Tales of Jijeten’s Pilgrimage Tibet: a Comparative Analysis of Multi-Temporal Recordings

Abstract

The article examines a number of 1960–1970s audio recordings contained in the archive of the Kalmyk Scientific Center of the RAS and analyzes tales of one pilgrimage to Tibet. The comparative analysis of legends dealing with Gelong Jijeten involves 5 textual versions recorded from local taletellers at different times. The analysis reveals a number of similarities and ‘typical features’ (10 positions), namely: the pilgrim’s name, the identified goal and destination of the pilgrimage, number of pilgrims, the character they meet en route, their means of transport, description of a Buddhist temple, time spent by Jijeten in the temple. All the versions also contain episodes 1) when those are treated to araka (‘alcohol distilled from milk products’), and 2) when pilgrims set off after the night stop but it is Jijeten sheltered overnight by the
White Old Man who arrives first. Despite the five versions were recorded at different times and from different informants, all of them have retained a common plot basis ― both verbally and structurally. The 1960–1970s recordings made by local folklore researchers attest to the fact that Buddhism in Kalmykia had kept developing due to regular contacts with Tibet.