"of the sheaf in Norwegian Yule celebrations. According to ""Hervarar saga ok Heiðreks"", the Norwegians came to see Guðmundr as a god; Höfler argued that in both the wolf-form suggested by ""Úlfhéðinn"" and the horse-form suggested by ""faxi"", Guðmundr was a death-demon and his death-horse the prototype of the death-horse Sleipnir portrayed on the Gotland picture stones. Ingemar Nordgren regards the first Guðmundr as ""a cult-god"" and his son, the Guðmundr of the sagas, as portraying him in theriomorphic form, and suggests that he is either an earlier fertility god who came to be identified with Óðinn and that Glæsisvellir"
"legs may be the remnants of horse-associated divine twins found in Indo-European cultures and ultimately stemming from Proto-Indo-European religion. The encyclopedia states that ""[...] Sleipnir is born with an extra set of legs, thus representing an original pair of horses. Like Freyr and Njörðr, Sleipnir is responsible for carrying the dead to the otherworld."" The encyclopedia cites parallels between the birth of Sleipnir and myths originally pointing to a Celtic goddess who gave birth to the Divine horse twins. These elements include a demand for a goddess by an unwanted suitor (the hrimthurs demanding the goddess Freyja) and the seduction"
"Gná and Hófvarpnir In Norse mythology, Gná is a goddess who runs errands in other worlds for the goddess Frigg and rides the flying, sea-treading horse Hófvarpnir (Old Norse ""he who throws his hoofs about"", ""hoof-thrower"" or ""hoof kicker""). Gná and Hófvarpnir are attested in the ""Prose Edda"", written in the 13th century by Snorri Sturluson. Scholarly theories have been proposed about Gná as a ""goddess of fullness"" and as potentially cognate to Fama from Roman mythology. Hófvarpnir and the eight-legged steed Sleipnir have been cited examples of transcendent horses in Norse mythology. In chapter 35 of the ""Prose Edda"""
"the winged-horse Pegasus, may have been. Gná and Hófvarpnir In Norse mythology, Gná is a goddess who runs errands in other worlds for the goddess Frigg and rides the flying, sea-treading horse Hófvarpnir (Old Norse ""he who throws his hoofs about"", ""hoof-thrower"" or ""hoof kicker""). Gná and Hófvarpnir are attested in the ""Prose Edda"", written in the 13th century by Snorri Sturluson. Scholarly theories have been proposed about Gná as a ""goddess of fullness"" and as potentially cognate to Fama from Roman mythology. Hófvarpnir and the eight-legged steed Sleipnir have been cited examples of transcendent horses in Norse mythology. In"
"Svaðilfari In Norse mythology, Svaðilfari (Old Norse perhaps ""unlucky traveler""; derived from Old Norse 'svað': 'slippery' - cf. Norwegian 'svaberg' 'slippery rock'; '-il': footwear, protection for the feet; '-fari': 'someoneone who usually goes somewhere specific', 'a traveller'. Possible meaning ""the one that like to go where it is slippery') is a stallion that fathered the eight-legged horse Sleipnir with Loki (in the form of a mare). Svaðilfari was owned by the disguised and unnamed hrimthurs who built the walls of Asgard. In chapter 42 of the ""Prose Edda"" book ""Gylfaginning"", High tells a story set ""right at the beginning of"
"As part of its legendary dimension, the white horse in myth may be depicted with seven heads (Uchaishravas) or eight feet (Sleipnir), sometimes in groups or singly. There are also white horses which are divinatory, who prophesy or warn of danger. As a rare or distinguished symbol, a white horse typically bears the hero- or god-figure in ceremonial roles or in triumph over negative forces. Herodotus reported that white horses were held as sacred animals in the Achaemenid court of Xerxes the Great (ruled 486–465 BC), while in other traditions the reverse happens when it was sacrificed to the gods."
