Mielikki: Finnish Goddess 
of the Hunt


Mielikki's Spring~~by Yasmine Galenorn 
Copyrighted 1997

I have been in the Craft since February 29, 1980, and since February 29, 1992 I have been pledged by blood, by life and soul, to the Goddess Mielikki and Her consort Tapio.  How I came to be so pledged is a story found in my various books, but let me say this: the years since then have been both the hardest and yet the most rewarding. 

Most of my information about Mielikki comes from the Kalevala and from intuition, and time and time again, I've found my intuition to be accurate when I search through the old songs. 

Mielikki, the Finnish Goddess of the Hunt and of Faerie, is one of the best-known and beloved Goddesses that the Suomi (the Finns) had.  She is Mistress of the Woodland, Lady of Tapiola, Protectress of all that lives and walks within the forests.  With Her husband, Tapio, She guards the forests from harmful intruders, metes out the game as She sees fit, and weaves Her magick through the mists and shadows. 

The Finnish hunters would pray to Her before a hunt, begging her to set them on the trail of the game, and She was often invoked by those who had to travail through the forests. 

In my work with Mielikki, I have discovered many varied aspects to Her nature.  First I see the Lady of Enchantment, the Sorceress of the Grove.  She weaves the mists and shadows into a web of magick, opening new worlds to those who follow in Her footsteps. 

Next we come to Her Bright Mother side, the Goddess of the Wild Wood who basks in the golden glow of the sun, who wears sparkling gold upon her breast, in her hair and around her waist.  She is the expansive, creative Mistress of the Grove, and Her laughter can be found throughout the woods, echoing in the waterfalls and the crackling of leaves. 

And then we have what I call Her Dark Huntress side.  She is the creeping huntress, with poisoned-tipped arrows, who goes seeking justice for those animals and humans who have been wronged.  She turns not the other cheek, but willingly steps up to the battle and takes aim at those who would harm Her beloved, Her servants, Her woodlands. 

These aspects are all connected, you cannot have one without the others.  She is a very integrated Goddess and seems, to me at least, to take an incredibly active part in the lives of those who follow Her. 

Mielikki rules over the Metsänhaltija, the Thousand Daughters of Creation (the wood spirits of Finnish legend), and here we find Her most magickal side.  The mists and shadows of the Otherworld radiate in Her eyes. 

Mielikki and Tapio are the parents of Nyyrikki and Tuilikki, the young Godling of the Hunt and the young Goddess of the Wind/Woodlands 

Mielikki's animals are: the Bear, the Reindeer (or Stag), and the Bee.  If you would like to make an offering to Her or drink a toast to Her, do so with honey and mead.  Good incenses for Mielikki would include: violet, rose, jasmine, ylang ylang, cedar and lemon.  The gems I've found Her most fond of include peridot, garnet and moonstone, and of course, Mielikki loves gold. 

A chant I often use for Mielikki is a variation of the "Full Moon" chant: 

Full Moon, shining bright 
where the forest meets the water 
Hail to Mielikki 
the woodland's sylvan daughter.