Tengriism

[kılıç_mehmet]

Most of ye may not have heard of this religion. Well, it only exists in parts of Siberia, the Altai mountain range and Mongolia.
It generally involves the worship of a single God, and from that God, minor Gods and Goddesses are occasionally revered, but those are more akin to "angels" in abrahamic mythologies.
Tengri is the supreme Sky God, he is the one that crowns kings, dictates the courses of battles, and etc.

Apart from him, there is Bay-Ülgen, Tengri's son, and the creator of mankind, ruler of heaven(uchmagh). His brother, Erlik/Yerlik, is his brother, and is the ruler of the underworld(kyzyl tamu). Both have spirits associated with eachother. The spirits of heaven are good spirits, they are contacted by white shamans, called "aq-qam", and the spirits of the underworld are evil, and are contacted by black-shamans, called "qara-qam".
These operate distinctively.
While aq-qams generally sacrifice animals, such as horses, to free the spirit of the horse in order to ride it during their trance to the heavens, to speak with Ülgen, who informs them of the will of Tengri.
The qara-qams generally sacrifice animals in order to appease the evil spirits, or more importantly, banish them by using the will of Yerlik.

Outside of these more important Gods, there are a few more:

-Qara Khan: The people of the Altai see him as their creator. He sits on the highest level of heaven on a golden seat in a golden palace.
-Umay: The goddess of fertility and childbirth. She also takes care of young children, women who had recently a birth, protects them from the "albasty" a form of demon.
-Ayqız: Meaning moon-girl, is the goddess of beauty.
-Kün ene: The goddess of the sun. Sits along with the sun on the 7th level of the heavens.
-Ay ata: God of the moon, sits with the moon on the 6th level of the heavens. The name "ay" can also be used as a name for Tengri himself, as some Khans have "Ay-Tengride kut bolmish" as a title in their official names.
-Alasbatyr: The protector of domestic animals.
-Ancasyn: The master of thunder.
-Suy iyesy: The goddess of the waters.
-Tash Qashyt: A god of marriage.
-Andarqan: The god of fire.
-Satylay: The god of evil itself, he prompts people to commit suicide, and sends them evil spirits to cause sicknesses.
-Qysh Khan: The God of winter.
-Qambar ata: The God of horses.
-Kölpön ata: The protector of livestock.
-Arah, Toyer, Tarila, Sabyray: They judge the spirits of the dead.
-Ertenay: Similiar to Hermes, a bringer of news.

Tengriism has deep connections with ancestor worship. In Tengriism, ancestors are held in high regard, and yearly, people sacrifice animals in their honour, and keep their burial grounds in high esteem. It's said that Atilla the hun had gone to war with the Romans because they had desecrated Hunnic burial grounds, with Atilla being believer of Tengri himself.
Spirits, named "tin" were also major players in Tengriist belief. They were generally where the shamanic rituals revolved.
Worship was generally done around sacred spots, like trees, menhirs, balbals, and etc. with no building of any kind involved.

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Cool fairytales you got there.

[kılıç_mehmet]

Cool fairytales you got there.

Glad you like it.

[KichigaiNeko]

Great find memhet! I do love myths and legends like these.

[Minimalist]

Makes as much sense as jesus, moses or mohammed.

[Oldandeasilyconfused]

Tengri? Yes I think I've heard of him.Worshipped, by the Mongols?

[Shell B]

I always found ancestor worship mildly interesting, but particularly at its most extreme. If I remember correctly, the Chinchorro mummies were displayed in the homes of their relatives and revered. I could be mixing that up with another South American culture, but I am relatively certain it was them. This was thousands of years before the Egyptian mummies. What's even more fascinating is that some people still practice ancestor worship.

[Minimalist]

I always found ancestor worship mildly interesting,

Wouldn't that depend on the quality of those ancestors?

[kılıç_mehmet]

Tengri? Yes I think I've heard of him.Worshipped, by the Mongols?

Not just them. By nearly all nations of Turan, Tengri has been the sole God of worship before the world religions kicked in.
Now, it only exists as a part of folklore, not with the same name though.

I always found ancestor worship mildly interesting, but particularly at its most extreme. If I remember correctly, the Chinchorro mummies were displayed in the homes of their relatives and revered. I could be mixing that up with another South American culture, but I am relatively certain it was them. This was thousands of years before the Egyptian mummies. What's even more fascinating is that some people still practice ancestor worship.

Well, such is not the case for Tengriism. It was customary to simply bury them somewhere that was known to be a burial ground, and ride horses over the fresh grave so it couldn't be known to looters.
The chinese, japanese and koreans practice a different variant of this.
They set up elaborate temples, dedicated to their ancestors.

[Shell B]

Well, I realize they don't worship mummies, kilic. Still, it is interesting.