Unsolved Siberian Shambhala

2024 Author: Seth Attwood | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-16 15:55

Over the past summer, the Ergaki natural park - part of the Western Sayan mountain range - was visited by 24 thousand people - almost a third more than last year. In 2014, over 85 thousand tourists visited here not only from cities of Russia, but also from Spain, Czech Republic, Germany, Lithuania, Poland, Australia. Ergaki is gradually becoming the main tourist brand of the Krasnoyarsk Territory, displacing the famous Krasnoyarsk Pillars from this pedestal.

We have collected beliefs and historical facts related to these mysterious rocks.

Sleeping Sayan

The main mystery and the center of the mythological attraction of these unique mountains is the Sleeping Sayan rock ridge. When you look at him from the side of the Usinsky tract, the figure of a sleeping giant-hero is clearly visible - he lies on his back, arms crossed over his chest. Even hair falling down can be seen.

It is almost impossible to believe that such a recognizable silhouette appeared by chance. Therefore, the locals have considered this place sacred for centuries, and dozens of legends explain the appearance of a mysterious stone giant here.

- One of them says: once upon a time a man lived in the Sayan Mountains. He never beat a beast for fun, did not trample the grass in vain, did not chop trees unnecessarily, and made sure that others did not violate the pristine purity of these places, - says one of the legends to the correspondent of the Republic of Poland, philologist, collector of folklore Elena Shalinskaya. - For such virtues, the gods loved the righteous man, endowed him with unprecedented health and strength, and appointed him the Master of the taiga. He began to understand the language of animals and plants so that he could protect them from any evil. And he carried this service for centuries. But the time is inexorable - the time has come for the Master to leave this world. The gods searched and searched, but they could not find a worthy replacement for him. And then they decided to leave him forever to guard the peace of these places and turned to stone. So he lies, calmly crossing his arms over his chest, making sure that no one disturb Ergaki, guards their innumerable riches.

Sleeping Sayan.

Many modern tourists believe that the Sleeper is none other than the epic Svyatogor. He rested forever in the Sayan Mountains, which were the real cradle of Slavic civilization. The folds on his body are iron hoops that firmly chained the hero to the ground. And the elevation on his chest is a saddle bag, which does not allow him to break the shackles and rise.

- Many researchers of these places call the Sleeping Sayan ridge nothing else than the Siberian Sphinx. The fact is that the silhouette of a hero, lying on his back and staring at the sky, is visible not only from one point of view, but also from all sides of this ridge, even from the opposite from the usual one - the one on the Usinsky tract, says one of the researchers Ergakov Semyon Mishchik. - It can be seen a kilometer from the rocky ridge, and tens of kilometers from it. And this is what makes this rock phenomenon unique - there are no analogues to it in the world, since in all other cases, random rock formations create the silhouette of a person or animal only from a certain point of view.

Hanging stone

Another legendary place is the Hanging Stone, a monolithic lump weighing over 100 tons. It is incomprehensibly held on the slope of the mountain located at the feet of the Sleeping Sayan, although the area of contact with the surface is tiny, and most of the monolith hangs over the abyss.

- There is a legend: when the Hanging Stone falls into the Raduzhnoye Lake, over which it hangs, then water spray will fall on the Sleeping Sayan, wake up the hero, he will rise and … But what will happen next, no one knows - there is not a single legend about this, - says Elena Shalinskaya. - Therefore, there are regularly those who want to find out what will happen then. According to a local bike, once a group of 30 tourists specially came to the Hanging Stone to throw it into the abyss. Together, they began to lift one of the edges in the expectation that then the balance would be disturbed and a huge block would slide down. But here's the bad luck: the harder they pushed, the farther the stone moved away from the edge and almost crushed people who wished to break its centuries-old peace.

Hanging stone.

Due to the fact that the Hanging Stone is blown from all sides by winds that are very strong in the mountains, if you touch its surface, you can feel a strong vibration.

