Tibetan policy of the Mongols (1205–1235)

The article discusses the relationships of the Mongols with Tibet in the short period between the first Mongol campaign against the Tangut state of Western Xia (Xi Xia) in 1205 and the Great Kurultai of 1235 to resolve the issue of the intentions of the two first Mongol khans to subjugate Tibet. Tibetan and late Mongolian historiographies are full of reports about an invasion of Tibet by Genghis Khan himself and about his successfully implemented plans to annex this country, as well as about his adoption of Buddhism; however, this information is legendary. An analysis of the whole set of sources at our disposal as well as the experts’ opinions reveals the following. Most likely, during the lifetime of Genghis Khan and Ogedei, the Mongols had no plans to seize Tibet, and all reports concerning Mongol military operations in this country refer only to the border areas in Eastern Tibet, through which nomads encompassed the hostile states of Jin and later – Southern Song from the right flank. The results fully confirm the conclusions already made by some scholars: the vast, desolate, remote from trade routes and poor lands of Tibet were not of primary interest to the Mongols. Despite the decision taken in 1235 to conquer most of the countries known to the Mongols, the first reconnaissance recorded in the literature took place only in 1240, and the real inclusion of the “Land of Snows” into the Mongol Empire dates back even later.

The first ghazal of the Divan of Ghalib

The article offers a multi-dimensional analysis of the first ghazal from the Urdu Divan by the Indian classic poet Mirza Ghalib (1797–1869). Ghalib wrote in two languages – Urdu and Persian, but it was the completion of the Urdu Divan that made him a great poet. The article presents the history of the creation and publication of the Divan, as well as discusses its sources. The authors focus on the complexity of the style and the richness of poetic themes, images and writing techniques. They also discuss the Sufi component of the first ghazal of the Divan, thus highlighting the poetics of the ghazal. The “opening” ghazal, which is placed at the beginning of a divan usually takes over the function of the hamd, i.e. the eulogy to the Creator, which is typical for a traditional introduction to a large poetic form. However, in Ghalib’s ghazal, this praise comes in a paradoxical form, which is caused by Ghalib`s high criteria of humanism and dignity. The analysis of the first ghazal helps in many ways to understand the creative credo typical for all of Ghalib's poetry, as well as the difficult path the poet had taken, while continuously improving his art of “hunting” for a poetic word. The ghazal is discussed in the context of Ghalib’s other Urdu and Persian poetry, as well as of Sufism that prevailed in India of Ghalib’s time.

Between tradition and modernity: Lauddin and his “Story of the Young Captain” (commented translation and research article)

The publication (a research article and Russian translation) deals with the earliest specimen of Malay documentary prose, the memoirs of a non-professional author Lauddin, who came from a prosperous merchant family. The book describes actual historical events, which took place in the mid 18th century: the dramatic rivalry between the Dutch and the British in the Java and Sumatra regions. This rivalry was crucial for Lauddin’s fate as that of his father and brothers. In terms of its content, Lauddin's work can certainly be considered innovative. At the same time, a truthful story about events in which he himself was a witness or participant is built according to the laws of the Malay epic narrative. The book traces parallels with such classics as the “Chronicle of the Kings of Pasai”, “Malay Annals”, and “The Tale of Hang Tuah”. Thus, Lauddin shows that he sticks to the canon and, willingly or unwillingly, includes his memoirs in the traditional literary context.

Some aspects of the authorship of the treatise “Xiao Jing”

The article deals with the authorship of the Confucian treatise Xiao Jing (“The Classic of Filial Piety”). Xiao Jing is one of the classical treatises that constitutes a part of the Confucian corpus Shisan Jing (“The Thirteen Classics”). This confirms the importance and high significance of this text for the traditional philosophical thought of China. The earliest mention of the title “Xiao Jing” was recorded in the work from the 3rd century BC, Lu shi chun qiu (“Spring and Autumn of Mr Liu”), which indicates the terminus ante quem non for the treatise Xiao Jing. According to some Russian scholars, the treatise Xiao Jing was compiled in the IV-II centuries BC. The Chinese scholarship acknowledges eight main versions of authorship, and therefore dating of Xiao Jing. The author stresses the importance to establish the authorship of the Xiao Jing treatise since this can be a piece of additional information for a comprehensive understanding of the philosophical heritage of the Confucian tradition of this text. After presenting an outline of the main versions of authorship of the Xiao Jing treatise, the author states that this issue can hardly be solved unambiguously. Therefore, this article can be considered as a preliminary essay for further research. The appendix offers a complete Russian translation of the Xiao Jing made by the author of the present article.

Flowers, Bird and Insects from the Archives of F. R. Osten-Sacken

The article offers an overview of illustrations from the archives of an employee of the Russian Imperial Ministry of Foreign Affairs, traveller and member of the Russian Geographical Society, Reinhold Friedrich Freiherr von der Osten-Sacken (Russ.: Fyodor Romanovich Osten-Saken) (1832–1916), preserved in the Russian Archive of Ancient Acts (RAAA). In total, the article describes content of four archival boxes (a Chinese popular print depicting western steamers in Tianjin; a Japanese album of 1893 with views of Tokyo; six Chinese paintings in the genre of flowers and birds (huaniao), which depict a lotus, lamprocapnos, pomegranate, dragonflies, cicadas and blue magpie; two prints from Chinese steles). Most of the paintings are published for the first time. The translation of the six explanatory texts for Chinese paintings in the genre of flowers and birds belongs to the author of the present article. The text of the article is accompanied by numerous illustrations of the items preserved in the RAAA.

