Thunder Bird aka the eagle has long and interesting history in the Finnish culture )O( Enjoy 

Siberia is considered to be the heartland of shamanism. In modern anthropology, the term Shamanism refers to the spiritual practice of native groups. However, shamanism itself is not limited to Siberia. It is a universal practice where all major religions are based on. Siberia is a large area which includes a variety of cultures, languages, practices, and beliefs which many fall into the classification of shamanism and many of these ethnic groups practice shamanism still today.

In Siberian shamanism, there are some distinctive features such as worship of nature, belief for the world tree, an invisible pole that is a representation of the universe and three layers of the world (upper world, middle world, and the underworld). Many of these ethnic groups were hunters and lived a nomadic lifestyle. Hunting was a sacred ritual and in order for the hunt to success, the job of the shaman was to take shape of an animal and travel to meet the deity who was in charge of the hunting. The shaman would dress up as animals and mimic their sounds and movements.

There is lots of diversity among the sacred animals in Siberian shamanism. Among Samoyed and Uralic groups, a sacred animal was the bear who was believed to be the sacred ancestor of the tribe. In Mongolia and among Turkic groups stags and horses were most important animals. Among the Yukip, Nenetsi and the Saami´s reindeer was the sacred animal ancestor. The creation myth about the earth-diver is common among all groups whose roots are in Siberia and water birds play a significant part in the shamanic practice.
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Origins of the word shaman are in Tungusia where it means the spiritual leader and the healer of the tribe.

In Siberian cultures shamanism often has strict gender roles.

For the tuvar´s shaman is ”Tatar”, ”Shor”, or ”Oyrat”.

In Yakagir language shaman is known as ”alman”, ”olman” or ”wolmen”.

Buryat shaman is known as ”Böö” (derived from old Mongolian word ”Böge”)

For the Mansi shaman was called ”Njat”.
Saami shaman is known as Noaidi. Saami word ”Noaidi” and Mansi ”Njat” are based on proto-Uralic word Nojta meaning a witch or a shaman.

Female shamans can be mainly found among Mongolian tribes.

For the Buryat shamaness is called ”Ugadan”, ”Evenki”, ”Lamut” or ”Ugudan”.
For the Negidal shamaness is called ”Odogan”.
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In Siberian languages, there are many similar words meaning a ”shamaness” such as ”Utagan”, ”Ubukan”, ”Utygan”, ”Utusun”, ”Idan” and ”Duana”. Most of these words are based on ancient Mongolian earth goddess ”Etügen ”. She was also known as ”Etügen Eke ” the mother earth. Her name can be originated from Ötüken the holy mountain of the earth and fertility.

Speakers of Turkic languages 

Turkic shamanism is practiced by ethnic groups who speak Turkic languages. These are Tatars, Tuvars, Tofalar, Yakut and Turks who live in the Altai mountains. Turkic shamanism covers large territories and the practice itself has been amalgamated with Buddhist and Islam beliefs.

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​Yakut Shaman. Notice the trinkets in the clothes. Fetishes represent animals and spirits who the shaman wishes to communicate with.

​Shamanism of the Ket is foremost totemic. The lifestyle of the Ket is nomadic and shamanism is intertwined to Bear and deer hunting. They use lots of bones, skeletons and other animal parts in their rituals. Like for many Uralic people for the Ket waterbirds were sacred. Loon is an especially important bird, a totem animal and Loon´s bones are often used in ceremonies. They were shaman´s helpers in their journey. For the Ket shapeshifting is an important part of spiritual practice. Shaman goes off on the spiritual journey while drumming and dancing.

Young Buriyt boy 

​All ethnic groups that speak Samoyedic languages have elements of shamanism in their spiritual practice. Sayan shaman´s boot ´s, dress and headdress represents bones and human organs. The skeleton overlay of the dress symbolizes rebirth. Like all group´s who myths are based on Uralic myths for the Sayan´s loon was a sacred bird and a magical helper. Other Samoyedic tribes such as Nenets, Enets, and Selkup have different crowns and headdresses to be worn on different occasions. When a child is born the proper headdress represents the upperworld and for communicating with the dead headdress represents the underworld.

