Kalmyk Cultural Heritage Project (BIRTH): Recent Episodes
Cambridge University
Birth related rituals consist of three stages: pre-birth (conception and pregnancy), the birth itself and post-birth rituals. Pre-birth rituals are performed as a way of asking the gods to grant the prospective parents children and in ensuring a healthy pregnancy for the mother. During pregnancy women are subjected to a host of restrictions, both symbolic and dietary. For example, in order to prevent the unborn child from becoming entangled in the umbilical cord, pregnant women are told not to step over a rope. Also, the meat of 'ugly' animals such as the rabbit and camel should be excluded from the expectant mother's diet if she wishes to avoid having an ugly child. To avert an evil or jealous eye, a baby's clothes should not be bought prior to its birth.
The actual birth of the baby is marked by a series of rituals performed to ensure a successful birth and make the adaptation of the newborn to its new environment easy. The giving of gifts to the midwife is part of the birth ritual. A ritual to 'introduce the baby to its cradle' (olgyad orulkh) is also performed at this stage.
Post-birth rituals are performed to denote acceptance of the newborn child into its family and society. The ritual of name-giving (ner oglgn), inviting relatives to the parents' house to view the newborn (gert orulkh), the ritual of 'making the baby walk' (tusha taslkh), the ritual of the first haircut (dyakh avkh), and other rituals should be performed soon after the birth of the child or in early childhood. The name-giving ritual includes a celebration called melyalgen during which the newly named baby is given presents by the guests. During the celebration, close relatives traditionally give the baby one of the following animals as a present: a horse, a sheep, a cow or a camel.
Nadvid says some names are meant to confuse evil spirits. These names include Taka (chicken), Nokha (dog), Gakha (pig). Parents also ask monks to give their newborn names.
Bulgun shows a Kalmyk cradle with belts made from cow’s leather. She says that a cradle cannot be used by children from other families, nor can it be given away to strangers. After making a new cradle, people purify it with incenses and light a candle on the altar.
Tatyana says that in the past, Kalmyks announced the birth of babies loudly so that everybody around could hear the good news. Children have their first haircut at 1. It is the child’s maternal uncle who cuts the first lock. Parents whose children died went to the temple to have a ‘fire ritual’ performed. Families that had several boys used to send at least one boy to the temple for monastic education.
Angira says that the birth of a child is announced by a man. Neighbors and relatives come to see the baby to utter well-wishes and give the baby presents. According to a belief, when a boy is born a family dogs tries to cover the lower part of the yurt with sand so that the boy stays warm and healthy. When a girl is born a family dog makes a hole under the yurt so that the girl gets a cold.
Narma says that a week after birth (when the baby’s umbilical cord dries out), the parents had a celebration. At the age of 1 the parents took the baby with them to pay a visit to their older relatives who were supposed to give the baby livestock as present. Babies used nappies made from the lower part of women’s dress. If the child did not start walking, the parents did the following ritual. Someone threw a hat so that it rolled and touched the child.
Togtan heard from her mother that when a baby is born two ‘shulm’ spirits sit at the entrance to the door. One gives the baby life, and the second measures the baby’s life. In the past midwives cut the umbilical cord and put a coin into it. Later the coin was put in the baby’s cradle. The baby receives its name from the oldest person on the family.
Maria says that in her family children born before her died. In the past child mortality was high across Kalmykia. When Maria was 1 month old, her parents took her to their relative who was a monk called Dorzhi. He read prayers, carried out a ritual and gave Maria her name. The ritual was done so that Maria was protected from misfortunes and death.
Sanal says that in the past people believed women who had twins to be endowed with the power to cure the sick. Not only were they treated with respect but some people even venerated them. There was a woman in Sanal’s village who had twins. When someone or an animal fell ill she was asked to come and touch them.
Nikolai says the following: I was born in 1953 on the farm Primovtsy in Rubtsovskiy rayon, Altai krai. My umbilical cord was cut with a kitchen knife. When the knife became useless and worn-out, my father tossed it into a fire. I wrote about this in my poem called ‘The Knife’. My life began with that knife. I also wrote a poem about how my name was chosen. During the first year of my life I did not have a name. My parents gave me several names, but none suited me. At that time my father worked as an aide to a blacksmith, named Nikolai, who was a German deported from the Volga. I was finally named after him.
