Karksi kihelkonna pühapaigad: mõningaid tähelepanekuid
Natural sacred places in Karksi parish

Summary/Abstract: This article gives a brief review about some of the most characteristic sacred natural places in Karksi parish based on place lore. These are: cemeteries/barrows, sandstone outcrops (so-called “Hells”) and places connected with Pell – a being of folk belief in Karksi parish (Mulgimaa). Vanapagan (“The Old Heathen”, also known as “The Old Devil”) can be seen as very popular supernatural being in Karksi’s oral tradition, which has historically been connected with many places in Karksi. Karksi parish can be seen as a centre of Pell tradition as most accounts of belief and customs that are referring to vernacular cult originate from Karksi. Unfortunately, most of its special sacrificial sites have been destroyed – like many other sacred places in Karksi. Both landscape and folklore can be seen as dynamic phenomenons connected and dependent on each other. Changes in landscape make changes in place lore. Natural sacred places preserve the values of the present and the past. They are essential phenomenons from the perspectives of historical memory, folklore, popular religion, and archaeology. Oral tradition can be significant and, even more, primary prerequisite considering protection of and both – physical and cultural – continuity of these kind of places.

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