Seeing that there are lot of Russians who click on my blog, I thought it a good idea to publish
something more from the travel account of Johannes de Plano Carpini. For details of his Liber Tartarorum, I refer to my post about the burial customs of
the Mongols.
Almost casually, when talking about the religion of the Mongols,
Johannes tells about what he heard what the Mongols (called Tatars in this
version of his account) did with Michael of Chernigov (1185 -20 September 1246).
At that time the Ukraine was invaded by the Mongols and Michael had to submit
to Batu Khan – the story is far more complicated, but for details read the link
below. As a sign of submission he has to walk between two fires – which he does,
but he refuses to bow for an idol of Chingis Khan, because as a Christian he
will not bow for a dead person. Batu then orders Michael to be killed. The text
uses satellitem for the person who
had to fulfil this order and the link says it was Doman of Putivls. I am not
sure, but I have the impression that this must have been a Russian vassal. In
the Orthodox Church Michael is since then revered as martyr. This event took
place when Johannes made his journey to the Mongols and is probably the earliest
account of Michaels‘ death.
Johannes continues his story and then mentioned what happed to Andreas
of Chernigov (Saruogle or Sciruogle in this text). He was accused
of stealing horses from the Mongols and selling them elsewhere. The accusation
could not be proved, but still he was killed. Then his younger brother came
with the widow to plea that their country would not be occupied. Johannes uses
this story as an example to illustrate a custom of the Mongols: the so-called
levirate marriage, named after this custom in the Old Testament, which
prescribes that a brother should marry the widow of a deceased brother.
Andreas’ brother is forced to make love – not quite the right word – with his
brothers’ widow.
Regarding the text: I had to edit it because of the bad scanning. Fortunately I found a critical edition with the
help of which I could emend the text of the Latin Library: http://archive.org/details/relationdesmong00avezgoog
As I have provided a translation, I have not added a wordlist. I
hasten to say that the translation is meant to understand the Latin text and has
no literary pretension.
Unum Deum credunt, quem credunt esse factorem omnium visibilium et
invisibilium. Et credunt eum tam bonorum in hoc mundo quam poenarum esse
factorem: non tamen orationibus vel laudibus, aut ritu aliquo ipsum colunt.
Nihilominus habent idola quadam de filtro ad imaginem hominis facta; et illa ponunt
et utraque parte ostii stationis, et subtus illa ponunt quiddam de filtro in
modum uberis factum, et illa credunt esse pecorum custodes, et eis beneficium
lactis et pullorum praestare. Alia vero faciunt de pannis sericis, et illa
multum honorant. Quidam ponunt illa in pulchro curru tecto ante ostium
stationis: et quicunque aliquid de illo curru furatur, sine ulla miseratione
occiditur. Duces, millenarii, et centenarii unum semper habent in medio
stationis. Praedictis idolis offerunt primum lac omnis pecoris et iumenti. Et
cum primo comedere et bibere incipiunt, primo offerunt eis de cibariis et potu.
Et cum bestiam aliquam occidunt, offerunt cor idolo quod est in curru in aliquo
cypho, et dimittunt usque mane, et tunc auferunt de praesentia eius et
decoquunt et manducant. Primo etiam imperatori faciunt idolum, quod ponunt in
curru antequam stationem honorifice, sicut vidimus ante ordam imperatoris
istius offerunt munera multa. Equos etiam offerunt ei, quos nullus audet
ascendere usque ad mortem. Alia etiam animalia eidem offerunt. Qua vero
occidunt ad manducandum, nullum os ex eis confringunt, sed igni comburunt. Et
etiam ad meridiem tanquam Deo inclinant, et inclinare faciunt alios nobiles,
qui se reddunt eisdem. Unde nuper contigit quod Michael, qui fuit unus de
magnis ducibus Russiae , cum iuisset ad se reddendum Bati, fecerunt eum prius
inter duos ignes transire. Post hoc dixerunt, quod ad meridiem Cyngis
inclinaret. Qui respondit, quod Bati et servis suis inclinaret libenter, sed
imagini hominis mortui non inclinaret, quia non licet hoc facere Christianis.
Et cum saepe diceretur, quod inclinaret, et nollet, mandavit ei praedictus per
filium Ieroslai, quod occideretur si non inclinaret.
Martyrium Michaelis ducis Russiae.
Qui respondit, quod potius vellet mori, quam hoc faceret, quia non
liceret. At ille satellitem unum misit, qui tam diu contra cor eum in ventre
calce percussit, quousque deficeret. Tunc quidam de suis militibus qui astabat
comfortans eum dixit: Esto robustus quia hac poena non diu tibi durabit, et
statim sequetur gaudium sempiternum: post hoc fuit caput eius cultello praecisum.
