Topic: Finno-Ugric Mythology

[Prometheus]

In another song it is described how a net is woven to catch
a “ red salmon ” in the bowels of which fire is bound. That
this tale is very old is shown by the method of preparing
the net as described in the Finnish song: “ A net was made of
lime-bark, it was woven of heather,” or “ the net was woven of
bast, of juniper threads was it spun .” 13 An interesting
counterpart to this tale is to be found among certain North
American tribes on the North-West coast in which fire is also
found in the bowels of a salmon . 11 The colour of the salmon
has perhaps, in the fantasy of these people, awakened
the idea of connecting it with fire.


CHAPTER XV


DEITIES OF THE EARTH AND
VEGETATION

A MONG the non-agricultural Finno-Ugric peoples, of-
ferings to the earth are rare. The Ugrians often men-
tion in their folk-poetry “ the black or hairy Earth mother,”
but sacrifice to her only when suffering from certain sicknesses,
believed to come from the earth. 1 Much more important
is the “ Earth mother ” among the stocks living along the
Volga 5 these sacrifice to her black animals, most often cows and
sheep, the bones of which are carefully buried in the earth
“ so that the earth shall be able to produce corn and grass.”
The blood is also allowed to run into the earth. Besides
annual sacrifices, additional ones are performed when, for
example, the fields do not grow in spite of rain. When sacri-
ficing to the earth, the Cheremiss say: “ Eat, Earth mother,
and give us corn.” 2 The following prayer has been taken
down among the Votiaks: “ O Earth mother, we thank thee
for that thou hast nourished us during the past year, be not
grudging now either with thy gifts, produce corn for us also
during this summer.” These last also pray that the earth
might not be offended, when men are obliged to wound her
with their ploughs. Very late in the autumn, sacrifices may
not be made to the earth, as then, the Votiaks say: “ the earth
sleeps.” 3 Equally primitive is the “ Earth mother ” of the
Mordvins, who is turned to in the following words: “That
which we sow in thee, allow to come up.” 4 The Mountain
Cheremiss worship also the “ Yard mother ” and the Mordvins
the “ Field mother ” and the “ Meadow mother.” 5


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FINNO-UGRIC MYTHOLOGY


“ Earth-luck or field-luck ” can be stolen from another by
bearing to one’s own field a sod or a little earth from the field
of some one more fortunate. When the Siryans do this, they
say: “Good luck, follow me, give me a good subsistence .” 0
As soon as the Cheremiss sees that his “ field-luck ” has been
stolen, he finds out who has robbed him of this. Should he
discover that a field which formerly produced a scanty harvest
has improved, he believes he has found the culprit and goes in
the dusk to carry the lost “ field-luck ” back with him in a
bark-shoe, saying to it: “ Let the corn grow, do not go away
if someone tries to steal thee, but remain always in my fields.” 7
The Chuvashes “ steal earth ” with wedding-like ceremonies,
choosing even a living “ bridegroom ” for the Earth mother . 8
This custom would seem to have been known also among the
Votiaks . 9 According to Mordvinian folk-lore, these were afraid
that even in the hoof of a horse, the “ Field mother ” might
be taken to a strange field . 10

Coincidently with these material views, the Cheremiss talk
also of the “ c soul ’ ( ort ) of the earth,” which may disappear
from the tilled earth, taking the fruitfulness of this away
with it . 11 Like the Votiaks, they believe this also of the
“ field-soul.” When this happens, it is essential to discover
whither the “ field-soul ” has gone, and if possible, procure
its return. The Votiaks also call the productive power of the
field, which can free itself from the latter, the “ corn-soul,”
and they believe that this can, like the soul of a human being,
become visible in the shape of a little, grey butterfly . 12

In the course of the author’s sojourn among the Eastern
Votiaks, he had the opportunity of hearing how the vanished
“ soul ” of a cornfield is sought after. Besides the actual
“ seer,” six other persons are chosen for this purpose, three
youths and three maidens, who, clad in white, ride round the
village fields on white horses, to seek the above-mentioned
butterfly. Having found this, the whole suite returns well-
pleased, singing and playing a song special to this occasion, to


DEITIES OF THE EARTH


241

the sacrificial site on the edge of the field, where the oldest
men in the village have, meanwhile, slaughtered a white
sheep as a sacrifice. After the completion of the sacrificial
meal, during which the soul-butterfly is kept enclosed in a
white cloth, the one whom the butterfly had most obviously
neared during the search, receives the “ corn-soul ” into his
care, taking it to his granary for a time, after which the butter-
fly is again ceremoniously escorted to the cornfield and there
set free. After the recovery of the u corn-soul,” it is believed
that the badly-grown corn will improve . 13

The “ soul ” of the corn can easily develop into a separate
deity of corn. In the “ Corn mother ” of the Mordvins, to
whom a duck of a yellow, or corn-resembling, colour is sacri-
ficed, there are already noticeable signs of a change into an
anthropomorphic goddess. But in no case need one be un-
certain as to the origin of this goddess, for though the “ Corn
mother ” appears in a popular lyric as singing songs in the
festive attire of a Mordvin woman, she goes on to speak of
herself thus: “ I was sown in the morning twilight, reaped in
the evening twilight, thrown into the granary in order to be
brewed into small beer at Easter, and baked into pastries at
Christmas.” 14

That the corn-seed as such was worshipped appears from a
Votiak custom connected with the feast of the spring seed.
After having sowed the first measure of oats in his field, the
Votiak farmer fills his measure again, sets it on the ground
before him, and, addressing the measure of seed, prays, with
a loaf in his hand, for a good harvest. To assist the growth
of the crops, magic is also used in this ceremony. Into the
first measure, besides the seed, hard-boiled eggs are placed.
Whilst sowing, the farmer flings these also into the air, where
they are caught amid much competition by young girls.
Lucky the one who gathers most in her lap, as this is regarded
as a good omen. Should the gatherers of the eggs often trip
or fall, it is regarded as a sign that the grain will also bend


242


FINNO-UGRIC MYTHOLOGY


over during the summer on account of the heaviness of the ears.
The sowing of eggs in this manner is an old custom common to
all the East European and many other peoples, and one can
discern in it a wish expressed in terms of magic, that the seed
sown should give grain of the size and the agreeable taste of
hen’s eggs, a wish often expressed also in prayers . 15

Other means of magic, for the growth of the corn and the
bringing forth of fruitful rains, are connected also with the
spring seed festival of the Cheremiss. After the offering up
of sacrifices at a “ pure spot ” in the fields, the people gather
closely together, holding their shirts or their blouses stretched
out before them, while the sacrificing priest sows oats over
them. The one who receives the biggest share of the seed
as his part will reap the biggest harvest in the autumn. It
is, further, customary to sprinkle water over the crowd “ in
order to ensure warm and refreshing rains during the
summer.” 16

The Votiaks sacrifice early in the spring “ to the honour
of the grass.” At a spot where the bare earth first showed
through the melting snow of the past winter, porridge in a
dish is laid on three such places. In these porridge-dishes hay
and a spoon are placed. During the ceremony prayer is made
to Inmar for a good harvest of hay. The Votiaks living in
the Glazov District sacrifice at the same time a white bull, the
tail of which is cleaned of hair and soaked in water until it
becomes tough. It is then taken by one of the young men
who, pressing his chin on his breast, waves it behind him, bel-
lowing meanwhile like a bull. This youth, who is called the
“ bull-calf,” is offered home-distilled spirits to drink by some
of the surrounding crowd, while others again try to prevent
him from drinking it. The “ bull-calf ” becomes incensed at
this and charges at the crowd, waving the tail behind him,
pursuing the flying people . 17

A perfect counterpart to the Russian Polevik (field-spirit)
is the anthropomorphic a Meadow man ” of the Votiaks, who

































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PLATE XXX

eremiss Sacrifice to the Field-Gods

Ufa Government. (See page 242.)

After photograph by U. Holmberg.


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DEITIES OF THE EARTH


H3

is supposed to be of the size of a child, but has the power, like
the forest spirit, of becoming longer or shorter according to
the length of the grass. For this reason it is difficult to see
the spirit. It is said to be clad in a white garment, and to
live chiefly in the pastures, where it looks after and protects
the animals. The only sacrifice to this spirit is one when the
cattle are first let out to pasture, offered up with the words:
“ Protect the cattle well, follow them nicely to the meadow,
do not give them into the power of the beasts of prey.” 18

The Baltic Finns doubtless also, as an agricultural people,
worshipped the “ Earth mother,” who appears in the folklore
of both the Finns and the Esthonians. In the Finnish magic
songs, the “ Field old woman,” the “ Meadow old woman,”
and others, are spoken of. That the “ Earth mother ” re-
ceived here a black sheep as sacrifice, is indicated by the belief,
that, if a field produces too little, the milk of a black sheep
must be sacrificed to it . 19 The “ Earth bridegroom ” men-
tioned in many poems may be a relic of some ancient ceremony
in which the “ Earth mother ” was honoured with a wedding.
At the Ingrian festival of the Thunder god, a song was sung of
some deity of vegetation, called Sampsa or Pellervo (from
; -peltOy “ field ”), in the absence of whom nothing could grow.
The “ Winter son ” was first sent after him, who driving with
his wind-horse, caused only disaster, and was, therefore,
killed; the “ Summer son ” finally succeeding in bringing
Sampsa. In Finland this god was represented as being con-
veyed from an island, sleeping upon a corn-ship, with his
mother as his wife. These ideas seem to emanate from the
Scandinavian cult of Frey. The name Sampsa (a Teutonic
loan-word, German Simse or Semse , “ bulrush ”) signifies a
species of fodder-grass ( Scir-pus sylvaticus , the wood club-
rush), one of the earliest products of the spring, which is
gathered for the cattle when the snow melts, and the roots of
which are readily eaten by children . 20

According to Agricola, the Karelians worshipped deities of


244


FINNO-UGRIC MYTHOLOGY


the different kinds of grain: Rongoteus who “gave rye”;
Pellon Pekko (the “ Pekko of the fields ”) who “ furthered
the growth of barley Virankannos who “ tended the oats
Egres who “ created peas, beans, and turnips, and brought
forth cabbages, flax and hemp Kondos who “ reclaimed land
and tilled fields.” Of these names, the first is to be found in
several old songs, as Runkateivas or Rukotivo, the name being
regarded as a Teutonic loan-word (cf. Icelandic rugr , “ rye
tivar, “gods”). Later the Rye god is associated with St.
Stephen (Ruki-tehvana or -tahvana, “ rye-Stephen ”) ; in
a magic prayer Rukotivo appears beside St. Stephen as the
“ ruler of horses ” (cf. Halmstaffan, “ straw-Stephen ” in the
Christmas customs among the Swedes). 21 Agras or Agroi is
known even today to the people, who call by that name two
turnips growing together. When a double turnip was found,
it had to be carried by itself, on the shoulders, or in a basket
of bark, to the turnip-cellar. On the way, one had to fall
three, or in places, even nine times on one’s knees or flat on
to the ground, as though one were tottering under the weight
of some too heavy burden, and each time one had to shout:
“I cannot bear it, holy Agroi, oh, how heavy it is! ” In the
prayers recited at the turnip-cellar, a good turnip year was
asked for. 22

Originally, Agr5i was not only the deity of turnips, but the
god of twins in general. Ceremonies resembling the above
are also performed by the Votiaks when they find a double
ear of grain in the fields. Gavrilov relates that the custom was
to hang the ear over a stick, round which clean, white linen
was wound, and then bear it by two men to an empty chest
in the granary, the men acting during the journey as though
they bore something heavy. Spectators and passers-by had to
be avoided on the way. If this was done, one became rich
little by little, said the Votiaks. 23

Pekko, the god of barley, was worshipped by the orthodox
Esthonians under the name of Peko, his image being prepared


DEITIES OF THE EARTH


245


in wax and preserved as the common property of the village,
in each farm in turn for the duration of a year. The feast
of Peko was held in the spring, when vegetation awakes to
life. Before Whitsuntide, each worshipper of Peko had to
bring corn, from which Peko’s host prepared festival-beer.
On the eve of Whitsuntide, after sunset, the worshippers
gathered, bringing food with them, in a room, in the corner of
which Peko stood on a beer-barrel surrounded by burning wax
candles. On separate sides of the corner beer-vessels and
loaves of bread were spread in rows along the walls. In the
front row of the kneeling congregation the host of the feast
and his assistants grouped themselves. After all had prayed,
each for himself, the host took a little beer in a cup from each
vessel, pouring it back again with a prayer of blessing for its
owner and his family. Afterwards the congregation ate and
drank to the honour of the god. A mutual prayer against
hail was finally sung at dawn. The remains of the feast were
divided amongst the poor. The wax remaining in the candles
was added to Peko’s head; the greater the amount of wax
gathered there, the more prosperous the summer became.

