download - Sage's Lore Library

THE DIVINE SEEVICE OF THE HEATBENS. 219
as well as all the sacrificial food (blot matr). They
first drank Odin's horn—or those who trusted in
their own strength and energy drank a horn to Thor
—next ISTjorS's horn, and Frey's horn for prosperous
seasons and for peace. Then many were accns-
tomed to drink Bragi's horn, by which solemn vows
were made ;
and finally, a horn to the memory of
good kinsmen departed. All these solemn toasts
were called imnni or memorial horns, and were
called out by the conductor of the sacrifice, who
in the ancient language was said "at msela fyrir
minni " " to call out the memorial toasts."
The public sacrifices thus consisted of two import-
ant performances: first, the butchering (hogg, at
hoggva) and the blood-sprinkling (at rjoSa, stokkva)
connected with it, all which it seems took place dur-
ing the first night of the festival ; and secondly,
the sacrificial feast, at which the consecrated horns
were the principal affair, and during which the
anointing of the idols appears to have been attended
to.
Three times during the year they held great sacri-
ficial festivals, at which the inhabitants of larger or
smaller portions of the country assembled together
at one common chief-temple. The first of these fes-
tivals was held on Winter-night, at the begirming
of Gor-mdnaSr, or, by our reckoning, about the mid-
dle of October,—the 14:th of that month being still
called Winter-night in Norway, and reckoned the
beginning of winter. This festival was called
" vetrnatta bl6t " or " blot imoti vetri," i. e., WinternigMs
Sacrifiee, ov, Saorifice towa/rd Winter; and