Tape begins with Blaser mid-sentence discussing the cosmology of the poetic "Edda" [1200-800 A.D.] and the prose "edda". The topic is then further expanded into that of Norse religion and the old Norse world view. Blaser elaborates and explains the myths with references to Indo-European cultures. Blaser discusses the family of languages. He refers to Webster's International Dictionary. He draws... Show moreTape begins with Blaser mid-sentence discussing the cosmology of the poetic "Edda" [1200-800 A.D.] and the prose "edda". The topic is then further expanded into that of Norse religion and the old Norse world view. Blaser elaborates and explains the myths with references to Indo-European cultures. Blaser discusses the family of languages. He refers to Webster's International Dictionary. He draws together various pieces of cultural evidence to construct the characteristics of "Indo-European speech and culture". Blaser looks at "The Volaspa" for its Norse creation story. Discusses the generative act where we have a mutual attraction and opposition of cold and heat. The singular origin and identity is not the same as the Platonic one; this is a flow. Everything, in this cosmology, returns to matter. Matter and spirit are not split as in our tradition. This difference is discussed. Blaser discusses the lack of creator in the Norse mythology. Creation is assumed to be spontaneous as a product of two opposed forces (heat and cold). Blaser refers to Hinduism: he discusses the shape of the cosmos (shaped around the "eternal conflict which is life.") The cosmos develops in one of a fragile "order" of time and temporal relations with the "threat of disorder" always looming. Blaser discusses the structure of the Norse cosmos in some detail. The connection between the world of gods and the world of men, the ash tree, Yggdrasil. Blaser postulates that the world tree, any mythological world tree is the "latent invisible fire in the living wood which is the perfect symbol of eternal spirit trapped in matter." Dionysus is an anthropomorphized version of this vision. A thorough examination of the Norse world-tree ensues. End of lecture. Tape begins with an announcement of a poetry reading. Blaser begins his lecture by introducing Charles Olson's "The Horses of the Sea" [to be found in "Sparrow 43", Black Sparrow Press]. A very lengthy discussion of sources in Olson's work ensues. Blaser introduces a passage from Fowler's book on Norse religions and presents some propositions that he has been building that are meant to allow us to speak to the nature of the "real". Show less