Early Cultural Influences
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Influence of Geography
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The Mongols were by no means the first group of Central Asian conquerors; the Mongols may in fact arguably constitute the most significant of these nomadic groups. During the 13th and 14th centuries, the Mongols rose as the most powerful entity of the Central Asian Steppes, and began to build their empire. Through steady and immense conquest of established societies are in China, Persia, Russia, and even as far as Eastern Europe. By dawn of the 14th century, the Mongols built the largest empire the world has seen to this day, stretching from China in the east to Hungary in the west. Such aggressive expansion did not come without a price. In order to create complete the leadership in their territory, the Mongols employed exceedingly destructive means of imperial campaigns. Wandering warriors commonly demolished cities, killed common civilians, and attacked agricultural regions as they expanded. But despite all this destruction, the Mongols had a decisively positive overall effect on their empire. The unification of Eurasia facilitated peaceful interactions between societies, known as Pax Mongolica. Incorporation of cross-cultural communication and exchange on an enormous scale integrated the societies of the eastern hemisphere indefinitely. The traditional culture of the Mongols, though, was highlywandering. Early Mongols depended mainly on the herding of grazing animals due to the difficulty of supporting agriculture in the arid Central Asian Steppes. Since the Mongols were herders, they produced most of their basic necessities, from food to their yurts (or mobile shelters), using the byproducts of their livestock. But the restrictions of a mobile lifestyle hindered agriculture and settlement, driving the Mongols to create healthy trading relationships with their neighboring settled societies. Therefore, the Mongols fostered trade networks, including the Silk Road. The time of peaceful, secure, and abundant trade under the Mongols is oftentimes referred to as the Pax Mongolica. Wandering society was quite unique.
The social hierarchy was divided into two general groups, the nobles and the commoners. These class divisions were relatively fluid, with recognition as nobility being awarded upon display of skill in organizing tribal government. This system brought unification to a loose confederation of tribes and clans. Religion usually concentrated on shamans, or religious specialists possessing supernatural powers who could intervene with the affairs of the gods on behalf of the people. But the Mongolian’s liability toward commercial integration soon introduced new foreign religions. Buddhism, Nestorian Christianity, and especially Islam recruited a large number of changes. The highly successful Mongol Empire soon grew extremely vast due to the Mongols’ superior military organization and archery and cavalry skills. In fact, the empire grew so vast that only the initial unifier, Genghis Khan, was able to maintain a single empire. He accomplished this by first creating peaceful inter-clan alliances, and then by dissolving clan affiliation altogether. This allowed him to reformat his government and appoint leaders loyal to him. He also built the Mongol capital at Karakorum. But, after Genghis khan’s death, a struggle for power between his sons and grandsons swelled. In the end, the original Mongol empire was divided into four new empires: the Khans ruled the Great Khanate of China, the descendants of Chagatai ruled the Khanate of Chagatai, the Ilkhans ruled the Ilkhanate of Persia, and the Khans in Russia established the Golden Horde. All four empires held tense relations with each of the others, and they maintained close communication through political embassies. Another significant empire was the Mughal (Persian for "Mongol") Empire, not considered one of the four traditional Mongol Empires, but definitely affected by Mongol influence.
The final characteristic vital to the dynamics of the Mongol Empires is found in the Mongol policy of resettlement. Being nomadic people, the Mongols had a limited number of professional artisans or an educated class. This caused the Mongols to recruit these professionals and scholars from among their allies, the Uighur Turks, and from among the people that the Mongols conquered in their program of consolidation. Once those with specialized skills had been identified, they were sent throughout the empire to where they were needed. Though the Mongols made exceptionally effective conquerors, their skill at governance remained somewhat lacking, and most of their conquests fell out of their rule within a century. By the late 14th and 15th centuries, most of the Mongolian Empires had tumbled. Nevertheless, Mongol influence on Eurasian affairs continued as the Mongols challenged the Ming dynasty in China to defend their western borders while Turkish rule continued in India, central Asia, Anatolia, and Eastern Europe. For up to 100,000 years prior to the 6th century AD, the region now known as Mongolia was a perpetual battlefield populated by a collection of transient and constantly-warring nomadic tribes. While there were several attempts to invade the vastly wealthy China to the east, especially during the Iron Age, the tentative tribal alliances were always ultimately subdued by the Chinese throughout most of the pre-Empire history. This all began to change by 540, when a tribal alliance known as the Turks successfully overthrew their feudal rulers the Ruruan and became a significant military power throughout Inner Asia. Like the other tribes of the Mongolian plateau before them, the Turks eventually attempted an invasion of China, intrigued by the vast wealth of that country, and lured by the perceived weakness caused by decades of dynastic splintering.