"the Vanir and Gná ""strange"" and points out that it's unclear why it should specifically be the Vanir that witness Gná flying through the air. Ulla Loumand cites Hófvarpnir and the eight-legged horse Sleipnir as ""prime examples"" of horses in Norse mythology as being able to ""mediate between earth and sky, between Ásgarðr, Miðgarðr and Útgarðr and between the world of mortal men and the underworld."" In the 19th century, Jacob Grimm proposed a cognate in the personified rumor in Roman mythology; Fama. However, Grimm notes that unlike Fama, Gná is not described as winged but rather that Hófvarpnir, like"
"the flying, eight-legged steed Sleipnir across the sky and into the underworld. Odin is the son of Bestla and Borr and has two brothers, Vili and Vé. Odin is attested as having many sons, most famously the gods Thor (with ) and (with ), and is known by hundreds of names. In these texts, he frequently seeks greater knowledge, at times in disguise (most famously by obtaining the Mead of Poetry), makes wagers with his wife Frigg over the outcome of exploits, and takes part in both the creation of the world by way of slaying the primordial being and"
"mentioned in a riddle found in the 13th century legendary saga ""Hervarar saga ok Heiðreks"", in the 13th-century legendary saga ""Völsunga saga"" as the ancestor of the horse Grani, and book I of ""Gesta Danorum"", written in the 12th century by Saxo Grammaticus, contains an episode considered by many scholars to involve Sleipnir. Sleipnir is generally accepted as depicted on two 8th century Gotlandic image stones: the Tjängvide image stone and the Ardre VIII image stone. Scholarly theories have been proposed regarding Sleipnir's potential connection to shamanic practices among the Norse pagans. In modern times, Sleipnir appears in Icelandic folklore"
"Odin, a major god among the Germanic peoples, who was worshipped in Northern and Western Europe prior to Christianization. Riding the white horse Sleipnir he flew through the air as the leader of the Wild Hunt, always accompanied by two black ravens, Huginn and Muninn. Those helpers would listen, just like Zwarte Piet, at the chimney – which was just a hole in the roof at that time – to tell Wodan about the good and bad behaviour of the mortals. Due to its speculative character, however, this older ""Germanic"" theory has little support among present-day scholars, although it continues"
"heavens or the underworld, a shaman ""is usually represented as riding on some bird or animal."" Davidson says that while the creature may vary, the horse is fairly common ""in the lands where horses are in general use, and Sleipnir's ability to bear the god through the air is typical of the shaman's steed"" and cites an example from a study of shamanism by Mircea Eliade of an eight-legged foal from a story of a Buryat shaman. Davidson says that while attempts have been made to connect Sleipnir with hobby horses and steeds with more than four feet that appear"
"of red gold. High notes that Freyja has many names, and explains that this is because Freyja adopted them when looking for Óðr and traveling ""among strange peoples"". These names include ""Gefn"", ""Hörn"", ""Mardöll"", ""Sýr"", and ""Vanadís"". Freyja plays a part in the events leading to the birth of Sleipnir, the eight-legged horse. In chapter 42, High recounts that, soon after the gods built the hall Valhalla, a builder (unnamed) came to them and offered to build for them in three seasons a fortification so solid that no jötunn would be able to come in over from Midgard. In exchange,"
"God Odin riding on his fabled octopedal horse Sleipnir in a depiction borrowed from the Tjängvide image stone. The background depicts the Valknut, a symbol whose meaning is uncertain, though archeological evidence suggests it to be associated with Odin. Letters of the Runic alphabet can be seen on the edges of the triangles forming the Valknut. The Runes on top spell out ""With Oden on our Side"", whereas the bottom right runes spell ""Amon Amarth"" using characters from the Elder Futhark. Since its release, ""With Oden on Our Side"" has received favorable reviews. Greg Prato of AllMusic gave the album"
"divine horse. Grani In Norse mythology, Grani is a horse owned by the hero Sigurd. He is the horse that Sigurd receives through advice from the Norse god (Odin). Grani is a descendant of Odin's own steed, Sleipnir. In chapter 13 of ""Völsunga saga"", the hero Sigurðr is on his way to a wood when he meets a long-bearded old man he had never seen before. Sigurd tells the old man that he is going to choose a horse, and asks the old man to come with him to help him decide. The old man says that they should drive"
"the dipygus condition. Many mythological creatures like dragons, winged horses, and griffins have six limbs: four legs and two wings. The dragon's science is discussed in ""Dragons: A Fantasy Made Real"". In Greek Mythology, the Hekatonkheires were said to each have one hundred hands. The Gegenees were a race of giants with six arms. Sleipnir, Odin's horse in Norse mythology, has eight normal horse legs, and is usually depicted with limbs twinned at the shoulder or hip. Several Hindu deities are depicted with multiple arms and sometimes also multiple legs. Polymelia Polymelia (from Greek πολυ- ""many"", μέλεα ""limbs""), also known"