According to another report the worshippers of Peko
gathered together after sunset with their food-knapsacks on
their backs at the house of Peko’s guardian, who had previously
carefully closed all the windows and lit the roof-lamp. The
guardian, followed by two men, went to bring in Peko with a
sheet in his hand, Peko being kept in the granary. The god
was wrapped up in the sheet, brought into the house, and
placed under the hanging-lamp. Everyone sat down with
his back to Peko and began to eat out of his food-sack. Hav-
ing finished, all rose up without even then turning towards
Peko, and made fast their food-sacks again. They then
marched nine times round Peko, singing: “Peko, our god,
shepherd our herds, look after our horses, protect also our
corn from snow, from hail! ” Leaving Peko in the room,
they then went on to wrestle. The one receiving the first


FINNO-UGRIC MYTHOLOGY


246

bruise cried out with a loud voice that blood was shed, on
which all hurried to acclaim him as the guardian of Peko for
the next year. The image of Peko was taken the same night
in the dark to the new guardian’s granary . 24

The name Pekko or Peko is to be traced to the same Scan-
dinavian word from which Beyggvir or Byggvir, the name
of Frey’s servant, and the Swedish bjugg (“ barley ”) are
derived.

In North Tavastland in Finland, it was believed that the
hop-field also had its own “ruler”} the Esthonians calling it
the “ Hop king ” or the “ Hop-field master.” This last
people still speak of the “ Flax mother,” preserved in the
linen-chest “ in order that the linen should flourish well.” 2B
Counterparts to these deities of particular kinds of plants of
the Baltic Finns are met with among the Teutons.

A very general belief amongst the majority of European
peoples is that the cornfield is protected by its tutelary spirit,
especially during the period of ripening. During the ripen-
ing-time of the rye, the Volga Finns say that one may not
dig in the earth or go into the rye-fields, and that one must
avoid all noisy work and work causing evil smells, such as,
for example, the carting of manure or the making of tar.
Neither may one dress in startling colours. The most
exacting time is noon, when one may even not talk aloud.
As a punishment for unseemly behaviour, hailstorms and
thunder, which ruin the crops, are dreaded. The hot
“ evil time,” said to last a couple of weeks, is concluded
among the Cheremiss (Kazan Government) by so-called
j«V<?/;2-ceremonies, in which occurs an odd custom of blow-
ing long horns of wood made specially for the occasion.
These are taken later to a tree, round which one goes in a
procession with the horns held in the hand, and where the
sacrificing priest with cakes in his right hand and a vessel of
beer in his left, recites a prayer. Should one of the horns
break during the ceremony, it is regarded as a sign of hail.


DEITIES OF THE EARTH


247

The more Northern Cheremiss blow these horns later in
the autumn after the conclusion of field-labour, keeping them
for the next year in a secret place. During the “ dangerous
time ” one may not blow them. It is further related that the
members of a wedding-procession, when escorting the bride
to the village of the bridegroom, attempt to steal these horns
from her home, believing that they carry with them “ corn-
luck.” 26

The Mordvins believe that if absolute silence is observed
during the flowering of the rye, one can hear from the u corn-
mother ” what kind of a harvest to expect. One has only to
go out in the stillness of the night and listen ; should one hear
whistling from the field, then a good year may be expected,
but if one hears weeping and wailing, it is a sign of a year of
famine . 27

According to the Siryans a female spirit dwells in the rye-
fields, called PSloznitsa (from Russian Poludnitsa, “ Mid-
day-goddess ”) and punishes all who in any way harm the
rye during the time of flowering. A blue flower {Centaur ea
cyanus) which grows among the corn, is called “ Poloznitsa’s
eye.” 28 The Esthonians speak of the spiteful “ Corn virgins ”
who wander in the fields, and of a “ Corn wolf ” (also “ Pea
wolf” and “Bean wolf”), with which they frighten the
children . 29 The Finns also represented the corn-spirit in the
form of an animal; in Osterbotten, they say that the person
to cut the last stalk of the crop on the rye-field or oat-field
“ catches a hare .” 30 Among the Esthonians the animated
last sheaf goes by the name of “ rye-pig.” 31

Like the Teutons and Slavs, the Baltic Finns have retained
a habit of preserving the last sheaf of the corn-field, regarding
this as a kind of corn-deity. The Finns are said to have
placed a sheaf left from the previous autumn on the rafters
of the threshing-shed whence it was brought at Christmas-
time into the dwelling-house. There the grain was separated
from the ears and the straw thrown up to the ceiling, where

[Prometheus]

FINNO-UGRIC MYTHOLOGY


248

part of it remained clinging to the rafters. The spring sow-
ings were begun with the grain obtained in this way; the
straw which adhered to the ceiling being also hidden in the
corn-field. 32 A more widespread custom found also among the
Volga Finns, was to preserve the last sheaf undisturbed till
the next year, in order that the corn should thrive. Among
the Esthonians such a sheaf was called “ threshing-shed
father.” 33 The Swedes in Finland constructed a human-like
“Christmas old man” (Jul-gubbe) of straw at Christmas-
time, which was then put in the place of honour at the head
of the table and was treated with drink. 34 A corresponding
straw doll was prepared by the Finns on Kekri or Keyri (All
Saints’ Day) and was called the “ Keyri old man ” (Keyri
ukko). 35 At both festivals there was further a custom of
placing straw on the floor of the dwelling-room and of baking
of new flour an especially large cake, sometimes faintly re-
sembling an animal (Esthonian “ Christmas pig ” or “ Christ-
mas bull ”) ; the cake being kept on the table during the
holiday, but afterwards taken to the granary, where it was
preserved among the grain until sowing-time. According to
an older custom this loaf was baked from grain dried in the
open air. 38 Compared with Christmas, the Kekri of the Finns
represents an older festival of new bread and a new year, as
the agricultural peoples, also of Finnish stock, earlier cele-
brated this festival as the time for the baking of the fruits
of the new harvest (Finnish vuodenalkaj aiset, “ the beginning
of the year”; Votiak, viVar , “New Year”). A straw doll
is known also among the Esthonians. According to a state-
ment made in 1694 the peasants on Shrove Tuesday evening
made of straw a human-like figure, metsik , dressed as a man
or a woman, which was put upon a stick and carried to the
wood, where it was bound on the tip of a bush in order “ that
the corn and flax should grow well.” The custom was in
some districts connected also with New .Year and other times. 37

The Cheremiss conclude their harvest with a ceremony,



PLATE XXXI

The “ Feeding ” of the Sickle Among the
Cheremiss

(See page 249.)

Water-colour by V. Soldan-Brofeldt.


%











DEITIES OF THE EARTH


249

called “ the feeding of the sickle.” The people of the farm
take bread, cheese, etc., out with them to the field, and kneel
down before a few remaining stalks of oats, the master of
the house reading a prayer in which a good harvest is prayed
for from the gods. After this, the food brought out is tasted,
and then all kneel down again. The master of the house
now collects all the sickles used in the harvest, piles them up
on the unreaped stalks, which he thus presses to the ground
and then, beginning at the point, winds them round the sickles
down to the root. Finally, by lifting the sickles he pulls out
the oat-stalks by the roots, saying meanwhile: “Sickles, the
whole summer have you laboured, may the food you now
have eaten bring strength to you,” or “ Sickle, take strength,
the whole summer hast thou laboured, take strength. Thy
share have we spread out, our share mayest thou not touch! ”
The master of the house, followed by the family, then takes
the sickles, wrapped in oat-straw, to some attic in the house or
a barn, whence they are taken out first at the next summer.
The last stalks are called “ the sickle’s share.” 38

It is quite natural that among the more northern peoples,
who exist chiefly by hunting and fishing, deities of vegetation
are not found. The “ grass mother ” of the Russian Lapps,
seeing that grass is of very little consequence even to the
reindeer, who live on moss, is probably of late origin. This
may also be true regarding the Rana-neidda (“ Rana virgin ”)
of the Lapps, who lived in heaven and ruled over the moun-
tains which first became green in the spring. When sacrificing
to her “ in order that the reindeer should get grass in time,” a
spinning-wheel or a spindle was placed against her altar, both
of which were besmeared with sacrificial blood. The spin-
ning-wheel sacrifice, which cannot originally have been a Lapp
custom, shows that “the greatest of all goddesses,” who be-
sides the grass, called forth also the leaves in the spring, is a
Scandinavian goddess (Frigg ). 39

The Norse Frey can be recognised in the Scandinavian


250 FINNO-UGRIC MYTHOLOGY

Lapps Veralden-olmai (“ Worlds man ”). The missionary
Randulf compares him with Saturn and says that the Lapps
“ paint him on their magic drums in such a manner that a
curved line with many little outspringing thorns is drawn
over his head; this symbolizes the fruitfulness of sea, land
and cattle. They pray to him to make the earth fruitful with
corn, that they might on reasonable terms brew beer and




Fig. 9. Drawings of Heaven on Shaman Drums

Left: c and e, Thunder-gods; d, God of Fertility; f, Wind-god.

Right: d and f, Thunder-gods; b, God of Fertility; e, Wind-god.

From Rudbeck’s Atlantica.

spirits and everything prepared from corn. This is indicated
by the hoe which they fit into his hand. At the same time they
pray that he would render the sea bounteous in order that they
might procure much fish (this is done especially by the Sea
Lapps), and that he would make their reindeer fruitful, so
that they might bear many calves, and that he would make
the moss of the uplands, which is eaten by their reindeer,
grow richly, that they might obtain much reindeer butter,
cheese, etc. Altogether they pray to Veralden-olmai or Saturn,
for everything that grows or is born.” 40

In the cult of this god of fruitfulness the sexual organs
played an important part. Noraeus relates that the Swedish
Lapps sacrificed to it on St. Matthew’s Day in the following
manner: “They gathered together the horns of the reindeer
they, had slaughtered, but the bones of one reindeer, from
the smallest to the biggest, were extracted and the blood of
the same reindeer sprinkled over these bones, which were then
buried in the earth; erecting thereafter amongst them an


DEITIES OF THE EARTH


251


image made of birch-wood, also sprinkled with blood, on the
breast of which, under the face, the membrum genhale was
attached.” When the Lapps were asked why they did this,
they answered that they were following the ancient habits of
their forefathers and sacrificing to the earth, firstly, because
the earth kept alive their reindeer; secondly, that it might
not send diseases that hurt the feet of the reindeer in summer;
and thirdly, that the earth, besides nutrition, would give their
reindeer a powerful pairing-lust, sacrificing for this purpose
the above-mentioned organ, in order that the number of rein-
deer might increase greatly, as the time of the feast of St.
Matthew was the best pairing-time of the reindeer . 41

Besides reindeer, in the ear of which a red thread was tied,
the Scandinavian Lapps sacrificed also the implements needed
in agriculture — hoes and spades, to the “World’s man.” 42
Even without these customs, one can see from the name of the
god that he is none other than the Scandinavian Frey, who is
also called “ Veraldar god ” by Snorri Sturlason.


CHAPTER XVI
DEITIES OF BIRTH

T HE DEITIES of birth among the Lapps were Madder-
akka and her three daughters Sarakka, Juksakka and
Uksakka.

Madderakka (akka, “ old woman ”) although called the
mother of other deities, seems at least in later times to have
been regarded as of less importance than these others. Si-
denius says that the Lapps sacrificed to her only “ so that she
would allow her daughters to serve women.” He points out,
however, that among some she was believed to help her
daughters herself in their duties . 1 Jessen relates that she
creates the body of the child , 2 and Randulf tells that she
renders both women and cattle fruitful . 3

On certain magic drums appears also a male counterpart to
Madderakka, the so-called Madderatshe (“ Madder fa-
ther”), who is, however, little known and has most probably
only later appeared at the side of the female Madderakka . 4

This latter — the first part of whose name, according to
Setala, corresponds to the Finnish word mantere (“ the
earth ”) — lived, according to the Lapps, together with her
three daughters, in the earth beneath the Lapp tent. For this
reason, sacrifices to them were placed in the ground . 5

At the birth Sarakka of Saredne (“ Sar mother ”) seems
to have played the most important part. Her name may
possibly be derived from the Lapp word saret (“ to cleave ”).
Skanke gives Sarakka another significant name, Sadsta-akka,
in which the word sadsta is said to be identical in meaning with
the Lapp word suorek-muora (a piece of wood split at one
end into two parts ). 6 Both names of this deity remind one of


DEITIES OF BIRTH


253

a magic method of assisting childbirth and rendering it easier,
a method palpably touched on by Forbus when he puts the
following question to the Lapps: “Have you not chopped
wood in honour of Sarakka in time of birth? ” 7

From the questions by Forbus it is further apparent that
these pieces of wood, cleft in honour of Sarakka, were re-
garded as holy j they were not used as fuel, and were not
even allowed to be touched.

