When I was a kid I was taught on old Finnish pagan beliefs. My grandma had seen how much I despised Christianity even as a toddler and decided to make me the last of our tribe by her own admission. Death was taught to me so, that when you pass Louhetar comes and gives you a shot of tar black liquor that reliefs all your pain and you continue your life in the afterlife as you did when you were alive. I spent half of the day in forests and lake and/or riversides and each time I entered any forest, I asked the permission from the forest (mostly Metsänpeitto) to enter and I always left everything but my knife outside of the forest itself out of respect. Same permission was asked from Ahti when fishing and once done, I always thanked him. By the age of 9 I was able to survive in the Northern-Savonian forests easily for 2 weeks with a knife and bowl. I left scouts when I realized that they don't even know what living off the land meant and it was linked way too much with church for my comfort. Midsummer has always been the holiest day in a year for me. I always sit at the bonfire just simply meditating over the max half an hour of darkness that we have during that time of the year. After that I reset my clock in my head for a "new year" and feel rejuvenated. This land is magical.
Being raised in Soviet Karelia, I basically accepted Karelo-Finnic mythology as a default mythology. Väinämoeinen, Ilmarinen, Lemminkäinen, Louhi, Aino, Kullervo are for me among the dearest memories of childhood, and I still find deep beauty in the amazing world of Kalevala. Russian part of Karelia is very much like Finland in respect of landscape, and we share a great deal of cultural legacy with the Finns - even those living in Karelia who are not of Karelian, Vepsan or Finnish descent. My mother was a ballet dancer and one of her most significant parts was Louhi in "Sampo", a ballet written by Helmer Sinisalo in the 1950s. Thank you for the stories of Maausko!
I'm working on a English translation of the Mythologia Fennica into English. It's a daunting task, but I'm going to do it. It's hard. Definitely loved this. I consider myself Heathen (Norse/Finnish paganism). Definitely find Finnish paganism closer to my heart and mind.
@@varjovirta3085 that may be so, but there was not a wall between finns and swedes - and your ancestors fucked with vikings, drank with vikings, traded with vikings - and probably also went more to a fucking bastu with vikings than into banya with uralic people.... there are no hard borders - it is foolish to become angry and defensive.
@@varjovirta3085 I hate to tell you this, but the Norse had a lot of cultural interchange with the Finns, specifically in regard to magic. This is directly supported in the sagas. Norse Magic and beliefs did an excellent video concerning this with sources.
Interesting video. The mythology of the Finnic nations has common roots. The names of gods and mythological creatures vary in Estonia just like in different parts of Finland but their roles are similar. I've found that etymology of words and names can tell us a lot about the past. For example, 'äike' (thunder in Estonian) comes from the Proto-Finnic word 'äjjä' which means old man. In Finnish 'äijä' (old man, geezer) is a synonym with 'ukko' (ukkonen means thunder).
Had to take a look if that song book could be found found somewhere, and lucked out in a miraculous way. Hardcover version was for sale: 87% off for a grand total of 2,85 €. Shipping included. 😲
Thank you for this. I'm Finnish-American and study about Finnish Paganism and even speak some Finnish. I love that band as well. Was stoked you got to interview them.
Loved it. Interesting. Ukko sounds a bit like Wujko - a term for an elderly guy, in old years a guy with authority, but now more humorously in Western Ukraine) fun😅
their myths are so metal and dark, the country is so full of misterious woods and lakes, I'm not into religion or spirituality, but if I was, Finland would be my choice to go, it makes me feel like it is a bit more wild, and raw than most places.
I really enjoy seeing other cultures views on "Ancestral Worship". I recently watched a video on the Udmurt people of Russia. They have embodied a lot of Ancestral Worship into their culture. So glad to see that! We have lost way too much of that ancient knowledge.
Mahtava!!! I'm really glad to see some more on Finnish beliefs and Lore, one of my favorites traditional/ physical artists is Tero Porthan, does amazing art pieces on the Mythological figures in the Suomi Pantheon. Also, Iku-Turso is an excellent Finnish Black Metal band haha, soooo many great Finnish music artists out there (like Kalmankataja), going to show Noiduin some love.
Finnish paganism has got much more variety than what is told in Kalevala. I was born in 70's in the Middle-Finland lake area. My granma (born 1906 if I remember correctly) used to tell me about finnish deities and paganism even she was christian (on paper atleast). Her paganism was much more magical and earthy than Kalevala stories. It was close to sami paganism but not quite. She had no close bond to bears, but to birds elks/deer fishes and snakes (and lizards) instead. She believed in gnomes and messengers from above and down the surface. She encouraged me to find "ukonkiviä" (ukko stones, in here those were white milky stones somewhat rare) those were supposed to be good luck omens little gifts from a thunder/weather god Ukko. Deities were not good or bad they just existed and humans had to deal with it. Her second cousin was a famous shaman in the area who also made pranks to the people which harmed the community by greed or other bad deeds. He had this wooden doll as a magic "tool". That doll is preserved in the local museum still nowadays 😉
This was so interesting thank you very much! I have a special connection to Finnland, since I briefly studied Finnish language and culture back in university. We where taught about the kalevala briefly but not nearly enough. So far my best friend and I visited Finnland 3 times, and we are both eager to return. We just feel so connected to the land, and I had one of my most spiritual moments early this year when we visited rovaniemi. We spend our last night a few km's north of rovaniemi, in an igloo/snow hotel, and had the great luck to see our first northern lights. I just remember standing in the middle of this frozen lake at minus 19 degrees Celsius, watching the stars and the northern lights. We cuddled up in blankets, drank some snow-cooled Mintu liquor and just watched the sky. Rarely in my life I felt so free and connected to the earth. There under this endless sky I felt so small and Insignificant, jet so at peace with that. The concept that I really loved in this video was the "keeping happy" of things and people in your life. It's very true from a spiritual and psychological perspective. It basically tells us to take a step back, and be mindful and attentive and apreciative with different aspects of our life. Keeping something "happy" means that we give it enough time and thought, not glancing over it or suppress it, as well as taking it seriously. Understanding the wants and needs of aspects/people/things around us, helps us to reflect our own wants and needs as well. A fire wants to be fed and sheltered, wants air to breath. And so do we. We need nourishment, a place to feel save and develop. So externalizing these emotions and projecting them on the world around us, I believe can really connect us to it a little bit more. Thanks again for the great video! I will check out you guys on Spotify :)
Thank you so much!! As a person who immigrated to Finland, felt like it was her home AND already applied for citizenship, it is very important to me to learn as much as I can about my adopted country. I googled some years ago about finnish paganism and barely found anything... this video is a gift!
I had a Finnish friend named James Hughes. We were best friends for a short time but we moved away from each other. I had a crush on him. I think about him a lot. His family was from Helsinki. I loved listening to his mom talk, I loved her accent. At that time I didn’t know my ancestors were Scandinavian.
Oh, how I wish Finnish people still had some connection their roots, folklore heritage, and especially Paganism! Unfortunately, Christianity has such a huge, blatant "niskaote" of Finnish people, regrettably. People honestly seem to believe true Finnish heritage is Christian, when it isn't. When will people learn to think themselves, and not believe & obey everything given to them by authorities?! (This from a Finn who's Pagan, and will remain so, though I've always felt most drawn to Celtic Paganism, but that may partly be because not much has been known or acknowledged about Finnish Paganism.)
What I understand, the traditions of Kekri were transferred over time to Joulu. That's why people now bring candles to their ancestors' graves in December 24 etc.
Having Estonian heritage myself and knowing that there are similarities with Finnish and Estonian mythology (Uku and Ahti for example), this was fantastic. Would love to see you cross the Baltic Sea for an Estonian Mythology vid!
