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and the Fire is only an embleme of the Sun; for that they worshipped Fire
it self for a God, is very false, as appears from Tornæus, who made
particular enquiry into that thing. The same may be said of Peucer, who
taking his mistake from the wooden Image of Thor, reports that they
worship wood. So that there are only three, and that among the Pithenses and
Luhlenses; for the Tornenses and Kiemenses knew nothing of them , but in
their stead under one common name worshipped a Deity, whom they called
Seita, whereof every family and almost every person had one. Nevertheless
there was one chief Idoll to which all the neighbourhood paid devotion.
But tho this word Seita denotes any God among the Laplanders, yet may
we suppose that under that name, especially as it signifies the publick Idoll,
they worshipped the same, which the Luhlenfes call Tiermes, or Aijeke (i.e.)
thunderer, or father, by others named Thor. And by the private Idols they
mean’t him, who by the Luhlenses is called Storjunkare, making the
difference to consist not in the Gods but their names. The Tornensfes rather using
a generall appellation, and calling them all Seitas, whereas the Luhlenses
call the greater Termes or Aijeke, and the lesser Storjunkar. And if one
attend to their manner of worshipping these Gods, they will appear to be
the same. Besides these greater, the Pithenses, Luhlenses, and their
neighbours have some inferior Gods, as the Tornenses likewise have, tho they
worship them all under one name, excepting only that which they call
Wiru Accha, signifying a Livonian old woman, which Olaus Petr. with some
alteration calls Viresaka. This was only the bare trunk of a tree, and is
now wholly rotten. But who the inferior Gods were, or to what end they
were worshipped, there is no mention made; but we may guess from what
we find observable among the other Laplanders. First under that name they
worshipped the ghosts of departed persons, but especially of their kindred,
for they thought there was some divinity in them, and that they were
able to do harm: just such as the Romans fancied their Manes to be;
therefore it was that they offered Sacrifice to them, of which more hereafter.
Besides these Manes they worship other Spectres and Demons, which they
say wander about Rocks, Woods, Rivers and Lakes, such as the Romans
describe their Fauni, Sylvani, and Tritons to be. The third sort dreaded
by them are Genii, whether good or bad, which they suppose to fly in
the air about Christmas, as we intimated before; these they call Juhlii from
the word Juhl, denoting at present the Nativity of Christ; but formerly
the new year. And these are the Gods which the Laplanders jointly adore
with God and our Saviour; of which we shall now speak particularly, and
of their respective worship.
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