Vjotercalic mythology

This article, in order of most relevant to least relevant, is part of Vjotercalic culture, Vjotercal.

Vjotercalic mythology is a commonly applied description of the folklore of Vjotercalic TBD. Many features are shared with Sjäydöian mythology and, to a lesser extent, Zåmzi and other Satcelic mythologies.

Vjotercalic mythology has survived to the present through oral and, more rarely, written poems and folklore traditions.

The origins and the structure of the world

The world is believed to be comprised of sheets of moss (Ecal) upon the surface of a massive bog (Vyris Vjoter). The sky is seen as the underside of the boughs of a fir tree (Vyris Jot) growing on an island in the center of the bog. Aurorae are interpreted as the boughs of the tree swaying low or being shed. Mountains and mountain ranges are the broken stalks of sedges and sticks floating upon the bog's surface, respectively.

Origo Mundi was believed to be flat. At the edges of the bog were the Nutat Ecalat, "giant lands," a place of bitter cold and rugged terrain home to giants and the honored dead. The Nutat Ecalat makes frequent appearances in the Vjotercalic mythological lore.

The island at the center of the bog was known as Gurelty Junajecal, "the home of the birds," a warm region which birds lived during the winter. In modern Vjotercalic usage the term Gurelty Junajecal means an imaginary happy, warm and peaceful paradise-like place.

Birds had other significance. Birds brought a human's soul to the body at the moment of birth, and took it away at the moment of death. In some areas, it was necessary to have a wooden bird-figure nearby to prevent the soul from escaping during sleep. This TBD, "TBD", protected the soul from being lost in the paths of dreams.

The soul would either be taken by a bird to the Vyris Jot or to the Nutat Ecalat depending on the circumstances surrounding one's death. If one were to die of natural causes or without having attained honor, the soul would be carried to the Vyris Jot. If one were to die in (fair) battle or having attained honor previously, the soul would be carried to the outer reaches of the Nutat Ecalat. Those who are honored but have not died in battle would be placed in a ceremonial longship which would be set alight and pushed out to sea in order to ensure that birds would notice the ship and recognize the body as one whose soul should be carried to the Nutat Ecalat.

Afterlife

The Vjotercalic afterlife is divided into two planes: Vyris Jot and Nutat Ecalat. The afterlife holds special consideration among the Vjotercalic people, taking a central place throughout Vjotercalic daily life as well as mythology. The afterlife is interconnected with the Vjotercalic idea of honor as a person's honorableness dictates which plane of the afterlife one is sent to.

The idea of honor and the afterlife was a primary driving force in the Vjotercalic raids as dying during a raid would more or less guarantee passage to the Nutat Ecalat.

Vyris Jot

Main article: Vyris Jot

The Vyris Jot (Great Tree) is the supposed tree at the center of the bog. This plane of the afterlife is reserved for those who die without honor (TBD). The Vyris Jot grows on Gurelty Junajecal, where birds migrate to during the winter and roost in until the warmer seasons. When one dies, a bird will carry the soul to the Vyris Jot and store it within a hollow in the tree.

The Vyris Jot is connected to the concept of Völlsan, the Vjotercalic apocalypse myth. Most interpretations of the beginning of Völlsan utilize the idea of the felling of the Vyris Jot, whether by means of being chopped down (as with an axe) or being struck by lightning. The Vyris Jot would fall into the bog and release all the birds and souls within it, unleashing massive waves with it, flooding Origo Mundi and ending life.

Nutat Ecalat

Main article: Nutat Ecalat

The Nutat Ecalat (Giant Lands) are the edges of the bog, also used to refer to the world beyond the edges of the bog. In Vjotercalic mythology, it is believed that the souls of those who die in fair battle or die with considerable honor are carried by a bird to the Nutat Ecalat.

While those whose bodies remain in the bog or whose souls are sent to the Vyris Jot will eventually be killed during TBD, those who reside in the Nutat Ecalat are granted immortality as long as they do not reenter the bog.

Pantheon

The Vjotercalic pantheon is animism-based, comprised of upwards of TBD deities. Each deity has a corresponding human (sol) and animal (glon) form, known collectively as a falsce.

Central to accounts of Vjotercalic mythology are the plights of the gods and their interaction with various other beings, such as with the nutat, who may be friends, lovers, foes, or family members of the gods. Numerous gods are mentioned in the source texts. As evidenced by records of personal names and place names, the most popular god among the Satcelians during the TBD Age was Rötje, who is portrayed as fearless (sometimes recklessly so), his eternally red-hot axe Gjusutajarulali in hand. In the mythology, Rötje lays waste to numerous nutat who are foes to the gods or humanity.

The god Yseln is also frequently mentioned in surviving texts. Fur-clad, bear-flanked, with his spear-club in hand, Yseln searches for enlightenment throughout the universe. Yseln is associated closely with death, wisdom, and honor. Yseln is portrayed as the leader of the falscet.

Various beings outside of the gods are mentioned. Elves and dwarfs are commonly mentioned and appear to be connected, but their attributes are vague and the relation between the two is ambiguous. Elves are described as spritely creatures protecting the places they inhabit, whereas dwarfs often act as workers and craftsmen. A group of beings variously described as nutat and TBD (in English these are all often glossed as "giants") frequently appear. These beings may either aid, deter, or take their place among the gods.