Helgakvitha Hundingsbana II: The Second Lay of Helgi Hundingsbane
King Sigmund, the son of Volsung, had as wife Borghild, from Bralund.They named their son Helgi, after Helgi Hjorvarthsson; Hagal wasHelgi’s foster-father. Hunding was the name of a powerful king, andHundland is named from him. He was a mighty warrior, and had many sonswith him on his campaigns. There was enmity and strife between thesetwo, King Hunding and King Sigmund, and each slew the other’s kinsmen.King Sigmund and his family were called Volsungs and Ylfings.
“Say to Hæming | that Helgi knowsWhom the heroes | in armor hid;A gray wolf had they | within their hall,Whom King Hunding | Hamal thought.”
Then Blind spake out, | the evil-minded:“Of Hagal’s bond-woman | bright are the eyes;Yon comes not of churls | who stands at the quern;The millstones break, | the boards are shattered.
“The hero has | a doom full hard,That barley now | he needs must grind;Better befits | his hand to feelThe hilt of the sword | than the millstone’s handle.”
“Small is the wonder | if boards are splintered;By a monarch’s daughter | the mill is turned;Once through clouds | she was wont to ride,And battles fought | like fighting men,(Till Helgi a captive | held her fast;Sister she is | of Sigar and Hogni,Thus bright are the eyes | of the Ylfings’ maid.)”
Words in this poem
- strife n.
- The act of striving; earnest endeavor. [OF. estrif. See Strive.]
- hamal n.
- In Turkey and other Oriental countries, a porter or burden bearer; specif., in Western India, a palanquin bearer.
- quern n.
- A mill for grinding grain, the upper stone of which was turned by hand; -- used before the invention of windmills and watermills. [AS. cweorn, cwyrn; akin to D. kweern, OHG. quirn, Icel. kvern, Sw. qvarn, Dan. quærn, Goth. qairnus (in asiluqaírnus), Lith. qìrnos, and perh. E. corn.]
- needs adv.
- Of necessity; necessarily; indispensably; -- often with must, and equivalent to of need. [Orig. gen. of need, used as an adverb. Cf. - wards.]
Definitions and etymologies from Webster's Unabridged Dictionary, 1913.
About this text
Helgakvitha Hundingsbana II: The Second Lay of Helgi Hundingsbane is in the public domain. This text is taken from The Poetic Edda, Project Gutenberg ebook #73533, the Henry Adams Bellows translation; the transcription's header, footer and licence were removed and nothing else was changed. You may copy, print and reuse it freely.
Cite as: Anonymous, Helgakvitha Hundingsbana II: The Second Lay of Helgi Hundingsbane, in The Poetic Edda (1923), text of Project Gutenberg ebook #73533, Laurel, https://laurelpoetry.com/poem/poetic-edda/helgakvitha-hundingsbana-ii-the-second-lay-of-helgi-hundings.html, id L15730.
Form and metre
Helgakvitha Hundingsbana II: The Second Lay of Helgi Hundingsbane is 26 lines in 5 stanzas. 89% of its stressed syllables fall where the metre puts the beat. The lines average 11.0 syllables. 4 lines end on an unstressed syllable, a feminine ending. 23% of the lines run on without a stop at the line end.
Measured by Laurel's pipeline, not copied from a handbook: how stress and metre are counted, how rhyme is lettered, how a drifted rhyme is found. Where the dictionary cannot confirm a rhyme the letter is withheld, not guessed.
Rhyme words, stanza by stanza
The word that ends each line, lettered by the rhyme it makes; a dash is a line whose rhyme the dictionary could not confirm.
- 1 A-A---- bralundA · was · andA · sons · these · kinsmen · ylfings
- 4 --AA hard · grind · feelA · handleA
- 5 A-A---- splinteredA · turned · rideA · men · fast · hogni · maid
Scansion, line by line
Each line with its syllable count and the stresses the words themselves fix: / stressed, ˘ unstressed, · a syllable the word leaves free and the metre decides. How this is done.
| Line | Syl. | Stress |
|---|---|---|
| King Sigmund, the son of Volsung, had as wife Borghild, from Bralund. | 16 | ·/˘············· |
| They named their son Helgi, after Helgi Hjorvarthsson; Hagal was | 16 | ················ |
| Helgi’s foster-father. Hunding was the name of a powerful king, and | 18 | ··/˘/˘/˘·····/˘˘·· |
| Hundland is named from him. He was a mighty warrior, and had many sons | 19 | ·········/˘/˘˘··/˘· |
| with him on his campaigns. There was enmity and strife between these | 16 | ····˘/··/˘˘····· |
| two, King Hunding and King Sigmund, and each slew the other’s kinsmen. | 16 | ··/˘··/˘····/˘·· |
| King Sigmund and his family were called Volsungs and Ylfings. | 15 | ·/˘··/˘˘······· |
| “Say to Hæming | that Helgi knows | 8 | ········ |
| Whom the heroes | in armor hid; | 8 | ··/˘·/˘· |
| A gray wolf had they | within their hall, | 9 | ········· |
| Whom King Hunding | Hamal thought.” | 7 | ··/˘/˘· |
| Then Blind spake out, | the evil-minded: | 9 | ·····/˘/˘ |
| “Of Hagal’s bond-woman | bright are the eyes; | 10 | ····/˘···· |
| Yon comes not of churls | who stands at the quern; | 10 | ·········· |
| The millstones break, | the boards are shattered. | 9 | ·/·····/˘ |
| “The hero has | a doom full hard, | 8 | ·/˘····· |
| That barley now | he needs must grind; | 8 | ·/˘····· |
| Better befits | his hand to feel | 8 | /˘˘/···· |
| The hilt of the sword | than the millstone’s handle.” | 11 | ·······/·/˘ |
| “Small is the wonder | if boards are splintered; | 10 | ···/˘···/˘ |
| By a monarch’s daughter | the mill is turned; | 10 | ··/·/˘···· |
| Once through clouds | she was wont to ride, | 8 | ········ |
| And battles fought | like fighting men, | 8 | ·/˘··/˘· |
| (Till Helgi a captive | held her fast; | 9 | ····/˘··· |
| Sister she is | of Sigar and Hogni, | 10 | /˘········ |
| Thus bright are the eyes | of the Ylfings’ maid.)” | 10 | ·········· |
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