gnostic handbook

The Gnostic Handbook Page 22
(The system of nine rather than seven duplicates the principles of fire and ice as distinct worlds,
this is not found in later models of the universe such as the Anglo Saxon)
The world in the center is called Midgard. The word Gard means dwelling, it is obviously related
to the word Garden. Midgard is Middle Earth, the garden in which ex live our lives. It includes
the physical world as it is perceived by our senses. Encircling Midgard is the world serpent. (4 th
C)
Niflheim is the realm of ice and darkness, while Muspellsheim is the world of fire and heat. The
interaction between fire and ice, Niflheim and Muspellsheim (2 nd C) is a major dynamic within
the activity of the world tree. This interaction occurs in Ginnungagap (1 st C), an empty abyss,
where the fire of Muspellsheim mets of the icy rivers of Niflheim and from this dynamic the giant
Ymir is born. Odin and his brother, born from giants, carve up the body of Ymir to create
Midgard. Ymirs bones become the moutains, his teeth the rocks, his blood the rivers, his skull the
vault of the sky, his hair the forests and grasses. Like the Titans, Ymir's death creates mankind.
Hence Midgard is a checkerboard on which fire and ice battle against each other until the game is
completed.
From the interaction of Fire and Ice within the Great Gap, the planes or worlds are formed. This
model when examined critically (we will return to it in the next lesson) has a lot in common with
the Kabbalah and Theosophical plane models. Together they give us a good overview of the
Great Chain of Being.
The planes or world below the triune forces of the Void, Fire and Ice are:
Vanaheim is the world of the Vanir. It is the realm of fertility, wealth and fecundity, fields of luscious
crops, fruits, wildlife and pastoral beauty.
Jotunheim is the home of the giants. There are three types of giants, Thursar, Rises and Etins, all
children of Ymir.
Ljosalfheim is the home of the Light elves or lojosalfar. There are two classes of elves, the light
inhabit the lighter realms above Midgard, while the dark elves (dwarves) inhabit the subterranean
realm.
Asgard, the home of the Aesir of Sky Gods is above the elven world and is the crown of the
World Tree. The name Asgard means "enclosure of the Gods". Within Asgard is Valhalla, the
Hall of the Fallen where the warriors of Odin are taken if they are killed in battle and from where
they will return to the final battle or Ragnarok. Snorri Sturlson describes an inner enclosure
(gardh) as being built right within the center of Midgard, the sacred space of human society.
However, this enclosure, this true essence of Midgard as Asgard, can only be entered by crossing
the Bifrost.