Tuoni

“ So I have come boldly to Tuonela to borrow the tools which I desire so greatly—the three lost words that shall make my boat seaworthy and safe. This, fair maiden, is the truth!”
“Stupid fellow!” cried Tuoni’s daughter. “You have neither wit nor wisdom. Have you lived to be an old, old man and yet never learned that the liar is sure to be discovered? And now that you speak the truth, do you think that you deserve any favors from me?” [133]
“I deserve nothing,” answered the Minstrel, humbly, contritely, yet cunningly. “I only pray you to do me a great, although undeserved, favor. ”

“ Spake the hostess, Tuonetar:
“Mana never gives these sayings,
Canst not learn them from Tuoni,
Not the lost-words of the Master;
Thou shalt never leave this kingdom,
Never in thy magic life-time,
Never go to Kalevala,
To Wainola’s peaceful meadows.
To thy distant home and country.”
Quick the hostess, Tuonetar,
Waves her magic wand of slumber
O’er the head of Wainamoinen,
Puts to rest the wisdom-hero,
Lays him on the couch of Mana,
In the robes of living heroes,
Deep the sleep that settles o’er him. ”

“ Where the three arms of the Tuoni river meet a frightful rock arises, called Kipu-Kivi, or Kipuvuori, in a dungeon beneath which the spirits of all diseases are imprisoned. On this rock the third daughter of Tuoni sits, constantly whirling it round like a millstone, grinding her subjects until they escape and go forth to torture and slay the children of men; as in Hindu mythology, Kali (black) sits in judgment on the dead.
Various other spiritual powers than gods and goddesses are held in high reverence by the Finns. ”

“ Mana's maiden scolded loudly:
"O thou fool, of all most foolish,
Man devoid of understanding.
[Pg. 173] Tuonela, thou seekest causeless,
Com'st to Mana free from sickness!
Better surely would you find it
Quickly to regain your country,270
Many truly wander hither,
Few return to where they came from!"
Said the aged Väinämöinen,
"This might perhaps deter old women,
Not a man, how weak soever.
Not the laziest of heroes!
Bring the boat, O Tuoni's daughter,
Row across, O child of Mana!"
Brought the boat then, Tuoni's daughter. ”

“ Mana's son, the wicked wizard,
With his iron-pointed fingers,
In the early morning hastens
To his thousand nets of copper,
Set within the Tuoni river,
Finds therein a countless number
Of the death-stream fish and serpents;
Does not find old Wainamoinen,
Wainamoinen, wise and wary,
Friend and fellow of the waters.
When the wonder-working hero
Had escaped from Tuonela,
Spake he thus in supplication:
"Gratitude to thee, O Ukko,
Do I bring for thy protection!
Never suffer other heroes,
Of thy heroes not the wisest,
To transgress the laws of nature ”

“ Found the auger of Tuoni,
Brought the instrument in safety.
Straightway sings old Wainamoinen,
Sings to life a purple forest,
In the forest, slender birches,
And beside them, mighty oak-trees,
Shapes them into shafts and runners,
Moulds them by his will and power,
Makes anew his sledge of magic.
On his steed he lays the harness,
Binds him to his sledge securely,
Seats himself upon the cross-bench,
And the racer gallops homeward,
To the manger filled and waiting,
To the stable of his master ”

“ Few return from Tuonela,
From Manala's courts and castles."
Wainamoinen calls his people,
On the plains of Kalevala,
Speaks these words of ancient wisdom,
To the young men, to the maidens,
To the rising generation:
"Every child of Northland, listen:
If thou wishest joy eternal,
Never disobey thy parents,
Never evil treat the guiltless,
Never wrong the feeble-minded,
Never harm thy weakest fellow,
Never stain thy lips with falsehood,
Never cheat thy trusting neighbor,
Never injure thy companion,
Lest thou surely payest penance
In the kingdom of Tuoni,
In the prison of Manala ”

“ Three daughters of Tuoni are mentioned in the runes, the first of whom, a tiny, black maiden, but great in wickedness, once at least showed a touch of human kindness when she vainly urged Wainamoinen not to cross the river of Tuoni, assuring the hero that while many visit Manala, few return, because of their inability to brave her father’s wrath. Finally, after much entreaty, she ferried him over the Finnish Styx, like Charon, the son of Erebus and Nox, in the mythology of Greece. ”