The bear connection is very interesting. A year ago when I was visiting Finland I met a bear in a meditation. I am not in a habit of meeting wild animals in my meditation or dreams. Maybe that is an example of the strong spirit of bear (or Ursa Major/Minor) in Finland💫
Thank you for sharing beliefs of Finland. My country is almost a neighbor to Finns and I had no clue of the names for their deities. How diverse Europe region is. Also I highly suggest you to one day look into Latvian and Balts beliefs. We also have very unique way of looking to the world around us! Thanks gain ^^
I'm brazilian, just started with the shamanic path, and for many years now i've heard the call of Odin and ignored it because i was a christian, but i kept hearing the drums, i kept seeing that eye, that single eye of the allfather, and now i'm starting also this journey into norse paganism. I feel very lost in this path, because i havent found any other pagan around me. Your videos are being of great help in learning what following and honoring the old gods mean, so a huge thank you!
e todo de cogumelos magicos cara. Sem falar de amanita muscaria nao faz sentido falar da mitologia antigua do Europa em geral. Pesquisa disso e vc vai encontrar muitos informacoes profundos.
Now this is just my beliefs on this ..ur Brazilian ..u should practice the ways of your ancestors... it is very important to me the ways of my ancestors im .( danish Celt) .if u find respect to others' culture or religious beliefs that's fine .. but u should stay loyal to the beliefs of your ppl if u have any at all ...I know nothing of Brazilian paganism but I'm sure it has its own rich and beautiful history...if I was south American I would be all about the culture of the Azteca or the Toltec ..ect . If I was from Ireland I would have a big interest in the picts or the druids ...just saying..u do what u think is best ..like I said just my thoughts ..but ancestor worship is a big part of paganism ..I think we should all stay true to our roots..
@@Scottmiller1974ohio Makes sense. I dont really know why I have such connection with the norse deities, though. I've researched about Iberian gods (i'm mostly iberian, after all), but it just didn't click, you know what i mean? I've been iniciated into indigeous shamanism by a local tribe here, and i see it of great value, but i feel that there is a lot of stuff that they dont teach me because im not from the tribe. I also have some norse blood, although not much, but it resonates with me since i was little. I've dreamt about Scandinavia since i was too young to actually understand what it was
@@victor_bueno_br Iberia had long Celtic history. The Celtic people of more than one tribe intermixed with Norse & Finns & Vikings travelled throughout the region. Though Finland itself has a different culture than Norse & Danes, some did go a'viking & Swedish viking era people were living in southern Finland, for instance Rurik's people. But others moved around too. Many traded in Iberia, and in France, along that whole northern coast quite a lot. You may have ancestry there that includes such a mix. Sometimes one guy stayed. Sometimes we think more like a grandparent than parent or more like ancestors than living forbears, & we call some people old souls, which can mean various things, among them that fact. DNA shows for a certain number of generations, but is still imperfect technology. The point of spirituality is to feel that connection bc without that there's a void inside us. And frankly all cultures go back to early animism which isn't easy to find at first from many places. Animism shares values & beliefs across the continents but is re-emerging in Celtic, Slavic, Norse & Finn the most now. It is probably the animist values that all to you as it's the real basis of this & is what is most natural as we come from nature & are part of nature & it's spiritual need not met by other belief systems, bc they lack that connection to nature & its wisdom & truths. & 😂 Aztec & Toltec are not South American, they're from where Mexico is now & there are over 500 tribes there... Someone above named those... No one else can tell you who you are. And we can get things wrong. I spoke of a possibility bc of known movements but as some Norse pagans & Finns say, the roots of it all are very ancient & once shared by most people & it predates the locations we associate with certain groups. They didn't originate in Iberia but farther east, & paths diverged in different directions. Those very ancient ancestors are in common with Finno-Ugric people and Celts, they all of e from the Indo-European language group roots. Go back far enough therefore & there are proven shared roots, & the details & languages evolved but of course they resonate with those descended from the same truly ancient origins. The things in the cultures that came about more recently, the times between us & those ancients, tend not to resonate as much with those of pagan sensibilities. Not all of us are into the pantheons but just the older animism that came first. Those oldest Old Ways do belong to our roots, wherever in Europe they stem from bc before that they were in a place of origin the migration began from before the cultures split. But it's ok, bc of that shared ancient root. The values will be in common.
@@Scottmiller1974ohio Fair point... But btw Aztec & Toltec are just two groups out of 500+ from what is now called Mexico, & didn't live in Brasil or S. America. Just a heads up. ✌️
Fascinating, i appreciate ancient religious beliefs connected to nature, i am not religious but what i see in many,its more about finding inner peace.Great video 👍
Brother, the gods have chosen you to carry on this beautiful work you are doing. They walk with you and we follow you on this beautiful path you are making in Norse mythology.
This is amazing. 🥰 I don't know anyone else who covers all the spiritualities of Europe like you do, and not from a dry academic sense, but from a "living" sense. I'm Swedish, but both my parents are 1/6th Finnish and my father's whole male line descends from Finland, we discovered through genealogy and genetic testing, so I want to learn more about this. It's sad that they didn't get anything on the mythos in school, as we (I started school in 1997) got about equal amounts on Norse and Biblical myth, at least as far as I remember. The only thing I knew about Finnish myth, throughout my life, was from a Donald Duck comic by Don Rosa, about the Kalevala. It has Väinämöinen, Iku-Turso, and Louhi (and I had to look up the name of that last one), but it was probably over twenty years since I last read it.
I’m beginning to feel that the mythology of the land should be taught in all schools where the schools stand. The land everywhere has a story. And within those stories we find the hidden world that lays beyond the words of ancestors long past ♥️
I think im the oldest living Jemina in Finland😂 it wasnt nowhere and nobody when i was young. My mom is traditionel finnish pagan witch. I really like that ancient knowledge we hold that arent yet written everywhere. Should i start my own vlog our ancestors, their spiritual wars and all that what lead to destruction of paganism? Like if you want to hear.❤
I am so happy you did this video. My maternal grandmother is Finnish and there is so much power in that lineage which I feel I’m being called to. This was very exciting to see. I’m definitely getting a copy of both books. I’m very curious about the Finnish Shamanism book too. I hope it gets translated.
