The epic shows that the traditional occupation of Buryats was hunting, then cattlebreeding. Battles with epical personages that were quite often the embodiments of powerful natural forces, for example with Gal-Nurman who personified the prime element of the Fire played a big part in the life of protoburyats. Before the description of the battle the rhapsodes gave a detailed account of clothes, weapon and armour of the heroes. A good place in the life of people was given to tournaments, for example when match-making. After a successful match-making they had a big feast, which lasted nine days, on the tenth day guests went home.When people met they had a long friendly talk so that “foam came out on the water, grass grew on the stone”. The epic gives a detailed description of the dwelings of Buryats, i.e. straw-huts, yurts, wooden and stone houses which evidences of the evolution of the epic itself. This all is the background against which the epical scenes are laid. From them one can draw some knowledge concerning the habbits, customs and traditions of the Mongolian peoples, particularly of the Buryats.
Early in the morning they get up, they are not in the habbit of staying in bed for long, a lot of work to be done is usually ahead. Their bedding is very soft, sometimes of the fur of sable, they compare it with the lungs of animals. All that is soft, nice, luxurious is associated on the physical level with the lungs of animals. Then they have their tea, when eating they discuss their home affairs and news.
Some personages of the epic are in the habbit of smoking which might be taken as a cult ritual, i.e. offering the smoke of tobacco to the deities (tengris) as donation.
Each variant of the epopee has its own peculiarities, it reflects the evolution of the epos which proceeded along with the development of community which it narrates about. The higher is the social development, the more rich and artistic is the epic, its composition, language and style. Given in the text are many habbits and customs which survived or are somewhat forgotten. The guests were invited to get seated in the western or right-hand side of the yurt which was believed to be the most honorary place in the dwelling, its door being on the southern part. This is accounted for by the following reason. There was a dynamic balance between the dual natural oppositions, i.e. between the right and left, the anterior (front) and posterior (rear, back) side of space, male and female half of community, the good and the evil, strength and weakness, white and black, etc. The front or anterior right-hand space orientations were regarded as male, light, active, positive whereas the back (rear) or posterior, left-hand space orientations were considered to be female, dark, passive, negative. The yurt was divided into the right-hand (male) and left-hand (female) halves, men took seats in the right-hand side, women on the left-hand side; men sat with their left leg bent under whereas women sat with their right leg bent under. The glass with drink, gifts were given with the right hand and all the meaningful gestures were made with the right hand. In the epic they invite guests : “Please, get seated higher” which means to take seats in the right-hand side of the dwelling, i.e. in the honorary place.
The people in the epic address each other ceremoniously, with the highest esteem. They are friendly, hospitable, treat guests to whatever is good in their home. Buryats are very careful about their household, their home. They open the door, step over the threshold and go out onto the porch with such a carefulness that the epical description of those actions grows into a wholesome visual picture. This is an evidence of their greatest respect towards their home.
In the old days as well as not infrequently nowadays there was a tradition of respectful attitude towards man (a male person) as embodiment of all that is positive, personification of head of kinsfolk, therefore it was strictly forbidden to step over a man or his belt, sash. This is depicted in the epic when one of the girls reproaches her girl-friends because they stepped over a sleeping old man. She says: “You stepped over an old man, thus you broke the womens custom” and herself goes round him. When devils - albins were going to harm Geser they stepped nine times over the food they had prepared for him. There was also a strict regulation not to bring home meat at night for it was fraught with negative consequences. This might be related to the prohibition to kill wild animals at night for one could miss and hit, say, a she-deer or a she-goat or just simply mistake them for a male-animal in darkness.
A good talk was of importance. They talked with respect and dignity, without haste and interruptions, carefully selecting the right words. They went to see each other, to have a hearty talk. Buryats always kept a good meal for the guest.
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| Birth of Geser |
The personages of the epic treat their horse as a true friend and devoted companion. They take care of it. They get mounted on the horse with exacting movements as if completing a kind of ritual. In case one makes some mistake or is guilty there is no excuse. He is heavily punished as he deserves. Buryats are very tender towards their children. If a family did not have children Buryats were greatly sorry for such people and sympathetic with them. They did want them to have at least one child to continue lineage. Thus if a family with no children asked for one they were never refused. Families with many children gave one of their sons or daughters to a childless family, they did it with no regret for they were quite sure that their child would grow up in good conditions. The two families kept good relations and were respectful towards each other. Sometimes a child was given to kinsfolks if his/her parents were not well-to-do and had no opportunity to provide it with all needed. Thus there were no orphans or beggars.