​Saami´s are native people of Scandinavia (and the only ethnic group in the area of European Union). Saami´s live outside Siberia but their language is part of Samoyedic languages. There are elements of shamanism in the spirituality and folk traditions and customs of the saami. One of the most important parts of the Saami culture are the joiks. Joiks are wordless chants that were originally sung in shamanic rites. There are two types of joiks, clear joiks that are mostly sung by young people. Then there are mumbling joiks that are used while casting spells. These joiks often mimic natural sounds.

Speakers of Finno-Ugric languages. 

​Most speakers of Finno-Ugric languages live outside Siberia. Finno refers to Finnic languages such as Finnish and Estonian and Mari. In all these cultures there are elements of shamanism in the folklore and myths. In Pre-Christian Finland, shamanism had several phases. Noita the shaman was the spiritual healer of the tribe. Later on, there was a shift in the culture and noita became more individualized and was no longer a healer of the community but an individual practitioner of witchcraft/herbalism/healing. Ancient Finnish tribes believed in soul duality. Bear and moose were most common totem animals and there are lots of archeological proofs found from the widely spread bear cult. The world was divided into three levels and they were held together by an invisible pole, the wold tree.

Shamanic Dance 

In Estonia shaman was called Näit. Like in Finland also in Estonia worship of nature was an essential part of spiritual practice. Trees especially were worshipped as divine nature spirits. Other speakers of Finnic languages like Komi´s, Mari´s and Mordvan also have elements of shamanism in their spiritual practice. Folk religion also has elements from Russian Orthodoxism. Among all these groups nature worship, shamanic traveling and concept of the world tree are very common.
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Ugric efers to Ugric languages such as Hungarian, Khanty, and Mansy. Early ancestors of modern-day Hungarians migrated from Siberia already 6000 years ago settling into the area of Pannonia Basin. Elements of shamanism have been preserved in folklore. Ancient Hungarians believed that world was divided into three levels and shaman had the ability to travel between these levels to seek information. In Khanty culture bear was worshiped as an  important totem animal and as the divine ancestor of the people.

​Saami people the indigenous people of northern Europe had several deities who they worshiped and their belief system was animistic. They believed that everything in nature had life and spirit inside them. Many of the Saami deities were not personified as humans but were seen as invisible forces of nature. There is great amount of Saami languages so there are several name variations for different deities. Most common name for the thunder god was Horagállis but he was also known as Hovregállis, Äijjh, Dearpmes, Tiermes, Bájan and Áddjá. Symbol of Horagállis was the hammer which is a common symbol for a thunder god across Europe. In northern hemisphere other well-known thunder gods are Thor from Scandinavian mythology and Ukko/Ilmarinen from Finland and Uku from Estonia. In Saami culture god of thunder was respected as the bringer of the rain. He was seen as the protector of humans and reindeer's. It was believed that Horagállis cleaned the air and washed diseases away.

Saami culture was male dominant hunting culture. Men and women had strict behavioral roles which also included spirituality. Worship of Horagállis was a tabu for women. Men only were allowed to worship him. In the shaman drum hammer of Horagállis looks bit like a cross. His hammer was feared because it could cause lightnings and horrible thunders. Lightning bolts could kill people and animals. Angry god could split mountains and cause floods. Male reindeer's were sacrificed for Horagállis also hammers were used as sacrificial gifts and often they were painted with blood to please the god. In northern Finland most famous worshiping place for Horagállis is island in Lapland called Ukonsaari in the Inari Lake. Island is remote place with rocky walls. It´s caves were common sacrificial places still in the 19th century.

​In the shaman drum windman is a figure who is holding two shovels. Among eastern Saami tribes Biegga-almmái is called Ilmaris. This name is similar to god called Inmar that was worshiped by several Finno-Ugric tribes as the god of air. In Finnish mythology similar god was originally called Ilma and he later on became the heavenly blacksmith god Ilmarinen. It was believed that wind man was an invisible spirit who lived in the top of the mountains and rocky hills. Places where wind was always wild and free. Wind man had big impact to the life of the Saami´s who were foremost reindeer herders and the direction of the wind determinate the movements of the reindeer packs. Biegga-almmái was in charge of the weather and could create snow storms, hurricanes and harsh winds.