"Grani In Norse mythology, Grani is a horse owned by the hero Sigurd. He is the horse that Sigurd receives through advice from the Norse god (Odin). Grani is a descendant of Odin's own steed, Sleipnir. In chapter 13 of ""Völsunga saga"", the hero Sigurðr is on his way to a wood when he meets a long-bearded old man he had never seen before. Sigurd tells the old man that he is going to choose a horse, and asks the old man to come with him to help him decide. The old man says that they should drive the horses"
"IK Sleipner Idrottsklubben Sleipner is a sports club in Norrköping, Sweden; the main sports are football and ten-pin bowling. It was founded in 1903, and named after the deity Odin's horse Sleipnir from Norse mythology. Currently, the club's senior men's team plays football in Division 2. They are mostly known for winning Allsvenskan in 1938, but have since been overshadowed by local rivals IFK Norrköping both locally and nationally. The club is affiliated to the Östergötlands Fotbollförbund. In the early 20th Century, the club also played bandy. also the record holders of most goalscorers in one game against Cuba in"
"a horse, Arion, which was capable of human speech. This bears some resemblance to the Norse mythology reference to the gender-changing Loki having turned himself into a mare and given birth to Sleipnir, ""the greatest of all horses"". Tacitus (Germania) mentions the use of white horses for divination by the Germanic tribes: In Gallo-Roman times, the worship of Epona was widespread in the north-western portions of the Roman Empire. The Welsh legend of Rhiannon and the Irish legend of Macha, although first recorded in Christian times, may indicate memories of horse worship. The white horse of Rhiannon is another example"
"a rider sitting atop an eight-legged horse, which some scholars view as Odin. Above the rider on the image stone is a horizontal figure holding a spear, which may be a valkyrie, and a female figure greets the rider with a cup. The scene has been interpreted as a rider arriving at the world of the dead. The mid-7th century stone bearing the Odinic name (Old Norse 'army god') may be interpreted as depicting . A pair of identical Germanic Iron Age bird-shaped brooches from in northern Denmark may be depictions of and . The back of each bird features"
"and Loki taunt each other with having taken the form of females and nursing offspring to which they had given birth. A 13th century Edda relates Loki taking the form of a mare to bear Odin's steed Sleipnir which was the fastest horse ever to exist, and also the form of a she-wolf to bear Fenrir. Svipdagr angered Odin, who turned him into a dragon. Despite his monstrous appearance, his lover, the goddess Freyja, refused to leave his side. When the warrior Hadding found and slew Svipdag, Freyja cursed him to be tormented by a tempest and shunned like the"
"up for the night, and the previous momentum of building work that the builder had been able to maintain is not continued. When the Æsir realize that the builder is a hrimthurs, they disregard their previous oaths with the builder, and call for Thor. Thor arrives, and kills the builder by smashing the builder's skull into shards with Mjöllnir. However, Loki ""had such dealings"" with Svaðilfari that ""somewhat later"" Loki gave birth to a gray foal with eight legs; the horse Sleipnir, ""the best horse among gods and men"". Svaðilfari In Norse mythology, Svaðilfari (Old Norse perhaps ""unlucky traveler""; derived"
"Gullfaxi Gullfaxi is a horse in Norse mythology. Its name means ""Golden mane"". It was originally owned by Hrungnir, and was later given to Magni by Thor as a reward for lifting off the leg of Hrungnir, which lay over the unconscious Thor and strangled him: Guldfaxe is equally fast on land, in the air and on the water, but not quite as fast as Sleipnir, Odin's horse. Gullfaxi is also the name of a horse in the modern Icelandic folk-tale ""The Horse Gullfaxi and the Sword Gunnfoder"" collected by Jón Árnason, translated into German by , then rendered into"
"chapter 49, High describes the events surrounding the death of the god Baldr. The goddess Frigg asks who among the Æsir will earn ""all her love and favour"" by riding to Hel, the location, to try to find Baldr, and offer Hel herself a ransom. The god Hermóðr volunteers and sets off upon the eight-legged horse Sleipnir to Hel. Hermóðr arrives in Hel's hall, finds his brother Baldr there, and stays the night. The next morning, Hermóðr begs Hel to allow Baldr to ride home with him, and tells her about the great weeping the Æsir have done upon Baldr's"
"through the sky. The leader of the wild hunt is frequently attested as the god Wodan (Norse Odin), bearing (among many names) the names ""Jólnir"", meaning ""Yule figure"", and ""Langbarðr"", meaning ""long-beard"", in Old Norse. Wodan's role during the Yuletide period has been theorized as having influenced concepts of St. Nicholas in a variety of facets, including his long white beard and his gray horse for nightly rides (compare Odin's horse Sleipnir) or his reindeer in North American tradition. Folklorist Margaret Baker maintains that ""the appearance of Santa Claus or Father Christmas, whose day is the 25th of December, owes"
