“The best way to forget all your problems”: why people in Finland often go to saunas and what does it mean
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There are more than 3 million saunas in Finland, including steam and spiritual saunas (so-called Roman saunas), and in 2020 the Finnish sauna was even included in the UNESCO cultural heritage list.
In saunas, Finns can not only relax, but also “feel like a person” – probably this is why Finland tops the list of the happiest countries in the world, The Guardian reports.
For Finns, visiting a sauna is a part of everyday life – they often go to steam in the evening on the way from work, or gather on weekends in the company of friends.
“I come to the sauna to share my melancholy”says a regular sauna visitor from the city of Tampere.
| “At this time, I feel completely in the moment,” said Miranda Bryant, describing her time in the sauna in Tampere. Photo: Krista Keltanen/The Guardian |
There are 60 saunas in Tampere for 250,000 citizens, which is why this city was nicknamed the sauna capital of the world. In total, Finland has approximately 3.3 million such facilities for a population of 5.6 million.
“I’m not surprised when elderly strangers ask me to rub their backs. And don’t be surprised, just do it, help them”– says Alexander Lembke, an employee of the oldest sauna in Tampere.
Some saunas have rules about topics that can be discussed in them. Most often, it is not recommended to discuss politics, business and religion.
Also, each sauna has its own “low-low” (löyly/steam). According to Lembke, it’s like a tight hug, which feels different in each sauna.
In his establishment, lo-lo has an aromatic and slightly bitter taste, reminiscent of green tea and the smell of birch.
“It’s the best way to start the weekend and forget about all the problems that arose during the week.” – adds Anita Kontukoski.
According to a group of teachers who also visit the sauna, you can enjoy communicating with each other and make new acquaintances in it.
“Not about politics, not about religion, not about sports, but just about life.” – says one of them.
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| Visitors to one of the Finnish saunas. Photo: Krista Keltanen/The Guardian |
Young people also like to visit saunas. According to a visitor who came to Tampere from Helsinki together with a company, in the sauna you don’t have to worry about who and what you look like.
“In the sauna we are all equal and without status”– says one of the visitors.
In addition, it is a common practice in Finland for pregnant women or parents with small children to come to the sauna.
It is believed that the tradition of saunas in Finland originates from indigenous settlements that lived in its territories after the ice age (115 thousand years – 11 thousand years ago).
Then people dug holes in the ground and covered them with animal skins.
“You could say that we had a bit of a decline in the popularity of saunas in the 1970s, 80s, even maybe in the 90s. But lately they’ve been making a resurgence, with more and more private saunas in people’s homes.”– says Janne Koskenniemi, Executive Director of the Finnish Sauna Society.
According to him, saunas contribute to increasing the level of happiness in Finland, because regular visits to the sauna, in his opinion, are equivalent to therapy.
“When you’re in a sauna, you’re naked in a physical sense, and you’re naked in your thoughts and your position in society. There’s only you.” – added Koskenniemi.
Earlier we reported that Ukraine took 92nd place in the world ranking of happiness.
Read also: Shall we catch up? 8 unexpected benefits of sauna
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