Grigoriy Kukareka, Two Legends About Manych Gudilo and Manych

Grigoriy is a poet and writer who was born in Kalmykia. According to him, legends are jigsaws and mysteries. Legends are like sisters of history. He recounts two legends, one about the Lake Manych Gudilo and the other about the Lake Manych. Legend One. Grygoriy heard this legend from his father. Once upon a time there lived a tribe that was engaged in livestock-breeding and pottery. On both sides of their pots they painted the sun with long rays, which was a symbol of their tribe. At that time hills were so high that saiga antelopes that stood on top of them could rich the sky with their horns. The water in the springs was pure elixir and people who drank it always stayed healthy. One day, dark news reached the sun-loving tribe – hordes of enemies had arrived at the border of their land, setting fields and grass on fire. The men of the tribe set off to fight the hordes. As time passed, the elderly, women and children who were left behind became tired of waiting for their men. As no news arrived, the people became sad. And then, one beautiful day, happy news reached the tribe – a small number of their victorious men were on their way home. When the warriors arrived, those who did not see their beloved among the survivors, cried with bitter tears. Those who met their men alive, cried with happy tears. Both sad and happy tears flowed in streams to create a lake that was named Manych Gudilo. This salty lake has places where the water is clean and sweet. This lake serves as a borderland between Europe and Asia. Legend Two. On the orders of the Byzantium’s emperor Michael, the founder of the Cyrillic script Kirill set out on a journey to the western parts of the empire to enlighten the people and create a Slavic alphabet. According to a legend, in the 9th century during his journey along Manych, Kirill stopped to visit a Khazar khan. There he participated in a debate with other scholars all of whom he beat. As a result, Kirill added 9 letters into his alphabet. Kirill’s journey encompassed Don, the Azov and Black seas. It is a legend, but a stone anchor dating from the 9th century was found along this route.Sponsored by Arcadia Fund, a charitable fund of Lisbet Rausing and Peter Baldwin