Marshans’ Share of God as an Ancestral Cult in the Traditional Beliefs of Abkhazians

DOI: 10.33876/2311-0546/2023-1/198-216

Authors

  • Valerii Biguaa Abkhazian Institute for Humane Studies, Abkhazian Academy of Sciences

Keywords:

Abkhazian religion, clan, cult, ancestral cult, cult jug, rite, ritual, sacrificial animal, supplication, worshipper

Abstract

The article examines one of the numerous ancestral cults representing Antsvakhatsara (antsaakhaҵara / ancºaxaҫara) — a crucial institution of the folk religion of the Abkhazians. The cult’s longevity is not only due to the historical memory of the Abkhaz people, but, above all, to the centuries-old coexistence of the Abkhazian “faith in God” and the official religion, Orthodox Christianity. Despite the tragic periods in the life of a once powerful family organization, which, by the will of historical fate, came to the verge of physical disappearance, it preserved the living traces of its cult within the spiritual life of one large family / patronymy. The work also gives a historical overview of the family, the origins of its cult and the interpretation of the ritual performed by a group of relatives.

Author Biography

  • Valerii Biguaa, Abkhazian Institute for Humane Studies, Abkhazian Academy of Sciences

    Biguaa, Valerii L. — Doctor of History, Leading Researcher, Abkhazian Institute for Humane Studies, Abkhazian Academy of Sciences (Sukhumi, Republic of Abkhazia). E-mail: valera.biguaa@yandex.сom

    For citation: Biguaa, V. L. 2023. Marshans’ Share of God as an Ancestral Cult in the Traditional Beliefs of Abkhazians. Herald of Anthropology (Vestnik Antropologii) 1: 198–216.

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Published

06.03.2023

Issue

No. 1 (2023): Herald of Anthropology 23-1

Section

Religion and Identity