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New Year 2018 in Mongolia will be celebrated more than once, but according to Christian, Buddhist and Muslim customs. The most familiar option for us is January 1 in accordance with the Julian calendar.

History of the New Year in Mongolia

The predecessors of modern Mongols and other Turkic peoples are the Xiongnu. These people, who lived 3 thousand years ago, were already celebrating the New Year. It was they who came up with the tradition of decorating the Christmas tree and placing gifts under it. It was believed that the god Yorlu, for whom the festive tree was intended, entered the yurts through the chimney. It's easier to go down it. Wanting to appease the deity, people hung silver and tasty food on the branches. As gifts, girls were given a spindle, and boys were given arrows and bows.

The date of the New Year was timed to coincide with the end of the cattle drive. It was October 14th. This one has a number
la was important in pagan Rus', after which it was converted to the day of the Intercession of the Holy Virgin. Some researchers believe that the tradition of decorating Christmas trees came to Russian lands precisely with the invasion of the Xiongnu and Avars. The end of the harvest was also celebrated on October 31st by the Celts. They called their New Year Samhain.

In modern conditions, Asian and European neo-pagans are making attempts to revive past traditions, however, absolute unity on this issue has not been established, since many prefer to celebrate the New Year on other dates.

Holidays in New Year 2018 in Mongolia

In modern realities, the celebration of an event that marks the transition between the old and new years occurs at the junction of December and January. It is accompanied by fun, exchange of gifts, participation of the Snow Maiden and Santa Claus. In addition, traditions associated with the lunar calendar have been preserved.

In the first case, when you go on a tour to Mongolia for the New Year 2018, you will find yourself in a familiar environment. Coniferous beauties decorated with shining lights, Santa Clauses, fireworks and other paraphernalia characteristic of the situation will flash around.

The second holiday is called Tsagan Sar, which means White Month. This name arose in 1206, when the reign was in the hands of Genghis Khan. This event is celebrated in February, so it marks the onset of spring and the blossoming of new life.

On the evening before the holiday, Mongols say goodbye to the outgoing year. This ritual is called bituleg. When the sun rises, relatives make congratulations and go to visit neighbors and relatives. It is believed that the more people who visit you on this day, the happier you will be in the future.

The invariable dishes of the festive table are dumplings, fatty lamb, flour and dairy products. The Mongolian feast has a lot of ancient traditions and interesting features:

everyone sits in a circle and starts drinking tea;
the head of the family cuts the lamb meat and treats those present;
In turn, each person receives a silver bowl full of kumys. The owners prudently freeze it in the fall;
drinking arkhi, the milk vodka beloved by the Mongols;
then people indulge in fun, singing and laughing.

If you become a participant in such a feast for the New Year in Mongolia, photos from the event will evoke the warmest feelings in your heart for a long time after you arrive home.

It has become traditional these days to hold sports competitions for courage and dexterity. Mongols organize regional races. Participants, their relatives and coaches are gathered in a pre-agreed place. The young riders are wearing elegant festive clothes. Below them are shaggy, assorted, perfectly groomed horses. The distance is 10 km. At the finish line, spectators wait for the champions, communicate and share news.

To see all this with your own eyes, it’s worth going to Mongolia as part of an excursion group. A 10-day trip will cost approximately $1,700. You will receive a lot of vivid impressions and pleasant emotions.

Also, lovers of active recreation will be interested in learning about how the New Year 2018 will take place on the website.

MONGOLIAN HOLIDAYS

WHITE MONTH (TSAGAAN-SAR)

Tsagaan sar– this is both the New Year’s Eve and the first month of the year, which opens the spring-summer season, the long-awaited end of wintering and migration to spring pastures. Translated from Mongolian, “Tsagaan sar” means White Moon. Tsagaan Sar has long occupied an important place in the traditional life of the Mongols, carrying a colossal emotional charge. It gives ideas about good and evil, and is perceived as the most important date of the year, as a special sacred time. The name White Month is associated with the symbolism of the color white as a symbol of happiness and goodness among the Mongols, as well as the use of a large number of milk products.

