Mari is a Finno-Ugric people, which is important to call with an emphasis on the letter “and”, since the word “mari” with an accent on the first vowel is the name of an ancient ruined city. Immersed in the history of the people, it is important to learn the correct pronunciation of their name, traditions and customs.
The legend of the origin of the mountain Mari
Marie believes that their people come from another planet. Somewhere in the constellation Nests lived a bird. It was a duck that flew to the ground. Here she laid two eggs. Of these, the first two people were born, who were brothers, since they came from one mother-duck. One of them turned out to be good, and the other was evil. It was from them that life began on earth, good and evil people were born.
Mari know cosmos well. They are familiar with celestial bodies that are famous for modern astronomy. This people still has its specific names for the components of outer space. Ursa Major is called Elk, and the Pleiade is called the Nest. The Mari’s milky way is the Star Trek along which God travels.
Language and Writing
Mari have their own language, which is part of the Finno-Ugric group. It has four dialects:
- eastern;
- northwest;
- mountain;
- meadow.
Until the 16th century, the mountain Mari had no alphabet. The first alphabet in which their language could be written was Cyrillic. Its final creation took place in 1938, thanks to which the Mari received writing.
Thanks to the advent of the alphabet, it became possible to record the Mari folklore represented by fairy tales and songs.
Religion Mountain Marie
Vera Marie was pagan before becoming acquainted with Christianity. Among the gods there were many female deities left over from the time of matriarchy. There were only 14 mother goddesses (ava) in their religion. They did not build temples and altars in Mary, they prayed in groves under the guidance of their priests (cards). Acquainted with Christianity, the people moved into it, retaining syncretism, that is, combining Christian rites with pagan ones. Part of the Mari converted to Islam.
The Legend of Ovda
Once upon a time in the Mari village there lived a obstinate girl of extraordinary beauty. Causing God's wrath, she was turned into a terrible creature with huge breasts, coal-black hair and feet turned inversely - Ovda. Many avoided her, fearing that she would curse them. It was said that Ovda settled on the edge of villages near dense forests or deep ravines. In the old days, our ancestors met her more than once, but we are unlikely to ever see this girl of terrifying appearance. According to legend, she hid in dark caves, where she lives alone to this day.
The name of this place is Odo-Kuryk, and it is translated - Mount Ovda. An endless forest, in the depths of which megaliths are hiding. Boulders of gigantic size and perfect rectangular shape, folded so that form a battlement. But you will not immediately notice them, it seems that someone consciously hid them from the human eye.
However, scientists believe that this is not a cave, but a fortress built by the mountain Mari especially for defense against hostile tribes - Udmurts. A great role was played by the location of the defensive structure - the mountain. The steep descent, followed by a sharp ascent, was at the same time the main obstacle to the rapid movement of enemies and the main advantage for the Mari, since, knowing secret paths, they could quietly move and shoot.
But it remains unknown how the Mari managed to build such a monumental structure from megaliths, because for this it is necessary to have remarkable strength. Perhaps only creatures from myths are capable of creating something similar. Hence the belief that the fortress was built by Ovda, in order to hide its cave from people's eyes.
In this regard, Odo-Kuryk is surrounded by special energy. People with extrasensory abilities come here to find the source of this energy - the cave of Ovda. But the locals are trying once again not to pass by this mountain, fearing to disturb the peace of this wayward and rebellious woman. After all, the consequences can be unpredictable, as well as its nature.
The famous artist Ivan Yamberdov, in whose paintings the main cultural values and traditions of the Mari people are expressed, considers Ovda not a terrible and evil monster, but sees in her the beginning of nature itself. Ovda is a powerful, ever-changing, cosmic energy. When copying paintings depicting this creature, the artist never makes copies, each time this is a unique original, which once again confirms the words of Ivan Mikhailovich about the variability of this female natural principle.
To this day, the mountain Mari believe in the existence of Ovda, despite the fact that no one has seen her for a long time. Currently, her name is most often called local healers, witches and herbalists. They are respected and afraid because they are the carriers of natural energy in our world. They are able to feel it and control its flows, which distinguishes them from ordinary people.
Life cycle and rites
The Mari family is monogamous. The life cycle is divided into certain parts. The big event was a wedding, which acquired the character of a universal holiday. A ransom was paid for the bride. In addition, she must have received a dowry, even for pets. Weddings were held noisily and crowded - with songs, dances, a wedding train and in festive national costumes.
