The spacious building of the National Museum of Kalmykia of original architecture would be the ultimate dream for a good half of such institutions in Moscow. It opened in 2009 to celebrate the 400th anniversary of the voluntary entry of Kalmyks into Russia.
The merit of the construction of the museum building, as well as of other sights adorning the Kalmyk capital, was the rapid transformational activity of the former president, Kirsan Ilyumzhinov. Without going into the question of what money was spent and where it came from, one must nevertheless admit that during the reign of Ilyumzhinov, Elista from a god-forsaken provincial backwater became a beautiful and original tourist center, which is visited not only by adherents of Buddhism, but also by ordinary people from other regions of Russia. From Volgograd, Astrakhan and Stavropol, many people go to the "world chess capital" to have a weekend break.
Returning to the museum, I must say that the eternal misfortune - the lack of exhibition space, is now clearly irrelevant for the Kalmyk "temple of history and culture". As I was later convinced, a well-thought-out interior layout, spacious halls, professionally set lighting and exemplary expositions make the Elista institution one of the best (if not the best) of the many provincial museums in Russia seen by the author.
Unfortunately, there was not much time left before the closure, but one of the museum's research workers undertook to show us the exposition at an accelerated pace. Due to the lack of time, I had to sacrifice something else for the inspection of the nature department.
There is no way to describe the museum's exposition in detail, but it must be admitted that it was made at a very high scientific and methodological level. History, ethnography, modern events related to the transformation of Elista into the world "chess capital" - everything is shown intelligibly, comprehensively and coherently, without kitsch and eclecticism.
The Kalmyks (the ethnonym goes back to the Turkic word "separated") were once part of the vast West Mongolian ethnos of the Oirats, who still partially live in Mongolia and Western China. By the beginning of the 17th century, the Oirats formed the Dzungar Khanate, the last large nomadic empire in history. Part of the Oirats - Dzungars gradually migrated to the North Caucasus in the early to mid-17th century and took Russian citizenship. In 1771, the Kalmyks for the most part migrated from the Caucasus back to Western China and Western Mongolia, the rest became the ancestors of the modern ethnos.
The history of the museum was reflected in detail. And on one of the stands with a copy of Genghis Khan's golden paizi (sign of power) in the center, the structure of the oldest Kalmyk sub-ethnic groups was shown: Derbets, Torguts, Hoshouts, Zyungars (Buzavs were formed from them in the 19th century).
The division into these and smaller tribal groups still plays a very important role in the life of the Kalmyks. “We all know our origins well, to which of the Oirat tribes our ancestors belonged,” the researcher explained to the diagram.
The museum exposition described in detail the activities of the outstanding Oirat religious and political figure Zai-Pandit Namkhai Gyamptso, under whom Gelug Buddhism became a common Oirat religion. Zaya Pandita is especially famous for the fact that in 1648 he created a new alphabet "clear writing", thanks to which the Oiratomongols developed a generally accessible written culture.
“Literacy among the Kalmyks was universal. Each father was legally obliged to teach his sons to read and write. If it turned out that the adult son was illiterate, then the father had to pay the khan a special fine “three threes”: three camels, three horses and three bulls. It was too much for ordinary people, it was easier to learn the sons, ”our companion commented on the stand dedicated to the educational activities of Zaya-Pandita.
Needless to say, a lot in the museum's exposition told about the service of Kalmyks in Russia, especially about their participation in the Patriotic War of 1812. There is a copy of the ancient Kalmyk yellow banner, once brought from Mongolia, with which the Kalmyk regiments entered Paris in 1814.
It should be noted that in the 18th century the Kalmyks helped Russia a lot in the struggle for the Caucasus. Thus, in the people's memory of both Kalmyks and Caucasians, a bloody battle remained in the area of present-day Yessentuki (in Kalmyk “Essen Tuk” - “nine banners”), when the best united army of the Caucasian peoples was defeated by representatives of nine Kalmyk clans. “After this battle,” as a museum employee told me, “an agreement on mutual neutrality was reached, which is still remembered as“ the parable of Kalmyk tea ”.