Sarakka was worshipped chiefly in childbed. Besides
Women, she helped also reindeer at the birth of their calves,
assuaging their pains. For this reason the Lapps endeavoured
to stand well in the favour of the deity. How intimately
Sarakka followed the course of the birth-pangs of her wards
is seen from the belief of the Lapps that she felt the same
agony as the one in childbed. Like Madderakka, Sarakka was
also believed to create the body of the infant . 8

The protection of Sarakka was sought by the Lapp women
also during menstruation. According to Forbus the women
took off their collars and belts at such times “ in honour of
Sarakka.” This custom is unquestionably derived from the
magic belief that during these periods, as also during child-
birth, nothing knotted may be worn on the body. During
menstruation women were regarded as unclean and were not
allowed to move about freely. When the said period was
over, a woman would wash her head in water, in a pan which
she then scoured with meal and used for the baking of a cake
which women only were allowed to eat . 9

A purification-meal in honour of Sarakka was eaten also
after the successful birth of a child. Jessen relates that women
in childbed drank “ Sarakka’s brandy ” before deliverance and,
together with other women, ate “ Sarakka’s porridge ” after
giving birth. In the porridge three sticks were placed ; the
first one was cleft and had three rings hanging from it, the
second was black, and the third white. These were all laid
for three days at the door of the tent. If it were found that


FINNO-UGRIC MYTHOLOGY


2 54 -

the black stick had disappeared, it was believed to indicate that
either the mother or the child would die. If, on the other
hand, the white one was lost, both would live . 10 S. Kildal
relates that in some districts a miniature bow and arrow were
placed in the porridge so that the child, if a boy, would be-
come a good hunter when grown up . 11 Forbus explains that
the weapons were placed in the porridge in three different
parts, the shaft, the bow, and the arrow. The accident of
lifting out any of these parts with the spoon while eating was
fraught with significance. The bow was hung later on the
child’s cradle j but if the pieces placed in the porridge had
unluckily not been fished out in the spoons, they were thrown
away. Among the questions written by Forbus is the follow-
ing: “ Have you still the little bow that you had to bear on
thy body? ” 12

Just as the cleft stick seems to be connected with the name of
Sarakka, the bow placed in the porridge is connected with an-
other name, Juksakka (“Bow old woman”). Of this last-
named deity Solander says that she helps women at the pro-
duction and birth of children. The most important duty of
Juksakka was to change the girl-child in the womb to a boy-
child . 13 To gain her help in this, sacrifices had to be offered
up to her. According to Leem the Lapps sacrificed contin-
ually to her because they desired boys rather than girls, as
these last were of no use in the chase. Juksakka, who is some-
times pictured on the magic drums with a bow in her hand,
seems to have taken care that the Lapp boy became a good
hunter . 14

The third of Madderakka’s daughters was Uksakka (“ Door
woman ”), who was believed to live in the ground under the
door of the tent. As a watchman at the door she protected
people at their goings in or out. At childbirth she received
the newcomer on his arrival in the world. Later she watched
over the first steps of the child to prevent its falling and
hurting itself. The Lapps sacrificed drink to her in the


DEITIES OF BIRTH


255

ground at the door of the tent, where she was supposed to
dwell . 15

Jessen adds that a special, consecrated building was erected
for Madderakka and Sarakka. On some magic drums Sar-
akka’s tent can be seen . 16 As the Lapps do not customarily
erect special dwelling-houses for their deities, there is reason
to believe that the so-called “ tent of Sarakka ” is a relic of
the times when a woman in childbirth was not allowed to stay
in the common tent, but had a special tent erected for her.
Such, for example, is the custom among the Samoyeds and
Ostiaks even today.

When the Lapps sacrificed to the deities of birth, they did
this in a manner differing from the ordinary sacrifices. Olsen
tells us that the Lapp mother, when convinced that she was
with child, secured beforehand a little dog, which she kept
by her until the time of giving birth had come. A little while
before lying down for the approaching birth this dog had to
be sacrificed “ in order that God might help her and every-
thing go well, and that both she and the child would preserve
their lives and health, and live merrily and well afterwards.” 17
After the birth a reindeer or some other domestic animal
bought from the neighbouring peasants was sacrificed. Among
such animals, goats, calves, sheep, lambs, pigs, cats and
cockerels are mentioned . 18 On the head of the sacrificial
animal “ a linen kerchief or a woman’s linen hat ” had to be
bound . 19 Jessen points out that the sacrificial priest also wore
on these occasions a white linen hat, besides the linen apparel
usually worn at votive ceremonies in Norwegian Lapland . 20
The dog, together with the other animals, had to be buried
alive in the ground, only the cock being shut in in a grotto of
stone, where it could live and crow for a time, before dying
of hunger . 21 With the exception of the cock, male animals
were never sacrificed to the deities of birth . 22 From Randulf’s
notes it appears that the Lapps also sacrificed spinning-wheels
and spindles to them . 23


FINNO-UGRIC MYTHOLOGY


256

Certain customs had also to be observed after the calving
of a cow. According to Leem, the “ first milk ” had to be
milked on to the ground. In the purification ceremonies flour
was used, being scattered over both the cow and the calf,
and flour had to be added also to the milk, before a male
person might partake of it . 24 Doubtless, the flour was here
of the same significance as at the ceremony for women. The
custom here pictured by Leem can only have prevailed among
the more Southern Lapps, who had, in places, begun to keep
cows.

Many features in the above beliefs and customs show plainly
that they cannot have been of Lapp origin, for instance, the
special dress of the sacrificial priest, but, above all, the use
of flour in so important a degree, points to derivation from an
agricultural people. There would seem to be, therefore, good
grounds for comparing Sarakka’s porridge with the Old-
Scandinavic “ Norna porridge” (Norna greytur), the first
meal eaten after childbirth by the women of the Faro-Islands.
Troels Lund shows that among the Scandinavians also it was
the custom to place in the porridge for women in childbed,
“ three sticks,” with which the luck of the child was supposed
to be intimately connected . 25 The sacrifice of spinning-wheels
and animals bought from the neighbouring peasants, and clad
with linen kerchiefs, points, too, with certainty to the fact
that these customs have been borrowed by the Lapps. On
several of the Lapp magic drums the deities of birth are seen
pictured as three females, their number corresponding with
that of the Scandinavian Norns. It should be observed also
that Madderakka’s three daughters are known only among
the Scandinavian Lapps. One of the daughters, Uksakka, has
a counterpart in the Swedish Dorr-Karing (“ Door old
woman”), who even to our times lives in the beliefs of the
people in Vasterbotten, as “ a light-fearing spirit, dwelling
near the door.” One had to be careful of her in going out
with a lighted candle, as she would blow it out . 28


DEITIES OF BIRTH


257

More widely known also among the Finnish Lapps, is the
mother, Madderakka . 27 She might also find her counterpart
in the Swedish Jordegumma (“ Old woman of the earth ”),
which word now means “ midwife,” but in earlier times may
well have been the name of a deity who, dwelling in the
earth, assisted at childbirth. Similar changes in the meaning
of a term may be observed in the Lapp tongue. At Gellivara
the word sarak has been noted as meaning also “ midwife.” 28
It is not, however, necessary in all the Lapp customs connected
with birth to see only borrowed beliefs. The Yurak Samoyeds
also worship a deity living in the earth and assisting at births,
and, like the Lapps, they bury a dog alive to secure her help
at the said event . 29

Among the ancient Finns the deities of birth were called
Luonnotar ( luonto , “ nature ”) or Synnytar ( synty , “ birth ”),
and were three in number, corresponding thus with the Scandi-
navic Norns and the Roman Parcae. In a magic song a man
says: “ I am created by three Luonnotars.” These three deities
appear also in the songs on the origin of iron, in which it is
described how their milk was allowed by them to run into
the earth, one dripping forth black milk, the second white,
the third blood-red ; the first giving birth to smithy-iron, the
second to steel, and the third to refuse iron . 30 Often, the
Virgin Mary, who in the Catholic period has played an im-
portant part in the beliefs of the people, is also in the magic
songs given the name Luonnotar and Luojatar ( Luoja>
“Creator”), and is appealed to in childbirth; the “sweet
milk of Mary ” is supposed to cure all kinds of sickness. At
times she is imagined to have many breasts, like her prototype,
the Ephesian Artemis, and is said to have “ a hundred horns
on her forehead, a thousand nipples to her breast.” 31 In magic
songs she “ spins a blue thread with a blue spindle.” It is
difficult to distinguish how much in the above beliefs is from
an older time, and how much from the Catholic period (“ the
three Maries”). Both the origin and the name of the

[Prometheus]

FINNO-UGRIC MYTHOLOGY


258

Esthonian Rougutaja, of which all that is known is that she
was believed to help at births, are uncertain . 32

The Cheremiss and the Votiaks have a custom of sacrificing
a white sheep at the birth of a child to the deity of birth,
called Kugu shotshen-ava (the “Great birthgiving mother”)
by the former, by the latter Kildisin ( kildlni , “ procreate,”
“ give birth to ”; in, “ heaven, god ”), or Kildisin-mumy,
(“Kildisin mother”). According to an account from the
eighteenth century, the Votiak women prayed to the goddess,
Kaldyni-mumas, for children, and virgins for a happy mar-
riage . 33 Another account from the same period states that
this deity was the fructifier of women and animals . 34 Gen-
erally, however, the Votiaks speak of special deities of fruit-
fulness, the Kildisin of the earth, of the corn, and of children,
who receive their own special sacrifices. Similarly, the Chere-
miss worship the Shotshen of children, animals, corn, bees,
etc., as separate deities. In the place of Shotshen (= Hill
Cheremiss Shatshektshe), the Turco-Tatar loan-words Puir-
sho (“ procreator ”) and Perke (Kazan Tatar, bar a gat, “ suc-
cess ”) are used with the same meaning . 35

From the sacrifice of the white sheep, one may conclude
that both the Cheremiss and the Votiak deities of birth, who
“ carried the soul to the child,” were deities of Heaven. The
word Kildisin means also literally the “ procreating Heaven.”
According to Ryckov the female Kildisin was the mother or
wife of the Heaven god, Inmar. In their folklore mention
may also be found of “ Inmar mother.” 30 The Jumon-ava
of the Cheremiss ( jumo , “ Heaven,” “ Heaven god ”j ava,
“ mother,” “ wife ”), to whom female animals were sacrificed
in the sacred groves, was worshipped also as the deity of
childbirth and marriage . 37 Another heavenly deity was the
Nishke-ava (properly, Ine-shki-ava, “ the Great birth-giving
mother ”), probably identical with the little-known Azer-ava
(“ Mistress ”) of the Moksha Mordvins, who was, according


DEITIES OF BIRTH


259

to an old account, a “ corn-begetter ” and “ a dweller in the
high place, in the upper parts of the atmosphere.” 38

The other deities of fruitfulness were sacrificed to in the
same manner as to the “ souls ” of the things they were sup-
posed to fructify, thus, for example, a black sheep to the
“ Earth-fructifier,” the bones being buried in the earth. The
“ Cattle-fructifier ” was worshipped by the Cheremiss espe-
cially when the cows had borne calves 5 friends and neighbours
being invited to a “ cow’s-milk feast.” The host poured water
on the oven and prayed that the calf might grow to be the size
of the oven. The bystanders were also sprinkled with water
with an accompanying prayer that god would let the cow give
much milk. At the sacrifice-porridge, which was mixed with
butter, the host prayed that the “ Cattle-fructifier ” would
give “ as much cattle as there are hairs on the cow, so that one
end of the herd might be still on the village-road when the
other end had entered the cowsheds.” 39

Other magic ceremonies are also connected with the cult
of procreation. As an example of these, the following custom
of the Eastern Cheremiss may be described. When the sheep
have not increased satisfactorily, a festival is proclaimed, to
which boys and girls are invited. As a sacrifice a wild bird
is shot, but for lack of this a hen may be used. The host
takes the bird and the hostess the implements necessary at the
sacrifice, and a journey to the sheepfolds is made, the boys and
girls following them, creeping on all fours. The hostess
induces the children to keep after her, enticing them like
sheep, the movements and voices of which the children seek
to imitate. The boys butt at the girls, imitating rams. Ar-
rived at the sheepfold the host makes a fire, round which
the so-called sheep crawl baa-ing three times, following the
hostess. They then rise, and the bird is cooked and eaten in
the sheepfold, the bones being thrown on to the roof of the
fold and prayers offered up to the “ Sheep-fructifier.” The


26 o


FINNO-UGRIC MYTHOLOGY


Cheremiss, from whom the author took down the above ac-
count, remarked that is not customary to invite many boys to
this ceremony, but chiefly girls, lest too many rams be born in
the flock.

