What is Fenrir?
Fenrir is a giant wolf in Norse mythology. He is one of the children of the trickster god Loki and the giantess Angrboda; his siblings are the great serpent Jormungandr and Hel, queen of the land of the dead. As Fenrir grew, he became terrifyingly huge, and the gods came to fear him.
The magic fetter Gleipnir
Fearing that Fenrir would bring disaster on the world, the gods tried to bind him with chains, but he easily snapped even the thickest. So the gods had the dwarves make a magic ribbon, Gleipnir, from things that do not exist in this world: the sound of a cat’s footsteps, a woman’s beard, the roots of a mountain, the sinews of a bear, the breath of a fish and the spittle of a bird. Suspicious, Fenrir agreed to be bound only if someone put a hand in his mouth, and the war god Tyr offered his right hand. Bound and unable to move, Fenrir bit off Tyr’s right hand in rage, it is said.
Ragnarok and Fenrir
Norse mythology foretells that on the day of Ragnarok, the end of the world, Fenrir will break his fetter, break free and swallow the chief god Odin. Odin’s son Vidar will then tear Fenrir’s jaws apart to avenge his father. In modern games and manga, Fenrir is popular as a mighty wolf monster or summoned beast. His half-brother is the eight-legged horse Sleipnir.
