The Kalevala begins with the story of Ilmatar, who descends from the heavens to the sea, where she is tossed about for seven hundred years. During that time, a seabird lays eggs on her knee. When Ilmatar moves, the eggs break, and the pieces form the physical world and the sun and The moon. She then has a son, Vainamoinen, who begins life as a wise old man.
Soon after Vainamoinen’s birth, the evil Joukahainen challenges him to a singing contest after hearing that the hero is noted for his magic songs. Vainamoinen accepts the challenge and wins the contest, causing Joukahainen to sink into a swamp. Fearing that he will drown, Joukahainen offers Vainamoinen his sister Aino in exchange for his rescue.
Vainamoinen plans to marry Aino, and her parents encourage the match. But she refuses to wed the old man. When her mother tries to persuade her to change her mind, Aino goes to the sea and drowns herself. Vainamoinen follows the girl and finds her in the form of a fish. He catches the fish, but she slips back into the water and escapes.
Unhappy that he has lost Aino, Vainamoi-nen sets off for Pohjola, the Northland, in search of another wife. Along the way Joukahainen, still bitter over losing the singing contest, shoots at the hero but only hits his horse. Vainamoinen falls into the sea and escapes. He finally arrives at Pohjola, where the evil Louhi promises him her daughter, the Maiden of Pohjola, if he will build a magic sampo for her. Unable to do this by himself, Vainamoinen seeks help from Ilmar-inen, the blacksmith. However, after Ilmarinen completes the sampo, Louhi gives her daughter to him instead of to Vainamoinen.
The Adventures of Lemminkainen The next section of the Kalevala recounts the adventures of the hero Lemminkainen, who marries Kyllikki (pronounced KYOO-luh-kee), a woman from the island of Saari. But she is unfaithful to him, and he leaves her and goes to Pohjola to find a new wife. When he reaches his destination, Louhi promises him her daughter if he can complete several tasks. While Lemminkainen is working on the last task, he is killed by a blind cattle herder whom he has insulted. The herder
This painting, The Curse of Kullervo, by Akseli Gallen-Kallela, shows the Finnish character Kullervo reacting in anger to the discovery that the Maiden of Pohjola put a stone in his bread. © BIBLIOTHEQUE DESARTS DECORATIFS, PARIS, FRANCE/ARCHIVES CHAR-MET/THE BRIDGEMAN ART LIBRARY.
World History