Actually, the ancient Finnish belief system is very much tied to the belief of afterlife and, in a way, reincarnation. There's three things to acknowledge first: 1. The belief that everyone and everything has it's own guardian, "haltija" (literally, the possessor, owner, gnome), coming from their own "väki" (lit. the people, the strength, the folk). 2. At certain times and instances, the dead can leave the afterlife (called Tuonela or Manala or Vainajala or tuonpuoleinen) to visit the living world. 3. The belief in tripartite soul. 1. Both the living things, such as the people, the animals, and the non-living things, such as the natural forces, buildings and places, have their own possessor, haltija. A haltija would come to you to protect and guide you and bring you good luck, it was their job. The haltijas of the living beings would come from their "väki", from their folk, being the souls of their pased away ancestors. The haltijas of non-living things, such as places and areas, would occupy what they protected based on what they did while living. For example, the haltija of the house could be the one who built the building or who first lived there. The haltija of a lake or body of waters, could be one who did a lot of fishing there or died there. And so on. A lot of the traditions originate from the will to maintain the balance in space and time; between the folks who share the living world simultaneously, and between the former, current and future relatives. Thus, places, people, animals, natural places, everything is to be respected, in order to maintain the balance and peace between the väki of all of them. 2. The belief, that the passed away ancestors, the väki of the family, could pass the border between the living and the dead world, one way or another, in certain times of the year, month, or day, or in certain instances of one's life, contributed to the worshipoing of the dead. Such days would be the harvest celebration, the shortest and the longest day of the year (joulu and juhannus), the period before giving the name to a baby, and the turn of the year, month, week and day. Some of the traditions are still alive, even if people don't remember the origins of them anymore. Such as lighting up candles at the passed away family members' graves at certain days, feeding the birds in the winter time (it was believed that in some instances the ancestors would visit the living world in a form of bird), and never eating the last piece served (which was to be offered to the haltija, the passed away ancestor protecting the house), not letting anyone to know the name of the baby befor the name-giving, taking only what you really need in the forest or in the lakes while showing respect to the nature you're interacting with by being mindful, and throwing the final löyly at sauna right before you're leaving (serving sauna to the haltija in turn). 3. The belief in tripartite soul related to the stamina, health and misfortune. One part of the soul would be the haltijasielu, which would protect the individual, contributes to the intuition and subconscious, and for example, to the ability to foresee things, which is called etiäinen. The second part of the soul is the henkisielu (henki means life, breath or esprit), which contributes to the health and life of the body. The third part is the itsesielu (itse means myself), which is the conscious of the individual, your thoughts and self-consciousness. Losing the haltijasielu would make one face misfortune and hardships in life (even though it was believed the haltija could safely part the body it possessed for short periods of time, such as in the case of etiäinen or dreaming). Losing the henki would make you lifeless, physically dead. And losing the itse would mean you would be mentally lost, unattached and unmotivated to do anything. So, tying this all together, the ancient Finns believed that the living and the dead kept in contact on different instances and times. By worshipping, you would basically please a haltija, which could be your ancestor, as well as holder of great powers and wealth, such as the power of thunder (rain), the richess of the forest or the waters, you could achieve wealth, good fortune and maintain peace and harmony. By not respecting the väkis of different places and elements, you would spread misfortune and you would have to go trough some struggle to make amends, let alone have wealth and fortune again. I think the distinction with "gods" and "elfs" was not that prevalent in the past. A haltija might grow to be so might that they had god-like powers, like the powers of the natural elements. But they were still not so different or hierarchially "more important" than the haltijas of the individual, the house, the sauna or the local lake, for example. Sometimes the two would also merge; people would worship the haltija of the local forest, as well as the general idea of a forest. Sometimes the local forest would be more "tame" to the person, having a local haltija protecting it, while Tapio, the general protector of the forests, would be seen as more wild, unpredictable and awe-inspiring. Modern people tend to see the ancient belief system trough the currently more well-known belief-systems, such as Christianity, which name powerful God(s) and have hierarchies of deities. However, in the past, the Finnish belief system was likely less unified, was less motivated by building strong mythical characters that sound easily marketable to the international audience. It was more about the belief system of living and dead, everyday life and living in harmony with your environment, seeing everything as a kind of trade between the väkis. If you were respectful, the väki would protect you. If you were not, the väki would revenge you. If you offered a great deal to the väki and showed hospitality, it would in turn do the same for you. If you were a good singer, you could attract the väki and attain it's power. You could persuade väki to change their mind. As väki was seen as your ancestors, some of which just possessing more power than others, väki wouldn't be one unified god-like bunch, but their tasks would vary, as well as their nature. Some had just mundane daily tasks, while others would hold the powers of the natural world. Yet, having good luck with the daily tasks would be as crucial as - lets say, having good weather. So, no haltija could be put above another, and it would be subjective and tied to the instance, which haltija was most crucial to worship at any given moment.
This overall belief system is still observed in some members of my family though the names of the actors have been lost through the generations due to intermarrying with the later waves of immigrants here in the good old USA. Religiously I'm a born again Christian, culturally I'm a woodland Finn - descended from Finn/Swede members of the Swedish Colony on the Delaware River. In summation, we don't know the names of the entities involved here but we see their actions and acknowledge it. I'll share this story. Doing a walkabout on my property with my then five year old grandson. He found a stick and was thrashing the weeds and grasses as we walked along. I told him that the things that he was thrashing were going to tell the others and that they would get him back. On our way back to the house he was running to catch up to me and got his feet tangled and fell face first into the ground. "See? I told you they'd get you." You could say he was then initiated to the other realm. At 18 years old now he has a respect for the natural world. Another, My great grandmother was concerned about a dead standing tree near her porch. Before it could be removed she passed on suddenly. The next day her son, my grandfather, noticed the tree had fallen away from the porch. "Mom dropped that dead tree she was concerned about". Another, A child had fallen off a boat that was moored in Big Timber Creek and disappeared in the water. A search was carried out with no results. A couple mornings later, my grandparents were looking over the creek in thought and simultaneously they decided that grandfather should take his skiff and bring the child home. He did just that. It's almost like they were in a play of sorts, performing their parts. Another, At the age of ten my parents divorced. I was sent to live with my grandparents for a time. My life was in turmoil. One night something sat at the foot of my bed. I felt the weight settle on to the mattress but nobody was there. Freaked me out to say the least. Years later I had taken up smoking a pipe. My grandfather seeing this related how his grandfather had smoked a pipe and how he would sometimes light a pine splinter for the old mans pipe. "He died in the house sitting in his chair." First I had heard that story. I then related my experience with the something that sat on my bed. "He wouldn't hurt you" was Pops reply. My grandmother said that after she died she would put fish on our fishing poles while out in the ocean. Of course. There are those that LARP it and there are those that live it.
Thank you very much Jacob and Noiduin ❤️, I really enjoyed learning all your wisdom about Finnish spirituality 🔥💙 as I have always felt a huge connection to Finland and its culture since I was a little girl, having even learned a few words in Finnish and my dream as a girl was to travel to Rovaniemi and a wooden house in the woods, perhaps some of my ancestors walked this wonderful land and I think I would love the cold climate. You do an amazing work ❤️, and your clear explanations as well as those of the Noiduin were of enormous value to me. As I have little time and really wanted to learn, I watched this video five times and I am amazed at the teachings I always wanted to have. Thank you very much also for all the wisdow that your videos have given me about pagan cultures that I love, you have done an excellent work❤️🔥💜! Suomi on hyvaa 😉!!
I did my Mphil re the Sami in Finland in the Artic region. Read the Kalavala in the first week while at the university in Rovaniemi. Love the first bit re life come to universe-world. As in creation of life in universe. Finnish Mythology-legend Creation Story.
Thank you so much for this. I've been drawn to Norse paganism for years but just now getting into my Finnish roots and their specific pagan beliefs. I have Norwegian and Finnish ancestry and there's so much to learn! Thanks so much for making this video.
This is very interesting, thankyou for introducing me to Finnish mythology, I didn't know of the Kalevala so nice one bruv. I especially like discovering the similarities between the various Indo European pantheons.
I just revisited my ancestral roots (in the Pagan sense). I bit of a plug to Noiduin, awesome band. Also Goi is worth listening to. They are two of the better bands using period piece instruments and they capture that early iron age nicely. Your video was very timely Jacob. Will be spreading this around amongst my family. Nice video.
haven't even finished the video and had to share a mini story. Ever since I've heard and saw a talharpa I had to make one. that was one of the first things I made after joining a Viking living History group. It came out not so great. So I bought a book from a Finnish guy and built another one. It came out kind of better. Now I'm obsessed with making didgeridoos and talharpas or johikko (horrible at spelling, so phonetic for me).
It is not all lost.. some Secrets came with the folks that migrated to the United States. My Family is From Socklot North of Vasa. I still talk to my family. I am a lost wise one..
Something to add: Väinämöinen was only considered a sorta half-god in certain areas of Finland. There are a lot of differences in beliefs and they are all depending on the region. The reason for this is the fact that we were a land of tribes.
Loving the way you interview the local act to give an extensive explanation about the intricate spiritual and creatures thing! Much love from Ma|aysia. We have some sameness spiritualism in believing in animism and there are certain unspoken rules that we have to follow when entering the jungle
The Finnish Afterlife sounds a lot like the Celtic Afterlife: You leave This World, go to the Otherworld, then Return to This World after a while, in a new form.
hey Jacob, do you by chance have any finnish blood in ya, or relatives here? because you look very similar to my sister's guy, your laugh is eerily similar, i probably missed parts of the video cos i was so surprised :D also, thank you for the video, nice to see and hear people are interested in finnish mythology and spiritualism!
I practice Norse paganism and have an Estonian boyfriend, I want to study his ethnic groups religious practices more and this was this video. Thank you!
This is an incredible video, Jacob! Deeply appreciating how you are digging deeper to bring these beautiful and less known stories and practices to our awareness. And now I have a couple more books to add to my list to look for!
@Jacob Toddson This was a interesting video. Will you try to cover the Sami poeple's mythologies and what not too? Although that might be a more difficult task since there are Norwegian, Swedish and Finnish Sami so both the native speaking and tradition may be different.
