Sacred groves (Hiis)
- Mentioned at the beginning of the 13th century in the chronicle of Henrikus of Lettonia;
- In northern and western Estonia , we can speak of actual sacred groves ( hiiemetsad ), in southern Estonia , freestanding individual trees. (hiiepuud ) (cf. holy trees that roam, stories of the “three sisters”; trees who were believed to be humans transformed were considered especially sacred);
- Taboos against chopping down trees in a sacred grove; hay was not mown, animals were not pastured, berries were not gathered;
- Who was worshipped in the sacred groves? (inauthenticity of the romantic imagination of Taara oak groves) translation of hie in the first Estonian language Bible as a synonym for the fertility goddess Ashera (Ishtar, Astarte);
- Social as well as sacral function of the sacred grove: location close to villages, outside the boundaries of the village fields; this was where the domain of the forest fairies began;
- Connection of the sacred grove with burial sites: song type “Ema haual” (At mother`s grave) from northern Estonia in Virumaa Käisin eile Hiielassa, tunaeile Toonelassa, eile eide haua pealla… (Yesterday I went to the Hiis, the day before yesterday to Toonela, yesterday to my mother's grave) Archaeological evidence, however, does not unarguably confirm the coincidence of burial sites and sacred groves, though the connection seems to be closer in southern Estonia;
- Whose dwelling place was the sacred grove? Virgins of the sacred grove ( hiieneitsid) or young men ( hiienoormees ), horses, fierce dogs and roosters. Horses of the sacred grove are explicitly mentioned in the runo songs (incantations) from Karelia and Finland : (Hiiestä on hevosen synty,/ Varsan synty vaahteresta .), and may have functioned as scapegoats, to send illness far away; the “ Horse Game“ from northern Virumaa and Saaremaa (hirnu, hirnu, hiie halli); association of the young man of the sacred grove with sexual violence, a song type, „Young Man of the Hiis“ is associated with him;
Hiis, hiid (hiidlane, hiiglane) In Finland offering stones ( hiidenkivit ) are connected with folk stories about giants: in western Finland hiisi means cult spot, hiidet were seen as demonized beings. According to Ilmar Talve, hiisi probably first had the meaning of sacred grove or its guardian spirit, then a forest fairy, and finally a being who did not have a clear association with a particular place, who was referred to as jättiläinen or vuorenpeikko , who might be a close relative of vanapagan . Both were fully capable of throwing stones in the direction of the church.
- Connections between sacred groves and the Estonian island of Hiiumaa , which was said to have been full of sacred groves. It is likely that the name of the island, which is found in written texts only beginning in the 17 th century, derived from the predominance of these sacred sites, and not from the presence of powerful giants Enne oli Hiiumaal paks rohi. See põles maha. Suurelt maalt ja mujalt käidi siin Jumalat teenimas. Siin oli altar nagu nüüd kirikus. Hiiumaa tähendab Jumalamaa. (ERA II 1, 509, Pühalepa, 1928). (Before there was thick grass growing in Hiiumaa. But it burned away. People would come from the mainland and other places to serve God. There was an altar here as there is now in churches. Hiiumaa means God`s country.”)
- Opportune times for consulting trees for help: solstices and equinoxes, the “time of the souls” in the fall, the beginning and ending of agricultural work seasons
- In Central Estonia, the sacred grove cult merged with the worship of household fairies and Tõnn (corruption of St. Anthony, the patron saint of pigs), whose bushel (tõnnivakk) was either kept in the pantry or in the sacred grove. In Vändra in the county of Pärnumaa , Tõnn was the patron saint of all of agriculture. Offering to the household fairy began to be associated with 17 January (the feast of St. Anthony, or Tõnisepäev). In southern Estonia half a pig`s head was consumed on this day.
