Fate and Fame
True fame outlasts fate; the reputation earned through deeds survives even death.
While the body falls to fate, fame survives. The Norse believed that reputation - earned through courageous and honorable deeds - continues after death. This is the one thing that transcends wyrd, making the earning of good fame life's highest purpose.
Cattle die, kinsmen die, the self must also die; I know one thing that never dies: the fame of a dead man's deeds.
This famous stanza defines the relationship between mortal fate and immortal fame.
Poetic Edda