The mythical world and man, part 2

From Eddy it follows, that Midgard arose at the junction of two opposing primordial elements - fire and water. This myth is extremely old, still rooted in the Vedic tradition. In Edda, fire and water were marked by evil as elements opposed to man, often bringing him undoing. Destructive fire identified the land of Muspell, and the water came from the poisoned rivers of the Niflhel. It is worth paying attention, that we are dealing here with an object metaphor characteristic of Old Scandinavian works. Abstract concepts, such as good or bad, were adopted in Norman society, at a fairly primitive stage of intellectual development, only in the form of metaphors or personifications. Otherwise, they became incomprehensible. Besides, many such concepts were not in the language of the time.

Thanks to the actions of the above-mentioned forces, Ymir was born, progenitor of the giants' family (Thurss). Edda portrays him as a formidable figure, terrifying with its size. It is clear from both Vólusk's prophecy and from Snorri's comment, that the very existence of Ymir posed a constant threat, though he remained asleep from the moment of his inception until his death. He personified the destructive forces of nature. He also had the reproductive abilities of the earth, which made him capable of self-generation. It is worth paying attention to this, that the mythical motive of self-generation occurs in different guises in numerous cultures, not only European. The Thurss - Frost Giants were born from Ymir's body. Parallel to them appeared gods called Asami. They were made of the same substance as Ymir, but they were the opposite, a positive pole among the group of mythical creatures found in Scandinavian mythology. This is what made Midgard. Ymir's body was used as material, whom they killed. The theme of the conflict between two opposing forces of the cosmos is clearly visible here, Asami (on uranic etymology) representing good and Thursami (on chthonic etymology) identifying primitively understood evil.