A being dwelling in Heaven is also the deity to whom the
Ostiaks and the Voguls pray for children, and who gives aid
to their wives in childbed. At Vasyugan she is called Puges,
“ daughter of the Heaven god,” and is said to live in the heights
in a golden house, in the roof of which hang seven cradles.
When she rocks one of these seven times a “ soul ” is created,
but if the cradle should overturn during its movements, a
“ soul ” is born that will not live long. The road to this
dwelling goes over seven seas to a mountain consisting of
seven stories. In the districts around Surgut, this deity with
the seven cradles is called Vagneg-imi (imi y u old woman ”),
said in the old stories to be “ the mother of the seven sons
of the Heaven god.” In her hand she holds a wooden staff,
from which hang threads for each person born. When a
child is born the goddess makes a knot in one of the threads,
the distance between this and the staff indicating the length
of the child’s life, a matter not to be altered whatever sacrifices
are offered up to the deity. The “ Kaltas mother ” of the
Northern Ostiaks and the “ Kaltes mother ” of the Voguls,
who protects both the one giving birth and the child, and
who is said at a birth to “ write down in a golden book,” or
on a “ gold-embroidered seven-forked tree,” the fate of
the child just born and the length of his life, reminds one,
as far as the name is concerned, of the Kildisin of the Votiaks.
In folklore, the “ Kaltes mother,” often furnished with the
epithet “ the golden,” appears as the daughter or wife of the
Heaven god Torem, and as the mother of his children. Un-
der the name of “ Turem mother,” the Northern Ostiaks also
worship their great soul-giving deity . 40

In certain districts images are made of this deity of child-
birth. Possibly an idol of this description, worshipped for


DEITIES OF BIRTH


261


long distances around, has given rise to many exaggerated
tales of the “ Golden old woman,” mentioned for the first
time in an old Russian Chronicle, and afterwards, often under
the name of Zlota baba, in the older geographical accounts.
In the seventeenth century she is seen pictured, sometimes
with a child in her arms, on many maps, on which she repre-
sented the districts round the Northern Ural, little known at
that time . 41

Of the ceremonies observed by the Ostiaks at the birth of a
child, only the fact that special consideration is attached to
the placenta need be mentioned. We find Pallas already re-
lating that it was laid in a basket of birch-bark, together with
fish and meat, as a sacrifice, and carried to the forests where
it was hung up in a tree. This custom survives today. Kar-
jalainen says that the Ostiaks around Tremyugan call the pla-
centa, in which they believe they can make out human features,
“ the nourishing-mother of the child,” and, before the birth,
sew a little shirt for it, to which is further attached a kind of
belt and a headdress, the whole being placed together with
the placenta in the above mentioned basket. Before the bas-
ket is carried into the forest, fish, meat, and other victuals are
set before it, and the women bow, saying: “Nourishing-
mother of the child, eat! ” The food used at this ceremony
may only be eaten by women. At Vasyugan, if the newly-born
is a boy, a little bow with two tiny arrows is tied to the
basket . 42

Similar beliefs about the placenta were prevalent also among
the Slavs, and are met with even today among many primitive
peoples.


CHAPTER XVII

SACRIFICES TO NATURE GODS AMONG
THE VOLGA FINNS

A LTHOUGH sacrifices to Nature gods are not bound
to be made at particular holy places, but may be per-
formed anywhere, in the farm-yard, or at a “ pure ” spot in
the fields, generally certain sacred groves are kept also for
them. These groves resemble very much the already described
keremet-g roves, though they are not always fenced in like
these last. Among the Cheremiss, who call them kils-oto
(“sacrifice-grove”), they are often very large in area. As
far as possible, groves to the Nature gods consist of leafy
trees 5 the Cheremiss say that the most suitable tree is the lime,
though oak and birch will do at a pinch. Sacrifices are made
with the face turned to the east, or “ upward.”

Often, each village has its separate grove, called “ the vil-
lage-grove.” In addition, the Volga Finns have had more im-
portant groves, in which the villages of a whole district offered
up mutual sacrifices. Both the Votiaks and the Cheremiss call
a district, bound in this way to sacrifice together, by a loan-
word mer (Russian mir, “village-community”), but the
latter (Urzhum District) also by their own word tlste-kerge
{tiste, “ownership-mark,” kerge , “ district ”), probably from
the fact that the villages connected therewith have had a
common ownership-mark. From this, one may conclude that
the greater sacrifice-district originally consisted of villages and
families belonging to the same clan. Even today, one may
observe in certain neighbourhoods, that although the villages
belonging to one of these sacrifice-areas may be relatively
distant from one another, similar usages and customs are ob-












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PLATE XXXII


The Sacrifice-Grove (Kus-Oto) Among

THE CHEREMISS

(See page 263.)

According to A. Reinholm.






SACRIFICES TO NATURE GODS 263

served, while in a much nearer village belonging to another
sacrifice-area, widely differing customs are followed. Each
mer has its special name, often after the village near which
the grove is situated. It is possible that these villages were
the mother-villages of the clan. Besides its connection with
sacrifices, the term tiste-kerge has also a communal significa-
tion among the Cheremiss. During periods of great trouble,
war, or famine, several mer may, according to the directions
of a “ seer,” assemble to still greater mutual sacrificial feasts,
lasting sometimes for a week or two, in some very old grove,
where the number of animals sacrificed may rise to a hundred
and the sacrificing congregation to a thousand or so. It is
obvious, that such great gatherings have great significance
politically j even today the often very widely-scattered vil-
lages are bound together and prevented from being assimi-
lated into the foreign tribes living around them by these
gatherings.

In the groves sacred to Nature gods there are no buildings
for the preservation of sacrificial offerings or idols. It is
probable that these peoples never made images of their Nature
gods.

The great festivals in honour of the Nature gods are gen-
erally held during the most beautiful time in the summer,
before the hay-making, or also after the harvest. Often the
mdT-festivals are not annual like the village-festivals, but are
celebrated after the lapse of a longer period, e.g., after three
or five years.

When intending to hold a mutual sacrificial festival, the
different villages belonging to the area send representatives,
i.e., priests, to a meeting, at which the precise day for its
celebration is fixed upon, as well as the animals to be sacrificed
and the procuring of these. The animals must be of one
colour, healthy, and not too old, at the most in their second
year. Moreover, they must be “ untainted ” animals, i.e.,
animals that have not been used for labour or for procreation.


FINNO-UGRIC MYTHOLOGY


264

According to the Cheremiss, not even a goose or duck may be
used that has sat on eggs. Should an animal shiver when it
is looked at, this is regarded as a good omen. When the
sacrificial animal has been decided on, a long, narrow towel
is bound round its neck, as a sign that it has been set aside for
a sacred purpose. The towel is not taken away until the
sacrifice begins, when it is hung up in the sacrifice tree for
the period of the ceremony.

Funds for the procuring of the victim are collected from
all the farmers belonging to the area, regardless of whether
these intend to be present at the festival or no. Although
there is no question here of an obligatory tax, but of voluntary
gifts, each head of a family deems it his duty to subscribe to
the mutual sacrifice, according to his means and present con-
dition. The handling of and accounting for the funds is en-
trusted to a special functionary, the so-called “ cashier.” The
number of sacrifices depends on the prosperity of the people;
the sacrificing priests discuss together and decide which of the
gods is to be sacrificed to in each separate case.

In every village there are one or more priests, called among
the Cheremiss kart (“old man”). In the choice of these
karty who keep their positions until their death, or until the
weakness of old age, the trustworthiness of the candidate, his
knowledge of the sacrificial ceremonies, and his ability, to
recite prayers are taken into consideration. Often, a former
assistant to some karty who has already filled a lower position
in the priesthood, is chosen to be the follower of one of these.
Where there are several priests, the Cheremiss call the oldest
or most capable of these the “ great kart” the others being
“ small kart” At the sacrifices of several villages, the many
priests of the area are, without further choosing, participators
in the ceremony, discussing among themselves the order of
the same and which god each separate priest shall pray to.
When one of these priests, who in the sacred grove stand in
line, each under his own sacrifice tree, resigns, the new-comer


SACRIFICES TO NATURE GODS 265

does not take his place, but instead the neighbour to the one
leaving moves up one place in his holy office, followed by
those coming after him, so that the newcomer may step into
the place at the end of the line. Each priest has the right
to choose his own assistant.

To obtain a clear and complete view of the ceremonies at
a great festival in honour of the Nature gods among the agri-
cultural Volga Finns, we should follow closely the programme
of one of these festivals at any one place. As the old heathen
customs have best been preserved among the unbaptized Chere-
miss, we shall consider a great m<?r-festival among these
(Birsk District, Tsherlak village) at which the author was
present in 1913. 1

On the morning of the festival the functionaries concerned
in the same go earlier than the rest of the congregation to
the grove. They do not, as yet, step right into the sanctuary,
but remain at first in a kind of forepart to the grove itself,
where a provisional little tent-like hut has been erected.
Here the treasurer accounts for the means collected during the
festival. This forepart is chiefly intended for the congrega-
tion, who remain here during the holy ceremonies, discussing
the news of the day, telling fairy-tales, enjoying refreshments,
etc., or drying their garments, washed in the brook in the
vicinity of the grove. Into the sanctuary itself no one may
go who has not previously bathed in this brook and clothed
himself in clean, preferably white, holiday garments. This
is a daily duty to each participator in the festival for the
whole period of the same. In the forepart may also be seen
the sacrificial animals and the sacrificial objects awaiting their
turn to be put into use.

In a Cheremiss grove, in which several gods are offered up
to, each god has his own “ sacrifice tree these trees stand
in a row a few paces distant from each other. On the extreme
east is the tree of “the great Jumo,” at which the ceremonies
are begun. As the ceremonies at each tree resemble one an-


266 FINNO-UGRIC MYTHOLOGY

other closely,, we shall follow only the one at the tree of the
Heaven god.

Having bathed in the brook, the sacrificing priests bear all
the objects needed at the ceremony to the foot of the tree of
the Jumo. Every one has his own particular duty, one bring-
ing water from the brook, another chopping down old stumps
and gathering fallen branches for fuel. Others prepare from
lime-bark sacred objects necessary at the sacrifice, a girdle, a
bridle, a peculiar “ tassel,” etc. At the beginning a fire must
be made on the site of former fires. Fire must be brought
from the village in a pot, as the Cheremiss believe that one
may not light a sacrificial fire with a match. Over the fire-
place an erection of young limes is set up, on which in earlier
times, as one may judge from the name “cauldron-holder,”
cauldrons for sacrifice were hung, but in the present time it
is generally so weak that it can hardly bear a small pan for
porridge j the meat-cauldrons are placed on a foundation of
birch-logs. The trunks of both the above-mentioned trees
must be laid so that the thick end is towards the sacrifice tree.

The chief priest now digs up the copper coins, buried during
the foregoing festival in the ground at the foot of the tree.
To the left, before the tree, a candlestick of wood (“ silver
candlestick ”) is stuck into the ground, in which a little yellow
candle, formed in the grove, is placed. Although this candle
is thin and unpretentious, it is called in the prayers “ the
great silver candle.” To the right of the sacrifice tree, a little
round pillar is also stuck into the ground, and a little wooden
bowl placed on it. Into this, a drink made of honey is poured,
but, judging from the name “resin-bowl,” it must formerly
have contained resin. Further, against the living “ great ”
sacrifice tree, a “ little ” one is set up, which is bound to the
former with bast; the “ little ” tree is a young lime chopped
off at the root. If the “ great ” sacrifice tree is an oak or a
birch, the “ little ” tree should also be an oak or a birch.

Before the great sacrificial cauldrons are laid on the fire,


SACRIFICES TO NATURE GODS


267

porridge is cooked in a smaller vessel, which is then lifted
on to the roots of the sacrifice tree, being placed next to the
“ resin-bowl.” In the vessel a small spoon like a shaving of
lime-bark is placed, called, despite its unpretentiousness, “ the
silver spoon.” Before all this, white cloths are spread on the
ground bestrewed with lime-branches, and on these, in rows,
the sacrificial “ butter and milk ” loaves are placed touching
one another. Of the sacrificial bread, baked by the priest
himself early in the morning at the
village, there must be nine loaves,
one “ large ” and eight “ small.”

