Oriental Studies (Apr 2018)

Sacral Values of the Jangar Epic

  • P. Ts. Bitkeev,
  • G. S. Bitkeeva

DOI
https://doi.org/10.22162/2075-7794-2016-26-4-160-167
Journal volume & issue
Vol. 9, no. 4
pp. 160 – 167

Abstract

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The paper presents new arguments that the Kalmyk epic of Jangar is an exceptional epic tale based on the people’s sacral values that are of great importance for the global civilization as well. It should be mentioned that the Jangar epic is far from being fully analyzed. A lot of questions regarding the epic have yet to be dealt with by research and including those of sacral values which constitute the topic of the present paper. Based on their research, the authors of the article come to the conclusion that the most important idea that serves as the basis for the epic is sacral values that are of universal signifi cance. One of the most important values proclaimed in the epic is the land of Bumba which is a great and powerful empire, and its essential ideal, its raison d’etre, is to provide peace and happiness to the people. It is a land where people live in peace, harmony and prosperity, it is a society where people are not murdered, do not get punished or humiliated. Bumba is a land where people live in social and material equality, where a person is respected only for being a human being, a bearer of new ideas and new values. Another value is the citizens of the land of Bumba who live by the laws of social equality. Jangar Bogd-Khan (the ruler) himself and his brave and victorious heroes (knights) defending the land of Bumba and their people from attacks of external enemies also serve as another value. Thereby they also defend the ideas the land of Bumba lives by. Those are ideas of peace and prosperity, equality and happiness. The authors of the paper assert that these ideas are based on certain sacral values. Moreover, as is evident subsequent to the results of the conducted analysis of corresponding data from the epic, the high moral standards of the people of the land also form a sacral value. The postulates of the author of the epic are conceptual: the promoted moral values are based on what the author of the epic regards as a realistic possibility to construct a new happy society.

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