The pügalrist, a symbol often used to represent maausk
Maausk (sometimes also called Väenusko) is the native polytheistic, shamanistic and animistic pagan religion practiced of the Finnic people. It is practiced by over 8 million people, mostly in Estland, Livland, Finland and Karelia. Its adherents, known as the maausulised, believe that everything has a spirit and vägi. Vägi or väki, is the spiritual energy of the world, some places and people have stronger vägi which makes those places or people holier. People with stronger vägi are usually nõids or arbujas, shamans who can communicate with the spirits and visit the spirit realm via a lovi, a trance. Shamen were and are usually chosen by specific birth defects, though after the reformation period, which began with the reign of Kostutõiv I, anyone could become a shaman, provided they knew enough songs and poems. Places with stronger vägi are considered hiisi or hiis. Hiis are the sacred groves and places of worship for the maausulised. Though during and after the maausk reformation period, some maausulised began to create dedicated temples near and sometimes inside of hiis. Some temples were dedicated to the vägi and spirits of that hiis while some temples were dedicated to specific gods like Taara, Pikne, Metsavana, Veteema, Akka, etc. Another important part of maausk is ancestor worship.
Modern day maausk is divided between two sects, the Kirjarahvas (the writing folk) and the Laulurahvas (the singing folk). Kirjarahvas believes that any deviation from the holy books, the "Manaja laulud", is dishonorable, while the Laulurahvas believe that writing down sacred folk songs disturbs the ancestors. Though this divide has never manifested itself in any major wars.