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About the Author Aili Marjatta Kerttula is a fourth-generation Finnish-American and has been a practicing witch for over 20 years. She pursues art and writing about Finnish folklore, magic, and paganism as a way to explore and reclaim her heritage outside of her professional commitments. To use her own title, Aili is an avid “armchair scholar” who has spent most of her adult life committed to studying paganism, magic, shamanism, and mythology. It is Aili’s honor to have been chosen by her ancestral spirits to be the vehicle that helps to bring the valuable knowledge and magic of Finland to an English-speaking audience. Aili is also an active member and volunteer at her local FinnishAmerican museum.
Chicago, IL
The Finnish-American Folk Witch © 2026 by Aili Marjatta Kerttula. All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any manner whatsoever without written permission from Crossed Crow Books, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews. Paperback ISBN: 978-1-968185-56-5 eBook ISBN: 978-1-968185-68-8 Library of Congress Control Number on file. Disclaimer: Crossed Crow Books, LLC does not participate in, endorse, or have any authority or responsibility concerning private business transactions between our authors and the public. Any internet references contained in this work were found to be valid during the time of publication, however, the publisher cannot guarantee that a specific reference will continue to be maintained. This book’s material is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease, disorder, ailment, or any physical or psychological condition. The author, publisher, and its associates shall not be held liable for the reader’s choices when approaching this book’s material. The views and opinions expressed within this book are those of the author alone and do not necessarily reflect the views and opinions of the publisher. This publication and all of its contents, including artwork, were created exclusively by human minds. No part of this work was generated, assisted, or modified by any artificial intelligence (AI) tools. Crossed Crow Books opposes the unauthorized use of AI to reproduce, analyze, or train models on this work. Any attempts to use this book, in whole or in part, for data mining, machine learning, or AI training purposes is prohibited. Published by: Crossed Crow Books, LLC 518 Davis St, Suite 205 Evanston, IL 60201 www.crossedcrowbooks.com Printed in the United States. IBI
Acknowledgments The first person I want to thank is my amazing husband, Tony. His unrelenting support and work picking up the household slack while I dove into this material like a mad scientist on crack is what allowed this book to come to fruition. I want to thank my ancestral spirits who presented me with this project and bountifully provided me with the perfect information and resources at the precise points in my research when they were needed. This process can only be described as spirit-led, and I am so grateful for their intercession. I want to specifically thank my mother. It is through her that I find my own Finnish ancestry, and it was through her death that I found myself in the unique position to write this book. I want to thank the myriad of Finnish folklorists, Finnish folklore enthusiasts, and even a modern-day, family-tradition tietäjä who were willing to generously share their knowledge, wisdom, and source material with me. This includes my translator, who made sure my Finnish translations actually made sense, Saana Sandholm, Dalva Lamminmäki, Siria Kohonen, Ella Stranden, and my tietäjä friend who wished to remain anonymous. Learning about magic and folklore divorced from culture is like trying to do pointe ballet without the right shoes. To that end, I want to extend thanks to the amazing fellow volunteers and friends I’ve made at the Finnish American Heritage Society & Museum in Canterbury, Connecticut. I have learned so much and found such an amazing source of support and friendship in those walls. Finally, I want to thank my publisher, Crossed Crow Books, who believed in and supported this project from the second the proposal landed in their inbox despite being a first-time author. I am eternally grateful for this opportunity to bring Finnish magic to a new generation.
Contents
foreword | VIII finnish pronunciation guide | XI Introduction........................................................................................................... 1 Chapter One Understanding the Finnish Spirit................................................................. 6 Chapter Two Riding the Spirit Boat.................................................................................... 21 Chapter Three Heroes and Gods.............................................................................................. 32 Chapter Four Nature Spirits and Elementals...................................................................... 62 Chapter Five Ancestral Magic............................................................................................... 80 Chapter Six Tools of Magic.................................................................................................. 103 Chapter Seven Elements of Purification................................................................................. 127 Chapter Eight Magic, Rituals, and Spells............................................................................. 156 Chapter Nine Elements of Ritual........................................................................................... 188 Chapter Ten Holy Days......................................................................................................... 213 Conclusion.............................................................................................................. 243 Appendices Appendix I: Finnish Moon Magic.................................................................. 245 Appendix II: Finnish Tree Magic................................................................... 256 Appendix III: Common Spell Ingredients.................................................... 258 Appendix IV: Sacred Finnish Symbols......................................................... 260 Appendix V: Finnish Weather Wisdom....................................................... 267 index | 269 references and further reading | 273
Foreword There are probably as many books on folk magic as there are divination practices for slightly simpering Victorian ladies to predict when their handsome and well-monied suitor will come and sweep them off their feet. And, like divination rituals, some are more effective than others. In folk magic practices, we can trace the same kinds of evolution and transmission as we can in folklore more generally. Some aspects are the same world-wide. Some are unique to particular cultures. Sometimes, we can see the influence of one culture on another, and one individual on a pre-existing concept. Magic, it is said, is at its strongest when it has personal thought behind it. Experience counts for a lot, especially when it has generational knowledge behind it. Because, again like folklore, the strongest elements survive over time and are passed on, shaped and built upon culturally. There are many ways to approach a book looking at magical history and practice. You can view the subject analytically, as an academic study seeks to do, and there are many good examples of that. You can examine the history, and the social context in which the practitioner is working from the historian’s perspective. You can look at the elements of working, and the thinking behind them, from the practitioner’s perspective. A truly great book would seek to use all three. Just like this one. Aili Marjatta Kerttula is, in many ways, a humble writer who does herself a disservice by her modesty. Her description of herself as an ‘armchair scholar’ might attest to the fact that she does not have a slightly mottled certificate hanging on the wall declaiming that, for three hours at least on the right day, she was able to demonstrate that she remembered something about her subject. But it does little to acknowledge the fact that she has generational wisdom handed down over time. That she has heritage. That she has … experience. And I have already said what that counts for. As a wise five-year-old in the Peanuts university once said, “the world is full of unmarried marriage guidance counsellor.s” Opening The Finnish-American Folk Witch should instil the same sense of glee or wonder in you whether you are a long-standing practitioner, a witch
Foreword just starting out on your journey, or an interested onlooker who wants to learn more. It is like being granted special privileges to open a Book of Shadows and to absorb the wisdom found therein. When Dr Terence Henderson told Evie Carnahan “You must not read from the book!”, he most certainly wasn’t referring to this one. The Finnish-American Folk Witch is a book packed with knowledge and insight. Its main body will lead you step by step through the stages of learning you’ll need to gain a true understanding of the Finnish magical practices and, crucially, the history and culture behind them. You’ll notice the common themes of folk magical practice, but then you’ll discover the way that these are shaped and moulded, not only by the Finnish culture but also by Aili’s own path of magical growth and development. Chapter One will give you an excellent grounding in the history of magic in Finland, from its shamanistic and animist roots through to the present. From here, you’ll be able to learn about the pantheon of spiritual figures, gods and heroes that sit at its heart. With this knowledge firmly embedded, Aili leads you gently as a guide through the practicalities of magical working from her perspective. You’ll discover the tools you’ll need if you want to take a practical approach, along with methodologies for casting a space to work, spellcraft and ritual. Current practitioners will recognise ideas, and perhaps be able to use some components to shape and develop their own working. If you think that the ten chapters and conclusion will teach you everything, then now is the time to change that approach. Five excellent appendices act as the coffee and mint to an already sumptuous main course of folk magical knowledge. From moon magic and spell ingredients to (especially pleasing for a folklorist) Finnish weather lore, there’s a wealth of extra information imparted here. You’ll be left feeling replete but enthused to try more. It’s truly exciting to think that The Finnish-American Folk Witch is Aili’s debut work, because it only scratches the surface of a fascinating hybrid of cultural magical thinking and practice. And that means that Aili has so much more to offer. And for the subject, that is a wonderful thing. So mix yourself a lonkero, grab a bag of ruissipsit and turn the page. The rest of the book is so much more interesting than me! Mark Norman Folklorist and author www.thefolklorepodcast.com IX
Finnish Pronunciation Guide Throughout the course of this book, I have endeavored to include as much Finnish language as I believe is realistic for a beginner. English translations are also included, so you may choose to use whichever language you are most comfortable with. Language is an inextricable part of culture, and I feel that including the original language adds the authenticity and gravity the material deserves. So, I am including this brief pronunciation guide, so the reader won’t be left guessing how to say the words herein. Finnish is a difficult language to learn, and its pronunciation rules vary a bit from English. Rest assured that the ancestral spirits and modern Finns alike are usually just thrilled to know you are making an effort, so don’t fret too much if it doesn’t come easily at first. Some quick “rules” to start: Finnish words always have their emphasis on the first syllable of a word. 2. There are many compound words in Finnish. This can lead to what appears to be impossibly long words. Try not to be too intimidated. 3. Some compound words are just two words that relate, such as Joulupukki, which literally means “Yule Goat,” but is the Finnish name for Santa Claus. (Joulu + Pukki). Don’t worry if you can’t tell where one word ends and one word begins at first. The more you expose yourself to the Finnish language, the easier it will be to pick up. 4. In the case of compound words, the first syllable of each word is emphasized. 5. There are no silent letters in Finnish. Every vowel and consonant in a word is spoken. Always. Including consecutive vowels and consonants. In the case of double vowel sounds, the sound is simply drawn out for a fraction of a second longer, such as bone versus boom. For consonants, both the first and the second letter are pronounced separately, such as baton versus button. 1.
