IMAGE OF LORD TIGER AS PERSONIFICATION OF TAIGA JUDGE (ACCORDING TO THE WORKS OF FAR EASTERN WRITER N.A. BAIKOV)

Abstract

The article continues a large topic devoted to the study of the implementation of Orient in the work of writers of the Russian abroad of the Far East. On the example of the works of the expatriate prose writer N.A. Baikov (1872-1958), the oriental image of a tiger fell into the sphere of research interest. It is considered through the prism of philosophical and religious concepts, cultural descriptions, ethnographic descriptions, etc. According to Chinese, Korean, Tunguso-Manchu ideas, the beast is considered the embodiment of the Mountain Spirit. The Mountain Spirit reigns over all nature and preserves its harmony. It is noted that the indicated euphemism in the texts is called the Great Wang – the ruling lord of all tigers and the keeper of the pristine cosmos of nature. The scientific novelty of the work is due to the fact that the literary material shows, how the meeting of a predatory animal with a person becomes a marker of human honor and morality. For the first time, the article focuses on analyzing a variety of examples that reveal plot and motive lines, when the Lord of Mountains and Forests punishes or favors a person. The results of the study prove that the Far Eastern naturalist writer has an artistic representation of the theme of veneration of the royal animal by taiga and trappers reflects mythopoietic views. Oriental traditions and legends are described in detail. According to tradition, Wang is the highest spiritual being, having a mind and soul equal to man. He is vested with the power to fulfill the role of taiga judge. He has the right to decide the fate of both the inhabitants of his animal kingdom and people who spatially interact with nature, which this beast personifies.