Kalle A. ACHTE a n d J o u k o L Ö N N Q V I S T (Hels inki F in l and )

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DEATH AND SUICIDE IN FINNISH MYTHOLOGY AND FOLKLORE

Ancient F inn i sh mytho logy a n d beliefs about d e a t h a m o n g anc i en t F inns a r e fair ly wel l k n o w n . Kempp inen (1967) h a s thorough ly t r e a t e d th i s topic in the l ight of c o m p a r a t i v e sc ience of rel igion. F u r t h e r m o r e , p len ty of t r a d i t i o n conce rn ing su ic ide h a s been r e c o r d e d a n d folklore, too, covers i n fo rma t ion abou t suicide.

Opinions of soul, body and death

I n F inn i sh , m a i n l y Kare l ian , my tho logy m a n ' s soul w a s conceived as a shadow­like being, s o m e k ind of a ghost wh ich , in some degree , m i g h t even be inves ted w i t h physical c h a r a c t e r i s t i c s . Sou l w a s able t o escape f rom t h e body in sleep o r in a s t a t e of unconsc iousnes s . The s a m e w a s t h e case if a pe r son b e c a m e f r igh tened o r sub jec ted t o violence. I t w a s bel ieved t h a t soul cou ld pass over in to bu t t e r f l i e s a n d b i rds . Also o t h e r F inn i sh peoples h a v e h a d s imi l a r beliefs ( H a r v a 1933).

I t w a s p r imi t ive m a n ' s c o m p r e h e n s i o n t h a t m a n ' s soul can m o v e a r o u n d out­s ide the body en t i re ly free f rom it a n d t h a t soul is in no w a y d e p e n d e n t on body ' s func t ions . H e supposed t h a t a t t h e m o m e n t of d e a t h soul ge ts loose f r o m the b o d y a n d d e p a r t s f rom it t h r o u g h t h e m o u t h . Therefore , w h e n a pe rson lay dying in a r o o m it w a s a genera l c u s t o m t o open t h e w i n d o w s o r t h e ven t in o r d e r to let t h e deceased one 's soul go f rom the house . I t w a s often supposed t h a t soul r e m a i n e d for t h r e e days n e a r t h e body. Ano the r r e a s o n for opening t h e w i n d o w s w a s to let t h e smel l of d e a t h o u t of t he room. I t w a s bel ieved t h a t soul could h e a r w h a t w a s d i scussed in t h e d e a d m a n ' s p r e sence a n d t h a t is w h y people spoke in a low voice n e a r t h e corpse a n d only good th ings w e r e m e n t i o n e d abou t t h e deceased . More­over , it w a s t h o u g h t t h a t a l so t h e d e a d corpse itself cou ld u n d e r s t a n d w h a t w a s t a l ked a r o u n d it. T h e deceased w a s bel ieved to be ab le to feel a n d sense in t h e s a m e w a y as w h e n he w a s alive. There fore , t h e coffin h a d to be la rge enough a n d t h e floor of t h e coffin no t t o o h a r d . In s o m e places t h e h e a d por t ion of t h e coffin w a s fu rn i shed w i t h a sma l l w i n d o w a n d t h e foot w a s equ ipped w i t h an opening . S u c h roofed graves w e r e found in t h e e a s t e r n b o r d e r region of F in l and un t i l q u i t e recent ly (Kemppinen 1967).

I t w a s a popu la r apprehens ion t h a t a corpse wou ld get moving . F o r t h a t r eason , in Kare l i a t he s tock ings pu t on t h e deceased w e r e sewn toge the r a t t h e ends . This c u s t o m h a s been p rese rved even to ou r day in s o m e places . Ano the r c u s t o m w a s t o t ie t h e dead body w i t h a be l t to t h e c a d a v e r boa rd (Kempp inen 1967).

H u g e t o m b s t o n e s , too, p r e s u m a b l y i nd i ca t e t h e fear t h a t t h e deceased w o u l d s t a r t ou t f rom t h e grave a n d get h a u n t i n g .

