TENGRIISM

'Tengriism' ('Tengerism', 'Tengrianism', 'Tengrianizm') was the ancient belief of the Turkic peoples and Mongols before the vast majority joined the established world religions. It focuses around the sky deity 'Tengri' (also 'Tangri', 'Tangra', etc.) and incorporates elements of shamanism, animism, totemism, ancestor worship and certain elements of Chinese cosmology. In modern Turkey Tengriism is sometimes called as ''Göktanrı'' religion by some scholars. Even though there is insufficient research, Tengriism is thought to heavily influence the Alevi belief system.
In Tengriism, the Meaning of life is seen as living in harmony with the surrounding world. Tengriist believers view their existence as sustained by the ''eternal blue Sky'', Tengri, the ''fertile Mother-Earth'', Eje, and a ruler who is regarded as the holy ''Son of the Sky''. Heaven, Earth, the spirits of nature and the ancestors provide every need and protect all humans. By living an upright and respectful life, a human being will keep his world in balance and maximize his personal power ''windhorse''. Shamans play an important role in restoring balance when it is thrown off by disaster or spirit interference.
It is likely that Tengriism was the religion of the Huns, Eurasian Avars, early Hungarians, and of the early Bulgars who brought it to Europe.[3]. It is still actively practised in Sakha, Buryatia, Tuva, and Mongolia, in parallel with Tibetan Buddhism and Burkhanism.

Contents

Historical background

Religious concept

Religion, spiritualism, and prejudices

Tengriism in Europe

References

External links

Historical background

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Ancient and Early Middle Ages writers report of a number of revolts caused by attempts to supplant or overthrow the traditional religion. One was reported in the Scythia Minor in the Crimea, when the Scythian nobles learned about their king's inclination toward Greek culture. Another revolt in the 682 CE, reported in the Armenian sources, was caused by the elteber of the Dagestani Huns, Alp Ilitver, conversion to Christianity following prozelitizing mission by the Albanian bishop Israel. In that case, Alp Ilitver succeded in demolishing sacred trees, destroying kurgan statuary, ruining sacral chappels, and suppressing the popular revolt. It was also reported that at the court of the Khazar Kagan, who was ethnically a Khazar, the power belonged to the Bulgar nobles, who maintained their traditional Tengriism and forcefully resisted any attempts to introduce Christianity, Judaism or Islam as a state religion, to the point of secession.

Religious concept

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Religion, spiritualism, and prejudices

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Tengriism in Europe

Tengriism was brought to Eastern Europe by nomadic tribes migrating or invading from the central asian steppes. The faith was very closely connected to the nomadic lifestyle, so that in most cases people changed their religion after turning sedentary.
The Danube Bulgars called the sky god ''Tangra''.^[1]
They named a large mountain in the Rila mountain range of Bulgaria after him, only in the 15th century it was renamed to Musala (''Mountain of Allah'') by the Ottomans.
There are few occurrences of the name in documents related to Bulgaria. One is in a late Turkish manuscript listing the names of the supreme god in different languages, which has "Tangra" for Bulgarian.^[2] Others are in runic rock inscriptions bearing the name, and in a severely damaged Greek language inscription from the times of Danube Bulgarian paganism at Perperikon.
The name was also found on a column near Madara, Bulgaria, which is believed to have been used as an altar stone. The inscription has been interpreted as saying "(Kanasubig)i Omu(rtag), ruler (from God), was ... and sacri(ficed to go)d Tangra ...(some Bulgar titles follow)."^[3]
Tengriism disappeared in the region after the adoption of Christianity in the Danubian Bulgaria by Tsar Boris I in 865 CE (and, presumably, with the adoption of Islam in Volga Bulgaria in the 10th century)

References

1. Tangrist sanctuaries
2. promacedonia.com
3. The "Tangra" inscription near Madara


★ Brent, Peter. ''The Mongol Empire: Genghis Khan: His Triumph and his Legacy''. Book Club Associates, London. 1976.

External links

★ Circle of Tengerism: an organization dedicated to the preservation of Siberian and Mongolian shaman traditions

★ Excerpt from ''Tengrianizm: Religion of Turks and Mongols'', by Rafael Bezertinov

★ Shamanism (Tengerism) in Mongolia

★ Julie Stewart's course in Mongolian shamanism--introduction

★ Bog je Jedan blog: Avar Tengrism in Croatia