In the ethnographic department, I remember the exhibited traditional Kalmyk lash. At one time, I was interested in why the Kalmyks, having adopted part of the traditional Caucasian clothing: worn under the Circassian "beshmet" - according to the Kalmyks "beshmud" - did not adopt the custom of wearing a dagger. I understood the reason when I saw a Kalmyk lash: a half-meter leather-braided handle, with a hefty, under 300 grams, silver knob passed into a meter, if not more, woven leather "working part", four centimeters thick at the base. There was a thickening at the end of the whip, most likely with a lead weight. With such a whip as a "personal weapon" a skilled fighter was not afraid not only of the Caucasian waist dagger "Kama", but also a rifle with a bayonet.
Noticing my interest in this Kalmyk household item, the researcher explained: “The lash was an obligatory accessory to our costume. All Kalmyks had whips, an adult man did not appear in public without her. Women and children had their own special flat lashes. By the appearance, shape and decoration of the lash, it was possible to unmistakably determine the clan affiliation of the Kalmyk and his social position. Unfortunately, in 1912 the tsarist authorities forbade Kalmyks to wear whips in public places. "
Soon we went to the hall dedicated to the Patriotic War and post-war Kalmyk history. In the center of the hall there was an exposition of weapons, with the British machine gun "Bren", which is not often found in our museums, samples of the uniform of the cavalry Cossack units of the Red Army, where many Kalmyks served, were shown in glass cases near the walls. But the main element of the hall's decoration, centering the exposition, was the portrait of Basan Badminovich Gorodovikov, a hero of the Soviet Union, a prominent military and political figure, later the long-term leader of the Kalmyk ASSR.
It should be remembered here that the Kalmyks, like some North Caucasian peoples, were deported in 1943. And they were able to return to their homeland only in the second half of the 50s. (1.) The KASSR was restored in 1958. But judging by the design of the museum hall, the Soviet period of history for Kalmyks is a "good time", and the communist head of the republic, Basan Gorodovikov, has retained a good memory of himself.
In the hall of the Patriotic War, the conversation with the museum employee gradually turned to the topic of recent wars. Kalmyks have always been good warriors, they showed this during the military operations in Chechnya. This was also recognized by the side opposing the Russian troops; there was a special respect for the Kalmyks. An employee of the museum said: “Kalmyks, if they were captured by the Chechens, were often released. Caucasians respect us Kalmyks very much. Even the Russians from Kalmykia have a different attitude. Here was such a case in the nineties. Two Georgians took girls to Chechnya "... Noticing my bewildered look, the museum employee quite calmly, as if she was talking about something obvious to everyone, clarified:" They took girls to Chechnya to order. They injected sleeping pills with a syringe. So we had a Russian girl who was catching a passing car to go home, they put her in the car, then put her to sleep and brought her to the customer in Chechnya. And he found out that she was from Kalmykia and refused to take her. He told her to "take her where they took her." The Georgians delivered the "booty" to the Stavropol border and landed. The girl walked to the Russian checkpoint, the police put her in a passing car to Kalmykia, and she returned home. "
Afterword.
With this story, I decided to end the narrative part of my notes. Of course, one could further describe the subsequent walks in Elista, talk about the second visit to the Kazan Cathedral and conversations with the Russian Elista, but I thought that this would drag the story too far.
But it is necessary to draw some conclusions and present some analytical reflections. I visited Kalmykia for the first time, but it cannot be said that everything was new for me. I had a lot to communicate with Kalmyks during my studies in Rostov-on-Don, among them I have many friends and good friends. A close student friend of mine, a Russian, was born and raised in Elista. So I already had some idea of the steppe republic and the people inhabiting it. But still, only a personal visit to Elista made it possible to understand many previously unclear points.
In Kalmykia, I was primarily interested in the "Russian question": how does a Russian live next to the Caucasian descendants of Genghis Khan. I saw the first Russian Elista - two cheerful young people on a scooter - right after I got off the bus that had brought me from Stavropol. Subsequently, Russian people met constantly, with a frequency of about one in ten. And from observations from the outside and from direct communication with people, I made a conclusion for myself: there are no special problems in the cohabitation of Russians and Kalmyks. Not only in terms of the "conflict of civilizations" observed in the Caucasus, but also in everyday life.