In the middle and at the edge these
loaves have a mark made by the
three finger-tips ; the mark on the
edge is called the “ nose ” ( ner )
and the one in the middle “ the
body” {kaf). On the “large”
loaf there are also lines, those Fig IO Sac „ fic1al Bmad
on the sides being called “ wings,”

[Prometheus]

and those on the opposite end to the “ nose ” the “ (bird’s)
tail.” On this loaf, therefore, a bird is formed. The
loaves are placed on the cloth with the “ noses ” towards
the tree, the “ large ” loaf on the extreme right. Behind the
loaves, nine wooden bowls are laid parallel with these. Later,
a drink made of honey is poured into them, the drink being
prepared for the festival by young maidens. Sometimes the
loaves and the bowls are arranged in two rows. Both are dedi-
cated to certain deities: the “ large ” loaf and the bowl behind
it to the “ great Jumo,” the others to other gods who do not
seem to be exactly defined, but vary, even at different festivals
in the same grove.

The candle is now lit with a brand from the fire and a
young foal is led into the sanctuary. To the right of the
fire, about ten paces away from this, a post of birch-wood is
driven into the ground and to this the sacrificial horse is



268


FINNO-UGRIC MYTHOLOGY


bound fast with a bridle made solely of lime-bark (“ the
silver bridle ”). To this ceremony belong also a footsnare
of plaited lime-bark with which the forefeet of the sacrifice
are bound during the sacrifice.

The first sacred act is the casting of pewter. The kart
places himself to the left of the fire, holds the blade of an
axe vertically over a vessel of water and says: “ O bless and
protect us, great god, give us health, prosperity and riches!
We on our side brought and set up for thee a sacrifice ; if thou
on thy side wilt accept a horse with shining hair and gleaming
mane, with silver tail and silver hoofs, may its head and
feet be formed in the cast pewter! ” Here the assistant
pours the molten metal on the blade of the axe, having heated
the former, praying as he did so, in a little iron ladle. With
great curiosity, the priest examines the shape formed by the
metal as it fell into the water. Should there be nothing in
its shape that resembles the sacrifice it is thrown into the fire
and a new lot melted ; but if there is, this shows, as the Chere-
miss believe, that the god is willing to accept the animal.
The pewter figure which is called the “ picture ” or “ shadow ”
of the sacrifice is set for the while on the “ large ” sacrificial
loaf.

The axe is now laid on the ground before the sacrifice tree.
The kart takes a knife in his right hand and a burning brand
in his left, and places himself by the axe with his face towards
the tree. Swinging the brand in the air, he speaks now also
of the shining sacrificial horse, adding: “With the scent of
smoke and the clang of iron, we call thee to our feast, thou
merciful! ” When he has finished this prayer, he rings three
times on the axe with the knife. Thereafter he goes to the
horse and touches its forehead and neck three times with
the brand, saying: “ Accept a good foal, with shining hair and
silver tail! ”

He then takes the knife and a green lime-branch and stands
to the left of the fire, where he whittles a little of the thick



PLATE XXXIII

Cheremiss Sacrificial Loaves, Bowls and
Coins at the Festival to Nature-
Gods

Ufa Government. (See page 267.)

After photograph by U. Holmberg.



|Lil -j ^ i A , ,








SACRIFICES TO NATURE GODS 269

end of the branch, after which he moves over to the sacrifice
tree where, with the knife in his right hand and the branch
in his left, he recites the following prayer: “O bless and
protect us, great god! With a large sacrifice loaf and with
a great vessel filled with honey-drink, with a great silver
candle, with a great resin-bowl, with a great sacrifice tree,
with a great sacrifice girdle, with a great e tassel J and with
a great sacrifice pewter we approach thee. If thou art satisfied
with thy people and the priests, let the shaving of lime-wood
fall right.” As he says this, he shaves off a piece from the
branch, the position of which on the ground is then closely
examined by the priests together. Should the thicker end be
towards the sacrifice tree or to the east, it signifies that the
god is kindly disposed and satisfied with the people and
the priestsj in the opposite case, the sacrificing priest, follow-
ing the direction of the sun, goes round the fire, placing
himself again to the left of it, where he whittles the branch
again and, standing before the sacrifice tree, does as before.

Where the first shaving has signified good luck, it is placed
in the porridge-pan, to the right of the “ silver spoon.” As
the kart whittles the second he pronounces a prayer, the be-
ginning of which is the same as in the foregoing, but finishes
with a new wish : “ If thou art pleased with the work of our
hands (i.e., with the objects needed at the ceremony) let the
shaving fall right! ” Its position is examined again, and if
a lucky omen is now also discovered in it, it is laid beside
the other in the porridge-pan. A third shaving must still
be whittled. With the help of this the sacrificial foal, which
has to shiver when sprinkled with water, is examined to see
whether it is acceptable to the god. The prayer accompanying
this begins also like the former, but ends with the words:
“ If thou art satisfied with the shivering horse with shining
hair and gleaming mane, with the silver tail and silver hoofs,
let the shaving fall right.” The third shaving also is laid in
the porridge-pan.


270


FINNO-UGRIC MYTHOLOGY


The assistant of the sacrificing priest now pours fresh water
into a wooden bowl, takes this in his right hand and green
lime-branches in his left and goes to the foal, after having en-
circled the fire in the direction of the sun. The head of this,
on which the u silver bridle ” has been set, should be turned
towards the sacrifice tree. The kart himself stands before the
tree and prays again: “ O bless and protect us, great god! We
on our side have brought and set up a sacrificial horse, with
shining hair and gleaming mane and silver tail, accept it on thy
side with good feeling, and shake from it the touch of human
hands! ” During the prayer the assistant pours water on the
animal’s back through the lime-branches, beginning from the
head. That the purpose of this is to purify the animal appears
from the accompanying prayer. During this ceremony, as
during all others, the other participants kneel with bared heads
and wait reverently for the shudder which the touch of the
water is bound to cause in the animal, and which is regarded as
a sign of acceptance of the sacrifice by the god. Should the
desired result not be accomplished at the first attempt, it is
repeated a second, third, or even more times. Each time the
kart recites the same prayer before the tree. While waiting
for the sign, the reasons why the god will not accept the
offering are examined. The assisting priests look to see that
the fire is made on exactly the site of former fires, that the
erection over the fire is rightly placed, so that the saplings
have their thin ends upward, and the horizontal ones their
roots towards the sacrifice tree. The positions of the objects
on the altar are also looked to. Finally, the bridle is set
right on the foal’s head. If the candle has gone out, it is
lighted anew. The assistants of the officiating priests try
their luck at sprinkling, one after another, even attempting to
obtain the desired result by sprinkling in the animal’s ear.
While the kart prays, the person from whom the animal was
brought, kneels also before the tree. While waiting the result,
all present, kneeling, pray half-aloud: “ O good, great god,


SACRIFICES TO NATURE GODS


271


let the sacrifice shake and shiver! ” The sprinkling may not,
however, be repeated an unlimited number of times, but the
animal, after a ninth attempt, is taken out of the grove and
a new one procured in its place. When the victim, some-
times at the first attempt, does shiver, all rise from their knees,
thanking the god, and the slaughterers begin their work imme-
diately. The animal’s feet are bound together with a rope
of lime-bark, and it is then thrown over on to its left side ; the
head must also now be in the direction of the tree. A smaller
hole is dug in the ground at the head, and, in order that the
blood shall not flow on the ground, is covered with lime-
branches. The kart now places himself before the tree and
says: “We on our side have brought and set up a sacrifice for
thee, accept thou it on thy side and let the rising 1 soul ’
( ts on ) be a foal with shining hair, etc.” Meanwhile the
slaughterer cuts the veins of the neck open, with an old-
fashioned knife used only at sacrifices, so that the blood
streams through the lime-branches into the hole. The first
warm drops are taken by the kart in a little wooden spoon,
after which he goes as before round the fire to the tree and
prays: “ O good, great god, with fresh blood we turn to thee.
Send peace and justice to all peoples living under the sky! ”
Having said which, he throws the blood up into the tree,
goes again to the foal and fills the spoon with blood as this
continues to flow out of the wound. This time he steps to
the left of the fire and with his face to it says: “ Thou, ‘Fire-
mother,’ with fire and steam, with thy sharp tongue carry
up the sacrifice to the great god! ” At the same time he
throws the blood into the fire. Afterwards, the offering-girdle,
intended later to be placed round the tree, is drenched with
blood 5 both sides of the girdle are drawn over the wound.
The “ bridle ” and the “ footsnare ” are taken off and for the
time hung up on the post to which the foal had been tied,
and the flaying of the foal, in which four men take part,
begins. Now also, the head of the victim must be kept towards


FINNO-UGRIC MYTHOLOGY


272

the tree. The candle at the foot of the tree burns all this
time, a new one being used to replace the old one as soon as
needed.

Immediately the flaying is begun, the nose or the part con-
taining the lips is cut off as a special sacrifice, and purified by
being scorched in the fire. The head, from which the lower
jaw has been removed, is similarly scorched. The flesh is
cut from the limbs without damaging the bones. Regarding
the different parts of the meat, the Cheremiss follow a certain
order. The so-called iww-pieces are placed separately in the
cauldron at the cauldron-stand which is nearest to the sacrifice
tree. These are the nose, or the parts around the mouth, the
tongue, the brain, the throat, the back of the neck, the breast-
bone, the heart, five ribs from the right and three from the left
side, a piece from each hip, the knees of the hind legs, the
stomach, liver, kidneys, and the intestines. The remainder
is boiled in two cauldrons behind this first. When the flesh
has been divided among the cauldrons, the hide is spread on
the ground to the right of the sacrificial altar, with the head
towards the tree. Spread on the ground, the hide resembles
a horse, thrown over on its left side. The parts unfit to eat
are placed in the hole with the blood. Later, the contents
of this hole are burned up in a fire which is built over it.
While the flesh is being cooked, this taking about two or three
hours to do, the people remain in the forepart of the grove,
to which new people continue to come from the surrounding
villages. Only the kart with his assistants remains at the
sacrificial fire. This is the time to gird round the “ little ”
tree with the sacrificial “ girdle,” which must be twisted three,
five, seven, or nine times (an odd number) round the tree.
Between the tree and the girdle a bunch of green twigs is
placed and the above-mentioned “ tassel ” is attached to the
same, the pewter figure being made fast to this.

A separate sacrifice must now be made to the “ messenger
of Jumo.” A white sheep is led into the grove and bound


yixxi-: jir

. . .. .. . . 1 ' . 0

(.c.\ ' J ' 0

fl , , . ? ?? ESdlA


PLATE XXXIV


Cheremiss Sacrificial Prayer

Ufa Government. (See page 276.)
After photograph by U. Holmberg.





SACRIFICES TO NATURE GODS


273

fast to another post. The sacrifice of this is made before the
same tree and is performed by the same kart. The ceremonies
are also the same as with the foal, except for the casting of
the pewter, the clinking of the knife against the axe, and the
whittling. At the slaughtering the blood is thrown into the
tree and fire. For the flesh of the sheep a fourth cauldron
is laid further behind on the stand. The skin is stretched
out against that of the foal, with the head towards the tree
and the legs stretched out to the right. At this time the kart
pours the honey-drink in the wooden bowls on the altar and
cuts out from the loaves the marks made on them by three
fingers, leaving them still, however, in their places.

When the sacrifice flesh is at last ready, the iww-pieces are
laid in a row in a special trough. From each piece of flesh a
piece is cut out and placed in a round wooden dish, which is
then placed at the foot of the tree. The pieces laid in the dish
are called orolek. In addition, quite small pieces are cut from
these parts of the flesh, and laid in two small wooden bowls
( suvo-korka ) of which one is dedicated to the accepter of the
sacrifice, Jumo, and the other to the intermediary, the Fire
god. Pieces are cut from the tongue at its root and from its
apex, from the head at several different places, such as the
upper and lower jaws, the parts round the eyes, and from the
gullet. In each of the bowls the loosened pieces of bread
are also placed, the ^p-parts in the first, and the ner - parts in
the second. A little porridge is also placed in each. Small
slices are also cut from the following parts in this order and
threaded on to a thin pointed stick of lime-wood: the after-
intestine, the right and left hips, the kidneys, the middle of
the breast, the heart, the aorta, the back of the neck, the
throat, the tongue, the lips, and from the liver. On examining
more closely the order of these twelve parts one notices that
they stand towards each other pretty much in the same rela-
tion as in the body of the animal. This stick with meat-
slices, called so'psar , the kart places in the sacrificial girdle with


274


FINNO-UGRIC MYTHOLOGY


these words: “ O, bless and protect us, great god! The shining
sacrificial horse, etc., etc. — accept it with good feeling ; with
the great iopw-meat we approach thee, give us health, pros-
perity, riches, and peace! ” The flesh remaining in the trough
from the first cauldron, together with the left part of the
“ large ” loaf and five small ones, is cut up at once to be eaten.



