from Suomen kansan muinaisia loitsurunoja, compiled by Elias Lönnrot (1880)

Ten syntyloitsut — origin charms — from the dark end of the Finnish tietäjä's cosmological knowledge. These are the charms the seer recited to gain power over spirits, sorcerers, diseases, and afflictions. To know a thing's origin is to command it: the tietäjä who knew where the sorcerer was born could banish sorcery; the one who knew the earth-spirit's lineage could conjure it back into the ground; the one who recited the adder's birth from a broken stone thread could master serpents.

The Birth of the Sorcerer (Noidan synty) is perhaps the most charged charm in the collection — ten lines that locate the entire origin of magic behind the bench of the North, in the flat land of Lapland, on a bed of brushwood with a pillow of stone. The Birth of the Earth Spirit (Maahisen synty) addresses the maahinen — the underground spirit that rises through earth, water, or fire to burn human skin. The Birth of the Colic (Ähkyn synty) names the colic-spirit as assembled from the world's detritus: swamp, steel-tips, spinnings, brushwood, foam, feathers, and Syöjätär's heartstrings.

These incantations have never before appeared in English. They are drawn from Elias Lönnrot's 1880 Suomen kansan muinaisia loitsurunoja, compiled from field collections by the Finnish Literary Society (SKS).

Horkan synty — Birth of the Fever

Well I know the fever's origin,
I guess the wretch's beginning:
Fever was rocked by the wind,
Lulled by the cold air,
Brought by the wind, drawn by the water,
Thrust toward us by harsh weather,
Come in the wind's bundle,
In the frost-wind's sled-runners,
Against us wretched ones,
Toward us dawn-day people.

Koin synty — Birth of the Grub

The grub was born at the cabin-bay,
At the mouth of the River Jordan.
Whores washed their veils
At the mouth of the River Jordan,
From that the grub was conceived,
From that came the bone-gnawer,
Flesh-eater, bone-gnawer,
Drawer of blood from the fresh,
Without boiling in a cauldron,
Without shaking in a copper vessel,
Set out to wander like a dog,
The worm began to crawl,
Went to gnaw at bone,
To soften flesh,
To fester as wetness,
To set up swellings.

Kuvun synty — Birth of the Tumor

Belly-lump, Lempo's knot,
Well I know your lineage,
Whence you, wretch, were born,
Earth's horror, grown,
Wound up as Lempo's spindle,
Swollen as Hiisi's ball,
Here upon the breath's passages,
On the neck's fine flesh:
From mist is your lineage,
From mist your mother,
From mist your father,
From there the power of your elders,
There are five of your brothers,
Six of your godmother's daughters,
Seven of your uncle's children —
Go yourself there too,
To meadows nameless,
To places name-unknown!

Kyykäärmeen synty — Birth of the Adder

a.

Night's daughter, twilight's maiden,
Keeper of the long fast,
Spun a thread of stone,
Twisted one of gravel,
On a stone spinning-wheel,
With a copper spindle;
The stone thread broke,
The gravel slipped from her fingers,
From the stone spinning-wheel,
From the copper spindle.
Whatever it ended up as —
From it came an evil offspring,
From it the adder was born,
A serpent of the underworld conceived.

b.

Steadfast old Väinämöinen
Was breaking apart mountains,
Toppling cliffs,
In rain-soaked mittens,
With the help of copper gloves;
He got a fire-sharp sword,
He brandished his sword
In the crack of the iron mountain,
Between two cliffs,
In the cleft of five rocks.
A golden ring slid down
Into the crack of the iron mountain,
Between two cliffs,
Into the cleft of five rocks —
From that the creature was born,
The adder took shape.

Maahisen synty — Birth of the Earth Spirit

a.

From the earth the earth-spirit comes,
The red-blotched one from the yards,
From the earth's angers, from the water's angers,
From the frog's secret angers;
From that the creature was born,
The earth's cunning one grew,
But I cannot tell
How it may have come here now,
Risen onto human skin,
Onto the hair of one born of woman,
Burning like fire,
Scorching like flame,
Whether as snail or as worm,
Or as some other earth-spirit.
Low are the feet upon the ground,
Lower still the earth-spirit's:
If you have risen from earth,
Then to earth I conjure you;
If gently you came from water,
Then gently to water roll;
If you have come from fire,
Then thrust yourself into fire —
Take your anger as you go,
Carry away your own evils!

b.

