Předvídání u Sámů
| Title in English | Foretelling Methods Amongst the Sámi People |
|---|---|
| Authors | |
| Year of publication | 2006 |
| Type | Article in Proceedings |
| Conference | Věštění a prorokování v archaických kulturách. Svět archaických kultur I. |
| MU Faculty or unit | |
| Citation | |
| Field | Philosophy and religion |
| Keywords | pre-Christian Sámi religion; foretelling; divination |
| Description | The dominant livelihood amongst the Sámi people, i.e. reindeer herding, hunting and fishing in the hard climatic conditions of Sápmi/Lapland before the arrival of Christianity, made predictions about weather the principal theme of their foretelling. The most common weather foretelling method was inductive. Its rules were derived from regular phenomena that preceded weather changes. There were alsoother inductive weather foretelling methods - mainly the divination through an oracle using the noaidi's drum - but the weatherwas a theme of inspired visions and prophecies, too. Both divination with the help of various tools and divination in ecstasy were used to obtain information on other potentially threatening phenomena as well. It seems there were no differences between the aims of inductive and inspired divination. Foretelling was widely used as nearly every male practised divination by the drum and through an oracle. Mythical and supranormal beings revealed future of their own accord when requested or forced to do so. Divination with the help of drums was practised by the noaidi, Sámi expert in rituals. According to reports by missionaries and accounts by scholars, the noaidis were divided in two groups - the minor ones and the major ones. While minor noaidis used their drums only for inductive divination with an oracle, the major ones used them to get into trance and so be able to communicate with mythical beings, spirits and deities in a direct and more intensive way. The Sámis sought out the major noaidi's help only in urgent and serious cases, which they could not handle y themselves. Thus the difference between practicing inductive and inspired divination rested rather upon the urgency of a possile threat. |