Fig. ii. Sacrificial Accessories


a, Silver Candlestick, b, Silver Spoon, c, Sacrificial Tassels, d, Sopsar.

e, Suldes.


The right-hand part of the “ large ” loaf and three small ones
are placed in the orolek - piece dish. When the sheep’s flesh is
ready, pieces are cut from it as in the foregoing and placed
in two silvo- ladles. No flesh-stick is made from them, nor is
oro/ek-He sh divided from the rest.

The sacrificing priest begins again to recite a prayer, holding
a knife in his right and a burning brand in his left hand, at
the close of the prayer ringing three times with the knife
against the axe, which lies on the ground before him, and
saying: “ O bless and protect us, great god! With the large
sacrificial loaf, with the great mead-dish, with the great silver
candle, with the great candlestick, with the great resin-bowl,
with the great sacrificial tree, with the great sacrificial girdle,
with the great ‘ tassel,’ and with the £ great pewter,’ we ap-


SACRIFICES TO NATURE GODS


275

proach thee; grant to us health, happiness, riches and peace.
Give family-happiness in the house, cattle-luck in the stock-
yards, grain-luck in the threshing-barn, bee-luck in the hives,
money-luck in the money-chest, give all kinds of luck and
progress! ” After which he throws the brand into the fire
and seizing the lime-branch which he had earlier whittled,
goes as usual round the fire, whittles a little from the end,
and placing himself before the tree, says: “ If thou wilt grant
family-luck in the house, let the shaving fall right.” As he
says this, he lets fall a shaving, the position of which is then
examined as before. The fifth shaving is whittled to a ques-
tion regarding cattle-luck. The sixth for the threshing-barn,
the seventh for the bee-hives, the eighth for the money-chest;
whereafter the kart whittles a ninth, saying: “ If thou, like
the rising morning mist, wilt give all kinds of blessings to us,
likewise long life, let the shaving fall right! ” These six
shavings are also laid by the others in the porridge-pan with
the bark upward.

The bough from which the shavings have been pared is
taken by the kart a third time round the fire, after which he
stands to the left of the fire, saying as he stares into the fire:
“ O great, good god! As the lime-bush in the meadows is
glad, grant to us health, happiness, wealth and peace! But
to those who regard not god as a god, the Czar as a Czar, a
man as a man, and to the one who says he can work evil to
others, give not, O god, to him that which he prays for. They
who pluck ears of rye (for magical reasons), they who pluck
out hairs from the cattle, they who 1 cut the heart and liver,’
hound them from one end of the world to the other. Health,
happiness, give; peace and riches present to all the peoples
living under the air! ”

Having said this he strikes off with the knife the top of
the bough, so that it falls into the fire. Thereafter he splits
both branches of the bough, threading on them (see Fig. 1 1, e)
the afore -mentioned shavings in the order in which they were


FINNO-UGRIC MYTHOLOGY


276

whittled. The object thus obtained, suldes , is besmeared with
the porridge and placed in the girdle next to the meat stick.
As he fastens it to the tree, he says: “ With the sacrificial por-
ridge, with the great suldes , we approach thee.”

[Prometheus]

When both the meat and the shavings have been placed in
the girdle, the congregation is called into the grove itself. In
front of the altar, a great white cloth is spread on the ground,
before which four assisting priests place themselves to pray
for every person, who, with his sleeve over his hand, brings a
sacrifice coin. While praying the priest also keeps the coin on
the sleeve drawn over his hand, as the Cheremiss believe the
naked hand defiles the coin. In these prayers, in which the
donor is always named and kneels behind the priest, the words
are as follows: “ Good, great god! (then the person’s name)
comes with a sacrifice coin to the great sacrifice tree to worship,
give him health, happiness and wealth, let him live happily
in his house with his playful family! Give him family-luck
— and all the different lucks up to money-luck — protect the
cattle in the pastures from wolves, bears, evil sicknesses, and
from the thieves who move in the night. Protect the seed
from destructive frosts, from heat that might wither it, from
heavy storms, from violent thunder-storms, and from all
insects, that he might have bread to give also to the needy.
Give all kinds of blessings to him! ” As he finishes the prayer,
the priest allows the coin to fall from his sleeve to the cloth.
Those who have been hindered from coming to the festival
send money by others, and prayers are read for them also.
When each donor has been prayed for, which, although there
are four priests, takes some time, the congregation fall on
their knees in parallel rows behind the sacrificing priest. The
essential festival-prayer of the day, often lasting half an hour,
is now begun, the kart praying for all that is good in the eyes
of the Cheremiss, chiefly for children in the house, cattle in
the yard, but mostly for great stacks in the threshing-barn.
Having prayed for all blessings, he prays to the god for




PLATE XXXV


In Government Vyatka the Cheremiss priest prays
to god with accompaniment of a stringed instrument
(kiisle). (See page 277.)

Water-colour by V. Soldan-Brofeldt.






SACRIFICES TO NATURE GODS


277

many kinds of protection. Further, he thanks the god for
having attended the sacrifices with fortune and accepted the
offerings in good feeling. Finally he prays for pardon,
should he have said last that which should come first, or vice
versa. After each prayer the congregation bow their fore-
heads to the ground. The kart then makes a speech to the
people, urging them to live in harmony, to avoid quarrels,
not to take another’s property, also not to lie, not to bear false
witness, not to drink too much spirits, etc. The congregation
then rises and the elder people go to shake the kart y s hand in
thanks.

Soon the congregation go on their knees again. The kart
takes Jumo’s drinking-bowl and two assistants the .wud-bowls,
after which they follow one another, keeping to the right,
round the fire, stopping on the left side of the same, where the
contents of the bowls are thrown into the fire. The kart pours
twice from his bowl, the first time to Jumo, the second to the
Fire god, to whom also the /wvd-bowls are sacrificed. As he
sacrifices to Jumo he says: “ O great, good god! the great
sacrificial drinking-bowl, the great Jzwo-bowls have we
brought. Accept them with good feeling! ” To the Fire god
he says: “ Fire god, thy smoke is high, and thy tongue sharp,
take the sacrifice up with the smoke and steam and bear it
to the great god! ” Immediately afterwards a drink-offering
and a r^o-sacrifice is made in the same way to “ Jumo’s mes-
senger,” and the Fire god. From the great meat-trough, an
assisting priest takes a piece also to the fire built on the place
where the foal was slaughtered, and sheep’s flesh to the fire
on the place of the sheep’s slaughtering. In both cases he
turns to the Fire god and prays that the last drop of blood
might be burned up, those also that possibly have spattered
further.

The kart now gives to eight assisting persons (“ goblet-
bearers ”) each his bowl, saying in which god’s honour each
shall cast the contents into the fire. The “ goblet-bearers ”


FINNO-UGRIC MYTHOLOGY


278

pass round the fire in the direction of the sun, stopping to the
left of the same. This round is made several times, the sacri-
ficing priest refilling the bowls each time and naming new gods
to be remembered. Thus, all the Cheremiss gods and spirits,
from the highest to the lowest, obtain their share of this sacri-
fice. After this drink-sacrifice the bowls are replaced in their
former order.

The kart now prays alone, with a bowl in his hand, casting
three times from it also on to the sacred tree, saying: “ Accept
our prayer, give justice and peace to all the peoples under the
heavens! ” Repeating this prayer he throws soup from the
trough on to the tree with a ladle. The assisting priest does
the same also once.

The congregation then seat themselves on the grass. Two
assisting priests go three times in the direction of the sun
round the fire, shaking heartily all the sacrificial objects on the
trough, the bowls, the dishes, the cloths, the “little ” sacrifice
tree, the animal’s skin, etc., saying: “This is for thee.”

It is nearly evening when the sacrificial meal is begun.
First, the porridge and the honey-drink are tasted, everyone
wishing each other happiness and prosperity. After this the
bread and meat in the Hw-dishes are shared out, and lastly
the rest of the food, excepting the orolek , the people sitting
on the ground and eating greedily after nearly a day’s fast.
All the remains and the bones are gathered together. When
the meat from the head has been eaten, the kart places the
bones in their natural order in the fire. The “ little ” sac-
rifice tree with the objects attached to it is also burnt up.
More wood is then laid on the fire, and over the crackling
flames assistants hold the skin by sticks fastened to the head,
the tail and the feet. The kart goes round the burning skin
with a fire-brand in his left, and a “ resin-bowl ” in his right,
and stands to the left of the fire, saying, as he pours the con-
tents of the bowl into the fire: “ Say not, that we burned an
empty hide 3 a great resin-bowl we set up on it.” The already


SACRIFICES TO NATURE GODS


279


mentioned “ silver bridle ” is also thrown upon the burning
skin. Finally, the “ stand ” for the resin-bowls is also burnt
up. The sheep-skin is not burnt by the Cheremiss, but given
to the kart , who receives no other honorarium for his services}
or it may be sold for the benefit of the sacrifice fund, or some-
times, the former owner of the animal may have reserved the
right to it.

Together with the orolek- pieces, the candlestick, the other
half of the “ large ” loaf, and three small ones without
“ noses ” are left at the foot of the tree, as sacrifices have still
to be made on the following morning. Neither is the fire ex-
tinguished with the fall of evening, but allowed to illuminate
the grove through the night. Early in the morning, at sun-
rise, the so-called cwA^-sacrifice is carried out, in which those
who have passed the night in the grove, take part. From the
pieces of meat left over to this day, a small piece is cut again
into two bowls as on the preceding day. The rest is sliced
into a larger dish. From the large half-loaf a piece is also
added to each smaller bowl. Besides these a bowl of drink is
placed on the cloth before the tree, together with three small
loaves, and the coins which were dug up on the day before.

The candle is lit. The kart takes a brand in his left and a
knife in his right hand, ringing as before three times on the
axe, and reminding the god again of the shining sacrifice foal.
Having encircled the fire and thrown in the brand, he stands
before the tree and reads a prayer nearly as long as that said
on the preceding day. After the prayer everyone shakes his
hand in thanks. The priest himself now sacrifices the drinking-
bowl, and two assistants the meat-bowls as on the day before,
the prayers also being the same. The presenting of the sacri-
ficial objects and the eating of the orolek-ft.t sh follows, with
the former expressions of good wishes. All remains, even the
candlestick, are thrown into the fire. The coins dug up
( onapit-oksa , “ the sacrifice tree coins ”) to which a few copper
coins have been added, are hidden again in the earth. While


28 o


FINNO-UGRIC MYTHOLOGY


doing this, the kart says: “ Sacrifice tree, do not say we left
thee empty! ”

The ceremonies at the other trees are similar, the gods of
the sun, thunder, wind, or some other god being the object
of worship to be sacrificed to either on the same day or later
in the festival. The tokens of honour to the different gods
do not end, however, with the sacrifices, but during the whole
of the festival, the fires burn before the different trees, as
well as those lit quite early, a long prayer being read at them
each day. Sometimes the “messenger of Jumo ” is not sacri-
ficed to until the close of the festival. Then, from all the
priests standing under the sacrifice tree, a peculiar murmur
of prayer is heard, the echo of which in the centuries-old grove
cannot but awaken reverence.

When the sacrificial fire, after the finish of the festival, is
allowed to go out, the priest who has sacrificed at the same,
sweeps together the ashes, saying: “ Should a man blunder
on to thee, may he become happy ; if a dog, may he obtain
a good weather-sense; if cattle, may they increase greatly.”
Those who wish, may still go to a specially reserved room in
the village, where pancakes are eaten and mead and beer
drunk, and the deities, to whom sacrifices have been made,
are remembered.

