Tradition / Region: Norse Mythology
Alternate Names: Skoll, Skǫll
Category: Wolf, Celestial Beast, Apocalyptic Pursuer
The Myth
Sköll is one of the great wolves born of Fenrir, the monstrous son of Loki. From the beginning of the world, he was set upon a relentless hunt across the sky.
Each day, the goddess Sól drives the chariot of the Sun through the heavens, pulled by shining horses. Behind her races Sköll, a vast and tireless wolf. He runs with jaws open, always gaining, always threatening to catch her. The Sun moves swiftly, but never fast enough to escape him forever.
At night, his brother Hati hunts the Moon, pursuing Máni across the darkness in the same unending chase. Thus the sky is never still, for the wolves are always running.
This pursuit is fated to last until the end of the world. When Ragnarök comes, the order of the cosmos will fail. On that final day, Sköll will at last overtake the Sun and devour her, plunging the world into darkness. His brother will seize the Moon, and the heavens will collapse into chaos as the stars vanish from the sky.
So long as the Sun rises and sets, Sköll still runs — an eternal hunter racing toward the doom of gods and men alike.
Gallery
Sources
Wikipedia contributors. (n.d.). Sköll. In Wikipedia. Retrieved March 1, 2026, from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sköll
Interpretive Lenses
Religious Readings
- Christian Ascetic Deep Dive
Philosophical Readings
- Nietzschean Deep Dive
Psychological Readings
- Jungian Deep Dive
Esoteric Deep Dive
- Hermetic Deep Dive
Political / Social Readings
- Marxist Deep Dive