​God of hunt Leaibealmmái was believed to live inside alder trees. Alders were sacred trees for the saami´s because of it´s red sap which represented blood. It was believed that Leaibealmmái controlled all gain except reindeer´s. Saami hunters dipped their arrows into red color that was made by boiling bark from the alder. These red arrows created a magical connection between hunters and the gain. This red color was also used to paint patterns to saami shaman drums.

Radien was the sky god in the Saami mythology. He was also known as Veralden-Radien, Veralden Olmai, Tsorve-Radien (Radien with antlers), Mailmen Radien (Radien of the worlds), Kierfva-Radie, Ipmil, Jubmel and Ráddenáchhi. Radien was the god of community and he was worshiped by all people. Name Radien literally translates as a ruler and refers into an abstract invisible spirit. He did not personify any nature phenomenon´s. Radien represented human relationship. Radien also had a family of his own. His wife was called Ráddenáhkka. His daugher Rana Niejta was one of the spring goddesses and he had a son called Ráddenbárdni.
Radien was connected to fertility, reindeer´s, human relations, family and the world tree. There was a custom to plant trees to honor Radien. World tree was sometimes also seen as a symbol for the community (with humans, deities, animals and all spirits being connected together). Radien was connected to both life and death. According to some beliefs Radien was the one who greeted the death and would guide them through rebirth process. When Saami mythology got more influences from Christian stories Radien became equivalent to Christian god. He was also closely connected to birth. When child was conceived Radien sent the life and the spirit of the child to the womb where the earth goddess Máttaráhkka connected the soul into the body.
Radien was mainly worshiped in Sweden and Norway. Because Radien was god of fertility reindeer´s genitals were sacrificed for him. Sacrificing rituals were described to be bloody and it is possible that they were influenced by both Germanic customs and later on by Christianity. In Finland Radien was probably blended into the thunder god Horagállis/Ukko. In Finnish mythology Ukko was god of thunder, fertility and human relations.

​Ruto (also known as Rota) was described to be the demon of diseases. In the shaman drum Ruto was a figure sitting on a horse. It was believed that Ruto was a sickness or an illness who arrived riding in the person and when the person was healed Ruto would ride away. In the healing rituals horses were sacrificed to Ruto and the sicknesses were conjured to leave the person and to go into the horse. For the saami´s Ruto was the personification of evil but he was not described as a god but more like as a minor demon. Later on with Christian influences Ruto became the ruler of Rotaimo, the underworld where all the evil spirits lived. In Saami folklore underworld was in the bottom of a bottomless lake.

​Saami´s are known as the reindeer people Some other totem animals of the Saami´s were bears and birds but the reindeer was the most important. First inhabitants of what is now known as Finland were Saami tribes which arrived thousands and thousands years ago and many Finns today have Saami ancestry. These people were hunters and fishermen not reindeer herders. The reindeer business started app. 100 ACE around the time when the Saami´s tamed the wild deer which started the companionship between humans and the reindeer's. Earliest written documents of people owning reindeer's is from 900th century. Life style of the people got more intertwined to the reindeer herding. Saami´s got milk from the reindeer to drink, flesh of the reindeer to eat, reindeer's helped people to pull heavy things and people made clothes from the reindeer fur. In the 16th century there was a big change in the Saami culture and people started to measure their wealth according to the amount of the reindeer's. The ways of herding also changed from static to nomadic life style. Reason for this was that people ran out of food. They had fished all the lakes empty and there were no animals to hunt. People realized that by following the natural cycle of the reindeer they produced more offspring's. Herders started to follow the reindeer's to their mating sites and places where reindeer's gave birth. This life style change made Saami´s connection to reindeer's even more deeper.