I n o r d e r to appease t h e dead m a n ' s soul us tens i l s , often a l so food a n d d r i n k a s wel l as l iquor , w e r e p u t in to t h e g rave a long w i t h the body. Beggar s a n d a n i m a l s

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s o m e t i m e s dup up the grave a n d took the food. S ince i t w a s well k n o w n t h a t t h e corpse becomes decayed in a re la t ively s h o r t t ime , it m a y be supposed t h a t t h e tools a n d supplies w e r e i n t e n d e d for t h e soul .

A coin for t h e f e r r y m a n w a s often p laced in the m o u t h of t h e d e a d m a n as it w a s t h o u g h t t h a t t h e r o a d to H a d e s w e n t ac ros s a r iver . I n s o m e places , a boa t was m o u n t e d ups ide d o w n on top of t h e grave so t h a t t he deceased cou ld sail a c ros s the r ive r of H a d e s . The deceased w a s suppl ied w i t h s o m e o t h e r th ings , too, w i t h w h i c h t h e soul cou ld s u r m o u n t va r ious dange rous obs tac le s h a m p e r i n g one ' s w a y to H a d e s .

Ancient my th i ca l ideas r e g a r d e d d e a t h as a pe rson w h o s n e a k e d a r o u n d h u n t i n g for h u m a n beings. Dea th could appear as a n ight ly r i d e r whose p re sence w a s m o s t lucidly perce ived by t h e o n e w h o m d e a t h h a d c o m e for. Personi f ied f o r m w a s also a sc r ibed to i l lness .

F inn i sh mytho logy up to the 1400s as well as t h e F inn i sh na t i ona l epic Kaleva la dec l a r ed t h a t t h e dead lived in H a d e s . The ga te of H a d e s w a s g u a r d e d by a dog w h i c h Kare l i an p o e m s often cal led t h e Dog of t h e Cas t le . T h e Cas t le m e a n t t h e n e t h e r wor ld , a wor ld i so la ted by wal l s , ga te s of t he N o r t h a n d locks ( K e m p p i n e n 1967).

Heaven as t h e abode in life beyond w a s a vague a n d u n c e r t a i n no t ion a n d m a d e i ts appea rance only a long w i t h Chr i s t i an i ty a f te r t h e c r u s a d e s in to F i n l a n d in the 1200s. Dea th a n d H a d e s w e r e t h o u g h t to r e s ide in t h e n o r t h w h e r e t h e r e w a s cold a n d da rk .

Ancient F inns h a d i n t e r e s t i ng c u s t o m s in assoc ia t ion w i t h ca r ry ing t h e deceased in to the bur ia l place. The funera l process ion m a d e a h a l t a t a lopped-off m e m o r i a l t r e e . I n case t h a t t h e d e a d m a n ' s soul w o u l d stil l h a p p e n to m a k e a n a t t e m p t to r e t u r n b a c k to h is own house , va r ious ce remon ie s w e r e execu ted on t h e w a y to the bur ia l p lace before i ts ga te s w e r e r eached . The funera l p rocess ion a lways s topped a t a big m e m o r i a l t r e e w h e r e offerings w e r e p a r t a k e n a n d t h e t r ee w a s lopped off a n d m a r k e d w i t h t h e s ign of t h e deceased . I t w a s t h o u g h t t h a t h is soul would t a k e up i ts r e s idence in t h e t r ee . F u r t h e r m o r e , t he m a r k provided pro­tec t ion p reven t ing the dead m a n f rom pass ing t h e m a r k a n d h a u n t i n g h is o ld h o m e . Sma l l copses of such m e m o r i a l t r e e s w e r e in th i s w a y g radua l ly c r e a t e d a r o u n d i n h a b i t e d a r ea s .

T h e belief in r e s u r r e c t i o n in F inn i sh my tho logy reveals a f i rm convic t ion t h a t t he body wil l r ega in life, w h i c h co r r e sponds t o the belief expressed in t h e N e w T e s t a m e n t . I t w a s for th is r ea son t h a t t h e coffin w a s fu rn i shed w i t h a w i n d o w in o r d e r t h a t t h e deceased a n d h is i m m o r t a l soul w o u l d envisage w h e n r e s u r r e c t i o n is on t h e point of beg inn ing a n d w o u l d h e a r w h e n t h e bells of r e s u r r e c t i o n a r e r inging. F o r t h e s a m e r eason t h e dead pe r son ' s eyes m u s t no t be covered by t h e s h r o u d no r by any th ing else impend ing visibili ty.

