FO:
Sílakvinnan í Mikladali .
Sílur eru menniskju, sum tóku sítt egna lív við at drukna í sjónum.
Sambært søgnini savnast sílarnir eina ferð um árið, á trimum kongaaftan á strondini í Mikladali. Teir kasta sílaskinn, gerast menniskju aftur og dansa og spæla náttina burtur á strondini og í hellinum hjá sær.
Ein ungur maður úr Mikladali - soleiðis sigur søgnin - hevði fingið vind av hesum, at sílarnir savnaðust á Tríggjar Kongaaftan í einum helli við bygdina. Og so fór hann niðan í hellið um náttina at vita, um søgan var sonn.
Hann goymdi seg aftan fyri ein klett við strondina. Eftir at sólin var sett, sá hann nógvan síl svimja móti hellinum. Og so skjótt teir komu í land, slógu teir skinnið og lótu tey eftir á flatu steinbundnu strondini og gingu burtur sum verulig menniskju.
Frá goymistaðnum aftan fyri ein klett njótaði ungi maðurin sjónina. Knappliga sær hann eina serstakliga vakra gentu sláa húðina, og beinanvegin gerst hann áhugaður í henni.
Tí ansaði hann væl eftir at síggja, hvar hon legði húðina frá sær, tætt við har hann stóð. Hann sníkti seg úr goymistaðnum, tók skinnið og fór aftur til sítt stað aftan fyri klettin.
Sílarnir dansaðu náttina burtur, men við fyrsta morgunljósinum, lótu teir seg í sílaskinn.
Men sílagentan, hann hevði sæð, fann ikki húðina á henni, hóast hon hugdi og hugdi. Hon fór at møna og gráta hart, tí náttin var nú farin, og sólin var næstan komin upp. Men áðrenn sólin reis upp úr sjónum, fangaði hon lyktina av skinninum, sum ungi maðurin goymdi.
Hon nærkaðist honum og við stórum ørkymlan bað hon hann lata sær húðina aftur. Men hann vildi ikki lurta eftir henni og stroyddi upp um fjallið til hús síni, og hon kundi einki gera, enn fylgja honum eftir skinninum, hann bar. Ungi maðurin tók hana til konu, og tey livdu væl saman. Men hann mátti ansa sera væl eftir at halda hana burtur frá húðini. Hann læsti tað trygt upp í eina kistu og helt lykilin bundnan í beltið alla tíðina.
Ein dagin fór maðurin út at fiska. Meðan hann sat og dróg fisk inn, bustaði hondin móti beltinum, har lykilin vanliga hongdi. Skelkaður varnaðist hann ikki áðrenn júst ta løtuna, at hann hevði gloymt lykilin heima, og hann rópti í pínu: “Í dag verði eg konuleysur maður!”
Allir menninir drógu í sínar línur og róðu so skjótt sum gjørligt aftur til Mikladals. Tá maðurin kom heim, varnaðist hann, at kona hansara var burtur, men sá børnini hjá teimum sita á køksbeinkinum, tigandi. Fyri at syrgja fyri, at børnini ikki fingu skaða, meðan tey vóru heima einsamøll, hevði sílakvinnan sløkt eldin og læst allar knívarnar og aðrar hvassar lutir burtur.
Tá hon hevði gjørt hetta, hevði hon skundað sær niðan á strondina, latið seg í húðina og kastað seg á sjógvin.
Hon hevði funnið lykilin, tá maður hennara var farin til fiskiskap, opnaði kistuna og sá skinnið. Og hon kundi ikki steðga sær sjálvari. Harvið er orðatakið: "Hann kann ikki stýra sær sjálvum meira enn ein innsigli, sum sær húðina."
Beinanvegin hon hoppaði í aldurnar, svam oksurin, sum hevði verið maka hennara, upp við síðuna av henni, og saman svumu teir avstað. Øll hesi árini hevði hann bíðað tætt við strondina eftir maka sínum.
Hvørja ferð børnini, hon hevði við manninum úr Mikladali, fóru niðan á strondina, sóu tey ein síl tætt við, stardi at teimum, og øll hildu, at tað kundi vera hon mamma teirra.
Og so gingu nógv ár, og einki merkisvert hendi bóndanum á Suðurbýli og børnunum hjá sílakonuni.
Men so, ein dagin, løgdu mikladalsmenn sær ætlanir um at fara inn í eitt helli at veiða síl. Kvøldið fyri kom sílakvinnan til bóndan í dreymum. Hon segði við hann, at um hann skuldi melda seg til veiðina, mátti hann ikki drepa oksan framman fyri hellinum, tí hann var maður hennara. Og tey máttu vísa teimum báðum unganum miskunn, sum lógu innast í hellinum, tí tey vóru børn hennara.
Hon segði honum enntá, hvussu tey sóu út.
Men bóndin gav ikki dreyminum gætur, og saman við hinum av mikladalsmonnum drap hann hvørt síl í hellinum.
Sum sín part fekk bóndin seyðin og fremru og aftaru flippurnar á unglingunum. Høvdið á oksanum og flippurnar vórðu soðnar til nátturða hetta kvøldið. Tá kjøtið varð drigið úr grýtuni, hoyrdist hart krasja og banka, og sílakvinnan kom inn í kamarið sum eitt ræðuligt trøll.
