“In the branches of the ash Yggdrasil sitteth an eagle, who knows many things; between his eyes sitteth a hawk, called Vederlöfner (Storm-damper). A squirrel, named Ratatösk, runs up and down in the tree, and seeks to set strife between the eagle and the Snake-king Nidhug. Four harts run about in the branches of the tree, and bite the buds. In Hvergelmer, by the root of the tree, are so many snakes, that no tongue can tell it. So, in Grimnis-mâl,
“Ratatösk hight the squirrel,
Who shall run
Through the Ash Yggdrasil:
The eagle’s words
He from above shall bear,
And tell to Nidhug below.
There are also four harts,
Who the branches’ buds
Wry-necked gnaw,