Reindeer meat is very salty. It is food that you can survive in cold climate this is one of the reasons why reindeer's were important for the Saami´s who were used to harsh weather conditions. Samoyed tribes in Siberia still follow this nomadic lifestyle and the natural cycle of the reindeer. In Scandinavian countries herding became again static around 18th and 19th centuries because of political issued and drawing the lines of national borders. In many ways these political changes were harmful for the Saami´s especially what it came to the land rights. This is an issue that is still on the table today and relevant for the survival of the Saami lifestyle and culture.

The White Reindeer 

There is a legend in Saami folklore about the white reindeer. Albino reindeer was the most magical reindeer. White reindeer was the leader of all the reindeer's. If a human would catch the white reindeer it would bring them luck, riches and eternal happiness. Totemic belief to the reindeer spirit was essential and was also one of the reasons for people to take specially good care for the reindeer's. In ancient Finland when a bear was killed the hunter prayed that the bear´s spirit would find it´s why home to the star sky. Saami´s had similar traditions and beliefs. When a reindeer was killed hunters and the herders prayed that the great reindeer spirit would take care of those reindeer's that were killed.

Only the best and most handsome reindeer's were sacrificed for the great reindeer spirit. One of the oldest traditions was to take the antlers of the reindeer and hang them to the top of the seita. Seita was a sacred grove of the Saami´s. An altar where people made sacrifices. They were usually large stone or tree formations.
Great reindeer's spirit was seen as a white reindeer or a hybrid between a man and a reindeer. In many cultures there has been deities who´v had antlers like Cernunnos in Celtic myths and pastoral god Pan in Greek legends. For the Saami´s everything in nature was holy and everything in animals was holy. All parts of the reindeer had magical properties. This included reindeer´s skin, fur, milk, flesh, hooves and especially the antlers because they were reaching to the skies and were directly connected to the universe. In rituals shaman dressed up into a coat made from a reindeer fur and wore antlers in his head. This was a way to connect with the great reindeer spirit. During the ritual shaman became one of the reindeer's and a servant to the great reindeer spirit. Saami people had very close relationship with nature. Bones were seen especially magical. Saami children were taught that when they found a dead animal they had to collect all the bones together and bury the animal. When the skeleton was completed the animal could continue it´s life in the afterlife. It was bad luck to bury a reindeer even if one of bones was missing.

Story of Myandash

Some of the saami tribes believed that they were descendants of the reindeer and in Saami mythology there are several stories about were-reindeer's. Kuola Saami´s are a Saami tribe that lives in Kuola Peninsula in Russia in the area near. Kuola Saami´s believed that they had an ancestor who was a reindeer shape sifter. His name was Myandash and his mother was a shaman and a Saami witch who had ability to transform herself as a reindeer. Myandash´s father was a real reindeer. Myandash lived with his mother in a tent that was completely made of reindeer fur and reindeer bones. When he was inside of the tent he was a human but when he stepped outside he turned into a reindeer. Outside the tent there was a river but there was not water in that river. There was reindeer´s blood. Myandash and his mother lived in another realm. They lived in the world of the great reindeer spirit that was separated from the human world. Myandash got very lonely living in the tent and he told to his mother that he would like to have a human wife. Mother was not very pleased but she loved her son so she traveled to the earth and found her son a human wife. There are several versions telling what happened next. According to one story Myandash and his wife got many children and each time the children went outside the tent they turned into reindeer's. According to some versions Myandash wife also had ability to transform herself into a reindeer. There is a very totemic legend which tells that at one point Myandash got so in touch with his inner reindeer that he no longer wanted to be a human and did not return to the tent. Instead he would ran into the tundra and their children would follow him. His wife sacrificed a reindeer for the great reindeer spirit. While doing that she was sitting on the reindeer fur meditating and the spirit of Myandash entered inside her. It was believed that when the wife remarried the lineage of Myandash lived on among the Kuola Saami´s.

