Note 162 — Chapter VIII
Reading edition
Meier, pp. 122, 123; Jahn, p. 248; Grimm, “Teut. Myth.” p. 961; Thorpe, vol. ii. p. 91, from Afzelius. In an Austrian märchen the Sleeping Host is a host of serpents. The king slept on a crystal table in the centre. During the winter serpents are believed to sleep. In the spring the oldest serpent awakes and wakens the others, crying: “It is time” (Vernaleken, p. 113).