Audumbla

Audumbla is a primordial giant cow in Norse mythology. She is said to have emerged from the melting ice of Niflheim and Muspelheim. Audumbla's importance lies in her role as the nourisher and creator of the first gods.

From her udders flowed four rivers of milk, which sustained Ymir, the first giant. While Ymir slept and was nourished by Audumbla's milk, she licked the frost-covered rocks of Ginnungagap. On the first day she licked, the hair of a man emerged from the rocks. On the second day, a head. And on the third day, the entire man, Búri. Búri was the grandfather of Odin, Vili, and Vé, the first Aesir gods. Thus, Audumbla is indirectly responsible for the creation of the gods who would eventually slay Ymir and form the world from his body. She is a symbol of primal sustenance and the origin of life and creation within the Norse cosmology. Her story is primarily found in the Gylfaginning section of the Prose Edda.