As with this video, I would not want to talk about it until I found a Sami person willing to share their spiritual beliefs with me and on video. From my understanding the Sami are ver private with their spiritual beliefs and it can take years to build friendships with them enough to be trusted. Hopefully one day! But I certainly want to do the subject justice, and share it in the most genuine way possible :)
I seem to be drawn to this as well.. loving nature everything in it.. I've been camping since the age of 10.. if I could I would love to visit Finland and go into to the forest.. unfortunately I am in the United States.. I do not have the millions of dollars to do this.. saw these videos are going to have to do😂
The significance of the bear was more than a mere animal it was considered sort of a demi-god of the forest and almost on par with humans which is why bear hunts were a deeply sacred event and the bear was revered and worshipped even when eating its meat which was thought to give you its powers
There are many similarities between Finnish and Norse mythologies and there is some minor debate on how much did they influence one another. Iku - Turso for example is something that can be found in Norse mythology as Thurs, these giant beings that have existed forever and in the name Iku - Turso the word Iku means Ikuinen translated in english as Eternal. Also the way ancient Finns looked at spiritual things and how there are different parts to our "souls" which is quite similar with Norse mythology. It's not just a soul but rather many different parts that affect our characteristics, our vitality and something that may guide us and so on. The gods resemble each other quite a bit between Eddas and Kalevala. Even Louhi and Loki have lots of similarities and maybe it is because of different sexes but maybe there is more to Lokis story than giving birth to Sleipnir we know of. Lots of stories about Finnish shamans influencing Norse shamanism and no wonder why since we live so close to another. There are also other words in our language besides Ukkonen, Ukkosmyrsky ( Thunder, Thunderstorm ) that have a long root in our beliefs for example Metsästys is Hunting in finnish but an older word for metsästys / hunting that is still used quite often is Pyynti and that means A request for something or to ask something which ties up to our ancestors asking the spirits and deities of the forests or lakes etc for permission to hunt and to catch something and in return something that was caught was always given back to nature. When speaking about our current times the Finnish forests and wilderness is full of old places that are slowly being claimed back by nature that for some reason haven't gotten any or as much of intrest from archelogists as they should have but luckily we have quite an active community of people with their metal detectors helping at least discover and unearth small fragments of our past so it is not all forgotten. Also the amount of viking swords that have been found here is big, the second largest amount anywhere. We've definately been raided by Norse vikings and in return have raided them but perhaps not in such a big scale. Anyway I love both mythologies and feel a strong connection to both. Thanks for the great video of a topic that very rarely gets any attention outside Finland. And Tolkien.
Things were written in the christianized era to preserve them, but yes the authenticity or accuracy is always in question then. Most people can't check with the few who carried oral tradition secretly. We know much was lost bc people were killed for paganism. Snorri who wrote the Icelandic Sagas was Christian, or had to say so. Likely actually was. The thing is these writers recorded what they understood of it, what they knew, in a time MUCH closer than ours. As paganism reemerges & spreads the more sources & oral traditions reveal, & animism is instinctive, it's woven into our nature unless we're so indoctrinated by ... something else that it's been buried. People escaping indoctrination need stepping stones, clues, and then in time what isn't authentic begins to be understood, becomes clear. There is a knowing that eventually gets in, from deep in our consciousness & from immersing in animism ways, that wakes up in us the Old Ways. We begin to just know when something is altered by religious perspective or competitive propaganda, bashing or their old fear. But people do cute what is written bc other things of cultural roots are still alive & those who lived closer to the time had a few more & it's not utterly without value. We simply remember it was written after, from that perspective. Just like the Norse Helm of Awe is in writing long after Viking era it's still of use, has meaning, & we don't know that it wasn't destroyed bc of being a magical symbol while runestones talking of personal events were allowed to remain. These are doorways, & it's really up to us, our own spirits to truly connect anyway. We read with a grain of salt & some of us do need that bridge to something nearby what we seek on their way into shedding other things foisted onto their ancestors more recent than truly Old Ways. This is also why pagans especially converts read related cultures,to kick out what ways didn't serve them& get little bits of further understanding though these things were not written by those who came before them. It's a tool, it's what we have, it's not the be all & end all of info, but within it are bits of cultural things many would not get to without something else... If they have nothing or have the biblical thinking, which is extremely different especially in regards to culture & nature & what's sacred. It's not meant to be the main reference or a holy book. What's sacred is nature itself & being equal within it, not above it.
Just to add another more bodied source for Finnish mythology is Suomen kansan vanhat runot it consist of 34 books and has about 100 000 poems Also i have to say finns definitely raided over The baltic sea what became modern Sweden and Estonians did raid what are modern day denmark and poland
Bears represent Great Mother. Everything in Nature is epiphany of Great Mother. That's why keep all in Nature happy. Worship all of Nature. She is Mother. Hail!!!
There are sources on Slavic mythology & Rodnovary, meanwhile. Jacob is careful not to just read someone's source& pillage it & to not speak over a people on their beliefs. That's very cool, really. Integrity.
When I was a kid I was taught on old Finnish pagan beliefs. My grandma had seen how much I despised Christianity even as a toddler and decided to make me the last of our tribe by her own admission. Death was taught to me so, that when you pass Louhetar comes and gives you a shot of tar black liquor that reliefs all your pain and you continue your life in the afterlife as you did when you were alive. I spent half of the day in forests and lake and/or riversides and each time I entered any forest, I asked the permission from the forest (mostly Metsänpeitto) to enter and I always left everything but my knife outside of the forest itself out of respect. Same permission was asked from Ahti when fishing and once done, I always thanked him.
By the age of 9 I was able to survive in the Northern-Savonian forests easily for 2 weeks with a knife and bowl. I left scouts when I realized that they don't even know what living off the land meant and it was linked way too much with church for my comfort.
Midsummer has always been the holiest day in a year for me. I always sit at the bonfire just simply meditating over the max half an hour of darkness that we have during that time of the year.
After that I reset my clock in my head for a "new year" and feel rejuvenated.
This land is magical.
Being raised in Soviet Karelia, I basically accepted Karelo-Finnic mythology as a default mythology. Väinämoeinen, Ilmarinen, Lemminkäinen, Louhi, Aino, Kullervo are for me among the dearest memories of childhood, and I still find deep beauty in the amazing world of Kalevala. Russian part of Karelia is very much like Finland in respect of landscape, and we share a great deal of cultural legacy with the Finns - even those living in Karelia who are not of Karelian, Vepsan or Finnish descent. My mother was a ballet dancer and one of her most significant parts was Louhi in "Sampo", a ballet written by Helmer Sinisalo in the 1950s.
Thank you for the stories of Maausko!
I'm working on a English translation of the Mythologia Fennica into English. It's a daunting task, but I'm going to do it. It's hard. Definitely loved this. I consider myself Heathen (Norse/Finnish paganism). Definitely find Finnish paganism closer to my heart and mind.
It is not related Norse heathenry. It is Uralic in its root not Germanic!!
@@varjovirta3085 he probably means that he feels connected to both norse and finnish paganism
@@varjovirta3085 that may be so, but there was not a wall between finns and swedes - and your ancestors
fucked with vikings, drank with vikings, traded with vikings - and probably also went more to a fucking bastu with vikings than into
banya with uralic people....
there are no hard borders - it is foolish to become angry and defensive.
@@varjovirta3085 I hate to tell you this, but the Norse had a lot of cultural interchange with the Finns, specifically in regard to magic. This is directly supported in the sagas. Norse Magic and beliefs did an excellent video concerning this with sources.
Looking forward to this project being done!
I have that last book. I borrowed it from library. Should have read it more, I'll have to return it soon.
Interesting video. The mythology of the Finnic nations has common roots. The names of gods and mythological creatures vary in Estonia just like in different parts of Finland but their roles are similar. I've found that etymology of words and names can tell us a lot about the past. For example, 'äike' (thunder in Estonian) comes from the Proto-Finnic word 'äjjä' which means old man. In Finnish 'äijä' (old man, geezer) is a synonym with 'ukko' (ukkonen means thunder).
Can’t tell you how much I appreciate this - I find very little info about my culture on this platform
I hope I can help in a small way bring more light and interest to Finland 🇫🇮 ❤️
Would you like to serve me under the Aurora’s?
We can start a trip next month to The Artic Circle
Irish in Finland has great videos too
I recommend Anttimation, They Talk Suomi, Irish in Finland.
