Long ago, would here mean a poem written in the 19th century by a Finnish poet Zacharias Topelius, original version in Swedish. http://www.nykarlebyvyer.nu/sidor/texter/poesi/zt/vinterga.htm
I suppose it is amusing if this has been added to some liturgy of the Isis worshippers.
While I'm not an expert in this field, I don't think there are Finnish, Sámi, Norse, Estonian or Karelian gods called Salami or Zulamith however. These names sound Biblical influenced. Perhaps someone with more knowledge of the astral lore knows otherwise. Since we have been talking about The Cowherd and the Weaver girl story here before, it is interesting to notice the Milky Way in Finnish and Estonian means "the path of the birds", quite different etymology compared to Mediterranean cultural sphere. The path of the birds would explain migratory patterns of birds, have thematical ties to "world tree" and "world egg" creation narratives, and also explain where souls of the deceased went (into the sky, stars, along the birds, to the birds home). In Topelius' poem, we have two lovers, long dead, building a bridge to meet each other again. So, Topelius was either familiar with the Cowherd and the Weaver girl, some similar story, or had been studying Estonian legend about Lindu's astral veil, yet another story where a bird themed figure falls in love, this time with the northern lights, and The Milky way is explained as a wedding veil wetted with tears. These mythological narratives are quite ancient, even if there is a lot of variation.
I personally think Braben wanted to distance himself from the Holdstock connection in this game.