Buryats were hardworking people, there are a lot of proofs to it in the epical verses. They treated their routine work with great diligence. The epic says that the worth of man is in his doings, the worth of woman is in her sewing. There are many passages in the epic devoted to the description great satisfaction of the job done, success in deeds. Good attitude to ones work and duties was inseparable from Buryats since childhood. Life itself prompted them to be hardworkers, otherwise they would not survive. Buryats wanted their children to be modest enough and restrained. They taught them not to shout out, not to cry out his/her mind when not asked to, not to talk too quickly as if saying a tongue-twister. They taught young people to be dignified and solid.
They were ecologically-minded, loved their native place and took care of it. The epic narrates of Loir Khara Lobsogoldoi, Gesers enemy. He is embodiment of such prime element as water. Having defeated Lobsogoldoi Geser tells not to kill him for otherwise the vegetation would not grow without water. One can understand that he did that because he was devoted to his home land, he was anxious that the Nature should flourish.
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| Yokhor |
The epic describes different ways of burying the dead. It says that after death the eyes of the dead should be closed, his hands should be pressed to the body, legs straightened up or else it will be no luck to his descendants. They put on good clothes on the dead, made a kind of drag harrow, saddled a horse and drew him onto an opening in the forest, made fire on four sides of the dead and burned.
The epic describes different ways of burying the dead. It says that after death the eyes of the dead should be closed, his hands should be pressed to the body, legs straightened up or else it will be no luck to his descendants. They put on good clothes on the dead, made a kind of drag harrow, saddled a horse and drew him onto an opening in the forest, made fire on four sides of the dead and burned.
The epic describes different ways of burying the dead. It says that after death the eyes of the dead should be closed, his hands should be pressed to the body, legs straightened up or else it will be no luck to his descendants. They put on good clothes on the dead, made a kind of drag harrow, saddled a horse and drew him onto an opening in the forest, made fire on four sides of the dead and burned.
All habbits, customs and traditions of the Buryat people are generous, benevolent. They disapprove of unworthy deeds, but careful towards children, loving towards native land and nature.
Naturally there is no marked development of images in epic. Characters are either positive or negative. But scrupulous analysis shows that it is not quite so. Not all negative characters are bearers of the evil, they had evolved from neutral or rather positive images.
Now our attention is focused on the main character. We are far from the idea of giving his “life-size” portrait, we are just presenting what the epic preserved in itself. The whole narration is concentrated around the main personage, i.e. Geser.
Having analyzed the situation Geser usually takes up the most complicated problems to solve, he is sufficiently confident of himself. Geser respects the elder people, obeys the decisions of the council of Tengris, he is tolerant of some of their mistakes and weakness. In spite of his divine origin Geser is humane, he does not like the idea of being singled out, rather he would live the way other people do, though he never forgets about his true designation.
Geser is a magician possessing supersensitive abilities but he never boasts of it. He is the symbol of beauty as the epic dictates, all that is positive should be beautiful, all that is negative should be ugly.
The people like and respect Geser. He is industrious, possesses good skills of practical life, he is above all a good warrior. Geser is open-handed and good-hearted, he is just and follows his principles. He is at the same a healer. He can also control natural atmospheric phenomena.
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| Birth of Geser |
Geser is one of the sons of Khormusta tengri, residing in the Heavens, the highest sphere of the Universe. When there came the time of trouble and misfortune upon the Earth he was designed to descend to the Middle sphere (the Earth) to struggle against the evil and complete his mission of salvation of people. He was born on the Earth an ugly child, this is accounted for by the necessity to survive, it was kind of protection against the evil forces, the spirits and the like. When he was a child one of his names was Bukhe-Beligte (strong and gifted). Since childhood he was noted for his unusual gifts. He committed good deeds, displaying magic abilities which helped him in doing good things. When he grows up he turns into a strong, well-built, handsome bator.
Three cosmic spheres are in his power. His origin is in the sky, among divinities. He lives on the Earth. He goes down to Water kingdom which is associated with subterra or hell, he establishes ties with its Lord having married his daughter.
He performs his deeds for the sake of people, for their well-being and happiness.
