Statue of Shaman
Mongolia 2014
Since the Soviets have left Mongolia, Shamanism has been making a comeback among the Mongolians who never completely abandoned their traditions. The statue in the foreground is of a revered shaman. The clothing on the statue is an exact replica of the robes a shaman wears during a prayer ceremony. The pile of rocks covered with blue fabric behind the statue is an ovoo, a sacred site where Mongolians stop to pray when they must make a journey. The blue cloths represent Heaven and peace. Travelers walk around the ovoo three times and toss a stone onto it each time. The ritual and the cloth draped ovoo seem to be related to Tibetan mani walls and prayer flags.
While we were here, going through contortions trying to get an up-close, wide angle shot of the statue, two men wearing leather jackets and jeans, drove up. They began to circle the statue, praying under their breaths and tossing the stones as their ritual requires. A woman in our group (I am pleased to report that she was not from the U.S.) began to berate the praying men as they were ruining her photograph. Now, I am not one of those politically correct people, but I do believe that people praying in their own holy place take precedence over photographs!
After I was left on my own in Ulaanbaatar, I went to visit a shaman. He asked me not to put his photo on my blog where it could be downloaded. So, if you want to see him, and it is definitely worth a click or two click on the link:
http://rosemarysheel.smugmug.com/Photography/Mongolia/i-khPK3MB/A