Hon sniffaði við grýtuni og græt hóttandi:
"Her liggur høvdið á maka mínum, hondin á Hárekur og fóturin á Friorikki. Tit hava havt hevnd tykkara - og nú skal hevnd vitjast á Mikladalsmonnum. Summi drukna á sjónum, aðrir detta av klettunum, og soleiðis skal tað halda fram, til so nógv hava knýtt seg til grundar, sum eru knýtt at Karilandi sum kann".
Havið havt sítt orð, fór hon avstað í stórum rópi og rykki, ongantíð at síggjast aftur.
Og, tíverri, er tað ikki óvanligt at hoyra tíðindi um vanlukkur í Mikladali, at menn, sum eru farnir á fuglaveiðu, eru snávaðir og dotnir til deyðis av klettunum.
Sláturviðurskifti:
Tað er ein áskrift við dagfesting á Seal Woman goymsluni; send mær tað. Tak eina mynd av tær sjálvum ella tínum geocaching navni og legg hana til tín logg.
EN:
The Seal Woman of Mikladalur
Seals are humans, who took their own lives by drowning in the sea.
According to legend, once a year, on the Eve of Three Kings, the seals gather on the shore of Mikladalur. They shed their sealskins, become human again, and dance and play the night away on the shore and in their cave.
A young man from Mikladalur - so the story goes - had gotten the wind of this, that the seals gathered on the Eve of Three Kings in a cave near the village. And so he went down to the cave that night to see, if the story was true.
He hid behind a rock on the shore. After the sun set, he saw many a seal swimming toward the cave. And as soon they came ashore, they shed their skins and left them on the flat rocky beach and walked away like real humans.
From his hiding place behind a rock, the young man enjoyed the sight. Suddenly he spots an exceptionally beautiful girl shed her skin, and immediately he grows fond of her.
Therefore, he took great care to see, where she left her skin, close by where he stood. He snuck out of his hiding place, took the skin and returned to his place behind the rock.
The seals danced the night away, but with the first light of dawn, they put on their sealskins.
But the seal girl, he had spotted, did not find her skin, though she looked and looked. She started to moan and cry loudly, because the night had now passed, and the sun was almost risen. But before the sun rose out of the sea, she caught the scent of the skin hidden by the young man.
She approached him, and with great agitation she begged him to return the skin to her. But he would not listen to her and strode up the hill to his house, and she could do nothing, but follow him after the skin, he carried. The young man took her as his wife, and they lived well together. But he had to take great care to keep her away from the skin. He locked it securely up in a chest and kept the key tied to his belt at all times.
One day the man went out fishing. As he sat hauling in a fish, his hand brushed against his belt, where the key normally hung. Shocked, he did not notice before that very moment, that he had forgotten his key at home, and he shouted out in agony, "Today I become a wifeless man!"
All the men drew in their lines and rowed back to Mikladalur as fast as possible. When the man came home, he realised his wife was gone, but saw their children sitting on the kitchen bench, silent. Making sure the children would not get hurt while home alone, the seal woman had put out the fire and locked away all the knives and other sharp objects.
Having done this, she had hurried down to the shore, put on her skin and thrown herself into the sea.
She had found the key, when her husband had gone fishing, opened the chest and seen the skin. And she could not stop herself. Hence the proverb: "He cannot control himself more than a seal, who sees its hide."
As soon as she jumped into the waves, the bull, who had been her mate, swam up beside her, and together they swam away. All these years he had waited close to the shore for his mate.
Whenever the children, she had with the man from Mikladalur, went down to the shore, they saw a seal close by, staring at them, and everybody thought, that it might be she their mother.
And so many years passed, and nothing worthy of note happened to the farmer of South Farm and the seal woman's children.
But then, one day, the men of Mikladalur made plans to enter a cave to hunt seals. The night before, the seal woman came to the farmer in his dreams. She told him, that if he were to join the hunt, he must not kill the bull in front of the cave, for he was her husband. And they had to show mercy to the two cubs, who lay innermost in the cave, for they were her children.
She even told him, what they looked like.
But the farmer paid no heed to the dream, and along with the rest of the men of Mikladalur, he killed every seal in the cave.
As his share, the farmer received the bull and the front and rear flippers of the cubs. The bull's head and the flippers were cooked for supper that evening. When the meat was drawn out of the pot, loud crashing and banging was heard, and the seal woman entered the room as a terrifying troll.
She sniffed at the pot and cried menacingly:
"Here lies the head of my mate, the hand of Harekur and the foot of Friorikkur. You have had your revenge - and now revenge shall be visited upon the men of Mikladalur. Some will drown at sea, others will fall from the cliffs, and so it shall continue, until as many have perished as can link arms around the whole island of Kalsoy".
Having had her say, she left in great clamour and a roar, never to be seen again.
And, unfortunately, it is not uncommon to hear news of misfortune in Mikladalur, that men who have gone bird hunting have stumbled and fallen to their death from the cliffs.
Logging Tasks:
There's an inscription with a date on the Seal Woman - send it to me. Take a photo of yourself with the women or your geocaching name and add it to your log.
Virtual Rewards 5.0 - 2026-2027
This Virtual Cache is part of a limited release of Virtuals created between February 3, 2026 and February 3, 2027. Only 4,000 cache owners were given the opportunity to hide a Virtual Cache. Learn more about Virtual Rewards 5.0 on the Geocaching Blog.