The Turks were largely successful in their raids prior to 629, when China was unified under the Tang dynasty. By 648, the Turks had been beaten back and contained by the Tang, who succeeded in fragmenting the semi-unified Mongolia into two halves the Eastern half being largely ruled by the Chinese. By 744, the Turkic alliance had fully dissolved and Mongolia returned to being a veritable battleground of myriad warring tribes. The Chinese, fearful of another invasion by organized Mongols, cleverly manipulated the more powerful factions into warring with one another, hoping any ambition to conquer China would be stifled by domestic infighting. This political puppet show was maintained throughout the Tang dynasty, as well as throughout later dynasties for almost 500 years.
By the 12th century, the nomads of Mongolia had become organized into five major tribes: Mongols, Kereyds, Merkits, Naimans, and Tatars. A warlord in the Mongol tribe named Temujin would unify his tribe with the Kereyds thanks to his father's friendship with that faction's chieftain, Toghoril. Together, the Mongols and Kereyds conquered the three remaining tribes and unified all of Mongolia for the first time by 1205. The following year is regarded as the start of the Mongol Empire, as it saw the naming of Temujin as "Genghis Kahn," meaning universal ruler, and ushered in an age unheard of in the history of Mongolia up to that point. Genghis was a fair ruler whose policies showed that he valued loyalty above all else. He would always reward his most faithful servants with great responsibilty, rather than basing his decisions on caste, entitlement, or heredity. Many of those who rose to positions of authority undid Genghis' rule were not members of his family and often came from the lowest social ranks of Mongolian society. While his rule over Mongolia was absolute, Genghis' political structured showed a marked advance towards the non-feudal principles of democracy and socialism, with freedom of religion and tax credits towards the poor being cornerstones of his political ideology. In his 21 year reign up to his death in 1227, Genghis Kahn established Mongolia as an aggressive and significant military power throughout most of Asia, enjoying great military successes against China to the east as well as the Muslims to the west. While the Mongol Empire was created under Genghis, its greatest age of expansion came after his death, under the reign of his son, Ogedei Kahn. After a two years custodianship of the empire by his younger brother Tolui, Ogedei Kahn was named was named ruler of the Mongols. By the end of his reign, Ogedei would expand the Mongol Empire to the become the largest in world history. Ogedei continued the generous domestic policy practiced by his father, and sought to aggressively expand the Mongol sphere of influence. By 1241, the Mongol Empire had expanded as far east as the Korean peninsula, as far into the Arab world as Persia and was on the verge of conquering central Europe after a series of victories against the Poles, Teutons, and even the Holy Roman Empire. However, Ogedei died late in 1241 and his generals quickly withdrew from Europe in order to preserve order while a successor was chosen.
