Page 4 - Carrollton 1974

YGGDRASILL

Yggdrasill may seem like a strange name for a yearbook, but not when you understand

the meaning behind it: In Norse mythology, Yggdrasill is an ash tree which overshadows

the whole universe. Its roots, trunk, and branches bind together Heaven, Earth, and the

Netherworld. The trunk, rooted in the premordial abyss of Hel, the source of matter, bears

three stems. The center runs up through Midgard, the earth, which it supports, and issues

out of the mountain Asgard, where the gods assemble at the base of Valhala. This heaven

of Norse heroes can be reached by Belfast, the bridge of the rainbow. The stem spreads its

branches over the entire sky; their leaves are the clouds, their fruits the stars. The second

stem of Yggdrasill springs up in the south, where the three Norns: Present, Past, Future,

dwell and the gods sit in judgement. The third stem rises in the North, where all the

knowledge of mankind flows from the fountain of the frost-giant, Nimir, the personifica­

tion of Wisdom. The ash tree itself is the Nordic symbol of Yggdrasill, the Tree of Life.