International Journal Of Literature And Languages
127
https://theusajournals.com/index.php/ijll
VOLUME
Vol.05 Issue03 2025
PAGE NO.
127-129
10.37547/ijll/Volume05Issue03-32
National values characteristic of the folk epic as a
component of the general national culture
Baltayeva Ikbal Tadjibayevna
Uzbek State University of Physical Education and Sports, Department of Uzbek and Foreign Languages, Acting Professor, Doctor of
Philology, Uzbekistan
Received:
29 January 2025;
Accepted:
28 February 2025;
Published:
31 March 2025
Abstract:
The article explores the rich and comprehensive oral tradition of our people, in particular, the epic, in
order to identify the roots of spiritual maturity, such as the courage and honesty of our ancestors, the spirit of
courage, to educate them from true heroes who do not spare their lives for the country, the study of its nature
and principles of its survival. In particular, the work is based on migology, animism and fetishism, the first
examples of folk epics associated with the past life of the peoples of Central Asia, such as Avesto, Kitabi Dada
Korkut, Irk bitig, Bundaksishn, are in the specifics of the plot systems of such sources.
Keywords:
Myth, mythology, "sav", myth, "Avesto", "The Book of Dada Korkut", "Oguznoma", totemism,
fetishism, animism, "Bitig Race", "Bundaksion".
Introduction:
The initial stage of folk poetic creativity is
inextricably linked with various forms of primitive
human activity and is characterized by the fact that it
reflects the religious and mythological views of ancient
people, their primary scientific knowledge, and their
ideas about nature and society. In the system of
national values, which is inherent in the most ancient
layer of the created spiritual heritage, customs and
traditions associated with the spiritual development of
man occupy a special place. They are an integral part of
the national culture and have been of great importance
for centuries in the formation, development, and
satisfaction of the spiritual needs of the people and
nation.
In ancient times, people who did not understand the
origin of the universe, the changes in the seasons, and
the essence of earthquakes on the earth tried to find
their own explanations. As a result, initially the
concepts that something must be holding the earth up
were invented, and later gods were invented to express
the interpretation of each event. Such views are still
found today. However, the “reflection of rituals in the
epic, that is, the role of rituals in the epic plot” is
unparalleled. In particular, a traveler who sets out on a
journey considers himself lucky if he sees a wolf or an
eagle. If he sees a fox, he becomes suspicious and
begins to expect an unpleasant event. If a young man
rides a saddled horse in a dream, he feels as if he has
received news of positive changes in his life. Our young
men still circle around the fire at weddings, scattering
ashes over them. Our elders are happy if a swallow
builds a nest in the ceiling. When they see a horse, they
stroke its head. Until recently, in some districts of the
Kashkadarya region, the custom was preserved of
putting a wolf skin under the cradle of a newborn baby
and decorating it with a tooth. From time to time, even
now, the man in the family buys fish for his home. And
this is considered a good quality, a habit. We can count
many such customs. True, it is difficult to even count
them. So, how did they arise? Why do our people
respect water, bread, and salt? They try to keep them
clean. A person always tries to find beneficial aspects in
every event. He mentally searches for reasons to justify
these benefits. Over time, life experience creates the
need to divide these events into types, to separate the
beneficial from the harmful. As a result, judgments
such as “this is good, that is bad” emerge
in the public
imagination. For example, it has become customary to
assume that if a nightingale sings in someone’s yard, it
is good; if an owl sings, it is bad. What at first glance
seems insignificant has been formed in the
consciousness of our nation for centuries as the basis
for various customs and traditions.
Ancient simple stories about the origin of the world,
International Journal Of Literature And Languages
128
https://theusajournals.com/index.php/ijll
International Journal Of Literature And Languages (ISSN: 2771-2834)
humanity, and man are called “myths” in science. The
word myth (Greek myphos
–
word, legend, narrative) is
explained in the dictionary as “a s
et of primitive ideas
of ancient people about the world, including beliefs
about the creation of the universe, the emergence of
man, plants and animals, the appearance of celestial
bodies, the causes and essence of natural phenomena,
mythical heroes, gods
and goddesses.” “Mythology” is
the science that studies myths. “Folklore works
primarily reflect the process of transition from
mythological to poetic thinking.” If the word "sav" in
Mahmud Kashgari's "Dictionary of the Turks" means
"remembering the words of the fathers," it can be said
to be a word that represents "myth" in our Turkic
language. The Arabic word "asotir" also has the same
meaning. However, since scholars all over the world call
ancient stories "myth," it was found appropriate to use
this term in Uzbek folklore.
The first examples of myths related to the past life of
the peoples living in Central Asia are given in the book
"Avesta". "Avesta" is a product of the creativity of our
ancestors who lived in ancient Khorezm. The work,
which first appeared orally, was written in gold letters
on 12,000 pieces of leather after the formation of a
writing culture at the initiative of Zoroaster. The books
called "Kitobi Dada Korkut", which records legends
from the 11th century, and "Oguznoma" about the
Oguz Khagan who lived in the 13th century (although
the events and texts of the legends in them indicate
that they were created much earlier, scientific works
date back to the 11th and 13th centuries) contain
expressions of mythical imagination about the history
of Turkic tribes and clans. We will provide information
about these books a little later. First, we will dwell on
the theoretical and practical details of the myth.