The water-demon rowed the water,
A young maiden dipped the oars,
In a boat of copper,
With oars of tinned steel,
Came ashore as a strawberry,
Rolled in like a grain of wheat;
From that the earth-spirit was spawned,
From that you were born, poor creature,
But now I conjure you away —
Here is not your place,
In the earth is the earth-spirit's place,
In the water the water-sprite's home.

Noidan synty — Birth of the Sorcerer

Well I know the sorcerer's birth,
And the origin of the lot-casters:
There was the sorcerer born,
There the beginning of the diviners,
Behind the bench of the North,
In the flat land of Lapland;
There was the sorcerer born,
There the diviner conceived,
On a bed of brushwood,
On a pillow of stone.

Raanin synty — Birth of the Flesh-Eater

The old woman of the wilds,
Quick as wind, quick as water,
Quick as all the fish,
Carried a hard womb,
A full and heavy belly,
For thirty summers,
And as many winters too,
At last she bore a wrathful son,
Flesh-eater, bone-gnawer,
And made him into Raani the devourer.
She raised her son,
She guarded her offspring,
In bloodstained garments,
In gore-soaked clothes.
Then she sent him forth
To eat, to gnaw,
To break the baptized,
To fell the christened,
To fester flesh,
And to crush bone.

Ruosteen synty — Birth of Rust

The cold-throated hag of the North
Lay in the cold for a week,
Long in the swamp among the mosses.
Waking from her sleep
She shook her skirts,
Swung her hindquarters,
Rubbed her two palms together,
Kneaded them both.
From that a red thing fell,
Rolled into the boggy moss,
From that came an evil offspring,
From that was born poor rust,
It rose into the grass,
Onto the ploughman's path.

Rupien synty — Birth of Scabs

The ruddy, scabby old woman,
Evil mother of sores,
Gave birth to a scabby son,
Brought forth a sharp-tempered one,
One in root, nine in head,
On a scabby bed,
Of a scabby father's begetting,
From a scabby carrier,
From a sharp-tempered mother;
She flung the wrathful son
Against the skin of a human,
Onto the hair of one born of woman.

Ähkyn synty — Birth of the Colic

a.

Colic-boy, the bumbler,
Second boy, the stumbler,
Third one, the stick-holder —
Not made from good things,
Nor from worthy ones at all;
Made from swamp, made from earth,
Assembled from steel-tips,
Gathered from women's spinnings,
Ripped from brushwood,
Snapped from heather,
Ground from grasses,
Collected from rapids-foam,
Poured from the sea's froth,
Fluffed from feathers,
From Syöjätär's heartstrings,
From under Mammotar's liver.

b.

Colic-puff, the fumbler,
Stupid boy, the shuffler,
Hut-dweller, the numbed one,
Well I know your lineage —
You were not made from good things,
Not from good, not from evil:
You were gathered from hard woods,
Made from resinous pines,
Put together from aspen-bark,
Fashioned from birch-fungus.

c.

A lean Lapp boy
Made his way under the road,
Traveled under the earth,
A bloody axe on his shoulder,
He struck a man against the heart,
Slashed against the chest —
From that the colic was born,
The piercing pain aroused.

Colophon

Translated from Finnish by the New Tianmu Anglican Church (Good Works Translation, AI-assisted). Source text: Suomen kansan muinaisia loitsurunoja (Ancient Charm Songs of the Finnish People), compiled by Elias Lönnrot, published Helsinki 1880 by the Finnish Literary Society (SKS). Clean text from Project Gutenberg edition #48751, proofread by Jari Koivisto.

These ten origin charms — covering the sorcerer, the earth-spirit, the adder, fever, the bone-gnawing grub, tumors, the flesh-eating raani, rust, scabs, and colic — represent a cross-section of the Finnish tietäjä's dark cosmological knowledge. To know a thing's origin was to command it. The charms were recited by seers across Finland from time immemorial; Lönnrot collected them from field workers of the Finnish Literary Society in the early and middle nineteenth century.