There is no fixed date for the start of the New Year according to the lunar calendar. It shifts every time and can fall from January to early March, but most often it occurs in February. Until 1267, the Mongols celebrated Tsagaan Sar in September. For the ancient Mongols, the new year began in the fall.

According to some sources, spring has been considered the beginning of the year since the reign of Genghis Khan. As written in the writings of Lama Agvaaniyam. Genghis conquered Tibet in the spring. Many princes of the conquered country. and not only they, but also other tribes and nationalities recognized Genghis as their emperor and organized a big holiday in honor of this event. Upon arrival at home, Chinggis again celebrated the beginning of the year. Since then, the tradition of celebrating the New Year in the spring has been established. The sage Sumbe Khambo Ishbalzhir introduced his own calendar, which he called “Tutsbuyant”, which all monasteries in Mongolia still follow.

According to other sources, the holiday was moved to February only under Kublai, the grandson of Genghis Khan, the first emperor of the Mongol Yuan dynasty, which ruled in China from 1271-1368. Evidence of the celebration of Tsagaan Sar was left in his notes by the Venetian traveler Marco Polo, who was present at the celebration of the White Month at the Beijing court in the 13th century.

With the establishment of the country's autonomy and sovereignty in 1911, Bogdo Khaan declared this calendar to be the state calendar. "Tugsbuyant" became both a religious and a state calendar. During the years of repression, "Tugsbuyant" was the calendar of livestock breeders, but since 1944, when the Gandan monastery was revived and the need arose to conduct services according to the established order, the "Tugsbuyant" calendar was revived. There was a datsan in which astrology was taught as a science and its graduates were responsible for writing the lunar calendar. During the years of socialism Tsagaan sar took place under a different name, consonant with the ideology of that time - the holiday of the “livestock breeder” according to the same calendar.

After the adoption of Buddhism and the introduction of the lamas of their calendar, the white month was moved to the end of winter and combined with the date of the victory of the founder of Buddhism over other schools. For Mongols, white symbolizes prosperity, and white foods are a must for celebrations. Tsagaan Sarah.

Tsagaan sar - New Year according to the lunar calendar, that is, according to the eastern horoscope, is celebrated on the first day of spring. According to this calendar, it falls on different days and even months in different years. Depending on the location of the moon in a particular zodiac, astrologers use an algorithm to calculate the first day of spring or the day of Tsagaan Sara. As the monastery astrologers say Gandantegchlen, for Mongolia the most correct and suitable astrology is Tugs Buyant. It was developed by the famous astrologer lamas Sumbe Khamba Ishbalzhir and Luvsandanzanzhantsan, who lived in the 18th century, in relation to the climatic conditions of our country. After all, yellow or, as it is also called, Chinese astrology corresponds to the climatic conditions of China and other countries of North and Southeast Asia. The climate there is warmer than ours, so spring comes much earlier.

Traditionally, on New Year's Eve, the most respected and revered lamas make astrological forecasts for the residents of the country for the next year. On the eve of the New Year, a cleansing ritual and a special prayer service are performed in churches and datsans. The main services are held in the largest Buddhist monastery Gandantegchlen. Services lasting 15 days make up the New Year's prayer service. It includes a service in honor of deities, a ritual for removing obstacles (held the day before the end of the old year), a prayer service in honor of the miracles performed by the Buddha to spread the sacred teachings, wishes for peace and prosperity, and other rituals. Many residents of the capital these days are trying to get to churches to pray for happiness and good luck in the coming year for themselves and their families.

