Монголоведение (Dec 2021)
The Question of Religious Confession among Buryats in Ts. Zhamtsarano’s Works, 1900s
Abstract
The article aims to analyze the issue of Buryat religious views as discussed in the works of Ts. Zhamtsarano in the 1900s. The purpose of the study is to identify the specifics of Zhamtsarano’s approach in the formulation of the research issue. In particular, the article analyzes the impact of his scientific and social activities on the course of his creative thought, as well as compares his interpretation of Buryat religious movement with that of M. N. Bogdanov, one of outstanding researchers of Buryat history. To analyze the impact of his cultural-historical environment on Zhamtsarano’s views, it was necessary to examine the scholar’s diaries he kept at the time of his ethnographic expeditions in Buryatia in 1903–1906 in comparison with his published works of the same period. As a result, it was possible to identify his key positions on the issue of the Buryat religious movement in the early twentieth century. Conclusions. The analysis of Zhamtsarano’s works shows that the Buryat religious movement had a long history, with its ethnoterritorial features gradually being formed. The reason for its acceleration in the 1900s was that many Buryats at the time were largely dissatisfied with their dominant religion, hence their search for new forms of spirituality. According to Zhamtsarano, the general direction of this movement was towards cultural pan-mongolism; this conclusion was based on his own active involvement in the activities for the Buryat cultural renaissance. Also, the scholar saw the religious movement of the Buryats in the 1900s as part of the global trend for secularization of the enlightenment.
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