Part 226 - King Olaf's Dream

Now when King Olaf had drawn up his men the army of the bondes had not yet come near upon any quarter, so the king said the people should sit down and rest themselves.

He sat down himself, and the people sat around him in a widespread crowd. He leaned down, and laid his head upon Fin Arnason's knee. There a slumber came upon him, and he slept a little while; but at the same time the bondes' army was seen advancing with raised banners, and the multitude of these was very great.

Then Fin awakened the king, and said that the bonde-army advanced against them.

The king awoke, and said,

"Why did you waken me, Fin, and did not allow me to enjoy my dream?"

Fin:

"Thou must not be dreaming; but rather thou shouldst be awake, and preparing thyself against the host which is coming down upon us; or, dost thou not see that the whole bonde-crowd is coming?"

The king replies,

"They are not yet so near to us, and it would have been better to have let me sleep."

Then said Fin,

"What was the dream, sire, of which the loss appears to thee so great that thou wouldst rather have been left to waken of thyself?"

Now the king told his dream, — that he seemed to see a high ladder, upon which he went so high in the air that heaven was open: for so high reached the ladder.

"And when you awoke me, I was come to the highest step towards heaven."

Fin replies,

"This dream does not appear to me so good as it does to thee. I think it means that thou art fey ^[1]; unless it be the mere want of sleep that has worked upon thee."

Footnotes and references:

[1]:

Fey means doomed to die.