From the 15th-16th centuries, as Buddhism spread and strengthened in Mongolia, this holiday was sacralized on the occasion of the memory of the performance of various miracles by Buddha Shigamuni on these days as proof of the truth of the faith he preached and the divinity of its origin. On the eve of the holiday and the first two weeks, great khurals are celebrated in the monasteries of Mongolia. e. Buddhist services/. They pray for a happy new year. After the prayer service, fires are lit, in the flames of which old things are burned and sacrifices are made to the fire.

The celebration of the White Month consists of three main parts: the pre-holiday preparations, the last day of the old year and the first days of the white month and the rest of the white month. On the pre-holiday days, the Mongols clean up all the rubbish and get rid of accumulated dirt and rubbish. Women sew a new deel (traditional Mongolian robe) for all members of their family. They also try to pay off all debts, since it is considered unfavorable to celebrate the New Year with debts.

In addition, the Mongols prepare various treats and gifts for guests in advance. The Tsagaan Sar treat is a real feast, since the Mongols believe that it is during Tsagaan Sar that a person should eat his fill. Traditional Mongolian food during Tsagaan Sar is manti and dumplings, a whole boiled rump of a fat sheep with its head, traditional bast-shaped shortcakes - ul boov with sweets, rice with raisins. There is also a large assortment of products made from milk: “Bislag” cheese, “Arul” dried cottage cheese, “Tarak” curdled milk, “Uryum” foam, “Arhi” milk vodka, “Ayrag” kumis.

On the eve of Tsagaan Sarah Houses are being cleaned extensively. On New Year's Eve, every family bids farewell to the outgoing year - "bituuleg". People must pay off all their debts, especially those that can be counted, for example. If you were in a quarrel with someone, didn’t get along with someone, offended someone, then exchanging a “chooreg” (a snuff box with snuff) is intended to improve your relationship. With this action, you seem to ask each other for forgiveness. That is, you need to enter the New Year as purified as possible, leaving all the bad things behind.

The celebration of Tsagaan Sar begins on the last day of the old year, which is called “bitun”. “Bituun” means “closed”. In “bitun”, every Mongol should be at home, not go to visit and eat to the full of closed food, i.e. manti and dumplings. It is also believed that people over 13 years of age should not sleep during “bituun”, since the Buddhist goddess Lham, flying around the entire planet on her horse that day, can count the person who has fallen asleep among the dead. In the evening, on New Year's Eve, every Mongolian family holds a bituuleg - farewell to the passing year. On the last evening of the passing year, children gather at their parents' hearth to spend the old year and celebrate the new year together over a generous meal. The rump of a fat sheep, buuz (manty), dairy and flour dishes are prepared for the New Year's table. The Mongolian New Year's feast is a whole ritual, as ancient as the tradition of celebrating Tsagaan Sar. In Bituun it is customary to eat to your fill. The feast had its own characteristics. The old people were located in the northern part of the home, where the most honored guests were usually seated. Younger men are on the right side, women are on the left.

Also, the Mongols in “bitun” put 3 transparent pieces of river ice above the door of the yurt - this is a drink for the goddess’s horse, and weeds and thorns on the left ceiling of the yurt so that evil spirits cannot enter the house. On the last day of the old year, many actively visit Buddhist monasteries and perform a ritual of cleansing from the sins of the outgoing year. The redemptive and cleansing functions of such New Year's prayers are enhanced by the idea that the transition point from one year to another is a special, sacred time, a time when there is a break between good and evil.

The New Year celebration begins not at midnight, as is customary here, but early in the morning, on the first day of the new year. The first day of the new year according to the lunar calendar begins early in the morning from 3 to 5 o'clock. On the first morning of the New Year, at sunrise, family members dress in everything new and congratulate first the elders in the family, then the neighbors. However, according to Mongolian custom, spouses do not exchange greetings. This morning the hostess offers the first cup to the gods. Then they visit their older relatives, performing the “zolgokh” ritual, in which the younger one stretches out his hands, palms up, and supports the older one under the elbows, and he, in turn, puts his outstretched hands with his palms down. The ritual is performed, as a rule, in national clothes, and men must have a headdress on their heads. When all the rituals are completed, it is customary to visit, exchange congratulations and gifts, and feast

