The History of Kazakhstan from the Earliest Period to the Present time. Volume I. Zhanat Kundakbayeva
however, undoubtedly still followed a mixture of Buddhism, Tengrism, and Turkic shamanism at this time. This is indicated by the fact that Bogu Khagan had to force his people into accepting Manichaeism. He organized them into units of ten, with one person responsible for the religious observances of each group. Nevertheless, this mainly Sogdian religion never became widespread among the Uighurs. It was limited primarily to the aristocratic nobility, to whom it appealed because of its emphasis on a pure and clean religious elite who were morally superior to the so-called “dirty masses.” Buddhism undoubtedly continued among these “dirty masses” throughout the period of Uighur rule over Mongolia.
Furthermore, the Uighur nobility itself was not exclusively committed to Manichaeism. Twenty years after the official state conversion, Alp Kutlugh (r. 780 – 790) assassinated Bogu khagan for his financial excesses in support of this new religion. Assuming the title Khagan, he requested Patriarch Timotheus (r. 780 – 819) to assign a Nestorian Christian metropolitan for his realm. This form of Christianity, however, like Manichaeism, was still basically a Sogdian faith. Its patronage fit logically within the general Uighur strategy for winning the allegiance of the people of the Tarim Basin as led economically by the Sogdian merchants.
In the seventh and eighth centuries, Nestorian Christianity spread through southern Kazakhstan and Semirechye and later in the ninth and 10th centuries led to the founding of the Metropolitan See of Qarluks. Christian churches still exist in Taraz and Mirke. In Taraz today there are still Christian families of Syrian origin (easily recognized by their dark skin) who claim that their ancestors went there to escape persecutions, the memory of which has been lost in time.
Control questions:
1. Describe three main points of the religious beliefs in the early Turk states on the plateaus of Central Asia coalesced around.
2. How do we know about the principle beliefs and practices of the Tangri cult? Give some examples.
3. Give an analyses of many other religions prior to Islam Turkic groups came into contact in the course of their long history and wanderings
4. How do we know about Taspar (reigned from 572-581) conversion to Buddhism?
5. Provide some modern-day site evidences about Nestorian Christianity spread through southern Kazakhstan and Semirechyeю
2.3.2 Ancient Turks written monuments
In the VI-VII centuries Turkic speaking tribes of Central Asia being in the structure of the Turk khaganate already used their own script. Necessity in a written language arose from needs of administrative and diplomatic practices and fixation of state acts. The Bugut stela is a monument of the evidences about it. It was erected on the mound of one of the Turk’s khagans Taspar (572-581). The inscription was made in the Sogdian language. On one side of the stela there is a text in Sanscrit almost destroyed with erosion. The variant in the Sogdian language that remained a little tells about events of the first thirty years of the khaganate existence. From the address to readers it is seen that the Sogdian script was clear for quite a wide circle of educated people in the khaganate from the upper strata of the Turk society. A great number of the Sogdians lived at court of the Turk khagans: they were diplomats and officials, courtiers and tutors in writing and reading. Their cultural influence upon the Turks was considerable. In those years, when was erected the Bugut stela, was translated into the Turkic language and fixed the Buddiest composition "Nivana sutra" with the purpose of Buddist popularization among the Turks. In the initial period of the Turk khaganate history, not later the second half of the VII century in the Turkic society added with several signs arose a new script. It consisted of 37-38 of geometrical contours not connected with each other, and in contrast to the Sogdians was well adapted for fixation on wood and stone (with scratching and caving). The new written language rather well rendered phonetic peculiarities of the Turkic language. In the process of adapting to the Turkic language the Sogdian alphabet underwent considerable changes: a) italic way of writing some signs was substituted for separate one; b)under the influence of the forms of clan signs (Tamgas) and ideographical symbols, that the Turks had, and also perhaps under the influence of texture (stone, wood, metal) sooth rounded tracing of Sogdian letters was substituted for geometrical tracing; c) since phonetic systems of the Sogdian and Turkic language are different, not all the signs of the Sogdian alphabet were taken, but phonetic symbolism of runic signs not always coincides with phonetic symbolism of similar Sogdian letters; at the same time the runic alphabet was enriched with new signs that were absent in the Sogdian script, partly of ideographic, partly of letter character. In 1696-1722 years these inscriptions were discovered by Russian scientists S.Remezov, F.Stralenberg, D.Messershmid in top of the current of the Yenisei. In 1889, M.Jadrintsev discovered another one on the rivers Orkhons (Mongolia). In 1893, these inscriptions were decoded by the Danish linguist V.Tomsen. And for the first time were read by the Russian linguist V.V.Radlov (1894). The Orhono-yenisei inscriptions concern by VII-XI centuries. The inscription corpus consists of two monuments which were erected in the Orkhon Valley between 732 and 735 in honour of the two Kokturk princes- Kultigin and his brother the emperor Bilge Khan, as well as inscriptions on slabs scattered in the wider area.