Militi vero praedicto fuit caput etiam cultello amputatum. Solem igitur lumina
et ignem venerantur et adorant, et aquam et terram, eis ciborum et potus
primitias offerentes, et mane potissime antequam comedant et bibant: quia de
cultu Dei nullam legem obseruant, neminem cogunt suam fidem vel legem negare.
Accidit tamen dum adhuc nuper essemus in terra quod Andreas dux de Saruogle
[Vel, Sciruogle. Andreas dux Russiae.] qua est in Russia fuit apud Bati
accusatus, quod educeret equos Tartarorum de terra et venderet alias, et cum
tamen non esset probatum fuit, occisus: quod audiens iunior frater eius, venit
cum uxore occisi ad ducem praedictum Bati, volens supplicare, ne terra
tolleretur eisdem. Qui dixit par esse, quod uxorem fratris carnalis praedicti
duceret in uxorem: et mulieri praecepit ducere illum in virum secundum
consuetudinem Tartarorum. Qui respondit, quod prius vellet occidi, quam faceret
contra legem. At ille, nihilominus tradidit eam illi, quamvis renuerat quantum
posset: et duxerunt ambo in lecto, et posuerunt puerum super illam plorantem et
clamantem et cogerunt eos commisceri coactione non conditionali, sed absoluta.
They believe in one God, whom they believe to be the maker of all
things visible and invisible. And they believe him to be both the maker of good
in this world as well as evil. However they worship him neither with prayers
nor with laudations or some rite. Nevertheless they have some idols on felts,
made according to the image of a man. And they put these on both sides of the
entrance of their yurt, and below these they put some image made of felt in the
form of an udder and they believe them to be guardians of their cattle and for
them to preside over the output of milk and calves. Other idols they make of
silken cloths and they honour them much. Some put these in a beautifully
covered wagon before the entrance of their yurt and whoever steals something
from that wagon is killed without mercy.
Headmen, those heading a thousand man and those heading a hundred
men always have one in the middle of their camp. They offer to aforementioned
idols the first of milk of all cattle and mares. And before they start eating
and drinking, they first offer them from the food and beverage.
And when they kill some beast, they offer the heart to the idol
which is in the wagon in some vessel and leave it till the morning and then
they take it away from its presence and cook it and eat it. First of all they
make an idol or the emperor, which they put with pump in a wagon in front of
the camp; like we have seen before the court of that emperor, they offer many
gifts.
They even offer horses to that idol, which no one dares to mount
till their death. They also offer other animals, which indeed they kill for
eating; they break no bone from these, but burn it with fire.
And they even bow (to the idol) southwards, like to God, and they
make other nobles bow too, who submit to them. So it happened recently that
Michael, who was one of the great leaders of Russia, had to go between two
fires, when he went to Batu to submit himself. After that, they said that he
should bow southwards to Genghis. He answered that he would gladly bow to Batu
and his companions, but he would not bow to the image of a dead human being, because
it was not allowed for Christians to do so. And though he was often told that
he should bow, he refused. The aforementioned (Batu) told him through the son
of Jaroslav that he would be killed if he did not bow. He answered that he
rather wanted to die than do this, because it was not allowed. But Batu sent a vassal,
who kicked him so long with his heel in the belly towards the heart, till he would
die. Then someone of his soldiers who was present, spoke comforting him: `Be
strong, because this punishment will not take long for you and eternal joy will
follow immediately.’ After that his head was cut off with a knife. The head of
the aforementioned soldier was severed too with a knife.
They venerate further sun, stars and fire, and worship water and
earth, to which they offer the firstlings of food and drink and especially in
the morning before they eat and drink.
As they observe no prescript concerning the worship of God, they
force no one to abandon his faith or prescript. Nevertheless, it recently
happened that while we were still in the country that Andreas, leader of Saruogle
(or Sciruogle, Andreas, leader of Russia), which is in Russia, was accused
before Batu, that he led away horses from the Tatars and sold them elsewhere,
and though this could not be proved, he was killed. On hearing this, his
younger brother came with the wife of the killed man to the aforementioned Batu,
wanting to beseech that the land would not be taken from them. He (Batu) said that
it was proper that he should take the wife of his deceased brother as wife and
he ordered the woman to take him as wife according to the practice of the
Tatars. He answered, that he rather wanted to be killed, than act against the
law. But he (Batu) nevertheless gave her over to him, though he refused a much
as he could. And they brought both to a bed and placed the boy upon her, who
was weeping and screaming, and they forced them to make love by force, not on
conditions but ruthlessly.
The link has a translation of the martyrdom of Michael from the Ystoria Mongolorum, which differs from
the Liber Tartarorum, though it is obvious
that the texts are closely related.
Michael of Chernigov at the camp of Batu Khan (1883), painting by
Vasiliy Smirnov.
