Why everyone should read the Kalevala

[muckefuck]

Selection from a bear-hunter's charm in Runo 46 (English translation by J.M. Crawford)

"Mighty Bear*, much beloved,
Honey-eater of the mountains,
Settle on the rocks in slumber,
On the turf and in thy caverns;
Let the aspen wave above thee,
Let the merry birch-tree rustle
O'er thy head for thy protection.
Rest in peace, thou much-loved Bear,
Turn about within thy thickets,
Like the partridge at her brooding,
In the spring-time like the wild-goose."

*In the original translation, otso, a Karelian dialect word for "bear" (standard Finnish karhu) is left untranslated.