From the Suomen Kansan Vanhat Runot, Volume I Part 3 (1908)

After the tietäjä has prepared — girding themselves with iron armour, fiery coat, and the nine nested animal bladders — and after they have raised their luonto from the trance-pit, there remains a third task: invoking the spirits. The haltiat are the guardian spirits who dwell in every domain of the Finnish landscape: the land beneath the house, the forest behind the field, the rock on the hillside, the graveyard at the edge of the village, the water in the lake and river. Each spirit has its own nature, its own mode of address, its own offering. The tietäjä does not command them. The tietäjä invites them — with gold, silver, courtesy, and the precise words their tradition has carried across generations.

The twenty-three incantations presented here form the Haltiat (Spirits) section of the Loitsuja in the Suomen Kansan Vanhat Runot (SKVR), Volume I Part 3, published by the Finnish Literature Society in 1908. They are the direct continuation of the Seer’s Preparation and Raising incantations translated previously — together, the three sections form the complete sequence: prepare, raise, invoke. Not a single incantation from this section has been translated into English until now.

The spirits addressed here fall into six categories: the land spirit (maan haltia), guardian of the household and farm; the forest spirits (metsän haltia, metsähiisi), who control hunting and the wild; the rock spirit (kallion väki), whose power resides in stone that never sees the sun; the graveyard spirit (hautuumaan haltia), who must be dismissed after consultation; the church dead (kirkon väki), the power of those buried in consecrated ground; and the water spirits (veen haltia, Vellamo, Ahti), who dwell in rapids, lakes, and bogs. The ritual actions are extraordinary: shavings from a thrice-wed ring, a dead man’s skull used as a speaking-tube, a killed puppy’s mouth filled with metal, a corpse-sleigh placed over a hole in the ice, and water from a weeping rock gathered with an old wooden scoop.

The singers include Teppana Kananaine of Kananaistenkylä, Mihhei Vasiljeff of Katoslampi, Hotatta Niikkaanoff of Hirvisalmi, Simana Riikone of Suopassalmi, Malanja Lazarov of Luusalmi, and many others. As with the Preparation and Raising sections, women singers are represented: Malanja Lazarov’s water invocation stands alongside the male singers’ variants with full authority. The collectors include M. Meriläinen, A. Jalkainen, K. F. Karjalainen, Europaeus, Rautell, and Paulaharju.

The Land Spirit

Maan haltia — The guardian spirit of the land beneath the house. When pleased, it appears in fine clothes and brings prosperity. When angry, it appears in rags and portends disaster. Poem 18.

Mistress and Master of the Land

Teppana Kananaine — Kananaistenkylä. Heard from Pekka Kovalainen in Kuusamo. Collected by M. Meriläinen, 1888. SKVR I:3, no. 18.

If the land spirit is angry, it begins to appear to the master and mistress in dreams, and sometimes even while awake, and it is in poor clothes. Then one must take a wedding ring with which three couples have been wed. Go naked before sunrise to the place where the spirit appeared, and there shave three slivers from the ring, and read:

a. To a female land spirit:

Manutar, mistress of the land,
Penkeitar, mother of the household,
Kunnotar, chosen wife,
Who are fully awake,
Always early to rise,
Come now to exchange gold,
To trade silver,
Spread your linen on the ground,
Unfold your love-cloth,
That the gold not come to waste,
That the good silver not be squandered.
My gold is eternal as the moon,
My silver everlasting.

Then one bows and departs.

The land spirit always appears before some misfortune — whether to the cattle or the farm, a fire or some other disaster. But if it appears in fine clothes and cheerful, it is in love and bears no blame for the coming trouble.

In some houses the spirit is female and in some it is male. If the spirit is male, the incantation begins:

b. To a male land spirit:

Oh master of the land,
Golden king of the land,
Man dwelling behind the fences,
Standing along the walls,
Hear my golden words,
My silver utterances:
Come now to exchange gold,
To trade silver, and so on.