But the number of Russians in Kalmykia is decreasing, they are leaving en masse, primarily young people. The reasons for emigration are economic. In a completely subsidized republic - where there has been practically no industrial production since Soviet times, only agriculture and the processing of its products - it is very difficult for Russians to realize themselves somehow. Especially if we take into account the clan and clan solidarity of the Kalmyks. Kalmyks are Gumilev-style passionate people: tough, pragmatic, purposeful and assertive. “Babsky,” by Berdyaev’s definition, “is the beginning of the Russian soul,” that is, tearful sentimentality, attempts to justify and pity even fierce enemies — Kalmyks have no trace of them. At heart, a Kalmyk, like a Slav Cossack, is, first of all, a warrior. With an appropriate attitude towards life, including in everyday and professional matters. Kalmyk calmness and equanimity at any moment can be replaced by rage and aggression. And woe to the one at whom this aggression will be directed. Behind the calm face of a Buddhist, you can see the attacking warrior Genghis Khan at any moment.
However, Russians and Kalmyks still get along for more than one hundred years. And they get along quite well. Elista was founded in the middle of the 19th century as a settlement of Russian peasant settlers. All 150 years of its existence, she did not know any serious interethnic conflicts. During the Revolution and the Civil War, Russian peasant farmers and Kalmyk cattle breeders not only did not conflict, but even organized joint bodies of power, both red and white. (2.)
But now it is difficult for Russians to live in Kalmykia. Unlike the Caucasian republics, they even have “socio-economic niches” in the form of professions requiring a good level of education. There are also enough highly qualified specialists among the “titular nationality”.
In the national character of the Kalmyks, there is a kind of "cult of education". And not formal: “To wear a tie and wear a red folder,” but real, in order to get a good professional training in the end. As an elderly Russian Elista told me: “There is a real cult of education here. Even at school, Kalmyks begin to prepare children for admission to a university. The poorest family spares no money for tutors, and does everything so that children come to the institute with a good amount of knowledge, and then receive knowledge that is full for their future profession. "
However, the "cult of education" also gives rise to specific problems. Not only Russian, but also Kalmyk youth are leaving their native republic. It is very difficult to find a decent job and fully realize oneself at home, especially for educated young professionals. Kalmyks-doctors, teachers, engineers, agronomists, veterinarians more and more often work in Astrakhan, Stavropol, Volgograd or, of course, in Moscow.
Among the Kalmyks, there is a large stratum of a rather refined "old-style" intelligentsia, with a strong orientation towards "classical" Russian culture. Kalmyks do not think of themselves outside the Russian cultural space. They have no trace of any attempts in this regard, unlike the republics of the North Caucasus, to oppose themselves to Russia. Among themselves on the streets of Elista Kalmyks, even teenagers speak very good, almost literary Russian with a slight accent, rather even a reprimand. The old Russian-language culture (by the way, I saw a similar one among the Russians of Lvov and the Lezgins of Derbent) is inherent in all Kalmyks, not only the intelligentsia.
In the small one-hundred-thousand-seat Elista, there is also a state Russian drama theater, its performances are well attended. There is a small but good level university with the Bitkeevs' philosophical dynasty, their works on Buddhism are highly respected in the world scientific community.
The rather high level of education of the population with an orientation towards "high culture" gives rise to a number of peculiar problems. The traditional way of life is being destroyed. Fewer and fewer Kalmyks want to live the way previous generations lived. Far from villages and cities, day after day, contemplating the steppe and grazing herds. People want their children to go to good schools with gymnasiums, so that they have the Internet at home. But where to get all this in the steppe?
Now there is a clear outflow of the population from remote areas of Kalmykia to places where there is "civilization": the capital Elista, more or less large settlements, or simply to villages adjacent to federal highways. And in the remote steppe regions abandoned by the Kalmyks, there is an influx of migrants from the foothill republics of the Caucasus. To "newcomers from the South", to shepherds-herders, the intellectual "existential melancholy" and "boredom of provincial life" are unfamiliar. They don't need libraries, good schools and the Internet. Often among the newcomers are those who do not consider it important to give their children even writing and reading skills ... "What is needed, and when needed, will be read by the mullah."