“ In the course of all your lifetime,
Wrong to work against the guiltless,
Guilt to work against the sinless,
Lest your just reward is paid you
In the dismal realms of Tuoni!
There's the dwelling of the guilty,
And the resting-place of sinners,
Under stones to redness heated,
Under slabs of stone all glowing,410
'Neath a coverlet of vipers,
Of the loathsome snakes of Tuoni."
[Pg. 177] Runo XVII.—Väinämöinen and Antero Vipunen Argument
Väinämöinen goes to obtain magic words from Antero Vipunen, and wakes him from his long sleep under the earth (1-98) . ”

“ The Sun and the Moon visited there; fen and forest gave a home to the wolf, the bear, the elk, the serpent, and the songbird; the salmon, the whiting, the perch, and the pike were sheltered in the “coal-black waters of Manala.” From the seed-grains of the death-land fields and forests, the Tuoni-worm (the serpent) had taken its teeth. Tuoni, or Mana, the god of the under world, is represented as a hard-hearted, and frightful, old personage with three iron-pointed fingers on each hand, and wearing a hat drawn down to his shoulders. ”

“ As in the original conception of Hades, Tuoni was thought to be the leader of the dead to their subterranean home, as well as their counsellor, guardian, and ruler. In the capacity of ruler he was assisted by his wife, a hideous, horrible, old witch with "crooked, copper-fingers iron-pointed," with deformed head and distorted features, and uniformly spoken of in irony in the Kalevala as "hyva emanta," the good hostess; she feasted her guests on lizards, worms, toads, and writhing serpents. ”

“ And the aged people answered:700
"There are none among the youthful,
None at all among the aged,
None of race so highly noble,
None is such a mighty hero,
As to Tuonela to travel,
Journey to the land of Mana,
[Pg. 318] Thence to bring you Tuoni's auger,
And from Mana's home to bring it,
That a new sledge you may fashion,
Or repair the sledge that's broken."710
Then the aged Väinämöinen,
He the great primeval minstrel,
Went again to Tuoni's country,
Journeyed to the home of Mana,
Fetched from Tuonela the auger,
Brought from Mana's home the auger. ”

“ Or to drink from Tuoni's tankards.300
Those who drink this beer are drunken,
Drinking from such cans they perish."
Then said Tuonela's great mistress,
"O thou aged Väinämöinen,
Why to Manala dost travel,
Why to Tuonela hast ventured,
[Pg. 174] Though by Tuoni never summoned,
To the land of Mana called not?" ”

“ There's in Tuonela a witch-wife,
Aged crone with chin projecting,
And she spins her thread of iron,
And she draws out wire of copper.
And she spun of nets a hundred,
And she wove herself a thousand,340
In a single night of summer,
On the rock amid the waters.
There's in Tuonela a wizard,
And three fingers has the old man,
And he weaves his nets of iron,
And he makes his nets of copper,
[Pg. 175] And a hundred nets he wove him,
And a thousand nets he plaited,
In the selfsame night of summer,
On the same stone in the water.350
Tuoni's son with crooked fingers. ”

“ Lem’po. The Evil Principle; same as Hisi, Piru, and Jutas.
Lin’nun-ra’ta (Bird-way) . The Milky-way.
Lou’hi. The hostess of Pohyola.
Low-ya’tar. Tuoni’s blind daughter, and the originator of the Plagues.
Lu’on-no’tar. One of the mystic maidens, and the nurse of Wainamoinen.
Lu’o-to’la. A bay of Finland, named with Joukola.
Ly-lik’ki (Lyylik’ki) . Maker of the snow-shoe.
Maan-e’mo (man-e’mo) . The mother of the Earth.
Ma’hi-set (Maa’hi-set) . The invisibly small deities of Finnish mythology.
Mam’me-lai’nen. The goddess of hidden treasures.
Ma’na. A synonym of Tuoni, the god of death. ”

“ Foremost among all the workers was Toney herself, dressed in a short serge dress covered with a big apron. She looked the picture of happiness, and even Aunt Dove's cold congratulations at breakfast had not been able to damp her spirits. Mrs. Faber was making "button-holes," whilst Toney was arranging flowers in vases with her deft magic touch to adorn the long tables. Men were putting up festoons among the dark rafters, and the brightest sunshine was pouring in at the door and windows. ”