In a house where the spirit is female, cows and sheep thrive better. Where the spirit is male, horses thrive.

The Forest Spirits

Metsän haltia, metsähiisi — The spirits of the wild forest. The tietäjä invokes them for aid in hunting, for knowledge, and for power. The forest spirit appears as a grey-bearded old man with very large eyes, no eyelids, and almost no beard. It is squint-eyed. Poems 19–23.

Come to My Aid

Tuomas Ketoni — Uhut. Collected by A. Jalkainen, 1887. SKVR I:3, no. 19.

Raising the forest folk. Place a tapio talisman under the left heel and turn three times to the right. At the last turn, stop and whistle "as much as comes from the heart." The foot on the talisman must not be lifted. Then read:

Piessa, come to my aid,
For my power, for my strength!
I call — there is need to come!

At the end, as at the beginning, one says: "Know this!"

Cousin, My Uncle's Son

Hotatta Niikkaanoff — Hirvisalmi. Heard as a youth near Koutajärvi. Collected by M. Meriläinen, 1889. SKVR I:3, no. 20.

The forest spirit appears when you take a dead person's belt around yourself, a staff cut from a single-branched rowan in your hand, and a naked orphan child under your arm. After sunset, go to the north side of a hill near an ant-mound, and call:

Cousin, my uncle’s son,
Come hither when needed,
Come here when called!

Then it comes for conversation.

Lord of the Wilds

Mihhei Vasiljeff — Katoslampi. Heard at Muhoksella about 45 years prior. Collected by M. Meriläinen, 1889. SKVR I:3, no. 21.

To make the forest spirit visible at the start of the autumn hunting season, shave silver from three different royal coins and read the offering-words:

Lord of the wilds, master of the land,
Fair dweller of the heath,
Come to hear my words,
To teach the orphan,
To shelter the unprotected,
Come to the foot-path,
Where eyes can see you.

Bow three times toward the forest. Then, if you do not fear, a grey-bearded, handsome-buttoned old man comes for conversation, speaking like an ordinary man, very friendly, asking about hunting matters.

Fire-Mouth, Blaze Forth

Mihhei Vasiljeff — Katoslampi. Heard from his grandfather and father. Collected by M. Meriläinen, 1889. SKVR I:3, no. 22.

The forest spirit appears when you go to the north side of a hill near an ant-mound and speak boldly:

a.

Fire-mouth, blaze forth,
Wide-jaws, flash!
Burning above the burning ones,
To hear a man’s words,
To show wonders!

If it happens to be a good time, it comes. If it does not appear, make a hole at the base of the ant-mound. Into a bullet place copper, tin, and silver shot, and blood from your own finger, and soot. Push the gun up your left sleeve with the barrel pointing backward, then pass three times through the ant-mound, fire the bullet northward, and speak:

b.

Valeini, old man,
Fire-mouthed fierce fellow,
To show wonders,
To reveal his signs!

Then it comes very fierce, and says: "Will you bow to me, or give me gold from your calves?" — meaning, will you serve me, or shall I make you ill. Then bow and say:

c.

Cousin, my uncle’s son,
Squint-eyed handsome brother!

Then ask whatever knowledge you need. As it sees you bow and serve, it advises everything — how to succeed and how to take revenge. At the end, you must ask last what you asked first; otherwise it will not leave.

The forest spirit is squint-eyed and has no eyelids at all. Its eyes are very large and it has almost no beard.

Come from the Nest

Iivana Päättöoja — Pontselensuu. Heard in Finland and nearby. Collected by M. Meriläinen, 1889. SKVR I:3, no. 23.

The chief of the forest spirits appears. Take three one-summer-old water-willow shoots and strike the ground three times with them and say:

Come, devil, from the nest,
Into sight on these lands,
Where the famous man walks!

Then it comes.

