The Tornat Inuit spirits, and the tale of Akamak [Inuit mythology; World mythology post 670]

(Image source: Juliette Cousin)

Tornat or Tornait (singular: Tornak) are guardian spirits who can be called upon by Angakut (Inuit ‘shamans’) to aid, advise and protect them. An Angakuq in training must eventually communicate with Tornarsuk (literally ‘the Great Tornak’), a supremely powerful spirit, to bind the lower Tornat spirits to help them. It is through the aid of these spirits that Angakut can cure diseases, control the weather, and cast other spells. He cannot call himself a true Angakuq until Tornarsuk gifts him a powerful guardian Tornak, and until he is able to summon it by himself. These guardian Tornat come in three kinds: those that take the form of a human, stone spirits, and bear spirits, with the last one supposedly being the most powerful.

But there is great variety among the different kinds of Tornat. Inue, the spirits that are inherent to the land (a bit like the Japanese Kami) can be made into tornat. Animal spirits and the souls of deceased humans could also be Tornat, and an Angakuq had multiple Tornat bound to his service, usually for different purposes. Kivingak, for example, is a kind of Tornak who appeared as a sentient iceberg.

(Image source: Lars Grant-West, illustration for Magic: the Gathering)

One such story tells of an Angakuq named Akamak (also called Kuvitsina). When he was kayaking along the shore, when a rock suddenly opened, seemingly by itself, as if to invite him in. Akamak obliged and entered the crevice, but soon found himself surrounded by strange dwarves. These were Ingnersuit, malicious supernatural creatures who were greatly feared among humans. They easily overwhelmed him and smashed his kayak to pieces. Akamak was dragged into the house of the dwarves, where they cut off his nose. Knowing that he could never overpower these creatures by himself, the Angakuq summoned his guardian spirit: a Tornak named Napatarak.

Napatarak was enraged and shouted at the dwarves. ‘What have you done to this Angakuq? You should not hate the mortals, no, you should not hate the people of the surface. In fact, you should respect them and hold them in high regard! For unlike us, they capture and kill the large animals that we fear so much, like the whales! They build harpoons with floating bladders, and other weapons, to kill these animals!’

(Image source: Lorenzo Mastroianni, illustration for Magic: the Gathering)

The spirit cut the ropes that bound Akamak and gave him a protective amulet. The man wasted no time in fleeing, and summoned another Tornak: this one was named Nepingasuak. This spirit cast a spell on the pieces of the smashed kayak by breathing on it, and the kayak repaired itself. Nepingasuak then repaired Akamak’s nose, magically gluing it to his face. He did not do a perfect job though – the nose was a bit crooked.

What I find really interesting here is what Napatarak told the dwarves. He suggests a kind of rock-paper-scissors mechanic: the supernatural creatures (spirits, dwarves) are afraid of the large natural animals, which are hunted and killed by the mortal humans. Humanity, in turn, is mostly helpless against the supernatural creatures. Each has their place.

Inuit religion has an important distinction between Angakut summoning spirits to cast magic, and witchcraft, the latter of which is considered extremely evil and taboo. Witches (who can be both male and female, like the Angakut) do not get their power from Tornarsuk, and therefore their magic is never ‘approved’ by the spirits. This ‘black magic’ is usually referred to as Ilisineq or Kusuineq. This practice strictly serves the user, as opposed to the magic an Angakuq wields, which is supposed to be in service to the community. Interestingly, it is theorized that this ‘witchcraft’ is actually a remnant from an earlier religion, which was demonized and eventually regarded as ‘black magic’.

Sources:
Rink, H. J., 1875, Tales and Traditions of the Eskimo, with a sketch of their habits, religion, language and other peculiarities, William Blackwood and Sons, 472 pp.
Dixon-Kennedy, M., 1998, Native American Myth & Legend, Brockhampton Press, 288 pp., p. 19, p. 247.