Mythology of the Turkic and Mongolian peoples

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The mythologies of the Turkic and Mongol peoples are related and have exerted strong influence on one another. Both groups of peoples qualify as Eurasian nomads and have been in close contact throughout history, especially in the context of the medieval Turco-Mongol empire.

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[edit] Mongol

The oldest mythological concept that can be reconstructed with any certainty is the sky god Tengri, attested from the Xiong Nu in the 2nd century BC.

The Epic of King Gesar (Ges'r, Kesar) is a Mongol religious epic about Geser (also known as Bukhe Beligte), prophet of Tengriism.

Bai-Ulgan and Esege Malan are creator deities. Ot is the goddess of marriage. Tung-ak is the patron god of tribal chiefs. The Uliger are traditional epic tales and the Epic of King Gesar is shared with much of Central Asia and Tibet. Erlig Khan (Erlik Khan) is the King of the Underworld. Daichin Tengri is the red god of war to whom enemy soldiers were sometimes sacrificed during battle campaigns. Zaarin Tengri is a spirit who gives Khorchi (in the Secret History of the Mongols) a vision of a cow mooing "Heaven and earth have agreed to make Temujin (later Genghis Khan) the lord of the nation". The wolf, falcon, deer and horse were important symbolic animals.

There are many different Mongol creation myths. In one, the creation of the world is attributed to a Lama. In the beginning there was only water, and from the heavens Lama came down to it holding an iron rod from which he began to stir the water. The stirring brought about a wind and fire which caused a thickening at the center of the waters to form earth.[1] Another narrative also attributes the creation of heaven and earth to a lama who is called Udan. Udan began by separating earth from heaven, and then dividing heaven and earth both into nine stories, and creating nine rivers. After the creation of the earth itself, the first male and female couple were created out of clay. They would become the progenitors of all humanity.[2]

In another example the world began as an agitating gas which grew increasingly warm and damp, precipitating a heavy rain that created the oceans. Dust and sand emerged to the surface and became earth.[2] Yet another account tells of the Buddha Sakyamuni searching the surface of the sea for a means to create the earth and spotted a golden frog. From its east side, Buddha pierced the frog through, causing it to spin and face north. From its mouth burst fire and from its rump streamed water. Buddha tossed golden sand on his back which became land. And this was the origin of the five earthly elements, wood and metal from the arrow, and fire, water and sand.[2] These myths date from the 17th century when Yellow Shamanism (Tibetan Buddhism using shamanistic forms) was established in Mongolia. Black Shamanism and White Shamanism from pre-Buddhist times survives only in far-northern Mongolia (around Lake Khuvsgul) and the region around Lake Baikal where Lamaist persecution had not been effective.

[edit] Turkic

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Turkic Mythology is the body of myths and teachings that belong to the Turkic people. Turkic mythology embraces Tengriist and Shamanist traditions as well as all cultural and social subjects being a nomad folk. Later, specially after Turkic migration some of the myths were decorated with Islamic symbols. It has many common points with Aegean and Anatolian mythologies (Greek and Hittite) as well as Mongol mythology. Turkic mythology was influenced by other local mythologies. For example, in Tatar mythology elements of Finnic and Indo-European myth co-exist. Subjects from Tatar mythology include Äbädä, Şüräle, Şekä, Pitsen, Tulpar, and Zilant. Besides Buddhism, Zoroastrianism and Manichaeism still carry signs from Turkic mythology.

Irk Bitig, a 10th-century manuscript found in Dunhuang is one of the most important sources for Turkic mythology and religion. This book is written in Old Turkic alphabet like the Orkhon inscriptions.

The 10th-century Irk Bitig or "Book of Divination" of Dunhuang is an important source for early Turkic mythology

As a result of the nomad culture, the Horse is also one of the main figures of Turkic mythology; Turks considered the horse an extension of the individual -though generally dedicated to the male- and see that one is complete with it. This might have led to or sourced from the term "At-Beyi" (Horse-Lord).