The Finnish-American Folk Witch 6. English word placements tend to be very forward and “bright” in the mouth. Finnish placement is often high in the back of the mouth/soft palate. This forward-versus-backward placement of sound is helpful to remember when pronouncing uniquely Finnish vowels. 7. You will notice words that end in “t” that were introduced without. These are plural terms for the sake of grammatical correctness. Most of the consonants in Finnish are pronounced the same as they are in English. However, here is a list of letters that you will see in the following text that are different/are unique to the Finnish/Karelian* alphabet:
A (as in star)
Ä (as in cat)
E (as in bet)
Ö (as in cue) - soft palate placement
I (as in magazine)
Y (as in feud) - soft palate placement
O (as in hope)
J (as in yes)
U (as in boom)
*Š (as in ship)—has slight tone to it unlike the English equivalent
Note that these English equivalents are approximate, as it is hard to capture them completely in English. Listening to native Finns and Karelians speak and sing can help with learning proper pronunciation.
XII
Introduction I’ve always generally assumed that when a person writes a book, it’s because they are a leading expert in their field or they have studied something so extensively that their friends and colleagues have bullied them into recording their vast knowledge on paper. Maybe by the time I finish this volume, someone might be able to say the same thing about me, but in truth, I started this as my own personal grimoire; a way to teach myself, not necessarily to teach others. Despite this humble beginning, it was always my hope that through my own search for knowledge, I would be able to bring the information I struggled to find elsewhere to others seeking the same. This volume has become the culmination of that dream. And here you are! Gloriously new and tiptoeing into unfamiliar territory that has wrapped its sticky fingers around the deepest parts of your soul and beckoned you into its unknown. Maybe you have Finnish heritage that you’ve always been drawn to explore, or perhaps you simply have a fascination with this incredibly underrepresented treasure trove of ancient, European magic. Either way, I am so grateful that you are here. As you may have inferred by my already-confessed impostor syndrome, I do not have any degrees, nor any fancy letters I can attach to the end of my name. I am what you might refer to as an “armchair scholar,” a perpetual seeker of knowledge—academic, magical, and spiritual. I like to think that my lack of formal education in all matters of magic, folklore, culture, and mythology is more than made up for by the hours upon hours spent in personal research, contemplation, and, perhaps most importantly, listening to my intuition and the gentle whispering of my ancestors, always guiding me toward the right path. The deeper into my spiritual journey I’ve come, the more full circle things have come. Where my mind once saw boxes, I now see a continuum, and it is as if I can see almost everything; all times, all beliefs, all peoples—as One. Early on my path, I became a student of North American shamanism. (The root word for “shaman” is saman, which was originally derived from the Tungus language of the Evenks from Siberia, meaning “one who knows.”) The animist perspective of the indigenous peoples associated with this practice
The Finnish-American Folk Witch really resonated with me. The way it led them to respect and view their relationship with this beautiful planet we are on felt like coming home. The ceremonies I was taught were more like remembering than learning something new. However, as I moved along in what I perceived to be a good way, the social climate within the alternative spirituality and neo-Pagan communities made a huge shift toward shedding light on the new age “culture vulture,” a term applied broadly to “white” people who perceive themselves to have no culture and, therefore, commodify, romanticize, and appropriate the cultural practices of other racial and ethnic groups. It can be seen in the tangible form of white sage found on the racks at dollar stores, crystal specimens mined with questionable ethics, and labor laws being sold at home goods stores. This sudden awareness of “culture vulture” culture made me second-guess my place within the shamanic realm. So, I pulled away and tried to put my attention to practices I was sure had roots with my ancient and medieval European ancestors. I focused on modern witchcraft, Western alchemy, and English folk magic (Cunningcraft), as well as Norse, Germanic, and Anglo-Saxon heathenry. Then, my life took a major shift. My mother suddenly fell ill in the autumn of 2023, and I realized how tenuous my connection to my maternal ancestral line would become as a result of her absence. My entire life, since the age of 11, I have intermittently tried, in vain, to research my Finnish heritage. I had to endure the experience of my mother’s prolonged illness and death to find the very same information that you find yourself here looking for as well. As a fourth-generation immigrant, my connection to it was already tenuous. Still, the persistent tugging on my deepest need for belonging and home that I intuitively knew came from the magical forests of Finland would hit me sporadically just the same. My suomalainen blood begged me to dig, but each time I would try, I came up with only the most surface-level information. What little knowledge I gained was never enough to connect the dots. However, there was something different in this cycle of seeking as my mother’s life withered—the information was finally, slowly filtering up from the murky depths, finally ready to reveal itself to me. It felt as though I had somehow crossed some invisible threshold where my ancestors had decided I had completed the prerequisites of spiritual growth needed, and they could finally show me what it was I had been looking for my whole life up until this point. Information—books, academic papers, 2
Introduction online articles, internet searches—all began to contribute to a lexicon of knowledge that added up to something magical; information that you will find in the pages that follow. And, most interestingly for me personally, information that reflected back to me the shamanic foundation I had built many years prior and strayed from. I had come back home again. I think it’s important to quickly remind the reader here, at the start of our journey together, that I am a fourth-generation immigrant. As much as I have endeavored to immerse myself in the culture of Finland through volunteer work at my local heritage center and personal research and practice, in the end, I am still diaspora; I am American. To quote Henni Ilomäki in her scholarly article The Self of a Charm: “Thought is always culturally patterned and inspired with feelings which themselves reflect a culturally ordered past.” Another similar, but related quote, from the book The Rite Technique of the Siberian Shaman by Anna-Leena Siikala shares, “There is nothing to prevent the scholar from tracing the unconscious meanings of a symbol so long as the principles [and culture, I argue!] on which [they] operate in [their] analysis is made clear.” Parenthetical additions are, of course, my own. With these guiding statements in hand, I must say that it is impossible for me, as a Finnish American raised in America, to have a perfect grasp of the cultural context of the historical practices I am sharing with you in these pages. While I do try my best to present information to you through the cultural lens from which it originated, I know (and you should know) that I will probably be imperfect in my attempts. There is great value in your own practice of cultural immersion and understanding, as these are ultimately the cornerstones of successful magic and spiritual practice. Just as I shall aim to always thus-wise improve and grow, I hope you shall endeavor to do the same.
