Монгольский хаган как сын Бога

Abstract

Extensive Mongol conquests in the 13th century led to a clash of different cultures and necessitated the translation of concepts from one culture to another. One of them discussed in this article was the concept of Son of God, which most likely goes back to the Chinese Son of Heaven. The Mongols practically did not use Chinese political and philosophical terminology, but it seems to have existed in their Empire thanks to Kitan advisers along with the native steppe notions. In communications with Christians, the Mongols used the phrase Son of God in relation to their khagans, especially Genghis Khan, which, of course, was perceived by Christians very negatively, since in their culture this epithet could only belong to Jesus Christ. The article attempts to trace the use of this concept in Mongolian diplomacy in the middle of the XIII century — the period of the highest power of the Mongol Empire. The author concludes that, despite the legend of the heavenly origin of their ancestors, neither Genghis Khan nor the other great khans had this title officially. It appears sporadically in diplomatic correspondence and chronicles, and only in late medieval Mongol historiography does it become a permanent epithet of deified Genghis Khan.