Fáfnir— Norse Dragon"The Dragon of Greed"

The Curse of Andvari

Fáfnir was once a dwarf, son of the dwarf-king Hreidmar. When the gods accidentally killed Hreidmar's son Otr, they paid weregild with treasure stolen from the dwarf Andvari—including a cursed ring that would destroy its owner. Andvari's curse worked swiftly: Fáfnir murdered his father for the gold and refused to share with his brothers.

The Transformation

Fáfnir carried the treasure to the wilderness of Gnita-heath and brooded over it obsessively. His greed was so consuming that it transformed him physically—he became a dragon, the monstrous form matching his monstrous soul. He lay upon the gold for years uncounted, his poison breath keeping all others away, his only purpose to possess and protect what he had murdered for.

The Dragon of Greed

As a dragon, Fáfnir became a symbol of avarice itself. He contributed nothing, created nothing, shared nothing. His existence was pure hoarding. The curse of the gold had found its perfect expression: wealth that destroys its possessor, turning him into a monster who guards treasure he can never use.

Sigurd's Pit

Fáfnir's brother Regin, a master smith, raised the hero Sigurd and forged for him the sword Gram from the shards of his father's blade. Regin sent Sigurd to kill Fáfnir—ostensibly for revenge, but really to claim the treasure. Sigurd dug a pit in the dragon's path and waited. When Fáfnir crawled over it, Sigurd thrust Gram upward into the dragon's heart.

The Dying Words

As Fáfnir lay dying, he warned Sigurd that the treasure was cursed and would destroy him too. Sigurd was unmoved. He bathed in the dragon's blood, which made his skin invulnerable—except for one spot between his shoulders where a leaf fell. He roasted and ate Fáfnir's heart, which gave him the power to understand birds. The curse passed to him with the gold.