Seitas, sacred places of the Sámi

[Osweo]

Seitas, or the old sacred places of the Sámi people, have become the subject of renewed interest. The name varies, depending on the local Sámi dialect, and the places are also known as sieidis or Storjunkare.The Academy of Finland is funding a four-year research project, in connection with which six seitas have already been examined. The archaeologists from the University of Oulu have performed small-scale excavations in the vicinity of the seitas.
Note: Summary of an article By Jussi Konttinen in Inari, Finnish Lapland, on the sacred sites of the Finnish Sami peoples.
http://www.megalithic.co.uk/article.php?sid=2146413860

The studies have already produced some results. One site is Ukonkivi in Inari Lake. The island has been put forward as a possible UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Next to most of the examined sacred places the bones of animals, such as reindeer, goats, sheep, or various types of bird and fish species have been located. “Based on radiocarbon dating, the oldest findings have been dated back to the 12th century”, says archaeologist Tiina Äikäs.
Animal offerings were presented to seitas in hopes for better luck with fishing or hunting. Sometimes such proceedings included brushing the stone with blood or fat.

This summer season the excavations will continue in Termisvaara in the far northern municipality of Enontekiö. Divers will start exploring the seitas surrounded by water.
Most known seitas are unusually shaped stones. At one time Christian priests destroyed seitas, but the indigenous Sámi people themselves are also known to have taken them apart, if they have not been propitious. But how do the present Sámi people view their seitas?
Are the old sacrificial sites perchance still in use today?

“Nobody would admit that they worship nature gods. But I do believe such practices still exist”, says Ilmari Mattus.

In Finland, around 50 seitas have been registered as historic relics, but in reality there are many more.
Some of the sacred places are known only to locals, who do not wish to tell their precise whereabouts.
“A few wooden seitas, so-called keropää seitas, also still exist. I cannot reveal where they are, for I have been told about them in confidence”, says archaeologist Eija Ojanlatva.
“This is a typical problem a researcher can run into. An archaeologist should strictly speaking inform the National Board of Antiquities of his or her findings.”
In the future the seita studies may be broadened in such a way that sacrificial places are sought based on hints from place-names.
Some of the Sámi people take a reserved stand on the studies.

"One should ask what the benefit of this study is. The Sámi community should first hold an internal dialogue on the subject. When information is entered into a registry by the National Board of Antiquities this speaks volumes of how the situation is not under the control of the Sámi people”, says former chairman of the Sami Council Pauliina Feodoroff.
Feodoroff’s personal opinion is that the sacred portion of what is considered "cultural heritage" should be off-limits to outsiders.


For the complete article, by Jussi Konttinensee, see HELSINGIN SANOMAT International Edition.
Note: Summary of an article By Jussi Konttinen in Inari, Finnish Lapland, on the sacred sites of the Finnish Sami peoples.

[nisse]

I actually think Sami magic was real. It's very unfortunate that more is not known about their culture and traditions.

[sean]

The Sámi had a rich tradition of shamanism. Since ancient times, Norwegians had consulted Sámi shamans, who maintained that they could tell the future and travel out of their bodies. The shamans used a special drum for their rituals, which put them in a trance and allowed their souls to roam around.

Sámi mythology is basically a mixture of Lappish, Norse and Finnish beliefs before the arrival of Christianity. Horagalles literally means "Thor-man" and is the god of thunder. Some believe that it was the Sámi that taught the Goði about the gods in the first place.

The Sámi witch-doctors use drums to "craft" their spells, this is very common in the Siberian shamanism and in the region of Lapland.

Here's what Thomas Dubois has to say about it in "Nordic Religions in the Viking Age":

"In Sámi shamanism, about which we know the most of any shamanic tradition found in the Nordic cultures, the noaide's (shaman's) helping spirits took three theriomorphic forms: the bird, the fish, and the reindeer bull. The noaide's negotiations involved ecstatic trance usually accompanied by animal sacrifices at sacred sites (seidi altars or special lakes), thus purchasing or ensuring the assistance of helpful spirits."

Note the similarity between the terms "seidi" and "seiðr", suggesting that Sámi practice may have influenced the Indo-European tribes that moved into the region.

Dubois later says:

"Ernst Manker has examined recurrent symbols on surviving drums, finding images closely related to the mythological explication of the shaman's spirit journeys. Symbols include deities of both high and low orders (e.g., the sun, sky gods, household goddesses, guardian spirits) as well as key seasons or economic activities (hunting, fishing, reindeer husbandry, planting, burial, etc.)"

The drum played a central role in Sámi shamanism (noaidevuohtta) and was targeted for destruction by Christian missionaries. Figures of sea creatures, reindeer, skis, boats with oars were common motifs on the drums.

Bear worship was common in the whole Arctic Circle. Gilyaks, Ainus and Samis captured bear cubs, raised and fed them until maturity, then performed a ritual sacrifice. Upon reaching the otherworld, the bear's soul was expected to praise the humans for the treatment they had given it.

The Sami and Siberian tradition does not have much empathogens and herbs like the Amazonian ayahuasca, but the Amanita mushroom plays huge role in many of their rites. It is used as a "trance shortcut," a way to communicate and move on a spiritual level apart from the usual drum, dance, and/or chanting rituals. Some Uralic groups used it in a non-shamanic capacity as well, in ceremonies or celebrations.

Amanita is a very poisonous mushroom, but can be prepared by few ways that is not lethal (it is not the most lethal mushroom there is, but organ failure is possible with it). Some of the shamans described how they would feed the amanita mushrooms to the reindeers and later drink the reindeer urine for it contains the psychoactive substance without the more harmful compounds. The reindeers are apparently immune to the fatal effects of the amanita.