To somehow correct this situation, the authorities of Kalmykia already want to call for permanent residence the Oirats-nomads from China and populate the steppe regions with them. For the Russian Kalmyks, this is a more acceptable option than the creeping annexation of their steppes by the “southern Russians”.
Although, in contrast to Eastern Stavropol and Northern Dagestan, the legal situation in Kalmykia is still under control. There is no problem of terrorism in the republic, there are no manifestations of “ancient mountain customs” on the part of “guests”, which for some reason are mistaken in intolerant Russia for “lawlessness”. True, there was a case in the neighboring Astrakhan region, in the village of Yandyki. There, the southern guests frolicked a little at the Orthodox cemetery, the Kalmyks reacted to the offense inflicted on the Russians.
But nevertheless, in communication with the inhabitants of Elista, both Russians and Kalmyks, one felt anxiety about the "southern problem". The legal position in the neighboring eastern Stavropol Territory is becoming more and more uncertain, everything there is gradually slipping into chaos. Therefore, Kalmyks are justifiably afraid for their future. More than once I heard phrases like “we will soon become the border of Russia”, and in a completely everyday vein.
Note.
1. Unlike others accused of collaborating with the Nazis and the evicted peoples, the Kalmyks do not use the topic of deportation as a "propaganda stick" that allows them to "beat in the eyes" of Russia and the Russians. The eviction of the peoples of 1943-1944 is very convenient in terms of propaganda: any modern atrocities against Russians, ethnic cleansing and even the practice of slavery can always be explained by "a bleeding wound in the heart of the people who survived the terrible atrocity of 1944." Foreign politicians and researchers, such as Anatol Lieven, quite calmly justify with a “bleeding wound of memory” all the atrocities committed and perpetrated against Russians in some Caucasian republics. However, the Kalmyks who have been in deportation, but not pedaling this topic, clearly "spoil the picture." They are not embittered with the Russian people and Russia, and even are, perhaps for their pragmatic reasons, clear Russian patriots.
2. On May 14, 1918, the "Congress of the United Russian-Kalmyk population of the Astrakhan and Chernoyarsk districts" took place; doctor Erenzhen Khara-Davan was elected its chairman. The son of beggar Kalmyks who worked for a feudal lord-tribesman, Haara-Davan graduated from the Maloderbetovskaya primary ulus school, for his ability he was sent at public expense to the Astrakhan gymnasium, after which, again at public expense, to the St. Petersburg Military Medical Academy. Having received a medical degree, he returned to his homeland and worked in his specialty. During the Civil War, he supported the White movement and went into exile. In 1928, his thoroughly Eurasian book "Genghis Khan" was published in Belgrade.
"The author of a small note published on the website" Caucasian Question "with the eloquent title" Why are Chechens afraid of Kalmyks? " Voluntarily or involuntarily, he gave his text a provocative character, says Vyacheslav Nasunov, a member of the Council of Nationalities of the Moscow government, journalist and publicist. - On the whole, the article praises the Kalmyks and somewhat belittles the Chechens. And here the question arises: do the Kalmyks need this? "
In the opinion of the publicist, the military services of the Kalmyk people to Russia are well known. In terms of the number of Heroes of the Soviet Union per capita, Kalmyks rank second among all the peoples of the USSR. And nevertheless, never, at any time, did the Kalmyks have any prejudices against any people, including the Chechens. The attitude to them has always been fraternal, as to those close in spirit. Tens of thousands of Chechens in different years worked in Kalmykia, received education, made a brilliant career, were awarded orders and medals of the USSR. And the great Mahmud Esambaev was awarded the title of People's Artist of Kalmykia, Elista Street bears his name.
As for the events of 2005 in the village of Yandyki, Astrakhan Region, it cannot be argued that there was an interethnic conflict in its purest form. Representatives of the Kalmyk community, together with the Russians, confronted some immigrants from Chechnya who did not want to respect the local way of life. Their defiant behavior was condemned by both local young Chechens and elders. The same reaction in recent history in Bolshoy Tsaryn in the Oktyabrsky district, and here the whole of Kalmykia was outraged by the act of a local resident, who raised his hand against a Chechen woman.
