The Cult of The Bull in the Traditional Culture of the Buryats
DOI: 10.23951/2307-6119-2026-1-84-90
In the mythology and religion of Eastern peoples, the cult of the bull has deep roots, as evidenced by unique archaeological finds and historical, ethnological, and ethnographic facts. This article is the first to examine the bull cult in Buryat traditional culture. Studying the religious and mythological origins of the bull cult enables us to present the legendary figure of Bukha noyon baabai (‘father of the bull-lord’), who is considered the patron saint of the Buryat people and the progenitor of one of the largest tribal groups among the Western Buryats, the Bulagats. The bull cult is vividly reflected in the mythology of the western Kudinsk Buryats, particularly in the famous myth of two heavenly bulls as recorded by Buryat researcher M. Khangalov. The myth of two heavenly bulls descending to earth was closely connected with the cult of the god of thunder and, according to Buryat scientist, ethnographer, and folklorist D. Dugarov, is widespread among Indo-Iranian and Indo-European tribes and peoples. The bull cult permeates the cultural heritage of the Buryat people: legends, spells, songs, and musical instruments. In particular, in the now-disappearing genre of traditional Buryat culture known as tugal oogolho (taming of the calf), cattle-breeding plots, early folk chants were recorded for the ritual of taming a calf when the mother refused to accept her newborn. The cattle-breeding spell of the tugal oogolho calf, as well as the teege lamb, was performed in exceptional situations when the mother did not accept her cub, or when it was necessary to tame an orphaned calf whose mother had died. After smearing the calf with maternal colostrum, the female owner performed the tugal oogolho spell in a gentle voice, bringing the newborn calf to the mother's udder. Of particular importance is the study of the semantics of the bull cult in the context of the genesis, construction, and sacredness of the Buryat traditional musical instrument suukha khura, a single-stringed bowed instrument with a soundboard made from a bull's bladder, which is currently being revived in modern Buryat culture.
Keywords: bull cult, semantics, myths, legends, spells, musical instruments, Buryats.
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Issue: 1, 2026
Series of issue: Issue 1
Rubric: ANTHROPOLOGY
Pages: 84 — 90
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