Well at least I’m better off than I was at the beginning. I’m a lot better informed and at least I have an opportunity to consider options in detail rather than being whisked into immortality against my will. I must continue to approach this positively, thought Ed, as he got up, slid past the curtain and ambled the short distance to Jahani’s.
“Oh, Ed, good to see you, come in, come in and sit down,” said the Viking, gesticulating for Ed to sit near him.
“Take a look at this,” he said, handing Ed his Viking helmet.
“That’s not too practical is it?” stated Ed, as he came and sat opposite the old man.
“Not very comfortable either - try it on,” replied Jahani.
“Okay then,” said Ed, as he popped the large helmet onto his small head only to see it fall off and straight to the floor.
“I guess I haven’t got the right head to become a Viking. Were they all big built like you?”
“No, not really. It was a mix like everywhere else. I was born in Sicily, not Scandinavia like most people think.”
“Sicily? Were the Vikings in Sicily?” enquired Ed.
“Yes, not many of us though, maybe a few thousand at most.”
“I never knew that, although Viking history was never my strong point,” replied Ed.
“It was a good place to be brought up. It was very liberal in comparison to the rest of the bigoted medieval world. It was tolerant and respectful towards all the diverse religions and cultures. My mother was a native Sicilian woman. She was called Agata, which means good and she really was that,” replied Jahani.
“Respectful of religions; you know that Vikings kind of got a bit of bad press, raiding, raping, pillaging and all that? It wasn’t like that then?” enquired Ed nervously.
“Not in my circles. We were just migrating from the frozen ice lands where we came from, looking for warmer climates. Often we would mix with the local populations and try to live side by side. Sicily was the prime example of that. Many aspects of daily life got intertwined: religions, food, marriage, you name it.”
“Really? Intertwined religions? I thought the Vikings were pagans?”
“We just had a multitude of gods that were worshipped for different purposes and at different times. That’s why the integration of Christianity was so easy for us, it was just another one to put on the mantelpiece and add to the set. Mind you, it did start to take over a bit.”
“Tell him about the giants, Jahani,” piped in Pritvijaj.
“He probably knows that already.”
“Erm, giants? No, I don’t know about them.”
“Well, like good and evil in Christianity, we had giants that were the counter force that challenged our gods,” replied Jahani.
“How do you think Christianity started to take over? Vikings seem so strong-willed from everything I’ve read.”
“Business. All because of business and money. Christians were not allowed to trade with us for religious reasons. To get around that, they instigated a scheme whereby Scandinavian traders could partially convert to Christianity to make deals possible. It was called ‘primsigning’, and although falling short of baptism itself, served the purpose. It led to a lot of full conversions though,” replied the Viking informatively.
“I never knew that. Was that happening in Sicily?”
“Yes, everywhere in the trading Christian world as far as I know.”
“Did you spend your whole life there?”
“Apart from some overseas excursions, I was based there throughout.”
“Somehow I was expecting swashbuckling stories of sea-borne invasions and ferocious battles with swords and axes, maybe even some Walrus ice cream and Arctic Bear Haggis?” replied Ed.
“There was a bit of that - swashbuckling adventure that is, not the frosted mammal cuisine. We used to go over to Sardinia, North Africa and other random islands in the Mediterranean. They were scared of us and there was normally a bit of friction, but that was how things were back then. There wasn’t much severe fighting that I was involved in. Just as well, because I was really a man of peace and enjoyed the calm serenity of Sicily.”
“If you don’t mind me asking, how did you die?”
“Again, an anticlimax for you here as well. No tales of bravery and craziness. No death in battle or falling on the sword. Just a quiet and natural death in my sleep. I remember clearly nodding off after a night of fine wine and steak and then suddenly being in the tunnel with the bright light. That was that, nice and easy. I had a good life with no regrets.”
“Any children?”
“Yes, eleven children and three wives,” replied Jahani with a wry smile.