For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places. ~ Ephesians 6:12

Laden with gold from the dwarves’ home, Vilfridr goes to Saxland with the king.  She eventually marries him with one condition: he should not take a “winterguest” without asking her first.  The king agrees, and they wed.

You may have thought we’d be done with Vilfridr’s story.  In fact, her story continues, and it’s here where things get strange.  Like many of our Snow Whites, Vilfridr does not get an immediate “happily-ever-after.”  Vala is still out there, after all.

Naturally, Vala asks her mirror how Vilfridr fares; it replies that she is now queen of Saxland and Vala is “wild” with rage.[1]  At this point, “she thought it best to go to her husband,”[2] a strange thought, for wasn’t the husband aware of her doings?  And if he wasn’t, shouldn’t he punish Vala for her evil against their daughter when he finds out?

No.  He agrees to go to Saxland, become a “winterguest,” and kill their daughter.  She makes him promise to give her a lock of Vilfridr’s hair, a piece of her tongue, and some of her blood as proof.[3]  This is, clearly, very like what the Evil Queen does in our own story, only postponed until after the enchantments.

So, under the name of “Raudr,” he mocks the king into making him a “winterguest” without Vilfridr’s blessing and eventually worms his way into the king’s heart and counsel.  Vilfridr doesn’t seem to recognize him.

Vilfridr’s Sorrows Renewed

Then some happy news occurs: Vilfridr is with child!  (And yet, as readers, we should be wary of anything happy.)  During labor, the child will not come, despite all the midwives’ working together.  Raudr offers to help, puts a “sleep-bramble” in her ear (which, of course, makes her fall asleep), and she gives birth to a baby boy.

Raudr cuts off the child’s ear, stuffs it in Vilfridr’s mouth, and throws the child out the window.  He then brings the king in, feigns shock, and tells him the queen must have eaten the child and deserves to die.  The king, however, cannot bear to kill her, for “he loved her so tenderly.”[4]

This happens twice more, with a girl and another boy, a toe and a finger being taken from them, respectively.  Each time, the queen is accused of eating her child.  On the third time, the king tells Raudr to pass sentence upon her, and Raudr tells two slaves to take her to the woods, kill her, and bring back a lock of hair, a piece of tongue, and a horn filled with her blood as proof.

Yes, I know it’s gruesome – more than gruesome!  Yet this is where I’m going to leave our Vilfridr.  She lost her mother.  She lost her beloved dwarves.  She has now lost three children.  She has lost the protection and trust of her husband.  She is about to lose her life.  She has endured heartache and pain beyond imagining…

The Spiritual Side of Sorrows

When we endure the heartache and pain of this life, it doesn’t feel spiritual.  You wouldn’t say any of Vilfridr’s heartaches were spiritual.  They were very much physical loses.  To say otherwise seems to diminish the reality of her – and our – pain.  It takes the blame off them, and puts it onto something other, something intangible.

No, it’s far easier to see only the physical, and blame that.  We are temporal creatures, and we only see the temporal around us.  Yes, physical people hurt us in terrible, intimate ways.  They will pay for their crimes.  God avenges His own (Rom. 12:19).

But do not be deceived.  A person may have harmed you, but that those who incited – those spiritual forces of darkness – are fully at work in them.  They use people to do their will, just as God uses people to do His.

How is this comforting, you ask?

Perhaps it’s not.  And yet by recognizing the spiritual forces of darkness, we can learn to fight the despair in our own hearts.  Weep, yes.  Mourn, certainly.  But we are not alone, and thus we need not despair.  God is with us.  He sees every tear, every heartache, and every wrong done to you.

And a time is coming when “He will wipe away every tear from their eyes. Death will no longer exist; grief, crying, and pain will exist no longer, because the previous things have passed away” (Rev. 21:4).

Come, Lord Jesus, come.

 

Sources

[1] Heidi Anne Heiner, “The Story of Vilfridr-Fairer-Than-Vala,” Sleeping Beauties, 198.

[2] Ibid.

[3] Ibid.

[4] Ibid., 199.


Subscribe
Notify of
guest

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

0 Comments
Inline Feedbacks
View all comments