A Bear-Awakening Song from the Upper Sosva
At the Mansi bear ceremony, the bear must be woken each morning. The slain animal sits in its plank house at the sacred end of the room, and the singers address it directly, coaxing it to open its eyes and watch the festivities. This is a dawn song — sung as the first light strikes the tree-tops. The singers remind the bear of its celestial mother (the sun), urge it not to think of its forests and streams, and promise it silk and merriment. The song builds toward a final ascent: the bear will be dressed in the garments of the gods and sent upward, its silver bells ringing between the two heavens.
Recorded by Bernát Munkácsi among the Mansi (Vogul) people of the upper Sosva River in Western Siberia, and published in his Vogul Népköltési Gyűjtemény, Volume III: Medveénekek (Bear Songs), Budapest, Magyar Tudományos Akadémia, 1893. This is the first song of the Third Section: Dawn Bear-Awakening Songs (Reghajnali medveköltő énekek). This text has never previously appeared in English.
The Third Section: Dawn Bear-Awakening Songs
Little beast, little beast — wake!
Little beast, little beast — arise!
The dawn-rayed princess, your mother,
has reached the high tree's canopy,
has risen to the low tree's crown.
Beast, wake! Beast, arise!
Before — in the part of your life left behind —
you were a holy beast drawn in the likeness of heaven,
a holy beast living sleepless in your own form,
and one half of your eye looked up to Torem,
the other half looked to Kaltes, the rising sun.
But now — this thick-rooted, root-deep sleep,
this seven-beast-sleep-long slumber —
will you lie here short or long?
Beast, wake! Beast, arise!
The great god's road has brightened,
the great idol's road has brightened.
You — before the great god's road grew light,
before your mother rose to the high tree's canopy —
your seven streams where geese dive,
where ducks dive,
every stream-mouth, every spring-head,
you wandered them all.
But now — this thick-rooted, root-deep sleep —
will you lie here short or long?
How can you not see
your dawn-rayed princess-mother rising?
Let your beautiful little eye,
bright as Torem's rising,
shine forward!
The mighty khan's great gun —
how do they run past you so?
Those with the reindeer-tongue-width spear,
the reindeer-thigh-great axe,
the forearm-long knife —
how do they run past you so?
Beast, wake!
In this house rich with the food of the lake,
in this house rich with the food of the river —
beast, arise!
Do not think now of your seven forests
with their pine-cone-covered ridges!
Do not think of your seven hills
with their berry-covered slopes!
Do not think of your many gravel shores
lined with bird-cherry!
Now — in this house where the sons of men dwell,
in this dusty house they run beside you,
in this joyful house, full of maiden's laughter
and boy's delight, they run beside you.
Look this way — wake, little beast, little beast!
Do not think anymore
of the mountain mosquito, the forest mosquito!
The sacred little place the great god sent down —
you are covering it now with your own paws.
This little house of yours
where men have bowed,
where the great god and great idol descended —
beast, make it the place of your waking,
the place of your arising!
This house rich with lake-food and river-food,
this house rich with fine silk,
this house rich with fine cloth —
beast, make it the place of your dawning!
Watch all this endless maiden's joy,
this endless boy's delight!
This wealth of fine silk,
this wealth of fine cloth —
let us all share it with you.
After your five nights befitting the beast,
when Dawn-mother brightens,
when Dawn-Kaltes-mother brightens —
may you be dressed in the great god's garment,
in the great idol's garment!
May your endless feast of lake-food
reach your mother!
May your endless feast of river-food
reach your father!
Between two heavens,
between two skies,
when your upward road opens —
let it ring with the great god's voice,
let it ring with the small god's voice!
Let them hear the sound of your great silver,
let them hear the sound of your small silver!
Let the winged gods on both sides
hear it all!
Colophon
Translated from Mansi (Vogul) source text via Munkácsi's Hungarian intermediary by the New Tianmu Anglican Church, March 2026.
Source: Munkácsi Bernát, Vogul Népköltési Gyűjtemény, Volume III: Medveénekek (Bear Songs), Budapest: Magyar Tudományos Akadémia, 1893, pp. 188–193. Section III, Song I: "Az 'állatöreget' ébresztő reggeli ének a felső Szoszva mellékén" (The morning song for waking the 'animal-elder' on the upper Sosva). The Mansi source text and Hungarian translation appear together in the original edition. Archive.org identifier: f1vogulnpklt03munkuoft.
Translation method: Independent verse translation from the Mansi source text, with Munkácsi's 1893 Hungarian translation serving as the primary interpretive bridge. The English verse was composed independently. No prior English translation of this song exists; no English reference was consulted.
Terminology: "Beast" and "little beast" render the Mansi uj and ujukwé — the ceremonial term for the bear, used throughout the bear feast songs. The bear is never called by its true name during the ceremony. "Torem" is the Sky God (Numi-Torem). "Kaltes" (Kaltés) is the dawn goddess, associated with the rising sun and the bear's celestial mother.
A Good Works Translation. NTAC + Claude.
