21. The lord of the goats | bade the ape-begotten
Farther to steer | the steed of the rollers;
But the giant said | that his will, forsooth,
Longer to row | was little enough.
22. Two whales on his hook | did the mighty Hymir
Soon pull up | on a single cast;
In the stern the kinsman | of Othin sat,
And Veur with cunning | his cast prepared.
23. The warder of men, | the worm's destroyer,
Fixed on his hook | the head of the ox;
There gaped at the bait | the foe of the gods,
The girdler of all | the earth beneath.
24. The venomous serpent | swiftly up
To the boat did Thor, | the bold one, pull;
With his hammer the loathly | hill of the hair
Of the brother of Fenrir | he smote from above.
25. The monsters roared, | and the rocks resounded,
And all the earth | so old was shaken;
. . . . . . . . . .
Then sank the fish | in the sea forthwith.
[21. Lord of the goats: Thor, because of his goat-drawn chariot. Ape-begotten: Hymir; the word "api," rare until relatively
late times in its literal sense, is fairly common with the meaning of "fool." Giants were generally assumed to be stupid.
Steed of the rollers: a ship, because boats were pulled up on shore by means of rollers.
23. Warder of men: Thor; cf. stanza 11. Worm's destroyer: likewise Thor, who in the last battle slays, and is slain by, Mithgarthsorm;
cf. Voluspo, 56. The foe of the gods: Mithgarthsorm, who lies in the sea, and surrounds the whole earth.
24. Hill of the hair: head,--a thoroughly characteristic skaldic phrase. Brother of Fenrir: Mithgarthsorm was, like the wolf Fenrir and
the goddess Hel, born to Loki and the giantess Angrbotha (cf. Voluspo, 39 and note), and I have translated this line accordingly; but
the word used in the text has been guessed as meaning almost anything from "comrade" to "enemy."
25. No gap is indicated in the manuscripts, but that a line or more has been lost is highly probable. In Snorri's version, Thor pulls so
hard on the line that he drives both his feet through the flooring of the boat, and stands on bottom. When he pulls the serpent up,
Hymir cuts the line with his bait-knife, which explains the serpent's escape. Thor, in a rage, knocks Hymir overboard with his hammer,
and then wades ashore. The lines of stanzas 25 and 26 have been variously grouped.]
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21. Dró meir Hymir móðugr hvali
einn á öngli upp senn tváa,
en aftr í skut Óðni sifjaðr
Véurr við vélar vað gerði sér.
22. Egndi á öngul, sá er öldum bergr,
orms einbani uxa höfði;
gein við agni, sú er goð fía,
umgjörð neðan allra landa.
23. Dró djarfliga dáðrakkr Þórr
orm eitrfáan upp at borði;
hamri kníði háfjall skarar
ofljótt ofan ulfs hnitbróður.
24. Hraungalkn hlumðu, en hölkn þutu,
fór in forna fold öll saman;
sökkðisk síðan sá fiskr í mar.
25. Óteitr jötunn, er aftr reru,
svá at ár Hymir ekki mælti,
veifði hann ræði veðrs annars til.
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