The Rock Spirit

Kallion väki — The power that resides in stone. Its strength is greatest where the sun never shines and the rock weeps with perpetual moisture. Poem 24.

Give, Mountain, Your Powers

Simana Riikone — Suopassalmi. Heard locally, told at Suurijärvi. Collected by M. Meriläinen, 1889. SKVR I:3, no. 24.

Rock power is taken thus: find a cliff where the sun never shines and seek a place that is always wet even in the driest weather — they call this a weeping rock. Where the stone has cracked crosswise, shave silver from three royal coins, three slivers each, into the crack, and promise:

Give, mountain, your powers,
Rock, your protectors,
As help for the weak,
As companion for the powerless,
That the head not come to harm,
That the hair not come to ruin,
That the lock not fall limp.

Your power is powerful,
Your strength is the strongest,
Your might the most famous.
I do not ask for much
Nor would I be content with little:
I want an even measure,
A hundred from the place of fingers,
A thousand from the scabbard’s end,
A hundred men with swords,
A thousand armed warriors
To charge with my company,
To speak at my side.

Then from the cross-crack in the rock, take small stone fragments with an old wooden scoop into a leather pouch, and wrap it so it never sees sunlight. Keep the pouch in your pocket — all other powers will fear you, except the water spirit’s power. You may keep it as long as you wish, so long as the stone pieces never see the sun. When they do, they begin to torment you, and you become utterly unfortunate.

The Graveyard Spirit

Hautuumaan haltia — The spirit of the burial ground. It may be consulted, but must always be dismissed firmly and the tietäjä must leave without looking back. Poem 25.

Go to Your Place

Uoti Vasiljeff — Paanajärvi. Heard from the old ones and experienced many times himself. Collected by M. Meriläinen, 1889. SKVR I:3, no. 25.

After the graveyard spirit has given its counsel and spoken its speech, say:

Go to your place,
Lie upon your beds,
Rock yourself in your cradle!

And throw the waistband there at the graveyard. Then leave without looking back.

The Church Dead

Kirkon väki — The power of those buried in consecrated ground. Unlike the graveyard spirit, these are not individual ghosts but a collective force: the young ones raised for a coin, the old ones with strong words. Their earth is carried in a cloth under the left armpit — an army of the dead walking with the living. Poems 26–30.

The Young Ones Are Raised

Huotari Makkone — Kiimasi. Heard from old people nearby. Collected by M. Meriläinen, 1889. SKVR I:3, no. 26.

Church power is taken thus: make a bag from a dried animal bladder and from an old seer’s grave take earth with an old fire-steel three times into the bag. While taking it, say:

The young ones are raised for a coin,
The silver ones are awakened,
The old ones with strong words,
With trusted utterances,
With a man’s worthy reckoning.
Rouse the powerful power,
Awaken the gentler one.
Rise at my raising,
Come at my commanding,
For the sole one’s help,
For a young man’s valour!

The Young Ones Are Raised (Variant)

Toarie Sirkeini — Tetriniemi. Heard locally. Collected by M. Meriläinen, 1889. SKVR I:3, no. 27.

If church power is taken as aid when going somewhere, with an old coin take decomposed earth from a grave and say:

The young ones are raised for a coin,
The old ones with strong words.

Then place the earth in a cloth, the cloth under the left armpit, and throw the coin into the grave from which the earth was taken.

I Want Men from the Earth

Lari Arttemjeff — Tetriniemi. Heard from his father. Collected by M. Meriläinen, 1889. SKVR I:3, no. 28.

When church power is taken as aid, go in the pre-dawn twilight to the graveyard. Throw a copper coin some distance away where there are old graves. Then with an old knife take earth three times into a clean cloth and say:

I want my men from the earth,
My warriors from the soil,
Those who died in the death-year,
Who fell in the war-summer,
A hundred from the stake’s place,
A thousand from the spear’s end,
For the sole son’s aid,
For a young man’s valour.

