There are some people who believe that the vikings that originated out of Scandinavia were just about violence and pillaging, but that is simply not true. It is true that the vikings did pillage and raid other countries, such as Ireland, England, and France, but they were a society like any other. They had culture, customs, language, and rituals that were their unique and important to them. One aspect of their lives that was important to them was their family and loved ones.
The document Saga of Gisli the Outlaw tells several stories about the family and descendants of Thorkel Goldhelm. The first chapter tells of the marriage of his eldest son, Ari, to a beautiful woman who was the daughter of a ruler. Another man, Bjorn, challenges Ari to a battle over the wife. Ari ends up dying and to defend his brother’s honour and reclaim his land, goods, house, and …show more content…
He referred to them as the Rus. He told of his experience of a viking burial and what one Rus told him at the burial about the difference between Muslim and viking ceremonies. “He said, 'You Arabs are fools.' " "Why?" I asked him. He said, "You take the people who are most dear to you and whom you honor most and put them into the ground where insects and worms devour them. We burn him in a moment, so that he enters Paradise at once (Risala: Ibn Fadlan's Account of the Rus)." This interaction shows the respect that the vikings had for their loved ones and family not only in life but in death also. The fact that they do the extensive ceremony for the dead (including building a boat, killing one of his female slaves, having his family members sleep with the slave, lifting the girl up and down several times, putting all his valuables in the boat with him, and more) only to burn it to help him get to the after life in peace shows a great deal of effort and commitment to their loved