The Red Kaganate

Last Page Update: December 28, 2000 Contact Copyright Information Main Page Structure of the Red Kaganate Gatherings, Events, . . . Historic Steppes Tribes Legends of the Nomads Flags and other Identifiers Clothing and Apearance Food and related Matters Armour Archery Weapons and Combat Public Forum Resource Links Email: [email protected] Editor: Norman J. Finkelshteyn Mihailo Khazarin By Norman J. Finkelshteyn The Ashina -- the Royal clan of the Blue Turks (and possibly earlier the Huns) and later of the Khazars, traced their origin to a Tenth Son who was first hated but then nevertheless inherited the Kingdom and the right of primogeniture. This story is a fragment of my English retelling of the Kiev Heroic Cycle of Russia. At its basis, I believe, lies the legend of the origin of the Ashina, passed to the Russian storytellers from the Khazars. Further notes regarding the story and this retelling, as well as a glossary, are provided below the story. The King of the Khazars, the mighty Khazar Kagan, he had nine sons, goodly youths all. Then was born to him a daughter, Lovely Nastasya Khansdaughter. After that was born to him a tenth son, Mihailo was the baby called. Then the father, the great Khazar Kagan, caused a great feast for his tenth son. Tents of white felt he commanded set, All the Khans of the Khazar nation were called thereto. As they sat at feast, an old man came in, An old singer, sage who sang visions of truth. �Look at my son!� yelled the great Kagan, �A great man he will be!� �Tell me venerable one, do you see a bride for him?� The old man looked down, sadly hung his head �No good news I see,� said the sage to him, �With forbidden love will his heart be filled, �To Nastasya I see, will his yearning lead.� Black with rage became the Kagan�s face And from love to hate did his feelings turn. So by father and mother was Mihailo hated, By his brothers was Mihailo despised. So they tried to destroy little Mihailo, With horses to trample him, With the sharp spear to pierce him. But his sister saw him, The same Nastasya Khansdaughter, And she took the babe up into her white arms, And she took him away to an old woman�s hall. There Mihailo was fed, there raised was he. Then came the time, he was twelve years old, He began to ask of the old woman his birth. �Tell me grandmother,� he said, �do not hide the truth� �Have I a father of my blood?� �Have I a mother in this world?� �Have I brothers or sisters?� The woman cried at that, then began to speak, �A father you have, my Mihailo Khan, �None other is he, then the great Khazar Kagan.� �And a mother you have, �And of brothers, you�re tenth.� �And a sister you have, just the one, Nastasya Khansdaughter.� �When you were born, when a baby you were, �At your birth you were cursed.� �So your mother and father, they hated you, �Tried to bring you to death my Mihailushko, �To the animals would they have given you.� �But your sister did see, and she rescued you, �Took you up, she did, with her own white hands, �And she brought you to me.� �So I fed you and raised you up.� At this Mihailo cried out, and he fell at her feet. �Ah my grandmother, Oh my dearest one, �You have raised me up, you have cared for me, �Most beloved you are in the world to me!� �I would ask you now, for a boon,� he said. �Go for me,� he asked, �to my father�s house.� �Ask my father for me, for a goodly stallion.� �Ask my father for me, for a bright sharp saber.� �Ask my father for me, for a sharp stout spear.� �Ask of him a saddle of Cherkasso work, �Ask of him, for me, all a warrior�s arms.� So the old woman heeded Mihailo Khan, All these things she went to his sister to tell. Soon the sister ran, Nastasya Khansdaughter, And with no delay came before the Kagan. At the Kagan�s feet did the beauty fall. �Give me, father dear, all a horse�s tack, �And a strong horse, a warrior�s steed.� �Give me, father dear, a sharp stout spear, �Give a spear to me of Brossamen work.� �And a saddle of Cherkasso work, please give to me, �And a great mace, a heavy one.� �All a warrior�s arms give, my father, to me.� So the father did speak, the great Kagan Bek, �Such request you make, my dear daughter Nastasya!� �And who have you in mind to control the horse?� �There is none around to bear the warrior�s arms.� �But there is,� she replied, �my beloved young brother.� �Mihailo Khan, he has all grown up.� �Rescued him I did, from death as a babe, �To an old woman I had carried him, �And she raised him up in her house until now.� So in anger to her, did her father speak, Blood red tears did stream from his eyes unbid. �Until now you were, Nastasya, beloved, �But from now you are, Nastasya, despised!� So crying went out, Nastasya Khansdaughter, And told all to the gray haired one. Then the old woman spoke of this to Mihailo Khan, �Your father, Mihailushko,� said she to the boy, �gives you not a horse,� �Nor a warrior�s arms.