Galdan
Basic information
Interviewee ID: 990363
Name: Galdan
Parent's name: Sürenhor
Ovog: Hiad
Sex: m
Year of Birth: 1948
Ethnicity: Halh
Additional Information
Education: elementary
Notes on education:
Work: herder
Belief: Buddhist
Born in: Saihan sum, Bulgan aimag
Lives in: Saihan sum (or part of UB), Bulgan aimag
Mother's profession: herder
Father's profession: herder
Themes for this interview are:
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family
military
belief
herding / livestock
environment
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To read a full interview with Galdan please click on the Interview ID below.
Summary of Interview 090765A with Galdan
Galdan guai was born in 1948 and since his childhood he has tended lambs and young goats. From 1959 - 1964 he attended school. At the age of 22 he was called to serve the army and he served for three years. At school he lived in the dormitory and sometimes in the ’ail’. He quite school after the fifth grade, which was his own idea. There weren't enough clothes then and in summer time the children ran barefooted. The sheepskin was cut as it is and deels were made. The people wore Mongolian gutal.
His father was a lama but fearing the repressions he become a layman. He still read the scriptures secretly in the morning and at night. Later, having reached sixty, he started doing correctional ceremonies (zasal) and read scriptures. He read scriptures and prayers until he died. From 1990 religion has become free and each ‘ail’ has acquired a certain faith at some level. They started to worship the Buddhist relics and have correctional ceremonies (zasal) done, and worship the mountains and the rivers.
During the cultural campaign each ‘ail’ was inspected and the dirty ones were criticized and discussed at the bag meetings.
At the beginning of the collectivization movement Galdan guai’s family joined the collective quite late. His father greatly feared the state violence therefore he has followed inevitably the state policy.
The democratic society is a wonderful society if it is guided in the right way. He expressed his regret that people have become easily absorbed with the wrong things.
The summer time ceased to be the way it used to be therefore the grass and the plants wither and the pasture land is damaged, but it is not damaged due to the increase in the number of livestock.
The dargas of the socialist period often visited the ‘ails’ and they took care of and worked closely with the people. But the present-day mayors can’t bee seen anywhere. They just pursue money.
At that time there was the term ‘punishment cattle’. It was originated from the fact that the herders had to pay from themselves if they lost or had a shortfall in the number of collective livestock.
