Tungus-Manchu peoples have animistic ideas at the heart of their worldview meaning that nature is alive and controlled by benevolent and malevolent spirits. These spirits live not only on the earth, but also in the sky and underground. Nature is meant as the sky, the taiga, weather, a spirit, a deity, etc. The people of Priamurye, Primorye, and Sakhalin called all of this bua; boa; buga – the Universe divided into three levels – the upper world or the world of the sky, the terrestrial or middle world, the lower world or underworld. There are masters in all three worlds who control life. The upper world is ruled by a master of the sky Enduri and his assistants – heavenly old woman and old man. Souls of unborn children, animals, and other living beings are under the jurisdiction of the old woman, and the old man deals with forces of nature – rain, flood, snow, wind, etc. The middle world is ruled by the masters of land. The master of the woods and mountains Onku was a head on the earth, and masters of all animals and birds were his assistants. Seas and rivers were under the jurisdiction of the master of sea Ganikhi and masters of each species of fish and sea animals. Khargi was the master of the underworld or the world of the dead, and ruled numerous evil spirits. All these masters of nature saw after human beings and obliged them to observe common law.
Key words: animism, nature, ceremonies, masters of nature, the upper world, the middle world, the underworld, benevolent spirits, malevolent spirits, people, culture
DOI: 10.22250/2072-8662.2017.3.25-32
About the author
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Anatoly F. Starcev – DSc (History), Head of the Department of Ethnography, Ethnology and Anthropology at the Institute of History, Archeology and Ethnography of the People of the Far East, Far Eastern Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences (Vladivostok); 89 Pushkinskaya st., Vladivostok, Russia, 690950; This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. |