The Kalevala

Oh my goodness, this is a real treasure! I was expecting this classic Finnish mythos, this fantasy epic, to be kinda dense and worldly and weighty, but I didn't expect it to be totally readable, droll, classy, and exciting. I also didn't expect to see it as the source material for so many classics I......more

This is a thought-provoking piece of majestic work. Thought-provoking because as I read it, an insane amount of questions kept coming to mind which I will try (completely incompletely) to compile here, although not with the mastery of Elias Lonnrot. So, without further ado, three important lessons th......more

Here's my trochaic rendition of my synopsis of the Kalevala: Wainomainen, ancient minstrel, Ilmarinen, magic blacksmith, Lemmenkainen, reckless hero. They get dumped by Lappish women. Will they still the magic Sampo With its lid of many colors? You bet they will, motherfuckers.......more

Drugo čitanje (20. januar 2021.): Nakon pet godina i mojeg detaljnijeg upoznavanja sa mitologijama kojima je finska slična, ponovno čitanje Kalevale izoštrilo je i istaklo sve ono što mi je, što zbog neznanja, što zbog nesmotrenosti, promaklo pri prvom čitanju. Jasno se demarkira kosmogonijski mit na......more