Oriental Studies (Apr 2018)
Some Modern Magical Rites of the Kyrgyz People: a Shamanistic Perspective
Abstract
The article deals with traditional Kyrgyz magical rites practiced till nowadays. It shows shamanistic origins of ritual ablution (‘rukh tazaloo’), fi re purifi cation (‘sham zhaguu, alastoo’), contacts to the spiritual world (‘zhar saluu’), sacrifi ces (‘kurmandyk, sadaga, tülöö’), invocations and spells (‘dem saluu’). The magical tradition of the Kyrgyz people is considered in the context of Turkic shamanism which is characterized by beliefs in spirits, power of the elements and sacred places. Spirits of ancestors and other magic beings are acting through their elects, i.e. shamans and healers. According to folk views, water and fi re also have healing powers. The folk tradition ‘kyrgyzchylyk’ is examined as a cultural and historical phenomenon resulting from combinations of shamanistic and Islamic elements. The article demonstrates structural relationships between the Kyrgyz magical rites. Same rites can be applied in different situations, following one another and interrupting each other during the whole ceremony. The information from ethnologists and folklorists is illustrated by a number of evidences received from informants residing in Northern Kyrgyzstan and interviewed by the author from 2011 to 2016. The paper traces some parallels between the Kyrgyz magic rites and shamanistic practices of the Turkic and Mongolic peoples who have cultural and genetic relationships with the Kyrgyz population. The article also pays signifi cant attention to the important role of the altered states of consciousness (ASC) in the rites of the Kyrgyz shamans and healers. ASCs are very important for ‘zhar saluu’ practices standing for mediumistic contacts to spirits. Describing sacrifi ces and highlighting the functional difference between the diverse sacrifi cial rites the paper hypothesizes that the ritual formula ‘aylanayyn’ is related to the archaic sacrifi ces which created a basis for the proto-religious cults. The article uses the data of ethnologists, cultural scientists including the poorly studied manuscript ‘Songs and Words of Bakshy’ by Togolok Moldo and the author’s field data.
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