#huldran

Legends and myths about trees

Legendary tree deities (21)

Skogsrå – the fatal nymph of the Scandinavian forests

The Skogsrå (Swedish: lit. 'the Forest Rå'), Skogsfrun ('the Mistress of the Forest'), Skogssnuvan, Skogsnymfen ('the Forest Nymph'), Råndan ('the Rå') or Huldran, is a mythical female creature of the forest in Swedish folklore.

It appears in the form of a small, beautiful woman with a seemingly friendly temperament. She appears like a woman from the front but seen from behind she often has a tail and a hollow back or skin like tree bark.

Those who are enticed into following her into the forest are never seen again. It was said that any human man who had intercourse with the Skogsrå became an introvert, as his soul had remained with her. If the seduced man is a hunter, he may be rewarded with good luck in the hunt, but should he be unfaithful to the Skogsrå, he will be punished with numerous accidents. He may put an end to a stormy night caused by her vengeance by firing a shot against her. Late folklore in Nyland, Finland describes silver bullets as effective means of killing a skogsrå.

Tolkien describes the Old Forest, a space filled with deep-rooted mysteries and danger in Middle-earth, as follows:

“The ground was rising steadily, and as they went forward it seemed that the trees became taller, darker, and thicker. There was no sound, except an occasional drip of moisture falling through the still leaves. For the moment there was no whispering or movement among the branches; but they all got an uncomfortable feeling that they were being watched with disapproval, deepening to dislike and even enmity. The feeling steadily grew, until they found themselves looking up quickly, or glancing back over their shoulders, as if they expected a sudden blow.”

– J.R.R. Tolkien FOTR. Ch. 6

木にまつわる伝説・神話

伝説の樹木の神々 (21)

スクーグスロー 〜 スカンジナビアの森に住む致命的な妖精

スコーグスロー（ｽｴｰﾃﾞﾝ語: 森の‘ロー’）、ｽｺｸﾞｽﾌﾙﾝ（「森の愛人」）、ｽｺｸﾞｽﾇﾊﾞﾝ、ｽｺｸﾞｽﾆﾝﾌｪﾝ（「森の妖精」）、ローンダン ‘ロー’またはフルドラは、スウェーデンの民間伝承に登場する神話上の森の女性の生き物である。

小柄で親しみやすそうな雰囲気をした美しい女性の姿で現れる。スクーグスローは前から見ると普通の人間だが、後ろから見ると尻尾があったり、背中が窪んでいたり、樹のような肌をしていたりする。

彼女に誘われ、森へ行った者は二度と帰ることはない。スコーグスローと交わった男性は皆、魂が彼女の中に置き去りにされているため、内向的になると言われている。狩人がスクーグスローと関係を持つと、獲物に恵まれる幸運を得ることもあるが、スクーグスローを裏切った場合、様々な事故が狩人に襲い掛かる。そんな時は狩人はスコーグスローに向けて銃を撃つことによって、事故の連続を止められるかもしれない。フィンランドのナイランドに伝わる晩年の伝承では、スコーグスローを殺す効果的な手段として銀の弾丸が描かれている。

トールキンは、中つ国において根深い謎と危険に満ちた空間である「古き森」を以下のように描いている:

「地面がどんどん高くなり、進むにつれ、木々はより高く、より暗く、より太くなったように見えた。静まり返った葉の間から時折水滴が落ちる以外は、何の音もしなかった。しばらくの間、枝の間からささやき声や物音は聞こえなかったが、彼らは皆、自分たちが不愉快な目で見られているような不快な感覚に襲われた。その感覚は次第に大きくなり、気がつくと、突然の一撃を予期しているかのように、素早く顔を上げたり、肩越しにちらりと後ろを振り返ったりしていた。」

Huldran is known under many names in nordic folklore. She is also known as skogsrået, skogsfrun, skogssnuvan to name a few. She is a fae-like being of the forest where she dwells, sometimes helping and sometimes making it worse.

She is not a bad being, more a neutral one. She protects her home, and may even lead you out of the woods if you’re lost. She is the ruler of the forests and easily offended so you better be polite. Often Huldran is described as being beautiful and somewhat erotic in nature depending on who tells her stories. Other times she is described as being an old crone in disguise. Though her appearance may vary some details tend to stay in most stories. Her tail and the hole in her back that shows that she is hollow. Though sometimes the hole is instead replaced by the bark of a tree. This is something she covers up with her hair to hide it.

If you happen to see her tail she can get embarrassed. But don’t tell her to hide her tail, rather tell her to tuck her skirt. She may be thankful for your takt or too embarrassed to stay, thus leaving you alone.

Be careful in how you speak with her. She will take you seriously since she doesn’t get humour. There is even a story of a man greeting her with a joking, “Hello, fiancé!” Huldran then stalked him because of his promise of marriage. So unless you’re serious, keep the comedy to yourself. She can also feel offended and make sure you will never again have a successful hunt or even outright kill you.

There are stories of Huldran being with both men and women, but she is often described as being equal to men in the activity, erasing the norm of the woman being passive in the act. Some say that a part of your soul stayed with her and you always longed to see her again, perhaps because you genuinely fell in love with her or maybe because you were missing your soul.

Frau Holde, Huldran och Frigg Vi kikar lite närmare på Frau Hold och Huldran och hur dessa gestalter möjligtvis hänger ihop med Frigg

I Norden finns ett slags naturväsen som kallas för Huldran, eller skogsrået. Hon är skogens härskarinna och om man som man ska ge sig ut i skogen gäller det att vara på sin vakt. Hon kan leda en vilse, eller förföra en beroende på hennes humör. Hon kan också skänka jägare villebråd om hon så tycker. Man kan känna igen henne på att hon antingen är ihålig i ryggen, eller på att hon har svans. Hon…

Otyg - Huldran

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