- Gender: it is likely that in Estonia, as in Sami and Udmurt traditions, going to the sacred grove was taboo for women, though this is not explicitly reflected in the runo songs (except “The Young Man of the Hiis”)
- Types of offerings: blood sacrifice of animals, fleece, dairy products, (first milk upon the birth of a calf or a child), “first fruits” thank-offerings
Offering Stones
- mostly flat stones, of varying shapes and sizes, indentations were thought to be tracks; water pooled in the indentations was believed to have healing powers
- located near villages, in fields, pastures, meadows, sometimes in the woods; sometimes referred to as grove stones (hiiekivid), some became associated with specific saints (Kuusalu Lauritsakivi)
Sacred Springs
- most numerous in Saaremaa and western Estonia
- healing powers, especially for the eyes
- offerings: coins, silver scrapings ( hõbevalge or silverwhite), grain, food, ornaments
Was folk religion really earth religion?
- The designation “earth religion” is accurate insofar as the religion of old Estonia was an agrarian religion, connected with the fertility of the land and the herds, and the success of farming. However, thousands of legends indicate that the stronger otherworldly forces came from above.
- The ruler of the upper world was pikne , the ruler of the weather, honoured as late as the 19 th century. Near Vastseliina at the village of Meeksi , offerings were brought to a pine three that had been hit by lightning. (synonyms for pikne are vanataat, vanaisa, äike, vanem, uku, and kõu). There are some connections between this configuration of the heavenly god and an old man suggesting that ancestor worship and the cult of the sky god intersected.
- Pikne is constantly chasing the devil, who tries to hide under rocks and trees, and looks for shelter with people (in pockets and under skirts). During a thunderstorm it is recommended that one stay inside , close the doors, make the sign of the cross, to hold the devil at bay. In this case the devil`s only recourse is to jump into a lake or another body of water (including wells), because these have a direct connection to the underworld.
- The arrows of Pikne are thought of in material terms, and people looked for them and claimed to find them. They were thought to contain the force that repels evil and to have healing properties.
- Tharapita, mentioned in Henricus of Lettonia`s chronicle in the context of the god that the warriors of Saaremaa called upon, has been thought to be a sky-god as well. In later Estonian folk tradition there is no mention of a god by that name. There is, however, a folk name for a god Tooru, to whom offerings are made, and who was honoured with celebrations on Thursday night. Tooru is most probably connected with the ancient Scandinavian god Thor, but it is not impossible that there is also a Finno-Ugric stratum here. (Ülo Valk, Eesti rahvakultuur , 1998).
What is the relationship between “folk” religion and Christianity?
Characteristics of folk religion: heterogeneity, contradictoriness, illogicality, oral tradition
When high religion becomes “official,” it also gives rise to popular forms in which the archaic and the new blend or hybridize, and intellectual teachings are folklorized. (in Europe over the centuries the Christian church has been in an ongoing dialogue with folk religions): “Although a person could be a member of a Christian congregation, attend communion, and pray to God, he or she could maintain contact with the forces that animate all of nature, with his or her dead forebears, and sing in the form of runo songs (regilaul) a creation story not found in the Bible, namely of the way the world is born from the world-bird's egg.” ( Ülo Valk)
The extensive writing down of Estonian folklore took place in the last quarter of the 19th century. Classical syntheses: Oskar Loorits Grundzüge des estnischen Volksglaubens I-III Lund, 1949, 1951, 1957); Ival Paulson Vana eesti rahvausk: Usundiloolisi esseid Stockholm 1966)
How do we tell the difference between folk humour and religious myth?
Manyheaded dragons in fairy tales are not characters in folk religion, but the werewolf and cannibalistic devil were something to be feared in real life. (Valk 488)The worldview of the runo songs, in which one can find characters such as Tooni and Mana as rulers of the Other World, descriptions of Toonela, a mystical young man from the sacred grove, the Great Oak or World Tree, is believed to be more archaic than that found in religious narratives.
STUDY QUESTIONS AND EXERCISES
1. Go back to Reading 22 (Kaljo Põllu`s Kalivägi). Reexamine the iconography of trees in these pictures. Where do you find trees (both in terms of which prints contain them, and where the trees are spatially located in the print)? What place do they hold in Põllu`s mythological world? What types of trees are represented? Is there a variety?
2. How does Põllu mark „sacred space?“ Are there recognizable holy places separate from the daily round, or is Põllu more attuned to the holiness and „spirit-filled“ animatedness of all of space?
3. What does Põllu mean in picture 8 by „forest of the gods?“