It is only natural that divergences may occur in the dif-
ferent mer. This need not, however, depend on the distance
between them; among the Western Cheremiss the same cus-
toms as were described in the foregoing are followed. As an
example of different usages, it may be mentioned that in some
places, the “girdle” is bound fast, together with the objects
attached to it, to the living sacrifice tree, on which it remains as
a pledge until the following festival. The number of shav-
ings inserted in the hddes - branches also varies (cf. the Scan-
dinavian blots fan). While the shavings are being whittled, it
is noted in some places which side of them falls upward.
Likewise the number of slices of meat and their order on the


ire


O v JAvr: 1 ..

r' A / ./I

' : X

a/ 1 - . ? ' k X' ? ’







PLATE XXXVI

Cheremiss Priests at the Festival to
Nature-Gods

Vyatka Government. (See page 280.)
After photograph by U. Holmberg.






SACRIFICES TO NATURE GODS


281


stick vary. Why the piece of liver should be placed on the
point of the stick, while the others are placed in some kind of
natural order, the Cheremiss could not explain. Could it be
connected with the custom in some places of commencing the
eating of sacrificial flesh with the liver? The most important
incident in all sacrifices among the Volga peoples, as among
the ancient Greeks, was the trial by water of the sacrificial
animal.


CHAPTER XVIII


THE SHAMAN

I N THE earlier beliefs of the Lapps, the shaman ( noidde )
played a part important enough to justify the application
of the term “ shaman religion.” Everywhere, and in every-
thing where the wishes of the spirits had to be consulted,
the shaman was a necessary medium. In addition, he filled
at times the post of sacrificing priest. His fame was therefore
great and his position among the people a leading one. The
more powerful shamans possessed titles such as u the ruler
of the mountains ” or “ the king of the mountains.” Their
fame spread wide among the Lapp villages and their names
were preserved from generation to generation.

The high reputation and position of the shaman among
the Lapps appear also in an account from the beginning of the
eighteenth century, in which it is stated that the shaman, on
arriving at the tent of the Lapp, was met by the members of
the family who, with heads bared, came out to meet him and
thank him for the help he had already given them. He was
given a new reindeer-skin to sit on, the best available food and
drink were set before him, and when he remained overnight,
the best sleeping-place was given up to him. It is further re-
lated that the shaman received a tax, paid biannually. Be-
sides this, he received a special reward for each service, its
size depending on whether his aid had been requested for the
finding of some lost object, for the curing of the sick, or to
offer up sacrifice. In addition to money, articles of silver,
or clothes, he was also given reindeer. Were he not served
and looked after in every way, it was believed he could bring
about many kinds of misfortune . 1


THE SHAMAN


283

But though the office of shaman brought thus both honour
and riches, it was not open to everybody to take up this pro-
fession, certain psychic qualities being necessary in its service.
The gifts essential for a shaman often ran in the same family,
appearing either early in childhood or also after some severe
illness . 2 The Arctic peoples would seem to be specially, in-
clined to nervous diseases. The merest trifle scares them,
they faint on the slightest provocation or become furious,
when they act like maniacs . 3 The shaman uses at times arti-
ficial stimulants to assist the coming of a trance. The Lapp
shaman-drink was prepared of soda boiled from birch-wood
ash, or of seal-fat, or from many other materials. By drink-
ing such liquids it was believed that the shaman could harden
his body so that not even the sharpest knife could penetrate
it. Neither could fire or water destroy a great shaman. He
could even seat himself naked on a glowing fireplace and
scatter fire and burning cinders over his body without the
least danger . 4

People with shamanistic talent were believed to be able to
converse with the spirits living under the ground, these last
appearing also in material form to them, in particular on the
occasion of their being first called to the office of shaman.
When these spirits, called noidde-gadse (“ shaman people ”)
by the Lapps, offered their help to a young shaman, they
laid stress on the fact of having served also his father and his
forefathers. Should he evince disinclination to accept their
services, they would use threats and even force, stories being
related in which spirits pressed the persons in questions to such
an extent that an early decay and even death resulted. Where
the Lapp listened to their call, the spirits were extremely
devoted to him, helping him and teaching him the arts of
shamanism. This schooling generally took place either on
the ground in some lonely place, or the pupil was led to the
underworld to imbibe there the wisdom of former shamans.
At the first call of the spirits, the missionaries relate that the


FINNO-UGRIC MYTHOLOGY


284

Lapp behaved like one mentally afflicted, was unable to bear
his wife, his children, or his servants, but forsaking these
wandered around in the forests or on the mountains . 6

The shaman could not, however, keep up his practice for
the whole of his life. Generally he became unfit for office in
his fiftieth year and was never employed afterwards in any
important task. But he might lose his position even earlier,
as a body free from any disfigurement was demanded of a
shaman as sacrificer, even the losing of a tooth disqualifying
him for office . 6

[Prometheus]

As soon as a shaman had begun to practise, the spirits began
to live more freely in his company. That these were the
spirits of the dead is shown by the fact that they lived in the
“ holy mountains,” from which the shaman could at will call
them to his service. When travelling in strange districts they
formed reliable guides. On hunting or fishing trips they were
his trusty protectors, proving their allegiance by giving him
rich hauls. Even his property and herds of reindeer were
looked after by these willing servants. In addition, the shaman
would seem to have possessed a special tutelary genius, as it
is said that when about to proceed to a distant market-place, he
would send a spirit to see whether the buyer had arrived.
After a while this spirit would return and relate the circum-
stances there. In the same way, when the shaman was away,
the spirit would bring news of his family and herds. Coming
events were also foretold by it to its owner. This spirit, which
procured all manner of news for the shaman, was obviously
the shaman’s own mobile “ soul.” 7

This tutelary spirit the shaman could also use against his
enemies. When two shamans quarrelled, e.g., at some fair
when both were drunk, they would attempt to show one an-
other which of them owned the more powerful spirit. They
sat down opposite one another and began their arts. It was
believed that their spirits fought with one another in the guise
of reindeer-bulls. The one possessing the strongest “ rein-



.



.




«! - . . ? -

...

(,;U yq * ' ?






PLATE XXXVII


1. Lapp shaman’s bowl-drum. Front, back and

side views.

2. Lapp shaman’s sieve-drum. Front, back and
side views.

The drum was used as a medium of excitation by
the shaman or of invoking a trance, and also for
divination. (See page 287.)








THE SHAMAN 285

deer-bull ” emerged from the contest as the winner. “ Sha-
man-birds ” were also used in these contests. 8

The spirit of the shaman was called sueje (originally
“ shadow ”) by the Scandinavian Lapps. 9 The fact that this
is supposed to be able to take on the shape of a reindeer, a fish,
a bird, or a snake shows that the sueje- animal in Northern Lap-
mark, corresponds with the shaman-animals which, according
to the Southern Lapps, assist the shaman when, during a period
of unconsciousness, he visits the underworld. Such animals
were the “ wuo-reindeer-bull,” the “ saivo- bird,” the “ saivo-
fish ” and the “ .ww-snake.” 10 The missionary J. Kildal,
who assumes that these animals lived in the holy mountains,
points out how they differed from the other inhabitants of the
mountain, the shaman possessing several of the latter, but
only one “ holy mountain bird,” one “ holy mountain fish ”
and one “ holy mountain reindeer.” 11 Another missionary
draws attention to the fact that “ the c salvo- fish ’ is not one
of the gods of the underworld, although its services are called
into account when journeying there.” 12 One can plainly see
that these animals were soul-animals, in the shape of which
the shaman’s soul moved during its separation from the body.
Like a reindeer-bull it hurried over the land, like a bird it
flew through the air, like a fish it swam through the water, and
like a snake it wriggled into the earth. The same idea is con-
tained in the following account by J. Kildal: “When two
shamans send their 1 reindeer-bulls ’ to fight together, the re-
sult is that according as the competing 1 reindeer ’ win or lose,
the shaman owning the same wins or loses ; should one £ rein-
deer ’ break off a horn from the other, the shaman owning the
injured one becomes ill; should one ‘reindeer’ kill another,
the shaman, whose c reindeer ’ is killed, dies. In these combats
it occurs also, that the shamans owning the ‘ reindeer ’ become
as tired and exhausted as their ‘ reindeer.’ ” The same author
relates also that when the shaman falls into a trance, “ he
journeyed in his 1 saivo- fish ’ to the underworld, and when


286


FINNO-UGRIC MYTHOLOGY


he wakes from his trance, the ‘ fish ’ has brought him back
uninjured to his body, again.” 13 Jessen is able further to affirm
that “ the louder a shaman can sing, the longer is his snake.” 14
The Finns also relate in their tales how the Lapps fly in the
shape of birds through the air; when one of these is shot
down, the Lapp tumbles to the ground. These soul-animals
were sometimes pictured on the magic drums.

The power of thus taking on different forms is essential for
the shaman’s soul to overcome difficulties particularly in the
underworld, and especially when bringing back the soul of
someone sick, which during the time it moved about without
a body has been carried off to the underworld by the spirits.
These last give back with great reluctance the souls falling
into their power. The Lapps believed them to know before-
hand when the shaman had decided to visit them. On such
occasions they bolted their doors well, but a clever shaman
could always hit upon some little crevice through which his
soul could creep in. Often a severe fight was waged between
the inhabitants of the underworld and the shaman, until the
former, against a fixed sacrifice, were willing to compromise.
When the bargain had been concluded, the shaman’s soul
brought the soul in question back to its home “ over mountains
and valleys, with such speed that the stones and sand flew
about.” 15

The shaman must also go to the underworld when accom-
panying the soul of some dead person, and when he had to
bring thence the soul of some departed relative, e.g., to herd
the cattle . 16

Besides taking the form of the above mentioned animals,
believed also by the Samoyeds to be the method of super-
natural journeying adopted by their shaman, the Lapps be-
lieved that the soul of the shaman could fly in the form of a
whirlwind, relics of a similar belief having also been noted
in Finland.

Of flying in the form of fire, an interesting report comes


THE SHAMAN


287

from the Norwegian Lapp territory. When two Lapps quar-
relled, they sat down on the ground and began to sing that
their salvo would send them their “ light,” which was believed
to be a flame of the Aurora Borealis. When these M lights ”
met in the sky, they fought with one another, during which
battle the shamans lay on the ground, practising intensely their
art. A terrible noise and crackling in the sky accompanied
these duels. The one whose “ light ” gradually, faded, fell
ill j were it totally extinguished, the shaman died . 17 From this
method of flying through the air like a flame, the Finnish
term “ Fire -Lapp ” is derived.

The most important instrument of the shaman was his drum,
the skin of which during the close of the heathen period was
always furnished with numerous drawings and figures, painted
on with the juice from alder-bark or with reindeer blood.
Often, the heaven with the sun and moon and other gods,
the earth with tents and storehouses, forest and domestic
animals, fishing-waters, etc., and the underworld with its in-
habitants were pictured on the drum. The pictures were not
always alike, neither was their order the same on all drums.
In the shape of the drum, not only in regard to size, but also
to construction, dissimilarities may be found. G. Hallstrom,
who has studied Lapp drums in many museums, classifies them
according to their construction into two chief groups, of which
one may be called sieve-shaped, and the other bowl-shaped . 18

The sieve-shaped drum, which seems to have been much
more widely used than the bowl-drum, was prepared by
stretching the skin over a band of wood of about the width
of the palm of the hand. The wood had, if possible, to be
without knots, and the ends were bent together and fastened
with wooden plugs or twisted twigs. The form of the sieve-
drum was generally oval, one end being seldom broader than
the other. The handle was a narrow cross-piece of wood
fastened to the back.

The bowl-drum was fashioned out of a hollowed piece of


288


FINNO-UGRIC MYTHOLOGY


wood so that this formed a rounded bowl, over the open
mouth of which the skin was stretched. Two long, narrow
holes were cut in the bottom, leaving a handle between. It
was further decorated with carved figures and small holes,
which strengthened the sound. The body was oval in shape,
of an egg-form. The size of the bowl-drum varied little, as
it was always made of one tree, while the sieve-shaped drums
were at times extremely large.

The variety of these drums appears also in the pictures on
the skin. On the sieve-drum these usually formed a common
circle in the midst of which the sun was placed. The latter
is generally square, four fine rays reaching out from each
corner ; only seldom is its shape round. The surface of the
bowl-drum is again divided by horizontal lines into two or
more parts. Over these lines figures stand in a row, the upper
being the Heaven gods. On these drums the sun does not
take a dominating position as it does on the sieve-drums.
Mixed forms are also to be found.

Further, the drums vary in their ornamentation. The sieve-
drum, which resembles the Siberian drums, is, like the latter,
often furnished with small metal-wire belts or chains, on
which various silver, brass, and iron jingles are hung. These
belts and chains are fastened to the back of the drums either
to the wooden band or the handle. The ornaments fastened
to the bowl-drum are generally the claws of wild animals, the
ears or hair of forest animals, etc. Often these decorations
are missing, when they are replaced by the figures cut in the
handle. This last-named drum would seem to be a Lapp
original, and according to our present knowledge, was known
chiefly in Lule and Torne Lapmark.