Then the earth-cloth is placed in the tinderbox, and the tinderbox under the left armpit.

Is There a Man in the Grave-Pit

Kirilä Riikoni — Vuokkiniemi. Heard locally from old people. Collected by M. Meriläinen, 1889. SKVR I:3, no. 29.

When church power is taken as aid, knock with an old hooked knife at the coffin corner and say:

a.

Is there a man in the grave-pit
Against the adversary,
Who has sat here through all time,
Who has rotted in the mould,
For the sole one’s aid,
Around the lonely one?

Then throw a copper coin into the grave and with the blade of the old knife take decomposed dust into a clean cloth. Wrap it with red thread and place it under the left armpit. Depart and say:

b.

Send my folk to charge forth,
To overcome adversaries!

And leave without looking back.

Rest for the Dead, Terror for the Living

Hotatta Niikkaanoff — Hirvisalmi. Heard from a Swedish Sami man near Koutajärvi about 40 years prior. Collected by M. Meriläinen, 1889. SKVR I:3, no. 30.

The church spirit appears when you take an old corpse’s skull from a grave, look through the eye-holes at the graveyard, and speak through the mouth-hole. First say:

Rest for the dead,
Terror for the living.

Then comes a very tall church man with three staffs — a staff in each hand and a third under his belt.

The Water Spirits

Veen haltia, Vellamo, Ahti — The spirits of lake, river, rapids, and bog. Water is "the eldest of brothers" — the oldest and most powerful element. Its spirits are invoked with silver dropped into rapids whirlpools, with Easter-night ice-holes, with killed puppies, and with alder-wood boats set adrift from bog to lake. The water spirit’s power is the only force the rock spirit cannot overcome. Poems 31–40.

Golden King of the Water

Iivana Ahone — Juvajärvi. Told at Naapurinvaara. Collected by M. Meriläinen, 1887. SKVR I:3, no. 31.

Water power is taken: shave silver from three coins into a rapids whirlpool and read:

Golden king of the water,
Mighty sceptre of the water,
Water, home of the spirits,
Dwelling-place of the slimy one,
In the embrace of the water-lily —
Come now as my power,
For the sole son’s aid,
For a young man’s valour,
As protection for the weak,
Around the lonely one.

Such water-foam also extinguishes forest fires.

Is There a Man in the Jordan

Kirilä Riikoni — Vuokkiniemi. Heard locally from old people. Collected by M. Meriläinen, 1889. SKVR I:3, no. 32.

At the graveyard grave of one who died very old, on Midsummer night, place a cork-sealed empty bottle and bury it. It fills with water. If you wish to see the water spirit, drip three drops from that water into a northward-flowing rapids. Then invoke with the usual summoning-words:

Is there a man in the Jordan,
Aid beneath the waves, and so on.

Come, Water, With Your Company

Harittana Lesone — Venehjärvi. Heard from old people. Collected by M. Meriläinen, 1889. SKVR I:3, no. 33.

One is freed from curses by taking the water spirit as aid. When taking the water spirit, say:

Come, water, with your company,
Ahti, with your brave men,
With your linden-bark whip,
With your juniper switch,
To whip the accursed one,
To trample the powerless,
That the head not come to harm,
That the hair not come to ruin.

Water Is Gold, the Tress Is Fair

Kostja Vaassilaine — Uhut. Collected by M. Meriläinen, 1889. SKVR I:3, no. 34.

When taking the water spirit, say:

Water is gold, the tress is fair,
Golden head, silver hand,
Ears all in curls,
You are the eldest of the sisters,
Of the kin the most ancient,
Of the mother the firstborn child.
Come hither where needed,
Come here when called,
For my aid, for my grace,
For my power, for my strength,
In these laborious tasks,
In these difficult oath-works,
Now that I have become the releaser,
Now that I have become the unlocker.

Then take water from the rapids whirlpool — the power comes with it.