Notes to the Reader Because you probably haven’t done a whole lot of studying academic literature about Finnish folklore, I want to bring up a couple of points early on, especially for those people who may criticize certain things down the road. Much in the same way that Norse-Germanic reconstructionists and revivalists will draw from a multitude of cultural backgrounds from Iceland, to Sweden, to Germany, etc., studies on Finnish magic, paganism, and folklore are also often drawn from a wide range of regions that are all 3
The Finnish-American Folk Witch roughly defined as Finno-Ugric/Baltic, as well as areas of Russia and Siberia. These places are often spoken of in comparing and contrasting histories because linguistic and archaeological evidence strongly suggest to us that they likely were once a single people sharing a cultural heritage who evolved and migrated into separate groups tens of thousands of years ago. However, considering the limited amount of folkloric information at the disposal of academics, it is of great benefit to look at the folklore and information from this wide lens. Learning about the customs of one of these groups will often shed light on the customs of others. This lends different levels of meaning and significance that may be difficult to discern when looking at one in isolation from the others. The regions you read about in this book may include Finland proper, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Karelia, Siberia, Sweden, Sápmi (Lapland), areas of Russia, and possibly even others. This is done in the spirit of understanding, yes, but also these cultures have been sharing with each other as a result of physical proximity for as long as history has been recorded. This sharing is the natural and understood nature of culture and ethnography as a whole. So, while I do my best to adhere to sources that discuss exclusively Finnish magic, I hope you can forgive, even cheerfully permit, this incredibly useful methodology for bringing this material to modern eyes. Additionally, it’s important for me to make abundantly clear that the path I lay out for you here is not an ancient one, per se. Like many pagan revivals and reclamations born in this modern era, it is an amalgamation of ancient traditions that existed at various points in history across the FinnoUgric/Baltic regions, from prehistory to early modern Finland. Scholars agree that many of the systems of magic we have evidence of and are able to study today (including English folk magic, Celtic folk magic, etc., upon which modern paths such as Wicca and modern witchcraft are based) have been inextricably altered and shaped by their association over time with Christianity, for better or worse. Finnish magic in particular presents a truly rare example of Christian shamanism, and many of the systems and beliefs you’ll find herein have been colored by that history. Pre-Christian deities, saints, and the gods of Eastern Orthodoxy all blend together into a surprisingly coherent system of belief and folk magic—or at least they do if we allow them to, as our Finnish ancestors once did (and many continue to do!). I hope you won’t let this plain fact alarm you. Just as ancient pagan folkways were once creolized alongside Christianity, religion is constantly evolving in step with the culture of the day. We have the 4
Introduction ability to make an intentional choice to change it through our own personal spiritual choices based on the current culture as well. (“Creolization” is a fancy scholarly term for when two different languages, cultures, or religions overlay each other to form a new, unified language, culture, or religion that is a hybrid composite of the two.) So, keeping in mind that I wrote this book originally for my own use, I have made the intentional decision to reinsert the pagan folkways as much as possible into this already-hybridized magical system. However, I want to emphasize that I think it is an oversimplification to the highest degree to view magic as pre-Christian = good and Christian = bad. In reality, the Finnish people didn’t view these beings or deities as separate, or as coming from separate systems at all. They simply took the names and stories from their Christian understanding and applied them in a parallel fashion to their pre-existing folkways. This full-circle moment of finally realizing that pagan and Christian don’t need to be two armies on different sides of a singular battlefield is incredibly empowering and exciting. With that in mind, I thank you, dear reader, for joining me on this journey and for helping to spread awareness of this amazing, magical path by committing to learning its splendor. I am honored to be in your company and look forward to making magic with you.
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Chapter One
Understanding the Finnish Spirit In reference to reclaiming heritage and sacred teaching of our ancestors, the seminal animistic classic book Braiding Sweetgrass by Robin Wall Kimmerer reminds us that “[we] are told to turn around and retrace the steps of the ones who brought us here... to walk back along the red road of our ancestors’ path and to gather up all the fragments that lay scattered along the trail... [This knowledge] has been forgotten, but it is not lost as long as the land endures and [we] cultivate people who have the humility and ability to listen and learn.” This sentiment so succinctly summarizes the magic found in the pages of this book. To really understand the magic of Finland, it is crucial to understand the history of its people. Only through the lens of culture and origin can we truly appreciate the magic and folklore in the deepest parts of our being. So, we begin our journey with a quick overview of the history of magic and animism in the land we now call Finland.
A Brief History of Finnish Magic Since 9000 BC, the Sámi and Finnish peoples have occupied the land now known as Finland, as well as the former Finnish territory known as Karelia in modern-day Russia. One of the first forms of Proto-Finnish shamanism was found in the Mesolithic Suomusjärvi culture of Finland, 8300–5000 BC. Some scholars believe that the Suomusjärvi culture is likely where many of the stories that would later evolve into the epic folk tales found in the Kalevala and other epic Finnish poetry first arose. The Proto-Sámi and Proto-Finns co-existed in many of the same lands during the Comb Ceramic Period, which stretched from 5000 to 3200 BC. It is during this stage in history that we begin to receive the modern archaeological gift of cave paintings, which give us clues into the shamanistic and animistic practices that were part of the everyday lives of these ancient peoples. They are images that have been translated as shamans falling into trance, images of shamans riding boats to the Spirit World, and more.
