The origin of the first authors and thus the very first words and ways of the Finnish epic Kalevala remain unknown in todays world.
Shrouded in a veil of fog and ancient northern pagan times, words shaping this story that herald from when we northerners walked
the Earth as Vikings, Norse men and Scandinavians long before any Nordic man and woman where ever known to the world as Vikings
or in any way laid claim to any Christian values in any way shape and form.
What you are about to set out on is a journey through an epic Finnish tale woven in parts of Beowulf, part Iliad, ballads and poems, but all
Nordic heritage,
thousands of years in the making through Nordic myths, lives and stories,
real blood and history entwined with fiction of the most fantastical kind.
The origins are unknown since this tale like so many other aspects of past Nordic days and history
was passed down oraly instead of in written form.
But beyond the countless of Nordic story tellers that´s all been a part of shaping, living and telling this story,
there´s also a long range of more modern day
authors and scholars from other nations that could at least in part be credited for the work and inspiration behind this particular English adaptation.
Keep in mind however, that Christian scholars used to be very fond of changing the Norse pagans history
and stories, facts and lore, and religion to make it feel and sound either like a christian tale or a historical fact
when it was in reality heavilly distorted.
So if you read something in the Kalevala that feels in any way like a reference to the Christian heaven and myths of that time, that is a sad historical distortion
Scandinavian society and its various tribes during the time of Kalevala and Beowulf
had no Christian prejudice and shortcomings in its daily views on gods, sex, rights and gender equality.
Photography and web adaptation by Mike Koontz
2015, a Norse View Imaging and Publishing