In Kalevala and Finnish folklore, animals had feelings and magical powers
Finnish folk poetry is full of mythical animals whose kingdom extended far beyond the human world - "under water,
within the stars, beyond time and borders of life and death." Animals were seen as companions and helpers, but also as
enemies to be respected."Myths are words, stories, human speech and orally transmitted memories from mother-to-child" writes folklorist Liisa Kaski , an expert on Kalevala poetry . Preserved attitudes of words follow us from generation to generation. Which animals have been particularly important sources of beliefs?
Pike is not a yes-man, and perch has a reason to cry
The beliefs about fish are the best reflections of how differently people of today think about animals. The underwater world is still a mysterious place, but in the past, for example, it was accepted that underwater animals have a soul.
- Before, it was not impossible for a fish to cry or sing. Or that fish have emotions, says Kaski .
This has now also been studied in science, and it is known that perch, the reflective sensitive soul of the fish
population, gets easily anxious.
- It is understandable that the perch has anxiouty when it knowns that in low water a person will be on the shore to
catch it, or if it goes deeper, the pike will eat it, Liisa Kaski ponders.
Myths suggest that the seemingly snarky pike was a witch's helper with important skills such as the ability to breathe
underwater and infallible hunch. The pike's jaws and teeth has some remarkable power, and both the kantele and the
boat came from its jaws.
Pike is a particularly mythical underwater animal. It had access and free reign in the underground world, where man
cannot go. Pike was also a negative figure, which, for example, took the sick soul to Tuonela- that is, not a helper
animal in traditional shamanism.
The lakes of Finland were born from the trail of a moose
Every third of the rock paintings known in the Finnish territory presents a moose. The subjects are moose-headed or
moose-horned boats or a human-looking figure with moose horns on their heads.
- It's a universal myth that when a moose grows new horns, it raises the sun again to the sky here in the north
after polar nights. Moosechase is a story about the birth of lakes. When a moose runs, or when its pursuer makes
holes in the terrain with his poles, they are created into lakes. Finally, the moose escapes from the chase to the
sky, and that is how Otava is born, says Liisa Kaski.
Mesikämmen, kontio, lullamoinen, ohto – you should not speak the bear's name aloud
Humans have always been emotional towars bears, they were feared, respected, admired, loved and hated. For many, the
bear is THAT mythical animal.
"The bear has many names, and probably because the bear's real name, according to old beliefs, could not be spoken,"
Kaski ponders. The bear was hunted and the prey was celebrated with karhunpeijaiset. It was a complex play where the bear was alternately ridiculed and comforted. At the end of the feast, the bear's skull had to be lifted to the pine
beak so that the bear could be born again. - The guilt and feelings of fear created by the killing of the bear may
have been based on the belief in the close familyrelations between humans and the bear. And, true, there is something quite familiar in bears.
"The swamp rose in the wolf's feet, the boreal forest in the bear's palms."
The wolf has had as many nicknames as the bear, but they have been forgotten over time. The reason for this is not
known even by Liisa Kaski who has studied the matter.
- It's interesting why today the wolf is hated, but the bear receives gentler emotions . Perhaps the reason is that
the bear is perceived as a man's son or a cursed man, for example. However, in the old myths, the wolf has never been
the villain, Kaski says.
The frog got its rogue meaning from an early age

According to Kaski, the creatures in contact with the underworld were easily connected to witchcraft. In black magic, the word "konna" meant villain in ancient times. Toxicity of the toad skin and its defense with a spray of urine were well known. On the other hand, the frog was seen as a very powerful and "väkiful" creature.
The frog has a wonderful myth of ​​how it carries the whole sky.
- It is somehow a beautiful idea that when a frog there in the bottom mud of the lake hibernates in winter, it also
holds us all and the universe. The mythical animals were not always big and strong, even small ones could be powerful.
The prestigious loon manages lakes and ponds
What about loons? the bird had an important connection with water's väki and was considered so powerful that one of
its feathers already helped significantly in rafting. The master fisherman was also known in the folk tradition for
its voice - the shouting could well be interpreted as the voice of the water spirit in the then much quieter world.
From a folk tradition point of view, birds have taught us to sing and they fulfill the human dream of flying. In turn,
migratory birds were linked to both the future and the past.
- The birds are dear - they let us close and follow, for example, feeding of their babies. Perhaps because they know
they can escape, Liisa Kaski ponders. But they have been interesting to follow a thousand years ago too.
Original article here:
https://yle.fi/…/kalevalassa-ja-kansanperinteessa-elaimilla…
Freely translated by Arisa/ANW

Written by Anette G. Boye

Western Bluebird