before Jörð (Mother Earth) was shaped

Niflheimar was made ready.

In the center there is a spring

hver-gelmir it is named.

and from there flow

rivers with these names.

svöl gunnþrá fjörm fimbul þul slíðr ok hríð sylgr ok ylgr víð leiptr

Gjöll is nearest to the gate of Hal.

þá mælti þriði

then spake third

fyrst var þó sá heimr í suðrhálfu er muspell heitir

first was nevertheless that place in southern half is Muspell named

hann er ljóss ok heitr

it is bright and hot

sú átt er logandi ok brennandi er hann

that direction is blazing and burning is it

ok ófœrr þeim er

and impassable it is

þar eru útlendir

that place is outlandish

ok eigi eigu þar óðul

and not to have there native place

sá er surtr

that is surtr

nefndr er þar sitr á lands

appointed is at that place sitting on lands

enda til landvarnar hann hefir loganda sverð

to end of protection of the land he has flaming sword

ok í enda veraldar mun hann fara

and during end world will he travel

ok herja ok sigra öll goðin

and harry (wage war on) and vanquish all gods

ok brenna allan heim með eldi

and burn all homes with offspring

svá segir í völuspá

so declares the völuspá

Then said Third

First was Muspell made, a world in the southern half (of Ginnunga gap).

It is bright and hot, blazing and burning.

It is impassable for those that are not decended from Surtr

it is outlandish

for those that are not native.

That is Surtr appointed at that place, sitting on the land

to protect the world (Muspellr) he (surtr) has a flaming sword.

And when it comes to the end of the world (Middle Earth) he comes

to wage war and slay all gods

and burn all homes with all the people.

so says the Völuspá.

Völuspá 51

In the Völuspá we read:

Surtr comes from the south with distorted cries,

his sword shines like the sun, the eye of Óðinn

Borough's of stone are crushed when bloodthirsty savages roam Middle Earth.

Men go on the road to Hall and the sky is cloven (by the flaming sword of Surtr).

The second line is usually interpreted as 'með sviga lævi'. Sviga lævís can be translated like 'curved craft' or something, but that does not feel right. The original manuscript is hard to read. The last letter of the word 'læti' or 'lævi' is interpreted as an 'i', but it also looks like an 'a'. The letter before that looks a bit like letters that are used for 'v', but it is not exactly the same.

The second line: valtíva is interpreted as val tíva, where tíva translates to 'gods'. Tíva generally refers to the Ace Týr. But in poetic writings it is often used as 'god'. Óðinn is 'the god of the fallen'. So valtíva probably refers to Óðinn.

The third line: grjót björg is interpreted as stone borough. But it is possible that it is an alternative name for Grjóttúnagörðum, the world of Hrungnir in Skáldskaparmál 24. In the Old Icelandic Dictionary the word gnata is translated as 'to clash'. I interpret it as an alternative of gnísta: gnashing of the teeth. Then it can be interpreted as crushing or grinding of stone borough's.

gylfaginning 5

In the gylfaginning we read:

Gangleri

hversu skipaðisk áðr en ættirnar yrði ok aukaðisk mannfólkit

how arranged before and the families will be and increased populated

Gangleri: How were things arranged before the families of races began to increase and the world was populated?

Har: The rivers mentioned above are named élivágar. When they were far from where they gushed out, a life was created in the pus and that one hardened like dross in a hearth. That one became ice and he took place and made a house for himself. Then rime fell over that part and froze and rime incresed a second time and spread entirely over Ginnunga Gap.

It is usually assumed that élivágar comes from él vágar. Then it translates to 'ice waves' or 'rivers of rain'. But perhaps we should read it as eldi vágar. Then we can interpret élivágar as 'waves of creation'. In these streams there was a quickening. And then Ymir, the primordial giant, came to life.

What we know of Ginnunga-gap, is that the northern part is filled with the quality of enduring, very hard to deal with, with ice and rime. And there is a drizzling rain and gusts of wind and fog. But the southern part of Ginnunga-gap is light and sparkling and every where there are sparkles from Muspellr.

