Kazakh Myths

The inhabitants of the Great Steppe, endowed with a soul as wide and poetic as its endless expanses, have passed down myths and legends about their native land from generation to generation for centuries, where each river, lake, gorge, and pass has its own beautiful, sad, or amusing legend. This book will introduce you to the amazing, colorful, heroic mythology of the Kazakhs — on its pages you will find stories about the eternal Tengri and the Mother-fire Ot-Ene, about great serpents and winged horses-tulpars, treacherous demons, and of course, mighty heroes-batyrs: the Kazakh Odysseus Alpamys, the national defender Er-Targyn, the faithful friend Er-Tostik, and the beautiful warrior Gauhar-batyr. Legends about the inexhaustible beauty of nature, about sincere love for one's home, about courage and kindness, about the struggle between good and evil will not only allow you to touch the ancient and truly folk Kazakh culture, but will also remind you of something truly important.