Pinkas-notebook and pinkas-register book: evolution, structure, and composition

Minute books (pinkas) constitute one of the most valuable sources for studying the history of the Jewish communal institutions up to the 20th century. They comprise rich and diverse data on the everyday activities of the Jewish people. In the academic language, the word “pinkas” is applied not only to the communal minute books and minute books of the communal bodies but also to private minute books. The article deals with the development of this category of sources which evolved from private minute books dating back to at least the 11th century to the communal ones as well as the minute books of the communal bodies based on the dozen manuscript examples. These are mostly of European origin, however, with a few Eastern additions. This evolution process becomes visible as a result of the analysis of the manuscripts’ internal structure and composition. Special attention is paid to the techniques used to enforce this structure on codicological and paleographic levels. The data at hand suggest that at the beginning of the Modern period some of the minute books were shifted from private to the public domain. This was a response to the demand from the rapidly evolving communal institutions. To suit the widened audience of varying backgrounds the communal minute books compared to those for private use adopted a more uniform structure as well as with a set of “navigation” or referencing tools, such as captions written on margins. The early modern Italian communal minute books tend to be the most structured ones.

Emerging Christianity: what do we know and how?

This article, the second in a series, briefly describes the main problems connected with the reconstruction of emerging Christianity. First of all, it is the scarcity of historical sources. They speak almost exclusively about religious beliefs and leave aside all other aspects of life. Then, it is the clearly expressed interest of both ancient authors and modern researchers to present a “rightful” and ideal picture. As a result, emerges an idealized image of such a Christian community that a modern scholar would like to belong to. A possible methodological solution to this problem can be found in the model of religious studies suggested by the modern German scholar Gerd Theissen. Concerning the practical method, one can suggest an analysis of the polemics as reflected in the early Christian texts, mainly epistles.

The Eastern Sea Route as Depicted in a Chinese Historical Geographical Description of Foreign Lands of the Yuan dynasty (1279–1368) Daoyi zhilüe (“A Brief Description of the Island Barbarians”, 1349/1350): Chapters 1–4, Translation with Commentary

This article is the first in the series of planned publications with translations of separate chapters from a Chinese historical-geographical description of foreign lands Daoyi zhilüe (“A Brief Description of Island Barbarians”, 1349/1350) written during the Yuan dynasty (1279–1368). The first four chapters of the treatise which describe policies on the eastern sea route from China are included in this work. The article offers the first translation of these chapters into Russian, accompanied by detailed historical commentary. Apart from that, in the research part of the article the author has briefly analyzed the order of the chapters in the treatise and compared it with the previous sources of similar nature. The translations are an important source for studying various aspects of the history of the Penghu islands, Taiwan and the Philippines in the 14th century AD.

Socioeconomic Changes in South Arabia in The First Half of The Sixteenth Century.

One of the world’s largest humanitarian crises that have been going on in Yemen for the last ten years has highlighted the growing tensions within its society. To better understand the rising antagonism between the North and the South, it is necessary to analyze the significant historic events that influenced the development of the Yemeni identity. For the inhabitants of South Yemen and Hadramaut, many of such events took place in the first half of the sixteenth century. The following article presents an analysis of these events focusing on the available Yemeni sources, especially the “Tārīkh al-Shiḥr wa akhbār al-qarn al-‘āshir”, the annals by Muḥammad b. ‘Umar al-Ṭayyib Bā Faqīh al-Shiḥrī (d. 17th cent. AD). The comparison of this chronicle with other sources reveals how the clash between Hadramaut, the Portuguese and the Ottoman empires, as well as an attempt by the Kathīrī Sultan Badr Bū Ṭuwairiq to establish a centralized South Arabian state, caused deeper integration of this region into global politics. Ironically, it was the Sultan’s loyalty towards the Ottoman Empire meant to ensure the rise of al-Shihr as one of the main trade centres of the Arabian Peninsula that soon contributed to its decline. Lastly, the sources reflect the spread of firearms that had an impact on the stratification of South Arabian society and gave more power to the tribes, allowing them to subjugate the sultans, thereby preventing the creation of a unified state in the following centuries.

Study of the chemical composition of Amir Wali coins by x-ray fluorescent analysis

The chemical composition of seven coins of Amir Wali of six dirhams par value (two types) minted in Astarabad in 769 and 75 Hijri (1368 and 1374 AD) was studied by x-ray fluorescent analysis using a portable TRACER 5i spectrometer. There were established the basic composition of the coin alloy and the quantitative content of the trace elements. The performed comparison with the coin alloys compositions of the preceding dynasties demonstrated continuity of minting technologies and similarity of ore sources used in the production of dirhams during the reign of Amir Wali in Astarabad. Based on the literary data of galenic ores composition mined in the Zenjan province, it is suggested that the raw material for coin mintage was extracted from a deposit located near the city of Damgan.