Empire has affected the world, and in depth look at the empires origin must be studied. The empire needed a strong leader that could guide his people into conquest and victory. This leader of the Mongol Empire was Genghis Khan. Genghis Khan did not originate as a powerful leader to start off with. His early life was one of insignificance. His life began in c. 1162 A.D. on the steppes of Mongolia. His birthplace was often placed in a Mongolian village named Bayan-Ovoo by locals. He was known as Temujin before given the name Genghis Khan. Mongolia at this time was an area of feuding nomadic tribes. Genghis gained his power by defeating these tribes. He did not allow enemies to live for the enemies might cause insurrection against him. Part of Genghis’ success came from his appointments of loyal subjects to high positions. The generals were usually his sons and picked men that were absolutely loyal to him. Genghis Khan did not allow tribal hierarchies to influence his army. The tribes of Kereyits, Merkits, and others were scattered among different military units. Command of military units was reserved to those who had been proven campaigners. Not only was Genghis Khan known for giving positions on basis of merit, he was also known for his tolerance of other religions. He did not persecute people for being Muslim, Buddhist, or even Christian. This can be seen in Genghis’ vision of his capital of Karakorum, which contained a Muslim mosque, a Buddhist temple, and probably a Christian church. Some more achievements of Genghis Khan include his capturing of Peking in 1215 and conquering of the Muslim empire of Khwarizmi in 1221. August 18, 1227 was the date set for Genghis Khan’s death. This significant event allowed for his sons and grandsons to rule the empire. They would soon expand the territory that Genghis was able to establish.
Another major figurehead in Mongol history is Kublai Khan. The Mongols always called him Setsen Khan, meaning the Wise Khan. It is under the rule of Kublai that Marco Polo spent about sixteen years in China. Kublai is praised by Marco Polo for the use of paper money. The Chinese actually invented paper money, but under the rule of Kublai money was made the medium of exchange. Under the leadership of Kublai Khan, China was unified. Along with the unification of China, Kublai was able to receive tribute from vassal states like Burma, Annam, and Champa in Indochina. Even though Kublai had successes in China and Indochina, he was not as successful in invading Japan. Throughout history, island nations like Japan and Britain have been hard to conquer. The Japanese were able to pull together their forces and fend off the Mongol forces.
The social hierarchy was divided into two general groups, the nobles and the commoners. These class divisions were relatively fluid, with recognition as nobility being awarded upon display of skill in organizing tribal government. This system brought unification to a loose confederation of tribes and clans. Religion usually concentrated on shamans, or religious specialists possessing supernatural powers who could intervene with the affairs of the gods on behalf of the people. But the Mongolian’s liability toward commercial integration soon introduced new foreign religions. Buddhism, Nestorian Christianity, and especially Islam recruited a large number of changes. The highly successful Mongol Empire soon grew extremely vast due to the Mongols’ superior military organization and archery and cavalry skills. In fact, the empire grew so vast that only the initial unifier, Genghis Khan, was able to maintain a single empire. He accomplished this by first creating peaceful inter-clan alliances, and then by dissolving clan affiliation altogether. This allowed him to reformat his government and appoint leaders loyal to him. He also built the Mongol capital at Karakorum. But, after Genghis khan’s death, a struggle for power between his sons and grandsons swelled. In the end, the original Mongol empire was divided into four new empires: the Khans ruled the Great Khanate of China, the descendants of Chagatai ruled the Khanate of Chagatai, the Ilkhans ruled the Ilkhanate of Persia, and the Khans in Russia established the Golden Horde. All four empires held tense relations with each of the others, and they maintained close communication through political embassies. Another significant empire was the Mughal (Persian for "Mongol") Empire, not considered one of the four traditional Mongol Empires, but definitely affected by Mongol influence.
The final characteristic vital to the dynamics of the Mongol Empires is found in the Mongol policy of resettlement. Being nomadic people, the Mongols had a limited number of professional artisans or an educated class. This caused the Mongols to recruit these professionals and scholars from among their allies, the Uighur Turks, and from among the people that the Mongols conquered in their program of consolidation. Once those with specialized skills had been identified, they were sent throughout the empire to where they were needed. Though the Mongols made exceptionally effective conquerors, their skill at governance remained somewhat lacking, and most of their conquests fell out of their rule within a century. By the late 14th and 15th centuries, most of the Mongolian Empires had tumbled. Nevertheless, Mongol influence on Eurasian affairs continued as the Mongols challenged the Ming dynasty in China to defend their western borders while Turkish rule continued in India, central Asia, Anatolia, and Eastern Europe. For up to 100,000 years prior to the 6th century AD, the region now known as Mongolia was a perpetual battlefield populated by a collection of transient and constantly-warring nomadic tribes. While there were several attempts to invade the vastly wealthy China to the east, especially during the Iron Age, the tentative tribal alliances were always ultimately subdued by the Chinese throughout most of the pre-Empire history. This all began to change by 540, when a tribal alliance known as the Turks successfully overthrew their feudal rulers the Ruruan and became a significant military power throughout Inner Asia. Like the other tribes of the Mongolian plateau before them, the Turks eventually attempted an invasion of China, intrigued by the vast wealth of that country, and lured by the perceived weakness caused by decades of dynastic splintering.
