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The storyteller P. Tushemilov (1877 1954), born in the settlement of Nizhniy Melkhitui (Bayan Jalga) of the Nukut district, Ust’-Orda Buryat autonomous region, belonged to the olzoev kin. P. Tushemilov knew, according to S.P. Baldaev’s records, his own genealogical roots for twenty one generations. Besides the story-telling gift he possessed the healing abilities, he had a good command of the art of people’s medicine, he was a good bonesetter or osteopath like his father and grandfather. The storyteller borrowed that ability from them in his young years and became an acknowledged expert of peoples’ surgery.
P. Tushemilov might be called a hereditary storyteller, a narrator of folk tales by birth for all his ancestors beginning with his great-great-grandfather Peetrig were celebrated as experts of people’s poetry, singers and storytellers. It was very often that getting together in their house were their countrymen as well as the guests from the remotest places, quite frequently very important persons – noted uligershins – storytellers.
Papa Tushemilov with great joy and some inner pride listened to the uligers recited or sung by his father, uncle Pethoob and grandfather Tushemil over and over again, just times out of number, innumerable times indeed. He not only memorized, kept them in mind, stored them, fixed in his mind but learned the art of performing, the mysteries of the surprisingly rich word art and extraordinarily wide poetical and social activities of the peoples’ story- and epic-tellers.
Papa Mikhailovich recollected : “When I was 15-16 I imitated, took over “Geser” from my uncle (my father’s elder brother) Pyotkhoob Tushemilov… I early began to compete in singing and telling uligers… ”.
The words of the storyteller of his immediate tutor and instructor, his uncle Petkov (Petkhoob) Tushemilov are very important as a token and sign of the succession and continuity of the generations, his uncle knew all “the nine branches” of the tale of Geser and performed them only in singing and recitative accompanying it with a Buryat musical instrument ‘khur’ somewhat resembling the violin or the guitar. It was from him and his countrymen that in 1890 M.N. Khangalov wrote down “Abai Geser bogdo khan” that became the first full publication of the Unga version of the epic “Geser” (1893).
The talks with the local and arriving from the other places singers-storytellers was of great use to P. Tushemilov. He esteemed very highly and loved to listen to the stories performed by a noted Unga storyteller Emnushka Khulugurov respected by G.N. Potanin, M.N. Khangalov, Ya.A. and N.S Boldonovs who wrote down his uligers, songs, fairy-tales.
P. Tushemilov began to tell folktales, legends, epics-uligers surprising those surrounding him. He learned to play the khur and performing texts from his father, grandfather and uncle Petkhob. His grandfather Tushemil had a nice voice, wrote songs and was always the first in the contests.
P. Tushemilov well acquired the habits and traditions of his family and became a popular singer and performer of the fairy-tales, uligers in all the Pryangaria (Circum-Angaria). I.N. Madason who wrote from him a few branches of the “Geser epic” gives the following account of his performance: “Papa Tushemilov invariably needed listeners. Of middle height, mobile and active, with small quick eyes he wanted to demonstrate his knowledge of the old traditions, emphasize his ‘superiority’ over the others in performing the songs, legends, oral stories… As for performing “Geser” P. Tushemilov did it gracefully, elegantly, either in rectal or singing (his voice despite the old age was good) but always with great enthusiasm”.
As the collector evidences the storyteller knew over 10 big uligers, over 60 fairy-tales, a big number of riddles, the various legends and shaman envocations. He wonderfully performed the songs accompanied by a violin with two strings that he used instead of a khur. According to R. A. Sherkhunev, his epical repertoire numbered over 30 big tales: “Alamzha Mergen”, “Kharaasgai mergen”, “Altan Shagai mergen”, “Erkhe-nyuden mergen”, “Khara zurken baatar”, “Ere Tookholoi mergen”, “Erbed Bogdo khan” and others.
Possessing an exclusive memory he perceived and apprehended the performing traditions of the Buryat story-tellers in their classical form coming at least since the XVII-XVIII centuries. As for the storytelling practice going on for over sixty years Papa Tushemilov propagated the many-centuried oral people’s activity of the Buryats.
In so doing P. Tushemilov concentrated in himself all the best that was in the activity of the ancestors-rhapsodes, he knew equally well and fully the works of all genres of the Buryat folklore. In due time on a large territory of his native land he was an unprecedented master of performing the folk works.
Well known are a few records of “Geser” from P. Tushemilov. In November 1940 in the village of Melkhitui in the motherland of the storyteller I.N. Madason wrote from him a few chapters of “Geser”:
1) Discord and strife resulting in the war of the deities. The pestilence and wholesale deaths. The descent of Bukhe-Beligte on the earth.
2) AbaiGeser’s victory over the forest varicoloured tiger Okhotor.
3) Gesr’s illness, His wife Tumen Zhargalan’s departure to Abarga Sesen mangadkhai.
4) On the war with the three sharablin khans.
5) The campaign against Gal Dulme khan and the victory over him.
6) On the Chinese Gumen Sesen khan.
The general volume of the versified manuscript is 172 typed pages. (Burchina D.A. The Geseriade of the western Buryats. – Novosibirsk, 1990. – P. 164 - 195).
The most full record of the variant by P. Tushemilov (8051lines) consisting of the 11 “chapters” (lacking in it is only the chapter of the struggle of Geser with Lobsogoldoi mangadkhai), belongs to T.M.Boldonova. This variant written down in 1948 was edited in 2000 in the two languages with active participation of S.Sh. Chagdurov and T.M. Boldonova and became a monument to the storyteller himself – Papa Tushemilov.
Besides, N.O. Sharakshinova also wrote down “Geser” from this uligershin (the manuscript is kept by the collector herself). As I.N. Madason evidences the writer N.G. Baldano worked with the storyteller in his place while preparing for publication of the literary corpus of the “Geser” epic.
At that time he made the recording of the two chapters, namely of the war of Geser with the three sharablin khans and Geser’s battle with Loyir-Lobsogoldoi mangadkhai. They were edited as a separate book “Geser” in the Buryat language, ed. By poet Ts. Galsanov in 1941 in Ulan-Ude.
P. Tushemilov devoted the whole of his life to the study of the literary activity of the Buryats and the generous mission of its propagating by means of the poetical, vocal and musical art. The storytellers’ merits are truly invaluable. He was a big worker of the Buryat national culture. A true son of his people and its great singer P. Tushemilov left a rich art heritage, and in the hearts of his countymen the lasting forever memory.
