The sagas of the ancient Narts are to the Caucasus what Greek
mythology is to Western civilization. This book presents, for the
first time in the West, a wide selection of these fascinating myths
preserved among four related peoples whose ancient cultures today
survive by a thread. In ninety-two straightforward tales populated
by extraordinary characters and exploits, by giants who humble
haughty Narts, by horses and sorceresses, Nart Sagas from the
Caucasus brings these cultures to life in a powerful epos. In these
colorful tales, women, not least the beautiful temptress Satanaya,
the mother of all Narts, are not only fertility figures but also
pillars of authority and wisdom. In one variation on a recurring
theme, a shepherd, overcome with passion on observing Satanaya
bathing alone, shoots a "bolt of lust" that strikes a rock--a rock
that gives birth to the Achilles-like Sawseruquo, or Sosruquo. With
steely skin but tender knees, Sawseruquo is a man the Narts come to
love and hate. Despite a tragic history, the Circassians, Abazas,
Abkhaz, and Ubykhs have retained the Nart sagas as a living
tradition. The memory of their elaborate warrior culture, so richly
expressed by these tales, helped them resist Tsarist imperialism in
the nineteenth century, Stalinist suppression in the twentieth, and
has bolstered their ongoing cultural journey into the post-Soviet
future. Because these peoples were at the crossroads of Eurasia for
millennia, their myths exhibit striking parallels with the lore of
ancient India, classical Greece, and pagan Scandinavia. The Nart
sagas may also have formed a crucial component of the Arthurian
cycle. Notes after each tale reveal these parallels; an appendix
offers extensive linguistic commentary. With this book, no longer
will the analysis of ancient Eurasian myth be possible without a
close look at the Nart sagas. And no longer will the lover of myth
be satisfied without the pleasure of having read them. Excerpts
from the Nart sagas "The Narts were a tribe of heroes. They were
huge, tall people, and their horses were also exuberant Alyps or
Durduls. They were wealthy, and they also had a state. That is how
the Narts lived their lives..." "The Narts were courageous,
energetic, bold, and good-hearted. Thus they lived until God sent
down a small swallow..." "The Narts were very cruel to one another.
They were envious of one another. They disputed among themselves
over who was the most courageous. But most of all they hated
Sosruquo...A rock gave birth to him. He is the son of a rock,
illegally born a mere shepherd's son..." In a new introduction,
folklorist Adrienne Mayor reflects on these tales both in terms of
the fascinating warrior culture they depict and the influence they
had on Greco-Roman mythology.
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