08.05.10

Manchu Archery in Global Times

Posted in Culture at 10:55 am by Randy Alexander

The Netherlands’ Peter Dekker studies Manchu archery and has been written up in Global Times.

He also runs a very informative website called Fe Doro (The Old Way).

(Hat tip to Kellen.)

06.18.10

The Book of the Nishan Shaman 14

Posted in Books, Translation at 9:00 pm by Paweł

Previous instalments: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13

The Nishan Shaman rescues Sergudai Fiyanggo and they are on their way back from the Country of the Dead, but Monggoldai Nakcu chases them to strike a bargain. Read the rest of this entry »

06.03.10

The Book of the Nishan Shaman 13

Posted in Books, Translation at 8:35 pm by Paweł

Previous instalments: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12

The Nishan Shaman reaches the city of Ilmun Han,
and meets Sergudai Fiyanggo’s kidnapper, Monggoldai Nakcu.

Read the rest of this entry »

05.25.10

The Book of the Nishan Shaman 12

Posted in Books, Translation at 7:57 pm by Paweł

Previous instalments: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11

The shaman passes different obstacles that appear on her way to rescue the soul of Sergudai Fiyanggo.

Read the rest of this entry »

04.22.10

Where is Lolo?

Posted in Excursions at 7:48 pm by Randy Alexander

As soon as my kids got out of school for the Spring Festival (mid-February), I stuffed them in the car and headed up to Harbin to see the Ice Festival. We passed a village on Route 202 called 拉林 (lālín), and it crossed my mind that with a little phonetic change, maybe it used to be Lolo, the village mentioned in the opening sentence of The Book of the Nisan Shaman.  On the way back I stopped there to get some snacks and found that it was a Manchu village and there was Manchu writing on signs everywhere. Read the rest of this entry »

03.24.10

The Book of the Nishan Shaman 11

Posted in Books, Translation at 10:33 pm by Paweł

Previous instalments: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10

[This installment marks an important milestone in our work: the halfway point.  Here the Nisan Shaman comes to her first barrier.  — PM and RA]
Read the rest of this entry »

03.10.10

Manchu culture meets the 20th century

Posted in Culture at 7:51 pm by Randy Alexander

My sons come out of school every day and there is a big line of vendors waiting there to sell them snacks and toys. The price for most things is 5毛 or 1块 (7-15 US¢). Today my older son’s purchase was a big surprise. Guess what these are:

Still not sure?

Read the rest of this entry »

02.28.10

The Book of the Nishan Shaman 10

Posted in Books, Translation at 3:14 am by Paweł

Previous instalments: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9

Here the shaman falls into her trance. Read the rest of this entry »

01.15.10

The Book of the Nishan Shaman 09

Posted in Books, Translation at 12:00 am by Paweł

Previous instalments: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8

[Paweł has now completed the draft translation of the entire book (there will be 22 installments in all), and now the two of us are meticulously going through the translation, word by word, exhaustively investigating every possibility where there is anything strange about the text.  This particular installment proved to be the most challenging so far, especially near the end where we made some interesting discoveries.  Enjoy!  --RA] Read the rest of this entry »

12.04.09

The Book of the Nishan Shaman 08

Posted in Books, Translation at 11:09 pm by Paweł

Previous instalments: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7 Read the rest of this entry »

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