“This led to the emergence of the legend that the monolithic lump is nothing more than the heart of the Sleeping Sayan, which the gods took from his chest,” continues Elena Shalinskaya. “And if we take into account that until the middle of the last century, the Hanging Stone was swinging all the time like a pendulum in a clock, then the resemblance to a heartbeat becomes even more convincing. Therefore, one of the legends says: if there is a person who can lift the Hanging Stone, then he will immediately take the place of the sleeping hero Sayan, and he will finally find peace and be freed from his eternal service.

Unfortunately, too many people wanted to try throwing the Hanging Stone down. They even specially raised winches to the mountains to do this. Nothing came of them. But the stone stopped swinging - the grooves around it at the points of adhesion to the rock were filled with stone chips.

Mountain Spirit Lake

The mysterious body of water is located above all other Ergakov lakes. There are numerous testimonies from tourists that the water in it starts to glow at night. Because of this, the alpine lake received such a poetic name.

“Employees of the Krasnoyarsk NGO Geoecology conducted a study of these places and came to the conclusion that this lake is of artificial origin,” says Semyon Mishchik. “They discovered an ancient dam blocking the flowing handles, which is at least 10 thousand years old. According to the reconstruction, once the height of this artificial hydraulic structure, built of granite blocks, was about 50-60 meters. For comparison: the height of the dam of the Krasnoyarsk hydroelectric power station is 114 meters. Moreover, geologists have found traces of drains and bypass channels through which water from the lake flowed into the valleys below. When, by whom, for what purpose the ancient dam was built, we can only guess.

Mountain Spirit Lake

It is not known what further studies will show, whether the Krasnoyarsk geologists are right or not.

“Be that as it may, both the Khakass and the Tuvans have always considered the water from this lake sacred,” Ivan Saveliev, a historian and ethnographer, tells the RP correspondent. “They were convinced that it was enough to plunge into its transparent waters, as any incurable ailments would disappear at once. And if just one thicket of holy water is poured into a dying well or pond, then they will be completely cleansed and become full-flowing again.

Stone city

On the Kulymys mountain range in Ergaki you can see a bizarre jumble of rocks 30–40 meters high, as if made of huge stone blocks. Tourists believe that their outlines resemble plants or animals. But local legends say something else: these rocks are all that remains of the last refuge of the ancient tribe.

- The legend says: once upon a time a mighty Sayan tribe lived on the banks of the Yenisei. They lived freely, richly. But then the enemies came and began to push the owners from their land, - says Elena Shalinskaya. - The indigenous inhabitants of these places were forced to go to the mountains by taiga paths. There, far from their enemies, they built a new city for themselves. And they would have lived in it in complete safety if a traitor had not been found. He gave the conquerors secret paths to the secret city. The enemies destroyed all the inhabitants of the city. And these rocks, fragments of once majestic structures are the last memory of the proud and freedom-loving people.

Mountains for gods and shamans

According to Tuvan beliefs, ordinary people cannot enter the territory of Ergaks. This place is exclusively reserved for gods and shamans. All others should worship the sacred mountains from afar.

“An ancient Tuvan legend explains why access to these places is closed for mere mortals,” says Elena Shalinskaya. - They say: a husband and wife lived in ancient times in one of the villages. They had everything - both love and prosperity. One trouble - the spouses could not give birth to a son. There were many daughters, but that a daughters - a cut off hunk, will marry - and go to someone else's house. And the son was not there to hand over the house to him.

And then one day the head of the family met a tired traveler on the road. He invited him to his place, fed him and put him to bed. And in the morning, before leaving, the stranger handed the hospitable hostess a ripe ruddy apple and said: “Divide it in half. Eat one half yourself, give the other to your husband. And you will have joy in nine months. And so they did. After the due date, their long-awaited son was born, but so handsome and strong that everyone is surprisingly like a liqueur apple. Not a child, but a hero. So they called him - Batyr.