The fate of the suicide

Ancient F inn i sh mytho logy inc luded var ious fancies abou t t h e fate of t he o n e w h o h a s c o m m i t t e d suic ide . S tor ies a b o u t su ic ides c o m m i t t e d ea r l i e r in di f ferent p laces w e r e passed , as t r ad i t i on a n d severa l ve r s ions , f r o m one gene ra t ion t o a n o t h e r un t i l qu i te recent ly . Old beliefs h a v e t inged su ic ides even u p to t h e l as t few d e c a d e s . Su ic ides h a v e been involved in gui l t a n d d read , in s o m e places even in public h o r r o r . I t w a s a genera l belief t h a t va r ious s t r a n g e i nc iden t s m i g h t ant i ­c ipate suic ide a n d t h a t a t t h e m o m e n t of su ic ide va r ious s u p e r n a t u r a l p h e n o m e n a occu r red . I t w a s t h o u g h t t h a t t he soul of t he suicide kept w a n d e r i n g res t less ly a t t h e scene of t h e su ic ide a n d h a r a s s e d people for a long t i m e , p e r h a p s forever .

F u r t h e r m o r e , in m a n y places t r a d i t i o n tel ls h o w people h a d succeeded in ge t t ing r id of t he soul of a su ic ide w h i c h h a d been h a u n t i n g a r o u n d .

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Omens

A grea t m a n y , mos t ly s u p e r n a t u r a l o m e n s w e r e believed to an t i c ipa te su ic ide . Anybody could behold the o m e n , inc lud ing the one w h o w a s b o u n d to c o m m i t t he very su ic ide in ques t ion . F o r e t o k e n s of d e a t h could a lso m a k e t h e i r appea rance in d r e a m s .

F inn i sh folklore a n d t r ad i t i on c o m p r i s e descr ip t ions accord ing to wh ich the s ight of a h u m a n - s h a p e d being, ghos t or appar i t ion could foretel l , no t only m u r d e r o r m a n s l a u g h t e r bu t a lso su ic ide . Qui te often s o m e s u p e r n a t u r a l a n i m a l se rved a s a n o m e n . F u r t h e r m o r e , su ic ide cou ld be an t i c ipa t ed if r a r e b i rd s o r wi ld a n i m a l s c a m e in to dwel l ing houses o r n e a r t h e m . F o r example , a b ig b lack dog, a w h i t e h a i r y rabbi t , a w h i t e cat , s o m e r e d beas t , a r ed dog o r squi r re l h a d been seen mov ing a r o u n d before a su ic ide w a s c o m m i t t e d . Grea t b lack woodpecke r a n d r aven w e r e b i r d s of d e a t h w h o s e coming to t h e y a r d a n n o u n c e d t h a t d e a t h w a s approach ing . P reced ing suic ide one could fairly of ten h e a r c h a t t e r i n g l augh te r , loud noise , a dog howl ing o r doors s l a m m i n g . The devil m i g h t show up before suicide a n d m a k e i ts appea rance for i n s t ance a s a big b lack dog.

Events in the very moment of suicide

I t w a s supposed t h a t h e devil m i g h t s h o w up in t h e m o m e n t of su ic ide a n d advise , for example , h o w to h a n g oneself. T rad i t i on ho lds p lenty of desc r ip t ions abou t t h e Old Reaper c o m i n g to fetch t h e one abou t to c o m m i t su ic ide . Rid ing a h o r s e w i t h a ca r r i age , t h e devil cou ld c o m e for t h e one w h o h a d led a n evil life a n d m a k e a big noise a t t h e scene of t h e su ic ide . Often a ho r se , o r even a w h o l e h e r d of t h e m , w a s h e a r d gal loping b y o r c o m i n g to a s top in t h e y a r d a n d yet , w h e n looked for, it h a d v a n i s h e d w i t h o u t leaving one t r a c e o t itself. People cou ld tell t h a t e a r t h h a d been shak ing , t h e h o u s e t r e m b l i n g a n d th ings h a d m o v e d as ide a t t h e m o m e n t of suic ide . S o m e t i m e s powerful r o a r w a s h e a r d , j u s t as if t he w h o l e w o r l d wou ld go t o p ieces .

