Prose Edda — Old Norse facing a living language
Gymir hét maðr, en kona hans Aurboða. Hon var bergrisa ættar. Dóttir þeira er Gerðr, er allra kvinna var fegrst. Þat var einn dag, at Freyr hafði gengit í Hliðskjálf ok sá of heima alla.
A man named Gymir had a wife called Aurboda, of mountain-giant stock. Their daughter is Gerd, the loveliest of all women. It happened one day that Freyr had gone up to Hlidskjalf and looked out over every world.
En er hann leit í norðrætt, þá sá hann á einum bæ mikit hús ok fagrt, ok til þess húss gekk kona, ok er hon tók upp höndum ok lauk hurð fyrir sér, þá lýsti af höndum hennar bæði í loft ok á lög, ok allir heimar birtust af henni. Ok svá hefnði honum þat mikla mikillæti, er hann hafði setzt í þat it helga sæti, at hann gekk í braut fullr af harmi. Ok er hann kom heim, mælti hann ekki.
When he looked toward the north, he saw a great and beautiful house on a certain estate, and toward that house walked a woman — and when she raised her hands and opened the door before her, light shone from her hands across both sky and sea, and every world grew bright because of her. And so his overreaching pride, in daring to sit on that sacred seat, was punished: he walked away from it heartsick.
Ekki svaf hann, ekki drakk hann. Engi þorði ok at krefja hann orða. Þá lét Njörðr kalla til sín Skírni, skósvein Freys, ok bað hann ganga til Freys ok beiða hann orða ok spyrja, hverjum hann væri svá reiðr, at hann mælti ekki við menn. En Skírnir lézt ganga mundu ok eigi fúss ok kvað illra svara vera ván af honum.
When he got home, he said nothing. He didn't sleep, he didn't drink. No one dared ask him a word. Then Njord had Skirnir, Freyr's servant, summoned, and told him to go to Freyr and press him for an answer — to ask who he was so angry with that he wouldn't speak to anyone. Skirnir said he'd go, though unwillingly, and expected only harsh answers from him.
En er hann kom til Freys, þá spurði hann, hví Freyr var svá hnipinn ok mælti ekki við menn. Þá svarar Freyr ok sagði, at hann hefði sét konu fagra ok fyrir hennar sakir var hann svá harmfullr, at eigi myndi hann lengi lifa, ef hann skyldi eigi ná henni - "ok nú skaltu fara ok biðja hennar mér til handa ok hafa hana heim hingat, hvárt er faðir hennar vill eða eigi, ok skal ek þat vel launa þér."
But when he came to Freyr, he asked why Freyr was so downcast and wouldn't speak to anyone. Freyr answered that he'd seen a beautiful woman, and for her sake he was in such grief that he wouldn't live long if he couldn't have her — "so now you must go and ask for her hand on my behalf, and bring her back here, whether her father wants it or not, and I'll reward you well for it."
Þá svarar Skírnir, sagði svá, at hann skal fara sendiferð, en Freyr skal fá honum sverð sitt. Þat var svá gott sverð, at sjálft vást. En Freyr lét eigi þat til skorta ok gaf honum sverðit. Þá fór Skírnir ok bað honum konunnar ok fekk heit hennar, ok níu nóttum síðar skyldi hon þar koma, er Barrey heitir, ok ganga þá at brullaupinu með Frey.
Skirnir answered that he would go on the errand, but Freyr must give him his own sword. It was such a fine sword that it fought on its own. And Freyr didn't hold back — he gave him the sword. Then Skirnir went and asked for the woman on Freyr's behalf, and won her promise, and nine nights later she would come to the place called Barrey, and go there to marry Freyr.
En er Skírnir sagði Frey sitt erindi, þá kvað hann þetta: 45. Löng er nótt, löng er önnur, hvé mega ek þreyja þrjár? Oft mér mánaðr minni þótti en sjá half hýnótt. Þessi sök er til þess, er Freyr var svá vápnlauss, er hann barðist við Belja ok drap hann með hjartarhorni." Þá mælti Gangleri: "Undr mikit, er þvílíkr höfðingi sem Freyr er vildi gefa sverð, svá at hann átti eigi annat jafngott.
And when Skirnir told Freyr how his errand had gone, Freyr said this: Long is one night, / longer the second — / how will I bear three? / A month has often / seemed shorter to me / than this one half-night of waiting. This is why Freyr was left without weapons, when he fought Beli and killed him with a stag's antler." Then Gangleri said: "It's a great wonder that such a great lord as Freyr would give away his sword, when he had nothing else just as good.
Geysimikit mein var honum þat, þá er hann barðist við þann, er Beli heitir. Þat veit trúa mín, at þeirar gjafar myndi hann þá iðrast." Þá svarar Hárr: "Lítit mark var þá at, er þeir Beli hittust. Drepa mátti Freyr hann með hendi sinni. Verða mun þat, er Frey mun þykkja verr við koma, er hann missir sverðsins, þá er Múspellssynir fara at herja."
That must have hurt him badly, when he fought the one called Beli — I'd wager he came to regret that gift." High answered: "It was no great matter when he and Beli met — Freyr could have killed him with his bare hand. The real cost will come when Freyr misses that sword and finds it much worse for him, on the day the sons of Muspell ride out to war."