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Mongolian literature is literature written inMongolia and/or in theMongolian language. It was greatly influenced by and evolved from its nomadicoral storytelling traditions,[1] and it originated in the13th century.[2] The "three peaks" of Mongol literature,The Secret History of the Mongols,Epic of King Gesar andEpic of Jangar,[3] all reflect theage-long tradition of heroic epics on theEurasian Steppe. Mongol literature has also been a reflection of the society of the given time, its level of political, economic and social development as well as leading intellectual trends.
The ancestors of the Mongolic peoples are the Bronze-Iron AgeDonghu (630 BC-209 BC) mentioned in theRecords of the Grand Historian ofSima Qian as bordering north ofYan. Their culture was basically nomadic and thus could have included the regular singing of heroicepics to the accompaniment of early forms ofxiqin anddombra. This could have been part of a largeroral tradition that included myths, wisdom sayings andüliger not much different from present Mongol examples. TheXianbei (209 BCE-4th century CE), descendants of the Donghu, were said to have had a runic-like script for writing on strips of wood. A 3rd century CE Xianbei song called theSong of the Xianbei Brother has been preserved in Chinese translation. Many Mongolic words from theTuoba era (386-534) have come down to us in Chinese transcription, such as huolan (many), wulian (cloud), ezhen (owner), akan (brother), shilou (mountain), china (wolf), kuopuochen (to hedge), tuopuochen (sole of foot) and tawusun (dust). However, these are all fragmentary and no substantial written materials from the Tuobo have been discovered yet that would deserve the name "literature".
TheKhitan of theLiao (907-1125) had two scripts, thelarge andsmall scripts, invented in the 920s. Compared to the other Xianbei Mongolic peoples they have left a relatively more substantial amount of written material, including lengthy inscriptions found on rocks and in tombs, that are currently being deciphered and researched. It is thought that theOld Uyghur alphabet, derived from theSyriac alphabet, was still used byNestorians and Buddhists within the major tribes of Mongolia until the time ofGenghis Khan although no work has survived.
Among the earliest preserved texts in Mongolic are theInscription of Hüis Tolgoi and possibly theBugut inscription. The latter was discovered in theIkh-Tamir sum ofArkhangai Province,Mongolia. Dated to 584 CE, it is a multi-lingual inscription, with inscriptions inSogdian (alingua franca at the time) written in theSogdian alphabet on the front, right, and left sides, and an inscription likely written inRouran in theBrahimi script on the back side. TheInscription of Hüis Tolgoi is a monolingual inscription in a Mongolic language. Dated to between the 5th and 7th centuries, the Mongolic language used is much closer to "mainstream Mongolic languages," likeMiddle Mongolian and the extantMongolic languages, than to the more southern Khitan language. It might have Buddhist overtones, and the author, patron and subject are unknown.[4]
This period starts with the adoption in 1204 of the Uyghur-basedMongolian script as the official script of Genghis Khan's emergingMongol Empire. The Mongol works that survive from this period reflect the prosperity and diversity of the global empire linked together by an efficient communications system. Yet they represent only a fraction of what would have existed then, since the majority of the works from this period has either not been found or has been destroyed amid the convulsions following the fall of the empire. Examples of lost works include the "Altan Debter", "Ikh Tovchoo" and "GreatYassa".
Significant works and writings in Mongol language from this period include:
The legal writings of Mongolia in the form of edicts, decrees, and laws are generally written in a special type of formulaic language. They might be termed legal literature.
The Secret History of the Mongols, originally written in the Mongol script, is considered the foundational classic of Mongol literature. In addition to its prose sections, theSecret History contains many sections of poetry. "The Wisdom of Genghis", "The Defeat of the 300 Taijuud by Genghis Khan" and "The Wise Debate of the Orphan Boy with the Nine Generals of Genghis" are considered works of the 14th century that were later copied into historical chronicles of the 17th century.
The Parchment writings of the Golden Horde contain poems expressing the longings of a mother and her far-away son (a soldier) for each other. It is a unique remnant of literature of the common people.
In the early 14th century, a Mongol prince of Yunnan completed an intimate confession and a document regarding his donation to the Buddhists. Around this time, the ConfucianXiaojing ("Classic of Filial Piety") was translated from Chinese into Mongolian and printed.[16]
Translation work was most productive during the Yuan dynasty.Sonom Gara translatedSa-skya Pandita'sLegs-bshad, changing the sentence pattern and modifying the text to his own views.[16]Choiji Odser produced many excellent translations and commentaries in Mongol of various major Buddhist sutras including the Bodhicaryavatar, the Banzragch sutra and the Twelve Deeds of the Buddha. He also composed poetry like thePraise of Mahakala as well as the work on Mongol grammar calledZurkhen tolit. Odser's work was continued by his discipleShirab Sengge, who also carried out other fundamental translations.[16] Among the works translated by Sharavsenge are the Subashid and the Altangerel sutra. As mentioned, the Classic of Filial Piety (Xiao Jing) was translated as well as the New Testament and Psalms.
The short four-line Poem of Muhammad al-Samarqandi about wisdom ("Bilig nigen dalai buyu, Gokhar tendeche gharayu, Bilig-un yoson-i, Bilig-tu kumun medeyu") and the Mongol fragments of the Alexander Romance are reflective of Mongol contact with the Muslim West. In the mid-13th century a Persian scholar called Iftikhar-eddin Muhammed translated the stories of Kalila and Dimna (of thePanchatantra) from Persian into Mongol.