The baby grew by leaps and bounds, becoming stronger and more attractive. All the girls looked at him. And once Batyr became proud, he decided: there is no place for him on earth, among mortals, he should live among the gods. Climbed to the highest peak and shouted: “Hey you Gods! Take me to your heaven! I want to sit and feast next to you! The gods were surprised at such an unheard-of impudence and threw the proud man into the underworld.

Batyr was of unprecedented strength, he managed to break through the earthly firmament. But as soon as he put his hands out, the gods turned them into stone. So fingers-rocks reach for the edification of people to the sky, but they will never be able to reach them.

“A reminder of this legend has been preserved in one of the versions about the origin of the name of these rocks - from the Tuvan word“ergek”- finger,” says Ivan Savelyev. - There is also an alternative mythological explanation of this name: that Ergaki is nothing more than the hands of the Earth, on which the entire universe is held.

Indeed, the top of the main "finger" - the peak of "Zvezdny", the highest point of the ridge, is always shrouded in clouds, as if it rests against the sky, supports it.

Lemurians and Atlanteans

There is a belief that it was in Ergaki, and not on an island in the middle of the Indian Ocean, that the once legendary Lemurians lived, from whom all the peoples of the world originated. The civilization of the Lemurians was that legendary lost Eden, the memory of which has been preserved in many myths and legends of different peoples of the world.

Others say that Ergaki is the legendary Shambhala, which they are trying in vain to find in Tibet. And they tell a legend about a secret expedition of high-ranking Tibetan lamas who came to these places at the beginning of the last century to worship the shrine.

“And some believe that ancient Atlanteans lived here,” smiles Semyon Mishchik. - They refer to the "Secret Doctrine" of Helena Blavatsky, which says that 25 thousand years ago, when Atlantis sank, the surviving Atlanteans moved to Central Asia. As proof that they lived precisely in Ergaki, the following argument is given: that many of the local rocks look like a Dragon, Elephant, Bird, Turtle or Whale. But it is believed that the inhabitants of Atlantis worshiped animals. Perhaps they turned the local rocks into huge sculptures, creating a sanctuary of unimaginable size. And the Sleeping Sayan is also a sculpture depicting one of the Atlanteans.

- The only thing that can be said reliably is that people have mastered these places a long time ago, - says Ivan Savelyev.- A Paleolithic site was found on Lake Oisk, and many archaeological finds on this territory and in Tuva, located in the immediate vicinity, prove that the Scythians once lived here. Of course, they could drive out other people who inhabited these places before their arrival. But to talk about it seriously, you need to conduct additional archaeological research.

Peak "Zvezdny" and "Brothers"

One more legend is connected with the highest peak in Ergaki “Zvezdny”, which already has a completely modern origin. The fact is that in the immediate vicinity of it there is the "Brothers" rock, or, as it was dubbed by modern tourists - "Parabola". Two huge peaks, each as high as a 200-storey building, look as if they were made of syenite blocks. And the bridge between them forms an almost perfect parabola. Nowhere else in the world is there a similar natural phenomenon of such an impressive size.

“But that’s not the most interesting thing. The Ergakov researchers found out that on the days of the spring and autumn equinoxes, the last ray of the sun passes through the rift in Mount Taigish, which is opposite the Zvezdny peak and the Brothers rock. It crosses the stone parabola exactly in the middle, and then, before disappearing, illuminates the very top of the “finger” - the “Zvezdny” peak. Therefore, the assumption was made that this complex of rocks is nothing more than an ancient megalithic astronomical laboratory of artificial origin, - says Semyon Mishchik. - The hypothesis sounds fantastic, but if this assumption turns out to be correct, then Stonehenge, in comparison with this laboratory in Ergaki, will look like a pyramid of cubes against the background of a modern skyscraper. Although, of course, it is difficult to believe that once there was a civilization capable of building a structure that has no analogues on the planet in its grandiose dimensions. Although … Geologists claim that the surface of this two-horned rock formation shines like polished, because the depression in the Parabola rock was made artificially, traces of stone processing can be discerned.