“Do not go where the path may lead, go instead where there is no path and leave a trail” -Ralph Waldo Emerson
At this point in the Fenrir\Surma\Garm (FSG) series, my case is still very much circumstantial. Dog map image, maybe? Yes, “mouths” everywhere but cmon, Dog Map image? Big Rock, Big deal?
I hear ya, fluff a nutter so far. Nothing to stand on. All air. Well, maybe all except Gjoll. Or not. I still hear ya. You need and demand moar “ground”! I present moar “ground”. “Ground” they say is so soft, it magically hardens a circumstantial case:
Moar?
I have definitive evidence (ground) that will link the FSG Google Map land image in question (see above), to the Historical depictions of FSG. Thus concretely proving that this geographical land feature is indeed the basis for the FSG Myth. This equates to being my Star Witness. I have a few more circumstantial pieces, but this is the Crux and most conclusive link I have found to date. The link, is the strip of land noted above that separates the Gulf of Finland from LaDoga (The Dog) Lake. Otherwise referred to as Karelian Isthmus. I will show how it is incorporated and subtly hinted at in the following portrayals of FSG.
Before we get to the FSG depictions, we will need more Myth for context. Below you will find two excerpts. The first is a passage covering the relevant parts of the FSG\Tyr Myth and the other outlining the background of the FSG\Vidar Myth:
FSG\TYR Myth:
“when the Æsir enticed Fenris-Wolf to take upon him the fetter Gleipnir, the wolf did not believe them, that they would loose him, until they laid Týr’s hand into his mouth as a pledge. But when the Æsir would not loose him, then he bit off the hand at the place now called ‘the wolf’s joint;’ and Týr is one-handed”
FSG\Vidar Myth:
“Odin’s son Vidar would then come forward and step with one foot on the wolf’s lower jaw. Vidar would be wearing a thick shoe made of all the accumulated waste pieces that were cut from the toe and heel of all the shoes ever made from the beginning of time. Thus securing the wolf’s lower jaw, Vidar would grasp his upper jaw with one hand and tear his mouth apart, killing the beast at last.”
Here we have two different scenes from the same movie. The Tyr scene takes place early in the movie and the Vidar scene, near the end. Both scenes depict something being placed in FSG’s mouth. In the Tyr scene, Tyr placed his hand\arm in FSG’s mouth. Vidar placed his foot within FSG’s mouth, specifically stepping on the “lower jaw” as mentioned above, twice.
Now, take a moment and visualize whats being depicted. A hand\arm\foot being placed into a large dogs mouth. Visualize how it would lay there and see what you can no longer see. You can still see the entirety of the dogs upper jaw unobstructed. However, you can no longer see the area of the dogs lower jaw below your hand\arm\foot, once inside the Dogs mouth. Your view of this area would be obstructed.
Now before the jaws clamp shut, switch to visualizing your hand in the Google Map Image above. Or stepping on the lower jaw with an imaginary foot. See again how the the upper jaw remains unobstructed. And again notice, when placing foot or arm into this image, the area below it is no longer visible. Essentially creating a separation of the lower jaw. The separation I have highlighted and noted above. The point of that visualization exercise, was to impart this importance, as the “shout outs” to this specific land feature or “separation” can be extremely subtle in the following photos. Also keep in mind, that these Myths themselves are subtle references to this geographical land area. The placing of of the Hand\Arm in the mouth of the Wolf is an subtlety that points to this region. The foot on the lower jaw is another. “To get to the City of Gold, one must find the large dog with a shoe in its mouth”. Essentially a way to pass on sensitive information in an undercover fashion.
So to quickly recap before I get started, I am going to prove that the above Google based land image is FSG, by linking this “separation”, to historical depictions of FSG. Good? Great. Lets make moar History!!
History:
The image on the left is a map image of this area from 7500-6000BC. The image on the right is a map image of this area from 5500-5000BC. Sometime between 7500-5000BC, this land area became “separated”. I believe the events behind this “separation” are the basis for these specific myths. I have highlighted the separated area below:
I will now begin showing the historical depictions and start identifying the references. Again, keep in mind that you will be looking for subtle “separations” of FSG’s lower jaw or subtle references to this “separated” area. Trust me, those are two different sentences, depicting two differing subtleties.
First up, is this Norse mythology image from the 18th century Icelandic manuscript “NKS 1867 4to”. In this image you can see FSG has already taken a bite out of Tyr’s hand\arm. Notice the hand in the mouth and how it conveniently covers and “separates” the lower jaw. This I believe is a reference to the “separation” of FSG’s, geographical lower jaw.
Next is another old image by John Bauer, depicting the Tyr Myth. The hand\arm can be seen in the mouth of FSG. Another subtle reference to this division or separation of the lower jaw area. Before I move on, take notice of the “drool” coming from the Wolf’s mouth. This photo will be covered again in the next installation; “FSG’s Drool and River of Expectation”. Who knew Drool was cool?
In this next illustration by A. Fleming, when looking at the lower jaw line, then looking at all the “teeth”, notice the anomalous tooth along the bottom row. The one directly in the middle, tucked conveniently under the “tongue”. This tooth appears to be smaller than all the other teeth and out of alignment or indented in, moreso than the others. Now if you zoom the picture out, the further out you zoom, the more this tooth blends in below and with, the tongue. Essentially creating what appears to be a gap or space via the disappearing tooth. Another subtle reference.
This is the last photo of the “historical” variety. The final two I have are non-historical depictions with one being a Marvel comic illustration. This piece by Valentina Mustajarvi, is an depiction of the events surrounding Ragnarok, or the End of the World. FSG is located at the top, center of this image. He is “biting” the Sun. Or the Sun is in his mouth. Notice all the Suns rays, shining out from his mouth. See the only beam of light on the bottom jaw, that “separates” the mouth of the wolf. Also see, how no other light beams are depicted as “going through” a physical part of FSG. Subtle as subtle gets.
This next FSG image I stumbled across, I instantly saw what they did there. Though, in a slightly different way. The below illustration is an FSG portrayal from Marvel comics. This example speaks to my above comment of “different types of subtleties”. Though the area being referred to is still the same, the subtlety was not found on or along the mouth\lower jaw but on the leg area. As highlighted below, its the subtle “separation” caused by Thor driving his chariot across the front of the FSG’s leg. Slicky Tricky but I see what you did there!
Finishing up, this last photo depicts the FSR\Vidar scene from the above provided passage of the Myth. With Vidar thrusting his foot onto FSG’s lower jaw. Thus creating another separation or division. Which as you have seen by now, has been subtly infused into these Fenrir\Surma\Garm representations.
In finishing, I have many items bookmarked for further research pertaining to this subject. Items like this Karelian Isthmus land area and how it came to be. Who made the call for separation? Is this an historically fought over piece of land? And of course, my favorite question, What does it all mean?
Continue here for my next post in this series entitled: ICWUDT – Fenrir’s Drool and River of Expectation.