Nikolai says that in the past the birth of a boy was loudly announced by the head of the household. During name giving rituals, boys received their names from someone who would whisper to them into their ears and slap on their sacrum bone. This was done so that children grew up healthy.
When a child was born, the announcement about its birth and gender was done by a woman who herself was a mother. It was a good sign when a dog barked during the announcement, for it was believed that dogs could fend off evil spirits. Old people also believed that dogs made holes under the tent when a girl was born so that the baby girl would die from the cold. By contrast, when a boy was born, dogs would make sure that there were no holes around the bottom of the tent to make sure that the baby boy stayed worm and cozy. After choosing an appropriate name for the baby, the parents whispered this name into the infant’s ear and then slapped its cheek.
Rimma talks about some customs related to newborn babies and about how children are expected to behave.
Rimma recounts how her Torghut mother-in-law took her to see her relatives after Rimma gave birth:
The birth of a girl was not as joyous an occasion as the birth of a boy. After his umbilical cord dried out and fell off, guests were invited to celebrate the boy’s birth. A sheep was slaughtered and its tibia bone was hung above the entrance of the yurt. Even dogs were happy on this occasion, for they were given bones and food leftovers from the boy’s meals. By contrast, the birth of girls was not celebrated, for they left their families following their marriage to join their husbands’ clans. If a child could not walk for a long time, people performed a special ritual. The child’s paternal male relative took scissors and cut invisible ties between the legs of the child, while uttering a well-wish. Another custom was when an old man threw his hat between the legs of the child. In the past, in order to remove a fear from a child, old people shouted loudly. Today, by contrast, parents do not allow for their children to be shouted at. About children with mental disabilities (dutu zuurm). It was believed that children with mental problems were born to clans that had committed great sin. Since there were no clinics, such children were treated by lamas.
When a woman gave birth, people would say ‘Tsagan tor boljana’ and all children were taken out (from a yurt). There were no diapers then, instead ash left from burning the dung was used. Ashes being soft were poured into a bag and a child was put into this bag. It was a very good absorbent. In order to keep the baby’s back straight, a piece of solid cardboard was used. The cardboard also made holding a baby easier. Instead of diapers, old clothes of a baby’s father were used. People say that Kalmyks have bowed legs, it is because babies were put in bags with ashes and when they grew up a bit, they rode a horse.
As in the old days, the name of the new-born children was given by a monk in a temple. People would come to temple, to tell the day and month of a child’s birth. Looking at all the astrological information, a gelyung would give the child a name. The name could also be given by parents themselves. Often the boy was given the name of his uncle on his father’s side, and the girl would be named after her grandmother or her uncle would give her name. If there was no temple nearby, the name would be related with some occurrence on the day of birth. For example, on the day of a child’s birth there was a snowstorm, shuurgn in Kalmyk, so the child would be called Shuurgn. If the father of the child worked as a horseherder, aduchi in Kalmyk, then the child was given name Aduchi. Numbers from five to ten were also names. I do not know why such names were given. I can say for sure that there was no such special tradition.
Before I was born, my parents had a daughter who died in 1933. My grandfather brought home lama Sangadzhi – whom we called Kaaka – to read memorial prayers. The lama told my parents, ‘You should read prayers for your daughter for seven days, otherwise she might be reborn in an inauspicious direction. If you do it, she will return to you as a baby boy’. Since there was no one around who could read these prayers, my grandmother asked Kaaka to do it, to which he agreed. Some time passed, and I was born. When I turned one month, my mother fell ill and could not breastfeed me. She said, ‘My eyes can see, but my tongue cannot move’. My grandmother was upset and crying. A female relative breastfed me. My uncle decided to bring Kaaka to our house, who stayed to perform a ritual all night long. In the morning a dry bush blossomed outside the house. Kaaka sat next to the hearth, took me in his arms and began to swing me. He calmed my grandmother by saying, ‘Don’t worry, grandmother. Your daughter-in-law is a cheeky girl. Why did she eat the meat of an animal that was attacked by a wolf? That’s why she had a girl instead of a boy’. After this prayer my mother recovered. Later she said, ‘Kaaka caught me. When I was pregnant, I went to see my parents. There was not much food around at that time. Nearby, there lived a relative, an old woman, whom I went to see. When I entered her house, she was eating some boiled meat and drinking tea. As soon as she saw me she put the meat away and said to me, ‘I can see that you are pregnant, but you should not eat this meat’. When the old woman left the house to throw bones out, my mother took the bowl and ate a piece of horse meat that was inside. She did not know that that horse had been attacked by a wolf. That old woman knew about this taboo and cautioned my mother, but she did not listen to her. That is why I was born as a girl.