At the same time, the author of the article claims: the two peoples know how to get along well and respect each other. For example, this spring, the head of the Chechen Interior Ministry Ruslan Alkhanov was driving through Grozny and saw schoolchildren from Kalmykia. The police lieutenant general stopped the car and went up to the children to meet and talk. Then he took a picture with young tourists and gave them 10 thousand rubles "for ice cream". According to the accompanying parents, Ruslan Shakhaevich received at that moment "xiang buin", that is, virtue in his karma, since he made such a generous gift right on Buddha's birthday.
Several years ago, on one of the central canals, a well-known politician of those years Aleksey Mitrofanov said that in Kalmykia, unlike other regions of Russia, Caucasians behave "quieter than water and lower than grass", but there was also an element of provocation and a dubious curtsey to our the address.
It's time to stop speculation on this topic, says Vyacheslav Nasunov. Kalmyks are courageous, kind and peaceful people. The inner dignity that they possess never sticks out and carries in themselves as an absolutely natural property. And this is despite the tragic situation in which the Kalmyk people find themselves today.
According to the 2010 All-Russian Population Census, more than 183,000 Kalmyks live in Russia. The main part is on the territory of the national republic located in the Northern Caspian region. As the only people in Europe professing Buddhism, the Kalmyks have preserved the traditional way of life and the original culture of the steppe nomads for centuries. And some facts from the history of this ethnic group can really shock.
Very belligerent
Kalmyks are descendants of representatives of the Oirat tribes of the Mongolian people who migrated to the south of Russia from Dzungaria (Central Asia) at the turn of the 16th-17th centuries. These people have always been considered very militant, their whole history is almost never-ending clashes with neighbors, clashes with armed groups of Turkic-speaking peoples, invasion raids.
The Kyrgyz, Tatars, Kazakhs, Bashkirs, Nogais were forced to almost constantly confront the Kalmyks, who were not accidentally included in the five most militant peoples of the world, losing only to the New Zealand Maori tribes, Gurkhas from Nepal and Dayaks from the island of Kalimantan.
Loyalty to the Russian Tsar
The Kalmyks confirmed their oath to the Russian crown in battles. So, in 1778, they, as part of the army of Alexander Vasilyevich Suvorov, defeated the Crimean Tatars. The following year, representatives of the Mongol-speaking people defended the Russian fortresses in the Azov region from the raids of the Kabardians, then they participated in the Russian-Turkish war of 1787-1791.
In addition, the Kalmyks brutally suppressed all attempts by the Nogays, Bashkirs and Kazakhs to achieve the right to national self-determination.
The only people whose warriors the proud Chechens preferred not to face in battle were the Kalmyks, born cavalrymen, whose light cavalry terrified enemies with their swift attacks.
Red Army swastika
It is noteworthy that since ancient times one of the religious symbols revered by the Kalmyks is the swastika. She even "adorned" the military uniform of the Red Army men who served in the national units. The order on the approval of such an identification mark on November 3, 1919 was signed by the commander of the South-Eastern Front, Vasily Ivanovich Shorin.
Soldiers and officers of the Kalmyk division wore sleeve patches in the form of a red diamond, in the center of which was a yellow swastika with the inscription "RSFSR". At the very top of this unusual sign was a five-pointed star.
Probably, the leadership of the Red Army, when developing the symbolism of the national units, took into account the fact that in the Buddhist religious tradition the swastika has an extremely positive meaning.
Kalmyk SS Legion
The civil war divided the Kalmyk people, the Soviet power was not supported by all the inhabitants of the south of our country. There were many people who remained loyal to the Russian crown and considered it their duty to fight the communists. A small part of the Kalmyks went over to the side of the German fascist invaders, who promised them liberation from the "red tyranny".
And although most of the representatives of this people defended the USSR with weapons in their hands, performing real military feats, there were those who joined the ranks of the Wehrmacht. This allowed the fascist propagandists to announce the creation of the Kalmyk SS Legion. The Nazis claimed that many peoples of the USSR supported their struggle against the communists.
According to the doctor of historical sciences Utash Borisovich Ochirov, during the occupation, about 3 thousand Kalmyks fought on the side of the Wehrmacht, these were cavalry squadrons, and rural militia units, and local policemen.
As a result, in December 1943, by the decision of the Soviet government, the entire people were deported to Siberia, Central Asia and Kazakhstan, which became a real national tragedy.
