Bosya Ochirova, About Zul

Bosya talks about Zul and a ritual to prolong one’s life. Candlewicks made of feather grass are placed in a small boat-shaped container made of dough. For children between the ages of 3 and 4, the number of candlewicks has to be more than their age by 2 to 3 candlewicks. The ritual begins when the first stars appear in the sky and it has to be performed by a man, not a woman. The performer steps out of the house first with his right leg and once outside utters, ‘You, gods, see and hear us. We are prolonging the lives of our children’. Then he prays to gods as well as to spirits. Finally he gives well-wishes.Sponsored by Arcadia Fund, a charitable fund of Lisbet Rausing and Peter Baldwin