Classic Poetry And Epics Codexery

Epic of King Gesar

A living oral epic from Tibet and Central Asia.

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The fearless lord of the legendary kingdom of Ling, the culture hero Gesar, is the subject of an epic that describes his heroic actions.[1] Across Central Asia and South Asia, this epic is extensively performed orally, existing in both poetic and prose forms.[2] Central Tibet is the region from which the classic version of this epic originates.[3]

Quick Facts

Origin
Tibet and Central Asia
Peak popularity
Early 12th century
Languages of performance
  • Tibetan
  • Mongolian
  • Buryat
  • Balti
  • Ladakhi
  • Monguor
  • and others

Facts from the source article.

Making and release

The first three volumes of the Lingtsang-Dege woodblock version were published with a French translation by Rolf Stein in 1956.[4] A Mongolian text published in Beijing in 1716 represents the earliest printed version of the epic.[5] In 1839, a German translation of the epic was released.[6] Matthias Hermanns produced a German translation in 1965, using manuscripts he had gathered in Amdo.[7]

Alexandra David-Néel's 1933 French publication, "Superhuman Life of Gesar of Ling," offered an accessible version of the story.[8] In the Gesar belt of China, roughly one hundred bards who perform this epic are still active today.[9] Singers from Tibetan, Mongolian, Buryat, Balti, Ladakhi, and Monguor communities continue to maintain the oral tradition.[9] The Chinese collection of Tibetan versions has reached about 120 volumes, containing over one million verses that are split into 29 chapters.[10]

What the cited sources add

The name Gesar may reflect the Roman title Caesar, with the intermediary possibly being a Turkic language.[11] Numismatic evidence speaks of a Bactrian ruler Phrom-kesar, specifically the Kabul Shahi of Gandhara, around the middle of the 8th century CE.[12] According to this system, he is expected to arrive with an unbeatable army to establish universal justice.[13] Their weapons will be arrows that produce thunder.[13]

A white horse, saddle, horseshoe, sword, and lock are among Gesar's magical possessions.[13]

References

  1. Wikipedia, "Epic of King Gesar" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Samuel 1993, p. 68–9 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
  2. Wikipedia, "Epic of King Gesar" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Samuel 2005, p. 166 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
  3. Wikipedia, "Epic of King Gesar" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Chadwick Chadwick 1940, p. 48–9,215–6 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
  4. Wikipedia, "Epic of King Gesar" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Stein 1956; Stein 1959, p. 64 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
  5. Wikipedia, "Epic of King Gesar" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Maconi 2004, p. 372; Dwyer 2007, p. 75–76; Maconi 2004, p. 372; Penick 2009, p. vii; Herrmann 1990, p. 485; Harvilahti 1996, p. 40; Harvilahti 1996, p. 40 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
  6. Wikipedia, "Epic of King Gesar" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Herrmann 1990, p. 485 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
  7. Wikipedia, "Epic of King Gesar" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Hermanns 1965 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
  8. Wikipedia, "Epic of King Gesar" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: David-Néel Yongden 2004, p. 2–3 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
  9. Wikipedia, "Epic of King Gesar" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Maconi 2004, p. 372; Jiàngbiān Jiācuò 1998, p. 222 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
  10. Wikipedia, "Epic of King Gesar" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Maconi 2004, p. 372; Maconi 2004, p. 372; Harvilahti 1996, p. 40; Maconi 2004, p. 372 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
  11. Wikipedia, "Epic of King Gesar" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Kornman 2005, p. 360,367 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
  12. Wikipedia, "Epic of King Gesar" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Samuel 2005, p. 166; Maconi 2004, p. 372; Martin 2011, p. 127; Samuel 2005, p. 166 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
  13. Wikipedia, "Epic of King Gesar" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: N. Roerich. The Squad of King Gesar. 1931. (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org

Each numbered sentence above was checked against the source it cites before publication. Sentences citing Wikipedia adapt text from the English Wikipedia article Epic of King Gesar (contributors), used under CC BY-SA 4.0; this entry is available under the same licence. Other sources were used for facts only; no text or images are copied from them.

Also in the Codexery

Epic of King Gesar · Turkic Mythology

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Epic of ManasEpic of SundiataThe IliadThe OdysseyThe AeneidParadise LostThe Divine ComedyBeowulfThe Epic of GilgameshCantar de mio CidChu CiCædmon's Hymn

Sources

Compiled from Wikipedia and the sources listed below. Text from Wikipedia is available under CC BY-SA 4.0; this entry is adapted from it.

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