Life Cycle Rites in Worldview System of Buryat People (Material from Archive of S. P. Baldaev)

Abstract

The significance of this study lies in the necessity of conducting a scientific analysis of folklore and ethnographic materials collected by one of the first folklorists in ethnic Buryatia, S. P. Baldaev. The analysis was carried out on texts recorded in the Transbaikal and Pre-Baikal regions, which relate to the rituals of the Buryat life cycle, including wedding rituals, childbirth rituals, and initiation rituals. These rituals had a fundamental influence on the formation of the worldview of traditional Buryat society. It is emphasized that the life cycle rituals clearly differentiated gender and age responsibilities and regulated interpersonal relationships within the family. Folklore and ethnographic data preserved in the Center for Eastern Manuscripts and Xylographs of the Institute of Mongolian Studies, Buddhist Studies, and Tibetology of the Siberian Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences are introduced into scientific circulation. The results of the study will contribute to enriching the Buryat understanding of the world order with new facts and historical materials, which are relevant both for academic science and for contemporary society, which has a demand for the revival of traditional values.