Culture and history

Наедина Дарья Ивановна, учительница негидальского языкаНаедина Дарья Ивановна, учительница негидальского языка

The ritual culture of the Negidal people is similar to the Amur culture. Religious beliefs reflect the animistic level of man's relationship to nature. The Negidal people honored the spirits of the sky, earth, rivers, sea and taiga. The universe, according to the Negidal people, consisted of three worlds located one below the other. The upper was the blue vault of heaven, the middle world was the earth's surface, and the lower, the underworld, where dead people lived. The sky was read by a higher power. The spirit master of the Sun is a man, the spirit master of the Moon is a woman, they descended to the Earth and communicated with people. Members of the clan living in one village had a common place for entreaties in the taiga “alachinka” at the larch tree “toyo”, “toro”, on which the face of the supreme god was carved. Here they put sculptural images of various spirits, prayed regularly, offered bloodless sacrifices “sugdecha” to the master “kalgam” and others. Every year, coming here for the general entreaty, they brought additional spirits - helpers. It was believed that the spirits ascended to the sky through the larch tree and conveyed people's requests and gifts to the heavenly deities.

With the emergence of shamanism, the role of an intermediary between the worlds and spirits, began to perform shaman. He communicated with spirits, treated the sick, performed rituals. He communicated with the spirits of dead relatives. Every spring and fall he performed in the village “uni” - a rite of purification of people and dwellings. The shaman's attributes - a tambourine, sculptural images of various spirits (seveny), helped him during the shamanistic ritual. Also, a rite for successful hunting. It was called munnyak (from the Evenki word for “gathering”). In October, on the edge of the village, almost at the edge of the forest, a yurta (a nomadic tent) was placed, a fire was lit, and a shaman was invited. He was to negotiate with the masters of nature and drive away evil spirits. Men-hunters closed a ring around the fire and performed a ritual dance - khadyo. They shouted loudly “Tur-tur! Nikichan!”, and a resounding echo carried this incantation into the depths of the forest. The women, as if on command, hid in the yurta, then rejoined the general action. The shaman entered. He pounded the tambourine, imitated the voices and habits of animals. Without him the hunters did not go to the fishery.

Porfiry Nikiforov, the Negidal shaman, father of A. P. Nadeina.

The bear festival “Mgaska” was held in honor of deceased relatives every 3-4 years and a bear cub was raised for it. A community member who raised the bear in a special log cabin (koichan) had to adhere to many rules and prohibitions. The beast was killed on a special site with a bow. When cutting up the carcass, it was strictly observed that all the rules were followed. It was believed that if all the necessary rites were observed, the bear would return to its “father” - the spirit-master of the taiga. The bear's relatives and friends came to visit him at the bear festival. During the feast they organized games, round dance with singing, listened to storytellers, dressed up women played on a musical log “tymkavun” outside, sang and danced.Porfiry Nikiforov was from Duki. Later he moved to the village of Vladimirovka, P. Osipenko district, Khabarovsk Krai. He treated the sick and helped those who turned to him for help, he did not take money. His daughter, A.P. Nadeina, lives in the village of Vladimirovka.

The Negidal people had a custom of giving a bear cub as a daughter's dowry. For this purpose, the bride's father, who considered himself a good hunter and a brave man, caught a bear cub from three months to a year old on the eve of the wedding and kept it with him for several months. Probably, the bear cub was given as a dowry with a double purpose: it was a protector of the young wife in a foreign family (in case of some conflicts a woman could say that she was not a poor woman without a family and tribe, the bear was given for her) and a gift - a treat for sons-in-law.

Национальный танец негидальцев

The folklore of the Negidal people includes myths, fairy tales, legends, everyday stories, songs, and ritual genres. According to the memories of old people, in the old days almost every village had its own storyteller; the best storytellers were invited to other villages. The story usually began in the morning and lasted until late at night, or even until morning. Fairy tales familiarized children with the outside world. When hunting or fishing in the evenings they told tales about animals or myths about spirits-masters. In this way, the fishermen sought to attract and placate the spirits, to ensure good luck.

Myths, ancestral legends, shamanic legends, hunting and household stories fall into the category of “ulgu”, which refer to actual events that allegedly took place in the past. They preserved for the Negidal people the history of their people. Songs and refrains were a means of entertainment and recreation. Proverbs and riddles as intellectual leisure. The most significant and numerous were the prohibitions of “odzyavi”. “Odzyavi” defined hunting and fishing activities and were also used in everyday life. It was a brief guide to ethics and traditionally religious norms. For example, the Negidal people never said the word “bear” aloud. They called the sacred animal respectfully and affectionately - “grandfather”, “uncle”. And if a hunter, returning from the taiga, exhales a short “Kuk!”, it is immediately clear what prey he is carrying. And that there was a special ritual ahead, in which women were strictly forbidden to participate. Men cut the bear and cooked the meat, but before starting the meal (according to the rules, they ate only with their hands), everyone said “Kuk!”.

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