Lumiviittaa,
Lord of Snow
Auroean god of the earth, winter, snow, and wind
Third of the three native Aurorean gods, Lumiviittaa is the brother to Nainen and Meren-Keihas. Together, the three rule over the natural environment of Aurora. Nainen is the goddess of the sky, Meren-Keihas is the god of the sea, and Lumiviittaa is the god of the land. Lumiviittaa is the middle sibling, younger than Nainen and older than Meren-Keihas.
While elsewhere in Realmgard, wind, storm, and weather in general are usually seen as the domain of the god of the sea — as, for example, with Aivas — these natural phenomena are instead attributed to the earth god Lumiviittaa — which with particularity that Lumiviittaa is responsible for the winds that blow from the land to the sea and Meren-Keihas is responsible for the winds that blow to the land from the sea.
Particularly bad storms are said to be the result of the two brother-gods working in concert.
Primarily associated with snow, winter, and cold weather, Lumivittaa is nevertheless also associated with the more temperate seasons and with Aurora’s agricultural calendar, presiding over the harvest and the preparation of food supplies to last through the long, harsh Aurorean winters.
Just as Meren-Keihas is associated with — and said to take the form of — killer whales, Lumiviittaa is associated with polar bears and is invariably depicted as clad in a cloak of polar bear fur. Indeed, his name means “Snow Cloak” and is universally said to come from his snow-white clothing. Lumiviittaa is married to the minor polar bear deity Valkovahva, who is said to have given Lumiviittaa this cloak as a wedding present. The minor deities of the four winds, as well as the different forms of snow are the sons and daughters of Lumiviittaa and Valkovahva.
Whereas Nainen is seen as matronly and beneficent and Meren-Keihas is unruly but good-hearted, Lumiviittaa is depicted as solitary and brooding — with a cold personality befitting the god of winter — perhaps reflecting the isolation often brought on my long, hard Aurorean winters. He is, however, universally depicted as a devoted and loving husband to his wife, and these very same long winters and great snows are said to be summoned by Lumiviittaa for the sake of his wife, who prefers the cold of winter.
As is the case with the other two major Aurorean gods, Lumiviittaa is depicted as readily helping the Aurorean folk hero Sauvaherra in his quest to rescue his kidnapped beloved Tulva from the wicked Witch of the North Winds. Moved by Sauvaherra’s true and faithful love for Tulva and thinking of his own wife, Lumiviittaa gifted Sauvaherra a suit of armour made of enchanted ice and three hundred polar bear men-at-arms with which to storm the Witch of the North Winds’ palace in the Lands Beyond the Ice.
In part because of stories like this, Lumiviittaa is also venerated as the primary Aurorean god of weddings, happy marriages, and family life, and it is a well-known proverb in Aurora that a display of true love can melt even Lumiviittaa’s frozen heart.
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