Of the runes[33] of Jötnar And those of all the gods I can tell thee true, For I have been In every world; I have gone to nine Worlds beneath _Nifl-hel_; There die the men from _Hel_. The sides of the rim of heaven communicate with each other by a bridge called Bifröst, or the bridge of the Asar, on which Heimdall, the watchman of the gods, stood. “Heimdall is the watchman of the gods standing on Bifröst Bridge (the rainbow)” (Later Edda, 27). “Heimdall is named the White As: he is great and holy; nine maidens bore him as son, and they were all sisters. He is also called Hallinskidi and Gullintanni (gold tooth). His teeth were of gold, his horse is called gold maned. He lived at a place called Himinbjörg (heaven mountains) by Bifröst. He is the warden of the gods, and sits there at the end of heaven to guard the bridge against the Berg Risar (mountain Jötnar); he needs less sleep than a bird, he can see equally by night and by day a hundred leagues away, and he hears when the grass grows, or the wool on the sheep, and all that is louder than these. He has the horn called Gjallarhorn, and his blowing is heard through all worlds. The sword of Heimdall is called Höfud” (Gylfaginning, 27). We find that the Jötnar and Asar were separated from each other by a large river whose waters never freeze. _Vafthrudnir._ Tell me, Gagnrad, &c., How the river is called Which divides the land Between the sons of Jötnar and the gods. _Odin._ _Ifing_ is the river called That parts the land Between the sons of Jötnar and the gods; Open shall it flow All the days of the world; No ice will come on it. From Vafthrudnismal we learn of the origin of Bergelmir who was born before the Creation. It is an important question which are the most ancient people—the Asar, or the ancient kinsmen of Ymir? _Odin._ Tell me ... Who of the Asar, Or of the sons of Ymir, Was the oldest in early days? _Vafthrudnir._ Numberless winters Before the earth was shaped Was Bergelmir born. Thrudgelmir Was his father And Orgelmir his grandfather. _Odin._ Tell me ... Whence first Orgelmir came Among the sons of Jötnar, Thou wise Jötun. _Vafthrudnir._