The Best of Your Servants

Oufi Mihheynä — Uhut. Heard from his father. Collected by M. Meriläinen, 1889. SKVR I:3, no. 35.

A water spirit is moved or transported to a lake that does not yet have a good spirit. Shave silver into the rapids whirlpool and read:

Golden king of the water,
Eldest power of the water,
Give the longest of your servants,
The best of your hired ones,
To move with me,
To settle in their home,
To bend to their dwelling!
Here the grounds are level,
There they are even more level,
Here the waters are full of fish,
There they are even fuller.

Then with a burl-wood ladle take water from the whirlpool three times into a clean vessel and carry it to the lake where you intend the spirit’s move. The one who moves the spirit must be in clean clothes.

The Easter Night Invocation

Hotatta Karppane — Luusalmi. Heard from his father and grandfather. Collected by M. Meriläinen, 1889. SKVR I:3, no. 36.

The water spirit appears on Easter night. Take three old fire-steels in your mouth and make a hole in the ice at the narrow strait between two large lakes, at the channel’s course. Swing three times around with the steels in your mouth. Then place upon the hole an old sleigh that has carried three corpses, sit upon the sleigh, pull an old mare’s horse-blanket over your ears, and with the hood over your ears read:

Golden king of the water,
Merciful Ahti of the water,
Hear my golden words,
My silver utterances!

Then drop a silver coin into the hole in the ice.

Water Is Gold

Malanja Lazarov — Luusalmi. Collected by Rautell, 1892. SKVR I:3, no. 37.

Water is gold,
The tress is fair,
Gracious one of this time,
Golden king of the waters,
Merciful Ahti of the waters.
Give weapons from the willing side,
Weapons against the unwilling,
For my aid, for my grace,
For my power, for my strength!

Vellamo, King of the Water

Mihhei Vasiljeff — Katoslampi. Heard at Muhoksella about 45 years prior. Collected by M. Meriläinen, 1889. SKVR I:3, no. 38.

The water spirit appears when you place silver, copper, and tin shavings into the mouth of a killed puppy and throw it into the lake on Easter or Midsummer night, saying:

Vellamo, king of the water,
Come, bring your golden cargo,
Copper drawn by a colt,
Silver from the ship’s side!
I give gold for your honour,
Silver for your troubles,
Copper for your other pains.
I give my finest dog
As your household dog,
For your best platforms.
Eternal master of the water,
Grey-haired ruler,
Rise from the young spring,
Surge from the wave,
Without forgetting my words!

Rise, Maiden, from the Spring

Petri Romanoff — Kokkosalmi. Heard from his father. Collected by M. Meriläinen, 1889. SKVR I:3, no. 39.

A water spirit is moved from a bog to a lake. Make an alder-wood boat and carry it to a bog from which a stream flows into the lake. At the bog, read:

Rise, maiden, from the spring,
Fine-hemmed one from the marsh,
Pure-faced one from the stream,
Slender-fingered one from the gravel.
Come to move to a new dwelling,
To shift your places,
To greater seats,
To wider grounds.

Water Is the Eldest of Brothers

Vassilie Ratskoff — Laitasalmi. Heard from his father. Collected by M. Meriläinen, 1889. SKVR I:3, no. 40.

The water spirit will speak to you when, at sunrise in summer, you go to the shore and take a ring with which three couples have been wed, place it between your lips, and read:

Water is the eldest of brothers,
Water’s son the eldest of generations.
Come near to look,
Come close to observe,
As my eyes gaze,
As my open mouth speaks!

Colophon

Source: Suomen Kansan Vanhat Runot (Ancient Poems of the Finnish People), Volume I Part 3: Vienan läänin runojen lisät. Loitsuja. Published by the Finnish Literature Society (Suomalaisen Kirjallisuuden Seura), Helsinki, 1908. Edited by A. R. Niemi from the fieldwork manuscripts of M. Meriläinen, A. A. Borenius-Lähteenkorva, A. Genetz, K. Ikuri, Europaeus, A. Jalkainen, Paulaharju, Rautell, and others.

