The Two Faces of the Medallion: The Narrative of Salur Kazan and The Seven-Headed Dragon in the Context of Universalist Dichotomy

With human existence, abstract and concrete products have emerged through thinking, and cultural development has taken place. Some nations that have advanced their cultures have also created bodies of wisdom. Turkish people, who have reached an advanced level of culture and civilization, have develo...

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Main Authors: Aynur Koçak, Berna Özpınar
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Istanbul University Press 2023-12-01
Series:İstanbul Üniversitesi Edebiyat Fakültesi Türk Dili ve Edebiyatı Dergisi
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Online Access:https://cdn.istanbul.edu.tr/file/JTA6CLJ8T5/184B5BADE8124198BE55C831C54E5A3C
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author Aynur Koçak
Berna Özpınar
author_facet Aynur Koçak
Berna Özpınar
author_sort Aynur Koçak
collection DOAJ
description With human existence, abstract and concrete products have emerged through thinking, and cultural development has taken place. Some nations that have advanced their cultures have also created bodies of wisdom. Turkish people, who have reached an advanced level of culture and civilization, have developed their own type of wisdom through collective contemplation, forming a realistic worldview that can serve as a source for others. Because wisdom is a worldview, it is related to cosmogony. In the oldest and most original cosmogonic understanding of the Turks, all manifestations of the universe are based on the two fundamental systems called the “universalist dichotomy”, represented by the Sky and Earth. Although these two universal breaths (two universal principles) oppose each other, they are believed to complement each other and establish a harmonious unity. The universalist dichotomy, which is reflected in every aspect of life, also maintains its place in Turkish mythological narratives. Mythological narratives are compositions of symbols. Analyzing the symbols allows us to reach the underlying layers of meaning beneath the visible part of the narratives. This study aims to decipher the symbols in the “The Narrative of Salur Kazan Kills the Seven-Headed Dragon” through the hermeneutical method to reach the underlying layers of meaning and to demonstrate that the narrative is based on a dualistic system. For that purpose, the narrative, consisting of two parts, will be examined separately and then as a whole, and the compositions formed by symbol analysis will be evaluated together. Although this particular narrative has been extensively researched and examined, it is significant that this study approaches it for the first time in the context of universalist dichotomy.
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spelling doaj-art-7cd4cd192cfc4f2e9d15cb833d0834892025-08-20T01:49:50ZengIstanbul University Pressİstanbul Üniversitesi Edebiyat Fakültesi Türk Dili ve Edebiyatı Dergisi2602-26482023-12-0163266768710.26650/TUDED2023-1327526123456The Two Faces of the Medallion: The Narrative of Salur Kazan and The Seven-Headed Dragon in the Context of Universalist DichotomyAynur Koçak0https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9555-1088Berna Özpınarhttps://orcid.org/0000-0002-2016-4622Yıldız Teknik Üniversitesi, Istanbul, TurkiyeWith human existence, abstract and concrete products have emerged through thinking, and cultural development has taken place. Some nations that have advanced their cultures have also created bodies of wisdom. Turkish people, who have reached an advanced level of culture and civilization, have developed their own type of wisdom through collective contemplation, forming a realistic worldview that can serve as a source for others. Because wisdom is a worldview, it is related to cosmogony. In the oldest and most original cosmogonic understanding of the Turks, all manifestations of the universe are based on the two fundamental systems called the “universalist dichotomy”, represented by the Sky and Earth. Although these two universal breaths (two universal principles) oppose each other, they are believed to complement each other and establish a harmonious unity. The universalist dichotomy, which is reflected in every aspect of life, also maintains its place in Turkish mythological narratives. Mythological narratives are compositions of symbols. Analyzing the symbols allows us to reach the underlying layers of meaning beneath the visible part of the narratives. This study aims to decipher the symbols in the “The Narrative of Salur Kazan Kills the Seven-Headed Dragon” through the hermeneutical method to reach the underlying layers of meaning and to demonstrate that the narrative is based on a dualistic system. For that purpose, the narrative, consisting of two parts, will be examined separately and then as a whole, and the compositions formed by symbol analysis will be evaluated together. Although this particular narrative has been extensively researched and examined, it is significant that this study approaches it for the first time in the context of universalist dichotomy.https://cdn.istanbul.edu.tr/file/JTA6CLJ8T5/184B5BADE8124198BE55C831C54E5A3Cuniversalist dichotomy (two-principle system)symbolturkish mythologybook of dede korkutnarrative of salur kazan kills the seven-headed dragon
spellingShingle Aynur Koçak
Berna Özpınar
The Two Faces of the Medallion: The Narrative of Salur Kazan and The Seven-Headed Dragon in the Context of Universalist Dichotomy
İstanbul Üniversitesi Edebiyat Fakültesi Türk Dili ve Edebiyatı Dergisi
universalist dichotomy (two-principle system)
symbol
turkish mythology
book of dede korkut
narrative of salur kazan kills the seven-headed dragon
title The Two Faces of the Medallion: The Narrative of Salur Kazan and The Seven-Headed Dragon in the Context of Universalist Dichotomy
title_full The Two Faces of the Medallion: The Narrative of Salur Kazan and The Seven-Headed Dragon in the Context of Universalist Dichotomy
title_fullStr The Two Faces of the Medallion: The Narrative of Salur Kazan and The Seven-Headed Dragon in the Context of Universalist Dichotomy
title_full_unstemmed The Two Faces of the Medallion: The Narrative of Salur Kazan and The Seven-Headed Dragon in the Context of Universalist Dichotomy
title_short The Two Faces of the Medallion: The Narrative of Salur Kazan and The Seven-Headed Dragon in the Context of Universalist Dichotomy
title_sort two faces of the medallion the narrative of salur kazan and the seven headed dragon in the context of universalist dichotomy
topic universalist dichotomy (two-principle system)
symbol
turkish mythology
book of dede korkut
narrative of salur kazan kills the seven-headed dragon
url https://cdn.istanbul.edu.tr/file/JTA6CLJ8T5/184B5BADE8124198BE55C831C54E5A3C
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