« I n t h e 1880s a t i m b e r agen t locked h imsel f in h i s r o o m af te r h e h a d got a l e t t e r f rom his f iance in w h i c h she dec l a r ed t h a t she w o u l d b r e a k off h e r engage­m e n t w i t h h i m . The m a n sho t h imse l f in t h e r o o m . T h a t ve ry even ing a m a n h a d d r iven a h o r s e very fas t all t h e w a y to t h e y a r d of t h e house . The people of t h e h o u s e s i t t ing in t h e l iving r o o m h a d h e a r d t h e sleigh bel ls on th i s h o r s e j ing l ing except ional ly loud. T h e d r ive r h a d pul led u p h i s h o r s e in f ron t of t h e s t a i r s of t h e f a r m house . When people w e n t t o rece ive t h e one w h o h a d come , nobody w a s seen ou t s ide a n d n o t a s l igh tes t sound w a s h e a r d of t h e m a n w h o h a d a r r ived w i t h such a loud j ingl ing.

At t h e very m o m e n t t h a t people s tood w o n d e r i n g a t t h e quee r occu r r ence , a sho t w a s h e a r d in t h e r o o m of t h e t i m b e r agen t m e n t i o n e d in t h e beg inn ing . W h e n they b r o k e in to h i s r o o m they found h i s d e a d a t h i s w r i t i n g desk . On t h e desk t h e r e lay a l a t t e r a d d r e s s e d t o h is f iancee. Th i s inc iden t c r e a t e d a g rea t s ensa t ion in t h e ne ighbourhood . I t w a s a genera l opinion t h a t t h e s t r a n g e horse -d r ive r w h o cal led on the h o u s e one m o m e n t before t h e su ic ide w a s c o m m i t t e d w a s t h e M a n w i t h the S c y t h e w h o h a d c o m e for t h e t i m b e r a g e n t . »

Burying the suicide

I n Kare l i a i t w a s t h e c u s t o m to pay a farewel l vis i t to t h e one w h o w a s abou t t o die . On th i s occas ion , al l v ices a n d b r e a c h e s w e r e se t t l ed a n d peace w a s m a d e

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w i t h t h e dying. Seizing t h e dying by t h e h a n d i nd i ca t ed a symbol of reconcil ia­t ion a n d farewel l . If, even a f te r th is , t h e surv ivor did n o t feel c a l m a n d c o m p o s e d h e h a d to go to the g rave t o r e d e e m h i s feelings of gui l t (Kemppinen , 1967). I n anc i en t F inn i sh c u l t u r e it w a s very i m p o r t a n t t h a t t h e r e w a s s o m e re la t ive w a t c h i n g by the one w h o lay dying a n d she h a d to w a k e up o t h e r re la t ives a s wel l as t he people of t he h o u s e to w i t n e s s t h e pa t i en t ' s d e p a r t u r e f rom th i s wor ld . If t h e r e w a s nobody to envisage the a c t u a l m o m e n t of dea th , t h e soul of t h e deceased w a s b o u n d to r o a m abou t res t less ly a n d h a u n t i n g could be expected, too .

The one w h o h a d c o m m i t t e d su ic ide h a d d ied unexpec ted ly a n d t h u s t h e r e h a d been n o oppor tun i ty t o m a k e peace w i t h h i m . There fore , t h e soul of t h e su ic ide w a s pa r t i cu l a r ly res t l ess a n d spooky, b r ing ing a b o u t g r e a t t e r r o r in people.

The deceased w a s w a s h e d as soon as possible a f te r t he d e a t h a n d c lad in g ravec lo thes . The m a l e deceased w e r e w a s h e d by m e n whi le t h e female ones by w o m e n . Epi lept ics , l una t i c s a n d su ic ides w e r e no t w a s h e d ; on t h e c o n t r a r y , they w e r e bur i ed p rone on t he i r s t o m a c h in t h e c lo thes they w o r e w h e n they died. They w e r e l if ted i n t o t h e coffin w i t h poke r s , n e v e r w i t h b a r e h a n d s , s ince it w a s feared t h a t d i seases a n d cu r se w o u l d ca t ch ho ld of t h e family.