� �Do not fret for me,� replied Mihailo Khan, �I will take a walk to my father�s yard, �And will take from him, of his horses the best!� So went he and took, of the horses the best, And quickly rode out from the great wide yard. Not through the gates went Mihailo out, Over the walls leaped his mighty horse. Thus rode out Mihailo onto the open plain, To Knyaz Vladimir he went, off to Kiev grad. His hand he did test among the warriors there. From there Knyaz Vladimir sent him, with gifts, forth again. Rides Mihailo Kazarin in the bright noon day, His Maile catches the light as gold, His Kuyak catches the light as silver. In the wide open plain smoke covers the sky. Smoke covers the sky and it blankets the land. Rode Mihailo through the plain looking for battle. For a full month he rode, finding no one there. Neither old man he found, nor a boy, Neither a Bogatir, nor a Polyanitsa. So determined he to ride to the high mountain. To the high mountain he came, into the dark woods. There he listened, and he heard a noise, A great noise rings out, a great shout gives forth. Cautiously he went further into the dark wood. In that dark wood, there were three Tatar chiefs camped, Three Tatar chiefs dividing their booty. First they divide the red gold. Second they divide the clear silver. Last, they bring out a beautiful maiden. A beautiful maiden weeping. When Mihailo saw her, his heart seized up, A love he felt like he never had. The first Tatar chief speaks, �Do not cry, do not cry lovely maiden � my soul, �Do not cry, do not cry Chieftain�s daughter!� �You�ll be given to me as we divide the spoils, �I will take you off to my foreign land, �I will feed you well, feed you horseflesh.� So the maiden cried, cried more than before, �I have bound my braid on Itil�s holy shore, �They will unbraid it in an accursed foreign land!� Then the second Tatar spoke, �Do not cry, do not cry lovely maiden � my soul, �If you�re given to me as we divide the spoils, �I will quickly sever your sad, lovely head from your shoulders!� Then the third one spoke, and he said to her, �I will take you kindly maiden, into my own land, �I will feed you good bread, �Sweet honeyed water I will give you to drink.� Then rode forth Mihailo Khan, and he said to them, �Hey, Tatar chiefs, share with me your spoils, �Give me but half a share!� �Less � don�t give me gold, nor for silver do I ask, �Give me but the one maiden there!� Turned to him the Tatars and spoke the Tatar chiefs �We will give you no gold, nor silver, �And we�ll not give you the maiden here!� So the first of the Tatars, his stallion did trample, And the second with the spear he pierced. But the third of the Tatars, who had tried to be kind, he allowed to escape. Sat he the maiden on his stallion, On his stallion he set her before him, And began to ride he to the Russ, He began to question her. �Tell me, tell me, my beloved one, �From what people are you, from what tribe? �From what land, from what city?� �Of a royal blood I am,� she replied, �Daughter to the great Kagan of the Khazars.� �But I�m also,� exclaimed Mihailo Khan, �Son of the Kagan Bek!� �Mihailo Kazarin I am by name.� Embraced they then, recognizing, as brother and sister do. �Thank you brother dear� said the maiden to him, �For you rescued me from imprisonment.� �Thank you also my sister, �Nastasya, lovely Khan�s daughter.� �You Nastasya rescued me as a babe and you sheltered me, �And insured that I would survive.� �Your kindness it was that went before mine!� Then he turned his horse to take her to her father. Rode he up to his father�s high window, Yelled he then with his warrior�s voice, �Hey you Khan, great Kagan of the Khazars!� �Had you once a beloved daughter?� Answered him the Kagan quickly, �I had a beloved daughter, �My young Nastasya Khansdaughter.� �And had you once,� asked Mihailo again, �A small son � a boy named Mihailushko?� Grimly the Khan did deny his son. �I will give you gold and silver a plenty!� �Thrust your spear into mother dark-earth here, I will cover the spear with red gold.� Replied Mihailo with these words, �If you refuse your little boy, �Little Mihailo Khansson, �Will not give you your daughter then either!� Sadly the Kagan opened his window wide, To look out at the daring youth, �I had once a little Mihailushko, �A small baby, my little son.� Then he recognized him, saw the youth as his own. �I will love him now more than all the rest.� �I will seat him now, in my own, Kagan�s seat.� �I will give Mihailo my whole land to rule.� He ran down then, and embraced his son, �You�ve delivered to me my own daughter dear, �Nastasya and you, both children returned.� �Both children returned and the curse undone!