Had to take a look if that song book could be found found somewhere, and lucked out in a miraculous way. Hardcover version was for sale: 87% off for a grand total of 2,85 €. Shipping included. 😲
Thank you for this. I'm Finnish-American and study about Finnish Paganism and even speak some Finnish. I love that band as well. Was stoked you got to interview them.
With luck I will be talking more about Finnish Spirituality in upcoming videos :)
@@TheWisdomOfOdin Stop promoting nonsense.
Same here I'm 100% Finnish American both parents where 100^ also
@varjovirta3085 what.
*troll*
Thank you. As a Finn I really appreciate this video.
Glad you enjoyed it!
Loved it. Interesting. Ukko sounds a bit like Wujko - a term for an elderly guy, in old years a guy with authority, but now more humorously in Western Ukraine) fun😅
@@mirebell2473 😁💖
@@mirebell2473 I actually wrote after watching, so)
just curious
their myths are so metal and dark, the country is so full of misterious woods and lakes, I'm not into religion or spirituality, but if I was, Finland would be my choice to go, it makes me feel like it is a bit more wild, and raw than most places.
I really enjoy seeing other cultures views on "Ancestral Worship". I recently watched a video on the Udmurt people of Russia. They have embodied a lot of Ancestral Worship into their culture. So glad to see that! We have lost way too much of that ancient knowledge.
As someone who has a strong tie to Finland as well as Norway I’ve been really diving into my Finn roots this was great! Thank you!
Mahtava!!! I'm really glad to see some more on Finnish beliefs and Lore, one of my favorites traditional/ physical artists is Tero Porthan, does amazing art pieces on the Mythological figures in the Suomi Pantheon. Also, Iku-Turso is an excellent Finnish Black Metal band haha, soooo many great Finnish music artists out there (like Kalmankataja), going to show Noiduin some love.
Finnish paganism has got much more variety than what is told in Kalevala. I was born in 70's in the Middle-Finland lake area. My granma (born 1906 if I remember correctly) used to tell me about finnish deities and paganism even she was christian (on paper atleast). Her paganism was much more magical and earthy than Kalevala stories. It was close to sami paganism but not quite. She had no close bond to bears, but to birds elks/deer fishes and snakes (and lizards) instead. She believed in gnomes and messengers from above and down the surface. She encouraged me to find "ukonkiviä" (ukko stones, in here those were white milky stones somewhat rare) those were supposed to be good luck omens little gifts from a thunder/weather god Ukko. Deities were not good or bad they just existed and humans had to deal with it. Her second cousin was a famous shaman in the area who also made pranks to the people which harmed the community by greed or other bad deeds. He had this wooden doll as a magic "tool". That doll is preserved in the local museum still nowadays 😉
This was so interesting thank you very much! I have a special connection to Finnland, since I briefly studied Finnish language and culture back in university. We where taught about the kalevala briefly but not nearly enough. So far my best friend and I visited Finnland 3 times, and we are both eager to return. We just feel so connected to the land, and I had one of my most spiritual moments early this year when we visited rovaniemi. We spend our last night a few km's north of rovaniemi, in an igloo/snow hotel, and had the great luck to see our first northern lights. I just remember standing in the middle of this frozen lake at minus 19 degrees Celsius, watching the stars and the northern lights. We cuddled up in blankets, drank some snow-cooled Mintu liquor and just watched the sky. Rarely in my life I felt so free and connected to the earth. There under this endless sky I felt so small and Insignificant, jet so at peace with that.
The concept that I really loved in this video was the "keeping happy" of things and people in your life. It's very true from a spiritual and psychological perspective. It basically tells us to take a step back, and be mindful and attentive and apreciative with different aspects of our life. Keeping something "happy" means that we give it enough time and thought, not glancing over it or suppress it, as well as taking it seriously. Understanding the wants and needs of aspects/people/things around us, helps us to reflect our own wants and needs as well. A fire wants to be fed and sheltered, wants air to breath. And so do we. We need nourishment, a place to feel save and develop. So externalizing these emotions and projecting them on the world around us, I believe can really connect us to it a little bit more. Thanks again for the great video! I will check out you guys on Spotify :)
Thank you for sharing your story. It sounds wonderful ❤️
Awesome!🙌
Being Finnish and Swedish and practicing ancestral ways, it is neat to see Finland being mentioned😊
I'm moving to Helsinki from Washington DC. Do you recommend any literature on ancient Finnish culture I could read or something to watch?
@@lastspoil5547
I just now saw this😅
If I was you I would watch Irish in Finland,I am not sure of how much there are books translated .
As a finn living in Sweden I thank you brother!
Thank you so much!! As a person who immigrated to Finland, felt like it was her home AND already applied for citizenship, it is very important to me to learn as much as I can about my adopted country. I googled some years ago about finnish paganism and barely found anything... this video is a gift!
You were made to do this you explain all of this in such a positive and exciting manner !! Thank you for all your efforts
Thank you so much!
I really enjoy this part very interesting.. how the Finish kept these writings ✍️ alive for so long
It's seems like all the Northern tribes spiritually is nature based. Getting out in nature is healthy for all races of men. Their is peace...
We were all born of nature. It is where we must return 🌲
So beautifull, bears are my favorite animals since i was little, and the music of that band so amazing and peaceful really gonna check them out more !
yeah winnie the pooh is awesome.
Bears are one of my favorites as well,so I understand 😊🐻✨.
I had a Finnish friend named James Hughes. We were best friends for a short time but we moved away from each other. I had a crush on him. I think about him a lot. His family was from Helsinki. I loved listening to his mom talk, I loved her accent. At that time I didn’t know my ancestors were Scandinavian.
Oh, how I wish Finnish people still had some connection their roots, folklore heritage, and especially Paganism! Unfortunately, Christianity has such a huge, blatant "niskaote" of Finnish people, regrettably. People honestly seem to believe true Finnish heritage is Christian, when it isn't. When will people learn to think themselves, and not believe & obey everything given to them by authorities?! (This from a Finn who's Pagan, and will remain so, though I've always felt most drawn to Celtic Paganism, but that may partly be because not much has been known or acknowledged about Finnish Paganism.)
theres also kekri - which is similar to halloween, but origin is tied to celebrating the last harvests during autumn
What I understand, the traditions of Kekri were transferred over time to Joulu. That's why people now bring candles to their ancestors' graves in December 24 etc.
Having Estonian heritage myself and knowing that there are similarities with Finnish and Estonian mythology (Uku and Ahti for example), this was fantastic. Would love to see you cross the Baltic Sea for an Estonian Mythology vid!
Have it recorded 👍🏻 just need to edit lol 😊
@@TheWisdomOfOdin 😱
Can’t wait!
I love the ethnographic turn your channel is taking, Jacob.
The bear connection is very interesting. A year ago when I was visiting Finland I met a bear in a meditation. I am not in a habit of meeting wild animals in my meditation or dreams. Maybe that is an example of the strong spirit of bear (or Ursa Major/Minor) in Finland💫
Thank you for sharing beliefs of Finland. My country is almost a neighbor to Finns and I had no clue of the names for their deities. How diverse Europe region is.
Also I highly suggest you to one day look into Latvian and Balts beliefs. We also have very unique way of looking to the world around us! Thanks gain ^^
Did you know that the Latvian male given name 'Ilmārs' comes from 'Ilmarinen' (also known as 'Ilmari', the -inen ending is used in poems).
@@closetmonster5057 I didn't know that. This is cool ^ Did a quick research - it comes from Finns right?
@@katrinafalks Yes apparently it was borrowed from the Finns in the 19th century.
I'm brazilian, just started with the shamanic path, and for many years now i've heard the call of Odin and ignored it because i was a christian, but i kept hearing the drums, i kept seeing that eye, that single eye of the allfather, and now i'm starting also this journey into norse paganism. I feel very lost in this path, because i havent found any other pagan around me. Your videos are being of great help in learning what following and honoring the old gods mean, so a huge thank you!
e todo de cogumelos magicos cara. Sem falar de amanita muscaria nao faz sentido falar da mitologia antigua do Europa em geral. Pesquisa disso e vc vai encontrar muitos informacoes profundos.
