Ragnar Lodbrok Saga: Chapters 10
Chris van Dykes Translation
Chapter 10
When that time had pa**ed when it had been agreed that Ragnar would go to the wedding at Uppsala and he had not come, it seemed to King Eystein that it brought dishonor upon himself and his daughter; and then the friendship between the kings was ended. And when Eirek and Agnar, Ragnar's sons, heard that, they then plotted between themselves to go with as many troops as they might muster, that they might harry in Sweden. And then they gathered together many troops and readied their ships, and it seemed to them very important that all went well when the ships set forth. Then it happened, that Agnar's ship shot off the launch rollers, and a man was in the way, and received thus d**h: and they called that “the reddening of the rollers.” This seemed to them not to be a good beginning, but they would not let that stand in the way of their journey. And when their troops were prepared, they traveled with their troops to Sweden, and there, when they came quickly to King Eystein's kingdom, they traveled across it with war-shields.
But the men of that land became aware of them and went to Uppsala and told King Eystein that they had come to the land. And the king had a message send in the form of an arrow throughout his kingdom and thus gathered so many men together that it was wondrous. And then he traveled with them until he came to a forest, and they there set up their camp. He then had with him the cow Sibilja, and many were the sacrifices to her before she would travel.
And when they were in the forest, King Eystein spoke: “I have news,” he said, “that Ragnar's sons are on the field beside this forest, and it was said to me truly that they do not have a third of our troops. Now we shall arrange our host for battle, and a third of our troops shall go to meet them first, and they are so uninching that they will think they have us in their power. Immediately afterwards we shall come at them with all our might, and the cow shall go before our troops, and it seems to me that they will not hold before her bellowing.”
And then it was so done. And as soon as the brothers saw King Eystein's troops they thought that their foes did not have power greater than theirs, and it did not occur to them that there might be more troops. And soon after all the troops came from the forest and the cow was set loose, and she leapt before the troops and went about fiercely. So great a din arose that the warriors who heard it fought among themselves, except for the two brothers holding their ground. But the evil creature struck many a man with her horns that day. But Ragnar's sons, though they were powerful in themselves, thought they might not stand against both the great crowd and the pagan sacrificial-magic. However, they faced it unflinchingly and guarded themselves well and bravely and with great renown. They, Eirek and Agnar, were at the front of the host that day, and often they went against the host of King Eystein.
But then Agnar fell. Eirek saw that and then bore himself most boldly and did not care whether he came away or not. Then he was overborne by the great force and seized. And then Eystein declared that the battle should stop, and offered Eirek peace. “And I will lay this offer before you,” he said, “that I will give you my daughter.” Eirek replied, and spoke this verse:
I will not hear an offer for my brother,
nor buy the maid with rings
from Eystein, who spoke the words
of Agnar's d**h.
My mother will not weep;
set me up to stand
pierced through by a forest of spears—
at the last, I choose to die.
Then he said that he wanted the men who had followed them to have peace to go wherever they wished. “And I wish to have as many spears as possible taken up, then have the spears set up in the ground, and I wish myself to be lifted up upon them—there I want to leave life.” Then King Eystein said that that would be done thus, as he asked, though he chose that which went worse with them both. Then the spears were set up, and Eirek spoke a verse:
I think that no king's son
shall die on so dear a bed:
a day-meal to ravens,
as I know my fate to be.
The livid blood-flies
shall break both brother's bodies
and soon shriek over us,
though that be a bad reward.
And then he went to where the spears were set up and he took a ring off his hand and cast it to those who had followed him and who had been given peace, and he commended it to Aslaug and spoke a verse:
Bear you my last words,
you east-faring troops,
that the slender maid, Aslaug
is to have my rings.
Then to the greatest of mothers,
my mild stepmother, you may
speak of me, her son,
and of my glorious spear-d**h.
And then he was heaved up on the spears. Then he saw where the raven flew, and again he spoke:
The sea-mew rejoices over the head
of my now wounded corpse;
the wound-hawk craves
my unseeing eyes.
I think if the raven
strikes out my eyes,
the wound-hawk ill rewards the many times
Ekkil has given him his ll.
Then he gave up his life with great valor. And his messengers went home and did not let up until they came to where Ragnar had residence. And then Ragnar's sons had not come home from raiding. They were there for three nights before they went to meet with Aslaug. And when they came before Áslaug in her high-seat, they greeted her worthily; she received their greeting. She had one linen handkerchief upon her knee, and she had unloosed her hair, and she intended to comb it. Then she asked who they were, since she had not seen them before. He who had spoke on their behalf said that they had been among the troops of Eirek and Agnar, the sons of Ragnar. Then she spoke a verse:
What is said by you,
friends of the king, what news?
