Ilmarinen

Ilmarinen (maker of the sky?) In the Finnish epic poem The Kalevala, the smith, forger of the magic sampo. Ilmarinen constructed the magic sampo, a three-sided mill that ground out salt, grain, and money. It was intended for Vainamoinen to give Louhi, the evil mistress of Pohjola, the Northland, to woo her daughter, the Maiden of Pohjola. However, it was Ilmarinen, not Vainamoinen, who won the bride. After the Maiden of Pohjola was murdered, Ilmarinen set out again to Pohjola to woo the sister of his former wife. When the girl refused him, he abducted her. She reviled Ilmarinen, who out of anger turned her into a seagull.

The hero then constructed a woman of gold and silver to replace his dead wife. All was fine, except there was no life in the creature. At night he lay beside his golden bride and awoke the next morning realizing that his wife was cold. He offered his golden bride to Vainamoinen, who rejected the offer, telling Ilmarinen to melt down his bride for gold. One of Ilmarinen’s last creative acts was to forge a new moon and sun after the evil mistress Louhi had locked up the sun and moon.

But, as in the case of the golden bride, the new moon and sun did not shine or have life. Ilmarinen originally may have been a god, but all traces of his divinity have disappeared from his life as told in The Kalevala.

SOURCE:

Encyclopedia of World Mythology and Legend, Third Edition – Written by Anthony S. Mercatante & James R. Dow – Copyright © 2009 by Anthony S. Mercatante