In the cold, mist-shrouded valley of Reykholt during the early thirteenth century, a man of immense intellect and political power sat amidst his manuscripts. Snorri Sturluson, a lawspeaker of the Althing and a master of the skaldic arts, looked upon a changing world. Iceland had long since converted to Christianity, and the old songs—the complex, riddling verses of the Viking Age—were beginning to fade into silence. To Snorri, this was not merely a loss of faith, but a loss of history, culture, and the very language of poetry itself. He understood that without the myths of Odin, Thor, and Freyja, the intricate metaphors known as kennings would become unintelligible to future generations. Thus, he began his most ambitious project: the compilation and systematic recording of the Norse mythological cycle, a work that would come to be known as the Prose Edda.
Snorri began his work with a Prologue that sought to reconcile the ancient myths with the Christian worldview of his time. He utilized the concept of euhemerism, suggesting that the Norse gods were not actually divine beings, but rather extraordinarily gifted humans—refugees from the fallen city of Troy who had traveled north. These 'Æsir' (men from Asia) were so impressive in their wisdom and technology that the northern tribes eventually began to worship them as gods. By framing the stories this way, Snorri protected his work from the charge of heresy, allowing him to preserve the pagan lore under the guise of historical and linguistic study. This prologue set the stage for a journey into the heart of the northern imagination.
The first major section of the Edda, the Gylfaginning or 'The Deluding of Gylfi,' introduces King Gylfi of Sweden, a man of great wisdom who is curious about the power of the Æsir. Disguising himself as an old traveler named Gangleri, he journeys to Asgard to test the gods. When he arrives, he finds a magnificent hall so tall he can barely see the roof. Within, he encounters three figures seated on thrones: High, Just-as-High, and Third. In a long, theological dialogue, Gangleri asks them questions about the origin of the universe, the nature of the gods, and the end of all things. Through this frame story, Snorri weaves together the disparate threads of Norse cosmology into a coherent narrative.
The figures describe the beginning of time, when there was only Ginnungagap—a vast, yawning void between the realms of fire (Muspelheim) and ice (Niflheim). As the heat of the fire met the frost of the ice, life flickered into existence in the form of Ymir, the first frost giant. From Ymir’s sweat, more giants were born, and from the melting ice emerged the cow Audhumla, whose licking of the salt blocks revealed Búri, the ancestor of the gods. Snorri details how Búri's grandsons—Odin, Vili, and Vé—eventually slew Ymir and used his massive corpse to fashion the world: his blood became the oceans, his flesh the earth, his bones the mountains, and his skull the dome of the sky. This gruesome but poetic creation myth provided the foundational imagery for all skaldic verse.
As the dialogue continues, High and his companions explain the structure of the cosmos, centered around the world-tree Yggdrasil. This immense ash tree connects the nine realms, its roots gnawed by the dragon Nidhogg and its branches home to an eagle and a scurrying messenger squirrel named Ratatoskr. Snorri describes the three wells at the tree's base, including Mímisbrunnr, where Odin sacrificed an eye for a drink of wisdom, and the Urðarbrunnr, where the three Norns—Urd, Verdandi, and Skuld—weave the fates of men and gods alike. The narrative brings to life the various deities: Odin the All-Father, Thor the protector of Midgard with his hammer Mjölnir, the trickster Loki who is half-giant and half-god, and the beautiful Freyja who rules over love and war. Snorri recounts famous episodes, such as Thor’s fishing trip for the Midgard Serpent and the binding of the monstrous wolf Fenrir with the magical ribbon Gleipnir, crafted by dwarves from the sound of a cat’s footfall and the beard of a woman.
The Gylfaginning reaches its emotional peak with the death of Baldr, the most beloved of the gods. Snorri’s retelling of Loki’s treachery—how he orchestrated Baldr’s death by a sprig of mistletoe and then prevented his return from Hel—is one of the most poignant passages in medieval literature. This tragedy serves as the catalyst for the ultimate destruction of the world: Ragnarök. The figures on the thrones describe the Fimbulwinter, the breaking of all bonds, and the final battle on the plain of Vigrid. They detail how Odin is swallowed by Fenrir, Thor slays the Midgard Serpent only to die from its venom, and Heimdallr and Loki kill each other. Yet, Snorri ends this section on a note of hope, describing a new world rising from the sea, green and fair, where the children of the gods will dwell and the cycle of life will begin anew.