1. Ger
The Mongolian Ger is ideally suited to the country’s
extremes of climate and the people’s nomadic way of life. It is a multipurpose
dwelling that can be easily collapsed, transported to another place and put up
again fully preserving its original shape. Being constantly on the move with
herds of animals or being on military campaigns compelled Mongols to build gers
on carts. Old books contain pictures of such gers, temporary abodes in which
families of thereof four could spend the night or find shelter. After some time
the use of carts stopped because they were clumsy and the gers could not be
hauled over long distances as there was the danger of getting stuck in the mud
somewhere or tipping over. The ger has two key components-the wooden framework
and the felt cover. The wooden parts are the walls, the long poles, the round
smoke escape and its support. One wall consists of 10-15 wooden poles, each
about 1.5 m high, bound with together in a away making it possible to fold it
for transportation and then unfold like an accordion.
The unfolded walls are connected to
form a circle. The long poles are fastened to the upper part of the walls, with
the other end passed through the round support at the top of the ger, the only
window and smoke escape in the ger. Two posts prop up the round support. All
this forms are the wooden framework of the ger, which resembles an open
umbrella. Two layers of felt are then laid on the roof and on the walls and
tied down with hair rope. The top of the ger has felt flap that can be drawn
over the roof when the weather is bad number of walls and poles determines the
size of the ger. Almost herders gers have five walls, which make a living area
of 16-18 sq.m. larger gers can have up to 12 walls. In the center of the ger is
hearth, which has a special meaning of the Mongols. Apart from its utilitarian
purpose, the hearth symbolizes ties with ancestors. There are several customs
associated with hearth. Desecration of the hearth is a sin and insult to the
master of the house. The hearth is mounted on three stones, which symbolize the
host, the hostess and the daughter-in-law. The hearth is the center ger and
divides the ger space into three conventional areas-the male and female
quarters and the khoimor. The male quarters are on the western side. Here the
host keeps the saddle, the horse bridle and the koumiss bag. The female
quarters are on the eastern side where she keeps the kitchen ware and
appliances. Accordingly, a man entering the ger goes straight to the western
part and a woman to the eastern part. It is believed that the male quarters are
under the protection of heaven and the sun patronizes the female quarters. The
most honored place is the khoimor by northern wall, opposite the door. Here,
they keep objects dear to the master of the house, his weapons, his Morin Khuur
and the host’s horse bridle. Pieces of furniture usually two wooden chests,
painted bright orange, are also placed in the khoimor. Framed photographs of
the host’s family and friends are put on the chests for everyone to see. If the
host has some governmental award, he is sure to hand it in the khoimor. When
guests visit, the hosts usually sit on
the eastern side of the khoimor and the
guests on the western side. The hostess’ place is by the hearth and the
children are supposed to sit her but closer to the door. The bed of the host
and hostess is in the female quarters: those for guests are on the opposite
side. The children are put to sleep parents’ feet. There are many philosophical
ideas on the ger, its parts and functions. The smoke escape is the only opening
through which light penetrates the ger. An old legend has it that it was
through such a hole that a far-haired man got into the ger of Alangua, the
Mongols’ ancestral mother, and begot three sons. In olden days people could
tell time by the sun’s rays falling on the cross-pieces of the smoke escape on
the poles. The Mongols divided the into twelve hour and each hour into twelve
minutes, which they called by the name of the lunar calendar animals. A hair
rope, chagtaga, is fastened to the smoke escape from which a weight
establishing the ger is suspended during strong winds. In new gers, they fasten
a khadag to it, a piece of blue silk in which a handful of grain is wrapped.
The symbolism of this ritual can be summed up like this “may happiness multiply
in this new ger like grains of corn and may life be pure and beautiful here,”
the ger supports ensure stability and that is probably why tradition forbids
touching, let alone learning against them. Moreover, they symbolize a link with
Heaven, with the past-present-future axis supposedly passing through them. In
winter the hearth heats the ger and also serves as a stove for cooking. In
wooded areas, the hearth is stocked with firewood while in the desert and steppe,
dry dung is used. The ger warms up quickly and holds in the heat. In the summer
heat the lower part of the felt cover is raised to let in fresh air. The
ger,round and squat, can with stand harsh winds while the quick drying felt is
good protection against the rain and snow. In the towns and urban-type
settlements, gers are being ousted by modern well-built housing. Young Mongols
prefer to live in comfortable flats. In summer, however, urban dwellers often
spend their vacation in gers, leaving the urban conveniences for a short while
to enjoy the unmatched comfort of the ger.
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