Publication details
Altain Urianhain gegeen huvilgaadiin tuhai tuühiin aman ulamjlaliin ögüülehüi ni
| Title in English | Reincarnated Lamas of the Altai Uriankhais in the Local Oral Tradition |
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| Year of publication | 2022 |
| Type | Chapter of a book |
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| Description | The oral tradition of the Altai Uriankhais in Western Mongolia and in Xinjiang deals frequently with memories of extraordinary powerful reincarnate lamas (xuwilgaan, gegeen), even though the region has never had any tulku officially acknowledged by the Qing government. The oral tradition claims existence of incarnated lamas, as well as a close relationship with non-Uriankhai reincarnations of greater importance (Narobanchen, Tsagaan gegeen). Almost absent in archival sources, the Uriankhai reincarnated lamas of the past play an important role in the local memory as personalities generating fortune for future generations. This article focuses on the Altai Uriankhai Right Banner (present-day Bulgan district, Bayan-Ölgii province, Mönkhkhairkhan district in Khowd province, Chingel in Xinjiang) and has two objectives. In its first part it attempts to compare and organize highly fragmentary information from the oral tradition and scarcely preserved archival sources. It can serve as an example of the use of oral tradition as a source for writing Mongolian local history. The second part analyses oral narratives about the reincarnated lamas according to their structure and meaning for the community. It offers a reflexion of the Oirat popular understanding of the tulku phenomenon. |
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