Author:
Abstract
Bir ulusu ulus yapan kültürel öğelerden biri olan efsane, halk kültürünün ayrılmaz bir parçasıdır. Toplumlar sahip oldukları efsaneleri her zaman kendilerinden sonra gelen nesillere aktarırlar. Ama bunu yaparken de her birey kendinden bir şeyler katarak efsanenin yeni varyasyonlarını ortaya çıkarırlar. Şahmeran efsanesi de Hint-İran edebiyatından Anadolu’ya geldiği ileri sürülen, ancak; öz haliyle değil, Anadolu kültürü içinde yoğrulmuş bir efsanedir. Anadolu kültürü efsanede bazı değişimler yapmıştır. Bu değişimlerden biri de Şahmeranın cinsiyetidir.
Keywords
Abstract
Myth, which is one of the cultural elements what makes a nation a nation, is an integral part of folk culture. Societies always pass down their myths to their descendants. However, while doing so, each individual generates new variations of the myth by adding something from themselves. Shahmaran is a myth that is claimed to be borrowed from the Indian-Iranian Literature and brought to Anatolia, however changed by blending within Anatolian culture. Anatolian culture changed this myth in some ways. One of these changes is the gender of Shahmaran. The gender of Shahmaran varies according to the sources and regions; for some, it is a male, while for others it is female. There are many reasons of this dilemma; the most prevalent view is that continuation of human life is ensured thanks to the fertility of the women. What the serpent has in common in this regard is that it represents immortality by changing its skin in every spring. The lasting fertility of women, just like the immortality of the serpent, enables the continuation of human life. This article seeks to provide some insights on this subject by drawing upon different perspectives regarding the issue.