The Turks were largely successful in their raids prior to 629, when China was unified under the Tang dynasty. By 648, the Turks had been beaten back and contained by the Tang, who succeeded in fragmenting the semi-unified Mongolia into two halves the Eastern half being largely ruled by the Chinese. By 744, the Turkic alliance had fully dissolved and Mongolia returned to being a veritable battleground of myriad warring tribes. The Chinese, fearful of another invasion by organized Mongols, cleverly manipulated the more powerful factions into warring with one another, hoping any ambition to conquer China would be stifled by domestic infighting. This political puppet show was maintained throughout the Tang dynasty, as well as throughout later dynasties for almost 500 years.
By the 12th century, the nomads of Mongolia had become organized into five major tribes: Mongols, Kereyds, Merkits, Naimans, and Tatars. A warlord in the Mongol tribe named Temujin would unify his tribe with the Kereyds thanks to his father's friendship with that faction's chieftain, Toghoril. Together, the Mongols and Kereyds conquered the three remaining tribes and unified all of Mongolia for the first time by 1205. The following year is regarded as the start of the Mongol Empire, as it saw the naming of Temujin as "Genghis Kahn," meaning universal ruler, and ushered in an age unheard of in the history of Mongolia up to that point. Genghis was a fair ruler whose policies showed that he valued loyalty above all else. He would always reward his most faithful servants with great responsibilty, rather than basing his decisions on caste, entitlement, or heredity. Many of those who rose to positions of authority undid Genghis' rule were not members of his family and often came from the lowest social ranks of Mongolian society. While his rule over Mongolia was absolute, Genghis' political structured showed a marked advance towards the non-feudal principles of democracy and socialism, with freedom of religion and tax credits towards the poor being cornerstones of his political ideology. In his 21 year reign up to his death in 1227, Genghis Kahn established Mongolia as an aggressive and significant military power throughout most of Asia, enjoying great military successes against China to the east as well as the Muslims to the west. While the Mongol Empire was created under Genghis, its greatest age of expansion came after his death, under the reign of his son, Ogedei Kahn. After a two years custodianship of the empire by his younger brother Tolui, Ogedei Kahn was named was named ruler of the Mongols. By the end of his reign, Ogedei would expand the Mongol Empire to the become the largest in world history. Ogedei continued the generous domestic policy practiced by his father, and sought to aggressively expand the Mongol sphere of influence. By 1241, the Mongol Empire had expanded as far east as the Korean peninsula, as far into the Arab world as Persia and was on the verge of conquering central Europe after a series of victories against the Poles, Teutons, and even the Holy Roman Empire. However, Ogedei died late in 1241 and his generals quickly withdrew from Europe in order to preserve order while a successor was chosen.
Empire has affected the world, and in depth look at the empires origin must be studied. The empire needed a strong leader that could guide his people into conquest and victory. This leader of the Mongol Empire was Genghis Khan. Genghis Khan did not originate as a powerful leader to start off with. His early life was one of insignificance. His life began in c. 1162 A.D. on the steppes of Mongolia. His birthplace was often placed in a Mongolian village named Bayan-Ovoo by locals. He was known as Temujin before given the name Genghis Khan. Mongolia at this time was an area of feuding nomadic tribes. Genghis gained his power by defeating these tribes. He did not allow enemies to live for the enemies might cause insurrection against him. Part of Genghis’ success came from his appointments of loyal subjects to high positions. The generals were usually his sons and picked men that were absolutely loyal to him. Genghis Khan did not allow tribal hierarchies to influence his army. The tribes of Kereyits, Merkits, and others were scattered among different military units. Command of military units was reserved to those who had been proven campaigners. Not only was Genghis Khan known for giving positions on basis of merit, he was also known for his tolerance of other religions. He did not persecute people for being Muslim, Buddhist, or even Christian. This can be seen in Genghis’ vision of his capital of Karakorum, which contained a Muslim mosque, a Buddhist temple, and probably a Christian church. Some more achievements of Genghis Khan include his capturing of Peking in 1215 and conquering of the Muslim empire of Khwarizmi in 1221. August 18, 1227 was the date set for Genghis Khan’s death. This significant event allowed for his sons and grandsons to rule the empire. They would soon expand the territory that Genghis was able to establish.
