"The great sea is held together by Jörmungand, the serpent who surrounds it with his gigantic body and who holds his tail in his mouth to complete the circle, and thus stops the waves from forming. One day, the god Thor, son of the earth, was fishing in the serpent sea, using an ox's head as bait. Jörmungand reared up, and the waves hit the shores as he twisted and writhed like a fury. They were equally strong, the serpent and the god in that furious struggle. The sea boiled around them, but then the hook was removed and the snake slithered free and quickly sank beneath the waves again. And soon the sea was calm again as if nothing had disturbed it. (Vikings)"