Treat herpes with fire
Despite their adherence to Buddhism, Kalmyks retain ancient beliefs based on shamanism. These people worship fire. It is considered a universal remedy for getting rid of any negativity: damage, evil eye. Until now, it is customary here to treat herpes and other skin diseases in two ways: by burning with a hot metal; fumigation with smoke.
According to official medicine, these methods cannot affect the pathogens of herpes and other microorganisms, and burns are in any case harmful to health.
However, the Kalmyks worship fire so much that they both "give drink" and "feed" it. When opening a bottle with any alcoholic beverage, these people usually sprinkle a few drops into the fire, thereby appeasing the ancient deity. And during religious holidays, weddings, funerals and other important events, a sacrifice is performed when pieces of lamb fat and three types of bones of this animal are thrown into the fire.
Both men "feed" and "feed" the fire exclusively. And they do it only with their right hand.
Bake meat in manure
Kalmyk shepherds have invented a dish that is prepared in the open air. It is called kyur. The ram meat is cut into small pieces, spices and salt are added. All this is placed in the stomach of the animal, which is then sewn up.
Curry is prepared in a pit, where manure is preliminarily laid and set on fire. The fire heats up the earth, and then the shepherds bury the stomach of a mutton with all its contents into the ashes that have not yet cooled down. Sometimes a fire is also made from above.
The meat is slowly baked at a low temperature, soaked in spices and salt. Depending on the season and other circumstances (weather, age of the animal, the presence of a fire on top), the kur is cooked from 10 to 24 hours.
Everyone who has tried it claims that it is very tasty.
Lost the incorruptible llama
The Kalmyks have lost the imperishable remains of a local lama, who was called Keksh Baksh, although the real name of this Buddhist religious figure, according to legend, was Shivn Davg. He died near the Kalmyk village of Yashkul in the middle of the 19th century.
According to the stories of local residents, the corpse of Lama Keksh Baksh rested in a special tomb until 1929. His remains were preserved incorrupt, which amazed numerous pilgrims. People talked about unusual healings that took place at the sarcophagus.
At one point, it was decided to create a special commission, which was to investigate the body of the lama. And the commission included party leaders and even a doctor, because the people believed that the lama did not die, but fell into a special trance and would one day wake up. Not wanting religious hype, local atheists removed the remains of a man who was revered as a saint somewhere. And now it is not known what became of them.
The dead were left in the steppe
A special tradition of burying the dead, which was widespread among Kalmyks up to the beginning of the twentieth century, arose during the time of shamanism. They simply left the corpses in the steppe, a little away from the places of nomadic camps and dwellings.
The fact is that since ancient times the Mongol tribes did not have time to bury the dead. Especially during military campaigns. The cavalry was constantly moving, then pursuing enemies, then eluding them. What kind of funeral rites are there?
However, the ritual of air burial was adopted by many peoples professing shamanism. This is how representatives of some peoples of Siberia and North America buried their relatives, so that the soul of the deceased could freely go to heaven.
Form of the question "Why don't Kalmyks like Russians?" leaves no room for doubt about its content and makes us immediately look for the necessarily existing reasons for the Kalmyks' dislike of Russians.
Why specifically to the Russians, and not to the Chechens, say, or the French? And who else can you not love and how in general you can treat Russians differently in the light of the latest events related to Ukraine. Crimea, Syria, the thirty-first Summer Olympic and Paralympic Games? ..
It is simply impossible not to fall into the trap of such an categorical wording offered by the media, and therefore it is impossible not to turn to the past in search of reasons.
The history of the emergence of Kalmyks as a people, a nation dates back to the 17th century. It was then that part of the Oirats, the so-called Western Mongols, left Dzungaria, that is, the Oirat Khanate, located on the territory of Western China, and crossed the southern borders of Russia.
What are the reasons for this outcome
They are typical for this time: internecine strife, the problem of lack of pastures, which, probably, became the determining factor - the Oirats were mainly cattle breeders. But there is another version of their exodus from the Oirat Khanate - the unwillingness of some of the Oirats to accept Islam, they wanted to remain Buddhists.
