Paivatar – Finland – Goddess of Spinning, Weaving and the Sun
She was called ‘competent maid’ or ‘resplendent of the shaft-bow of the sky.’ The
spinning sun virgin who wove daylight from a rainbow arch.
Paivatar
A
batten, a heddle and a golden shuttle are her symbols. Spinning and weaving were
predominant activities, as every garment was spun by hand. Imagine how many hours it
took to spin enough thread to string a loom to weave a sail for an oceangoing boat!
Chapter 41
Tuo Kuutar, korea impi, neiti Päivätär pätevä
pitelivät pirtojansa, niisiänsä nostelivat,
kultakangasta kutoivat, hope’ista helskyttivät,
äärellä punaisen pilven, pitkän kaaren kannikalla.
Kunpa saivat kuullaksensa tuon sorean soiton äänen,
jo pääsi piosta pirta, suistui sukkula käestä,
katkesihe kultarihmat, helkähti hopeaniiet.
The worthy maid Paivatar
raising their heddles
weaving golden stuff
and jingling silver
on the rim of the red cloud
upon the long rainbow’s end;
when they got to hear
the sound of that fine music
the reed slipped out of their grasp
the shuttle dropped from their hand
the golden threads snapped
and the silver heddles clinked.
Translated by Keith Bosley
The Kalevala, Ch. 41
Oxford University Press, 1989
slam the bright lid back:
inside are six golden belts
and seven blue skirts
all woven by Moon-daughter
finished off by Paivatar (Sun-daughter).
‘Long since, when I was a maid
and lived as a lass, I went
for berries in the forest
raspberries under the slope.
I heard Moon-daughter weaving
Paivatar (Sun-daughter) spinning
beside blue backwoods
at the edge of a sweet grove.
Translated by Keith Bosley
The Kalevala, Ch. 4
Oxford University Press, 1989
More:
More passages from the Finnish epic, Kalevala.
Kalevala Books
The Kalevala: Or Poems of the Kaleva District
Kalevala translation by Professor Francis Peabody Magoun
UK:Kalevala
The Key to the Kalevala
UK:Key to the Kalevala
The Songs of Power: A Finnish Tale of Magic, Retold from the Kalevala (Ancient Fantasy)
For ages 10 and up: songs of the many adventures of favorite heroes: the mighty, magical men and women of ancient days.
UK:Songs of Power
Women of the Kalevala
Voices of the women of the Kalevala clamor to be heard. Wives, sisters, and daughters have their own stories, often more poignant than those of the men.
Categories: Mythology and Stories