Another major figurehead in Mongol history is Kublai Khan. The Mongols always called him Setsen Khan, meaning the Wise Khan. It is under the rule of Kublai that Marco Polo spent about sixteen years in China. Kublai is praised by Marco Polo for the use of paper money. The Chinese actually invented paper money, but under the rule of Kublai money was made the medium of exchange. Under the leadership of Kublai Khan, China was unified. Along with the unification of China, Kublai was able to receive tribute from vassal states like Burma, Annam, and Champa in Indochina. Even though Kublai had successes in China and Indochina, he was not as successful in invading Japan. Throughout history, island nations like Japan and Britain have been hard to conquer. The Japanese were able to pull together their forces and fend off the Mongol forces.
The Mongols
Architecture
The Avarga palace complex:
· Possibly the a palace of Genghis Khan
· Radio carbon dating says that the lowest level dates back to the late 12th-early 13th century
· Excavation shows three different buildings to the palace (upper building had stone walls. Lower had complex columns, below these two was an earlier structure)
· Was inhabited by Mongolian aristocrats and other nobles
· Was typically made up of wood and stone
· Palaces were protected by fortifications and canals of water that ran around it
Cities:
· Typically had walls surrounding them for protection against attack
· Some cities had watch towers on the wall but other didn’t
· The nobles of the city (or the khan’s palace) were placed near the side wall or the back of the area.
· The wall had two entrances (front and back)
· Built on flat ground with good soil
· It is not very common to live in a city, most people were nomadic
· Kara Koram was the capital city of the empire
· Most houses in the city were yurts of travels who were settled there for a while
· Had areas for nomads to set up camp
Not a lot of ancient Mongolian structures exist today because they were nomadic and usually set up camp rather than cities and palaces
Yurts:
· Made of felt or cloth and held up by wooden poles
· Held together and ties down with hair ropes
· Have been used for roughly the last 3000 years in central Asian countries
· The oldest accurate description of a yurt comes from Herodotus of Halicarnassus
· Used by nomads on the central Asian plateau
· Are round in shape but simpler ones are shaped more like a teepee
· The door always faces south to protect the inside from harsh north eastern wind from the Siberian steppes
· They are why Mongolians were sometimes referred to as “the felt people”
· The sun’s rays would come through a window at the top so inhabitants could tell the time (at exactly noon the sun is in the middle of the window)
· They are round so that the most amount of space possible can be used
· Groups of were arranged in a “hurree” or a circle. The elder lived in the middle
· They felt covering was decorated with lime juice or bone powder to make it glitter. Different colours of felt and drawings of plants and animals were also used
· It represented the universe. Roof represented the sky, smoke hole was the sun. The hearth held the 5 elements (fire earth water wood and metal). Fire also represented the house deity
Kara Koram:
· Was the capital city of the empire and played a monumental role in the development of settled Mongolian architecture
· Surrounded by a wall with 4 gates, each 3 miles apart
· Gates were used as places to sell and trade
· Features a 5 tier Buddhist temple built by Munkh Khan in 1256. Each tier had statues of deities and complex columns supporting it
· Also had the “silver tree” which was a fountain of a silver tree with snakes wrapped around it and 4 lions at its base. Each lion had a tube running from its mouth down underground were workers would funnel in fermented mares milk (for the north), wine(for the south), mead (for the European west) and rice beer (for the east) to represent the 4 parts of the empire
The Avarga palace complex:
· Possibly the a palace of Genghis Khan
· Radio carbon dating says that the lowest level dates back to the late 12th-early 13th century
· Excavation shows three different buildings to the palace (upper building had stone walls. Lower had complex columns, below these two was an earlier structure)
· Was inhabited by Mongolian aristocrats and other nobles
· Was typically made up of wood and stone
· Palaces were protected by fortifications and canals of water that ran around it
Cities:
· Typically had walls surrounding them for protection against attack
· Some cities had watch towers on the wall but other didn’t
· The nobles of the city (or the khan’s palace) were placed near the side wall or the back of the area.
