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I was talking about Tatar-Mongol Empire ( the Tatarstan Tatars are the descendants of that Empire from what I remember, as in "Golden Horde.") I was a bit off - they were mainly Shamanists, but part of them practiced Buddhism as well.
Well, it says that the Mongols tolerated a spectrum of religions. We need to differentiate "Tatars" from Mongols; they're distinct ethnic and linguistic groups. Your link mentioned "Tengri-ism", which was the religion of the Turkic peoples, including the Tatars, while the Mongolic peoples, along with a few Turkic groups like the Tuvans, adopted Buddhism, or Buddhism alongside shamanism/Tengri-ism, more accurately. (Dvoyeveriye--where's my Russian alphabet link?!)
It's over-generalizing to the point of inaccuracy to say that all Tatars used to be Buddhist, just because they were part of the Mongol Empire. The Turkic peoples generally (including Central Asia) transitioned from shamanism/Tengri-ism directly to Islam. There was no intermediary step of Buddhism. The Tuvans and a few other isolated Turkic tribes, including the Yakuts, never did adopt Islam. Tengri-ism and shamanism have been enjoying a revival in Yakutia, since 1991.
Anyway, the whole thing is more nuanced than one might conclude from reading a Wiki page about it. Thanks for the link, though.
So what if people make fun of them? People make fun of fat/ugly/stupid people all over the world, it's a staple of comedy, does that mean that those people should be banned? Also by banning JW it only strengthens their faith and cause, it means in their eyes the end times are near and Putin is the antiChrist. Just let these people live in peace. Sure outlawing people from preaching door to door is fair, but if a group of people want to congregate and have discussions about the Bible, what's the harm?
As Erasure said in #3049. Often institutions, religious or otherwise comes with strings attached. The Maoist strategy when subverting Chang Kai Sheks government was mostly about taking over government and religious institutions and driving a wedge between the government and people. By any means necessary.
Russia cracked down on a lot of NGOs and with good reason. Look at Ukraine. NGOs from the west played a huge role in putting the current junta in power and are playing a huge role in keeping it there currently. Were I Putin I would have all of these groups under very close scrutiny. If I allowed them at all.
I have often wondered just what role the ROC plays in Russian society.
I think the answer is in the history of Russia. When the Scandinavians united the Slavic tribes, they used weapons and religion. Religion gave the Slavs written language and access to a more developed culture of Byzantium. For several centuries the word "Russian" meant an "Orthodox". The church language (Old Bulgarian) had a strong influence on the Russian language (Lomonosov, Karamzin, Pushkin and others integrated it into Russian). And even, for example, in the Russian Empire a Jew ceased to be a Jew if he accepted Orthodoxy. Jew became Russian. And when the Bolsheviks tried to destroy Orthodoxy... Russia destroyed them in 70 years. It is short time for history.
^ The mongols were tengrists, which is why also in bulgaria the founders of the country worshipped god Tangra, who was similar to Zeus: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tengrism
So what if people make fun of them? People make fun of fat/ugly/stupid people all over the world, it's a staple of comedy, does that mean that those people should be banned? Also by banning JW it only strengthens their faith and cause, it means in their eyes the end times are near and Putin is the antiChrist. Just let these people live in peace. Sure outlawing people from preaching door to door is fair, but if a group of people want to congregate and have discussions about the Bible, what's the harm? Islam is a much harsher religion, yet it's supported by the state. And what of others such as babtists, Pentecostal, charismatic, Catholics, lutherans, etc. if orthodoxy is the one and only true faith of Christianity, then it should be pretty easy to have a debate with these people convert them over, but the thing is many people are alienated by Orthodoxy because the sermons and songs are in old Church Slavonic, a language that the average person doesn't understand and can't grow spiritually because of that. So they go to these smaller churches where they can participate in church activities rather than just watch from afar and be surrounded by strangers.
Religion is politics. Do not need to feed illusions. It was always and always will be.
Nothing new. Russia thinks that it's THE god's authority. The whole existence of Russia is based on two battles; Alexander Nevski who defeated the Finnish/Swedish/Norwegian Catholic scum at the battle of the Neva which Alexander got his name and reputation.
Some years later Baltic Germans decided that these Eastern Slavs aren't fit for controlling themselves.
The Baltic Germans gathered a big army with the help of the Baltic people, and were defeated at the battle of the ice.
Today Orthodox Russia sees itself as the 4th Rome, higher than decadent Catholic or Protestant heretics.
Alexander Nevski lived and died, but maybe he just faced two bandits.
Ariete, it's trash. Nevsky's feats are not basic for Russian. Stalingrad, blockade of Leningrad, Kulikovo battle, standing on the Ugra, burning of Moscow by the French, construction of St. Petersburg and other events have a greater contribution than a couple of battles of Nevsky.
And, of course, not 4th, but 3th Rome. Fourth not to happen.
I know all these "talking heads" - Soloviev, Satanovsky, Kurginyan et al.
Usually I don't have enough of patience to listen to them either)))
Satanovsky looks very solid, his lectures are really interesting. In any case, I very rarely can identify a fraud of facts. But I'm not a serious expert, of course.
We need to differentiate "Tatars" from Mongols; they're distinct ethnic and linguistic groups.
Tatars in Russian are all pieces of the Golden horde. Crimean Tatars, Kazan Tatars... With the historical Tatars of Mongolia, they have nothing in common.
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