Understanding the Finnish Spirit Around 3200 BC, historians believe that the Proto-Finns began settling permanently in the southernmost parts of the country, displacing the Sámi, who moved toward the north following the herds of reindeer, which became the central being to their livelihoods. The Sámi had an uninterrupted chain of tradition surrounding their shamanistic culture and practices all the way through the nineteenth century, when owning a Sámi drum was outlawed, and they were all confiscated or destroyed. The Sámi are the only recognized indigenous group of peoples in Europe, and, thankfully, even the powerful crushing blow of the colonizing Scandinavians could not completely extinguish their sacred teachings and beliefs. Recorded as recently as the Viking Age (800–1025 AD), the Finnish and Sámi shamans, referred to as noita/noiade, were both said to “...battle against instances of either soul loss [when the patient’s soul became stranded in some otherworld] or soul intrusion [in which a foreign soul invaded the patient’s body].” They relied on frenzied altered states of consciousness and spirit journeys to the Otherworld to rescue souls or soul parts, determine the cause of a disease, or find out details useful in controlling a malicious entity’s activities, such as its secret name or origin. During the Bronze Age and the Iron Age, a shift took place as the Finns settled into permanent agricultural settlements rather than the more nomadic life of their forefathers. A new type of healer and spiritual leader emerged: the tietäjä, which translates to “one who knows.” The tietäjä differed from their noita ancestors, who relied nearly exclusively on shamanic trance to travel to the Spirit World for information, in that they did not use trance to visit the Spirit World, but rather through the use of memorized incantations and authoritative command over the spirits. The noita and tietäjä have often been presented by scholars as competing magical traditions; the former representing the pre-Christian animistic ways and the latter the more “evolved” Christian ways. Historically, they may have been viewed as opposing sides, but as a modern practitioner, these two traditions have the potential to exist in syncretic harmony. The incantations and poems of the tietäjä are one of the components of Finnish magic that sets it apart from the traditions of their Baltic, Slavic, and Norse neighbors. There have been many other names applied to magic workers and healers in Finland as well. While tietäjä and noita are likely the most commonly used and well-known, a shortlist of some others that may resonate more or less with different modern practitioners also includes parantaja (herbal healer), poppamies/poppanainen (medicine man/woman), puaskari (healer), and taikuri (magic-worker). 7
The Finnish-American Folk Witch Finland was one of the last countries in Europe to find itself under the clutches of the Christian Conversion Era, primarily during the twelfth century AD. Even though the Catholic Church began its crusade in earnest in Finland so long ago, the tietäjät in Finland managed to live on in the privacy of cottages and saunas well into the early twentieth century. This continuous legacy of magical practice is unique compared to so many other ancient pagan cultures in historical Europe, where we have very little information about how they may have practiced, lived, and believed. This much-delayed suppression and censorship of folk magic, along with the wave of nationalism in Finland starting in the late 1800s, led to the recording of a massive amount of folklore, first and secondhand accounts, rune poems, and magic spells, all uniquely Finnish and/or Karelian. The most notable of which was the collection of folk narratives and stories by Elias Lönnrot, which he would later compile into the Finnish national epic, The Kalevala, as well as the Kanteletar and other books that have become inextricably tied to the national identity of the Finns. While scholars love to claim that the last account of tietäjä activity was in the 1920s and, therefore, it must have finally died out, modern Finns and folk healers will tell you that nothing could be further from the truth. Amazingly, magic has been alive and thriving in whispers and shadows in Finland since time immemorial. Finnish magic is an amazing, untapped reservoir of knowledge that modern practitioners are often completely unaware of. Northern Europe, namely Norway, Sweden, Finland, and Russia, all share a connection to the Arctic Circle. Above that magical line lives another uninterrupted line of folk culture that is often overlooked: Europe’s only recognized indigenous peoples, the Sámi. It has been said that the Sámi were a great source of knowledge and information for the traditional peoples of ancient pre-Christian Northern Europe. The Sámi themselves acknowledge that the Scandinavian people at large, and particularly the Finns, had similar cultural and religious-spiritual practices as the Sámi due to this sharing of wisdom among these peoples. Of course, each group often had its own regional and cultural differences, but there is a seed at the core of each that shares many commonalities and origins. Nearly all ancient peoples of Europe, and possibly even the whole world at one time, were shamanistic and animistic societies.
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Understanding the Finnish Spirit Now, it’s important to note that much of what scholars think they know and understand about Finnish shamanic traditions is inferred from their study of the much more recent tietäjä institution. Historians generally agree that the tietäjä are a direct “descendant” or evolution of the ancient Finnish shaman (poppamies/poppanainen). Studying accounts of tietäjä magic and beliefs yields invaluable implications and insights into the cosmology and praxis of the ancient pre-Christian Finns. However, Christianity had undoubtedly significantly altered the course of magic and folk belief in Finland and the world at large by the early modern period, during which much of the information here was gathered. Some of the ancient pagan beliefs can be teased out of these ancient and early modern sources, but historical accounts are always colored by the beliefs and philosophies of those primarily Christian scholars who write them down. Thankfully, there is still so much value we can glean from these stories and ethnographies.
The Sowing The Sowing is a beautiful story within The Kalevala that expresses an important facet of the ethos of the Finnish folk witch/noita/tietäjä that feels like the perfect jumping-off point for learning about Finnish magic. The simple lessons taught in this story serve as a springboard from which everything else in this book will grow, becoming a core of ideology for the budding practitioner. Many cultures have myths that surround the first man and how that first man (or woman) came to be, and how they spent their first days in existence, learning how to co-exist with the rest of creation. In these stories, humanity is typically the last being to be created; after the land, the oceans, the mountains, the plants, the animals, etc. Some mythologists theorize that this means man must accept that they are not the wisest of the spirits or beings in a place, as they are always the last to arrive; they are the youngest and least experienced of all of creation. We must, therefore, rely on the teachings of nature to show us the right way to live. This is reflected in Finnish myth. In The Kalevala, the first Finn, Väinämöinen, recognizes that the land is barren and realizes that he does not know how to remedy the problem. So, he calls upon a spirit of sowing seeds to populate the land with woodland plants and trees. The Kalevala has this beautiful passage speaking of the spirit Pellervoinen’s work:
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The Finnish-American Folk Witch “On the hills he planted pine groves, Clumps of fir upon the hillocks; All the heaths he sowed with heather And the dells with undergrowth. Planted birches in the hollows, In the loose loam planted alders; In the damps the chokecherry seeded, Planted sallows in the marshes; Rowans in the holy places, Willows in the soggy soils; Junipers upon the barrens, Oaks along the river banks.” —Excerpt from The Kalevala; Runo 2, “The Sowing” This passage describes the wisdom of Pellervoinen being passed along to Väinämöinen. He shows him that there is a place for everything that exists in nature. Pellervoinen deftly teaches Väinämöinen (also described as a tietäjä, or sage) about the delicate balance of the ecosystem. Later in the same rune, Väinämöinen is clearing a patch of land to help barley grow, and we find this addition: “Old reliable Väinämöinen Had a sharp axe made for him Then he cut a wide swathe quickly, Cut out an enormous clearing. All those handsome trees he felled Leaving only one lone birch tree Standing for the birds to rest on—” —Excerpt from The Kalevala; Runo 2, “The Sowing” This entire rune is a beautiful story that illustrates how the tietäjä and all Finns, truly, sought always to live in harmony with nature. Doing that required two things: (1) When in doubt, ask the spirits and listen for an answer, for they have great wisdom to be shared, and (2) only take from nature what you need, always accounting for the needs of all of Earth’s creatures. Finnish folk belief is, at its deepest core, animistic in nature, wherein every plant, animal, force of nature, and place has a spirit and a 10
Understanding the Finnish Spirit form of consciousness, with wisdom that can be shared. When we honor those spirits through our attentive care and consideration, they are more inclined to share their gifts with us. Just as animism views the world and its parts as animated by spirits, many traditions hold that the human soul is composed of distinct parts, each playing a unique role in our spiritual and physical existence. Understanding these parts becomes a roadmap for understanding ourselves, which further helps to advance our magic and personal growth within the tradition of the noita.