These twenty-three incantations (SKVR I:3, nos. 18–40) form the Haltiat section of the White Sea Karelian incantation corpus — the complete taxonomy of spirit invocations in the tietäjä tradition. Together with the preceding Tietäjän valmistus (Seer’s Preparation, nos. 1–9) and Luonnon nostatus (Raising of Nature, nos. 10–17), they constitute the first three movements of the tietäjä’s ritual sequence: prepare, raise, invoke. This is the first English translation of any text from the SKVR Haltiat section.

The Finnish source text is reproduced below from the digitised 1908 edition, hosted by the SKVR digital archive. OCR artifacts have been silently corrected where the intended Finnish word is unambiguous; significant uncertainties are noted.

Translated from Finnish for the Good Work Library by Sampo of the New Tianmu Anglican Church, March 2026. Compiled and formatted for the Good Work Library by the New Tianmu Anglican Church, 2026.

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Source Text: Haltiat (SKVR I:3, n:ot 18–40)

Finnish source text from the Suomen Kansan Vanhat Runot, Volume I Part 3 (1908), digitised edition. Presented here for reference, study, and verification alongside the English translation above.

No. 18. Kananaist. kylä. Meril. n. 103. 88. Teppana Kananaine; kuullut Kuusamossa Pekka Kovalaiselta.

a. Manutar maau emäntä,
Penkeitar perehea äiti,
Kunnotar valittu vaimo,
Jok’ olet varsin valvehella,
5 Aina aikaseen havaliat,
Tule nyt kullan muuttelohon,
Hopean vaehtolohon,
Pane maalle palttinasi,
Lempi liinasi levitä,
10 Ettei kullat turhiin tule,
Hukkahan hyvät hopeat.
Minun on kullat kuun ikuset,
Ijän päiväset hopeat.

b. Oi ukko manuu isäntä,
Manun kultanen kuninkas,
Uros aitojen asuja,
Seinä vierten seisoksija,
5 Kuule kultaiset sanani,
Hopejaiset lauseheni:
Tule nyt kullan muuttelohon,
Hopean vaehtolohon j. n. e.

No. 19. Uhut. Jalk. 2 1. n. 78. 87. Tuomas Ketoni.

Piessä, tule avukseni,
Väekseni, voimakseni!
Kutsun, tulla tarvitaah!

No. 20. Hirvisalmi. Meril. n. 1180. 89. Hotatta Niikkaanoff; kuullut poikana Koutajärven tienoilla.

Seimeläinen, setäni poika,
Tule tänne tarvittaissa,
Käy tänne kutsuttaissa!

No. 21. Katoslampi. Meril. n. 1167. 89. Mihhei Vasiljeff; kuullut Muhoksella n. 45 v. sitten.

Salon herra, maau isäntä,
Kaunis kankahan eläjä,
Tule sanani kuulemahan,
Orpoa opettamahan,
5 Turvatonta turvamahan,
Tule jalan käytävälle,
Kahpu silmän nähtävälle.

No. 22. Katoslampi. Meril. n. 1168. 89. Mihhei Vasiljeff; kuullut isoisältään ja isältään.

a. Tuli suu tuijaha,
Levie hienia leyhähä,
Päällä palatoin palahvana,
Miehen sanoja kuulemaan,
5 Outoja osottamaan!

b. Valeini vanha miesi,
Tuli suinen uros tuima,
Outoja osottamaan,
Laitoksia tietämään!

c. Seimeläinen, setäni poika,
Karsassilmä kaunis veli!

No. 23. Pontselensuu. Meril. n. 1040. 89. Iivana Päättöoja; kuullut Suomessa ja kotipuolellaankin.