The festive feast begins with a lamb rump, which the owner of the house hands over in thin pieces strictly according to the rules. The more plentiful the New Year's table is, the more prosperous the coming year will be. It is considered a good omen if there are guests in the yurt. Each guest, while drinking wine, must express a wish for happiness to the host. A large assortment of products made from milk is displayed on the table: “Bislag” cheese, “Arul” dried cottage cheese, “Tarak” curdled milk, “Uryum” foam, “Arhi” milk vodka, “Ayrag” kumiss, etc. In addition to treats, the hosts give small gifts to guests and sweets to children.

And hadag for Mongols is the best gift. Hadags come in different lengths, colors, and patterns. Hadag, which is called Ayush has images of people, is given to the most respected people, parents or the eldest. The folded hadag is served with the open side towards the recipient with a bow. The one who received the hadag also bows respectfully and carefully folds it and keeps it with him. Hadag is the symbolic pinnacle of spiritual and material wealth. And for a long time there has been a custom to keep five-colored “hadags” as a good sign of prosperity and tranquility. Blue hadag - the color of the blue sky - is a sign of harmony and calm. Green is a symbol of reproduction, productivity. Red is a symbol of fire - a sign of the safety and security of the hearth. Yellow - removes all bad things and is a sign of elevation in office, professional growth, knowledge and the spread of Buddhist philosophy. White - the color of mother's milk, personifies the clear wisdom of the Buddha and good deeds, generosity.

It is customary these days among men to treat each other with snuff from a snuff box, which the recipient, having accepted with his right hand, opens the cap with his left and pours a snuff of tobacco onto the back of his right hand and sniffs. At the same time, snuff boxes made from jade and other valuable stones should not rub against each other and their lids should be slightly open. As in most other cases, gifts are given by hosts to guests, not by guests to hosts.

At home they perform the “zolgolt” ritual. This is a kind of New Year's greeting when younger Mongolians extend their hands to older ones, palms up, and older ones place their hands on top of them, palms down. At this time, the younger ones support the older ones by the elbows. This unique gesture of greeting expresses respect for the elders and a promise of help and support if necessary. During the White Month, all younger family members should be the first to congratulate the older members. It is also customary to treat all guests to a hearty meal, as this is a special holiday when the stomach should be full. Then they present all the guests who come with gifts. “Zolgolt” is the most important ritual of the White Month. The Mongols still have a belief: the more guests who visit a house or yurt on the first day of the New Year, for zolgolt, the happier the coming year will be.

On the first day of the New Year, the country's top officials in the central temple of Gandantegchilin participate in the ritual of worshiping the deity Zhanrayseg and the ceremony of entrusting the fate of the people to the deity Ochirdar, with wishes for well-being. They also perform the ritual of “zolgokh” (greetings) with high-ranking lamas. Then they pay respect to the shrines of our monastery. Next, the “zolgokh” ritual is performed at the State Residence, where the leaders of our monastery also perform the “zolgokh” ritual with the head of state and other high-ranking officials.

The celebration officially lasts 3 days, but usually lasts at least a week. Within a few days after completion Tsagaan Sarah business life is gradually returning to its normal course. Mongols attach great importance to the celebration of this holiday. At this time, people in Mongolian national costumes are everywhere on the streets.

PHOTO ALBUM PAGES

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Materials from the newspaper "News of Mongolia" were used. No. 5-6 dated February 7, 2013. Scanning and processing by E. Kulakov.