Kuola Saami´s hold this myth in great value still in the 1920´s and 1930´s but now days most people see it as a fable. In many totemic cultures where an animal has become a clan symbol. It usually started with stories about the animal father or the mother who had connection to humans. In northern Europe and northern Asia totem animals could were most often otters, lynxes, bears, wolves and birds. Animals that people saw around them every day and animals that had magical meanings to them. Sometimes totem animal represented the lifestyle of a certain tribe. Otter could have been a symbol for a tribe who lived next to water. Reindeer´s were totem animals for reindeer herders who felt connection to the earth and admired reindeer for it´s qualities.

The region of the Saami´s reaches from the northern coast of Norway to the Kuola Peninsula of Russia. There as many different pantheons as there are Saami tribes and Saami languages.

Áfruvvá – Mermaid. Only known in the coast of Ruija in Northern Norway.

Áhcešeatni (also known as Háhtežan) – One of the oldest goddesses in Saami mythology. Ruler of autumn, winter and the night time. Protector of wild deer. Goddess of shadows. In her early form, she was worshiped by hunters who prayed her for gain. Áhcešeatni was married to the cosmic bear and was the mother of the bear clan. In some stories, she is married to the moon. Sister of Njávešeatni the goddess of light.

Áhkku – (also known as Akka) Wife of Deirpmes (Tiermes) god of justice.

Beiwe – (also known as Beaivi) Personification of the sun. Sometimes Beiwe was portrayed as a female and sometimes as a male. When the sun was portrayed as a female she was connected to summer and fertility of the land. She had the ability to bring positivity to people who suffered from depression during dark winter months
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Beaivvi Nieida – (also known as aurinkoneiti) The sun maiden. The female personification of the sun. White reindeers were sacrificed in her honor during winter time to welcome back the sun maiden.

Biegga-almmái, Bieggagállis, Tuulimies - Windman. God of the wind. Rituals performed for Biegga-almmai took place in a mountain top.

Boassoáhkká – Protector goddess of Boassu. Protector of food and possession.

Cáhcerávga (also known as Vesiraukka) – the Malicent spirit of a drowned person.

Cáhceálmmái, áhcolmmái - God of water and fishing.

Cáráhus – Trickster spirit who would make jokes on people while they were sleeping.

Deattán – Nightmare. Spirit that would press the chest of a person while they were sleeping. Appeared in a shape of an animal.

Gieddegeažegálgu – Goddess of witchcraft, shamanism and old knowledge. Guardian of morality.

Gorremaš, Guoržžu, Kortto, Koranus – Spirit of jealousy.

Gufihtar – Gnome-like creatures who lived underground. Also known as maahinen /ganes /ulda.
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Horagállis, Äijjih (Inari Saami),Dearpmes (Northern Saami) Bájan (Ruija Saami) Áddjá, Hovregállis (southern Saami) - God of thunder, lightning and protector of reindeer´s.

Jábmiidáhkká – Powerful goddess who ruled the world of the death. Originally the Saami ´s believed that the spirits of the passed away relatives lived in the star sky and in the northern lights. Later on when belief system was more affected by Christianity home of the dead became a bottomless lake that lied deep inside the earth.

Jiehtanas – Giant

Juksáhkká – Goddess of the hunt, arrows, bows, protector of boys and men. Her name literally means bow-woman. Saami culture was originally a hunting culture where men had higher status than women. When a couple wanted to have a boy child they would leave offerings for Juksáhkká. She would bless the child by making them a skillful hunter.

Láváráddjá, Láváráhkku – Evil spirit that lives in a rock or a bush.

Leaibealmmái, Leppämies - God of the hunt who lived inside alder trees. The red color that people got from alder trees was used for painting the shaman drums and hunters arrow´s were dipped into it.

Lihatontta – Zombie-like creature. Living dead that was raised by a powerful shaman to revenge for them.

Luhtat/Luthakka – Wife of Staalo, the winter giant.

Mánnu - God of the moon.

Máttaráhkká – Goddess of all life. Mother of Sárahkká,Juksáhkká and Uksákká. Her three daughters lived in the ground underneath the kota the home tent. In the shaman drums, Máttaráhkká´s daughters are often painted to the end bottom of the drum. When the child was in the womb Máttaráhkká gave soul to the child which she received from the sky god Radien.