After the fall of theYuan dynasty the punitive expeditions of theMing put a definitive end to the imperial era in Mongolia, which entered into a Dark Age lasting two centuries until the "Third Introduction of Buddhism" in 1576. No significant Mongol work survives from this period, as of present. It is however known that the Mongol script was still taught to children in gers and that some of the Mongol manuscripts found atOlon-sume date back to this period. During this period the relatively advanced political, economic and social structures of the Mongol Empire had collapsed. Karakorum was razed to the ground in 1380 and Mongolia was reduced to a state not much different, if not worse, than that of the 12th century when it was a nomadic version of the EuropeanDark Ages. Within Ming territory, however, works in Mongol were printed, including theHuáyí yìyǔ dictionary [zh] (1389), the Chinese transcription ofThe Secret History of the Mongols (1386) and a tantric manual in Chinese, Tibetan, Mongol and Sanskrit (1502).
AfterDayan Khan (1464-1517?/1543?) restored political unity and reestablished the Genghisid line as supreme in Mongolia, the Third (and more thorough) Introduction of Buddhism beginning in 1576 led to further consolidation of unity among the formerly shamanic Mongol tribes. This, and the weakening of the Ming in the late 16th century, allowed the Mongols to enter a period of cultural Renaissance wherein numerous works of literature of many genres were created, including numerous fictional, historical, linguistic, legal and medical works. Among the surviving chronicles areLubsangdandzin'sAltan Tobchi and the works ofSaghang Sechen, a writer and Mongolian prince, best known for hisErdeniin Tobchi. Other important works from the period include the anonymousallegoryEre koyar jagal ("The Two Dappled Steeds"), treating freedom and morality, andShar Tuuj (Sir-a tuguji, "Yellow Story"), written in praise of Dayan Khan in the 17th century.[16]
In the 17th century theOirat man of lettersZaya Pandita (1599–1662) created theClear Script. A long afterward to a 1644 translation ofMaṇi bka'-'bum by Zaya shows his poetic talent.[16] His disciple Ratnabhadra wrote an important biography of him.[16]
The Mongolian Renaissance continued under theQing dynasty (1691-1911) and the rule ofBogd Khan (1911-1921). Despite the vastCommunist persecutions of the 1930s with the destruction of most monasteries, a great many of these works have survived. The literary Mongolian language that developed during this period is today called Classical Mongol language, while that of the Imperial era and Dark Ages is called pre-Classical Mongol language.
TheKanjur andTanjur, the translation of which started in the Imperial era, were completed in the Renaissance era. A complete Mongol collection called theGolden Kanjur (1628-1629) was published during the reign ofLigdan Khan in 113 volumes. Later, this version was edited and reprinted in 1718-1720.[17] TheTanjur was finally completed in 1741–1749 and printed in 225 volumes. The oldest written version of the immense epicGeser, the Mongol version decreed by theKangxi Emperor, was printed in Beijing in 1716. This work inspired the twenty-thousand-verse epicAbai Geser Khübüün of theBuryat people and theJangar, the epic of theKalmyks, dating to the 16th century.[16] TheStory of Endurel Khan was published in 1666 and is a prominent work of fiction.Tsogt Taiji composed his popular poem in 1621 which was later written on a rock surface in 1624. This poem, which still exists, contains reflections about the basic unity in nature and human love. During the Qing dynasty,Rashipungsug wrote the historyBolor erike ("Crystal Rosary"), completed in 1774.
In the 19th century, there was a trend of critical thinking withInjanashi andDanzanravjaa satirizing the worldly pursuits of the Buddhist clergy as well as the excesses of the nobility. Injanashi was the son ofWangchingbala (1795 – 1847), a Mongolian official, writer and historian. He was the author ofKöke sudur ("The Blue Chronicle",[16] or "Blue Book of the Yuan Empire"[18]), which was completed by Injanashi after his father's death.[16]
Important novels inChinese literature were translated into Mongolian, widely read, and influenced the work of Chinese-Mongol authors like Injanashi. The originals includedDream of the Red Chamber,Jin Ping Mei,Journey to the West, andRomance of the Three Kingdoms.[19] Prince Tokhtokhtor produced a book on practical advice concerning management of the traditional economy. Jimbadorji produced theBolor Toli, an encyclopaedia concerning detailed geographical information and observations about different countries, in 1833.
In 1921 the establishment of the Provisional Government of Sükhbaatar led to a radical change in Mongol society as the country abruptly entered the modern, industrial world. The close alignment with the Soviet Union meant thatsocialist realism would be the dominant literary style for the following decades. Important pioneers of modern Mongol literature wereD. Natsagdorj (1906-1937), S.Buyannemekh, andTs. Damdinsüren. Successful writers from the post-war period includeS. Erdene,Ch. Lodoidamba, andS. Udval. Literary topics were often taken from countryside life, from the times of Mongolia's struggle for independence and the communist revolution, or from the Second World War. Many ofB. Rinchen's works deal with Mongolia's older history. One of the most popular poets of the time was dissident poetR.Choinom who served a sentence for his works.
Theperestroika period and democratic processes of the late 1980s stimulated Mongol writers to seek new forms of expression breaking the constraints of socialist realism. Distinctive representatives of the post-Soviet epoch wereB. Lhagvasuren,G. Badamsambu,B. Galsansukh,Ochirbatyn Dashbalbar,D. Urianhai,Sh. Gurbazar,Galsan Tschinag,Ts. Khulan and others.[citation needed]
This is an excerpt from Kh.Chilaajav's poemAavdaa bi hairtai (I love my father) written in Sep 1990.[20] It was adapted to a 1999 song of the same name by the rock bandHurd.[21] The form and meter of this poem is typically Mongolian.
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