* Altai Republic
*Tyva
* Transbaikal region
** Aginsky Buryat District
* Irkutsk region
** Ust-Ordynsky Buryat District
China
* Inner Mongolia date first day of the year according to the lunar calendar Celebration family feasts, visiting Traditions Baking wrestlers

Holiday in the 13th century. [ | ]

Their year begins in February; The Great Khan and all his subjects celebrate this way: according to custom, everyone dresses in white, both men and women, as best they can. White clothes are considered lucky among them, so they do this, dress in white, so that there will be happiness and prosperity all year round... They bring him great gifts... so that the Great Khan will have a lot of wealth all year round and he will be happy and happy. I’ll tell you again, princes and knights, and all the people give each other white things, hug, have fun, feast, and this is done in order to live happily and kindly throughout the year.

On this day, you should also know that more than one hundred thousand glorious and expensive white horses are presented to the Great Khan. On the same day, five thousand elephants are brought out under white blankets, embroidered with animals and birds; Each elephant has on its back two beautiful and expensive caskets, and in them are the dishes of the Great Khan and rich harness for this white gathering. Many more camels are being brought out; they are also blanketed and loaded with everything necessary for the gift. Both elephants and camels pass in front of the Great Khan, and such beauty has never been seen anywhere!

...And when the great sovereign has reviewed all the gifts, tables are set up and everyone sits down at them... And after dinner the magicians come and amuse the court, as you have already heard before; when all this is over, everyone goes home

Popular mythology[ | ]

Buddhist popular mythology associates the festival of Tsagan Sar, the beginning of spring, with the name of the Buddhist deity Dharmapala, the goddess Baldan Lhamo. According to legend, every year after another victory over the mangus and saving the sun, swallowed by the lord of hell Yama (Mong. Erleg nomyn haan), she descends to the ground, warms it with her warmth, and spring begins. The cold weather is receding, the winter lack of food is disappearing, and a new season in the economic activities of cattle breeders begins. They count the losses caused by winter and rejoice at the approaching warm season.

The image of an angry Buddhist goddess is sometimes adjacent to the image of the White Old Man (Mongolian: Tsagaan өvgon), the traditional Buddhist embodiment of fertility and longevity.

Holiday in modern times[ | ]

Today is the first day of Sagaalgan in the Republic of Buryatia and the Trans-Baikal Territory, as well as in the territories of the Aginsky Buryat Autonomous Okrug and the Ust-Orda Buryat Autonomous Okrug is a day off.

According to the Law of the Republic of Kalmykia dated October 13, 2004 N 156-III-Z “On holidays and memorable days in the Republic of Kalmykia,” the Tsagan Sar holiday is a national holiday of Kalmykia.

According to the Law of the Republic of Tyva dated February 3, 1999 No. 143 “On holidays of the Republic of Tyva,” the Shagaa holiday (Lunar New Year) was given the status of a “national holiday”; its date is annually established by a resolution of the Supreme Khural (parliament) of the Republic of Tyva in accordance with Eastern lunar calendar.

On February 1, 2013, the State Assembly of the Altai Republic introduced amendments to the law “On holidays and memorable days, anniversaries in the Altai Republic.” In accordance with the amendments, the holiday of the New Year and the change of the symbol of the year according to the lunar calendar, Chaga Bayram, is declared non-working.

In 2011, the holiday was nominated for UNESCO's list of intangible cultural heritage.

Traditions and rituals of celebration[ | ]

Meat and sweets - modern treats on the Sagaalgan holiday

They prepared for the celebrations in advance, slaughtering livestock for future use, since it was forbidden to do this directly on the days of the holiday. Celebrations took place in every home. They hung new outfits on the line and shook out all the clothes. They cooked meat - lamb, beef or horse meat, and prepared buuzas.

Ritual mutual greeting[ | ]

The traditional greeting was an important ritual with which two people meeting each other on this day addressed each other. The meaning of this greeting is so great and the duration of its effect is so long that, for example, Tuvans could not say hello for a whole year, arguing that they had already said hello during the White Month.

