The tale begins in the golden halls of Asgard, during a time when the world was younger and the gods walked more frequently among men. Baldr, the son of Odin and Frigg, was the most beloved of all the Æsir. He was the god of light, joy, purity, and beauty. So fair was he that rays of light seemed to emanate from his very person, and he was praised by all living things. However, this peace was shattered when Baldr began to have dark, prophetic dreams of his own demise. His mother, Frigg, fearing for her son’s life, traversed the nine worlds to extract an oath from every living thing—plants, animals, stones, and even diseases—that they would never harm her son. The only thing she bypassed was the mistletoe, thinking it too young and insignificant to pose a threat.
Loki, the trickster, discovered this omission and fashioned a dart from the mistletoe. During a gathering where the gods were amusing themselves by throwing objects at the now-invulnerable Baldr, Loki guided the hand of the blind god Höðr, who threw the mistletoe dart. To the horror of all present, the plant pierced Baldr's chest, and the god of light fell dead. The grief that followed was unlike any the cosmos had ever seen. The gods were paralyzed by sorrow, their voices lost in their throats. As the reality of the tragedy set in, they realized they must honor their fallen brother with the most magnificent funeral ever witnessed.
They chose Baldr’s own ship, Hringhorni, to serve as his funeral pyre. Hringhorni was renowned throughout the realms as the 'greatest of all ships,' a vessel of such immense scale and craftsmanship that it was considered a wonder of the world. It was wide of beam and deep of hull, capable of carrying the weight of a god’s legacy. The Æsir gathered on the shores of the sea, piling the ship high with treasures. They brought fine silks, gold, arms of exquisite manufacture, and the richest of offerings. They meant to launch the ship into the deep water, set it ablaze, and let the tides carry Baldr into the horizon.
However, a great problem arose. When the gods put their shoulders to the hull of Hringhorni, the ship would not budge. Thor, the strongest of the gods, strained until his veins stood out like cords, but the vessel remained stuck fast in the sand. Týr and the other mighty warriors of Asgard joined him, but their collective strength was insufficient to move the massive weight. The gods realized that the weight of the ship was not merely physical; it was heavy with the sorrow of the entire world. Fearing they would not be able to give Baldr his proper rites, they sent a messenger to Jötunheimr, the land of the giants, to seek the help of a giantess known as Hyrrokkin, who was famous for her titanic strength.
After some time, Hyrrokkin arrived at the shore. Her entrance was as terrifying as it was awe-inspiring. She did not come on foot, but rode a wolf of monstrous proportions, using live, writhing poisonous snakes as her reins. The sight was so fearsome that Odin, the All-Father, ordered four of his fiercest berserkers to hold the wolf while the giantess dismounted. Even these elite warriors struggled, eventually having to knock the beast down and pin it to the earth just to keep it under control. Hyrrokkin, unbothered by the commotion, stepped toward the ship with a look of stoic determination. She looked upon the struggling gods with a sense of grim amusement, seeing the mightiest of Asgard humbled by a wooden hull.
Hyrrokkin walked to the prow of Hringhorni. She did not ask for help, nor did she spend time in preparation. With a single, explosive movement, she threw her weight against the ship. The result was instantaneous and violent. The ship didn't just slide; it shot forward into the waves with such velocity that the friction caused the wooden rollers beneath the keel to ignite into roaring flames. The earth itself groaned and shook as if an earthquake had struck the coastline, and the spray from the ship hitting the water drenched the assembled gods. The sheer display of raw, primordial power was so great that it sparked a flash of jealousy and rage in Thor. He reached for his hammer, Mjölnir, intending to crush the giantess's skull for her perceived arrogance and for outshining the gods, but the other Æsir quickly intervened, calming him and reminding him that without her, Baldr would still be stranded on the sand.
With the ship now afloat, the funeral proceedings continued with a heavy heart. Baldr’s body was carried onto the deck. When his wife, Nanna, saw him lying there, her heart literally broke from the weight of her grief, and she fell dead on the spot. The gods placed her beside her husband on the pyre, so they might remain together in the afterlife. Odin then stepped forward and placed his magical gold ring, Draupnir—which produced eight new rings of equal weight every ninth night—upon the pyre as a final gift to his son. As the ship drifted further out, Thor stood at the water's edge and consecrated the pyre with his hammer. In his frustration and grief, he kicked a dwarf named Litr, who happened to be running near his feet, into the flames as well.