Tuonela

Realm of the dead in Finnish mythology

This article is about the mythological underworld. For other uses, see Tuonela (disambiguation).

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By the river of Tuonela (Tuonelan joella) by Akseli Gallen-Kallela, 1903 Lemminkäisen äiti by Akseli Gallen-Kallela. The mother of young Lemminkäinen has gone to the river of Tuoni to find the corpse of her dead son. One of the myths told in Kalevala.

Tuonela (Finnish: [ˈtuo̯nelɑ]; lit. 'Tuoni's abode')[1] is the realm of the dead or the Underworld in Finnish mythology. Tuonela, Tuoni (pronounced [ˈtuo̯ni]), Manala (pronounced [ˈmɑnɑlɑ], 'Underworld'), Vainajala (pronounced [ˈvɑinɑjɑlɑ]) and Mana (pronounced [ˈmɑnɑ]) are used synonymously.[2][3] Similar realms appear in most Finnic cultural traditions, including among Karelian, Ingrian, and Estonian beliefs.[1] In Estonian mythology, the realm is called Toonela or Manala. Tuonela can also refer to a grave or a graveyard.[1]

## Description

[edit]

According to the Finnish pagan faith, the fate of good and bad people is the same and the dead wander the afterlife as shadow-like ghosts. In the Kalevala, Tuoni, god of the dead, and his wife Tuonetar are the rulers of Tuonela. Although physical descriptions of Tuonela vary between different versions of the myth, a general description emerges from most.[4]

In runic songs, Pohjola is often synonymous with Tuonela, though Pohjola has also gained additional meanings in epic poetry over the ages. In this tradition, the ruler of the underworld is the icy Loviatar.[5] Northern peoples, including Finns, had certain dualistic views of the cosmos: on the lower side is death, dark, north and cold, as opposed to the upper side: life, bright, south and warm.[6]

According to scholars Felix Oinas and Juha Pentikäinen, Tuonela is described as being at the northernmost part of the world but is sectioned apart from the world of the living by a great divide. In the divide flows the dark river of Tuonela. The river is wild, and the dead can be seen trying to swim across it. The dead must cross the river, either by a thread bridge, swimming, or taking a boat piloted by the daughter of Tuoni.[1] The river is guarded by a black swan that sings death spells. At times living people visited Tuonela to gather information and spells. The journey required a trip through thorn thickets and dangerous woods, and the defeat of the monster Surma, a flesh-tearing monster that works for the goddess of decay, Kalma.[7] Once in Tuonela, the living were not allowed to leave. They would be welcomed by Tuonetar, who would offer them a memory-erasing beer to erase their former lives. Shamans could visit Tuonela by falling into a trance and tricking the guards.[8]

## Tuonela in other beliefs and myths

[edit]

Tuonela is best known for its appearance in the Finnish national epic Kalevala, which is a collection of Finnish and Karelian mythology.

In the 19th song of Kalevala, Väinämöinen, a shamanistic hero, travels to Tuonela to seek the knowledge of the dead. On the journey, he meets the ferryman, a woman, Tuonen tytti / Tuonen tyttö (transl. Tuoni’s girl), or Tuonen piika (transl. Tuoni's maid), who takes him over the river of Tuoni.[9] In paganism, this ferryman might be the same figure as Kivutar.[6] On the isle of Tuoni, however, he is not given the spells that he was looking for and he barely manages to escape the place by turning into a snake. After his return, he curses anyone trying to enter the place alive.

Väinämöinen in Tuonela (1890) by Pekka Halonen

Also in the Kalevala, the adventurer-shaman Lemminkäinen goes to Pohjola to woo the daughter of Louhi, a powerful old sorceress. Louhi gives Lemminkäinen three tasks he must complete to woo her daughter. While trying to complete the third task, killing the swan of Tuonela, Lemminkäinen is cut into pieces by a water snake and thrown into a whirlpool in the river of Tuonela. Lemminkäinen's mother is alerted of his death by a magical charm. She goes to the river, and rakes out the pieces of her son's body. With the help of a bee, Lemminkäinen's mother pieces together his body, and brings him back to life.[10]

Tuonela is used as the translation for the Greek word ᾍδης (Hades) in Finnish translations of the Bible. In Finnish Christianity, Tuonela is often interpreted as the place of the dead before the Last Judgement.