The Three Parts of the Soul The number three is found in many places in Northern European magical systems. The number three is one of power and is found over and over again in stories, myth, and ethnographies, demonstrating a symbolic connection to the cycles of personal growth and even the experience of moving through the Lower, Middle, and Upper Worlds of the Spirit Realm. (More on that in the next chapter.) While some sources in Finnish folklore and mythology split the soul into more than three parts, there is something intuitively pleasing about the echo of this sacred number in how we choose to dissect the human soul as well. This is just my personal gnosis, so I will also include, after these initial three parts, a couple of other entities that are sometimes rolled into the concept of the human soul in addition to these three: the itse, the sielu, and the luonto. The Itse (The Ego/Self) The itse is the conscious mind. This is the part of the soul that contains our personality and the sum of our acquired experiences. The itse can be seen as the core of our individual, personal identities. This is the part of ourselves that we often feel is immutably and integrally essential to who we are as unique human beings. The itse personifies our sense of self. The itse is also seen as the source of our deepest thoughts, feelings, and emotions. It ties us most closely to our lived, day-to-day experiences and lessons learned. Many more modern religious systems look at the “ego” as a negative thing. The physical body and physical experiences are somehow viewed as “less than” the spiritual. This is reflected in the historical attitudes toward women and women’s spirituality in general. However, the ego is a crucially 11
The Finnish-American Folk Witch important organizing force that allows the sielu to interact with the physical world. We cannot walk the proverbial edge between the world of ordinary consciousness and the Spirit World without an “ordinary” world to perceive. The itse gives us the ability to interact with our community and loved ones and bolsters us to offer aid where possible. The Sielu (The Higher Self) The sielu most closely matches what modern Westerners think of as “the soul.” Sielu encapsulates the innate core of our being that makes us unique from every other human. It is not influenced in the same way by how difficult a childhood we may have had, or what we learned about in school growing up the same way that the itse may be. Our sielu more or less remains unchanged and constant; the part of ourselves that survives us when our bodies return to the Earth. In Finnish folklore and ethnographies, the accounts imply an established belief in reincarnation based on the various facets of ancestor veneration within the folklore and culture. It was a common belief that the souls of deceased family members might be reborn into the bodies of children in the same family, and the act of making offerings and maintaining a relationship with those ancestors after death may suggest a potential return to this plane of existence. That said, what follows dips a little more clearly into the pool of personal gnosis than Finnish folklore, but I believe conceptually it makes sense. In some spiritual systems, what the Finns called sielu and modern English speakers refer to as the “soul” is often referred to as the “Higher Self” in modern psychology and New Age thought. The benefit of reincarnating ancestors is the continuation of learning that takes place through existing in a physical body in relationship with others and the land. So, if we follow this logic, the sielu does and can contain the collective wisdom of lessons learned through many lifetimes. (Some systems refer to these as “soul lessons.”) This part of the soul can be potentially communicated with to help extract that wisdom through meditation and journeywork. Luonto/Lempi (Vital Life Force) One’s innate magical ability to affect change is called luonto. Luonto could be raised to increase its potency through ritual or incantation, but in its latent form was often described as either “hard” or “soft.” It was believed 12
Understanding the Finnish Spirit that for a practitioner to be a successful tietäjä (community-based leader, healer, and shamanic figure), one had to be born with a “hard” luonto. A particularly interesting piece of folklore suggests that people who are born with teeth nearly always have hard luonto, but the corollary was that when elderly practitioners lost their teeth, their luonto was said to be lessened. In addition to increasing the effectiveness of one’s magic, having hard luonto was also believed to be able to protect the practitioner or individual from magical curses or attacks. Prior to, or as part of, every ritual, spell, or healing work, the tietäjä would include luonto-raising. According to some ethnographies, this was done by gnashing teeth, jumping up and down (dancing?), clapping hands, spitting, coughing, or showing anger. The luonto was sometimes summoned from “under the ground” through incantations if it seemed that these techniques were not sufficient. It is interesting to also acknowledge that these were likely also techniques for inducing altered states of consciousness, similar to the techniques used by the Evenk shamans in Siberia. Commonly, in the literature, tietäjä are referred to as being male, and having hard luonto was associated with masculinity and virility. In fact, it was explicitly described in one account that “a woman cannot manage to control any kind of väki [nature spirits/forces]” and female tietäjät were often characterized in narratives as having secondary male features, such as facial hair. However, there is plenty of historical evidence of female tietäjät despite this assertion. This is especially true the closer we track the tietäjä through history into the present. There is notable evidence for women having their own form of personal power called lempi/vitun-väki. At the surface, lempi, as a term, is most commonly applied to a woman’s marriageability or sexual attractiveness. The word lempi is also comparable to the terms kunnia or arvo, meaning honor, value, or worth, which are synonymous with lempi in The Kalevala. It bears mentioning that during the period in which the ethnographic accounts on lempi were collected (late 1800s to the early 1900s), women had very little personal agency, and often their ability to marry into a wealthy family was their best bet for lifelong prosperity. Lempi symbolized their one pathway to what was hopefully happiness and love in marriage. Vitun-väki is a type of vital force that was believed to emanate from the female genitalia. In the accounts given, this energy had the power both to create new life and to protect someone from the influences of the 13
The Finnish-American Folk Witch evil eye and/or a curse, and/or to injure a person. In fact, having a woman step over you was believed to be enough to cast an unintentional curse on you, according to at least one narrative account. Rituals and spells (most commonly performed in the sauna) would be performed before marriage, and again after birthing children to either “open” or “close” this proverbial portal of magical energy. Likewise, women who were unable to give birth were sometimes put through vitun-väki-opening rituals to help them conceive a child. There is even a connection of this vital feminine force to the sauna stove and elemental fire, as it was believed that sitting too close to the stove could cause infertility. The proximity and exposure to elemental fire energy had a regulating effect on this power in small doses, but could be catastrophic with overuse. This connection to fire somehow seems incredibly appropriate, given its ability to both destroy and create new life. Some scholars debate whether lempi and vitun-väki are connected and perhaps represent related, specifically female, magical energies. Knowing that the woman and the goddess were such prevalent and revered energies in ancient Finnish culture, I believe these concepts are most certainly connected, even though they are not ideas that have been widely studied or yet understood from an academic perspective. I imagine that luonto and lempi/vitun-väki function similarly to the idea of Shiva and Shakti in Hindu thought. They are two sides of the same coin of personal power, frequently associated with the binary gender system, but which, of course, can function outside of the binary as well. Tietäjät regularly opened any ceremony or ritual by raising their luonto. Lempi and vitun-väki were historically “raised” or “opened” in different ways than luonto; typically through sauna bathing rituals or spells/incantations. However, for the modern practitioner, a simpler ritual could achieve the same goal if one feels the need to draw on or increase their own personal power for fortitude or strength.
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Understanding the Finnish Spirit Simple Luonto/Vitun-väki Raising Ritual In this simple ritual, I’ve used the word “power” rather than luonto, lempi, or vitun-väki, but feel free to substitute those as you feel led to do. Supplies • Water collected from a clean, natural source • A candle or small fire • An offering bowl and offering • Drum or rattle (optional) Begin by washing your hands and face with water for purification. As you do so, you may say: English: “Water spirits, ancient power, Hear my plea in this dark hour. Cleanse me of impurities, Wash away spirit’s dis-ease. Wisdom, healing, never straying, Guide and lead me with this praying.”
Finnish: “Veden henget, voima vanha, Virtaa taika, hetki kanna Puhdista ja paranna, Henki huuhdo, kirkasta. Viisaus ja voima kanna, Näytä tie ja mua johda.”
Take a few moments to breathe and allow yourself to become fully present in your body at this moment. When you feel ready, light the candle and prepare to make your offering. Gift the offering to the Spirits and say: English: “Land of Spirits Hear my cry Guardians of the Earth and Sky Ancestors attend my plea Channel power back to me With this gift, your guard I seek Be with me, as magic speaks.”
Finnish: “Henkimaa, nyt huuto soi, Maan ja taivaan vartijat, Esivanhemmat, kuulkaa nyt, Voiman virta, mulle sytyt. Tällä lahjall’ suojan saan, Olkaa luonain loitsimaan.”
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The Finnish-American Folk Witch Once you’ve made your offering, it is time to start the chanting/singing. You may accompany yourself with a drum or rattle, if desired. Begin chanting slowly and softly, and as you fall into a rhythm with the words, allow yourself to get louder and faster. English: “Power at its highest reach Spirit flying wild and free Nature’s perfect harmony Complete and heal all of me.”
Finnish: “Voima nousee korkealle, Rakkaus on puhdas, hälle. Taivaan, maan tuo sopu vain, Paranna ja puhdas ain’.”
