Abstract
Introduction. The article discusses the Oirat and Tibetan texts of Avalokiteshvara divination. Goals. The paper aims to introduce the Oirat fortune-telling text (which was in use in Western Mongolia) and its Tibetan version into scientific circulation. The divination is instrumental in studying religious practices and beliefs of the Oirats of Western Mongolia. Materials. Materials for the article were obtained from two sources. The Oirat text was borrowed from the collection titled The Light of Clear Script Texts (Mong. Tod Nomin Gerel) which is stored on the website of the Digital Library for International Research. The Tod Nomin Gerel Collection comprises digital copies of various Oirat-language texts written in ‘Clear Script’ and those of Tibetan-language ones. The Tibetan divination text was obtained by the author during language training in Ulaanbaatar in 2012-2013 from Amarbayasgalan Ulzibat, resident of Ulaanbaatar. Methods. The article employs the comparative method and that of contextual analysis. Results. A comparison of the Oirat and Tibetan texts makes it possible to assume that the Tibetan text is a translation from Mongolian/Oirat. This practice was inherent to Mongolian society. Thus, the study is of interest due to an opportunity to get comparative insights into fortune-telling traditions of Tibet and Mongolia, as well as the process of generating such texts and translation practices in traditional society.
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