Tales of Gesar: Plots Originating in the Mongolian Tradition (Book and Oral Versions)[Сказания О Гесере: Сюжеты, Берущие Начало В Монгольской Традиции (Книжные И Устные Редакции)]

On the example of the genesis and evolution of the Mongolian Geseriada, one can see how familiarity with the Tibetan epic legend and the processing of its subject-themed core give the initial impetus for the creation of a pan-Mongol epic, which cause the emergence of a book-epic form. Entering the Mongolian tradition as a hero, cleansing the land from monsters, the son of the deity, the messenger of heaven, the restorer of the harmonious world order, Gesar confronts the chaos, the demonic and chthonic forces, and this mythological role remains in him, no matter what plot contexts he falls into. In some episodes, the theme of cleansing the land from monsters is treated as a struggle against demonic rulers of real and mythical states, and in later chapters of the book version it is interpreted as destroying the enemies of the Buddhist religion according to the heavenly predestination. These enemies are perceived not as monsters ruling in their demonic world, but as demon-rapists, whose invasion of the human world forces Gesar to deliver preventive strikes on them. Gesar himself turns out to be the ruler of an ideal Buddhist state, almost a universal monarch, "the only son of Buddha Shakyamuni." However, with all interpretations, the original meaning (the hero is the son of the heavenly god, purifying the earth of monsters and establishing a harmonious world order) remains the same.