The myth of Loki and the master builder - Alex Gendler

Translator: Rini Anawati Reviewer: Maria Nainggolan

Asgard, a realm of wonders, was where the Norse Gods made their home.

Asgard, dunia ajaib, tempat tinggal para Dewa Nordik.

There Odin’s great hall of Valhalla towered above the mountains

Di sana aula megah Odin Valhalla menjulang tinggi di atas gunung

and Bifrost, the rainbow bridge, anchored itself.

serta Bifrost, jembatan pelangi, yang tertambat dengan sendirinya.

But though their domain was magnificent,

Meskipun kerajaan mereka sangat megah,

it stood undefended from the giants and trolls of Jotunheim,

kerajaan itu berdiri tak terlindungi dari serangan para raksasa dan troll Jotunheim,

who despised the gods and sought to destroy them.

yang membenci para dewa dan berusaha menghancurkan mereka.

One day when Thor, strongest of the gods, was off fighting these foes,

Suatu hari ketika Thor, dewa terkuat, sedang berkelahi dengan para musuh itu,

a stranger appeared, riding a powerful gray horse.

datanglah orang asing, menunggang kuda abu-abu yang gagah.

The visitor made the gods an astonishing offer.

Sang tamu memberikan penawaran yang mengherankan.

He would build them the greatest wall they’d ever seen,

Dia akan membangun tembok terbesar yang pernah mereka lihat,

higher than any giant could climb and stronger than any troll could break.

lebih tinggi dari yang bisa didaki para raksasa serta lebih kuat.

All he asked in return was the beautiful goddess Freya’s hand in marriage—

Dia meminta imbalan dengan menikahi dewi Freya yang cantik--

along with the sun and moon from the sky.

juga matahari serta bulan dari langit.

The gods balked at this request and were ready to send him away.

Para dewa menolak permintaannya dan telah bersiap mengusirnya.

But the trickster Loki concocted a devious plan.

Tetapi Loki sang penipu menyusun sebuah rencana licik.

He told the gods they should accept the stranger’s offer,

Dia berkata pada para dewa mereka harus menerima tawaran itu,

but set such strict conditions that he would fail to complete the wall in time.

dengan syarat yang berat sehingga ia akan gagal mebangunnya tepat waktu

That way, they would lose nothing, while getting most of the wall built for free.

Dengan begitu, mereka tak perlu berkorban, dan dindingnya akan dibuat secara gratis.

Freya didn’t like this idea at all,

Freya tidak menyukai rencana ini sama sekali,

but Odin and the other gods were convinced

tetapi Odin dan dewa lain terbujuk

and came to an agreement with the builder.

dan membuat persetujuan dengan pembangun.

He would only have one winter to complete the wall.

Dia punya waktu satu musim dingin untuk menyelesaikan dinding.

If any part was unfinished by the first day of summer,

Jika ada yang belum selesai saat hari pertama musim panas,

he would receive no payment.

dia tidak akan diberi imbalan.

And he could have no help from any other people.

Dan dia tidak boleh dibantu siapa pun.

The gods sealed the deal with solemn oaths

Para dewa menutup persetujuan dengan sumpah khusyuk

and swore the mason would come to no harm in Asgard.

dan bersumpah bahwa si tukang batu tidak akan membahayakan Asgard.

In the morning, the stranger began to dig the foundations at an astonishing speed,

Pagi harinya, orang asing itu mulai menggali fondasi dengan cepat,

and at nightfall he set off towards the mountains to obtain the building stones.

dan pada malamnya dia pergi ke gunung untuk mendapatkan batu bangunan.

But it was only the next morning, when they saw him returning,

Dan hanya keesokan harinya, mereka melihatnya sudah kembali,

that the gods began to worry.

para dewa mulai cemas.

As agreed, no other people were helping the mason.

Seperti perjanjiannya, tidak ada yang boleh membantu si tukang batu.

But his horse Svadilfari was hauling a load of stones so massive

Tapi kudanya Svadilfari mampu mengangkut batuan besar

it left trenches in the ground behind them.

yang meninggalkan jejak di tanah yang mereka lalui.

Winter came and went.

Musim dingin datang dan berlalu.