Thus, they appeared on the territory of Russia without permission, and so far there was nothing for them to hate the Russians. The first decades of the Oirats' stay on the territory of the Russians were not pleasant in all respects: between the Don and the Volga it was allowed to live, graze cattle and Kazakhs, and Nogays, and Bashkirs.
It was they who resisted the invasion of the Oirats. The future Kalmyks should have begun to hate them! Halmgi, as Kalmyks sometimes call themselves, turned to the Russian Tsar for help.
Given the difficult situation in Russia: riots, claims from the Crimean Tatars, Turks, difficult relations with Ukraine, the Russian tsar allows Kalmyks to roam between the Don and Volga, and at the same time, appreciating the fact that Kalmyks have always been excellent horsemen and brave warriors, puts on their duty is to protect the southern borders of the Fatherland from external enemies. Kalmyks voluntarily undertake to serve the Russian tsar.
And during this period of history, there was no reason for hatred. But the Russian tsar should have been on his guard.
Despite the agreement of "eternal obedience" and the prohibition to raid Russian cities with all the ensuing consequences, the Kalmyks, fighting with the now common enemy, allowed themselves to take the Russians prisoner and plunder them while they were nomadic.
And now the Kalmyks, who created their own Kalmyk Khanate in the south of Russia, could not have a reason for hatred. The prosperous life of the Kalmyks in their khanate was tested in the thirties of the 18th century.
Among the representatives of the top of the former Oirats, internecine wars began. The Russian government could not but intervene in these events. In addition, colonization by Russian landowners and peasants of the lands on which the Kalmyks roamed began.
As a result, Kalmyk pastures have decreased. On top of that, cold weather came to the south. The loss of livestock, hunger began. Some of the influential Kalmyks, it should be noted, without any pressure from the Russians, decided to return to Dzungaria, which by that time had been conquered by the Qing dynasty.
This decision became the cause of the tragedy that befell the Kalmyks. During the campaign to their historical homeland, about one hundred thousand Kalmyks perished, almost all their livestock fell.
What did the ruling Catherine II do during this period? She liquidated the Kalmyk Khanate. The remaining Kalmyks were assigned to the Cossack troops of the Urals and Don.
Yes, you can probably hate the Russians for the misfortunes that have befallen the Kalmyks. But this hatred is some kind of humiliating, stupid, hatred of those who have forgotten about good, who close their eyes to their own guilt ...
In modern history, in the history of the 20th century, there is a fact that, perhaps, could cause hatred for Russians. In 1943-1944 Kalmyks, mostly old people, women and children, because almost the entire capable male population, about thirty thousand, fought with the Nazis, was deported from the territory of their compact residence.
The reason is the collaboration of the Kalmyks with fascist Germany: the invaders created the Kalmyk cavalry regiment. It consisted of about three and a half thousand Kalmyks.
And yet why not love Russians? The decision to deport was made by the government (I wonder what percentage of Russians were in it?) And concerned not only non-Russian peoples: Volga Germans, Chechens, Crimean Tatars, but also Russians.
Let's remember the history of our country
30s of the 20th century, a period of collectivization, mass dispossession and eviction of prosperous peasants to the uninhabited regions of the North and Siberia by whole families. Can one nation hate another nation for having the same tragedy?
One could probably turn to physiology, psychology, ethics, aesthetics in search of the reasons for the Kalmyks' dislike of Russians. But the results would also be "zero".
It is unlikely that any of the seekers would have been able to discover not only the reasons, but also the facts of manifestation of hatred of one people towards another, because it is not clear how these manifestations “look”.
How can one nation (by definition, a historically formed community of people, which arose on the basis of a common language, territory, economy, psyche, culture), can not love another nation? How do all the Kalmyks dislike everyone, every single one, Russians ?!
Dislike, hate is a feeling. And feeling is an individual phenomenon. It can occur in a specific person in relation to a specific person. Yes, there are nationalists among Kalmyks, as well as among Russians, Ukrainians, Germans and Americans.
Separate facts of manifestation of national hatred of Kalmyks towards Russians are known. But nationalism is a political phenomenon, basically rational, associated with beliefs. It can become quite massive under certain conditions, but it will never be universal.