The funerals were distinguished by special rites. The cult of the ancestors left its mark not only on the history of the mountain Mari people, but also on the funeral clothes. The deceased Mari was necessarily dressed in a winter hat and mittens and taken to the cemetery in a sleigh, even if it was warm outside. Together with the deceased, objects were put into the grave that could help in the afterlife: cut nails, branches of prickly rose hips, a piece of canvas. Nails were needed to climb the rocks in the world of the dead, prickly branches to drive away evil snakes and dogs, and on canvas to go to the afterlife.
This people has musical instruments that accompany various events in life. This is a wooden pipe, pipe, harp and drum. Traditional medicine is developed, the recipes of which are associated with positive and negative concepts of world order - a life force originating from outer space, the will of the gods, the evil eye, and corruption.
Traditions and Modernity
It is natural for Mari to adhere to the traditions and customs of the mountain Mari to this day. They greatly honor nature, which provides them with everything necessary. When adopting Christianity, they retained many folk customs from pagan life. They were used to regulate life until the beginning of the 20th century. For example, a divorce was formalized by tying a couple with a rope and then cutting it.
At the end of the 19th century, the Mari had a sect that tried to modernize paganism. The religious sect of the Kugu cultivar ("Big Candle") is still in effect. Recently, public organizations have been formed that set themselves the goal of returning to modern life the traditions and customs of the ancient way of life of the Mari.
Mountain Marie Farm
The basis for the food of the Mari was agriculture. These people grew different grains, hemp and flax. Root crops and hops were planted in the gardens. From the 19th century, they began to breed potatoes en masse. In addition to the garden and field, animals were kept, but this was not the main direction of agriculture. The animals on the farm were different - small and cattle, horses.
A little more than a third of the mountain Mari had no land at all. The main item of their income was the production of honey, first in the form of beekeeping, then independent breeding of beehives. Also, landless representatives were engaged in fishing, hunting, logging and timber fusion. When logging enterprises appeared, many Mari representatives went there to earn money.
Until the beginning of the 20th century, the Maris made most of the tools and hunting in the home. They were engaged in agriculture with the help of a plow, a hoe and a Tatar plow. For hunting, traps made of wood, stag beetle, onions and silicon guns were used. At home, they were engaged in carving from wood, casting artisanal silver jewelry, women embroidered. The vehicles were also homegrown - covered wagons and carts in the summer, sleighs and skis in the winter.
Mari life
This people lived in large communities. Each such community consisted of several villages. In antiquity, one community could have small (ermat) and large (sat) tribal formations. The Mari lived in small families, crowded were very rare. Most often, they preferred to live among representatives of their people, although sometimes mixed communities with Chuvashs and Russians came across. The appearance of the mountain Mari is not much different from the Russian.
In the 19th century, the Mari villages were a street structure. Plots in two rows along one line (street). The house is a log house with a gable roof, consisting of a crate, a canopy and a hut. In each hut there was necessarily a large Russian stove and kitchen, fenced off from the residential part. There were benches against three walls, in one corner - a table and a master's chair, a "red corner", shelves with dishes, in the other - a bed and bunks. This is basically what the Mari’s winter house looked like.
In the summer, they lived in log cabins without a ceiling with a gable, sometimes gable roof and earthen floor. A center was arranged in the center, above which a boiler hung, to make a hole in the roof to remove smoke from the hut.
In addition to the master's hut, a yard was used in the courtyard, used as a pantry, a cellar, a stable, a barn, a chicken coop and a bathhouse. Wealthy Mari built crates in two floors with a gallery and a balcony. The lower floor was used as a cellar, storing food in it, and the upper floor was used as a barn for utensils.
National cuisine
A characteristic feature of the Mari in the kitchen is soup with dumplings, dumplings, sausages cooked from cereals with blood, dried horse meat, puff pancakes, pies with fish, eggs, potatoes or hemp seeds and traditional unleavened bread. There are also such specific dishes as fried squirrel meat, baked hedgehog, fish flour tortillas. A frequent drink on the tables was beer, mead, buttermilk (low-fat cream). Whoever knew how, he drove potato or grain vodka at home.
