Tervetuloa!
Quick info:
Samuel / Al
he/him
Central Ostrobothnia, Finland
History major
2002
languages: FIN, ENG
Main blog: @raptorwithink
Posts of note:
What is Hirvikultti?
(Non-exhaustive) glossary on Finnish folk religion

JBB: An Artblog!

ellievsbear
I'd rather be in outer space 🛸
h

Discoholic 🪩

Andulka
Acquired Stardust
taylor price

tannertan36
todays bird
hello vonnie

pixel skylines

PR's Tumblrdome
Keni
No title available
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DEAR READER
ojovivo
Jules of Nature
PUT YOUR BEARD IN MY MOUTH
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@hirvikultti
Tervetuloa!
Quick info:
Samuel / Al
he/him
Central Ostrobothnia, Finland
History major
2002
languages: FIN, ENG
Main blog: @raptorwithink
Posts of note:
What is Hirvikultti?
(Non-exhaustive) glossary on Finnish folk religion
Really interesting imho that in Revelations Lord is the one who gives the Antichrist/the beast the ability to create false miracles. It must be understood that in Christian mythology Satan is given their power by the Lord. Satan is not like another "Evil God", it must also follow the command of Lord just like any other creation.
unpopular opinion: the most faithful christians are communists
“All who believed were together and had all things in common; they would sell their possessions and goods and distribute the proceeds to all, as any had need.” (Acts 2:44-45, NRSVUE)
(Non-exhaustive) Glossary on Finnish Folk Religion
Karhukultti & Hirvikultti
"Cult of the Bear" and "Cult of the Moose" in english. Finnish people belonged to either of the old totemic "tribes", and venerated their animal ancestor. Finnic pagan registered religious group "Karhun Kansa" (eng. "people of the bear") practice karhukultti.
(Karhun Kansa website; Karhun kansa in english)
Väki
Finnish land, nature, and ancestor spirits, also a spiritual power that exists in everything. Sometimes described as "Finnish Chi"
Hiisi
Word for a being, sacred place, and something taboo. For example a specific sacred rock is "Hiidenkivi" (stone of Hiisi). Sometimes hiisi are imagined as troll- or goblin-like creatures. In Finnic myths there exists a "Hiidenhirvi", magical moose/reindeer who many try to catch but fail.
Sanat
Literally "words". Words have immense power in Finnish myhtology. Special poems that describe the creation of animals, other beings, and concepts, are called "Syntysanat". Those poems can be used to control or call upon the concepts in question, and are evoked in different "spells".
Sielulintu
"Soul bird" in english. It is believed that the soul takes the form of a bird after death and when asleep.
Ooo also I saw in your intro that you consider your ancestors to be väki. I agree with it without any other additions, but I am curious about something. How do you view your own väki? Can it come from your ancestors? From your haltija? From both? Research does suggest that in the past it was thought to come from your haltija, but I've been wondering about väki's connection to ancestors so I'm interested in hearing your thoughts about it. :D My ancestors are tied to me by blood, so if I call upon my väki/haltija, isn't it likely that it includes my ancestors?
I may also be just heavily influenced by norse cosmology since I'm in a community where I read a lot about it lmao.
I've heard different stories about the links between väki, ancestors, and haltija. For example that the first person to die in the home would become the haltija of the house after death. Maybe the beliefs can differ from region to region? The way I've heard the term väki used was never about the "soul" or essence of a living person, but always tied to the dead or invisible spirit beings, like metsänväki (väki or people of the forest). And those could be at least partially the same as ancestors, as seen from the example of a dead person becoming a house spirit (kodinhaltija). I am not exactly sure if a spirit is what you mean by "haltija" in this context, but that is how I've learned the word: a protective spirit.
My own view on väki is no doubt influenced by Christianity, and I would say soul and väki are kind of the same thing. My own väki is part of the ancestral lineage and will be an ancestor spirit. I don't really see my väki as "coming" from my ancestors, more as already being a part of them, if that makes any sense. To me väki is a very all-encompassing term that is hard to pin down in other languages or cultural contexts.
And about calling upon your own väki, in my view it of course would mean calling upon your ancestors!
(Non-exhaustive) Glossary on Finnish Folk Religion
Karhukultti & Hirvikultti
"Cult of the Bear" and "Cult of the Moose" in english. Finnish people belonged to either of the old totemic "tribes", and venerated their animal ancestor. Finnic pagan registered religious group "Karhun Kansa" (eng. "people of the bear") practice karhukultti.
(Karhun Kansa website; Karhun kansa in english)
Väki
Finnish land, nature, and ancestor spirits, also a spiritual power that exists in everything. Sometimes described as "Finnish Chi"
Hiisi
Word for a being, sacred place, and something taboo. For example a specific sacred rock is "Hiidenkivi" (stone of Hiisi). Sometimes hiisi are imagined as troll- or goblin-like creatures. In Finnic myths there exists a "Hiidenhirvi", magical moose/reindeer who many try to catch but fail.
Sanat
Literally "words". Words have immense power in Finnish myhtology. Special poems that describe the creation of animals, other beings, and concepts, are called "Syntysanat". Those poems can be used to control or call upon the concepts in question, and are evoked in different "spells".
Sielulintu
