In the legend of the _Culloo_ the
frost giantess can only be killed by a crooked horn thrust into her
ear. The horn darts out at once into incredible, irregular length, and
evidently means lightning. In the Edda the he-goat is, on account of
his horns, the symbol of lightning and storm. (Schwenk, Sinnbilden der
alten Volker.) The Giala-horn of the Edda (Nyer up. Dict Scan. Mythol.)
is the thunder which summons the Elves. "Miolner, the hammer of Thor,
with which he kills frost giants, is the lightning." (Kirchner, Thor's
Donnerkeil, Neu Strelitz, 1853, p. 60.) The coincidence of the symbols
in the Edda with that of the lightning horn in the Indian legend is
very curious, if nothing more.
The cord which Glooskap unrolls, and with which he deceives the
fairies, who think they have him fast, while he is escaping, means
delusive speech or plausible talk. To "talk like paying out rope" is an
old simile.
"Speech runes thou must know,
If thou wilt that no one
for injury with hate requite thee.
Those thou must wind,
Those thou must wrap round (thee),
Those thou must altogether place
in the assembly,
where people have
into full court to go."
(Sigrdrifumal.)
This is a merely accidental coincidence, but it illustrates the meaning
of the myth. In both cases it is "wound or wrapped around" and rapidly
unrolled, and the same simile.
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