Sur marie

The central place in the Mari historical epos is occupied by the legend of the horned prince Sur mari, who owned lands from Shurma to Malmyzh along the Vyatka River. Sur Mari appears to be a very controversial figure: on the one hand, he acts as the liberator of the Mari people from foreign oppression, the keeper of religious traditions, the founder of the state and social institutions inherent in it, such as the princely council, the court, etc., on the other, he acts as an oppressor own people, a demonic creature who drinks the blood of infants (or devours their hearts) to extend their own lives (cf. the motive for infanticide in the legend of King Arthur).

Observing the difficult life of the people, Sur Mari calls on the tribal leaders to gather people and follow him. Under the leadership of Sur Mari, “to the roar of drums and the howling of bagpipes”, the Mari sail in boats up the Kama, then along the Vyatka and, finally, settle on the Shurminsky land. There Sur Mari, having planted a horn found by someone on his headdress (Mar. “Sur”, horn <praf.ug. * sarwe), proclaims himself a great leader, prince and head of the military squad (here the horn appears as some kind of mythical source tsarist authority (cf. the golden duck in the underground of Oshviyan’s dwelling, the beard of Prince Belaya Beard - one of the leaders of the Vetluzhsky Kugugstvo, according to the Chronicler of the Soligalichsky Monastery, which existed in the 12th – 13th centuries in the Upper Povletzhya). It establishes the celebration of Kugo Keche, Friday, cults of the main deities and convenes the princely council, kud , on the rights of younger princes, includes the so-called izi kugyzhan'vlak, governor-leaders (among them Nemda, Kuguen - Chumbylat, Espoldo, etc.). Once a year, three days before the Protection, Sur mari judges people. himself, his advisers, dress up in animal masks (the name of this day is Lynx Day). The order established by the leader is typically feudal: the prince collects tribute from subservient tribes, and also enjoys the right of the wedding night (analogues to this custom were not only in the Kazan Khanate, but also in the medieval states of Western Europe, for example , in Spain). When marrying, the young man was obliged to bring his bride to Sur Mari for three days, otherwise he would be severely punished. The firstborn born from such a marriage was also given to Sur Mari. According to the custom established by the prince, his mother herself had to bring him and hand Sur Mari along with a ritual cake. Sur mari pierced the baby’s heart with a knife, drank his blood, and put his soul in a purse hanging on his stomach, under his clothes. Like other Mari heroes, Sur Mari has cross-country skis from the whistling maple. With these skis, he manages to go fishing and bring fish for fish soup faster than boiling water in the boiler. Angry with the cruelty of the prince, a resident of Bilyamor, they catch Sur Mari to punish him, but he breaks free and runs away from them on a whistling ski. However, returning home, Sur Mari sees that in his absence the house was ransacked, and his wife was overwhelmed with a hot broom. Having caught up with the offenders, Sur Mari knocks hats off with one arrow, nailed to a tree. He easily catches enemy arrows, after which he beats the Bilamorites. The insulted wife of Sur Mari soon dies, leaving a little daughter named Unaviy (Uviy). After the death of his wife, Sur Mari begins to oppress his people even more, taking away children under the age of ten. In the end, one woman, the mother of Oshmazik - Akmazik, dares to deceive Sur Mari. She prepares a ritual cake on her own breast milk, after tasting which Sur Mari becomes Oshmazik's milk brother. After this, the prince ceases to kill the first-born, and Oshmazika keeps with him as his adopted son. When Oshmazik grows up, he falls in love with Unaviy. However, Sur Mari is going to marry her daughter to eighty-year-old Nemda, or Chumbylat. Then Unaviy persuades Oshmazik to kill Sur Mari. She drowns a bath for her father, Sur Mari undresses in the dressing room, leaving a purse with baby showers under her clothes. Oshmazik steals the wallet and Sur Mari dies. Oshmazik arranges a magnificent funeral for the old prince and, becoming the new leader of the Mari, cancels the cruel customs established by his predecessor.

• Mari folklore. Myths, legends, traditions. / Comp., Comments Aktsorin V.A. Yoshkar-Ola, 1991.
• Muravyov V. Horned Prince Tukan-Mari. Mari legend. / Echo. Traditions, legends, legends, fairy tales. Moscow, 1976.
• Dictionary of Mari mythology. Volume 1. Gods, spirits, heroes. / Author-comp. Sitnikov K.I. Yoshkar-Ola, 2006.

• Tradition about the cruel prince Tukan Shura and his named brother Akmazik. Literary Processing Konstantin Sitnikov