The gods of the ancient Circassians - referring to the gods of the Circassian (Adyghe) pantheon, compiled by descriptors of the XlX century, and systematized in the Soviet period in the works of A. Shortanov, M. Mizhaev and other authors on the model of the ancient Greek pantheon of gods.
Such a classification was often artificial in nature, as was the construction of cultural heroes of the Adyghe (Circassian) epos to the rank of “gods”.
This approach did not allow an objective study of the religion of the Circassians, in particular, the numerous references to the Adyghe monotheism were simply ignored.
However, another approach in the Soviet period was impossible, since it was based on the erroneous thesis of the founders of Marxism that the emergence of monotheism is possible only under the conditions of creating a centralized state.
It is interesting that the same A.Shortanov, on the one hand, while structuring Adyg polytheism, on the other hand, in one of his works, tried to explain the existence of Adég monotheism in the framework of Marxism-Leninism. Responding to Lavrov, he pointed out that the Adyghe monotheism can go back to the time of the existence of a single ancient Adyg centralized state of Sindik. However, Sindika was a local state entity, by territory and population significantly inferior even to medieval feudal Circassian principalities.
It seems obvious that the “explanation” of Adyg monotheism by Shortanov within the framework of Marxism could not be successful due to the fallacy of the obligatory connection postulated by Marxism between monotheism and the presence of a centralized state. It is known, for example, that the polytheism of Rome flourished during the time of the highest centralization of the Roman Empire, and the adoption of monotheistic (conditionally) Christianity coincided with its disintegration.
The fact of the existence of the most ancient, relict monotheism among the Circassians does not need a class explanation within the framework of Marxism-Leninism, and dates back to the time of the oldest Black Sea civilization that existed before the catastrophic rise in the level of the Black Sea, which turned this largest freshwater lake into a salty sea.
List of gods and their specialization, according to the descriptions of the XlX century and the Soviet period
Tha , Thashkho ( Thieshhue ) - Great God, demiurge , the originator.
List of Gods (minor) [1] -
Psathie - the god of the living, the life (the god of the soul)
Thegjalage - the god of fertility
Uashhue - the god of the sky
Soseris - god patron of plowmen . The Highlanders are waiting for its coming and celebrating it annually in December, at the same time as our Christmas holiday of Christ.
Achim - god patron of cattle. At a certain time, a cow is brought into a protected grove and a piece of bread and a piece of cheese are tied there to its horns. Nearby residents crowd her into the grove and slaughter there; she is called: akhinova cow, Ahin and Cheme tlerekuo.
Zekuuhethe is the patron god of the riders. He is called for help before raids and long-range raids.
Mezith - god patron of the forest. He is begged for a happy hunting success. Highlanders imagine him riding a boar, which has golden bristles. According to him, deer and elk gather in the forests and then the girls milk their females.
Emish - god patron of sheep.
Tlepsh - god patron of blacksmiths and medicine. Previously he lived with narts and helped them. He is highly respected by the people, so his name is pronounced and now in the form of an oath or deity. Above the wounded weapon, songs are sung that call for Tlepsh’s help to heal the suffering.
Heneguash is the "maiden of the waters of the sea."
Pseguash is the “maiden of the waters of the rivers.” She is resorted to with a prayer for rain, mostly in the spring.
Hateguash - "virgin patroness of the gardens."
Thorhumishh and Sheberis - are mentioned during a prayer, after Soseris . Since they are not ascribed any special qualities, it can be assumed that these are the essence of the minor deities of the retinue of Soseris or simply its applied names.
Khakustash - god patron of arable oxen. Natukhazhtsy and Shapsugs worship him as their genius keeper.
Kodes - mountaineers imagine him as a fish and ascribe to him the force that holds the sea within the coast.
Shchyble - god of thunderstorms. The Adygs considered the person killed by thunder to be "holy", who received a sign of heavenly favor, he was buried in the very place where he was killed. Even animals killed by thunder were also buried at the place of death. In 1842, Lyule, Leonty Yakovlevich was personally observed and later described in detail the rite of air burial , which was used by natukhais against three goats killed by thunder [1] .
Analysis
It should be noted that the "gods" of the Circassians (Circassians) are divided into two, fundamentally different groups:
1. Gods who have no image (Thassho, Ushokho, Psatha, Shible). 2. Anthropomorphic (human-like) creatures (Mazytha, Tlepsh, Thagalej, etc.)