Now this is just my beliefs on this ..ur Brazilian ..u should practice the ways of your ancestors... it is very important to me the ways of my ancestors im .( danish Celt) .if u find respect to others' culture or religious beliefs that's fine .. but u should stay loyal to the beliefs of your ppl if u have any at all ...I know nothing of Brazilian paganism but I'm sure it has its own rich and beautiful history...if I was south American I would be all about the culture of the Azteca or the Toltec ..ect . If I was from Ireland I would have a big interest in the picts or the druids ...just saying..u do what u think is best ..like I said just my thoughts ..but ancestor worship is a big part of paganism ..I think we should all stay true to our roots..
@@Scottmiller1974ohio Makes sense. I dont really know why I have such connection with the norse deities, though. I've researched about Iberian gods (i'm mostly iberian, after all), but it just didn't click, you know what i mean? I've been iniciated into indigeous shamanism by a local tribe here, and i see it of great value, but i feel that there is a lot of stuff that they dont teach me because im not from the tribe. I also have some norse blood, although not much, but it resonates with me since i was little. I've dreamt about Scandinavia since i was too young to actually understand what it was
@@victor_bueno_br Iberia had long Celtic history. The Celtic people of more than one tribe intermixed with Norse & Finns & Vikings travelled throughout the region. Though Finland itself has a different culture than Norse & Danes, some did go a'viking & Swedish viking era people were living in southern Finland, for instance Rurik's people. But others moved around too. Many traded in Iberia, and in France, along that whole northern coast quite a lot. You may have ancestry there that includes such a mix. Sometimes one guy stayed. Sometimes we think more like a grandparent than parent or more like ancestors than living forbears, & we call some people old souls, which can mean various things, among them that fact. DNA shows for a certain number of generations, but is still imperfect technology.
The point of spirituality is to feel that connection bc without that there's a void inside us. And frankly all cultures go back to early animism which isn't easy to find at first from many places. Animism shares values & beliefs across the continents but is re-emerging in Celtic, Slavic, Norse & Finn the most now. It is probably the animist values that all to you as it's the real basis of this & is what is most natural as we come from nature & are part of nature & it's spiritual need not met by other belief systems, bc they lack that connection to nature & its wisdom & truths.
& 😂 Aztec & Toltec are not South American, they're from where Mexico is now & there are over 500 tribes there... Someone above named those... No one else can tell you who you are. And we can get things wrong. I spoke of a possibility bc of known movements but as some Norse pagans & Finns say, the roots of it all are very ancient & once shared by most people & it predates the locations we associate with certain groups. They didn't originate in Iberia but farther east, & paths diverged in different directions. Those very ancient ancestors are in common with Finno-Ugric people and Celts, they all of e from the Indo-European language group roots. Go back far enough therefore & there are proven shared roots, & the details & languages evolved but of course they resonate with those descended from the same truly ancient origins. The things in the cultures that came about more recently, the times between us & those ancients, tend not to resonate as much with those of pagan sensibilities. Not all of us are into the pantheons but just the older animism that came first. Those oldest Old Ways do belong to our roots, wherever in Europe they stem from bc before that they were in a place of origin the migration began from before the cultures split. But it's ok, bc of that shared ancient root. The values will be in common.
@@Scottmiller1974ohio Fair point... But btw Aztec & Toltec are just two groups out of 500+ from what is now called Mexico, & didn't live in Brasil or S. America. Just a heads up. ✌️
Excellent introduction to Finnish mythology! Thank you so much for interviewing Jemina and Henri . . . great video! Tack! 😊
I'm glad they're keeping their spirituality alive. I'm gonna have to check out the Kalevala. Sounds fascinating! Thanks for posting this!
It’s a bit dense but full of amazing songs and spells you’d never imagine existed!
Fascinating, i appreciate ancient religious beliefs connected to nature, i am not religious but what i see in many,its more about finding inner peace.Great video 👍
Brother, the gods have chosen you to carry on this beautiful work you are doing. They walk with you and we follow you on this beautiful path you are making in Norse mythology.
Great video i just wish there was an unedited version
This is amazing. 🥰 I don't know anyone else who covers all the spiritualities of Europe like you do, and not from a dry academic sense, but from a "living" sense.
I'm Swedish, but both my parents are 1/6th Finnish and my father's whole male line descends from Finland, we discovered through genealogy and genetic testing, so I want to learn more about this.
It's sad that they didn't get anything on the mythos in school, as we (I started school in 1997) got about equal amounts on Norse and Biblical myth, at least as far as I remember. The only thing I knew about Finnish myth, throughout my life, was from a Donald Duck comic by Don Rosa, about the Kalevala. It has Väinämöinen, Iku-Turso, and Louhi (and I had to look up the name of that last one), but it was probably over twenty years since I last read it.
I’m beginning to feel that the mythology of the land should be taught in all schools where the schools stand.
The land everywhere has a story. And within those stories we find the hidden world that lays beyond the words of ancestors long past ♥️
Fascinating! Never heard of these gods before, good informative video.
The mythology of Finland is so inspiring. I really recommend reading the Kalevala!
@TheWisdomOfOdin I'm definitely gonna check it out. Some of the lesser known gods are actually some of the coolest ones.
@@TheWisdomOfOdin F''' you liar
@@TheWisdomOfOdin I wonder how Kalevala is translated given it's poetic nature.
Really enjoyed learning about the Finnish Gods. Their music is great too! Thanks!!! ❤
I think im the oldest living Jemina in Finland😂 it wasnt nowhere and nobody when i was young. My mom is traditionel finnish pagan witch. I really like that ancient knowledge we hold that arent yet written everywhere. Should i start my own vlog our ancestors, their spiritual wars and all that what lead to destruction of paganism? Like if you want to hear.❤
I am so happy you did this video. My maternal grandmother is Finnish and there is so much power in that lineage which I feel I’m being called to. This was very exciting to see. I’m definitely getting a copy of both books. I’m very curious about the Finnish Shamanism book too. I hope it gets translated.
Actually, the ancient Finnish belief system is very much tied to the belief of afterlife and, in a way, reincarnation. There's three things to acknowledge first: 1. The belief that everyone and everything has it's own guardian, "haltija" (literally, the possessor, owner, gnome), coming from their own "väki" (lit. the people, the strength, the folk). 2. At certain times and instances, the dead can leave the afterlife (called Tuonela or Manala or Vainajala or tuonpuoleinen) to visit the living world. 3. The belief in tripartite soul.
1. Both the living things, such as the people, the animals, and the non-living things, such as the natural forces, buildings and places, have their own possessor, haltija. A haltija would come to you to protect and guide you and bring you good luck, it was their job. The haltijas of the living beings would come from their "väki", from their folk, being the souls of their pased away ancestors. The haltijas of non-living things, such as places and areas, would occupy what they protected based on what they did while living. For example, the haltija of the house could be the one who built the building or who first lived there. The haltija of a lake or body of waters, could be one who did a lot of fishing there or died there. And so on. A lot of the traditions originate from the will to maintain the balance in space and time; between the folks who share the living world simultaneously, and between the former, current and future relatives. Thus, places, people, animals, natural places, everything is to be respected, in order to maintain the balance and peace between the väki of all of them.
2. The belief, that the passed away ancestors, the väki of the family, could pass the border between the living and the dead world, one way or another, in certain times of the year, month, or day, or in certain instances of one's life, contributed to the worshipoing of the dead. Such days would be the harvest celebration, the shortest and the longest day of the year (joulu and juhannus), the period before giving the name to a baby, and the turn of the year, month, week and day. Some of the traditions are still alive, even if people don't remember the origins of them anymore. Such as lighting up candles at the passed away family members' graves at certain days, feeding the birds in the winter time (it was believed that in some instances the ancestors would visit the living world in a form of bird), and never eating the last piece served (which was to be offered to the haltija, the passed away ancestor protecting the house), not letting anyone to know the name of the baby befor the name-giving, taking only what you really need in the forest or in the lakes while showing respect to the nature you're interacting with by being mindful, and throwing the final löyly at sauna right before you're leaving (serving sauna to the haltija in turn).