"Soul bird" in english. It is believed that the soul takes the form of a bird after death and when asleep.
doesn’t God’s capacity for violence scare you??
no i’m into that
kpunkka ~
Moose in the Misty Field 🫎.
Finland
Shiras Moose | Otto Womelsdorf
I bring a "capitalism is a sin that will destroy Gods creation if we don't act against it, for the sin of greed has no end except the end of the world" vibe to the function that right winged Christians don't really like.
you see, you must bite your gods. don't get yourself a god you can't bite. maybe some that you shouldn't, yes, but otherwise you ought to have gods you can bite. and bite.
and then you must know what you're biting them for and what you expect.
some gods you bite and they'll bite you back, which is good. some gods you bite and it'll sharpen your teeth, and that is good as well. some gods you bite and you'll devour them instead and that is good, as well, again.
some gods you bite and it's a reward, and some you'll bite as penance, some as communion, some as sex, some as simple curiosity. some you bite and they break your teeth or tame you, and you must ask yourself whether this is what you desire.
but you must bite your gods.
Calling out to...!
Please interact with this post if you:
- Venerate animal ancestors / practice totemism
- Worship animal gods
- Work with animal spirits
I've been trying to find other practitioners via tags but have been unsuccesful, so this post is my next try!
If the Incarnation had been in the year 2025, Mary would have given birth under a highway overpass in a homeless camp after being denied entry into the local church-ran shelter because there was no room for a family 'like hers'. Instead of the Christ Child being delivered by archangels, He is pulled from her by the dirty, freezing fingers of the queer teen kicked out by his parents, the junkie who isn't ready to quit, and the schizophrenic whose family became too tired of her symptoms to take care of her for any longer.
If the Incarnation had been in the year 2025, the angels would have appeared to the minimum-wage employees loitering outside their department stores and fast food restaurants, exhausted, feet aching, despairing at the knowledge that their paycheck won't cover both food and utilities.
"Do not be afraid, for see, I am bringing you good news of great joy for all the people: to you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is the Messiah, the Lord!" The angels rumble, louder than the 18 wheelers and construction. "This will be a sign to you: You will find a baby wrapped in an old hoodie and lying amongst the beer bottles and cigarette butts."
And the workers glance at each other, consider the little change in their pockets and the CEOs who couldn't care less if they froze in their beds because the heat shut off, and begin their walk along the asphalt under the glow of the streetlights.
If the Incarnation had been in the year 2025, Mary and Joseph would have fled from their home in the night, fled from bullets and tear gas and the devils in uniform as state sanctioned genocide ripped their lives to shreds, the wailing little toddler Christ tucked under Mary's chin.
And if the Incarnation had been in the year 2025, the Holy Family would have hid, undocumented and alien, moving across borders and checkpoints, heads down, hearts full of fear and prayer. The Holy Family would sleep in refugee tents amidst camps full of families whose baby sons' bodies had to be left behind, riddled with bullets from guns made by Herod's allies, sold to him under the guise of protecting the peace, when really that just meant protecting his power.
But the Incarnation did not happen in the year 2025. The Christ Child had long since lived, died, and lived again by then. But if He had been born on that frigid night in the December of 2025, under a highway in a homeless camp to a brown mother and father, would you love Him just the same?
Merry Christmas. God bless us all.
“i asked chat gpt” well i asked Lord Jesus Christ Son of God to have mercy on me a sinner
Stop using ai art to depict Jesus.
Jesus was a carpenter, he had to use his own creativity to make stuff.
Maybe you should too.
I think it's a sin to make AI images of Jesus; I'm not joking.
Images of Christ, His Mother, the angels and the saints should be made by human hands with prayer and fasting.
❗️This post is not based on real historical accounts of the old Hirvikultti. These are ideas for the modern recreation of the practice❗️
Domains of the Moose, or subjects you could ask the Moose guidance, protection, or help regarding:
Circle of life
Life of the early Finns depended on the moose. Artefacts of the Cult of The Moose depict moose without antlers - depictions based on cows or year old calves. Cow is the one who gives birth to the young, who in turn creates the next generation.
Independence
Moose are solitary animals. Cows live with their calves, and bulls traverse alone.
Crossing waters
Different groups around the Baltic sea adorned their boats with moosehead decorations. Moose are also good swimmers, and travel vast distances when migrating.
Travel
Moose migrate over vast distances in spring and autumn. These migration routes are usually 15-25 kilometers or, especially for younger moose, even longer
Forests
Moose is the guardian of the forest. It is the largest land animal in Finland, and is for a reason dubbed "King of the Forest" alongside the bear.
Hunting & Gathering
Since the forest is the domain of the Moose, it would be sensible to ask its permission when traversing the woods and using what the forest has to offer
=¤=Devotional piece=¤=
(digital painting, digital collage)
My parents got me a Moose Calendar for Christmas :'D