� NOTES This retelling of Mihailo Kazarin�s story is based most heavily on the version of the tale told by Agrafena Matveevna Krukova, written down June 7, 1899 by A. V. Markov, reprinted V. I. Kalugin (ed.), Bilyni, Moscow, Sovremenik, 1991. However, while that version is the most complete I have found, it omits important motifs which I have reinserted. My changes are as follows: Changes of terms and names - Krukova does not refer to the Khazars, nor does she use the Turkic forms of address (such as Khan, Kagan, Bek). She calls the ruler in the story �Korol� (which is the Russian word for King). Significantly, she uses that term which denotes a foreign ruler, rather than the terms Tzar or Knyaz, which would refer to a Russian ruler. She gives the King of the story the name Pyotr Koromislov. The last name comes from the word for a water carrying yoke, but whether this was ever meaningful to the story, or is simply a name, I can not say. Textual changes and additions - While Krukova�s tale refers to a curse given the child at birth, she does say what the curse is � his father and brothers simply attempt to kill the baby, without explanation. My development of the curse is based on source fragments and research. To introduce the curse, I have added the description of the birth feast. The theme of such a feast in tents is based on the �Tales of Dede Korkut�, which is the hero cycle of the Turkmen (the medieval Guz). The Guz were ethnically and culturally closely related to the Khazars and were often allied with the independent Mountain-Jews of Persia and Central Asia (who were probably in part the remnant of the Jewish Khazars left after the Khazar kingdom was destroyed). The old bard and seer who foretells the deeds or future of the hero is a theme common to both the Guz and the Russians. Because Krukova does not have the incest curse explicit to the story, she has Nastasya bring up Mihailo from babyhood. This becomes self contradictory in the context of the curse and with the theme of romantic attraction followed by filial recognition which defeats the curse. I have therefore substituted an old woman as Mihailo�s adoptive parent, as is the case in many fragments. Krukova does not use the name Kazarin for Mihailo nor does she make a connection to Vladimir�s Kiev. An alternate, more fragmentary version of the story begins with Mihailo Kazarin riding out from Kiev on his adventure. That story simply begins midstream, with no reference to his boyhood, the curse, or his nine brothers, but it is clear that his rescue of his sister is the first time he meets her. I have taken the description of his armour from that fragment and have inserted the explicit reference to Kiev where it seemed most appropriate. Glossary Bek (Kagan Bek) - The military and administrative ruler of the Khazars (see Kagan below). Bogatir - The Russian term for a male warrior, derived from the Turkic and Mongol Boghatur (see Polyanitsa below). Kagan - The ruler of the Khazar state (the Khazar Kaganate). Among earlier Turk tribes the term meant something like High King � a tribal leader who commands the federation as a whole, as well as his own tribe. The Khazars had two rulers, a priestly king (with all the associated Golden Bough symbolism) and a temporal king (who carried the military and administrative responsibilities of rulership). The temporal king was often distinguished from the priestly by being called Kagan Bek or simply Bek. Many foreigners dealt with and were aware of only the Kagan Bek and referred to him as King. Khan - The Turkic term approximately equivalent to Lord. A general form of address for noblemen. Knyaz - A ruler of a Russian city state. Until Ivan the Terrible of Moscow consolidated power to become Tzar of all Russia, the many Knyazi were nominally equal. Nevertheless, there generally was a leading city. For a long time (and certainly during the Golden Age of the Russian epic) this was Kiev. Kuyak - An armour consisting of metal plates. The old central Asian �Kuyagh� referred to any armour so constructed (including items that may be called, Coat of Plates, Brigandine, Scale, or Lamellar). In Russia, the word was adopted from the Mongol as �Kuyak�. It sometimes had the same meaning, but generally seems to refer to a coat with larger, non-cusped plates, attached to a leather or fabric backing, either on the inside or outside, worn as a vest (a Coat of Plates). Maile - An armour (used worldwide) which consists of interlaced metal rings. Polyanitsa - The Russian term for a female warrior. The term derives from a Slavic tribe, the Polyane, who were the major military force among the pre-Russian Slavs, as well as the Slavic word �Polye� (field) � �a rider of the fields�. The male equivalent is Polyanin, however, it has been virtually completely replaced by the Turco-Mongolian derived �Bogatir� (see above). The Polyanitsa is a common character, taken for granted, in the traditional Biliny. That, coupled with the retention of the Slavic word for the female warrior, in contrast with the replacement of the male, has led researchers to believe that these Polyanitsy had existed prior to the Mongol conquest. Their characterization in the stories as foreign allies give a hint to their history as Hun or Turk tribeswomen rather than Slav or Viking Russians.