Suchergebnisse

Frontmatter -- Contents -- Preface: Credits, Claims, and Confessions -- Note on Transliteration -- Introduction: Contested Ecological, Cultural, and Political Sovereignty in Russia -- 1. Sakha Republic (Yakutia): Resource Rich and Pivotal -- 2. Republic of Buryatia: Gerrymandered and Struggling -- 3. Republic of Tyva (Tuva): A Borderline State with Demographic Advantages -- 4. Crossover Trends: Eurasianism, Competition, Cooperation, and Protest -- Conclusions: Federalism, Cultural Dignity, and Nostalgia -- Notes -- References -- Index

I. Ethnohistory : seeking roots and self-identity -- II. Political anthropology : interpreting ethnicity, ethnic conflict, and sociocultural norms -- III. Symbolic anthropology : seeking riches of folk wisdom and values in ritual and tradition -- IV. Native ethnographers unite : a folklore manifesto.

Russia is not only vast, it is also culturally diverse, the core of an empire that spanned Eurasia. In addition to the majority Russian Orthodox and various other Christian groups, the Russian Federation includes large communities of Muslims, Jews, Buddhists, and members of other religious groups, some with ancient historical roots. All are in a state of ferment, and securing formal state recognition for specific communities is often daunting. This collection provides entry into the diversity of Russia's religious communities. Marjorie Mandelstam Balzer's introduction to the volume illuminates.

Christianity: Orthodoxy and others -- Islam: Sunnis and Shi'ites in cultural perspective -- Judaism: from persecution to revival -- Buddhism: cultural variations -- Old and new religious movements: Burkhanism and Falun Gong -- Shamanism: syncretism and revival of traditional worldviews

The ancient heartland of shamanism is no longer forbidden territory - to travelers or to the spirits. But the spirits never left the vastnesses of Siberia and Central Asia, as these writings reveal. Russian and native experts, and an American cultural anthropologist who has done fieldwork in the region, introduce us to shamans as the poets, therapists, healers, and even leaders of their communities. Among the special features of this collection are remarkable transcriptions of shamanic exhortations and a pathbreaking study of shamanic tales and rituals.