Ahti

Other Names: Atho

Description: Chief god of waters and seas. Husband of Vellamo. Rules over water and the sea. He is the god prayed to by fishermen looking for a good catch and for blessing their equipment. Even Väinämöinen and Ilmarinen need his help to catch a particular magical fish. Ahti could be placed in the West when casting a circle.

Ahti, or Ahto, is the Finnish god of the seas, lakes, and rivers. Ahti’s palace was hidden within a black cliff that was forever protected from the outside world, particularly from humans, by the waves and clouds. A gloomy deity, Ahti was forever jealous of the gods of the sky and spent a great deal of time brooding because the people prayed to them and not to him.

He could give humans fish if it pleased him. To punish them for not worshipping him sufficiently, Ahti often sent his servants,the water sprites, to whip up whirlpools instead. Ahti’s wife, Vellamo, enjoyed drowning humans.