Compiled and formatted for the Good Work Library by the New Tianmu Anglican Church, 2026.

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Source Text

Finnish source from Lönnrot, Suomen kansan muinaisia loitsurunoja (1880), Project Gutenberg #48751.

7. Horkan synty.

Kyllä tieän horkan synnyn,
Arvoan alun katalan:
Horkka on tuulen tuu'ittama,
Vilun ilman viihyttämä,
Tuulen tuoma, veen vetämä,
Kovan ilman kohti saama,
Tullut tuulen tuppurissa,
Ahavan rekira'oissa,
Vasten meitä vaivaisia,
Kohti koitopäiväisiä.

15. Koin synty.

Koi syntyi kotalahella
Suussa joen Juortanaisen.
Huorat huuhtoi huntujansa
Joen suussa Juortanaisen,
Siitä sitten koi sikesi,
Siitä puuttui luun puria,
Lihan syöjä, luun puria,
Veren uuelta vetäjä,
Ilman paalia keittämättä,
Vaskella varistamatta,
Läksi koira kulkemahan,
Sai mato matelemahan,
Meni luuta luusimahan,
Lihoa liottamahan,
Märkinä märättämähän,
Panemahan paisumina.

19. Kuvun synty.

Kupu kumma, Lemmon pahka,
Tieänpä sinun sukusi,
Mist' oot syplä syntynynnä,
Maan kamala kasvanunna,
Kertynynnä Lemmon keträ,
Hiien pallo paisununna,
Tähän hengen huokumille,
Kaklan kaloille lihoille:
Sumust' on sinun sukusi,
Sumusta sinun emosi,
Sumusta sinun isosi,
Siitä valta vanhempasi,
Siell' on viisi veikkoasi,
Kuusi kummisi tytärtä,
Seitsemän setäsi lasta,
Sinne siirtyös itseki
Niittyihin nimettomihin,
Nimen tietämättömihin!

20. Kyykäärmeen synty.

a.

Yön tyttö, hämärän neito,
Pitkän puhtehen pitäjä,
Keträsi kivisen langan,
Somerisen soilotteli,
Kivisellä keträpuulla,
Vaskisella värttinällä;
Katkesi kivinen lanka,
Somerinen sormiltansa,
Kiviseltä keträpuulta,
Vaskiselta värttinältä.
Mi lie päiksi päätynynnä,
Siitä sai paha sikiö,
Siitä syntyi kyytöläinen,
Sikisi mato manalan.

b.

Vaka vanha Väinämöinen
Vuoria hajottelevi,
Kallioita kaatelevi,
Räntäisissä rukkasissa,
Vaskivanttujen varassa;
Sai miekan tuliteräisen,
Sylkytteli miekkoansa
Vuoren rautaisen raossa,
Kahen kallion välissä,
Louhen viien vinkurassa.
Sormus kultainen solahti
Vuoren rautaisen rakohon,
Kahen kallion välihin,
Louhen viien vinkurahan,
Siitä sitten sykkö syntyi,
Kyhäytyi kyytöläinen.

24. Maahisen synty.

a.

Maast' on maahinen kotoisin,
Punapilpero pihoista,
Maan vihoista, veen vihoista,
Sammakon salavihoista;
Siit' on sykkö syntynynnä,
Maan kavala kasvanunna,
Vaan en tuota tunnekkana,
Miten lie nyt tänne tullut,
Nousnut ihmisen iho'on,
Karvahan kavon tekemän,
Tulen moisna polttamahan,
Panun laisna paahtamahan,
Etanana vai matona,
Vainko muuna maahisena.
Matalat jalat maolla,
Matalammat maahisella:
Kun sa lienet maasta nousnut,
Niin maahan sinun manoan;
Kun liet vieno veestä tullut,
Niin vieno vetehen vieri;
Kun lienet tulesta tullut,
Niin sä tungeite tulehen,
Vie vihasi mennessäsi,
Ota pois omat pahasi!

b.