The Dragon (Evren, also Ebren), also expressed as a Snake or Lizard, is the symbol of might and power. It is believed, especially in mountainous Central Asia, that dragons still live in the mountains of Tian Shan/Tengri Tagh and Altay. Dragons also symbolize the god Tengri (Tanrı) in ancient Turkic tradition, although dragons themselves are not worshiped as gods.

[edit] Gods and Goddesses in Turkish Mythology

Tengri is one of the names for the primary chief deity in the religion of the early Turkic people. The most important contemporary testimony of Tengri worship is found in the Old Turkic Orkhon inscriptions, dated to the early 8th century.

Umay is the goddess of fertility and virginity.

Kayra is the Spirit of God and creator god.

Bai-Ulgan is the son of Kayra and the god of goodness.

Shaman "Tengri" (God) as inscribed on Bilge Tonyukuk Monument in Old Turkic alphabet

Erlik is the god of death and underworld.

Ay Dede is the moon god.

Gün Ana is the sun god.

[edit] The Grey Wolf Legend

The Wolf symbolizes honor and is also considered the mother of most Turkic peoples. Asena is the name of one of the ten sons who were given birth by a mythical wolf in Turkic mythology.[3][4][5][6]

The legend tells of a young boy who survived a battle. A she-wolf finds the injured child and nurses him back to health. He subsequently impregnates the wolf which then gives birth to ten half-wolf, half-human boys. One of these, Ashina, becomes their leader and instaures the Ashina clan which ruled the Göktürks and other Turkic nomadic empires.[7][8] The wolf, pregnant with the boy's offspring, escaped her enemies by crossing the Western Sea to a cave near to the Qocho mountains, one of the cities of the Tocharians. The first Turks subsequently migrated to the Altai regions, where they are known as expert in ironworkers, as the Scythians are also known to have been.[9]

[edit] Ergenekon legend

The Ergenekon legend tells about a great crisis of the ancient Turks. According to legend, after a big defeat the Turks settled into a very inaccessible valley called Ergenekon, led by a wolf. But after many generations this valley would be too narrow for all these people and they are looking for a way to leave this valley. They forged and melt a mountain of iron ore, and returned to form the Göktürk empire.[citation needed][10]

[edit] Oghuz legends

The legend of Oghuz Khagan is a central political mythology for Turkic peoples of Central Asia and eventually the Oghuz Turks who ruled in Anatolia and Iran. Versions of this narrative have been found in the histories of Rashid ad-Din Tabib, in an anonymous 14th-century Uyghur vertical script manuscript now in Paris, and in Abu'l Ghazi's Shajara at-Turk and have been translated into Russian and German.

Book of Dede Korkut from the 11th century covers twelve legendary stories of the Oghuz Turks, one of the major branches of the Turkish Peoples. It originates from the pre-Islamic period of the Turks, in which the Tengrism elements in the Turkish culture still outweighed. It consists a prologue and twelve different stories. The legendary story which begins in Central Asia is narrated by a dramatis personae, in most cases by Dede Korkut himself.[11]

[edit] Other Legends

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[edit] See also

[edit] Notes

  1. ^ Sproul 1979, p. 218
  2. ^ a b c Nassen-Bayer & Stuart 1992
  3. ^ Bozkurt Legend (Turkish)
  4. ^ Book of Zhou, Vo. 50. (Chinese)
  5. ^ History of Northern Dynasties, Vo. 99. (Chinese)
  6. ^ Book of Sui, Vol. 84. (Chinese)
  7. ^ Findley, Carter Vaughin. The Turks in World History. Oxford University Press, 2005. ISBN 0-19-517726-6. Page 38.
  8. ^ Roxburgh, D. J. (ed.) Turks, A Journey of a Thousand Years. Royal Academy of Arts, London, 2005. Page 20.
  9. ^ Christopher I. Beckwith, Empires of the Silk Road: A History of Central Eurasia from the Bronze Age to the Present, Princeton University Press, 2011, p.9
  10. ^ Dr. Çekiç, Orhan. "ERGENEKON EFSANESİ GÖKTÜRKLERE AİT…". Retrieved 30 December 2012. [unreliable source?]
  11. ^ Miyasoğlu, Mustafa (1999). Dede Korkut Kitabı. 

[edit] References

[edit] External links

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