Week 2 Storytelling: The Mighty Thor

Thor was the son of Odin and was destined to become ruler over all of Asgard. He was loved by his father’s people and he was fully devoted to them and to his father. Thor’s father had gathered his council to ask them if they thought Thor would be a worthy successor and the men discussed this and all agreed that he would make a great ruler. The king asked once more to make sure that this was what was best for the people and again the men knew that Thor should be king. The people knew of his strength because he had the mighty hammer Mjolnir. He received this weapon by showing his strength in front of the king of Midgard. The king had heard the tales of Thor’s strength but wanted to test his abilities. He told Thor that he could marry his daughter Jane, if he could break the legendary shield of Ysgramor. Thor took his hammer, the one he had before Mjolnir, into battle and with his first strike, he shattered the unbreakable shield into pieces. The sound of the shield breaking was as loud as thunder to everyone in the room. Then the god Ysgramor suddenly appeared in front of everyone, angrily demanding to know who had broken his shield. Thor claimed responsibility for the act and because of this show of honesty and strength Ysgramor gifted Thor with the hammer Mjolnir. The hammer could only be wielded by those who it deemed worthy. Ysgramor tasked Thor with picking up the hammer. Thor approached and could feel the power emanating from the hammer. He reached down and grasped the leather bound handle and then with the slightest effort was able to lift the hammer high in the air. This stunned Ysgramor because never before this had the hammer chosen someone worthy enough to wield it. The God then left them without another word. When he returned from his journey, he started going through the coronation process when a witch appeared accompanied by her son Loki. Odin had made a deal with the witch who had saved his life after he had won a duel with the ice giant king but was fatally wounded. For saving his life Odin offered the witch two favors, any request that she had would be fulfilled. She told him that she would claim these favors in the future and in flash of light and smoke, she vanished.  She did not reveal what she wanted until she talked to Odin the night before the coronation of Thor. She demanded that Loki become king and not Thor. Odin struggled with the decision because he knew that he was betraying his son but he could not break his word either. He told the witch that her son would be king and the next day he told Thor of what had transpired all those years ago and what had happened last night. Thor was upset but listened to his father. The witch then came up with the second demand and that was to banish Thor for 10 years so that Loki could take over without rebellion from Thor’s followers. The next week Odin died and Loki was going to be made king, the council members decided to talk to Thor about this. They knew of the deal that Odin had made and tried to convince Thor that since his father had died the debt was paid and the bargain he had made with the witch was no longer valid. Thor was angry with the men for having no duty and said that he needed to preserve his father’s honor by upholding his father’s debt to the witch. Even Loki wanted him to stay but Thor persisted that it was for his and his father's honor. Thor and his wife Jane left Asgard and made their way to Midgard to serve the time that he had been sentenced. 

Image Information: Thor's Hammer

Source Mjolnir

Author's Note:
Parashurama was a part in the story of Rama where Rama snaps the God Shiva's bow. A bull-man creature, Shiva worshiper, appears to him in a rage because of what Rama had done. Rama then calms the priest and is offered the Bow of Vishnu as a test of his heroism. He is able to string and use the bow which causes the priest to praise Rama for his heroism and glory. This story is preceded by Rama wins Sita. The king tells Rama that if he can bend the bow that the king supplied, that he can have his daughter Sita for marriage. Rama broke the bow leading to the bull-man priest to show up. I also used the story of Kaikeyi and Dasharatha to add to my story. The witch in my story is based on Kaikeyi. She saved Rama's father and her granted her two boons, wishes essentially, and she asked that her son be made king and that Rama be banished for 14 years in the forest. 


Parashurama- The Divine Archer by F. J. Gould  
Rama wins Sita
Kaikeyi and Dasharatha