Kalmyks kill a sheep, and take from inside it a gullet-like intestine outgrowth named ul’trkha in Kalmyk in order to determine the gender of an unborn child. This outgrowth is cut open. If its inside wall has swellings, this means that the child will be a boy. If not, a girl.
Lidzhi talks about the power of personal names. He contends that people’s fate depends on their names.
Galina talks about the ritual of the first haircut and name giving conventions among the Kalmyks.
Dordzhi says Kalmyks have many beliefs and rituals connected with children. For example, before giving a child new clothes, three people should cleanse the clothes by reading well-wishes. Children have their first haircut at 1. The first lock has to be kept by the child’s parents. To encourage young children to start walking, Kalmyks perform a ritual called ‘cutting the child’s hobbles’.
Larisa says that in Kalmyk culture there is special respect towards pregnant women. For example, it is forbidden to upset or say bad words to them. In the past, women tried to keep an eye on the health of their daughters-in-law by examining their urine. Traditionally, newly born children were wrapped in the robes of their grandparents (symbolizing longevity). Their cradles were also filled with dung ashes that served as nappies. This prevented babies from having a skin rash.
In this interview Larisa talks about the following topics: how people celebrated the birth of their children, what rituals were performed when a 1-year old child could not walk; a ritual of the first haircut; and name giving.
Gerel says that the Mongolian spot could be of various size. Some people contend that it is ‘Chingis Khan’s birthmark’. Gerel saw one such birthmark on a Russian child in Dagestan.
Gerel says she grew up as a shy girl. She was not supposed to be noisy in front of her father or brothers. Today whenever she visits her brothers Gerel always helps them lay the table and do the washing up. In her childhood, she was discouraged from looking at the mirror too often or admire herself. Gerel’s mother did not praise her children. These are common traditional bans for women: single women should not sharpen a knife, women cannot sing to themselves, argue with men, or interrupt their elders.
Anatoliy says that his children were named by his relatives, including his older sister, a cousin and his parents-in-law. His children had their first haircut by their uncle. The first hair should not be disposed of but kept in a safe place.
Interviewer: What rituals do we perform when a child is born? Do we have such rituals? Alena: Yes, we do. I: How is a new-born received, how is the umbilical cord cut, how is a new-born bathed? A: When a woman is about to give birth, a midwife or an elderly woman is invited. After the baby is born, she measures its umbilical cord with her index finger and then cuts it. If it is a boy, it is announced. If it is a girl, her birth is not announced. Then the family visits a Buddhist temple or invites an astrologist to give the baby a name. I: How is a new-born baby bathed? A: In Buddhist temples monks give special water to parents to wash their new-born babies. After their umbilical cord falls off, a ritualized bath is performed using milk and incenses. I: How is the hair cut when a baby reaches a year? A: When a baby reaches a year, a bundle from their hair is cut off and kept in a secure place. The number of kept hair bundles is the same as the number of children in the family. Hair bundles are wrapped in a white cloth and kept for many years until the child reached 50 or 60 years. I: (In the past) where in the yurt did people keep their babies? A: A cradle with a crook was attached to a roof pole of the yurt. Babies were put in there. I: Did babies feel cold inside the yurt in the winter? A: I do not remember. Probably they did. I remember how we all sat around the fire to warm up our feet.
Bosya talks about the ritual of the first haircut performed when a child reaches 1, about offering put on the altar, and well-wishes that Kalmyks utter on various occasions.