Up to t h e ear ly 1900s t h e one w h o h a d c o m m i t t e d su ic ide w a s bu r i ed w i t h o u t any funera l services . The g rave w a s loca ted b e y o n d t h e fence of t h e c h u r c h y a r d , of ten even fa r a w a y in t h e woods .

I t w a s a genera l opinion t h a t t h e co rpse of t h e su ic ide w a s heavy . A m o n g t h e c o m m o n people t h e r e w e r e p len ty of s tor ies af loat t h a t t he coffin of t h e su ic ide h a d been too heavy even for a h o r s e to hau l . I t w a s poss ib le to m a k e t h e coffin l ighter by m a g i c a n d va r ious t r i cks a n d in t h a t w a y ge t t h e su ic ide in t h e g rave w i t h o u t p ro tes t ing . S u c h beliefs prevai led upon people up till t he l as t few decades .

« In t h e ne ighbourhood of t h e t o w n of S o r t a v a l a in Kare l i a a p e a s a n t pro­p r i e to r sho t h imsel f in t h e 1920s. His b o d y w a s l if ted in a t r u c k . When a s h o r t d i s t a n c e f rom t h e dead m a n ' s h o m e h a d been dr iven, t h e t r u c k all of a s u d d e n s topped shor t on a fully level h i g h w a y a n d the d r ive r cou ld n o t m a k e t h e eng ine r u n by any m e a n s . The d r ive r d id no t f ind a n y t h i n g w r o n g in t h e t r u c k . An exper ienced old m e c h a n i c w a s cal led in. H e inspec ted t h e t r u c k a n d a r r i v e d a t t h e s a m e conc lus ion : t h e r e w a s n o t h i n g w r o n g in t h e t r u c k . H e w a s h e a r d t o say : « By Jove, t he re ' s got to be s o m e t h i n g queer in he re . » H e c l imbed up t h e t r u c k to see t h e corpse. H e t h e n seized t h e d e a d m a n by t h e shou lde r s a n d l if ted h i m in a half-si t t ing p o s t u r e . To the g rea t su rpr i se of t hose w h o w e r e p r e s e n t t he m e c h a n i c began to s h a k e heavi ly t h e corpse a n d m u m b l e d to h imsel f some­th ing uninte l l ig ib le . After th i s h e l o w e r e d t h e corpse b a c k to i t s sup ine pos tu r e , s tepped i n t o t h e cab of t h e t ruck , s t a r t e d the eng ine and , t o everybody 's big a m a z e m e n t , t he engine r a n comple te ly no rma l ly . T h e eyewi tnesses believed t h a t t h e old m e c h a n i c w a s in possess ion of s o m e m a g i c power .

The suicide goes haunting

I t w a s a genera l opinion t h a t t h e soul of t he one w h o h a d c o m m i t t e d su ic ide could no t ge t r e s t b u t w a n d e r e d a r o u n d res t ive ly n e a r t h e scene of t h e su ic ide te r r i fy ing a n d d i s tu rb ing people. The su ic ide could m a k e h i s appea rance in h i s o w n f igure a n d even t a lk briefly w i t h s o m e people. The one w h o h a d h a n g e d h imsel f w a s often seen a t t h e scene of h i s hang ing as a ghos t w e a r i n g a w h i t e frock or as a very br igh t being. On t h e o t h e r h a n d , t h e one w h o h a d d r o w n e d herse l f w a s often seen m o v i n g abou t on t h e sho re a n d i t w a s bel ieved t h a t h e r soul w a s lodged u n d e r w a t e r .

« N e a r an old m a n o r h o u s e t h e r e is a pa rk . The cen tenn ia l t r e e s of t h e p a r k concea l a sma l l pond . The ta le r e l a t e s t h a t a t s t o r m y a u t u m n n igh t s , w h e n heavy

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gray veil of m i s t envelops t h e ne ighbourhood , one m a y see a sma l l c loud of fog r i s ing f rom t h e pond . Gradua l ly i t g r o w s bigger a n d is f inally m o u l d e d in t h e shape of a young girl d r e s sed in l ight co lors . A long t i m e ago an i n sane d a u g h t e r of t h e m a n o r h a d d r o w n e d herself in t h e pond in t h e pa rk . At g ray a u t u m n n igh t s t he spir i t of t he girl a s c e n d s f rom t h e p o n d in o r d e r t o r e t u r n t o h e r h o m e s t e a d b u t soon van i shes again in t h e b l ack dep ths of t h e p o n d . »

The, suicide, could a lso go h a u n t i n g in a n i m a l shape . Fo r example , a w h i t e o r r e d ho r se , s o m e t i m e s a b lack odd b i r d o r a dog h a d been seen a t t he scene of t h e suic ide .

