Sweden is a country that has a lot of lakes,rivers,streams and brooks and Swedish folklore is filled with strange creatures residing in the dark waters.
The Huldra was thus capable of doing both good and bad deeds.It was very hard to predict whether she would help or harm,since she played by rules known only to her. She could enthral a man with her beatiful song and lure him deeper and deeper into the forest,where she either wedded or killed him.The man kissed by The Huldra became apathetic and slow.Īccording to some accounts The Huldra was a positive force if a hunter was kind to The Huldra she might blow her breath down the barrel of his rifle which would bless his hunt.Colliers considered her their friend,as she kept fires from spreading from their charcoal kiln.She also helped those who willingly offered their blood to her,but this was dangerous as The Huldra might drink the giver dry. The Huldra was the guardian of the forest.She tended to the trees,plants and animals.A single large tree in a grove surrounded by smaller trees was often considered to be The Huldra’s home-or even The Huldra herself.In most stories she presented herself as a beautiful young woman.This was however not her real appearance,very few saw The Huldra’s true face and even fewer lived to speak of it.She was often described as a lonely and woefilled creature.Her relationship with humans was very complex. The Huldra is known to have played a part in Norse mythology,but she is likely of an even older origin from when man live off the forest rather than the fields. Today the practice seems to be almost entirely forgotten. One testimony from the late 19th century tells of a mental patient named Martin Nilsson,who described his visions as otherworldly experiences:”Before I saw what happened next year,I lived among the stars.I lived there for many lifetimes it seemed.What do I care for next year?Time has already ended.” The church was the final destination for a year walker.On his way he would typically encounter a number of supernatural creatures,which would pose a threat physically,mentally and spiritually.If a year walker made it to the cemetery he would walk around the church in an intricate pattern.This would open the year walker’s eyes to the future,but it would also lure out The Church Grim.Īfter having completed the year walk,the walker would see visions that could manifest themselves in different manners.When the year walker left the cemetery he might for instance see a sombre procession of dancers dressed in their finest church clothes.These would be the people that would die the following year.A reoccurring theme is of course the year walker who meets his own ghost on the road.Another story tells of how the walker would see newly dug graves.Love played a great part too,so a walker would typically meet wedding processions or even attend weddings yet to come. How the practice of year walking came to be is shrouded in mystery,but it seems to have been a widespread practice in Sweden until the beginning of the 19th century and in some rural areas as late as the beginning of the 20th century.The practice was likely over a thousand years old and most certainly pagan.Year walking varied greatly regionally and even locally there might have been differences between one village and the next.All the variations had a couple of element in common,though.Ī year walk could not be done on any common day.There were certain days a year when the gate was opened,generally in liaison with important festival days such as May Day,Midsummer’s Eve or Christmas Eve and most commonly New Year’s Eve.A year walker could not partake of any of the food or drinks that were served on these days-a sacrifice of no little significance since these feasts were some of the rare occasions when food would be plentiful and varied.A year walker had to avoid other people,so they commonly locked themselves in dark rooms and were not allowed to see a fire for the entire day.Perhaps not a vast sacrifice on Midsummer’s Eve,but on cold winter days it would be uncomfortable at least,if not hazardous.If the year walker followed these steps he would leave his dark room at the stroke of midnight-this would be his last chance to cancel the year walk.Once he ventured out there was no turning back. Year Walking was at its core a vision quest with the purpose being to foresee the future.There were very rigid rules concerning the year walk and not adhering to them could prove very dangerous, even fatal.
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