· The wall had two entrances (front and back)
· Built on flat ground with good soil
· It is not very common to live in a city, most people were nomadic
· Kara Koram was the capital city of the empire
· Most houses in the city were yurts of travels who were settled there for a while
· Had areas for nomads to set up camp
Not a lot of ancient Mongolian structures exist today because they were nomadic and usually set up camp rather than cities and palaces
Yurts:
· Made of felt or cloth and held up by wooden poles
· Held together and ties down with hair ropes
· Have been used for roughly the last 3000 years in central Asian countries
· The oldest accurate description of a yurt comes from Herodotus of Halicarnassus
· Used by nomads on the central Asian plateau
· Are round in shape but simpler ones are shaped more like a teepee
· The door always faces south to protect the inside from harsh north eastern wind from the Siberian steppes
· They are why Mongolians were sometimes referred to as “the felt people”
· The sun’s rays would come through a window at the top so inhabitants could tell the time (at exactly noon the sun is in the middle of the window)
· They are round so that the most amount of space possible can be used
· Groups of were arranged in a “hurree” or a circle. The elder lived in the middle
· They felt covering was decorated with lime juice or bone powder to make it glitter. Different colours of felt and drawings of plants and animals were also used
· It represented the universe. Roof represented the sky, smoke hole was the sun. The hearth held the 5 elements (fire earth water wood and metal). Fire also represented the house deity
Kara Koram:
· Was the capital city of the empire and played a monumental role in the development of settled Mongolian architecture
· Surrounded by a wall with 4 gates, each 3 miles apart
· Gates were used as places to sell and trade
· Features a 5 tier Buddhist temple built by Munkh Khan in 1256. Each tier had statues of deities and complex columns supporting it
· Also had the “silver tree” which was a fountain of a silver tree with snakes wrapped around it and 4 lions at its base. Each lion had a tube running from its mouth down underground were workers would funnel in fermented mares milk (for the north), wine(for the south), mead (for the European west) and rice beer (for the east) to represent the 4 parts of the empire
Mongolian life
The home:
· The shine was always placed on he northern side, directly opposite the door
· The family yurt was the gift of the brides family
· When putting up a yurt, the poles are always brought to the inside of the circle through the door area. It is bad luck to drag the pole over where a wall will be
· The shine was always placed on he northern side, directly opposite the door
· The family yurt was the gift of the brides family
· When putting up a yurt, the poles are always brought to the inside of the circle through the door area. It is bad luck to drag the pole over where a wall will be
· The set up of a yurt’s inside is always the same men on the west and women on the east
· Servants, poor visitors, sick or young animals stay near the door
Mongolian etiquette
· A blue scarf is the best gift anyone can be honored with
· Anyone who visits or is stopped outside the yurt is always offered a meal, a sheep is slaughtered for a feast
· It is extremely rude to stop on the threshold or hold onto the ropes while entering
· Visitors ask 4 questions as a greeting; “are you well, is your family well, are your livestock fat, and is your grass good?”
