Oirat legend about how Galdan Boshogtu became an incarnation of Inzan Khutugtu: folklore text and written narrative

The ruler of Dzungaria Khan Galdan Boshogtu is a prominent hero of Oirat history universally known among all Western Mongolian peoples, his figure remaining central in many folklore texts, literary writings and scholarly studies.The article analyzes one legend articulating a belief that Khan Galdan Boshogtu of Dzungaria, whose image is especially revered by the Oirats, started being perceived as reincarnate Inzan Khutugtu, a Buddhist preacher who contributed to the dissemination of Buddhism among the Mongolian peoples. The article attempts an analysis of this Olet legend, identifies some connections between the text published in the Olet Folklore Collection and other written monuments of the Oirats, with due attention be paid to genre characteristics of the text. The paper reveals historical images and facts contained in the plot of the legend, as well as ones recorded in the old-written monument titled “The Genealogy of Mongols”. Common points reflected in the legend and Ch. Monkhoo’s historical story “Batur Khong Tayiji” (based on Olet folklore) have been identified. It is shown that the image of Yum Agha (daughter of the Torghut Tayiji Shukur-Daichin, adopted daughter of the Khoshut Khan Baibagas, and the wife of Dzunharia’s Batur Khong Tayiji) is presented in the legend as an especially revered one: she is distinguished by wisdom, intelligence, knowledge of different languages. The article highlights the issue of classification and terminology in the identification of historical legends in the Oirat folklore tradition, as well as the issue of interrelation between the legend and the written monument in the aspect of the undeveloped genre differentiation in Mongolian folklore studies.