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A Travel Mythologeme in Locative Constructions of Ukrainians Healing Texts

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The authors of the publication:
Temchenko Andriy
p.:
45-62
UDC:
398.3(=161.2)
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.15407/nte2020.03.045
Bibliographic description:
Temchenko, A. (2020) Mythologeme of the Travel in the Locative Constructions of the Ukrainians Healing Texts. Folk Art and Ethnology, 3 (385), 45–62.

Author

TemchenkoAndriy

a Ph.D. in History, an associate professor at the Department of the Ukrainian History of the Bohdan Khmelnytskyi Cherkasy National University. ORCID: http://orcid.org/0000-0003-3999-9459

 

A Travel Mythologeme in Locative Constructions of Ukrainians Healing Texts

 

Abstract

The semantics of the ritual action, realized by a mythological character is studied in the article. The published work is aimed at the explanation of separate aspects of the ritual action, which description is fixed in the locative constructions of healing texts. The research methods are interdisciplinary in their nature and concern to adjacent humanities, i.e. Ethnology, Folkloristics, Linguistics and Philosophy.

There are two types of the ritual action in the healing texts, namely centripetal and centrifugal. Centripetal textual constructions realize the idea of the ordering of the uncontrolled actions, which upshot is in the imbalance of corporal structure. The appropriate motifs are connected with the symbolism of the celestial bodies and duplicate their action as if they start up the mechanism of life. Centrifugal action is also a necessary condition of magical healing, which expediency is realized in the motifs of liberation from the state of spasmodic numbness. Imbalance of the corporeal numbness is realized by the way of execution of the magical operations with mythical objects, symbolizing the state of absolute statics. In such situation the analogue of the sick includes only those objects, which by their characteristics are opposed to a healthy and strong body, forming dual pairs with the + / – marking. Descriptiveness is a typical feature of the centrifugal action. It is presented as a travel of the sacred patron. Unlike the fairy plots, the descriptions of the travel in the healing texts are concise and consist of the laconic word-markers, designating its major phases. Significant stages of this journey are the river / border; bridge / crossing; mountain, rock / center of the world; tree / axis of the world. Totemic creatures (dog, sheep, horse) and Christian saints act as iconic characters. A special place is distinguished for the texts, where the ‘island of the dead’ is mentioned. It is activated in the motifs of the bleeding halt.

 

Keywords

a myth, space, a healing text, a travel, centripetal / centrifugal action, a totem, funeral rites, a fairy tale.

 

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