This fact alone does not allow to build the Adyghe pantheon in accordance with the Greek, in which all the gods are essentially creatures of the same nature.
Recognizing this point, A. Shortanov whose works were basic to justify adygskogo polytheism, noted that true, are cosmogonic gods Circassians only four: Thashho (Theshhue) Psatha (Psathe) Uashho (Uaschhue) and Shible (Schyble).
The rest, according to Shortanov, are chthonic deities, to be more precise, cultural heroes, which, by the definition of Shortanov himself, are people. (Shortanov A., "Adyg mythology", N. 1982, p. 15).
By the way, A. Shortanov is a theater playwright, and did not set the task of describing the religion of the Circassians, limiting, following L.Lule, and others, the structuring of Circassian (Adyghe) mythology modeled on ancient Greek. This structuring was presented in the Soviet period as a religion of the Adygs of the pre-Christian period.
Meanwhile, it is obvious that cultural heroes are the characters of the heroic Circassian epos “Narts”, they are not gods, and even the death of some of them is described in the epos.
Some of the “gods” are direct borrowings from Greek mythology, some are borrowings from Christian mythology, some appeared by the will of researchers who borrowed them from the Circassian epos, others appeared at will by the researchers themselves (Gubzhegosh from A. Shortanova, etc.)
For example, Mazythie is the result of the evolution of the initially female mythological character Maz-guasche, and, of course, is not a god, like Psihue-guasche (the mythological patroness of rivers), etc. Zekuuethe - St. George borrowed from Christianity, the patron saint of travelers, etc.
Consider separately the "cosmogonic deities" (according to A. Shortanov): Thashkho (Thieshue), Psatha (Psathie), Shible (Shyble) and Ushkho (Ushkhue).
A rigorous analysis allows us to conclude that Thje, Thieshue (lit. Great Thie) is the only Adyge God.
Indeed, Psatha (Psathie) is a “Holy Spirit” borrowed from Christianity. He has no cult among the Circassians, and is mentioned only in one proverb. The episode about the presidency of Psathye in the wine drinking on Elbrus, contained in the book “Narts”, published in 1951 (edited by U. Gerandokov, H. Elberdov, A. Fokicheva, A. Shogentsukov, A. Shortanova) is not recorded in the archives and not has a confirmation, which is why falsification. In addition, the cosmogonic (by the same A. Shortanov) object was given anthropomorphic features. It is obvious that the compilers of the publication, at their own discretion, replaced the wine drinking (sanehuafé) of the narts with the wine drinking of the gods.
Shible (Shyble) - lightning (lit.), but not the "god of lightning." In particular, F. de Monpere noted that the Circassians did not have a thunderer god. The rituals that accompanied the burial of the one killed by lightning, testify not to the strength of the “god” of Shibla, but to the strength of the elements of lightning, and the human fear of this natural phenomenon. (The Circassian texts speak not about the “god Shibla”, but about “Shibla” - lightning).
Ushokho (Ushkhue) - the sky, the vault of heaven, and not some separate deity. The justification for attributing Ushkho to the gods is the oath “Ushkhue, myweshue k1ane!” (Blue Sky, a piece of blue stone (I swear)!) But, if we proceed from this, then on the same basis it is possible to conclude from the Russian “O heaven!” about the presence of the Russian god named "Heaven", while the English, for example, "heaven", by this logic, will also have to be considered an English god. The literal translation of the word Washo means Blue Sky. The oath "Ushkhue" is an oath by heaven, and not by a personified god.
In the Soviet period, an attempt was made to represent the god Thje by two gods - Thje and Thheshhue. Meanwhile, Thieshue literally means "Thie the Great", and an attempt to present Thje and Thheshue by the two gods is ridiculous in its essence. It is the same as on the basis of the Arabic "Allah" and "Allah-akbar" (lit. Allah the Great) to conclude that there are two gods: Allah and Allah-akbar. The absurdity of this approach is obvious.
Thus, returning chthonic "deities" to mythology, and objectively approaching the categories of Washo, Shibla and Psatha, it should be concluded that the only, real, cosmogonic Adygei god is Tha, Thiesho (Thje, Thieshue).
Notes
- ↑ 1 2 DUBROVIN N. CHERKESY (ADIGE). Military collection, No. 3.1870 Unsolved (inaccessible link) . The date of circulation is July 5, 2012. Archived March 26, 2013.