Kalevala Way
Myth, Magic, & Medicine
The Kalevala Way
A course in Myth, Magic, & Medicine - REGISTRATION IS FULL for 2023
Come experience and explore the magic and traditions of the Finnish Epic tale, The Kalevala. I invite you to immerse yourself in the old stories, songs, magic, and medicine of the old ways of Finland, North Karelia, and Gotland, Sweden.
Set in Imelda Almqvist’s Forest School in Sweden, about an hour South of Stockholm.
The Swedish forest is a sacred land with deep rooted traditions and majestic natural wonders.
To walk a sacred path is to discover our inner sacred space.
Through rune songs, rituals, myths, sacred sauna, ceremonies, folk healing, and magical kantele playing, we learn the cadence of ancient practices and the sanctuary of self-discovery.
A few Words from Valarie .
You’ll Discover
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Rune Singing
Rune singing has been the tradition in Karelia for many centuries, way before the Kalevala. We will explore the history and tradition of singing the Kalevala to Kalevala meter as well singing runo poems reflecting every day life and nature.
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Sacred Sauna
The sauna is the house of our ancestors. Not just for relaxing, the sauna has held folk medicine traditions as well as family ritual magic. We will explore and experience the sauna from healing to community. And Yes we will be taking a sauna or two.
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Magic Kantele
The kantele is an instrument in the zither family. According to the Kalevala, the kantele was born of magic from the Sound Shaman Väinämöinen. Interwoven into our explorations and experience will be daily encounters with the kantele. We will listen to healing songs, sung stories, and embrace the healing power of sound and music.
“the frost spoke verse,
the rain pattered poems,
the wind blew words,
the sea waves sang,
the birds wove rhymes,
and treetops told tales.”
— Kalevala Rune Song
What is the Kalevala ?
The Kalevala transitioned from oral to written very recently in the early 19th century. A Finnish doctor named Elias Lonnröt compiled folksongs (rune/runo songs) into a single epic poem, and revised it over the course of many years and numerous trips to the countryside of Karelia, first publishing it in 1835. We think of The Kalevala as Finnish, but more accurately the work comes from the region of Karelia, which has at various times fallen under the control of Sweden, Russia and Finland. The stories in The Kalevala were—and still are—sung with a particular tune known as Kalevala meter. Often times the rune songs are accompanied by someone playing the kantele. Singers would sit across from each other, fingers intertwined, singing sometimes in unison, sometimes call-and-response. Singing is also one of two methods of magic in The Kalevala, the other being a sort of built-in elemental, natural magic (generally used by female characters). Sorcerers, Witches, Shaman, aka Knowing People, sing magic.
During this course we will embrace the history of the Kalevala. We’ll learn where it’s origins come from and the traditions it holds.
Your Teacher
Valarie Budayr
VALARIE BUDAYR is the founder of the Mongata Healing Center in Santa Fe New Mexico, as well as an award winning author, teacher, and composer. Valarie was born in the US but firmly embraces her ancestral heritage from the island of Gotland, Sweden. Valarie also embraces her North Karelian heritage from Finland where she studied Rune Singing for 3 summers while at university. She incorporates the North Karelian traditions and culture into her sound healing as well labyrinth rituals from Gotland and Northern European traditions.
Valarie practices as a Knowing Woman and has studied 4 years in the Advanced Seidr program with Imelda Almqvist.
Valarie is a Sound Therapist, Breathwork Facilitator,Mindfulness Teacher, and Qigong practice leader.
Course Details
Location
The Kalevala Way Course is being hosted at Imelda Almqvist’s Forest School. In a place where the forest meets the Baltic sea, on lake Sibbofjärden, The Forest School is about one hour south of Stockholm and 30 minutes north of Nyköping
Unlike a conference center, this breath-taking remote location gives us the opportunity and freedom to pursue our spirit led activities, as well as, dropping very deeply into our own spirit work.
Set in an ancient forest, this traditional 300 year old Swedish farm lends itself to further explorations of handed down traditions, inner discoveries, and as a gathered community to share with one another.
Please note that this course is non-residential, meaning that all participants will need to book a hotel or B&B accommodation in the area. There are hotels in the nearby town of Nyköping and a variety of B&B style options locally. I’m happy to give a list of tried and tested places.
Dates & Hours
Dates
Saturday May 26th ( 6 pm start) — Wednesday May 31st 2023 ( 3 pm Closing Time)
Hours
We will work from 9:30 a.m until about 9.30 p.m. (10 p.m. latest) with a lunch break and dinner break. The evenings will generally be dedicated to ceremonial work.
How to Apply
The full tuition fee is $850. USD
Early Bird Special: $800 USD before Feb 15th 2023
To secure your place you will need to pay a non-refundable deposit of $125.
Your deposit will only be refunded if the course cannot be delivered due to extreme and unforeseeable circumstances such as Covid-19, a death in my family, or simply there is not enough interest and not enough people have joined the course. We need 4 students for this course to run.
The last week of March I will send out an email confirming that there are enough participants and that the course will run.
On April 3rd 2023 the remainder of the tuition fee ($725 USD) becomes due. After April 3rd, a late fee of $50 will apply.
Practical Information
Please Note: Spaces Are Very Limited
We only have room in the school house for 10 students plus 2 teachers. I am always open to questions of interest. You can email me at
valariebudayr@gmail.com
However, the only way to reserve and secure your place in the course is to place a deposit down. Places are given out in the order they are received.
Course taught in English