The Orkhon monuments are the oldest known examples of Turkic writings; they are inscribed on obelisks and date back to 720 (for the obelisk relating to Tonyukuk), to 732 (for that relating to Kültigin), and to 735 (for that relating to Bilge Khagan). They were carved in a script used also for inscriptions found in Mongolia, Siberia, and Eastern Turkistan and called by Thomsen "Turkish runes".They relate in epic language the legendary origins of the Turks, the golden age of their history, their subjugation by the Chinese, and their liberation by Bilge.The polished style of the writings suggests considerable earlier development of the Turkish language. In the literary and historiographical meanings runic monuments are not as united as in respect to language and script. The most important for historiographical study of runes is classification of the monuments on their regional, political and genre affiliation.
Despite the huge territory of spreading (from the Orkhon Valley to Danube, from Yakutia to Gobi), monuments known by now are grouped in relatively limited regions cultural and political centers of ancient Turkic tribal unions; on the regional sign can be marked out of following seven groups of the Orhono-Yenisei inscriptions: Baikal, Yenisei, Mongolian, Altai, East Turkestan, Central Asian, and East European. Accordingly they belong to the breeding the union of the Kurgan, the empire of the Kirghiz, the empire of the Eastern Turks, the empire of the Western Turks, the empire of the Uigurs (in Mongolia), the state of the Uigurs (in Eastern Turkistan), Khazars (Chazars) and Pechenegs. Monuments of Northern Mongolia are mainly concentrated in the basins of the Orkhon River, Tola and Selenga. To this group belong the largest of known runic texts – monuments erected in honour of Bilge Khagan и Kultigin (Khoshoo Tsaidam Monuments), the Tonyukuk monument, the Ongin inscription, monuments erected in honour of Kuli-chur, the Selenga stone, the Karabalgasun inscription and also ten inscriptions of Hoito-Temir, two inscriptions of Ikhe-Ashete, the Kentei inscription, small inscriptions from Hangai and Gobi. Usually this group of inscriptions is called the Orkhon monuments. Monuments of the Yenisei Valley can be divided into two sub-groups-Tuva and Minusinsk. To this group belong over 70 discovered by now inscriptions on gravestones, rocks, gold and silver vessels, coins. The Baikal group of monuments numbers thirty seven short inscriptions on rocks reading of which is extremely difficult, and several inscriptions on small domestic objects (spinners). The number of rock inscriptions can be increased if to consider as a runic script the rune-like signs, registered in mainly points of the Baikal region and the upper reaches of the Lena River. The Altai monuments are not very numerous. For the present is known only one rock inscription from the Charysh river valley (the North of Altai) and several inscriptions on silver vessels, found in burial places. The Eastern Turkestan monuments include four inscriptions on the Wall of the ancient building in Turfan (also known as Turfan) and several large texts on paper from Miran and Dunhuang. The Central Asian group of monuments can be divided into two sub-groups- Semirechye, to which belong inscription on gravestones (five inscriptions from the Talas river valley), coins, domestic objects and a wooden stick. Second group of monuments consists from Fergana valley monuments, which include several short inscriptions on ceramics and metal. The Eastern Europe monuments are like the runic signs, discovered in the Northern Caucuses. To the regional group of monuments corresponds their