The stranger kept building, Svadilfari kept hauling,

Sang orang asing terus membangun, Svadilfari tetap mengangkut,

and neither snow nor rain could slow their progress.

salju dan hujan tidak mampu memperlambat kemajuan mereka.

With only three days left until summer, the wall stood high and impenetrable,

Tiga hari sebelum musim panas, dindingnya menjulang tinggi dan tak bisa ditembus,

with only the gate left to be built.

hanya gerbangnya yang belum dibangun.

Horrified, the gods realized that not only would they lose

Ketakutan, para dewa sadar mereka tidak akan hanya kehilangan

their fertility goddess forever,

dewi kesuburan mereka selamanya,

but without the sun and moon the world would be plunged into eternal darkness.

namun tanpa matahari dan bulan dunia akan terjerumus dalam kegelapan abadi.

They wondered why they’d made such a foolish wager—

Mereka heran mengapa mereka membuat taruhan yang bodoh--

and then remembered Loki and his terrible advice.

dan kemudian mereka ingat Loki dengan nasihatnya yang buruk.

Suddenly, Loki didn’t feel so clever.

Tiba-tiba, Loki merasa bodoh.

All of his fellow gods threatened him with an unimaginably painful death

Para dewa mengancamnya dengan kematian menyakitkan yang tak terbayangkan

if he didn’t find some way to prevent the builder from getting his payment.

jika dia tidak menemukan cara untuk mencegah sang pembangun mendapat upah.

So Loki promised to take care of the situation, and dashed away.

Loki berjanji akan mengurusnya, dan kemudian bergegas pergi.

Outside, night had fallen,

Di luar, malam sudah datang,

and the builder prepared to set off to retrieve the final load of stones.

dan sang pembangun bersiap mengambil muatan batu terakhir.

But just as he called Svadilfari to him, a mare appeared in the field.

Tapi baru saja ia memanggil Svadilfari, seekor kuda betina muncul di padang.

She was so beautiful that Svadilfari ignored his master

Dia sangat cantik hingga Svadilfari tak menghiraukan tuannya

and broke free of his reins.

dan melepaskan diri dari kendali.

The mason tried to catch him,

Si pembangun berusaha menangkapnya,

but the mare ran deep into the woods and Svadilfari followed.

tapi kuda betina itu berlari ke tengah hutan dan Svadilfari mengikuti.

The stranger was furious.

Orang asing itu marah.

He knew that the gods were behind this and confronted them:

Dia tahu itu ulah para dewa dan menantang para mereka:

no longer as a mild-mannered mason,

bukan lagi sebagai pembangun yang sopan,

but in his true form as a terrifying mountain giant.

tapi sosok aslinya terkuak sebagai raksasa gunung mengerikan.

This was a big mistake.

Ini adalah kesalahan besar.

Thor had just returned to Asgard,

Thor baru kembali ke Asgard,

and now that the gods knew a giant was in their midst,

sekarang para dewa tahu bahwa raksasa ada di antara mereka,

they disregarded their oaths.

mereka mengabaikan sumpah mereka.

The only payment the builder would receive—

Upah yang diterima sang pembangun hanyalah--

and the last thing he would ever see—

serta hal terakhir yang dia lihat--

was the swing of Thor’s mighty hammer Mjolnir.

adalah ayunan palu Thor yang perkasa Mjolnir.

As they set the final stones into the wall, the gods celebrated their victory.

Setelah mereka memasang batu terakhir, para dewa merayakan kemenangan.

Loki was not among them, however.

Namun Loki tidak berada diantara mereka.

Several months would pass before he finally returned,

Beberapa bulan kemudian akhirnya dia kembali,

followed by a beautiful gray foal with eight legs.

diikuti oleh anak kuda abu-abu cantik berkaki delapan.

The foal would grow into a magnificent steed named Sleipnir

Anak kuda itu akan tumbuh menjadi kuda luar biasa bernama Sleipnir

and become Odin’s mount, a horse that could outrun the wind itself.

yang menjadi tunggangan Odin, kuda yang mampu membalap angin.

But exactly where he had come from was something Loki preferred not to discuss.

Tetapi Loki tidak ingin membahas kemana ia pergi.