As you do, visualize the flame of your personal power growing in your belly, getting bigger and brighter, consuming your whole body. When you feel as though the chant has worked, simply stop and add the final statement: “Ja niin se on.” (“And so it is.”) When you are done, take a moment to once again feel present in this place and time. When you feel balanced and ready, extinguish the candle, and the ritual is complete. The Haltija/The Etiäinen Also sometimes called the “henki,” the word haltija etymologically derives from Old German and means “guardian.” A similar concept that some readers might be familiar with is the fylgja from Norse-Germanic shamanism. The haltija is similar to the modern idea of a “spirit guide.” We are not born with them, but rather folklore tells us that we acquire or “make” them when we are three months old. Before this point, it was commonly believed that infants were especially prone to being replaced by a changeling without a haltija to protect them. For the tietäjä, the haltija was of particular importance and often took the guise of a specific animal spirit that embodied certain qualities important to the tasks of the practitioner. The haltija can even be seen to represent the “higher self” of the practitioner. This is due to the belief that the haltija has a purer connection to the Spirit World. Common animal spirits included bears, foxes, wolves, eagles, water birds, and many others. In some families, the haltija was inherited through the ancestral line and was totemic to the family. Likewise, haltija were sometimes passed down through a lineage of tietäjät, even if they were not related by blood as well. The haltija was believed to stay with a person until they passed away, and losing 16
Understanding the Finnish Spirit one’s haltija before that by having it frightened away or having it wander off while its person was asleep or in a trance was considered incredibly detrimental. Having this happen was just one of many situations where a healer would have been called to perform what modern neoshamans have termed “soul retrieval” to reunite the lost “soul part” and restore the ill person to wholeness. Sending one’s haltija was a common practice for tietäjät and noitat. It was believed that one’s haltija could arrive at a place before its person and create a ruckus. Other sources refer to this sent “essence” or entity that is able to travel ahead of a person or tietäjä as the etiäinen. This could explain superstitions about items falling in the household, which portend that a guest or person is about to arrive. Noita and shamans were also known for sending their haltija/etiäinen and animal spirit helpers on journeys to acquire information, retrieve a patient’s soul fragments from the Spirit World, or sometimes absorb, banish, and/or exorcise and send away the cause of an illness from a patient. Of course, a n oita can have many animal spirit helpers that are not necessarily haltijas, but a haltija could conceivably perform many of the same tasks for the healer or shaman. Having a particularly “hard” or powerful haltija was effectively synonymous with having powerful onni, or personal fortune/good luck. In some cases, tietäjät were known to search for additional haltija to acquire newer, more powerful guides to aid them in their work, healing, and magic. Similar to many shamanic traditions, in which the prospective practitioner had to undergo a symbolic “death” to receive their powers, the tietäjä in training often received their special haltija whilst performing magic during a period of illness. Fortunately, everyone has a haltija, whether it is “hard” or “soft,” which can help guide us in our lives, and it can be useful to cultivate a relationship with our haltija. It is easier to hear the advice of those spirits protecting us if we speak their language. My experience is that our guides generally ask, more than anything else, to simply be acknowledged, spoken to, and worked with. That is the primary way to have a reciprocal relationship with one’s haltija. Giving them gifts or offerings is another way to foster reciprocity with these spirits. Spirits often appreciate gifts of food and drink; often, the first serving of whatever food you yourself are eating or drinking. If you have never done shamanic work or met your haltija before, here is a ritual to help you discover your haltija.
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The Finnish-American Folk Witch altija Raising Ritual H “Raising” one’s haltija was a way of calling on the haltija prior to doing healing work or magic. In this situation, the “raising” is being done to summon your haltija to you so you can introduce yourself formally and begin intentionally building a relationship with one another. One traditional way of raising one’s haltija was to dance naked in a thunderstorm. While I think that’s an admirable technique if you have the resources and opportunity (*wink, wink*), this version might be a little more accessible for the modern practitioner. Performing rituals in a natural setting is always preferred, but certainly not necessary. Supplies • Water collected from a clean, natural source • An offering bowl and offering • Drum or rattle (optional) Begin by washing your hands and face with water for purification. As you do so, you may say: English: “Water spirits, tears of God Blood of nature’s holy sauna Purge my soul, remove the blight Spirit ready to take flight.”
Finnish: “Luonnon pyhä, saunan veri, Veden voimat, puhdistavi. Henki sielun puhtaaks´saa, Veden voima, viisas maa.”
Take a few moments to breathe and allow yourself to become fully present in your body at this moment. Ground yourself to the Earth or the floor beneath you. Feel the weight of your body against it. Feel your heartbeat as it connects you to creation all around you. When you are ready, make your offering to your haltija and say: English: “Rise, my haltija, from the earth Teach me now my sacred worth Hallowed here, this peaceful place Show me now your holy face.”
Finnish: “Nouse luontoni lovesta, Haon alta haltiani, Maan ja sammalten on valta. Pyhä paikka, rauha tuo, Nouse, kasvot pyhät luo.” 18
Understanding the Finnish Spirit Close your eyes and allow yourself to fall into a state of deep relaxation. As you do, visualize yourself in the room you are currently in, in the screen of your mind’s eye. Look around the space you’re in using this inner eye, and you will find a door appears somewhere in this space. Walk up to the door and take in its appearance. What is it made of? What does it feel like? What kind of hardware does it have? Does it feel warm or cool to the touch? After grounding yourself through these sensations, and when you feel ready, open the door and enter the Spirit Realm on the other side. Past the threshold, allow the image of a forest clearing to form before you. Let the time of day, season, and details of this place come to you freely without expectation. Take in the details of this place; notice the texture of the Earth, the smell of it, the sounds that surround you. This is your safe space to which you can always return at any point on your journey if you feel unsafe. Once you feel grounded in this place, begin to explore. This is the Middle World. It is a realm not unlike the one you just left, but it is also different somehow. What you experience here is what lies just beyond the veil of your normal, everyday perception. As you continue to explore, it is normal to see many animals. A good clue that you’ve found the “right” animal that represents your haltija is seeing the same animal three times. If you are struggling to find your haltija, try repeating the previous incantation. And, most importantly, don’t spend too much time doubting what you are seeing or experiencing. Self-doubt is one of the biggest hurdles to this work. Once you have found the animal you believe to be your haltija, have a conversation with it. Start by introducing yourself and try asking some questions. Some good examples of questions to ask might include: • • • • •
Do you have any guidance to share that’s important for my life right now? What is your name? Why are you my haltija? What kinds of offerings do you prefer in the future? How often would you like me to visit you?
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The Finnish-American Folk Witch Once you have finished your conversation (or your haltija decides it’s done answering questions for the day), it is time to say thank you and return to normal consciousness. Track your steps back the way you came to the forest clearing where you began. Find the door you walked through and go back, re-entering the room where your physical body is sitting and return yourself to its physical home. Upon returning to normal waking consciousness, I highly recommend journaling about your experience and writing down any advice or information you were able to get from your haltija during this journey.
Finnish magic has been practiced continuously since time immemorial. The Finns have a rich and colorful history woven into the tapestry of their folklore and magic, thanks to the hard work of Elias Lönnrot in compiling The Kalevala and the Finnish people who answered the call to share their stories, now kept at the Finnish Folklore Archives in Helsinki. Those ethnographies record the varied parts of the human soul as understood by the Finns, which give us concepts by which to know ourselves and tools by which to be and become the best version of ourselves, many of which enable the individual/ tietäjä/noita to travel to the Spirit Realm. As we move into the next chapters, we will further discuss these tools and their relevance to modern noita traveling on spirit journeys.