The aim is to scientifically study the similarities in the
plots and motifs of the epics of Central Asia and the
peoples of the world. Despite the fact that the issue of
epic plot in epics has been studied both in Uzbek
folklore and in world folklore, its complex structure has
not been fully revealed. Accordingly, the main goal of
this study was to study the plots and motifs in the epics
of Central Asia and the peoples of the world from a
comparative-typological,
linguistic-cultural
and
thematic perspective.
The concept of myth is made up of the words
totemism, fetishism, and animism. The word
“totemism” is derived from “his seed,” as noted in
dictionaries and encyclopedias. One of the tribes living
in North America believed that there was a blood
relationship between people and certain types of
animals and plants. These animals were not hunted,
killed, or eaten. Plants were revered. This custom is
present in the beliefs of all peoples of the world and has
been preserved to this day. In general, the slaughter of
animals, that is, the drawing of blood, was not
approved among the Indians. Cows were especially
revered. In Australia, the kangaroo is considered an
animal of special respect. Among Uzbeks, animals and
birds such as wolves, camels, bears, horses, sheep,
snakes, fish, swallows, eagles, roosters, and songbirds
were treated with respect.
It is no coincidence that the coat of arms of
independent Uzbekistan features the image of a humo
bird. Our people also have special faith in fruit and non-
fruit trees such as plane trees, quince trees,
pomegranate trees, and willow trees. It is true that the
animals, birds, and trees listed above are revered as
totems. However, if we think a little, we will understand
that the roots of the faith in them also have a special,
special meaning. For example, it is known that the wolf
is addicted to independent life and is brave; the camel
is able to withstand drought; the horse is loyal to man
and is smart; the eagle is a strong and warlike bird; the
plane tree is long-lived; the pomegranate has many
seeds (as a sign of a child), and the willow is cool and
can be used to make cradles and drums.
Our ancestors, who lived in ancient times, considered
things such as knives, bread, ovens, tandoors, skulls,
books, swords, and especially arrows and bows to be
sacred. "... folklore works mostly reflect the most
ancient ideas of our people about celestial bodies, the
world of plants and animals. These ideas have created
the basis for the entry of many words into our
language, the formation of a figurative artistic way of
thinking. The word "wolf" in the Uzbek language is
sometimes used as a word with a negative meaning, in
a figurative sense. However, the verses "like a wolf
when running" that constantly appear in our epics, the
expression "wolf, fox" in the living language emphasize
that the roots of the emergence of the word "wolf" are
connected with ancient, totemistic ideas"
The green, white, blue, red between them, the moon in
the corners and 12 stars on the flag of Uzbekistan all
emdiv
symbolic
meanings.
Usually,
green
represented youth, red, on the one hand, blood spilled,
on the other, virginal pride, white life, black, on the one
hand, tragedy, on the other, greatness, majesty, red
maturity, adulthood. If you look at the ancient
miniature paintings of Babur's works, you will see a
servant carrying a white towel-like cloth above the
kings. This custom served the purpose of emphasizing
that the future of the king was full of victories, the
peace of his country, and his independence.
A person's belief in the phenomena of totemism and
fetishism is harmoniously manifested in animism. Using
the magical and miraculous power of words to
International Journal Of Literature And Languages
129
https://theusajournals.com/index.php/ijll
International Journal Of Literature And Languages (ISSN: 2771-2834)
influence the human psyche, to relieve it of illness, and
to give spiritual freshness to its nature are the qualities
of animism. Therefore, when people say "bakhshi", the
meaning of "bakhshi", that is, to give healing, has been
preserved.
The heroic deeds described in myths have been
preserved in traditions. As a result, as artistic thinking
developed, perfection in oral creativity took priority,
and written copies of such works as "Avesta", "Kitobi
Dada Korkut", "Oguznoma" appeared.
Thus, the Uzbek mythical world can be compared to a
separate mysterious world.
In it, our people, our country, and our history reveal
their perfect symbolic image. Animistic and totemistic
views, various mythological beliefs played an important
role in the creation of the oldest folklore works, and
they have come down to us only through ancient
historical monuments, scientific works, and memoirs.
At the same time, it proves that the Uzbek people are a
rich people with a rich oral tradition and mythical works
since ancient times.
REFERENCES
Imomov K., Mirzayev T., Sarimsakov B., Safarov O.
Uzbek folk oral poetic creativity. - T.: O'qituv, 1990. - P.
43-56.
Mallayev N.M. History of Uzbek literature. First book. -
T.: O'qituv, 1971. - P. 41-55.
Mahmudov T. About "Avesto" (the last word) / Avesto.
- T.: Sharq NMAK, 2001. - P. 358-383.
"Avesto" historical and literary monument. - T.: "Sharq
NMAK", 2001.
Sarimsakov B. Historical development of Uzbek folklore
(folklore of ancient times) / Essays on Uzbek folklore.
Volume 1. - T.: Science, 1988.
–
P. 25-35.
Sarimsakov B. On the issue of typology of folklorisms //
Uzbek language and literature.
–
Tashkent, 1980.
–
Issue 4.
–
P.37-45.
Mirzayev T. Epic repertoire of folklorists. -T.: Science,
1978;
M. Jurayev, J. Eshonkulov. Introduction to folklore.
Textbook. -T.: «Barkamol fayz media», 2017, 180 pages.
Yormatov I. Typological characteristics of folklorisms //
Uzbek language and literature.
–
Tashkent, 1982.
–
Issue 2.
–
P.54-59.
Boltayeva I. The nature of epithets in folk
epics.//Monography. Abdulla Qodiriy People's Heritage
Publishing House.-T.: 2002.
