Saint Olav - King of Norway

X. King Olav in Gardarike

Snorre has Olav undergo a profound spiritual development in Gardarike. He writes something about this, but leaves something else to the religious intuition of the reader, since it is foreign to the Norse saga style to describe the wandering paths taken by the soul. Olav comes to Gardarike and becomes familiar with the mystery of suffering. His activity as king has suffered shipwreck and he has lost his ancestral inheritance. The land that was his has been conquered by a foreign king. The future of Christianity is under threat, if the great men are allowed to live wildly as they did before. Olav, so well aware of himself, lives now as a pensioner of prince Jaroslav. He cuts a poor figure in the eyes of Ingegjerd, whom he once was meant to marry. The glory of power has been taken from him - he is a king without a country.

He is paralysed. Ought he to accept prince Jaroslav's offer and reign over the pagan Bulgars? The flock of men who accompanied him from Norway advise him against this - they long to come home to their farms. He also briefly considers giving up all worldly power, of journeying to Jerusalem as a pilgrim and entering a monastery there or somewhere else. What he ponders most is whether there is any chance of reconquering Norway.

The pagan idea of luck makes a new breakthrough here. On his journeys in foreign countries, the king must have seen examples of how Christian princes could suffer defeat. He must also have heard the clergy say that we must suffer and die with Christ in our life here on earth. But this part of the preaching cannot have entered deeply into him: he ponders luck and failure. As a pagan, he must have believed it was destiny that determined who was to be a man of luck or failure. As a Christian, he must have seen God's will in both. But then it must be the case that luck was God's reward, and failure his punishment. Snorre puts it thus:

«What he thought most about, was whether there might be any possibility for him to regain his kingdom in Norway. But when he thought about this, then he remembered that in the first ten years he was king, everything went easily and well for him, but that then everything he tried to do became hard and difficult, and when he tempted luck, it went against him. For this reason, he doubted whether it was prudent to put so much confidence in luck that he went straight into the hands of his foes with a small force of men (...). He thought about this, back and forth, and did not know what he ought to do, for he thought that what he was thinking about just then was certain failure (my italics).23

Over the course of time, such religious meditations wear down the soul's strength. There is only one thing to do: put the matter into God's hands. This is what Olav did. Snorre tells us: «Such thoughts often occupied him, and he submitted his cause to God and prayed that he might let something happen, so Olav could see what was the best». It is prayer that brings Olav out of the endless circle of his broodings. Snorre writes: «It is said that Olav was a pious man who prayed to God all his living days. But after his power decreased and his adversaries became stronger, he applied all his mind to serving God, for then he had nothing else to think about that could distract him from this.»

God hears his prayer and shows him the way. This time too, it happens in a dream. Snorre has Olav Trygvasson appear to Olav while he sleeps. He cuts right through Olav Haraldsson's ponderings about luck. The only thing that will count in the future is to follow God's will and do what is right. It is up to God to determine victory or defeat. Olav Trygvasson promises him neither the one nor the other. «Journey (...) back to your own kingdom which you have inherited and ruled over for a long time with the help God gave you.»

When the king wakens, all his doubts have vanished. His life takes on a direction once more. His will becomes steeled. Plans are made. His soldiers thank him enthusiastically. The rumour of earl Håkon's death by drowning comes from Norway. The land is without a chief. It is time to act.