The scenes of suic ide c o m m o n l y insp i red people w i t h fear . Such scenes w e r e often n a m e d af te r t h e o n e w h o c o m m i t t e d su ic ide t h e r e o r a f te r t h e devil . T h u s t h e scene of su ic ide m i g h t be cal led « Anne 's cliff», « Sipr i ' s forest » o r « t h e devil 's g a t e » . The su ic ide s o m e t i m e s s c a r e d passers-by, often a t n ight t i m e , by c ry ing a n d r acke t ing . People bel ieved t h a t a ho r se w a s able to scen t t h e soul of t he suic ide , pa r t i cu l a r ly so if h e w a s r id ing along.

« On the r o a d s i d e t h e r e s tood a n old pine w h i c h ho r se s d id no t d a r e to go by a t n igh t t i m e except w h e n led by the br id le . A cou rageous m a n w a n t e d to k n o w the reason for th is . H e the re fore s h o u t e d u n d e r the t r e e : « W h a t do you w a n t , w h o a r e you ? » A feeble voice t h e n repl ied : « I h a n g e d myself h e r e . I beg you to p r a y in behal f of m e . » T h e m a n r e a d t h e Lord ' s P raye r , a n d s ince t h a t t i m e h o r s e s have neve r b e e n af ra id of t h a t p i n e . »

I n ghos t s to r ies t h e suic ides often appear in o r d e r to beseech for p r ay ing o r blessing. People m e n t i o n e d t h a t a b less ing by a p r ies t or even by a m e r e l a y m a n h a d often b rough t a long t ime h a u n t i n g to a n end . The s t r i c t a t t i t u d e of t h e c h u r c h in r e g a r d to t h a t t he suic ides w e r e no t bu r i ed in b lessed e a r t h w a s no t changed before a s l a te as abou t 1910.

Current beliefs and attitudes

Even n o w a d a y s m a n y people r e l a t e t h a t they h a v e exper ienced o m e n s of a suic ide , not , however , a s s u p e r n a t u r a l p h e n o m e n a , b u t on t h e c o n t r a r y a s va r ious d r e a m s . Those w h o have c o m m i t t e d su ic ide a r e still m o s t of ten b u r i e d in all qu ie tness , p robably pa r t ly because of t h e re la t ives ' feel ings of qu i l t a n d s h a m e . The o b i t u a r i e s a re general ly w r i t t e n in a conci l ia tory s tyle . Th i s u sage very m u c h r e semb le s t h e c u s t o m of t h e anc ien t F inns to m a k e peace w i t h t h e dying a n d to s h a k e h a n d s w i t h h i m for t h e l as t t i m e . Ghos t s tor ies a r e st i l l b red , a l though th is is probably r a r e a m o n g e d u c a t e d people. On t h e o t h e r h a n d , people a re af ra id of such p laces , e.g. a r oom, w h e r e a su ic ide h a s been c o m m i t t e d . F u r t h e r m o r e , s o m e people still s t a n d in fear t h a t t h e one w h o c o m m i t s su ic ide wil l fall i n to d a m n a t i o n .

ACHTE K. A. and LONNQVIST J. — Cultural aspects about suicide in Finland, Psy-chiatria Fennica (1972), _

HAAVIO M. — Suomalainen mytologia (Finnish Mythology), WSOY, Porvoo (1967). HARVA U. — Altainsuvun uskonto, WSOY, Porvoo (1933). KEMPPINEN I. — Haudantakainen elâmâ (Life beyond the Grave). Karjalan tutkimus-

seuran julkaisuja 1, Karjalan tutkimusseura, Helsinki (1967). KUUSI M. Oral and written communications. Fables recorded in the archives of

Finnish folklore (1971).

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