He lures you with his fiddle
moaning from the eddies,
in the foam of water where
the stream is fiercest.
He tempts you with the way
the river rushes, crushes
wildly over rocks and boulders
and how it pearls on flesh and naked skin,
He baits you with the night
that’s full of dew and fervor
when air is thick with
fumes from noxious flowers.
He tricks you with his water-tongue
probing closer, closer
until he swiftly pulls you under
and never or ever will you know of forever.
Strömkarlen by Ernst Josephsson
This a poem on Mythology for Saanaa at toads, and I have chosen a story about Näcken wich is the Swedish variant of the water spirit who lives in the river and lures children and women into the water with his music and wild nakedness.
This particular painting is a little bit lesser known than the one hanging in the National Gallery in Stockholm
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October 26, 2019
Björn Rudbergs writings 
You’ve captured that beastie’s profile well, and it makes a dynamite metaphor as well. Smokin!
Most mythology is actually perfect metaphors and projections of the worst and the best in humanity
Thank you for the warning!- i’ll be keeping away from the water’s edge from now on!
This is incredibly dark and enticing, Bjorn! ❤️ I love the aura of mystery and the lines; “He baits you with the night that’s full of dew and fervor when air is thick with fumes from noxious flowers. What a truly mesmerizing image. Thank you so much for writing to the prompt 😀
This is a mixture of beauty and danger, a fairy tale with teeth… And the subtle threat in the tone makes the poem very powerful.
I had no idea these critters existed. Nice to learn about something different besides the usual vampires and werewolves. The tone of menace in the sits sets the tone perfectly.
I love the atmosphere and tension you have created in this poem
This is a lovely dark folkloric piece. Tales like this remind us that monsters can be beautiful and some delights come with a very high price.
You’ve captured the water spirit marvellously in this poem, Björn, a list of the spirits actions. I love the appeal to the senses, especially the ‘fiddle moaning from the eddies’ and the air ‘thick with fumes from noxious flowers’.
Ack! He wouldnt lure me! I’d run away, lol. Well….I DID run away.
Really, really good. I’ve always loved all our Nordic “oknytt” especially Näcken och Bäckahästen. 😀
Yikes! This one is really ominous and definitely drew me in!
He lures, he tempts, he baits, he tricks, until he catches you and you are pulled under his spell. I like how the night and the water become complicit in his seduction.
With baits and lures it really sounds like reverse fishing… he is in water trying to catch what is on land.
You set such an ominous tone with your words Bjorn, and drew me in completely!
Beautiful and terrifying…a deadly combination. You write it so well, Bjorn!
Ah the bittersweet allure of the waters edge! Well done Bjorn!
Love this!! It is a myth itself.
I do love mythology and anything mystical. It really stimulates the imagination. To me that is where the true magic happens.
He won’t lure me but can’t affirm that if it is a sexy sprite beckoning me.
Lures, tempts, baits, tricks. (also reminds me of today’s trojans and malware). This spirit is not going to give up. Great tension-filled poem, Bjorn.
This is wonderfully written. It sent my mind in the direction of ALL THOSE MYSTHIC SPIRITS that mess about, unhinging human behaviour … would that we had some excuse to blame our crazy choices on ~ smiles ~
This is why I don’t go near the water unless i wear a life preserver.
Beautifully written – and yes, he sounds very dangerous, because so enticing!
PS I am told by social workers that the perpetrators of domestic violence tend to be very charming men! So I think this is an apt warning indeed.
Myths are so interesting to read about – from all over the world.
Oh water, you are a powerful seducer. Love this poem.
I love that chilling last line.