The Tree of Life and Its Guardians: An Ancient Turkmen Legend About Life, Fate and Signs
Why does your ears sometimes suddenly ring? Today, there are medical explanations for this. However, in the traditional culture of the Turkmen, there was a completely different idea associated with one of the most ancient myths of Central Asia — the myth of the Tree of Life.
According to ancient beliefs, a sacred tree grows in another world, on each leaf of which is written the name of a living person. With the birth of a child, a new leaf appears on the tree, and after the death of a person, its leaf slowly separates from the branch and descends. It was believed that, falling, a leaf touches other leaves with the same name. It is at this moment that the living namesakes of the deceased feel a ringing in their ears. This is how the folk tradition explained the phenomenon that everyone knows today.
Who Guards the Tree of Life
In Turkmen mythology, the Tree of Life is never left without protection. It is guarded by powerful horned creatures resembling mountain sheep. The image of the ram occupied a special place in the culture of the peoples of Central Asia. It symbolized strength, fertility, well-being and vitality. Archaeologists have found images of mountain sheep on Bronze Age monuments, and their cult has been traced back for thousands of years.
Traces of the Ancient Worldview
The image of the World Tree is known to many civilizations, from ancient Iran and Mesopotamia to the Turkic world and Northern Europe. However, the Turkmen tradition has preserved its own unique detail: the idea that each person's life is connected with a separate leaf of the sacred tree. Such legends are not just beautiful legends. They help to understand how the ancient inhabitants of Central Asia imagined the structure of the world, the place of man in the universe and the inextricable connection of life with nature.
Perhaps, once you hear a sudden ringing in your ears, a modern person will remember about the medical reasons. But an old Turkmen legend suggests looking at it differently: maybe somewhere far away another leaf has just been torn off the branch of the Tree of Life.
Atael Astanov