Vesihiisi vettä souti,
Kapo nuori notkutteli,
Venehellä vaskisella,
Airoilla tinasiloilla,
Pääsi maalle mansikkana,
Vieri vehnäisnä tahasna;
Siit' on maahisen sikiö,
Siitä synnyit sykkö raukka,
Vaan nyt pois sinun manoan,
Ei täällä sinun sijasi,
Maass' on maahinen sijasi,
Ve'essä vetosen lempo.

25. Noidan synty.

Kyllä tieän noian synnyn,
Sekä alun arpojia:
Tuoll' on noita syntynynnä,
Tuolla alku arpojien,
Pohjan penkeren takana,
Lapin maassa laakeassa;
Siell' on noita syntynynnä,
Siellä arpoja sikesi,
Hakoisella vuotehella,
Kivisellä pääalalla.

31. Raanin synty.

Akka vanha villikerta,
Tuulen vilkka, veen vilkka,
Kaikkien kalojen vilkka,
Kantoi kohtua kovoa,
Vatsan täyttä vaikeata,
Kolmekymmentä keseä,
Saman verran talviaki,
Sai viimein vihaisen poian,
Lihan syöjän, luun purian,
Senpä raaniksi rakensi.
Kasvatteli poikoansa,
Säilytti sikiätänsä,
Verisissä vaattehissa,
Hurmehisissa sovissa.
Sen sitten lähetti tuonne
Syömähän, kaluamahan,
Ristittyä rikkomahan,
Kastettua kaatamahan,
Lihoja märättämähän,
Sekä luita louhimahan.

35. Ruosteen synty.

Pohjan akka kylmäkulkku
Makasi vilussa viikon,
Kauvan suossa sammalissa.
Unesta herättyänsä
Heilahutti helmojansa,
Pereänsä pyörähytti,
Hieroi kahta kämmentänsä,
Mykelsi molempiansa.
Tuosta putosi punainen,
Vieri suohon sammalihin,
Siitä sai paha sikiö,
Siitä syntyi ruoste raukka,
Nousi tuosta ruohikkohon,
Kyntömiehen askelille.

36. Rupien synty.

Ruskea rupinen akka,
Paha paisetten emonen,
Synnytti rupisen poian,
Äkähisen ällitteli,
Yksin juurin, päin yheksin,
Rupisella vuotehella,
Rupisen isän aloa,
Rupisesta kantajasta,
Äkämäisestä emästä;
Viskasi vihaisen poian
Vasten ihmisen ihoa,
Karvoihin kavon tekemän.

51. Ähkyn synty.

a.

Ähky poika ähmeröinen,
Poika toinen tohmeroinen,
Kolmansi korentolainen,
Ei ole hyvistä tehty,
Eikä aivan arvoisista;
Tehty on suosta, tehty maasta,
Pantu äimän kärkösistä,
Naisten ketristä kerätty,
Risukoista riivoteltu,
Kanarvoista katkoteltu,
Ruoholoista rouhieltu,
Kosken kuohusta ko'ottu,
Meren vaahesta valettu,
Höyhenistä höksytetty,
Syöjättären syämyksistä,
Mammottaren maksan alta.

b.

Ähkäpuhka ähverikkö,
Poika tuhma tohverikko,
Kotahinen kohmerikko,
Kyllä mä sukusi tieän,
Etpä oo hyvistä tehty,
Et hyvistä, et pahoista:
Koottu oot kovista puista,
Tehty puista tervaksista,
Pantu haavan pakkuloista,
Koivun käävistä kävitty.

c.

Laiha poika Lappalainen
Teki tiensä tien alatse,
Maan alatse matkustavi,
Olalla verinen kirves,
Iski miestä syäntä vasten,
Vasten rintoa ripaisi,
Siit' on ähky syntynynnä,
Äimeröinen ärtynynnä.

Source Colophon

Finnish text from Suomen kansan muinaisia loitsurunoja, compiled by Elias Lönnrot, published Helsinki 1880 (Suomalaisen Kirjallisuuden Seuran Toimituksia, 62 osa). Digital text from Project Gutenberg edition #48751, transcribed and proofread by Jari Koivisto. Public domain.

Variant notations ("Toisin:") from Lönnrot's original have been omitted from the source text section for clarity; they are preserved in the staged source file at Tulku/Tools/uralic/loitsurunoja_pg_utf8.txt.

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