In Norse mythology, the Game of the Gods is a motif associated with the

golden age The term Golden Age comes from Greek mythology, particularly the '' Works and Days'' of Hesiod, and is part of the description of temporal decline of the state of peoples through five Ages, Gold being the first and the one during which the G ...

of the

Æsir The Æsir (Old Norse: ) are the gods of the principal pantheon in Norse religion. They include Odin, Frigg, Höðr, Thor, and Baldr. The second Norse pantheon is the Vanir. In Norse mythology, the two pantheons wage war against each other, ...

early in the mythic time cycle and with the survival of the new race of gods following the endtime of Ragnarök. The relevant passages are found in ''

Völuspá ''Vǫluspá'' (also ''Völuspá'', ''Vǫlospá'' or ''Vǫluspǫ́''; Old Norse: 'Prophecy of the völva, a seeress'; reconstructed Old Norse: ) is the best known poem of the ''Poetic Edda''. It tells the story of the creation of the world and ...

'', the first at stanza 8 occurring after the creation of the universe during a time of peace and prosperity: ::In their dwellings at peace they played at tables ::Of gold no lack did the gods then know Here the playing at tables refers to

Tafl Tafl games (pronounced avl also known as hnefatafl games) are a family of ancient Nordic and Celtic strategy board games played on a checkered or latticed gameboard with two armies of uneven numbers. Most probably they are based upon the Rom ...

, a family of ancient Germanic

board games Board games are tabletop games that typically use . These pieces are moved or placed on a pre-marked board (playing surface) and often include elements of table, card, role-playing, and miniatures games as well. Many board games feature a co ...

somewhat resembling

chess Chess is a board game for two players, called White and Black, each controlling an army of chess pieces in their color, with the objective to checkmate the opponent's king. It is sometimes called international chess or Western chess to dist ...

, although which variant of Tafl is being played or its rules are not known. At this point a long period of struggle and conflict begins with the arrival of three powerful

giant In folklore, giants (from Ancient Greek: ''gigas'', cognate giga-) are beings of human-like appearance, but are at times prodigious in size and strength or bear an otherwise notable appearance. The word ''giant'' is first attested in 1297 fr ...

maidens from Jötunheim, possibly the three great Norns. What follows in the ''Völuspá'' is a synopsis of the entire mythology until the gods and the universe are destroyed during the final conflict of Ragnarök. However, a new earth is reborn from the sea, green and beautiful, and those gods who have survived the battle and conflagration gather to share their memories of the past. The ''Völuspá'' describes how Baldr and his brother Hödr return together once again and are reconciled, and, at stanza 61, that in the grass are found tangible artifacts from an earlier time: ::In wondrous beauty shall be found ::The golden table pieces in the grass ::That the gods possessed in days of old In this context then, the gaming figures are a symbol of hope and regeneration and the survival of a new family of gods, bringing the mythology full circle.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Game Of The Gods Norse mythology Scandinavian folklore