Tule, perkele, pesästä,
Näkyville näillä mailla,
Miehen kuulun kulkemilla!

No. 24. Suopassalmi. Meril. n. 1283. 89. Simana Riikone; kuullut kotiseudullaan, kertoi Suuressajärvessä.

Anna vuori voimiasi,
Kallio kavehtijoitasi
Avuksi vähä väkisen,
Kunnottoman kumppaliksi,
5 Ettei pää pahoin menisi,
Tukka turhiin tulisi,
Hivus hiuki lankijaisi.
Sinun on väki väkevä,
Sinun voimat voittavammat,
10 Sinun kuntoa kuulusampi.
Ea minä äijeä taho
Enkä välttäisi vähällä:
Tahon tuon taasaisen määrän,
Sata sormien sijasta,
15 Tuhat tupen kääntimestä,
Sata miestä miekallista,
Tuhat luimoa urosta
Kansani karehtimaan,
Viereltäni virkkamaan.

No. 25. Paanajärvi. Meril. n. 2180. 89. Uoti Vasiljeff; kuullut vanhoilta ja itse kokenut monet kerrat.

Mene sijallesi,
Makaa majoillasi,
Kehdollasi kellittele!

No. 26. Kiimasj. Meril. n. 662. 89. Huotari Makkone; kuullut vanhoilta kotitienoillaan.

Äyrin nuoret nostetaan,
Hopeijen herätetähän,
Vanhat vahvoilla sanoilla,
Luottehilla lausehilla,
5 Uron aimo arvelulla.
Nostatellen väki väkevä,
Herätellen hempeämpi.
Nouse minun nostattaissa,
Käy minun käskettäissä,
10 Minun ainoan avuksi,
Miehen nuoren miehuuveksi!

No. 27. Tetriniemi. Meril. n. 2069. 89. Toarie Sirkeini; kuullut kotitienoillaan.

Äyrin nuoret nostetaan,
Vanhat vahvoilla sanoilla.

No. 28. Tetriniemi. Meril. n. 2305. 89. Lari Arttemjeff; kuullut isältään.

Tahon maasta miehini,
Mannusta urohiani,
Jotka on kuollut kuolu vuonna,
Sortunut sotakäsänä,
5 Sata seipähän sijalta,
Tuhat oran tutkelmasta,
Pojan ainoan avuksi,
Miehen nuoren miehueksi.

No. 29. Vuokkiniemi. Meril. n. 1981. 89. Kirilä Riikoni; kuullut kotitienoillaan vanhoilta.

a. Onkos miestä mykkyrissä
Vastaväen varalta,
Ijän kaiken istunutta,
Homehessa huokunutta
5 Miehen ainoan avuksi,
Yksinäisen ympärille?

b. Lähes kansani karehtimaan,
Vastuksia voittamahan!

No. 30. Hirvisalmi. Meril. n. 1183. 89. Hotatta Niikkaanoff; kuullut ruotsin-lappalaiselta Koutajärvellä n. 40 v. sitten.

Lepo kuolleille,
Kauha eläville.

No. 31. Juvajärvi. Meril. n. 511. 87. Iivana Ahone; kertoi Naapurinvaaralla.

Veeu kultanen kuninkas,
Veen valtikka väkevä,
Vesi hiitten hinkaloineu,
Luumeh luijuksen kotonen,
5 Lummeh kaaren kainalossa,
Tules nyt minun väkehen,
Pojan ainuvan avuksi,
Miehen nuoren miehuveksi,
Varaksi vähä väkisen,
10 Yksinäisen ympärille.

No. 32. Vuokkiniemi. Meril. n. 1985. 89. Kirilä Riikoni; kuullut kotitienoillaan vanhoilta.

Onko miestä Jortanissa,
Alla aaltoon apua j. n. e.

No. 33. Venehjärvi. Meril. n. 902. 89. Harittana Lesone; kuullut vanhoilta.