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References and Further Reading Aaland, Mikkel. Sweat: The Illustrated History and Description of the Finnish Sauna, Russian Bania, Islamic Hammam, Japanese Mushi-Buro, Mexican Temescal, and American Indian & Eskimo Sweatlodge. Capra Press, 1978. Alden, L. H. “A History of Finnish Shamanism, Part 3: Three Worlds Naturalism.” Spirit Boat, 2021. https://www.spiritboat.ca/search?updatedmax=2022-06-30T20:49:00-04:00&max-results=1. Alden, L. H. “Shamanism and Sacred Arts in Finland—Part 4.” Spirit Boat, June 2017. https://www.spiritboat.ca/2017/06/shamanism-and-sacredarts-in-finland.html. “Annanpäivä – Pohjolan Rengastie.” Pohjolan Rengastie. January 10, 2025. https:// pohjolanrengastie.fi/product/perinteikkaat-annanpaivan-juhlallisuudet9-12-tulevat-jalleen/. Anttila, Veikko. “The Modernisation of Finnish Peasant Farming in the Late Nineteenth and Early Twentieth Centuries.” Scandinavian Economic History Review 24, no. 1 (1976). https://doi.org/10.1080/03585522.1976.10407832. Anttonen, Pertti J. “The Rites of Passage Revisited: New Look at van Gennep’s Theory of the Ritual Process and Its Application in the Study of Finnish-Karelian Wedding Rituals.” Temenos: Nordic Journal for the Study of Religion 28 (1992). https://doi.org/10.33356/temenos.6116. Berggreen, Andreas Peter. Litauiske, Finske, Ungarske og Nygræske Folke-Sange og Melodier, Samt Nogle Fra Tyrkiet og Forhenværende Provindser, Samlade og Udsatte for Pianoforte. 2nd ed. C. A. Reitzel, 1869. https://archive.org/details/
BerggreenFolkeSange9FinnishEtc1869/page/n47/mode/2up. Berger, Jenny. “Religion in Finland: Culture & History (2024 Guide).” Travel’n Guides, August 30, 2020. https://www.travelnguides.com/religion-infinland/. Berntson, Martin. “Re-forming Texts, Music, and Church Art in the Early Modern North.” Academia.edu, 2016. https://www.academia.edu/118380460/ Re_forming_Texts_Music_and_Church_Art_in_the_Early_Modern_North. Campbell, Joseph. The Hero with a Thousand Faces. Princeton University Press, 1949.
The Finnish-American Folk Witch Campbell, Joseph. The Power of Myth. Edited by Bill Moyers. Anchor Books, 1988. Cherda, M. A. C. C. da. “The Mythology of Finland.” Fraser’s Magazine 55, no. 329 (1857). Daligan, L. “Divine Flight Between the Worlds: Avian Shapeshifting in Old Norse Mythology.” Review of Divine Flight Between the Worlds: Avian Shapeshifting in Old Norse Mythology. Academia.edu, 2024. https://www. academia.edu/124112031/Divine_Flight_Between_the_Worlds_Avian_ Shapeshifting_in_Old_Norse_Mythology. Dowdy, Christopher. “The 10,000-Year-Old Origins of the Sauna—and Why It’s Still Going Strong.” BBC Culture, October 24, 2023. https://www. bbc.com/culture/article/20231024-the-10000-year-origins-of-the-saunaand-why-its-still-going-strong. Edelsward, Lars M. Sauna as Symbol. Peter Lang, 1991. Eliade, Mircea. Shamanism: Archaic Techniques of Ecstasy. Princeton University Press, 1964. Eliade, Mircea. The Sacred and the Profane: The Nature of Religion. Harcourt, 1959. Eteläkoski, Tiina. “Marketplace Mythology of the Finnish Sauna: Employment and Reproduction of Sauna Myths.” Master’s thesis, Aalto University School of Economics, 2017. https://aaltodoc.aalto.fi/handle/123456789/29523. Forgeard, Valerie. “The Fabric of Society: How Holidays Shape and Define Cultures.” Brilliantio, August 2, 2023. https://brilliantio.com/why-areholidays-important-to-a-culture/. Frog. “The Finnic Tetrameter: A Creolization of Poetic Form?” Studia Metrica et Poetica 6 (2019). https://ojs.utlib.ee/index.php/smp/article/ view/smp.2019.6.1.02/10407. Genberg, H., J. Lindgård, Y. Heikel, H. R. A. Sjöberg, and Siri Hagback. Lappbruden. Månadsbild. Malax: Brinkens Museum, 2020. https://museum. malax.fi/BRI022020.pdf. Gilchrist, Cherry. “The Red Corner and the Symbolism of the Russian Home.” Cherry’s Cache, August 30, 2020. https://cherrycache.org/2020/08/30/ the-red-corner-and-the-symbolism-of-the-russian-home/. Gilchrist, Cherry. Russian Magic. 1st ed. Quest Books, 2009. Grote, Phillip C. Ice Age Art and the Bear Cult. Ivan Morf Books, 2015. Gunnell, Terry. “Masks and Mummers in the Nordic Area: Introduction.” Academia.edu, 2015. https://www.academia.edu/10458488/Masks_and_ Mummers_in_the_Nordic_Area_Introduction. 274
References and Further Reading Harner, Michael. The Way of the Shaman. Harper & Row, 1980. Harper, Douglas. “Necromancy.” Online Etymology Dictionary. https://www. etymonline.com/word/necromancy. Holmberg, Uno. Mythology of All Races. Vol. 4, Finnish and Baltic Mythology. Marshall Jones Company, 1928. Hove, Michael J., et al. “Brain Network Reconfiguration and Perceptual Decoupling During an Absorptive State of Consciousness.” Cerebral Cortex 26, no. 7 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1093/cercor/bhv137. “How Many Public Saunas Are in United States—2024.” Poidata.io, 2024. https://www.poidata.io/report/public-sauna/united-states. Ingerman, Sandra. Shamanic Journeying: A Beginner’s Guide. Sounds True, 2004. Jensen, Carsten Selch, Torben R. Sands, Nils Holger Petersen, Kurt Villads Jensen, and Tuomas M. S. Lehtonen. Saints and Sainthood around the Baltic Sea: Identity, Literacy, and Communication in the Middle Ages. 2018. https:// ixtheo.de/Record/1004788770. “Kalevalakoru – Korut: Index.” http://kalevalakoru.nemein.net/korut/. Koski, Elina. Himmeli: Make Geometric Straw Mobiles. Rizzoli International Publications, 2024. Koski, Kaarina. “Conceptual Analysis and Variation in Belief Tradition: A Case of Death-Related Beings.” Folklore: Electronic Journal of Folklore 38 (2008). https://doi.org/10.7592/fejf2008.38.koski. Kailo, Kaarina. “Baring Our Being: Sauna and Sweatlodge as Ritual Spaces.” Paper presented at the 12th International Sauna Congress, Aachen, 1999. Kailo, Kaarina. “Sauna Exists, Therefore I Am.” Canadian Woman Studies / Les Cahiers de la Femme 34, nos. 1–2 (2020). Kimmerer, Robin Wall. Braiding Sweetgrass: Indigenous Wisdom, Scientific Knowledge, and the Teachings of Plants. Milkweed Editions, 2013. Koski, Kaarina. “Powers of Death: Church-väki in the Finnish Folk Belief Tradition.” RMN Newsletter 2 (2011). https://www.helsinki.fi/assets/ drupal/2022-12/rmn_02_2011.pdf. “Kostasadmin.” “Saint Catherine of Alexandria.” The Orthodox Path, October 28, 2024. https://www.orthodoxpath.org/saints-and-elders-lives/saintcatherine-of-alexandria/. Lamnia. “The Story of the Finnish Puukko.” Accessed September 21, 2024. https://www.lamnia.com/en/a/54/the-story-of-the-finnish-puukko. “Lives of the Saints.” Orthodox Church in America. Accessed September 21, 2024. https://www.oca.org/saints/lives. 275