"Uchchaihshravas In Hindu mythology, Uchchaihshravas ( ""Uccaiḥśravas"" or उच्चैःश्रवा ""Uccaiḥśravā"", ""long-ears"" or ""neighing aloud"") is a seven-headed flying horse, created during the churning of the milk ocean. It is considered the best of horses, prototype and king of horses. Uchchaihshravas is often described as a ""vahana"" (""vehicle"") of Surya - the Sun-God, but is also recorded to be the horse of Bali, the king of demons. Uchchaihshravas is said to be snow white in colour. The ""Mahabharata"" mentions that Uchchaihshravas rose from the Samudra manthan (""churning of the milk ocean"") and Indra - the god-king of heaven seized it and"
"English and included in the ""Crimson Fairy Book"" (1903) compiled by Andrew Lang. Gullfaxi Gullfaxi is a horse in Norse mythology. Its name means ""Golden mane"". It was originally owned by Hrungnir, and was later given to Magni by Thor as a reward for lifting off the leg of Hrungnir, which lay over the unconscious Thor and strangled him: Guldfaxe is equally fast on land, in the air and on the water, but not quite as fast as Sleipnir, Odin's horse. Gullfaxi is also the name of a horse in the modern Icelandic folk-tale ""The Horse Gullfaxi and the Sword"
"down to the river Busiltjörn. The two drive the horses down into the deeps of Busiltjörn, and all of the horses swim back to land but a large, young, and handsome gray horse that no one had ever mounted. The grey-bearded old man says that the horse is from ""Sleipnir's kin"" and that ""he must be nourished heedfully, for it will be the best of all horses"". The old man vanishes. Sigurd names the horse Grani, and the narrative adds that the old man was none other than Odin. Grani is believed to be depicted on several of the Sigurd"
"Gleipnir In Norse mythology, Gleipnir (Old Norse ""open one"") is the binding that holds the mighty wolf Fenrir (as attested in chapter 34 of the ""Prose Edda"" book ""Gylfaginning""). The Gods had attempted to bind Fenrir twice before with huge chains of metal, but Fenrir was able to break free both times. Therefore, they commissioned the dwarves to forge a chain that was impossible to break. To create a chain to achieve the impossible, the dwarves fashioned the chain out of six supposedly impossible things: Therefore, even though Gleipnir is as thin as a silken ribbon, it is stronger than"
"that two horses are otherwise unknown from any other source, and that the myths surrounding them have not survived. Hamskerpir and Garðrofa In Norse mythology, Hamskerpir and Garðrofa are a pair of horses who sired Hófvarpnir, the horse ridden by the goddess Gná. Hamskerpir and Garðrofa are attested in the ""Prose Edda"", written in the 13th century by Snorri Sturluson. In chapter 35 of the ""Prose Edda"" book ""Gylfaginning"", High provides brief descriptions of 16 ásynjur. High lists Gná thirteenth, and in his description provides a stanza that gives Gná's horse Hófvarpnir's parents as Hamskerðir and Garðrofa: John Lindow says"
"Skinfaxi and Hrímfaxi In Norse mythology, Skinfaxi and Hrímfaxi are the horses of Dagr (day) and Nótt (night). The names Skinfaxi and Hrímfaxi are bahuvrihi compounds, meaning ""shining mane"" and ""rime mane"" (or ""frost mane""), respectively. Skinfaxi pulled Dagr's chariot across the sky every day and his mane light up the sky and the earth below. The myth of Skinfaxi is believed to originate in Nordic Bronze Age religion, for which there is strong evidence of beliefs involving a horse pulling the sun across the sky. The Trundholm sun chariot is drawn by a single horse, and was possibly imagined"
"that this is the fault of Loki, yet that ""you have heard this already"", and that another, wiser than the poet, could tell the story of how Thor was repaid by a lava-dweller with his children. A stanza from the ""Poetic Edda"" poem ""Þrymskviða"" describes Thor's goat-driven ride to Jötunheimr: In chapter 21 of the ""Prose Edda"" book ""Gylfaginning"", the enthroned figure of High divulges that the god Thor has two goats that drive his chariot and that these goats bear the names Tanngnjóstr and Tanngrisnir. In chapter 44, the enthroned figure of Third reluctantly relates a tale in which"
"Árvakr and Alsviðr In Norse mythology, Árvakr (Old Norse ""early awake"") and Alsviðr (Old Norse ""very quick"") are the horses which pull the sun, or Sól's chariot, across the sky each day. It is said that the gods fixed bellows underneath the two horses' shoulders to help cool them off as they rode. Both horses are only mentioned in ""Gylfaginning"" and ""Grímnismál"" and their names are frequently associated with descriptions of the Sun. In Nordic mythology, gods govern the passage of days, nights, and seasons, and shape the Sun from a spark of the flame Muspelheim, but the Sun stands"
"Sharabha Sharabha (, , , Telugu: శరభ) or Sarabha is a part-lion and part-bird beast in Hindu mythology, who, according to Sanskrit literature, is eight-legged and more powerful than a lion or an elephant, possessing the ability to clear a valley in one jump. In later literature, Sharabha is described as an eight-legged deer. Shaiva scriptures narrate that god Shiva assumed the Avatar (incarnation) of Sharabha to pacify Narasimha - the fierce man-lion avatar of Vishnu worshipped by Vaishnava sect. This form is popularly known as Sharabeshwara (""Lord Sharabha"") or Sharabeshwaramurti. The Vaishnavas refute the portrayal of Narasimha as being"