Szerkesztő:Hrspks/Miracle deer
The miracle deer (from Hungarian Csodaszarvas) in Hungarian mythology and folklore is a mythical animal sent by God. According to Arnold Ipolyi bishop and historian, some Hungarian deities appear in the forms of Turul or deer in mythology. During the Hungarian conquest of the Carpathian Basin, the magyars may have brought with them an Eastern miracle deer myth, which later mixed with the christian Saint Eustace and Hubertus, patron saints of hunters.
The miracle deer is a symbol of rebirth, renewal and the sun.
In Hunnic-Magyar mythology[szerkesztés]
The deer is one of the most important creatures in Turkish mythology, along with the turul totem bird and Asena, the she-wolf. In Kazakhstan, deer depictions are as early as 4 BC.[1] 8th century golden statues depicting deer were found in the tomb of the Kökturk Bilge kagan, the mythical deer is called Puura . The neighbors of the Kökturks are referred to not only as tokuz oguz (nine oguz) but also as tokuz boynuzlu (nine deers). They symbolize the empire of Tengri, the sky, while their branching antlers indicate the kinship of the Turkish peoples. [2]
The legend survived Simon Kézai's work entitled Gesta Hunnorum et Hungarorum (Deeds of the Huns and the Magyars) [3], according to which the brothers Hunor and Magor - from whom, according to the legend, the Huns and the Hungarians originate - were lead to a new, hospitable land by a deer during their hunt. The tale of the miraculous deer can also be found in the Képes chronicle . [4]
There was probably an ancient record of Hungarian prehistory in the 11th century, which, however, did not survive. According to István Balassa and Gyula Ortutay, the origin of the miracle deer legend is the 11th century could have been a century-old chronicle. [5]
The 6th century Iordanes, bishop of Ravenna, wrote the legend of the miraculous deer in his work De origine actibusque Getarum in short Getica (On the origin and deeds of the Getae), which was adapted [6] by the medieval Hungarian chroniclers and Antonio Bonfini in his work "Tithes of Hungarian History" too. [7]
According to Gyula László : "(...)both the Onogur-Avar-Hungarian people and Árpád's Hungarians have a layer of Scythian tradition. We also had a deer as our ancient goddess, our leading animal, just like the Scythians." [8] The miracle deer tale, on the one hand, it is a leading animal, and on the other, a symbol of fertility, since it is through him that Hunor and Magor find the princesses and their numerous entourage, from whom the numerous Huns and Magyars are born.
International analogies[szerkesztés]
The legend of the miraculous deer and the pair of men hunting it existed among other peoples as well. The attached image was found on a floor tile in the ancient Greek city of Pella.
In medieval tales[szerkesztés]
A "wonderful deer" appeared in Anonymus's Gesta Hungarorum (The things worn by the Hungarians) in the chapter about chief Bars and the foundation of Bars Castle.
To this end, with a common decision, Bönger's son Bors was sent out with his brave men. As they rode by the Garam River, a deer ran ahead of them and charged towards the mountaintops. Bors quickly caught him in the hilt and shot him down on the ridge. Then, when he looked at those mountains all around, he had the idea of building a castle there. He immediately gathered many people and built a strong castle on the top of the mountain ridge; he also gave it his own name, so it is called Bors Castle.
A recurring motif in Hungarian (and Polish) medieval chronicles is that a miraculous deer shows where to build a church or monastery: a deer shows St. Gellert the location of the monastery in Bakonybél, in the founding myth of the Church of Vác a deer shows to St. László where to build the cathedral, according to the Polish chroniclers, a deer showed the Hungarian St. Imre where the Poles should build a monastery.
In folk tradition[szerkesztés]
The miracle deer in old songs is always a male animal, it is also called a miracle boy deer . In the county of Vas, in Bucsu, according to the version recorded at the turn of the century, there are a thousand horns, a thousand burning candles on the tip of the horn, two golden crosses on its two kidneys; according to the version recorded in Dozmat, he has the bright rising sun on his forehead, the beautiful moon on his side, and the heavenly stars on his right kidney. According to other Transdanubian versions, it has a thousand branches and a thousand candles on it. The miracle deer grazes on a small round lawn or appears in a black cloud.
References[szerkesztés]
- ↑ Resim kaynağı, Arheologiya Kazahstana, Alma Ata 2006. Kumsal Coruhlu
- ↑ Ahmet Ali Arslan: Türk Şamanizminin Kaynağına Doğru
- ↑ Kézai Simon mester Magyar Krónikája Fordította: Szabó Károly - "Történt pedig, hogy a mint egyszer vadászni kimentek, a pusztán egy szarvas ünőre bukkanának, mellyet, a mint előttök futott, a Meotis ingoványaiba kergetének"
- ↑ A Képes krónika elektronikus változata. [2012. március 4-i dátummal az eredetiből archiválva]. (Hozzáférés: 2016. március 25.)
- ↑ Balassa Iván – Ortutay Gyula: Magyar néprajz
- ↑ Klima László: Jordanes: Getica. [2010. július 4-i dátummal az eredetiből archiválva]. (Hozzáférés: 2010. szeptember 23.)
- ↑ Antonio Bonfini: A magyar történelem tizedei - "A hunok vadászatból éltek, és egy isteni csodajel késztette őket kivándorlásra. Amikor ugyanis a Maeotis lakói közül néhányan találomra vadászatra indultak, egy szarvas tűnt fel előttük, amelyet a mocsárban lelkesen üldözni kezdtek, és a szarvas elejtésének vágya annyira elragadta őket, hogy véleményem szerint a cimmer Bosporustól nem messze átkeveredtek a befagyott Maeotison, ámde ahogy az európai Sarmatiában megálltak, a szarvas eltűnt"
- ↑ László Gyula: Árpád népe. Helikon Kiadó, Budapest, 1988. 133. old
[[Kategória:Hunting]] [[Kategória:Hungarian mythology]] [[Kategória:Mythological creatures]] [[Kategória:National symbols of Hungary]]