Besides ornaments and bells, a beautifully carved hammer
with two branches, made of reindeer-horn and often covered
with skin, belonged with the drum, and at least in later times,
also a ring or bunch of rings or another metal object called
arpa (“ die ”) by the Finnish Lapps.



PLATE XXXVIII


In some places among the Cheremiss the sacrifice
girdle is bound fast, together with the objects attached
to it, to the living sacrifice tree, on which it remains
as a pledge until the following festival. (See page
280.)

According to water-colour by A. Reinholm.



i



THE SHAMAN



Fig. 12.

Shaman Hammer


289

The shaman held his drum in great respect; to prevent it
being looked on by anybody, it was often kept in a case of skin
in the inner part of the tent. According to the Lapps, the
drum was desecrated should a woman touch
it. These last were not even allowed to go
over a road, along which a drum had been
transported, for the next three days. Were
a woman to do this, the Lapps believed death
or some other misfortune would follow.

But, if for some reason or other, a crossing
could not be prevented, the woman must
sacrifice a ring of brass to the drum. As a
matter of precaution, the drum was taken out
through the backdoor and, in removal, it was placed in the last
sleigh. Where possible it was taken along roads never trav-
elled before by anybody. Were the sanctity of the drum
violated in any way, it was regarded as useless. Were it
angered, it was believed to be able to express its dissatisfaction
by weeping or threats. The older a drum handed down from
one generation to another became, the greater the honour ac-
corded it . 19

At the close of the heathen period, the magic drum became
general in use. As Christians with the Bible, says Friis, so
nearly every Lapp family possessed a drum. From the Lapps
converted by him, von Westen received over a hundred magic
drums. Yet every Lapp who owned a drum was not actually
a shaman, but used it for purposes of divination, for his own
benefit. Whatever the Lapp was about to engage in, removal,
hunting, fishing, or if he desired to know the whereabouts of
his reindeer lost in the mountains, or the source of some trouble
in his life, or whenever he wished to appease his gods by
sacrifice, he turned always to his drum, asking its advice . 20

When a Lapp thus wished to divine the future in some mat-
ter or other, he clad himself as for a feast. He washed,
combed his hair, and put on his best clothes. The same was


290


FINNO-UGRIC MYTHOLOGY


done also by the others taking part in this holy act. The
neighbours came in their red and blue jackets, ornamented with
rings, gleaming neck-chains, etc. When beginning the act
the questioner knelt down on his left knee, holding the drum
horizontally in his left hand, and placed the above mentioned
ring first on the picture of the sun, beginning then to tap
carefully round it with the hammer so that the ring danced
gently up and down. At the same time he sang a song. If
the ring now moved round in the direction of the sun, it was
regarded as a good sign, the opposite foreboding an accident,
sickness, or other misfortune. From the figure on which the
ring remained for a longer period towards the end, the answer
to the question asked of the spirits was decided. On hunting
or fishing trips a good haul was assured if the ring paused at
the figures of a forest animal or a fishing-water. Where the
ring paused at the drawing of a god, it was a sign that this god
wished a sacrifice. In asking whether a sacrificial animal was
pleasing to a god, a hair from the animal’s neck was wound
round the ring. Should the ring not pause now at the figure
of the god in question, it was believed that the god would not
accept the animal. Another was then chosen, and still others,
the same procedure being gone through until the ring showed
the sacrifice to be pleasing. When the ring moved over to
the figures representing the underworld or jumped off the
drum, it meant death or some other great misfortune. 21.

The above was not, however, the original purpose of the
drum. Certain of the missionaries relate that when the sha-
man earlier acted as above, he excited himself by banging
violently on the drum with the hammer to such an extent that
at last he would fall into a trance. In a description written
down in Swedish Lapmark it is stated that when a Lapp
wished to know of something happening in a distant neigh-
bourhood, he laid the brass ring on the figure of the sun and
commenced beating the drum with the forked drumstick. As
the ring jumped from one figure to another, backwards and


THE SHAMAN


291


forwards, the shaman sang a peculiar song in which all the
other Lapps present, male or female, joined in. The men
had, however, to sing louder than the women. In the song,
the name of the mountain in which the spirits capable of giving
the desired information were supposed to dwell, was repeated
every now and then; similarly, the name of the district from
which news was desired. As the shaman beat longer on his
drum and sang louder and louder, he became more and more
excited until the ring paused at one spot, the face of the drum-
mer darkened, and he sank on his knees still increasing the
volume of his song, until finally he dropped to the ground
like one dead. At this point care had to be taken that no
article touched the shaman’s unconscious body, as, if this
happened, the Lapps believed that the spirit would no longer
return to it. The men and women present had to continue
singing until the shaman returned to consciousness. He was
then reminded of the case in question and the matter concern-
ing which knowledge was required. The shaman was at this
time tired out and perspiring, as though he had performed
some heavy task, and he now began to relate all he had dis-
covered during his trance . 22

According to this last description, the Lapps used the drum
for two different purposes at the same time, but generally
the two uses were kept separate. As an instrument of divina-
tion, the drum was used only for unimportant questions, e.g.,
success on hunting or fishing trips. For these, any male
person could make use of his drum, without being an actual
shaman. But in the case of serious misfortunes, such as severe
sickness, the cause of these was sought in an unconscious con-
dition, in the attaining of which the drum was used as an
excitant. Here a real shaman had to be applied to, as he
only could visit the spirits dwelling under the earth, from
whom sickness and misfortunes in general were supposed to
emanate. The cause of an illness was either the desire of
some earlier departed person for the company of a relative,


292


FINNO-UGRIC MYTHOLOGY


or a punishment for some misdemeanour or the omitting of a
duty. The collapse of the sick person was due to the stealing
of his soul by the underground spirits, or the carrying away
of some article in close contact with him, e.g., a shoe, headgear,
or a mitten. It was the duty of the shaman to discover what
the spirits of the departed required, why they were angrv,
and by what means they could be appeased, so that the sick
would be left in peace . 23

When, in cases of sickness, the shaman was about to under-
take a voyage to the underworld, he called together, according
to Leem, his helping spirits, which latter arrived invisible to
others. It was necessary that two women should be present
in holiday costume, with kerchiefs over their heads but with-
out belts, a man without cap and belt, and a half-grown girl.
When all these were assembled, the shaman bared his head,
opened his belt and unfastened his shoe-strings, covered his
face, and placing his hands by his sides bent his body backward
and forward, shouting: “Harness the reindeer! — Push out
the boat! ” Intoxicated with gin he began thereafter to pluck
brands out of the fire with his naked hands, strike himself on
the legs with an axe and swing the latter with both hands
over his shoulders} then running three times round the as-
sisting females with the axe, he sank unconscious to the floor.
In this state, no one might touch him, and he must be watched
over so closely that not even a fly could settle on him. The
soul was believed to be wandering in the underworld, some-
where in the holy mountains, while the body lay unconscious.
The women present whispered together, trying to guess where
the spirit at that moment was. Should they hit on the exact
place while going through the names of the holy places, the
shaman moved either an arm or a leg. At the same time they
tried by intensive concentration to follow all that the shaman
might hear or see. When the latter at last began to awaken
to life and with a weak voice faltered the beginning of the
song, the women also raised their voices and joined in. Fi-

[Prometheus]

THE SHAMAN


293

nally, the shaman declared the cause of the sickness, and the
deity to whom sacrifice had to be made, and informed them
of the nature of the animal and the place for the sacrifice,
guaranteeing that the sick would recover within a certain
period . 24

Leem does not, however, make any mention of the magic
drum, whereas Jessen expressly says that the shaman used this
instrument as a means of invoking the trance . 25 In this way,
the missionary Olsen also describes the Lapp shaman’s falling
into a trance, or “ diving,” as they themselves call it. The
latter further points out that the shaman had always to have
as assistant another person to awaken him out of the trance.
This assistant was a woman, where possible, a virgin. The
duty of the woman was to seek out the soul of the shaman
as it wandered in the interior of the mountains or under the
lakes, and lead it back to the body. Should the awakener be
incapable of fulfilling this duty, the shaman would never
wake again from his trance. Other antagonistic shamans
could also lead the shaman’s soul astray during its wanderings
in the underworld and in this way prevent it from returning.
Many shamans are said to have remained on their dangerous
journey. It is not therefore surprising that the shaman, on
his return to life, praised his awakener with many flattering
terms . 26

Like the Siberian shaman, the Lapp noidde used his drum
originally only as a medium of excitation. The use of the
magic drum as a method of divination is obviously of later
origin.

In the oldest accounts of the shamanizing of the Lapps
which have been preserved, dating from the thirteenth century,
the magic drum is spoken of solely as a means of excitation.
In these accounts the wonderful manner of the Lapps of
prophesying coming events, of following events in distant
places, of finding hidden treasures, of resisting sickness —
even, at times, death, are all described. The following in-


294


FINNO-UGRIC MYTHOLOGY


cident is related as an example. Certain Norwegian merchants
had once visited the Lapps and were sitting at table when the
hostess was suddenly stricken by illness and died. While the
guests were expressing their fear that some envious shaman
had caused her death, and even the Lapps in their confusion
did not know what to do, a shaman rose, spread out a cloth
Under which he placed himself, and began to shamanise.
Soon he lifted up an object like a sieve on which was portrayed
a whale, a reindeer with a sleigh, and a boat with oars, these
being the means used by the shaman’s soul in hurrying over
the high snow-clad mountains and the deep seas. Having
sung and danced a long time on the floor, he finally fell down,
becoming black in the face. Foam appeared on his lips, his
stomach burst open, and, with a fearful cry, life left him.
The visitors then turned to another shaman for knowledge
of the fate of the two lying dead. This shaman accomplished
his task with such success that the hostess arose quite whole
and related the fate of the first shaman. When the first
shaman, in the shape of a whale, had hurried over a lake,
an antagonistic shaman had seized the opportunity to lie in
wait for his enemy in the form of a sharp post, with the result
that the belly of the whale was split. This accident had
shown itself on the body of the shaman . 27

The objects mentioned in the above as being portrayed on
the drum are probably the very earliest pictures on the Lapp
drum, their object being originally, like the pictures on the
Siberian drum, to give wings to the shaman’s fantasy by re-
minding him of the means of locomotion which his soul was
believed to need, and the forms of the animals in whose
shape he was supposed to make the journey to the underworld.
On some of the Lapp drums, these pictures may be seen to
occupy a central position, round which, during the develop-
ment of the drum as an instrument of divination, later draw-
ings have gradually been grouped.

Shamans, who with the help of magic drums have fallen





PLATE XXXIX

Samoyed Shaman

(See chapter XVIII.)

After photograph by K. Donner.




THE SHAMAN


295

into trances, have been met with also among the Ugrian
peoples. Here also the shaman possesses a special protecting
spirit, “ head spirit,” said to protect him on his journeys to
the other world. In tales, the “ bear-like spirit ” of the
shaman is often mentioned, this being doubtless a metamor-
phosis of his soul. Images of such “ soul-animals ” are very
likely the animal-like objects of wood or metal found in the
graves of shamans. The Ostiak shaman, like those of the
Samoyeds and of the majority of the Siberian peoples, seems,
at least in the more northern districts, to have attired himself
for his functions in special apparel, a fact unknown in the very
oldest accounts of the Lapp shaman. From the scanty existing
accounts of the earlier Ostiak shamans it would seem that
they, in general, and even in the matter of their drums, were
nearly related to those of the Samoyeds and the other Siberian
peoples. 28

The other Finno-Ugric peoples who possibly possessed
shamans at an earlier date have for a long period used more
modern methods of prophesying their fate. Not even the
earlier accounts contain any mention of the use of magic drums
among them. And yet, the author of the “ Life of St.
Stephen ” (d. 1396) mentions that the Siryan magicians could
“ on that same day, and at the very moment ” know “ what was
happening in a distant neighbourhood, in another town, in the
ninth land.” 29 Most probably this happened in an ecstatic
state. A similar condition is perhaps intended by the phrase
in a Russian Chronicle, in which it is related how a Nov-
gorodian visited a Chudic magician in 1071, the latter w lying
dumb ” while he invoked the spirits to his aid. 30 For the
shaman’s falling into a trance, the Finns have to this day a
special expression ( langeta loveen , “ fall into trance ”) which
may, however, have been used originally with regard to the
Lapp shaman. Further it may be pointed out that the Lapp
name noidde (“ shaman ”) occurs also in the Finnish noita.