3. The belief in tripartite soul related to the stamina, health and misfortune. One part of the soul would be the haltijasielu, which would protect the individual, contributes to the intuition and subconscious, and for example, to the ability to foresee things, which is called etiäinen. The second part of the soul is the henkisielu (henki means life, breath or esprit), which contributes to the health and life of the body. The third part is the itsesielu (itse means myself), which is the conscious of the individual, your thoughts and self-consciousness. Losing the haltijasielu would make one face misfortune and hardships in life (even though it was believed the haltija could safely part the body it possessed for short periods of time, such as in the case of etiäinen or dreaming). Losing the henki would make you lifeless, physically dead. And losing the itse would mean you would be mentally lost, unattached and unmotivated to do anything.
So, tying this all together, the ancient Finns believed that the living and the dead kept in contact on different instances and times. By worshipping, you would basically please a haltija, which could be your ancestor, as well as holder of great powers and wealth, such as the power of thunder (rain), the richess of the forest or the waters, you could achieve wealth, good fortune and maintain peace and harmony. By not respecting the väkis of different places and elements, you would spread misfortune and you would have to go trough some struggle to make amends, let alone have wealth and fortune again. I think the distinction with "gods" and "elfs" was not that prevalent in the past. A haltija might grow to be so might that they had god-like powers, like the powers of the natural elements. But they were still not so different or hierarchially "more important" than the haltijas of the individual, the house, the sauna or the local lake, for example. Sometimes the two would also merge; people would worship the haltija of the local forest, as well as the general idea of a forest. Sometimes the local forest would be more "tame" to the person, having a local haltija protecting it, while Tapio, the general protector of the forests, would be seen as more wild, unpredictable and awe-inspiring. Modern people tend to see the ancient belief system trough the currently more well-known belief-systems, such as Christianity, which name powerful God(s) and have hierarchies of deities. However, in the past, the Finnish belief system was likely less unified, was less motivated by building strong mythical characters that sound easily marketable to the international audience. It was more about the belief system of living and dead, everyday life and living in harmony with your environment, seeing everything as a kind of trade between the väkis. If you were respectful, the väki would protect you. If you were not, the väki would revenge you. If you offered a great deal to the väki and showed hospitality, it would in turn do the same for you. If you were a good singer, you could attract the väki and attain it's power. You could persuade väki to change their mind. As väki was seen as your ancestors, some of which just possessing more power than others, väki wouldn't be one unified god-like bunch, but their tasks would vary, as well as their nature. Some had just mundane daily tasks, while others would hold the powers of the natural world. Yet, having good luck with the daily tasks would be as crucial as - lets say, having good weather. So, no haltija could be put above another, and it would be subjective and tied to the instance, which haltija was most crucial to worship at any given moment.
This overall belief system is still observed in some members of my family though the names of the actors have been lost through the generations due to intermarrying with the later waves of immigrants here in the good old USA.
Religiously I'm a born again Christian, culturally I'm a woodland Finn - descended from Finn/Swede members of the Swedish Colony on the Delaware River.
In summation, we don't know the names of the entities involved here but we see their actions and acknowledge it.
I'll share this story. Doing a walkabout on my property with my then five year old grandson. He found a stick and was thrashing the weeds and grasses as we walked along. I told him that the things that he was thrashing were going to tell the others and that they would get him back. On our way back to the house he was running to catch up to me and got his feet tangled and fell face first into the ground. "See? I told you they'd get you."
You could say he was then initiated to the other realm. At 18 years old now he has a respect for the natural world.
Another,
My great grandmother was concerned about a dead standing tree near her porch. Before it could be removed she passed on suddenly. The next day her son, my grandfather, noticed the tree had fallen away from the porch. "Mom dropped that dead tree she was concerned about".
Another,
A child had fallen off a boat that was moored in Big Timber Creek and disappeared in the water. A search was carried out with no results. A couple mornings later, my grandparents were looking over the creek in thought and simultaneously they decided that grandfather should take his skiff and bring the child home. He did just that. It's almost like they were in a play of sorts, performing their parts.
Another,
At the age of ten my parents divorced. I was sent to live with my grandparents for a time. My life was in turmoil. One night something sat at the foot of my bed. I felt the weight settle on to the mattress but nobody was there. Freaked me out to say the least.
Years later I had taken up smoking a pipe. My grandfather seeing this related how his grandfather had smoked a pipe and how he would sometimes light a pine splinter for the old mans pipe. "He died in the house sitting in his chair." First I had heard that story. I then related my experience with the something that sat on my bed. "He wouldn't hurt you" was Pops reply.
My grandmother said that after she died she would put fish on our fishing poles while out in the ocean. Of course.
There are those that LARP it and there are those that live it.
Thank you very much Jacob and Noiduin ❤️, I really enjoyed learning all your wisdom about Finnish spirituality 🔥💙 as I have always felt a huge connection to Finland and its culture since I was a little girl, having even learned a few words in Finnish and my dream as a girl was to travel to Rovaniemi and a wooden house in the woods, perhaps some of my ancestors walked this wonderful land and I think I would love the cold climate.
You do an amazing work ❤️, and your clear explanations as well as those of the Noiduin were of enormous value to me. As I have little time and really wanted to learn, I watched this video five times and I am amazed at the teachings I always wanted to have.
Thank you very much also for all the wisdow that your videos have given me about pagan cultures that I love, you have done an excellent work❤️🔥💜!
Suomi on hyvaa 😉!!
Hyvää Suomi!
I did my Mphil re the Sami in Finland in the Artic region. Read the Kalavala in the first week while at the university in Rovaniemi. Love the first bit re life come to universe-world. As in creation of life in universe. Finnish Mythology-legend Creation Story.
This is Great! I have always been curious about the Finnish mythology and beliefs. Being a Bear, I can relate to the prayers to the bear. Skal!
Thank you for posting this.Nice to see the old ways are returning.Blessed be.
My lineage is Lithuanian and Finnish i've been following the Norse pagan path and I'm glad you're making a video like this.
You are a modern Tacitus. Thank you and keep it up!
Thank you so much for this. I've been drawn to Norse paganism for years but just now getting into my Finnish roots and their specific pagan beliefs. I have Norwegian and Finnish ancestry and there's so much to learn! Thanks so much for making this video.
These videos are always opening my eyes to things I have never heard of before. Thank you, I appreciate all the work you put into them.
I think this is very interesting and now I am all up into Finnish mythology
You're doing amazing work Jacob, I admire the dedicaton and effort you put into these videos!
Thank you 🙏
This was beautiful. What incredibly beautiful souls? Thank you. California. 💜🤟🏻🐬😎🇺🇸
Glad you enjoyed it
super cool! i have a friend who has finnish ancestry...i shared this with her
This is very interesting, thankyou for introducing me to Finnish mythology, I didn't know of the Kalevala so nice one bruv.
I especially like discovering the similarities between the various Indo European pantheons.
This is interesting! Estonians have Kalevipoeg.
I just revisited my ancestral roots (in the Pagan sense). I bit of a plug to Noiduin, awesome band. Also Goi is worth listening to. They are two of the better bands using period piece instruments and they capture that early iron age nicely. Your video was very timely Jacob. Will be spreading this around amongst my family. Nice video.
Great video! Full of information on this little-known spiritual path.
haven't even finished the video and had to share a mini story. Ever since I've heard and saw a talharpa I had to make one. that was one of the first things I made after joining a Viking living History group. It came out not so great. So I bought a book from a Finnish guy and built another one. It came out kind of better. Now I'm obsessed with making didgeridoos and talharpas or johikko (horrible at spelling, so phonetic for me).
Yes, Rauno Nieminen is a master builder and his book is great :)
It is not all lost.. some
Secrets came with the folks that migrated to the United States. My Family is From Socklot North of Vasa. I still talk to my family. I am a lost wise one..
Something to add: Väinämöinen was only considered a sorta half-god in certain areas of Finland. There are a lot of differences in beliefs and they are all depending on the region. The reason for this is the fact that we were a land of tribes.
Wonderful video! I always enjoy learning about what you upload. ❤
I'm so glad! Thanks 🙏
I am finnish and I have been following you a while and in your discord server
Loving the way you interview the local act to give an extensive explanation about the intricate spiritual and creatures thing! Much love from Ma|aysia. We have some sameness spiritualism in believing in animism and there are certain unspoken rules that we have to follow when entering the jungle
I saw some videos where the actual vinkings from scandinavia have feared Finns because they have magic to control weather etc ..
