![]() As Odin’s favorite means of travel, Sleipnir not only traveled by land but could fly through the air. In every story, this swiftest of horses was true to his name. The magnificent grey stallion appears in many Old Norse texts including, the Poetic Edda, the Saga of the Volsungs, and more. Odin’s affiliation with the afterlife lends credence to this idea. Four men carrying a casket – taking a soul to another world – also stand upon eight legs. This wonderous steed’s eight legs equaled the number of legs of a standard set of litter-bearers. Historian Hilda Ellis Davidson has speculated that the stallion’s eight legs could be symbolic of a shaman’s afterlife journey. With eight legs, Sleipnir would be faster than any other horse, suited for the king of the gods himself. Sleipnir is easily identified in Norse art, as on Sweden’s Tjängvide and Ardre VIII picture stones. The Tjängvide image stone depicts Odin, or some other man, arriving in Valhalla on Odin’s horse. Shortly after a forest consummation with Svaðilfari, Loki gave birth to Sleipnir, the eight-legged colt. As the mare, Loki lured Svaðilfari far from the wall, foiling the giant’s bargain. Only three days before the wall was completed, cunning Loki shapeshifted, becoming a mare in heat. Convinced the task was impossible in such a timeline, the gods agreed, unaware of the giant horse Svaðilfari, who helped the builder by moving massive stones with lightning speed. His payment would be Freyja, goddess of love and beauty, as well as the sun and the moon. In the early days of Asgard, following a war between the gods, a giant offered to build a massive protective wall around Asgard, promising completion within a year. Like many Norse stories, the birth of Sleipnir begins with a feisty giant. You May Also Like: Mysteries of Surt’s Cave: Bandits, Mutilations, and the Fire Giant Loki and Svaðilfari A notorious shapeshifter, Loki perhaps got more than he bargained for in this episode. That’s right – Loki, the trickster god, adopted son of Odin and brother of Thor. The mare who bore the mystical steed was none other than Loki. However, Sleipnir was born of no normal mare. According to Snorri, the great horse was sired by a remarkable stallion named Svaðilfari. The Prose Edda, composed by Snorri Sturluson, a thirteenth-century Icelandic poet, historian, and chieftain, documents Sleipnir’s most unconventional origins. The name Sleipnir means something akin to “Fast-Traveler.” His name derives from the Old Norse adjective sleipir, meaning slick or slippery. An artist depiction of Odin riding his eight legged horse, Sleipnir. Few of these creatures is as well-known as Sleipnir, the eight-legged horse of Odin. The Aesir, including Odin, Thor, Loki, Heimdall, and Freyr, oversee these worlds alongside a panoply of sentient and powerful animals. Norse mythology offers modern readers a wondrous world of giants, elves, monsters, and a massive ash tree, Yggdrasil, that connects nine encircling universal realms. ![]()
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