þriði:

svá sem kalt stóð ór niflheimi ok grimmt

so as cold stood out of niflheim (land of mists) and grim

svá var allt þat er vissi námunda muspellsheimi heitt ok ljóst

so was all from what is known near to muspellsheimi hot and light

en ginnunga gap var létt sem lopt vindlaust

and ginnunga gap was lightly as air without wind

ok þá er blærinn hitans mœtti hríminu

and then was gentle breeze heat to meet frost

svá at bráðnaði ok draup af

so to melt and drops from

ok með krapti þeim er stýrði

and with power them is to steer

varð manns líkindi á sá hét ymir

became manly likeness in that called ymir

en hrímþussar kalla hann aurgelmi

but hrímþursar call him aurgelmi

ok þaðan eru þeira ættir

and from there are the races

sem hér segir

as here said

Then Third said: "Like the cold was supported by Niflheimar (land of mists) and all things that are grim, so was that what is known as Múspellr hot and light. And Ginnunga gap was light and warm as air without wind. And then there was an encounter between rime and hot wind (heated by Muspellr). Thus there was a battle of fire and ice, which melted the ice to a dripping rain. And then this dripping fluid was brought to life by the power that was sent by the heat and it got a manly form that was named Ymir. But ice giants call him Aurgelmi (roaring mud, roaring clay). And then there were ættir as here said.

Note: ættir is translated as 'races of the Rime-giants' by Brodeur and as 'generations of frost-giants' by Faulkes. Both translations add an interpretation to the text. The text does definitely not say, that it is about races of giants. The word ættir can be interpreted as 'races' but not races of giants of any particular kind. Perhaps the author meant to say, that all the races (Ice-giants, Fire-giants, Aces, Vanir, Dwarfes, etc) came from Ymir. But it is also possible, that ættir should be interpreted as 'eight directions' with Ymir in the middle. As far as I know, there is not an exact specification in the old Icelandic writings about the origin of the hrímþursar (Ice giants) and jötnar (Fire giants). Nor is it stated when these giants came into being. In my interpretation the hrímþursar and the jötnar already existed before Ymir. The jötnar live in 'the southern part' of ginnungagap and the hrímþursar live in 'the northern part'.

from vilmeiði (name of Óðinn)

The Codex Regius added here two lines, that are not in the Codex Upsaliensis:

en seiðberendr

and bearers of the seidr

I use the Codex Upsaliensis version and not the Codex Regius version. The Codex Regius at this point is probably tweaked by the Christian author.

The Codex Regius states: "vitkar allir frá Vilmeiði" while the Codex Upsaliensis states: "vættir allar frá Vilmeiði". vættir refers to skalds who speak and testify about what they have seen and know, while vitkar refers to sorcerers.

The Codex Regius states: "en seiðberendr frá Svarthöfða". seiðberendr comes from seiðr bera. It can be interpreted as 'those who produce (or give birth to) the seidr and bear themselves proudly and humbly. So the seiðberendr are the volva's. They are devoted to Freya and not to Óðinn. And they are already named in the first two lines.

ok enn segir svá at

and yet to declare thus about

The Codex Regius then has three lines, which are not in the Codex Upsaliensis.

hvaðan aurgelmir kom

from where aurgelmir comes

með jötna sonum

with jötna sons

fyrst inn fróði jötunn

foremost in knowing jötunn

ór élivágum

out of élivágar

stukku eitr dropar

springs pus, secretion drops

ok vöxtr vinds

and increase twisted

ok varð jötunn ór

and became jötunn from that

þær einar ættir koma saman

those some race come together

So it is said about this.

(Codex Regius)

From where comes Aurgelmir with his Jötna sons, all-wise Jötunn (Vafþrúðnir)?

Out of the Élivágar sprang drops of pus and they increased in a twisted manner until they became a Jötunn and from that originated some races.

Gangleri

hvernig uxu ættir þaðan

how increased the races after that

eða trúi þér hann guð vera

or believe you he God to be

How did the races increase after that? And do you believe that Ymir was a god?

Jafnhár:

eigi trúum vér hann guð

not believe we he God

illr var hann ok hans ættmenn þat eru hrímþussar

mean was he and they kinsmen from are hrímþursar

ok er hann svaf fekk hann sveita

and when he sleep give he sweat

ok undir vinstri hendi hans óx maðr ok kona

and under left hand their grew man and woman

ok annarr fótr hans gat son við öðrum

and next foot they begat son with another

ok þaðan kómu ættir

and from there come races

We do not consider him to be a god. He was mean and his kinsmen are the Ice giants. When he slept he began to sweat. Under his left hand (or armpit) grew a man and a woman. And then his feet begat a son with each other. From there come the races.

The picture:

runictarot/jpeggroot/shields/Ginnungagap.jpg

This picture is completely black.

Explanation:

Creation has yet to begin. The deceptive hole is still completely void and without light. This is the period before the 'Big Bang'. There is absolutely nothing yet.

This is also the period before conception. When the man injects his red-hot semen into the dark primordial matter (the egg), the darkness splits and creation begins. This hasn't happened yet. The egg is still unfertilized. The first mating has yet to take place.

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