29 - Saami traditions
THE SAAMI
When I went to Lapland I learned a little more about the Saami and their traditions. First of all, you have to know that the Saami are a people of Lapland, an area that covers the north of Sweden, Norway and Finland as well as the Kola Peninsula in Russia .
THE REINDEER
It is said that the Saami used to use reindeer as beasts of burden, especially to pull their sleds. Milk and meat were a highly valued source of food, while the skins were used for clothing and protection in makeshift dwellings. The kota was a kind of tepee covered with reindeer skins.
THEIR CLOTHING
In the clothing department, their taste for colour is reflected in the making of clothes with often very bright shades of blue, red and yellow. Reindeer fur is still used for coats, leggings and mittens.
CHAMANISM
In these boreal latitudes, where mankind is fighting an incessant battle against the elements, it is not surprising that shamanism has found favourable ground. Serving as an intermediary between the spirit world and the world of the living, the noaid (or shaman) could, on entering into ecstasy, interpret the secrets of the afterlife and transmit them to his people. He used his kunnus (magic lambour) or joik (ancestral haunting song) to help him do this. The magic drum, oval in shape, is divided into three parts representing the spirits of Heaven, Earth and man himself. Each of these parts is decorated with symbolic drawings that the sorcerer knows how to interpret. These patterns are painted with saliva reddened by alder bark. The sorcerer places the divinatory wand (arpa) on the drumhead, then sings while beating the kunnus and, more often than not, goes into a trance. In ancient times, the fame of the Saami shamans was widespread throughout Scandinavia. They are already mentioned in the Icelandic sagas.
JAEN FRANCOIS REGNARD
In the account of his trip to Lapland, the 17th century playwright Jean-François Regnard (one of the first Frenchmen who ventured "as a tourist" to the Far North) says that he witnessed some quite amazing events. The Tsar of Russia, Ivan the Terrible, visited Lapland himself for the sole purpose of consulting a sorcerer from the end of the world. His court astrologers were unable to interpret the passage of a long-tailed comet in the sky of St. Petersburg as he understood it. During the forced evangelization of the Saami, the Lutheran missionaries burned the magic drums (only 71 kunnus remain today). The animist cults gave way to the great Christian festivals such as Easter.
When I went to Lapland I learned a little more about the Saami and their traditions. First of all, you have to know that the Saami are a people of Lapland, an area that covers the north of Sweden, Norway and Finland as well as the Kola Peninsula in Russia .
THE REINDEER
It is said that the Saami used to use reindeer as beasts of burden, especially to pull their sleds. Milk and meat were a highly valued source of food, while the skins were used for clothing and protection in makeshift dwellings. The kota was a kind of tepee covered with reindeer skins.
THEIR CLOTHING
In the clothing department, their taste for colour is reflected in the making of clothes with often very bright shades of blue, red and yellow. Reindeer fur is still used for coats, leggings and mittens.
CHAMANISM
In these boreal latitudes, where mankind is fighting an incessant battle against the elements, it is not surprising that shamanism has found favourable ground. Serving as an intermediary between the spirit world and the world of the living, the noaid (or shaman) could, on entering into ecstasy, interpret the secrets of the afterlife and transmit them to his people. He used his kunnus (magic lambour) or joik (ancestral haunting song) to help him do this. The magic drum, oval in shape, is divided into three parts representing the spirits of Heaven, Earth and man himself. Each of these parts is decorated with symbolic drawings that the sorcerer knows how to interpret. These patterns are painted with saliva reddened by alder bark. The sorcerer places the divinatory wand (arpa) on the drumhead, then sings while beating the kunnus and, more often than not, goes into a trance. In ancient times, the fame of the Saami shamans was widespread throughout Scandinavia. They are already mentioned in the Icelandic sagas.
JAEN FRANCOIS REGNARD
In the account of his trip to Lapland, the 17th century playwright Jean-François Regnard (one of the first Frenchmen who ventured "as a tourist" to the Far North) says that he witnessed some quite amazing events. The Tsar of Russia, Ivan the Terrible, visited Lapland himself for the sole purpose of consulting a sorcerer from the end of the world. His court astrologers were unable to interpret the passage of a long-tailed comet in the sky of St. Petersburg as he understood it. During the forced evangelization of the Saami, the Lutheran missionaries burned the magic drums (only 71 kunnus remain today). The animist cults gave way to the great Christian festivals such as Easter.
Commentaires
Enregistrer un commentaire