Tule vesi veikkonesi,
Ahti ainomiehinesi
Niinisen ruoskas kera,
Katajaisen kangin kansa
5 Rumalaista rutjomahan,
Ponnetonta polkemahan,
Ettei pää pahoin menisi,
Tukka turhiin tulisi.

No. 34. Uhut. Meril. n. 2173. 89. Kostja Vaassilaine.

Vesi kulta, kaunis kassa,
Pää kulta, käsi hopea,
Korvat kaikki koltuskoissa,
Sie olet vanhin sisarista,
5 Sukulaisista suurimunainen,
Emoa lapsi ensinmäinen.
Tules tänne tarvitessa,
Käy tänne kutsuttaissa
Avukseni, armokseni,
10 Väekseni, voimakseni
Näissä töissä työlähissä,
Valan töissä vaikehissa,
Kun olen päässyt päästäjäksi,
Kerinnyt kerittäjäksi.

No. 35. Uhut. Meril. n. 2245. 89. Oufi Mihheynä; kuullut isältään.

Veen kultainen kuningas,
Veen on valta vanhemmainen,
Anna pisin piioistasi,
Paras palkkalaisistasi
5 Mukallani muuttamahan,
Kotihinsa koittumahan,
Talohonsa taipumahan!
Täällä on tanteret tasaiset,
Siellä vielä tasaisemmat,
10 Täällä on kalainen karja,
Siellä vielä kalaisempi.

No. 36. Luusalmi. Meril. n. 815. 89. Hotatta Karppane; kuullut isältään ja isoisältään.

Vein kultainen kuninkas,
Veen ahti armollinen,
Kuule kultaiset sanani,
Hopejaiset lauseheni!

No. 37. Luusalmi. Rautell n. 965. Malanja Lazarov.

Vesi se on kulta,
Kassa se on kaunis,
Tämän aijan armollini,
Vejen kultani kuninkas,
5 Vejen ahti armollini.
Myöten myöti aseita
Vasten vastaha aseita,
Avukseni, armokseni,
Veäkseni, voimakseni!

No. 38. Katoslampi. Meril. n. 1165. 89. Mihhei Vasiljeff; kuullut Muhoksella n. 45 v. sitten.

Vellamo, veen kuninkas,
Tule, nouva kulta kuorma,
Vaskea varsan vetämä,
Hopejata purren laiti!
5 Kullat annan kunniaksi,
Hopeata huolistasi,
Vasket muista vaivoistasi.
Annan koirani komeimman
Kotoiseksi koiraksesi
10 Parahille parsillesi.
Veen ikuinen isäntä,
Harmaa päinen hallitsia,
Nouse nuoratta norosta,
Laikomatta lainnehesta,
15 Minun sanat muistamatta!

No. 39. Kokkosalmi. Meril. n. 1044. 89. Petri Romanoff; kuullut isältään.

Nouse neitinen norosta,
Hieno helma hettehestä,
Puhasmuotonen purosta,
Somerosta kaita sormi.
5 Lähe majan muutantahan,
Sijojen siirräntähän,
Isommille istumille,
Avarammille aloille.

No. 40. Laitasalmi. Meril. n. 977. 89. Vassilie Ratskoff; kuullut isältään.

Vesi on vanhin veljeksistä,
Veen poika polvuksista.
Tule luota katsomahan,
Likeltä tähyämähän
5 Minun silmin katsellessa,
Suin sulin puhellessa!

Source Colophon

Finnish source text from the Suomen Kansan Vanhat Runot (SKVR), Volume I Part 3: Vienan läänin runojen lisät. Loitsuja. Finnish Literature Society, Helsinki, 1908. Digitised and made freely available by the SKVR digital archive project (skvr.fi) and the Internet Archive. The original field transcriptions were made between 1837 and 1903 from living singers in White Sea Karelia. OCR artifacts from the digitised text have been silently corrected where the intended Finnish word is unambiguous.

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