Njávešeatni (Njávežan, Naavisemo) – One of the primal goddesses of Saami mythology. Ruler of spring, summer, and daytime. Protector of life. Goddess of bugs, butterflies and reindeer´s. In the oldest layer of mythology Njávešeatni was the spouse of the cosmic moose and was the mother goddess of the moose clan. Sister of Áhcešeatni goddess of darkness.

Ráddenáhcci, Radien, Veralden-Radien, Veralden Olmai, Tsorve-Radien (sarvi-Radien), Mailmen Radien, Kierfva-Radien - God of the sky, community and justice. God of fertility. Protector of reindeer´s.
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Radienaimo – Thanks to Catholism old pagan worldview of the saami´s changed and radienaimo became an equivalent place of Christian concept of heaven.

Rotaimo – an Equavelent place to Christian concept of hell. The idea that did not exist in the original pagan belief system. Most often Rotaimo was described to be in a bottomless lake (natural lakes that have a fake bottom and an actual bottom are very common in Lapland).

Rutto, Rohttu – Spirit who brings diseases. Often appears in the form of a black cat or a rat.

Saivo Niejta – (also known as Saivoneito) Guardian of the underworld who lives in the waters of the bottomless lake.

Sala Niejta – Daughter of Beiwe the sun. Goddess of spring who had the ability to melt snow and frost away.

Seita - Worshiping place, altar located in nature. Seita´s are usually stone formations.

Servge-edni – Goddess of spring.

Skoarru – Spirit of jealousy. Bringer of bad luck.

Skunka (also known as Mörkö) – Boogeyman that lives behind the oven or a rock.

Staalo (also known as stállu) – Origins of Staalo are ancient. He was an evil giant and the representation of the unknown darkness.

Veaiga – Doubleganger that appears in front of a person to warn them about approaching danger.

Vuovru – Evil giant-like spirit
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​In Finnish folklore first horse was called Iku-Tihku. Trolls created Iku-Tihku in their underground forge. Like many other Eurasian people Finno-Ugrian tribes believed that there was three levels in the world and all those levels were connected to each other through the world tree. These levels were called: Ylinen, Keskinen and Alinen. Ylinen the upper world was the place where highest of the spirits and most respected gods lived (in some cases it was also believed to be the state where the re-birth process started). Keskinen the middle world was the natural world (our physical world) where humans and animals lived together with all deities that ruled the elements. Alinen the underworld was place where the spirits of the death lived. Alinen however was not like the Christian hell. It was a place where spirits waited their turn to be reborn again.
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Iku-Tihku was creature of Alinen. It was completely made of fire and ice. Iku-Tihku was also a shaman and it could travel between these three worlds (which also represent the three levels of consciousness) but it only could visit Keskinen, the middle world during the winter because it would melt in any other season. Trolls used Iku-Tihku as their model when they created all other horses but they were made of stone, steel and iron so that they could live in Keskinen all year around if they wished to.

From Hiisi is the horse´s origin, from the mountain- the splendid foal´s in a room with a door of fire, in a smithy with an iron ridge, it´s head was made of stone, it´s hoofs of rock, it´s legs were formed from iron, it´s back was made of steel (Source: magic songs of the Finns)

The Origin of the bear
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Wheare was ”broad-forehead” orn, was ”honey-paws” produced? Tehre was broad-forehead” born, was ”honey-paws” produced, close to the moon, beside the sun, on the shoulders of Charle´s Wian. Form there was he let dow to the earth, to the honeye wood´s interior, to a verdant thicket´s edge, into a liver-coloured cleft. Sinisirkku the forest maid, rocked him, swayed him to and for in a cradle of gold, in silver straps, under a fir, with branchin crown, under a bushy pine. ”Broad-forehead” the was christened, the scanty-haired one was baptized near ”fiery” rapids, at the eddy of a fearful, holy stream. Who undertook to christen him? The king of Himmerkki himself, he undertook to christen him, to baptize the scanty-haired, the Virgin Mary, mother dear, both acted as his godmother and to the christening carried him. What was the name they gave? ”Hulking fellow”, ”little haystack”, ”lovely shaggy coat of hair”, ”honeypaws”, ”the corpulent”.

