Historical stories about the Erzya people in Russian folklore
(on the material of "Tales of the Starling and the Woodpecker"
and songs "On the mountains on the Dyatlovs")

Sharonova Elena Alexandrovna ORCID: 0000-0003-0221-4427 Doctor of Philology Professor, Department of Russian and Foreign Literature, National Research Mordovia State University 430034, Russia, Republic of Mordovia, Saransk, Bolshevistskaya str., 68, office 503 sharon.ov@mail.ru Other publications by this author

Sharonov Aleksandr Markovich ORCID: 0000-0002-2724-3112 Doctor of Philology Professor, Chief Researcher, the department of Socio-Economic Monitoring, Scientific Center for Socio-Economic Monitoring of the Republic of Mordovia 430005, Russia, Republic of Mordovia, Saransk, B.Khmelnitsky str., 39a sharon.ov@mail.ru Other publications by this author

Introduction Throughout the history of existence, people know themselves, form an idea of themselves, reproduce important events in their lives, thus creating a cultural and historical portrait of themselves.

Mythology and folklore, chronicles and written literature are the most important sources on which researchers rely in an effort to understand the ways of forming the national image of a particular people ^[10].

In the context of this work, folklore works (primarily legends and historical songs) recorded in the XVIII?early XIX centuries by P. I. Melnikov-Pechersky ^[9], H. Paasonen ^[19], A. F. Yurtov ^[18], M. E. Evseviev ^{[5; 6]}, comprehending important historical processes of the organization of the Russian world, formed from a variety of ethnic sources. In the 1960s and 1970s, the concept of historical song was formulated in the works of B. N. Putilov ^[11], F. M. Selivanov ^[12], A. I. Maskaev ^[8], N. N. Alekseev ^[2], in the candidate dissertations of M. F. Vatanina ^[3] and A.M. Sharonov ^[15]. This allowed scientists of the Mordovian ASSR to prepare a separate volume of historical songs in the unique series "Oral and poetic creativity of the Mordovian people" ^{[13; 14]}. It was based on publications of the XIX–XX centuries and materials from archives  Mordovia, Moscow, Leningrad, Gorky, in addition, the texts recorded by the staff of the NIIYALIE at the Council of Ministers of the Mordovian ASSR, students of the Ogarev Moscow State University, the Evseviev Moscow State Pedagogical Institute and the compiler (one of the authors of this article – A.M. Sharonov).  Original versions of songs about the capture of Kazan (No. 1), about Pyotr Pavlovich-Pugachev (No. 147, 148), about baptism were published for the first time (№ 121, 125, 128-129) ^[14] and others; songs about Polon and songs recorded in Russian are presented [See. about this: 17]. Folklore Russian-Mordovian historical plots have become the subject of scientific understanding in the works of the authors of this article ^{[4; 16; 17]}.  The scientific novelty of the research is determined by the analysis of the "Tales of the Starling and the Woodpecker" and the song "On the Mountains on the Woodpeckers" in philosophical and sociological aspects in the view of the unification of Russians and Erzya into one people, represented in them.

1philosophical and sociological aspects of "The Legend of the Starling and the Woodpecker" and the song "On the mountains on the Woodpeckers" The folklore text has absolute objectivity in its view of complex and contradictory events and phenomena, it is free from ethnic extremism, and observes moderation in everything.

The real historical process in it is summed up under the general, typical, natural. It is natural in the "Legend of the Starling and the Woodpecker" and in the song "On the Mountains on the Woodpeckers" to unite the Nizhny Novgorod Erzi with the Moscow state, which becomes a mutual benefit for both sides.

The movement of philosophical and sociological thought in folk poetry goes from primitive communal and early class forms of mythological and cosmological views to more realistic concrete forms characterized by greater concreteness and sociality. Instead of gods and mythological creatures, there are characters generated by the family, household and social life of people whose horizons of ideas about the world and man began to expand, to go beyond the village, clan, tribe, principality, state. There were characters personifying the actors of a certain historical epoch, leading the creative processes in the social and military-political spheres of existence.