The Finnish Afterlife sounds a lot like the Celtic Afterlife:
You leave This World, go to the Otherworld, then Return to This World after a while, in a new form.
thank you! so much info was lost during the crusades, i really appreciate you taking the time to stitch this together
I agree with each there own path ❤ personal cultivation over organized religion
Brilliant video . Thank you so much to you all 💚
Thank you 🙏
Very interesting and alluring mythology. Unfortunately it's even harder to find legit information about it so please make some more co-op videos.
hey Jacob, do you by chance have any finnish blood in ya, or relatives here? because you look very similar to my sister's guy, your laugh is eerily similar, i probably missed parts of the video cos i was so surprised :D also, thank you for the video, nice to see and hear people are interested in finnish mythology and spiritualism!
Thank you for sharing this ❤
I practice Norse paganism and have an Estonian boyfriend, I want to study his ethnic groups religious practices more and this was this video. Thank you!
Huh, I had no idea about this ! I have lived in eastern-Finland all my life. Thank your for your information !
So happy this video could reach you then 🙏 🇫🇮
Great to see from Henri's shirt that the ancient Finns already knew of the mythological amongus.
Love seeing the native belief systems from other parts the world.
Love this channel, sooooo informative ❤
Thanks so much!
This is an incredible video, Jacob! Deeply appreciating how you are digging deeper to bring these beautiful and less known stories and practices to our awareness. And now I have a couple more books to add to my list to look for!
Thanks for making this video and covering this topic.
Thank you for doing this. It was very interesting and eye opening
Kiitos. I grew up with this and it is fantastic to see it displayed.
Great grandparents were from Finland.
@Jacob Toddson
This was a interesting video. Will you try to cover the Sami poeple's mythologies and what not too? Although that might be a more difficult task since there are Norwegian, Swedish and Finnish Sami so both the native speaking and tradition may be different.
As with this video, I would not want to talk about it until I found a Sami person willing to share their spiritual beliefs with me and on video. From my understanding the Sami are ver private with their spiritual beliefs and it can take years to build friendships with them enough to be trusted.
Hopefully one day! But I certainly want to do the subject justice, and share it in the most genuine way possible :)
@@TheWisdomOfOdin Understandable, considering history. But there are probably some that would be more open to talk then others.
Oddly enough I once met a Sami person on a French MMORPG. Didn't know enough to be more curious at the time!
Very informative video man!
Glad it was helpful!
Thanks to you Jacob 💙🇫🇮🐻⚔
I seem to be drawn to this as well.. loving nature everything in it.. I've been camping since the age of 10.. if I could I would love to visit Finland and go into to the forest.. unfortunately I am in the United States.. I do not have the millions of dollars to do this.. saw these videos are going to have to do😂
The significance of the bear was more than a mere animal it was considered sort of a demi-god of the forest and almost on par with humans which is why bear hunts were a deeply sacred event and the bear was revered and worshipped even when eating its meat which was thought to give you its powers
Wow I just found your channel, love this.. so interesting the with the songs 🥺🥺thank you!!
These two remind me of Bragi and iðunn. He looks to her so happily when she talks. Awesome
That is a very sweet observation ❤️
There are many similarities between Finnish and Norse mythologies and there is some minor debate on how much did they influence one another. Iku - Turso for example is something that can be found in Norse mythology as Thurs, these giant beings that have existed forever and in the name Iku - Turso the word Iku means Ikuinen translated in english as Eternal. Also the way ancient Finns looked at spiritual things and how there are different parts to our "souls" which is quite similar with Norse mythology. It's not just a soul but rather many different parts that affect our characteristics, our vitality and something that may guide us and so on. The gods resemble each other quite a bit between Eddas and Kalevala. Even Louhi and Loki have lots of similarities and maybe it is because of different sexes but maybe there is more to Lokis story than giving birth to Sleipnir we know of. Lots of stories about Finnish shamans influencing Norse shamanism and no wonder why since we live so close to another. There are also other words in our language besides Ukkonen, Ukkosmyrsky ( Thunder, Thunderstorm ) that have a long root in our beliefs for example Metsästys is Hunting in finnish but an older word for metsästys / hunting that is still used quite often is Pyynti and that means A request for something or to ask something which ties up to our ancestors asking the spirits and deities of the forests or lakes etc for permission to hunt and to catch something and in return something that was caught was always given back to nature. When speaking about our current times the Finnish forests and wilderness is full of old places that are slowly being claimed back by nature that for some reason haven't gotten any or as much of intrest from archelogists as they should have but luckily we have quite an active community of people with their metal detectors helping at least discover and unearth small fragments of our past so it is not all forgotten. Also the amount of viking swords that have been found here is big, the second largest amount anywhere. We've definately been raided by Norse vikings and in return have raided them but perhaps not in such a big scale. Anyway I love both mythologies and feel a strong connection to both. Thanks for the great video of a topic that very rarely gets any attention outside Finland. And Tolkien.
They are not similar at all!! Kalevala doesn't represent what it was. He is lying!!
@@varjovirta3085 who not simillar?
Things were written in the christianized era to preserve them, but yes the authenticity or accuracy is always in question then. Most people can't check with the few who carried oral tradition secretly. We know much was lost bc people were killed for paganism. Snorri who wrote the Icelandic Sagas was Christian, or had to say so. Likely actually was. The thing is these writers recorded what they understood of it, what they knew, in a time MUCH closer than ours. As paganism reemerges & spreads the more sources & oral traditions reveal, & animism is instinctive, it's woven into our nature unless we're so indoctrinated by ... something else that it's been buried. People escaping indoctrination need stepping stones, clues, and then in time what isn't authentic begins to be understood, becomes clear. There is a knowing that eventually gets in, from deep in our consciousness & from immersing in animism ways, that wakes up in us the Old Ways. We begin to just know when something is altered by religious perspective or competitive propaganda, bashing or their old fear. But people do cute what is written bc other things of cultural roots are still alive & those who lived closer to the time had a few more & it's not utterly without value. We simply remember it was written after, from that perspective. Just like the Norse Helm of Awe is in writing long after Viking era it's still of use, has meaning, & we don't know that it wasn't destroyed bc of being a magical symbol while runestones talking of personal events were allowed to remain. These are doorways, & it's really up to us, our own spirits to truly connect anyway. We read with a grain of salt & some of us do need that bridge to something nearby what we seek on their way into shedding other things foisted onto their ancestors more recent than truly Old Ways. This is also why pagans especially converts read related cultures,to kick out what ways didn't serve them& get little bits of further understanding though these things were not written by those who came before them. It's a tool, it's what we have, it's not the be all & end all of info, but within it are bits of cultural things many would not get to without something else... If they have nothing or have the biblical thinking, which is extremely different especially in regards to culture & nature & what's sacred. It's not meant to be the main reference or a holy book. What's sacred is nature itself & being equal within it, not above it.
Very very interesting and learnable!
Wow great gods "Ukko"is my favorite. 👍
Good work indeed.
Amazing video, thank you for all the insights! 🙏💚
Ill watch this later when i have rested
Just to add another more bodied source for Finnish mythology is Suomen kansan vanhat runot it consist of 34 books and has about 100 000 poems
Also i have to say finns definitely raided over The baltic sea what became modern Sweden and Estonians did raid what are modern day denmark and poland
Bears represent Great Mother. Everything in Nature is epiphany of Great Mother. That's why keep all in Nature happy. Worship all of Nature. She is Mother. Hail!!!
Very lovely video ❤
Thank you 🔥🔥🔥🙏
Actually Vainamoinen, sounds a lot like Papa Legba in hoodoo mythology.
You could also do some slavic mythology as well, in particular western/southern slavic
Easier said than done lol. Will need to do research and then plan trips out there. Life is long. I sure I will one day!
There are sources on Slavic mythology & Rodnovary, meanwhile. Jacob is careful not to just read someone's source& pillage it & to not speak over a people on their beliefs. That's very cool, really. Integrity.