## References

[edit]

1. ^ a b c d Oinas, Felix J., and Juha Pentikäinen. "Tuonela." In Encyclopedia of Religion, 2nd ed., edited by Lindsay Jones, 9396-9397. Vol. 14. Detroit, MI: Macmillan Reference USA, 2005. Gale eBooks (accessed January 3, 2021). [1]
2. ^ Pentikäinen, Juha (1999). Kalevala Mythology (Expanded ed.). Indiana University Press. ISBN 9780253213525.
3. ^ "Tuonela". Encyclopedia.com. Retrieved 14 July 2020.
4. ^ Kuula, Kari (2006). Helvetin historia: pohjalta pohjalle Homeroksesta Manaajaan (in Finnish). Kirjapaja. ISBN 978-951-607-350-0.
5. ^ Siikala, Anna-Leena (1992). Suomalainen šamanismi. Finnish Literature Society. pp. 138–139\. ISBN 978-951-858-169-0.
6. ^ a b Pulkkinen, Risto; Lindfors, Stina (2016). Suomalaisen kansanuskon sanakirja. Gaudeamus. pp. 25–26, 368. ISBN 978-952-495-405-1.
7. ^ McLeish, Kenneth, 1940-1997. (1996). Myth : myths & legends of the world explored. Bloomsbury (Firm). London: Bloomsbury. ISBN 0-7475-2502-1. OCLC 233541565.`{{cite book}}`: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
8. ^ Korte, Irma (2020). Samaanin sampo. BoD - Books on Demand. ISBN 9789526900940.
9. ^ "Kalevalan maailma". Kalevalaseura. Retrieved 14 July 2020.
10. ^ Grossman, Joan Delaney. "The Power of the Word." In Ivan Konevskoi: "Wise Child" of Russian Symbolism, 147-66. Brighton, MA: Academic Studies Press, 2010. Accessed January 4, 2021. http://www.jstor.org/stable/j.ctt1zxsjgb.10 .

## See also

[edit]

* Kalevala
* Finnish mythology
* The Swan of Tuonela by Jean Sibelius
* Tuonela Planitia, a walled plain on Triton

* v
* t
* e

The Kalevala

Gods|

* Ahti
* Ilmatar
* Loviatar
* Päivätär and Kuutar ‎
* Surma
* Tapio
* Kuippana
* Tuonetar
* Tuoni
* Ukko
* Jumala
* Rauni
* Untamo
* Vammatar
* Vellamo

Heroes|

* Ilmarinen
* Kullervo
* Lemminkäinen
* Väinämöinen

Villains|

* Lempo
* Hiisi
* Joukahainen
* Louhi

Others|

* Aino
* Antero Vipunen
* Iku-Turso
* Mielikki
* Tellervo
* Nyyrikki
* Otso
* Sampsa Pellervoinen
* Syöjätär

Places|

* Ahtola
* Metsola
* Pohjola
* Tuonela
* Väinölä

Things|

* Kantele
* Sampo
* Sima
* Turja
* Ukonvasara
* Vuoksi

Works inspired by the Kalevala|

* The Children of Húrin
* The Children of Mon and Man
* Kalevipoeg
* The Lord of the Rings
* The Silmarillion
* The Snow Queen (2000 novel)
* The Song of Hiawatha
* The Tomten in Åbo Castle
* The Wall of Serpents

Other related|

* Sampo (1959 film)
* Adventurers of the North: Kalevala Heroes
* Elric of Melniboné
* Finnish mythology
* Finnish paganism
* Finnish neopaganism
* Influences on Tolkien
* Iron Danger
* Jade Warrior
* Die Kalewainen in Pochjola
* Kalevala: The New Era
* Kalevala Day
* Kalevala House
* Kalevala Society
* Kalevala translations
* Kanteletar
* Mythologia Fennica
* Noita
* The Princess of Cyprus
* The Quest for Kalevala
* The Story of Kullervo
* Uhtua

