 
Mielikki is the Finnish Goddess of the forest and the animals within it, especially honored by hunters. It is said that if She appears to a hunter in fine clothing and gold jewelry, She will be generous to him and he will catch a lot of prey. But if She is dressed in rags, with broken sticks for jewelry, She will withhold prey. Mielikki has many names and titles, including Mistress of the Forest, Daughter of the Forest, and Mind of the Forest. Her husband is Tapio, the God of the Forest, and She has two daughters, Tuulikki and Tellervo, both also forest Goddesses, and a son (or another daughter) Nyyrikki, a hunting Deity. She is said to be a healer Who cares for the animals of the woodland, rescuing chicks that have fallen from their nests. In one tale, Mielikki brought up the first baby bear, a very sacred animal in Finnish myth, underneath or within the branches of a spruce tree. She is associated with the colors blue or purple and gold; in a story from the Kalevala She is described as walking across the sky at twilight. I have shown Her here in ancient Finnish dress, with gold ornaments (one of which represents a bear), in front of the spruce tree where She nurtured the bear. I have also given the whole thing a greenish wash to give the feel of a dark shadowed forest. Done as a commission. This design is available on prints through ArtPal. |