Torngarsuk is the supreme ruler of all tuurngait, the helping spirits. He decides which spirits to grant to which shamans, controls their distribution, and can withdraw them from those who abuse their power.
Shamans use their tuurngait to detect Adlet in the interior and protect traveling parties. The helping spirits can sense the dog-people's presence before they attack.
Tuurngait guide shamans on spirit journeys to Adlivun, the underworld. The helping spirits protect the angakkuq from dangers during the descent and enable negotiations with the dead on behalf of the living.
Shamans use their tuurngait to protect communities from the Ijiraq. The helping spirits can perceive the shadow people that ordinary eyes cannot see, warning of their presence and countering their disorienting powers.
Tuurngait are powerful inua — spirits with their own awareness and agency — who choose to serve as helpers to worthy shamans. Each tuurngaq possesses a distinct inua with its own personality and abilities.
Tuurngait carry shamans' petitions to Kadlu when thunderstorms threaten. The helping spirits serve as intermediaries between angakkuit and the thunder goddess during dangerous weather events.
Kiviuq encounters tuurngait throughout his eternal wanderings. The helping spirits both aid and challenge the wandering hero, and some traditions describe him gaining spirit helpers during his supernatural adventures.
Polar bear spirits are among the most powerful tuurngait granted to shamans. Nanook oversees which bear spirits become helping spirits, and shamans with bear tuurngait gain strength, tracking ability, and authority.
Shamans use tuurngait to communicate with Pinga, the goddess who watches over the living. The helping spirits enable the angakkuq to reach Pinga's celestial realm and petition her regarding the welfare of souls.
Shamans use their tuurngait to protect communities from Qalupalik. The helping spirits can detect the sea creature's presence beneath the ice and warn families when children are in danger near ice cracks.
Shamans use their tuurngait to journey beneath the sea to Sedna's house. The helping spirits protect and guide the angakkuq on this dangerous voyage to comb Sedna's tangled hair and release the sea mammals.
Tuurngait carry shamans through Sila's atmosphere during spirit flights. Some tuurngait grant their shamans power over weather, channeling fragments of Sila's cosmic force through the helping spirits.
Raven spirits serve among the tuurngait that empower shamans. Tulugaak, as the divine raven, is the ultimate source of the corvid helping spirits that assist angakkuit in their spiritual work.
Shamans use their tuurngait to animate tupilait and to defend against those sent by rival angakkuit. The helping spirits provide both the power to create these constructs and the ability to detect incoming ones.
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