* v
* t
* e

Underworlds

| Abrahamic|

* Christianity
* Abyss
* Hades
* Hell
* Lake of fire
* Limbo
* Outer darkness
* Purgatory
* Islam
* Barzakh
* Jahannam
* Sijjin
* Judaism
* Abaddon
* Azazel
* Bosom of Abraham
* Dudael
* Gehenna
* Sheol
* Tehom
* Tzoah Rotachat
* Mandaeism
* World of Darkness

American|

* Aztec
* Mictlān
* Maya
* Xibalba

East Asian|

* Chinese
* Diyu
* Gate of the Ghosts
* Youdu
* Shinto
* Yomi

Indian|

* Naraka
* Buddhism
* Bardo
* Naraka
* Hinduism
* Naraka
* Patala
* Jainism
* Naraka

Near East|

* Egyptian
* Duat
* Mesopotamian
* Irkalla
* Zoroastrianism
* Duzakh
* Hamistagan

European|

* Norse
* Hel
* Náströnd
* Niflheim
* Niflhel
* Greek / Roman
* Asphodel Meadows
* Elysium
* Erebus
* Fortunate Isles
* Hades
* Orcus
* Tartarus
* Welsh
* Annwn
* Finnic
* Tuonela

Others|

* Davy Jones's locker
* Hell
* Turkic
* Tamag

* v
* t
* e

Afterlife locations

Abrahamic
religions|

| Judaism|

* Gan Eden
* Gehinnom
* Sheol

|

Christianity|

* Heaven
* Seven heavens
* Third Heaven
* Throne of God
* Hell
* Limbo
* Kingdom of God
* Garden of Eden
* Paradise
* Purgatory
* New Jerusalem
* Pearly gates
* Hades

Islam|

* Araf
* As-Sirāt
* Barzakh
* Jahannam
* Jannah
* Malakut
* Sidrat al-Muntaha

Mormonism|

* Celestial Kingdom
* Terrestrial Kingdom
* Telestial Kingdom
* Spirit world

Mandaeism|

* World of Light
* World of Darkness

European
mythologies|

| Celtic|

* Otherworld
* Annwn
* Tír na nÓg
* Mag Mell
* Tech Duinn

|

Finnic|

* Tuonela

Germanic|

* Asgard
* Fólkvangr
* Valhalla
* Neorxnawang
* Gimlé
* Hel

Greek/Italic|

* Hades
* Elysium
* Erebus
* Orcus
* Asphodel Meadows
* Myth of Er
* Empyrean
* Tartarus
* Fortunate Isles

Slavic|

* Iriy
* Nav
* Vyraj

Eastern/Asian
religions|

| Buddhism|

* Desire Realm
* Hell
* Pretaloka
* Animal world
* Human world
* Asura
* Heaven
* Yāma
* Form Realm
* Brahmā worlds
* Formless Realm
* Nirvana
* Pure Land
* Sukhavati

|

Hinduism|

* 14 planetary systems
* Ādi Śeṣa
* Svarga
* Naraka
* Vaikuntha
* Kailash
* Goloka
* Akshardham

Jainism|

* Three Worlds
* Urdhva Loka
* Madhya Loka
* Adho Loka

Sikhism|

* Sach Khand

Taoism|

* Grotto-heavens

Chinese|

* Tian
* Diyu
* Youdu

Japanese|

* Yomi

Zoroastrianism|

* Chinvat Bridge
* Hamistagan

Tengrism|

* Uçmag
* Tamağ

Others|

| Mesoamerican|

* Mictlān
* Tamoanchan
* Thirteen Heavens
* Tlālōcān
* Xibalba

|

Plains Indians|

* Happy hunting ground

Tupi-Guarani|

* Yvy marã e'ỹ
* Guajupiá

Wicca|

* The Summerland

Theosophy|

* Summerland
* Devachan
* Nirvana

Ancient Egyptian|

* Aaru
* Duat

Avalon
Existential planes
Guf
Heaven
Millennialism
Mythological places
Otherworld
Spirits in prison
Underworld
Utopianism
Well of Souls
*[lit.]: literal translation
*[transl.]: translation
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