The Finnish-American Folk Witch Lewis, Sophie. “Letting Off Steam: Everything You Need to Know About Finnish Sauna.” National Geographic Travel, February 3, 2024. https://www. nationalgeographic.com/travel/article/everything-you-need-to-knowabout-finnish-sauna. Livo, George O., and Norma J. Livo. The Enchanted Wood and Other Tales from Finland. Libraries Unlimited, 1999. Lönnrot, Elias, ed. K alevala. Helsinki, 1849. http://books.google.com/ books?id=cTEruWnV37QC&oe=UTF-8. Lönnrot, Elias. K alevala: The Land of Heroes. Translated by W. F. Kirby. 2nd ed. Vol. 1. J. M. Dent, 1907. Lönnrot, Elias, trans. The Kalevala: Epic of the Finnish People. Oxford University Press, 1989. McGaa, Ed. Mother Earth Spirituality: Native American Paths to Healing Ourselves and Our World. Harper & Row, 1990. Mononen, M. Kansanparantajain Pakeilla. Academia.edu, 2020. https://www. academia.edu/91992750/Kansanparantajain_pakeilla. Moreno-Romero, C. “Sauna, More Than Sweating.” Popular Anthropology Magazine 4, no. 2 (2013). “Näkkälä’s Seita Is a Famous Old Sacred Site in Enontekiö.” Out in the Nature, August 23, 2022. Accessed October 27, 2024. https://www.outinthenature. com/nakkalas-seita-is-a-famous-old-sacred-site-in-enontekio/. Niskanen, N. Finnish Mythology: Tree Stories. Self-published ebook, 2023. https:// www.amazon.com/Finnish-Mythology-Tree-Stories-Fairychamber-ebook/. Ocean Keltoi. “What Do We Offer the Gods in Sacrifice?” YouTube video, 30:00. May 30, 2023. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OmGmpBGl1yA. Pekantytär, N. Finnish Mythology: Wheel of the Year and Ancient Festivals. Udemy course, December 2024. https://www.udemy.com/course/finnishmythology-wheel-of-the-year-and-ancient-festivals/. Pentikäinen, Juha. K alevala Mythology. Translated by Ritva Poom. Indiana University Press, 1999. Pentikäinen, Juha. The Nordic Dead-Child Tradition: Nordic Dead-Child Beings, Their Cults, and Representations. Helsinki: Finnish Literature Society, 1999. Pentikäinen, Juha. Shamanism and Northern Ecology. Berlin: Walter de Gruyter, 1996. Pesonen, L. “Get a Glimpse of Your Future with This Finnish New Year’s Eve Tradition.” Vogue Scandinavia, December 23, 2023. https://www. voguescandinavia.com/articles/get-a-glimpse-of-your-future-with-thisfinnish-nye-tradition. 276
References and Further Reading Rácz, István. Early Finnish Art: From Prehistory to the Middle Ages. Otava Publishing Company, 1967. Rajala, N. Some Like It Hot. 2nd ed. North Star Press, 2008. https://archive. org/details/somelikeithot0000unse/mode/2up. Rasmussen, Rune Hjarnø. The Nordic Animist Year: Exploring Calendar Traditions of the Old North. Ravnerock, 2021. Renzi, N. “The Sámi Drum: From Oracular Rituality to Musical Performance.” Academia.edu, 2020. https://www.academia.edu/53017173/The_Sámi_ Drum_from_Oracular_Rituality_to_Musical_Performance. Roikonen, Petri. “Income Inequality in Finland, 1865–1916.” Scandinavian Economic History Review 70, no. 3 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1080/0358552 2.2021.1901774. Roper, Jonathan. Charms and Charming in Europe. Palgrave Macmillan, 12 Nov. 2004. “The Sacred Seidas of North Europe: Mount Vottovaara.” Unusual Places. Accessed October 27, 2024. https://unusualplaces.org/seida/. Salo, Unto. Ukko: The God of Thunder of the Ancient Finns and His Indo-European Family. 2006. https://ci.nii.ac.jp/ncid/BA77117150. Sarmela, Matti. Atlas of Finnish Folklore. Suomalaisen Kirjallisuuden Seura, 2009. Shirokogorov, S. M. Psychomental Complex of the Tungus. Kegan Paul, Trench, Trubner, 1935. Siikala, Anna-Leena. Mythic Images and Shamanism: A Perspective on Kalevala Poetry. Helsinki: Finnish Literature Society, 2002. Siikala, Anna-Leena. “Singing of Incantations in Nordic Tradition.” Scripta Instituti Donneriani Aboensis 13 (1990). https://doi.org/10.30674/scripta.67176. Soolep, Jaan. Border, Mythology and Space of Mind. 1st ed. Tallinn: Eesti Kunstiakadeemia, 2010. https://archive.org/details/border-mythologyand-spaces-of-mind/mode/2up. Stark-Arola, Laura. “Lempi, Fire and Female Väki: An Exploration into Dynamistic Relationships in Finnish-Karelian Magic and Folk Belief.” Journal of Ethnology and Folkloristics 5, no. 2 (2011). Stark, Laura. “Magic and Witchcraft in Their Everyday Context: Childhood Memories from the Nineteenth-Century Finnish Countryside.” Arv: Nordic Yearbook of Folklore 70. Stark, Laura. Peasants, Pilgrims, and Sacred Promises: Ritual and the Supernatural in Orthodox Karelian Folk Religion. Finnish Literature Society, 2002.
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Stark, Laura. The Magical Self: Body, Society and the Supernatural in Early Modern Rural Finland. Finnish Literature Society, 2006. Swedish Finn Historical Society. “Swedish Finn Historical Society.” January 9, 2025. https://www.swedishfinnhistoricalsociety.org/. Taivaannaula. “Kansanperinteen Pyhät.” Translated by Anssi A. Accessed September 21, 2024. https://www.taivaannaula.org/perinne/ kansanperinteen-pyhat/. Tarkka, Lotte. Songs of the Border People: Reflexivity and Performance in Karelian Oral Poetry. University of Helsinki Press, 2013. Thorvaldsen, B. Ø. “The Literary Adaptation of Vǫluspá in Hauksbók and Snorra Edda.” Review of The Literary Adaptation of Vǫluspá in Hauksbók and Snorra Edda. Academia.edu, 2019. https://www.academia.edu/109049830/The_ Literary_Adaptation_of_V%C7%ABlusp%C3%A1_in_Hauksb%C3%B3k_ and_Snorra_Edda. Toivo, Raisa Maria. Faith and Magic in Early Modern Finland. Palgrave Macmillan, 2016. Van Huyssteen, J. “Trochaic Meter in Poetry: A Detailed Explanation with Examples.” Art in Context, January 18, 2024. https://artincontext.org/ trochaic-meter-in-poetry/. Viherjuuri, H. J. Sauna: The Finnish Bath. Exposition Press, 1972. Virtanen, Leea, and Thomas A. DuBois. Finnish Folklore. Finnish Literature Society, 2000. Wallima, Susan E. Religion and the Runesingers: Magical Faith, Magical Nature in Finland’s Shamanic-Christian Kalevala Tradition. PhD diss., Graduate Theological Union, 1999. ProQuest Dissertations & Theses. https://www. proquest.com/openview/71943721826318467d1754876a22c101/1. Wood, N. B. “Shaman’s Face Masks of Siberia.” Taktsang. Accessed September 21, 2024. http://taktsang.co.uk/Articles/HidingSpiritEyes.pdf. Wright, V. Forn Threifa: Ancient Healing Touch. CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform, 2016.
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