Beowulf, A Precessional Myth, page 5

The Saga of Beowulf

The saga has come down to us in the form of a poem written in Anglo-Saxon, also known as Old English. It was the first piece of literature written in that language that has survived. Composed between the the seventh and tenth centuries AD it records the heroic adventures of a warrior of southern Sweden called Beowulf. He was from a clan known as the Geats. He sailed across the southern Baltic Sea with a band of warriors to help a king of Denmark defend his kingdom against a fearsome monster, Grendel.

Whether Beowulf, his kin, and the Danish king and nobles existed is a matter of academic dispute, though the text certainly records the ambience of the times. Scholars have also tried to find an historical explanation for the monster, seeing in it symbols of marauding bands of nomads or bandits.

What nobody has considered, so far, is that the Saga is an allegory for something.

Before we look at the skies for an explanation, let us first look at the hero himself and his adventures.

1. A Danish king, Hrothgar, has built a magnificent new mead hall, meant to be the wonder of the world.
2. No sooner is it built than a monster from the marshes starts taking away and killing the King's nobles.
3. Beowulf, a warrior of the Geats in southern Sweden, on hearing of these affairs gathers a band of warriors and sets off to help.
4. Our hero learns of the monster Grendel and offers to rid the land of it. Beowulf and his warriors lay in wait. After a long and arduous struggle Beowulf prevails and mortally wounds the demon. He cuts off one of Grendel's claws as a trophy and fixes it in the Mead Hall for all to see.
5. Before long, nobles and warriors are once more being taken or killed, this time by Grendel's mother, who was outraged at the killing of her offspring. Beowulf springs into battle again, eventually defeating the 'troll-dam'.
6. Beowulf is treated to a warrior's triumph and laden with riches for his journey home. He becomes a king in his own country and his fame is spread far and wide.
7. In his old age, Beowulf hears of problems again in Denmark - a dragon has awoken and is spreading terror across the land. He heads back to Denmark to deal with this new terror. After another great combat he defeats the dragon. Like all dragons, it guards a hoard of treasure.

The poem is worth reading as an adventure in its own right without regard for inner meanings. However, certain features of this Saga suggest that it has an additional reading for those who understand the language of myth.