One of the more mysterious, but at the same time extremely long-lived elements of premodern Finnish thought was belief in dynamistic forces similar to the Scandinavian concepts of meginn and náttúrá, or even the Iroquois concept of orenda. In Finland and Karelia these were known as väki-forces (when they occurred in the environment) and luonto (which was the same force present in human beings). These concepts were largely transmitted through the verbal and ritual traditions performed by tietäjäs, literally “ones who know”, in other words men and women who functioned as seers, healers, sorcerers and diviners in their communities. In Eastern Finland the tietäjä institution persisted well into the 20th century. Stark’s presentation examines 19th- and 20th-century folk beliefs and narratives regarding väki-forces. Stark also takes a closer look at the tietäjäs who were believed to carry within themselves “hard” or “strong” luonto-force. Stark asks what these beliefs can tell us about how illness, body and person were conceived of in 19th-century Finnish-Karelian culture, as well as the social, economic and ecological roots of these conceptions. Her contribution will also take a closer look at the role of women in väki-related folk beliefs as well as women’s agency in ritual contexts related to väki.