Gleipnir

Gleipnir is a magical fetter in Norse mythology, designed to bind the great wolf Fenrir. According to sources such as Snorri Sturluson’s Prose Edda, the chain was forged by dwarves from six improbable materials: the sound of a cat’s footsteps, the beard of a woman, the breath of a fish, the roots of the mountains, the sinews of a bear, and the spit of a bird. The fetter is described as slender and weightless yet stronger than any iron chain, capable of restraining Fenrir.

To test the claim that it could restrain him, the gods requested Fenrir to allow himself to be bound; Fenrir agreed only if the chain could be proven to be strong enough. The dwarves forged Gleipnir, and the gods bound Fenrir with it. During the binding, the god Tyr placed his hand in Fenrir’s mouth as a pledge of good faith. When Fenrir found that Gleipnir held and the gods had deceived him, he bit off Tyr’s hand, leaving the god maimed. Fenrir remained bound by Gleipnir, unable to break free, until the events of Ragnarok when it is said he will break the fetter and take part in the final conflict.

Gleipnir thus functions as a symbolic tool of cunning and deception in the myth, illustrating the Norse themes of fate, power, and vulnerability even among the gods themselves.