Sual 3: Turkic written monuments of the XI century

An important common Turkic written monuments of the XI century is the essay of

the outstanding medieval scholar Mahmud Kashgari Divan lugat it-Turk
(Compendium of the Turkic dialects) and the first poem in the Turkic language
Kutadgu Bilig by Yusuf Khass Hajib Balasaguni.
Divan lugat it-Turk is the first encyclopedic dictionary of the Turkic language. The
compiler of the Compendium of the Turkic dialects Mahmud Kashgari for a long
time had traveled through the lands inhabited by the Turks, diligently writing down
their words, legends, customs, riddles, and proverbs. Subsequently, he
systematized the collected linguistic, historical, and ethnographic material, creating
the Compendium of the Turkic dialects.
Divan lugat it-Turk by Mahmud Kashgari is a unique publication where, along
with the usual vocabulary for the dictionary, there are numerous works of art,
mainly folklore. The scientist presented the main genres of the Turkic-speaking
folklore - ritual and lyrical songs, excerpts from the heroic epic, historical
traditions, and legends. The dictionary includes up to 300 quatrains and the same
number of proverbs and proverbs of 25 different Turkic tribes.
Besides, here you can find information on other branches of knowledge (anatomy,
medicine, veterinary medicine, astronomy, geography, and ethnography), learn
about the historical and cultural ties between different tribes and clans, about some
historical events, about the role and place of the Turkic languages, information
about the tribes and clans speaking the Turkic languages. He was the first to draw
up a map of the world showing peoples, main cities, rivers, seas, and lakes in the
Turkic language, indicating the territories of residence of the Turkic peoples.
The only copy of the work of Mahmud Kashgari was discovered in 1915 by the
Turkish scholar and bibliophile Ali Amiri in the Istanbul market, and nowadays it
is kept in the National Library in Istanbul.
The poem Kutadgu Bilig (‘Blessed knowledge’) by Yusuf Khass Hajib Balasaguni
can be rightfully called the first poem in the Turkic language. The book was
written circa 1069-1070. in Kashgar. The author presented it as a gift to the ruler of
the Karakhanid khaganate Tabgach-Bogra Khan, who, as a token of gratitude,
bestowed upon the poet the most honorable title at court ‘Has Khadzhib’ - the
minister of the royal court. The language in which the poem was created is
considered to be ancient Uyghur or Karakhanid-Uyghur language.
Kutadgu Bilig can be called a work of art since the literary and artistic style of the
author can be traced. On the other hand, it is a political and philosophical treatise
written in the genre ‘Siyasetname’, or ‘The Book of Government’. This is a genre
of Arabic, Persian, Indian and Turkic literature, providing information on the
proper management of the state by the dignitaries. Works addressed mainly to
rulers served as a kind of set of rules that a good ruler had to adhere to Kutadgu
Bilig is also an ethical and didactic treatise, as indicated by the ethical and
moralistic orientation of the poem.
The poem of Yusuf Khass Hajib has come down to us in three manuscripts:
1. The Vienna manuscript, named based on its current location, or The Herat
manuscript, based on its place of correspondence,
2. The Cairo manuscript, written with Arabic script, the manuscript was
discovered in 1896 in Cairo.
3. The Namangan manuscript - the most complete of the known manuscripts, was
discovered in Namangan.
The poem Kutadgu Bilig consists of 6520 beits that are distributed into 85
chapters. Additionally, the poem has three more appendices that contain 124 beits
and are distributed into three chapters. The main part of the poem is written with
the mutaqarib metric of the Arabic system of versification aruz in the form of
masnavi distiches and represents the first example of the use of aruz in Turkic
literature. The poem is written according to the Arab-Persian literary traditions,
which makes it mandatory to write the traditional eastern introduction, in which the
author, following tradition, praises the Almighty, the prophet of Muslims, and his
four righteous caliphs.
The main characters of the poem Kyuntogdy, Aytoldy, Ogdyulmish, and
Odrugmush personify four main postulates, on which, according to the author, a
just society should be built:
1. Kyuntogdy (translated as ‘the sun has risen’) - elik (ruler), symbolizes a just
government,
2. Aytoldy (translated as ‘the full moon’) - the vizier, symbolizes happiness,
success, and prosperity,
 3. Ogdyulmysh (translated as ‘the praiseworthy’) - the son of the vizier, a symbol
of reason and wisdom.
4. Odgurmysh (translated as ‘the awakening’) - the brother of the vizier, a hermit,
represents the future, the afterlife.
The plot of the poem is based on the conversations of the main characters and their
correspondence, in which they cover various topics, such as the inevitability of
death and the necessity to contemplate the upcoming eternal life and morality.
The plot of the poem is as follows: Aytoldy, having heard about the power and
justice of the Elik (‘ruler’) Kyuntogdy, enters into his service and tries to become
his closest adviser and companion, thus reaching the rank of the chief vizier. After
the death of Aytoldy, his son Ogdyulmysh becomes a trusted associate of elik. For
the benefit of the state, Ogdyulmysh tries to attract his relative Odgurmysh to the
service of the elik, but he does not agree, preferring to be far from the worldly life.
The author puts forward very high demands on the rulers, claiming that they must
possess high qualities, be well educated, and always take care of their subjects. The
author draws some kind of utopian society with the ideal social relations.