· The guest carves and serves the meat at a meal
· When offered vodka or any drink always flick a little at the sky, the earth and the wind for luck
· Never point your feet at the fire
· Never throw garbage in the fire
· Never bring weapons into the yurt
· Never sit with your back to the alter
· Never step over an elder
· Always accept offered food (even just a little)
· When offering or passing a knife to someone always offer the handle not the blade
· Hold a cup by the bottom not the rim
· Always mount and dismount horses from the left side
· NEVER touch someone’s hat or feet. If you do apologize and shake hands immediately
· Anyone who doesn’t share what he has with a guest is considered greedy and lower than an animal
Family life
· Children are taught from an early age to respect elders and nature, and how to behave. Behaviour and disciple plays a huge role in the mongol lifestyle
· Mongol family consisted of a mother, father and their young children
· Sons would move out to find brides but stay close to the family and group to find pastures for their livestock
· Most families were only semi nomadic so they moved but not as much as single or married Mongols
· The husband is the head of the house but when making decisions involving the well being of the family the wife is consulted. His role is to protect and provide ofr his family as well as to make sure they are happy
· Any gifts given to the couple on their wedding day are now belongings of the wife
· The groom come to the brides yurt with the ceremonial silk scarf to present to the parents of the bride. The brides relatives playfully refuse the groom entering. The same is done at the grooms house with the bride presenting the scarf
· Upbringing and education were thought of as key for children
· When a woman is pregnant it is forbidden to frighten her, upset her or make her do any hard work to make sure the child is safe
· Children were taught stories and riddles about how to behave. Good behaviour meant reward whereas the bad were punished
· Boys helped their fathers herd animals and girls helped their mothers milk cows and mares
· Servants, poor visitors, sick or young animals stay near the door
Mongolian etiquette
· A blue scarf is the best gift anyone can be honored with
· Anyone who visits or is stopped outside the yurt is always offered a meal, a sheep is slaughtered for a feast
· It is extremely rude to stop on the threshold or hold onto the ropes while entering
· Visitors ask 4 questions as a greeting; “are you well, is your family well, are your livestock fat, and is your grass good?”
· The guest carves and serves the meat at a meal
· When offered vodka or any drink always flick a little at the sky, the earth and the wind for luck
· Never point your feet at the fire
· Never throw garbage in the fire
· Never bring weapons into the yurt
· Never sit with your back to the alter
· Never step over an elder
· Always accept offered food (even just a little)
· When offering or passing a knife to someone always offer the handle not the blade
· Hold a cup by the bottom not the rim
· Always mount and dismount horses from the left side
· NEVER touch someone’s hat or feet. If you do apologize and shake hands immediately
· Anyone who doesn’t share what he has with a guest is considered greedy and lower than an animal
Family life
· Children are taught from an early age to respect elders and nature, and how to behave. Behaviour and disciple plays a huge role in the mongol lifestyle
· Mongol family consisted of a mother, father and their young children
· Sons would move out to find brides but stay close to the family and group to find pastures for their livestock
· Most families were only semi nomadic so they moved but not as much as single or married Mongols
· The husband is the head of the house but when making decisions involving the well being of the family the wife is consulted. His role is to protect and provide ofr his family as well as to make sure they are happy
· Any gifts given to the couple on their wedding day are now belongings of the wife
· The groom come to the brides yurt with the ceremonial silk scarf to present to the parents of the bride. The brides relatives playfully refuse the groom entering. The same is done at the grooms house with the bride presenting the scarf
· Upbringing and education were thought of as key for children
· When a woman is pregnant it is forbidden to frighten her, upset her or make her do any hard work to make sure the child is safe
· Children were taught stories and riddles about how to behave. Good behaviour meant reward whereas the bad were punished
· Boys helped their fathers herd animals and girls helped their mothers milk cows and mares
Pass times
· Mongolians loved to wrestle. There were no weight divisions so basically the biggest guy won. Boys spent a lot of their time wrestling each other for fun
· A wrestling uniform is called a zodog shuuag. It is briefs with a tight jacket that only covers the arms and shoulders
· The myth behind why the front is open is because wrestling is a male sport and many years ago there was a wrestler who was the best but then it was discovered she was a woman. That is why the front is open.
· Horse riding was also taught at a young age. It was entertaining but also helped herd livestock and move the yurts
· Boys and girls ages 5-13 participated in horse races often. They always mounted on the left side, stood on the stirrups while the horse galloped to avoid a bumpy ride, and said “choo” to make the horse go
· Stories and riddles were used to teach proper behaviour but also to pass time and entertain children and guests
· Example of story: A mother had her five sons sit by her because they were argueing among one another. She gave them each an arrow and told them to break it. The boys easily broke the one given to them. After that, the mother gathered the five arrows together and had the boys try to break them. One by one, the boys tried to break the cluster of arrow but were not able to. The mother then said " You all have the same mother, just like you were able to easily break one arrow, if you go separately, you do will be defeated. But like the cluster of arrows, if you are together, you will not easily be defeated".