Are the Swedes still in their land,
or otherwise driven out?
I have heard that the
Danes went from the south
the chiefs had bloody rollers.
But since then, I know nothing.
He spoke a verse in reply:
There is need, woman,
that we tell you
that Pora's sons are dead;
cruel are the fates to your man!
I know no other tale as heavy as this;
now we have come from
hearing the news: the eagle flies
over the corpse of the dead man.
Then she asked how that had happened. And then he spoke the verse, which Eirek had spoken, when he had sent her the ring. They say that she then let a tear fall, and it had the appearance of blood, but it was as hard as a hailstone. No man had seen that—that she had let fall a tear—either before or after. Then she said that she might not pursue vengeance before they came back home: that is, Ragnar or his sons. “And you shall be here until then; I shall not hold off spurring on vengeance as if they had been my own sons.” Then they stayed there.
And it so happened that Ivar and the brothers came home before Ragnar, and they were not home long before Aslaug went to find her sons. Sigurd was then three winters old. He went with his mother. And then when she came into the hall, where the brothers were discussing, they received her well. Each asked the other for tidings, and they spoke first of the fall of Rognvald, her son, and of the circumstances, and how it had happened. But that did not seem grave to her, and she said:
My sons leave me by myself
to gaze over the sea-mews;
you do not travel from
house to house, begging.
Rognvald took up the shield,
red with men's blood;
youngest of all my sons
he came to Odin.
“And I cannot see,” she said, “that he could have lived to a greater honor.” Then they asked her what tidings she had. She answered: “The fall of Eirek and Agnar, your brothers, my stepsons. I think, that out of all men, they had the best courage. And it will not be odd if you do not bear such an injury, but take great vengeance. I will be of great a**istance to you in all of this, so that this deed should be more than commonly avenged.”
Then Ivar said, “This is true—I will never come to Sweden eagerly to battle with King Eystein and the pagan sacrificial-magic which is there.” She pressed him greatly, but Ivar spoke for all of them, and he refused outright to make the journey. And then she spoke this verse:
You would not be
unavenged by your brothers
one season later
if you had died first;
I would prefer
that Eirek and Agnar
had lived in your stead,
though as sons they were not born to me.
“It is not certain,” Ivar said, “whether the matter will stand differently, even if you speak one verse after another. However, do you know clearly what strongholds there are before us?”
“I do not know for certain.” she said. “However, what can you say of the difficulties there might be?”
Ivar said that there was very great pagan sacrificial magic, and he said that no man has ever heard of its like. “And the king is both powerful and ill-natured.”
“What does he have the most faith in when making sacrifices?”
He said: “That is a great cow, and she is called Sibilja. She is so great in might that as soon as men hear her bellowing his foes are unable to stand, it is scarcely as if the battle is fought with men at all. It rather seems that they must face beings of troll-like form before they face the king, and I will risk neither myself or my troops there.”
She said: “One might think that you can not both be called a great man and not strive to be one.”
And when it then seemed to her that matters were beyond hope, she decided to leave, she thought they did not value her words. Then Sigurd Snake in Eyes spoke: “I will tell you, mother,” he said, “how it seems to me, though I might not affect their answers.”
“I wish to hear that,” she said. Then he spoke a verse:
If you grieve, mother,
the household shall become
ready in three nights;
the road we have is long.
King Eystein shall not
rule in Uppsala
even if he offers us treasure,
if you aid and push us on.
And when he had spoken that verse, the brothers rethought their plans somewhat. And then Aslaug said: “You now declare rightly, my son, that you shall do my will. And yet I cannot see how we might make this to come to pa** if we do not have your brothers' a**istance. It may happen as it seems best to me—that this vengeance of yours will come about—and it seems to me that you proceed rightly my son.” And then Bjorn spoke a verse:
Though little is said in speech,
a man may turn over
vengeance in his heart,
in his hawk-swift chest.
We do not have a serpent
nor a shining snake in our eyes,
but my brothers gladdened me:
I will remember your stepsons.
And then Hvitserk spoke a verse:
Let Agnar's bane
now rejoice little;
but we must think before
we say that there might be vengeance.
We must push out a ship onto the waves,
Break up the ice before the stern;
We must see which
ships might be swiftly prepared.
And Hvitserk spoke of this, that the ice must be broken, for the frost was then great, and their ships were in ice. And then Ivar began to speak and said that it had come to the point when he must take some part in it, and then he spoke a verse:
You have both honor and
courage in this vengeance,
but you might lack this—
a strong, obstinate following.
You shall bear me
before the heroes;
I will take the path to vengeance,
though I may use neither boneless hand.
“And now,” said Ivar, “we must devise the best plans we may for gathering warships and warriors, as we must not spare in this if we are to conquer.” Then Aslaug went away.