Sual 4: Avesta, Azerbaijani legends cited by Greek authors

Avesta as an important literary monument of Turkic peoples
An important literary monument, which presents a set of religious-philosophical,
socially scientific, and moral-ethical laws of the Turkic peoples is the Avesta that
for many centuries had been considered the sacred book of the ancient proto-
Turkic ethnic groups. It is suggested that the original text of Avesta was in the
ancient Turkic (the language of the proto-Turks) since the linguistic research
reveals words of Turkic origin in the text.
The Avesta is a sacred book of Zoroastrianism, or to be more precise, a revelation
received by Zarathushtra from Ahura Mazda who was proclaimed by Zarathushtra
as the only and eternal god. The dualistic worldview of the Turkic peoples found
its artistic expression in the Avesta. The opposing forces of good and evil are
expressed through the opposition between Ahura Mazda and his brother Ahriman,
the God of Darkness.
The Avesta was recorded in writing during the Achaemenid era in the V - IV
centuries BC. Most of the original manuscripts of the Avesta did not make it to our
days, the extant parts of the book are all that remain of the voluminous
manuscripts. According to the ancient sources the original Avesta consisted of 21
books (‘naska’), each of the books corresponded to the 21st word of the Zoroastrian
prayer.
Throughout the Avesta there are represented various mythological motives and
figures, some parts of the manuscripts are directly related to the folklore samples
of the Turkic peoples. Moreover, numerous texts are testifying to the syllabic
character of the ancient versification of these peoples.
Azerbaijani legends cited by Greek authors
Many extant literary monuments of the Turkic peoples are presented in the
versions of the ancient Greek authors. For example, Greek historian Herodotus (V
century BC) in his work History tells us a legend about the struggle of the
Massagetean Queen Tomyris with the Persian King Cyrus the Great, as well as the
legend about Astyages - the last king of the Median Empire.
The first legend about the Persian King Cyrus II from the Achaemenid dynasty.
Through military deception, King Cyrus II captured Spargapis in a battle the son of
the Massagetean Queen Tomyris. To rescue her son, Tomyris proposed to King
Cyrus to free her son and in return get a chance to retreat from her lands in peace.
This way the Queen put forward an interesting ultimatum. Otherwise, she promised
Cyrus to quench his bloodthirst. But Cyrus did not accept her proposal, and the
Queen's son committed suicide in the captivity of the enemy. When Tomyris
learned about the death of her son, she attacked the Persians. Almost the entire
Persian army fell on the battlefield, including King Cyrus. Thus, the Queen
fulfilled her promise to the Persian king. She ordered to fill the wineskin with
human blood and immerse the head of King Cyrus's into it. When this was done
she uttered the following words: ‘Although, I see, I defeated you in this battle, you
have caused me a heavy grief by vilely taking my son away from me, and for this, I
will fill you with blood as I promised’.
The second legend is dedicated to Astyages, the last King of Media. The legend
tells how the tyranny of Astyages brought Media to its fall and Persia to its
triumph. According to the legend, Astyages, the grandfather of Cyrus II saw a
strange dream. According to his dream readers, his grandson Cyrus, the son of
Mandana's daughter and a noble Persian, will kill him and take his throne. When
Astyages was told the interpretation of his dream, he ordered his dignitary Garpagu
to kill his grandson. But Garpagu did not want to kill the baby, and so he ordered
his slave shepherd to deal with the boy and leave him to be torn apart by wild
animals. It was on this day that a dead baby was born in the shepherd's family,
together with his wife he decides to replace the dead boy with little Cyrus. When
the deception was revealed, Astyages severely punished his dignitary by treating
the unsuspecting Garpagu to a roast of his own son's meat. Trying to avenge the
death of his son, Garpagu organizes a conspiracy and helps Cyrus to capture
Media. Thus, Media was conquered by Persia.