· Played games with the bones of animals
· One game involves gathering a pile of bones, roughly 20 and to sort through it for the ankle bones. The one who finds the most wins
· A wrestling uniform is called a zodog shuuag. It is briefs with a tight jacket that only covers the arms and shoulders
· The myth behind why the front is open is because wrestling is a male sport and many years ago there was a wrestler who was the best but then it was discovered she was a woman. That is why the front is open.
· Horse riding was also taught at a young age. It was entertaining but also helped herd livestock and move the yurts
· Boys and girls ages 5-13 participated in horse races often. They always mounted on the left side, stood on the stirrups while the horse galloped to avoid a bumpy ride, and said “choo” to make the horse go
· Stories and riddles were used to teach proper behaviour but also to pass time and entertain children and guests
· Example of story: A mother had her five sons sit by her because they were argueing among one another. She gave them each an arrow and told them to break it. The boys easily broke the one given to them. After that, the mother gathered the five arrows together and had the boys try to break them. One by one, the boys tried to break the cluster of arrow but were not able to. The mother then said " You all have the same mother, just like you were able to easily break one arrow, if you go separately, you do will be defeated. But like the cluster of arrows, if you are together, you will not easily be defeated".
· Played games with the bones of animals
· One game involves gathering a pile of bones, roughly 20 and to sort through it for the ankle bones. The one who finds the most wins
Medicine
· Many medical techniques were adopted from the Chinese and Indians as well as the Persians
· They used Indian ayurvedic as a foundation for their medical work
· They created natural medical therapies based on their environment and lifestyle. Plants were a key part
· Emchis were Mongolian doctors
· Mongolian doctors used mineral bath therapy, bloodletting, acupuncture, diet therapy, hot sand therapy, mud therapy and moxibustion therapy (using heated or burnt mugwort in healing)
· Blood letting was used to prevent the blood from getting “too hot” which caused diseases like plague, edema, tuberculosis, gout and abdominal distension
· Moxibustion was when mugwort was burned over acupuncture points to relive pain and illness
· They used hydrotherapy to cure stomach problems
· Koumiss (fermented mare’s milk) was a dietary treatment used to cure heart/chest pain and to restore strength
· They believed the human body had 7 major components, food,blood, muscle, fat, bone, marrow and sperm
· Medicine also focused on balancing the body spiritually. They thought certain plants and minerals could bring man closer to nature
· Bariachis were bone setters
· Dom is the tradition of house hold superstitious cures. Similar to yoga breathing techniques, they thought controlling the breath could cure psychological and physical illnesses
· Many medical techniques were adopted from the Chinese and Indians as well as the Persians
· They used Indian ayurvedic as a foundation for their medical work
· They created natural medical therapies based on their environment and lifestyle. Plants were a key part
· Emchis were Mongolian doctors
· Mongolian doctors used mineral bath therapy, bloodletting, acupuncture, diet therapy, hot sand therapy, mud therapy and moxibustion therapy (using heated or burnt mugwort in healing)
· Blood letting was used to prevent the blood from getting “too hot” which caused diseases like plague, edema, tuberculosis, gout and abdominal distension
· Moxibustion was when mugwort was burned over acupuncture points to relive pain and illness
· They used hydrotherapy to cure stomach problems
· Koumiss (fermented mare’s milk) was a dietary treatment used to cure heart/chest pain and to restore strength
· They believed the human body had 7 major components, food,blood, muscle, fat, bone, marrow and sperm
· Medicine also focused on balancing the body spiritually. They thought certain plants and minerals could bring man closer to nature
· Bariachis were bone setters
· Dom is the tradition of house hold superstitious cures. Similar to yoga breathing techniques, they thought controlling the breath could cure psychological and physical illnesses