In short. Young Dagestani fighters came to peaceful Elista. Can you imagine the "naughty" dags? They bullied, harassed, sneered at Buddhist shrines, etc. The bravest fighter urinated on the Buddha statue in the city center and kicked the Buddha statue in the nose, out of the abundance of intellect he posted the "feat" on the social network ...
The Dagestani onizhedets clearly had not seen the Kalmyks until now and did not understand what a Kalmyk is in a rage - in a righteous rage. Elista boiled over instantly.
...In the center of Elista, there was a conflict between local residents and Dagestanis. The reason for it was the behavior of one of the guests who arrived at the Gorodovikov freestyle wrestling tournament. The incident took place on Saturday night, April 2. An eyewitness to the incident told the Rossiyskaya Gazeta correspondent that the young man, walking around the city, committed an act of vandalism.The 22-year-old athlete, in his free time from competition, went to a Buddhist temple with his teammates, relieved himself there and kicked the statue of Buddha in the nose. He shared his act on social networks. The athlete's behavior provoked riots.Residents of Elista, who saw this video, arrived at the hotel where the athlete was staying, and he had to apologize.The behavior of the wrestler caused real indignation of the local residents, who forced him to kneel.The further development of the conflict was stopped by the police who arrived at the scene.Because of this incident, the freestyle wrestling tournament had to be canceled. The instigator of the conflict was arrested and taken to the police station.(Lenta.ru)
...vandalized a Buddha statue. Moreover, the wrestler posted a video of the incident on the Internet. Residents of Elista, who saw this video, arrived at the hotel where the athlete was staying, dragged him out into the street, brought him to his knees and made him publicly apologize. The athlete apologized, but immediately made an indecent gesture. The further development of the conflict was stopped by the police who arrived at the scene.Now the Dagestani athlete has been detained, and the competition has been canceled because of what happened. By the way, an interesting detail: the team, which included the detained athlete, was not officially declared in the wrestling tournament and arrived in Kalmykia on its own initiative. The investigation of the incident continues. The Minister of Sports and the Prime Minister of Dagestan have already left for Kalmykia.(Kalmykia-online.ru)
...the fault of the conflict between the Dagestanis and Kalmyks was the video broadcast on the famous social network Periscop, which was conducted by the guests at the time of the excursion around the steppe capital. At the moment, the video has been withdrawn from public use. Judging from the discussions on the Internet, the athletes spoke unflatteringly about the monuments of architecture with religious significance.(Riakalm.ru)
...The Dagestani athlete was detained, his scandalous video was removed from the Internet. The rest of the Dagestani and Chechen athletes from five teams, accompanied by police officers, urgently left the region.(Nazaccent.ru)
"They didn't let me break it) I'm from Elista, we have usually been here for 5-10 years as everything is relatively calm, so this case is on everyone's lips now. I wanted to clarify that he urinated on the monument not in the temple, where his guards would have immediately twisted it and the scandal would have been louder, but on the street, not far from the Pagoda in the very center of the city. Our young people are very organized, and the reaction was not long in coming. We don't have a lot of hotels, and when they found out about this impudence, we gathered and went to punish the impudent person. According to the stories, together with the police, the FSB, our boys and dags, there were about 100-200 people. For a metropolis, such gatherings of people do not go unnoticed, and for our little Elista in one place - this is Over fucking people) they say that the coach put him on his knees and made him apologize, and this asshole snapped something else. In general, if it were not for the police, there would be an epic Mega Makhach, and I am sure that our guys for such a thing would discourage the Dagestanis from coming to Kalmykia for a very long time. And by the way, I want to note that I'm writing guys, and not specifically "Kalmyks" because, I'm sure, not only Kalmyks (we have a multinational republic) wanted to hang pussies on this idiot, and it would not even be a matter of religion, but simply in disrespect for your home. And disrespect, whether you are a Kalmyk, Russian or Chechen, will in any case cause a response. And this dag chose not the best place to show his "coolness") the descendants of Genghis Khan are not the best option, at the expense of whom one could assert themselves). ZY: I am Russian myself, I respect everyone, but I expressed my attitude to this situation above.
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"I hope they will punish him. But the road to Dagestan is closed for him, because in Dagestan he will be punished a hundred times more after he personally had to apologize to the second person of the republic.
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