“ Runo XVI.—Väinämöinen in Tuonela Argument
Väinämöinen orders Sampsa Pellervoinen to seek for wood for boat-building. He makes a boat, but finds himself at a loss for want of three magic words (1-118) . As he cannot otherwise obtain them, he goes to Tuonela hoping to procure them there (119-362) . Väinämöinen finally escapes from Tuonela, and after his return warns others not to venture there, and describes what a terrible place it is and the horrible abodes in which men dwell there (363-412) . ”

“ With them agony has no outward expression. They suffer and are silent."
"Women are enigmas," said Toney.
"They are like pigs," said the Professor.
"How so?" asked Toney.
"If you want them to go to Cork you must make them suppose you desire them to go to Kilkenny."
"I believe you are right," said Toney. "Now, here are Claribel and Imogen who have been bestowing their smiles on everybody but Clarence and Harry. For those two gentlemen, who are handsome, educated, and accomplished, neither of these young ladies has had a kindly look or friendly word for a whole week. ”

“ Gradually we become intimate, and I learn the story of his life, rich in adventure and experience. An Alsatian, small and wiry, Tony is a man of quick wit, with a considerable dash of the Frenchman about him. He is intelli gent and daring -- the very man to carry out my plan.
For days I debate in my mind the momentous question: shall I confide the project to Tony? It would be placing myself in his power, jeopardizing the sole hope of my Life. Yet it is the only way; I must rely on my intuition of the man's worth. My nights are sleepless, excruciating with the agony of indecision. ”

“ As the high magistrate and his attendants wended their way home, Ta-ta who had been quiet for some time, turned to Tuen with a friendly piece of advice.
"You had better put all this nonsense about books, and being learned like a man, out of your little head, else no man will want to marry you, and you must remember that you are getting old enough now to think about having a mother-in-law."
"I don't want one ever," Tuen declared. "I would much rather just belong to the Viceroy always."
"How stupid you are," Ta-ta said impatiently. "Of course you must be sold to someone. ”

“ He looked quickly across to the opposite hill; not a sign of anything was visible there; and yet, these rocks and cactus were full of men with their hands on their guns.
Memories and thoughts swept through him. How could this place look so natural? Could he have made Toney feel like telling him, if he had only begun after that talk with the Captain? Yes, he could. Toney surpassed any of his experiences so far. What would the next one be? Where? Experiences waited in the world everywhere for such a man as he knew himself to be. Or else—to die here, quick and sharp, helping the Captain win. ”

“ Then old 'Tonio threw up a hand from across the stony chasm, signalled to his friends to cease, sprang over a low barrier of rock, disappeared one moment from view, then a few yards farther signalled "Come on." And on they went and came presently upon an excited, jabbering group at a little cleft in the hillside. A mule lay kicking in death agony down the slope. ”

“ He is so tough that time has never been able to plow a furrow in his face, nor has he a gray hair in his whiskers. He may marry a wife."
"Very true," said the Professor; "and she may raise up children unto Abraham."
"And," said Toney, "the children of Abraham may deprive me of the hundred thousand dollars."
"Toney, you are a man of sense," said the Professor; "and the French maxim-maker says that a wise man may sometimes love like a madman, but never like a fool. But let us hear your story." ”

“ On a certain afternoon Toney and Tom were walking in the direction of the Widow Wild's mansion, engaged in earnest conversation.
"But," said Toney, "Ida is entirely dependent on her eccentric uncle, and you have but little property."
"Ida is willing to wait until I have acquired sufficient——"
"To buy a cottage big enough to hold an angel and seven sweet little cherubs?" said Toney. "But a cottage is not all. Angels must eat, and cherubs must have bread and butter, and it takes money to obtain a constant supply of such articles. ”

“ Toney walked behind Ida and Tom, with Rosabel by his side, while the Professor had the Widow Wild under his protection. They were soon comfortably seated, and cast their eyes around to survey the scene before them.
"Who are those military gentlemen standing in a line in front of their horses?" said Rosabel to Toney.
"Those are the knights," said Toney. "The big man on the right is Richard."
"Who is Richard?" asked Rosabel.
"Richard the Lion-hearted," said Toney.
"Why, he looks like Mr. Pate," said Ida.
"Richard and Pate are one and the same person to-day," said Toney. ”

“ Beside him stood a tall, slender boy, his complete counterpart in features and dress, save that the boy's blanket was scarlet, and he wore no eagle plume.
"What magnificent manhood!" remarked the Professor. "No college our civilization can boast of will ever give what plain food, simple hours, and the glorious freedom of this prairie air have given that brave and his boy. We must try to speak with them, Tony. I wonder how we can introduce ourselves." ”