Speech of the High One (Poetic Edda) - video

This is a reading from the Poetic Edda, c. 1200 AD called "The Speech of the High One". This is when Odin discovered the runes.

Discovery of the Runes

I hung from a windswept tree.
I hung there for nine days and nights,
Gashed with a spear,
An offering to Odin,
A sacrifice to myself,
Bonded to the tree which no man knows,
Or whither its roots may run.

No-one gave me bread,
Nor gave me drink.
I peered down into the dephs and
Snatched up the runes,
And with a fearful scream
Fell into a swoon.

After I began to thrive,
My wisdom thrived too,
I was joyful and I prospered,
One word led me to another,
One deed led me to another.

"The speech of the High One",
The Poetic Edda, c. 1200 AD