Visiting[ | ]

Visiting is an indispensable component of the Sagaalgan holiday. Even those living far away these days came to meet their relatives. There were certain norms: the order of visits and the nature of gifts depended on the person’s position. They visited their parents and maternal relatives - they always enjoyed special veneration; daughters-in-law came to the house of their husband's parents with their children to worship their ancestors and patrons. An indispensable element of holiday gifts was a bunch of wrestlers.

Present [ | ]

A traditional ritual gift is the national flour dish “bortsok”. Bortsoki were made from rich unleavened dough and fried in boiling fat. They were used to make sets for offering the “first portion” to the Buddhas, as well as gift sets for giving to relatives during holiday visits. The shape of the wrestlers included in the sets had a symbolic meaning: the animal figurines expressed the wish for the offspring of the corresponding livestock; in the form of a reason - good luck. Thus, the “khuts” wrestlers, sculpted in the form of a ram figurine, meant the wish for a large offspring of this type of livestock and reflected to some extent the ancient ritual of animal sacrifice, that is, they replaced the real sacrifice with its image. A similar role was played by the wrestlers “kit”, the shape of which resembled part of a horse’s entrails, and the wrestlers “Ovrte tokhsh”, symbolizing cattle. Bortsok "moshkmr" - twisted, small "horja" (literal translation: insects), reminiscent of the national dish of boiled lamb entrails. The “jola” wrestlers, depicting a rein, were supposed to invoke endless luck. And by offering the wrestler “shoshhr”, they expressed the desire to live as a united family, and also to have protection from enemies.

Offerings [ | ]

Early in the morning on the day of the holiday, the ritual of sprinkling was performed (kalm. zulg orgh): having crossed the threshold of the house, the owner sprinkled the first cup of freshly brewed tea around as an offering to the ancestors and the White Elder. Bortsoks in the form of the sun and lotus were used for symbolic offerings to burkhans. Among the Don Kalmyks, the type of wrestlers “burkhan zala”, or “tsatsg”, in the form of a tassel, symbolizing a lotus, was especially popular. He was placed at the top of “Deeji boortsg”. Bortsoks in the shape of the sun are large flat cakes, called “khavtha” in some ethnic groups, and “tselvg” in others. “Khavtha” is a whole flatbread with tucks along the edges or with four holes in the center; the “tselvg” wrestlers have smooth edges, and small holes are located radially around their circumference. “Khavtha” or “tselvg” was prepared first and was invariably placed as deeja. All the other wrestlers listed above were also included in this set.

New moon days - Sagaalgan eve - from to[ | ]

05.02.00	22.02.01	12.02.02	01.02.03	20.02.04	09.02.05	29.01.06	18.02.07	07.02.08	24.02.09
14.02.10	03.02.11	21.02.12	10.02.13	31.01.14	19.02.15	08.02.16	26.02.17	16.02.18	05.02.19
23.02.20	12.02.21	01.02.22	20.02.23	10.02.24	29.01.25	17.02.26	06.02.27	24.02.28	13.02.29
03.02.30	21.02.31	11.02.32	31.01.33	19.02.34	08.02.35	26.02.36	15.02.37	04.02.38	22.02.39
12.02.40	01.02.41	20.02.42	10.02.43	30.01.44	17.02.45	06.02.46	24.02.47	14.02.48	02.02.49
21.02.50	11.02.51	01.02.52	19.02.53	08.02.54	26.02.55	15.02.56	04.02.57	22.02.58	12.02.59
02.02.60	19.02.61	09.02.62	29.01.63	17.02.64	05.02.65	24.02.66	14.02.67	03.02.68	21.02.69
11.02.70	31.01.71	19.02.72	07.02.73	26.02.74	15.02.75	05.02.76	22.02.77	12.02.78	02.02.79
20.02.80	09.02.81	29.01.82	17.02.83	06.02.84	24.02.85	14.02.86	03.02.87	22.02.88	10.02.89
30.01.90	18.02.91	07.02.92	25.02.93	15.02.94	05.02.95	23.02.96	12.02.97	01.02.98	19.02.99