The Holidays Are Here… and I’m into my annual stories and images of the Tomte, on Facebook. This is my fourth or fifth year. I’ve lost count. But it’s been an enjoyable journey and one that several people have asked for again this year with real anticipation and enthusiasm. I had hoped to record them and post on YouTube this year but my laptop had other ideas, so off to the shop it went.
Back in the saddle and posting this year’s Tomte began late, due to said laptop.
So, I thought well, if you don’t follow me on Facebook I can pop them into my Substack for you to enjoy here…(though I now see there is a file size limit)
I HOPE YOU ENJOY THE ARTWORK.
As of tonight I am on Day 5. So, I’ve included days 5, 4, & 3 here for you to enjoy and will try to keep up with them via Substack until Christmas Day.
Days 1 and 2 will follow. Check the links you receive to see all of them.
I hope you are finding time to enjoy the season! It’s not easy considering the wonkiness of the world right now. But whatever we can do to stay in alignment with each other, in community some way, will help peace and joy overcome the darkness! TOGETHER WE ARE BOUNDLESS!!!
I am holding hands with you RIGHT NOW! Keep smiling and sharing your joy.
PEACE, LOVE & BLESSINGS,
Linda
Starting with Day 5 and going backwards… because it just seems right.
The Tomte: Day 5;
The Shaman & The Healer;
In every past culture there has always been the Shaman. Some have been the go-to person that cures ailments of body, mind & spirit, or have tended to ceremony to honor the land, the animals, Mother Nature, and the Divine Source of all that is. Some embody all of this.
In our historic past that person has had this specific upbringing within a tribal culture. We all have tribal roots within our DNA, but with people relocating in a broader way over the centuries those roots have become watered down.
The interesting difference about the Tomte is that they all have the capacity, the awareness and the ancestral training to each be a Shaman for their property, their animals, and their community. The gifts of shamanism are embedded in them at birth. (I believe they are also embedded in us as well.)
There are times they step more deeply into ceremonial thanksgiving for their gifts. At these times they set out on solitary vision quests, similar to those still followed by Native American's.
Tomte do this 4 times a year at the beginning of a seasonal change, for 7 days. The exception to this is Christmas time, which is a great celebration of sharing joy and gifts, to Tomte and humans alike. Their deep shamanistic quest of Winter takes place the first day of the new year. During this time the men focus on solitude, and gratitude through quiet hiking and ceremony in nature. At this time the children are cared for in an educational communal setting by a team the rotates seasonally. This allows the female Tomte a special time for self-care, fasting, clearing their home spaces, and making tinctures and incense fires from the herbs they have gathered. They bless their home, their animals, and take this quiet time to heal and restore their being and their strength so they can prepare to again care for others without being depleted.
All Tomte pay special attention to their dreams, and daily intuitions, which keep them in their joyfulness.
We could all learn something valuable from these practices. Being our own Shaman is a potentially powerful step forward in personal evolution.
As we are about to enter into Winter consider how you may take some quiet hours or days to retreat into gratitude and self-care. The Tomte would honor you for doing so.
Artists:
Alexander Maskaev
Lennart Helje
Melilotus Albus
Summer VisionQuest -Chrissty W.
Victor Nizovtsev
Lady Tomte - After an herbal bath; Rien Poortvliet
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The Tomte - Day 4;
A bit more on the history of the Nisse and Tomte, from which the Gnomes emerged.
The Nisse and the Tomte or Tomtem are mischevious, domestic sprites or gnomes.
Nisse is derived from the name Nils which is the Scandinavian form of Nicholas. A Tomte (usually Swedish), is described as an older, little man about the size of a young child. …
“The Tomte wears old often ragged clothes, usually gray or navy, and sports a bright red cap on his head. He resides in the pantry or barn and watches over the household and farm. He is responsible for the care of the farm animals, especially the horses. The Tomte or Nisse has an enormous capacity for work but will not tolerate anyone’s interference. It is believed that a clean and orderly home or farm is an indication that this domestic sprite resides there.
There are many works of art depicting the Tomte eating a bowl of Porridge, and often sharing it with their animal friends. These bowls are left by their landowners, so that the Tomte will continue to take great care of their property and the farm and domestic animals that live there.
Tomte and Nisse require very little of the humans they work for. They demand only the respect and trust of the farmer and a bowl of Julegrøt (Christmas porridge) with butter on Christmas Eve. These spirits will not remain in a home where respect is lacking and thus the farm will not thrive and the farmer will be reduced to poverty.
A Nisse considers porridge his due and is greedy for butter. The legend, ' When the Nisse Got No Butter on His Christmas Porridge', illustrates the consequences of tampering with his porridge.
The present day version of the JuleNisse is very different from the legends of the domestic Tomte or Nisse. The Julenisse is portrayed as an older, good-natured, adult-sized man (not surprisingly the size of an uncle or father) with a long white beard and a red hat and suit. He carries a sack of toys on his back, visits children in their homes on Christmas Eve and always asks, “Are there any good children here?” (“Er det noen snille barn her?”) Many Scandinavian children also believe he lives at the North Pole where he has a workshop.
The Norwegian Julenisse is very much like the American Santa Claus and is based upon the German legend of St. Nicholas (Nisse is a derivative of Nicholas), who was the patron saint of children and seamen. He was known for his many kind acts toward children.
In Sweden the JulTomte is accompanied by the Christmas goat who pulls his sleigh as he delivers gifts to the children’s homes. In pagan times, the god Thor was believed to ride across the sky in a chariot pulled by two goats. Christians adopted the goat as a Christmas symbol. The chained figure of a buck is a representation of Lucifer who was conquered by the good Saint Nicholas and is destined to accompany his master on his journey to distribute gifts to the children. Today the goat is a benign straw figure but still a very well-known Christmas symbol.
"Legends of the domestic Nisse and Tomte meet the modern day version of the Julenisse or Jultomte in the tradition of leaving a bowl of Julegrøt with butter out in the barn or in the house for them on Christmas Eve. This tradition is still practiced in Scandinavian homes.” ©ingebretsens-blog.com (Or rather in the U.S. with the modern western version of Santa Claus... a plate of cookies and glass of milk).
Enjoy your evening. Maybe leave something out for your Tomte'!
Blessings, Linda
Artists:
John Bauer
Jenny Nystrom
Jan Bergland
Jan Bergland
Theodore Kittelesten -1886
Jenny Nystrom -- 1854-1946
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The Tomte, Day 3; All that is.
The Tomte revere the night sky and the stars. As the oldest living culture on the planet, (and the least known), the Tomte are full of wonder and reverence when evening appears. They seek refuge and solace in communion with the stars any time of year.
Unlike the Elementals of Nature... the fairies, the tree spirits, etc. who are unseen yet act as energetic angelic guardians; the Tomte are more similar to humanoids, yet they remain hidden by choice. Their work primarily involves caring for the animals, the nature, the landscape of their region and the property of their homestead as caretakers who maintain balance, which is inherited in the long line of their ancestral lineage.
They are deeply intertwined with the flow of nature. This gives them their incredible health, intuition, happiness and longevity; they recognize that communing with the stars and the movement of planets is imperative for their well-being. Here the artists depict the Tomte in their moments of meditation and merger with the night sky, and all that is.
I hope you enjoy the night sky this week. XO Linda Varos
(DAY 1 & 2 are in a separate newsletter due to size)
Artists l to r;
Lennart Helje
Unmarked,
Eva Melhuist
Lennart Helje
Curts Nystrom
Eva Mulhuish
Marsilja Roetemeijer
O.F. @ Swedcard llc
Phoebe Wahl