Swedish Mythology

Dog King

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Tradition / Region: Danish Mythology, Swedish Mythology, Icelandic Mythology
Alternate Names: Raka, Rakke, Rakken, Saurr
Category: Dog: Mock king / royal animal

The Myth

In the old northern histories, there are tales of a strange and humiliating rule — the time when a dog was made king over men.

One version tells that after the deaths of the Danish rulers Haldan and Helgi, the Danes fell under the power of a foreign king from Sweden. Instead of sending them a prince or governor, the conqueror sent them a small dog and commanded that it should be their king. He warned that anyone who brought him news of the dog’s death would pay with his life.

The Danes were forced to accept the animal as their ruler. For a time the dog was treated with ceremony and obedience. But one day, when larger dogs began fighting, the small royal dog leapt among them and was torn apart.

No one dared announce what had happened. At last a herdsman named Snyo went to the foreign king’s court. Speaking in riddles and clever words, he maneuvered the king into declaring the dog dead himself. Because the king had spoken it, Snyo was spared and was then made king of Denmark in the animal’s place.

Another northern tale tells of a conqueror who invaded Norway and defeated its aged ruler. To shame the defeated people, he placed a dog upon the throne and ruled the country through officials who acted in the animal’s name. The dog was surrounded by nobles and guards, and strict laws were given that anyone who failed to show it proper honor would be punished. Thus the land was forced to bow before a beast.

A further story speaks of King Eysteinn, who conquered the region of Trondheim. After the people killed the son he had set over them, the king returned in anger and gave them a cruel choice: they must take either his slave Thorer or his dog Saurr as their new ruler.

Believing a dog would be easier to endure, the people chose Saurr.

The dog was treated as a true king. He was given a golden collar, a throne, attendants, and a great hall to dwell in. Judgments were issued in his name, and decrees were marked with the print of his paw. For three years the land lived under the rule of the animal king.

At last wolves broke into the fold where Saurr was kept and tore him to pieces. So ended the strange reign of the dog king.

Yet the memory of these tales remained strong enough that poets spoke of the time when men bowed to a dog, and songs were even sung in honor of the beast who had once worn a crown.

Gallery

Sources

Wikipedia contributors. (n.d.). Dog king. In Wikipedia, from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dog_king

Interpretive Lenses

Religious Readings
  • Christian Ascetic Deep Dive
Philosophical Readings
  • Nietzschean Deep Dive
Psychological Readings
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Esoteric Deep Dive
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Political / Social Readings
  • Marxist Deep Dive

Bysen

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Tradition / Region: Swedish Mythology
Alternate Names: –
Category: Gnome, Spirit

The Myth

In the forests of Gotland, people once feared a strange little being known as the Bysen. He was not born a spirit, but was believed to have once been human. Because of a grave crime committed in life, he was cursed after death and denied all rest. Instead of lying peacefully in the ground, he was condemned to wander the woods forever, half-man and half-spirit, bound to the land he had wronged.

Bysen usually appeared as something easy to overlook: a grey stump, a twisted root, or a small, dull-looking man no taller than a child. Sometimes he wore a red woven cap and carried an axe. This axe was not for honest labor. It marked his role as a reluctant servant of the forest, slowly cutting down Gotland’s trees — so slowly that some said he felled only one tree in a hundred years. In this way, he became both a destroyer and a guardian of nature, bound to it as punishment.

He delighted in confusing people. Foresters hauling timber would suddenly see their loads tip over for no reason. Travelers found themselves wandering in circles, unable to recognize paths they had known all their lives. Those who felt an unseen presence tugging at their senses blamed the Bysen, who was said to lure people off their way and delay their work simply to trouble them.

One of the darkest beliefs about Bysen tied him to land theft. It was said that in life he had moved boundary stones, stealing land from others. As punishment, his spirit was forced to patrol the false borders endlessly. As he walked, he muttered to himself, “This is right… this is wrong,” shifting markers back and forth. If a living person followed him and corrected the stones, restoring the borders to their rightful place, the Bysen could finally be released and find peace.

Seeing Bysen was dangerous. If he noticed you watching him, he could twist your sight so that you would lose him completely and become lost yourself. The only way to break his spell was to turn a piece of clothing inside out or wear it crooked, confusing the spirit and restoring your vision.

Thus, the Bysen lived on in Gotland’s forests as a warning: land stolen brings no rest, nature remembers every wrong, and those who deceive others may wander forever, axe in hand, never finding their way home.

Gallery

Sources

Wikipedia contributors. (n.d.). Bysen. In Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia, from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bysen

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
Other
  • How to Invite The Bysen

Trollgädda

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Tradition / Region: Swedish Mythology
Alternate Names: Jättegädda; Krongädda; Skällgädda; Trollgäddor
Category: Fish

The Myth

In the lakes and waterways of Sweden there live creatures known as Trollgäddor—troll pike—vast, uncanny fish that dwell beneath dark waters and trouble those who cross their domain. They appear as enormous pike, sometimes merely troublesome, sometimes deadly.

Many Trollgäddor are bound to the Sjörå, the Mistress of the Lake. Some are said to be her servants, others her beloved pets, and a few are believed to be the Sjörå herself in fish form. She adorns certain pike with bells, hanging from them like cattle bells, and these are known as Skällgäddor, the bell pike. If a fisherman catches such a fish and returns it unharmed to the water, good fortune follows and fishing becomes abundant. But those who kill one earn the Sjörå’s anger, and soon their livestock begin to sicken and die.

Among her most treasured creatures is the Krongädda, the crown pike. It bears what appears to be a crown upon its head, though no one can say for certain what this crown truly is. Some believe it to be the talons of a great bird, torn free when the pike dragged its would-be predator beneath the surface and drowned it.

Not all Trollgäddor show signs of their nature at first. In Lake Odensjön, a man once caught a large pike and carried it home. As he walked, the fish grew heavier with every step. By the time he entered his house, it had become so massive that he was forced to drop it. The pike began thrashing, growing until it threatened to tear the house apart. Realizing his mistake, the man opened the door, and the Trollgädda flopped its way back to the lake and vanished.

Across Sweden, the stories differ. In Kvittinge, a monstrous pike is said to claim a human life every year. In Lake Mjörn, a huge, hairy, bearded pike lies bound with an iron chain. In Skåne, pike as thick as wooden beams haunt the waters. In Dalsland, a Trollgädda with eyes like saucers and scales as large as roof tiles barely fits within the coves, and its appearance foretells a day of failed fishing.

The greatest of all is said to live in Lake Bolmen. It is so long that it spans the lake’s width and so old that a willow shrub grows from its head and neck. Its back rises from the water like a rocky island. Once, a daring fisherman attempted to catch it, using a rope as a line and a dead foal as bait. When the Trollgädda bit, the man tied the rope to a barn on the shore and went to fetch help. When they returned, the barn itself had been dragged into the lake.

Thus the Trollgädda remains a warning beneath the water: that some fish are not meant to be caught, and some depths belong to powers older and stronger than men.

Gallery

Sources

A Book of Creatures contributors. (n.d.). Trollgadda. In A Book of Creatures, from https://abookofcreatures.com/2021/03/29/trollgadda/

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
Other
  • How to Invite The Trollgädda