APIFantasy | Myth and Folklore Anthology

Mongolian Mythology - Folkloric Legends #1

Namjil and the Morin Khuur

This tale revolves around one of Mongolia's most beautiful and well-loved instrument, the Morin Khuur.

There once was a young horse herder who entered the Mongolian army. There, they discovered he could sing so beautifully that they named him Namjil the Cuckoo and ensured his only duty was to create music in order to soothe the spirits. After some time of doing only this task, Namjil missed the horses and asked his commander if he could take care of the horses of the troops. The commander gave him permission.

One day, he meets a beautiful woman who asked who to play for her and her family. He agreed to it, having been enchanted by her beauty. They fell in love and spent their days happily making music. However, one day, Namjil had to return to his home and wife. The woman gifted him with a flying horse so that he could return to the woman he fell in love with every night. She gave him instructions, telling him he needed to stop a little before reaching his village and walk the horse the rest of the way, so it could tuck its wings away from prying eyes.

This arrangement worked for a long time, but eventually, his wife became jealous and confused about why her husband kept disappearing every night. One night came and Namjil was in so much of a hurry that he flew his horse right into the village, which his wife saw. In a fit of jealous rage, she ran out and cut the horse's wings off, leading it to bleed out and die.

Devastated by the loss of his horse and the woman he loved dearly, he made the first Morin Khuur from the horse's hair, skin, and bones and carved its face into the headpiece. With it, he played mournful songs, lamenting the loss of love. 

The Central Asian Epic of King Gesar

When the world was created, violent spirits were also born. These evils ran rampant, leading the gods to believe that a divine hero must be born in order to save the earth. This divine hero is a child that is born into the world to a human couple. Overtime, people come to fear his superhuman strength and fearless nature, which lead him and his mother getting kicked out of the kingdom. For years, they live in the wilderness.

One day, there is a horse race to determine who will marry the princess and take the throne, so this divine hero wins and assumes the title of 'Gesar' and the throne, with the princess by his side as his wife. His campaign is against a demon kind, whose wife placed him under a spell. This spell makes him lose his memory for six years, so when he finally returns home, his wife has faallen in love with the enemy. The epic of Gesar leads him to  different lands, fighting his foes across the earth. Some of his adventures lead him to hell, but at the age of 80, he considers his mission completed and returns to the heavenly realm.

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