​The Magic Songs of the Finns, Elias Lönnrot, 1880

In ancient Finland there was one animal that was worshiped more than any other and that animal was the bear. In Finland there are lots of archaeological finds made which tell us about the existence of the ancient bear cult. In the area around Ural mountains in Siberia there are lots of myths told about the great bear god. Birth myth of the bear from Siberiean Ostjak tribe was also well-known in ancient Finland. Bear lived in the star sky in the constellation of the Ursa Major with his father god Num Torum. Bear looked down to the earth and soon longed to live among people. His father agreed and sent him down to the earth in a golden cradle. Bear´s life in the earth was filled with sin. This made Num Torum ashamed and he allowed humans to kill his son. Myth which tells that bear has cosmic origins is common all around Eurasian areas. Among Vogul tribe in Siberia, there is a similar myth but bear is a female not a male. In northern Eurasia among several different clans there was belief that people were descendants from an union between a human goddess and the cosmic bear god. In the earliest layer of Saami mythology moon goddess Háhtežan was married to the cosmic bear and her sister Njávežan the sun goddess, was married to the cosmic moose. These were two the most respected and feared animals in northern hunter-collector cultures.

Finnish word karhu the bear is derived from the word karhea which means rough fur. Because bear was such respected god the name of the bear was a tabu. It was forbidden to say the name aloud. It was believed that that would jinx the bear an it would harm the person for not being respectful towards it. This is why in Finnish language there are over 1000 nicknames for bear alone. It was believed that bear was also a shaman and a witch and it could hear people´s thoughts. That bear was worshiped as a god in Finland has in fact been beneficial for bears in modern Finland. Compared the several other European countries in Finland bears have not been hunted that great numbers and there are about. 1500-2000 bears living in Finland´s forests still today.
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In Finnish mythology Mielikki the forest god is often connected to bears. After the bear was landed from the skies in the golden cradle Mielikki adopted the bear and nurtured him with honey and apples. She gave bear it´s mission to be the most beloved, respected and feared animal of the forest. Mielikki and her husband forest god Tapio could also shape sift themselves as bears. In many ways Mielikki as a goddess is similar to bears. She represents two aspects of womanhood; the independent hunter goddess who protects her home the forest (very much like a mother bear who protects her cubs) and on the other hand she is the nurturing mother goddess who represents the healing aspects of the forest and nature. Mielikki is also an interesting goddess in that sense that each winter she went to winter sleep/hibernation...just like a bear. Summer and autumn were sacred time for Mielikki. Spring and winter were times when Tapio ruled the forest.

​Bear figure found from archaeological site of Kierikki, Finland Estimated time period: 5100 bc

​In Finnish mythology the creator/emuu of the bear was Hongatar goddess/spirit of the pine trees. Some sources mention that Ilmarinen the blacksmith god was the bear´s father. Several Finno-Ugric tribes worshiped bear as their sacred ancestor. In Finland bear hunting was a sacred ritual that took place in the spring time right before bear would wake up from it´s winter sleep. Winter sleep by itself was believed to be a proof of bear´s magical powers. People did not understand why bears went to winter sleep. Winter was seen as the time of dying nature so when bears woke up each spring for ancient people this was a sign that bear was a powerful god who would always reborn again. In eastern Finland bear was considered to be the ancestor of the clan and it was forbidden to eat bear meat. Then in some other parts of Finland bear meat was a great treat and source of nutrition. Being the ancestor of humans bear´s life was performed in a ritualistic play during the bear hunt festival. Poems were told how the bear was landed from it´s cosmic home to the earth and how it would marry the cosmic mother (often a newly wed couple would play the part) and a funeral was hold where bear was buried like a human. Skull was hanged into the top of the spirit tree so the bear would be closer to it´s original home. There are many reasons why people believed that they were descendants of bears. When bear stands on it´s back feet it´s about the same size as an average person. Bear´s palms are similar to humans hands. It even has five fingers. Bears are strong and fast. These were qualities that hunters greatly admired.