Ilmatar Spirit of the Air
Contents Introduction 2
Ilma - Air
3
Wind and Sea
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Ukka’s Cosmic Bird
10
The Cosmic Eggs
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The Creation
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The birth of Väinämöinen
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Epilogue 20
Introduction Ilma, meaning “air,” and the suffix - tar, indicate a female spirit, Thus, Ilmatar means “female air spirit” according to the Finnish mythology. Ilmatar was also known as Luonnotar in the Kalevala, which translates “female spirit of nature” (Finnish luonto, “nature”) Description: Creatress Goddess, Virgin spirit of Air, Sky Mother, Water Mother, Daughter of Nature. Rules Over:
Immense powers.
Qualities:
awareness, inspiration, illumination, perception
Colours:
blue, crimson, grey, silver, white, yellow (of the sun)
Symbols:
bell, bird, circle, chimes, clouds, flute, Sylph
Tools:
athame, censer, rod, staff, visualisation, wand
Plants:
almond, broom, clover, eyebright, lavender, pine, frankincense, myrrh, pansy, violet, yarrow, lavender and aspen
Gems:
amethyst, sapphire, citrine, azurite
Locations:
sky, water, mountain tops, treetops, bluffs.
Zodiac Sign: Aquarius, Gemini, Libra Time:
spring (the time of newness), dawn
Angel: Raphael Orientation: east (the place of sunrise) Way:
thought, reading, speaking, praying, singing, concentration, wind magick, prophesy,
concentration, divination
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Ilma - Air In the Time when there was only Light, Water and Air and the Great Mystery - Ilmatar, the virgin daughter of Ether (Ilma) God of air, was alone in the void, wandering in the emptiness, for ages; this was where she lived. Ilmatar became immensely bored in the heavens, and was tired of counting rainbows and the long uneventful, dull and quiet days. Exacerbated by her lonely living Ilmatar grew restless in the infinite expanses.
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Wind and Sea She started to play with the wind and letting the wind play with her hair, Ilmatar allowed herself to fall into the dark, menacing moving ocean waves where she floated aimlessly. Descending into deep blue seas searching for something from the seafoam. Ilmatar began to long for a son. The East Wind came to her aid and took pity on her, and created a storm which whipped the ocean into surges, of love-making, Ilmatar found herself buffeted and tossed by the wind’s tempestuous love-making until, exhausted, she could bear it no longer and collapsed. The East breeze then gently caressed her, and the calm waters of the sea made her fertile. Ilmatar’s body became heavy, and she felt something stirring in her womb. Her stomach was swollen and her body could not rise above the surface of the ocean. With her pregnant body, Ilmatar swam for 700 years in the ocean. Once again Ilmatar was unhappy, she was sorrowful of leaving her life in the vast heavens. Her body now was full of pain and cold; she could not deliver her son.
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Ukka’s Cosmic Bird Ilmatar tearful prayed to the gods to help her out of this miserable situation. For centuries Ilmatars was unable to give birth and her gentle weeping was unheard. Ilmatar started to lose hope, but then Ukka, - God of the Sky, Weather, Thunder and Heavens, felt sorry for her and sent a heavenly bird to comfort her. When Ilmatar saw the bird flying slowly around her, looking for a place to land, she quickly raised her shoulder and knee above the waters to offer the bird a place to land. Thrilled that finally after nearly seven centuries of loneliness something was happening.
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The Cosmic Eggs The bird came swooping down and made a nest in the hollow part of Ilmatars bend knee. Shortly after setting in her nest the heavenly bird started to lay her eggs. She laid seven magical eggs. First, she laid half a dozen cosmic eggs all golden speckled eggs and then after a while a seventh black egg was laid. The bird gathered her eggs up and sat upon them to hatch them. Ilmatar watched the bird blissfully; she was finally happy that after all these centuries something beautiful was happening in her life. As the bird sat on her eggs it quickly warmed Ilmatars knee-cap, and after three days of sitting still, Ilmatars shoulder began to hurt, her veins felt like it was on fire and the pain and warmth of her knee-cap were unbearable. Even the water around Ilmatar became warmer, and Ilmatar moved her aching body.
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The Creation The nest was shaken from its knee-cap foundation and slid softly into the deep blue ocean. The eggs did not break as they landed on the ocean bottom, but as they landed on the sand, the six cosmic eggs came together and transformed into a magical montage. Ilmatar and bird watched in amazement as the fragments started to form the Universe. The egg yolks formed PAIVATAR, the Sun, in the heavens. Joining the sun in the heavens was the egg whites the six egg whites came together and became KUU, the glistening Moon. The golden speckles on the eggshells also raised into the sky, and the stars joined the moon. The eggshells mixture solidified and formed the Earth. As for the seventh egg, the black yolk became thunderclouds and the shell formed into the iron that is found in the mountains of the earth. Thrilled with what had been created, Ilmatar now hoped that this would lead to her giving birth. She started to shape the barren land. Ilmatar stomping and shifting, building the mountains and the hills, the rivers and the pond, the fields and forests were also created. So for thirty summers and winters, Ilmatar was busy.
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The birth of Väinämöinen The Unborn son of Ilmatar still trapped inside her womb become a wizened old man. As he was now in his mother, Ilmatars womb for seven centuries, he prayed to Ursa Major, the Great Bear in the sky for assistance. There was no help given to the old man,so he struggled and finally escape and freed himself. Väinämöinen, the son of Ilmatar, was born into the world, while his mother was laying in the deep water of the oceans. As Väinämöinen was born in the water, he swam and floated for seven years until he reached dry land. Väinämöinen helped Ilmatar to finish the creation, and he became known as the world’s first Shaman, or also known as a “Tietäjä” or Knower. Later in Väinämöinen’s life, he sought Ilmatars advice when grieving over his lost fiancée Aino, she advise him to take a daughter of Pohjola as a bride. During Väinämöinen heroic struggle to retrieve the Sampo from Louhi, Ilmatar helps him by telling them the lost fire fell into Lake Alue.
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Epilogue According to Finnish mythology Väinämöinen was an essential figure in the Finnish mythology and had almost magical powers; the inspiration for “Gandalf“ the wizard in the Lord of the Rings may have been inspired by the stories of Väinämöinen.
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