Finnish mythology Finnish mythology commonly refers of the folklore of Finnish paganism, of which a Finnish Neopaganism, modern revival is practiced by a small percentage of the Finnish people. It has many shared features with Estonian mythology, Estonian and othe ...

, Otso (also known as Karhu, Ohto, Kontio, Metsän kuningas, and Mesikämmen) is a bear, the sacred king of animals and leader of the forest. It was deeply feared and respected by old Finnish tribes. Otso appears in the Finnish national epic, the ''

Kalevala The ''Kalevala'' () is a 19th-century compilation of epic poetry, compiled by Elias Lönnrot from Karelian and Finnish oral folklore and mythology, telling a story about the Creation of the Earth, describing the controversies and retaliatory ...

''. Due to the importance of the bear spirit in historical

Finnish paganism Baltic Finnic paganism, or Baltic Finnic polytheism was the indigenous religion of the various Baltic Finnic peoples, specifically the Finns, Estonians, Võros, Setos, Karelians, Veps, Izhorians, Votes and Livonians, prior to Christianisat ...

, bears are still considered by many Finns to be kings of the forest, and the bear is even the

national animal This is a list of countries that have officially designated one or more animals as their national animals. Most species in the list are officially designated. Some species hold only an "unofficial" status. Additionally, the list includes animals t ...

of Finland. Otso is not a particular individual bear spirit, but rather the collective

animistic Animism (from meaning 'breath, Soul, spirit, life') is the belief that objects, places, and creatures all possess a distinct Spirituality, spiritual essence. Animism perceives all things—animals, plants, Rock (geology), rocks, rivers, Weather, ...

spirit of all bears. Besides being worshipped by historical Finnish pagans, Otso is also worshipped in modern

Finnish neopaganism Modern Finnish paganism, also known as Finnish neopaganism or the Finnish native faith (: "Finnish Belief / Belief of Finland"), is the contemporary revival of Finnish paganism, the pre-Christian polytheistic ethnic religion of the Finns. A pre ...

, and the neopagan organization Karhun kansa is named after the bear.

Mythology

The story of how Otso was born varies in myths. Some stories tell of how

Ukko (), or ( Finnish for 'male grandparent', 'grandfather', 'old man'), parallel to Uku in Estonian mythology, is the god of the sky, weather, harvest, and thunder across Finnic paganism. , the Finnish word for thunder, is the diminutive ...

, the god of weather, threw wool into the sea and how Otso was born from the bits of wool that reached the shore. Other stories tell of how Otso was born from the

Ursa Major Ursa Major, also known as the Great Bear, is a constellation in the Northern Sky, whose associated mythology likely dates back into prehistory. Its Latin name means "greater (or larger) bear", referring to and contrasting it with nearby Ursa M ...

constellation. The most ancient myths surrounding Otso tell of the marriage between Otso and the primordial mother of all men. This relationship was reflected in the ritual of Peijaiset, in which the bear spirit was symbolically returned to its family through marriage. Otso had many wives and children, but it was also said to eat them.

Peijaiset

If a bear had to be killed by ancient Finns, a sacred ritual of Peijaiset was held. In it, the bear's skull was mounted on a pine tree. The bear was skinned in the forest after which the meat and the hide were taken to the village. Ale was brewed and the meat of the bear was eaten as a sacred meal. A girl and a boy were then elected as the symbolic wedding couple. During the feast, the skull of the bear was carried on a plate to the room. The plate was given a place of honor at head of the long table. The bride and bridegroom sat at the opposite end. The skull of the bear was then carried to a sacred tall pine and fixed high on a branch among other bear skulls. At this point there followed a chant as a dialogue between the killed bear and the primordial mother of the bear who was called Hongotar. The bones of the bear were then buried under the pine. One important function of this rite was to prevent the skull from decomposing. The skull of the bear was a holy object and to destroy it was taboo. The idea of this conservation was to make it possible for the spirit of the bear to return to earth to reincarnate and be killed again.

References

{{Kalevala Finnish legendary creatures Mythological bears Finnish gods Bear deities

Mythology

Peijaiset

See also

References