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Source Text: Ujukwé ujukwé kensamléñ
Mansi source text from Munkácsi, Vogul Népköltési Gyűjtemény III (1893), pp. 188–193. Phonetic transcription by Munkácsi Bernát among the Northern Mansi of the upper Sosva River basin, 1880s–1890s. Presented here for reference, study, and verification alongside the English translation above. OCR from the archive.org digitisation of the original Budapest edition; diacritical marks may be partially degraded.
Ujukwéy ujukwé kensamléñ!
ujukwé, ujukwé vq̈ramlén!
Xoli-séri sa'tpá náj-sáñin
kars jiw lápin ti pats,
talkwé jiw talyén ti lapés.
Uj kensamlén, uj vq̈ramlén!
möléy, jüwl'é yultém supét
nan yuripén tq̈rémné kélem jelpin uj,
nan yuripén ülémtal q̈lné jq̈més uj,
akw' pál sayén Tq̈rémné sa'yyatés,
akw' pál sayén Kaltésén sa'yyatés:
an q̈s q̈sin tárpá tárin ülém,
sát sawlát yq̈sá ülém
yq̈sáy váü yujilén?!
Uj kéné amién, uj vq̈r amién!
jáni tq̈rém tq̈nyá yq̈táls,
jáni pupí lq̈nyá yq̈táls,
nan möléy, jáni tq̈rém lq̈nyá yátláné-mos,
kars jiw lápin sáñin lapné-mos
lunt nq̈pmin, vás nq̈pmin sát sq̈jimén,
títin sq̈jim-títén, tal'yin sq̈jim tal'yén,
pusén yoltilésán:
an q̈s q̈sin tárpá tárin ülém
yq̈sá, váü yujilén?!
yoli-séri sa'tpá náj-sáñikén
nan' kwálmá yumlé at va'ilén?!
Tq̈rém kwálné jq̈més sq̈ukén
elál voss postili!
Tárém-yq̈n jáni' turká aliñétné
yumĺé toy yajtawákén?!
elém-yq̈lés-pi' q̈sné
yár-nelm páywén q̈utá q̈liñétné
yumté toy yajtawákén?
elém-yq̈lés-pi' q̈sné
yár-pes jáni sa'irép q̈liñétné
yumté toy yajtawén?!
elém-yq̈lés-pi' q̈sné
assin-pálit yq̈sá kasáj q̈liñétné
yumté toy yajtawén?!
Uj kensamlén!
ti tür-tep-suñá saw kwolt,
ti Ás-tep-suñá saw kwolt
uj vq̈ramlén!
pákwin sispá sát vörén
an ul nq̈msáln!
pilin sispá sát ü̈rkén
an ul nq̈msáln!
lámin sispá saw rq̈sén
an ul nq̈msáln!
an elém-yq̈lés-pi' ünléné
por sin kwolté yajtawén,
áyi-kásin, pi'-kásin
suñin kwolté yajtawén:
tilé kénsamlén ujukwé, ujukwé!
ur-l'q̈m'uj, vör-l'q̈m'uj saukán
vássí ul nq̈mésán!
jáni tq̈rém tárñtém jelpin mákén
an ti kátlájitél ñortilén.
Ti yum-pi' yü̈té'láné
jáni tq̈rém, jáni pupí sültém kwolkén
uj kéñsamlálñ, uj vq̈ramlálñ!
ti tür-tepí Ás-tép suñin kwol,
ti vouta jarmak suñin kwol,
ti vouta ñuj suñin kwol
uj yq̈tlálñ!
ti yq̈ltal q̈lné áyi-kás,
ti yq̈ltal q̈lné pi'-kás
pusén suñsílañ!
ti vouta jarmak suñin q̈ltul,
ti vouta ñuj suñin q̈ltul,
pusén nan-jotén voss suñilawé.
Uj at at étén tauláné jui-pált,
yoli-séri sáñikén yq̈tláné-mü̈s,
yoli-Kaltés sáñikén yq̈tláné-mü̈s
jáni tq̈rém-ta'ilél voss mastawén!
jáni pupí ta'ilél voss mastawén!
yq̈ltal q̈lné tür-tep suñin pü̈rin
sáñiñné voss joyyati!
yq̈ltal q̈lné Ás-tép suñin pü̈rin
ásénné voss joyyati!
kit tq̈rém-yalé kit kivorés-yal
num-palné minné l'q̈ñyén pü̈sné
jáni tq̈rém-sujil voss sujtawé,
mán tq̈rém-sujil voss sujtawé!
jány' q̈ln sujin voss yq̈ntlawé,
mán q̈ln sujin voss yq̈ntlawé!
kit pál q̈lné tq̈wlin tq̈rémné
pusén voss yq̈lawé!
Source Colophon
Mansi (Vogul) phonetic transcription and Hungarian translation from Munkácsi Bernát, Vogul Népköltési Gyűjtemény, III. kötet: Medveénekek (Vogul Folk Poetry Collection, Volume III: Bear Songs), Budapest: Magyar Tudományos Akadémia, 1893. Munkácsi collected this material among the Northern Mansi of the Sosva River basin in the 1880s–1890s, working partly from his own field recordings and partly from the earlier transcriptions of Antal Reguly. The original edition is in the public domain. Digitised and available at archive.org (identifier: f1vogulnpklt03munkuoft).
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