The sociologization of public thought and consciousness of individuals, although it was spontaneous in reality, was filled in folklore works with prognostic ideas modeling the image of the future. Ideas were formed about what society, citizens, princes and tsars, people in general should be at one time or another. For a life full of difficulties, tragedies and troubles, contradictions and conflicts required subordination of its course to certain goals and objectives, laws of development capable of creating prerequisites for the onset of favorable conditions of existence. The philosophical justification of these aspirations has already been given in the myths about the creation of the world and man: The World is a White Light, established by God for human life in work, in social and intellectual creativity, in joys and sorrows, in striving for the good, which is always lacking. Therefore, a person is obliged to work tirelessly forever. And in work and in its results to find happiness and satisfaction from yourself and your activities. In the work "The Structure of a literary text", Yu. M. Lotman writes: "Throughout the historically recorded existence of mankind, art accompanies it. Engaged in production, struggling to save his life, almost always deprived of the most necessary things, a person invariably finds time for artistic activity, feels its necessity" ^[7]. Man is a creative subject, and his development and improvement are endless. He is convinced that this is determined by God and Providence. This philosophical attitude permeates the existence of man, all folklore and written literature. God created a beautiful nature for man, but for mastering it he gave him neither knowledge nor tools, only an omnipresent Mind capable of knowing the world and organizing life, hands capable of performing all kinds of physical actions, legs capable of moving him anywhere, sight and hearing, which are universal means of cognition and activity. In other words, he laid a genetic program in him, according to which his biological, intellectual, and social development takes place. This program is able to assimilate social and intellectual experience and enrich itself with it, it defines time coordinates that include the past, present and future, vectors of vertical and horizontal development, this program is able to improve and free itself from relict heritage. It contains innate (divine) ideas that are universal and universal, through which communication with God and the Cosmos is carried out.

The focus in the genetic program of the simultaneous coexistence of the past, present and future (she knows what was and is in the past, what is in the present, what fertilized the future, and organizes a dialogue between them)  allows you to see an autonomous thinking entity in time, controlling processes, and not being born by them. Processes, movement and development are an external (kinetic) form of manifestation of time. We know that the world is intelligent, so there is no chaos in it. The levels and forms of the mind correspond to the level of organization of the object and its purpose. The mind has everything: man, animal, bird, tree, Galaxy and the Cosmos as a whole. All of it is defined as much as each individually needs. There is a time of the Earth and Man. A person thinks time in seconds, minutes, hours, days, weeks, months, years, centuries, millennia. Such a countdown is inherent only to man. The cosmos thinks of time in other categories that are not known to us. And we don't think of cosmic time. His counting in earthly terms is alien to him.

Philosophical aspects in the spiritual constitution of a person have an impact on his sociological guidelines. They form the concept of society, social man, the laws of their existence in time and space. All these circumstances add up to the history of a Person, or a People, or a State, or the World as a whole. History is not made up of historical plots in general, but historical plots preserved in the memory of the people, deposited in their minds. "The Legend of the Starling and the Woodpecker" and the song "On the mountains on the Woodpeckers" fix important for both peoples (Russians and Erzya)  the event is the transformation into one nation, the affirmation of the apotheosis of centripetal, unifying efforts and ethno?creative processes.

2 Historical context of the "Tales of the Starling and the Woodpecker" and the song "On the mountains on the Woodpeckers"Historical plots are in demand by different genres.

For example, they are present in the legend of the Starling and the Woodpecker, in the songs "On the mountains on the Woodpeckers", "Samanka", about Polon, epiphany, Pugachev, Paul I. In "The Legend of the Starling and the Woodpecker"  The predictions of the sage Woodpecker about the fate of the Erzya people who lived at the mouth of the Oka River at its confluence with the Volga are presented. The Seer  Woodpecker, when asked by Patriarch Skvortsov what will become of his seventy sons after him, answers: "If your children live peacefully and in accordance with each other, they will have the local places for a long time, and if they quarrel, they will be conquered by the Russians. And then here, at the mouth of the Oka, the Russians will set up a stone city, it is strong, and the enemy forces will not overcome it" ^{[9, p. 24]}. Russian Russian origin is the legend of the Starling and the Woodpecker and expresses the view of the Russian population on the history of Erzya. At the same time, the main characters of the legend ? the Starling, the Woodpecker and the Nightingale (identified with the Robber Nightingale) ? are Erzya, who lived on the Nizhny Novgorod land and live now. They are shown as wise elders, venerable patriarchs who take care of the well-being of their children. They are portrayed with great sympathy. The narrative about them contains the idea that the Dyatlov Mountains, on which Russians live today and Nizhny Novgorod stands, are extraordinary mountains, the image of which is filled with both transcendent and fateful meaning. Once they were the abode of people who possessed the gift of sacred rites and divine providence. The legend draws a genealogical connection between the Erzya ? the first settlers of the Woodpecker Mountains and the Russians who replaced them: "And the prophecy of the Woodpecker wizard was fulfilled: one holy prince, Andrei Bogolyubsky, drove them from the mouth of the Oka, another holy prince, George, put Nizhny Novgorod on the Woodpecker Mountains" ^{[9, p. 24]}.  They are co-creators of a single historical space, who filled a place with a unique historical meaning that had only a mystical meaning.

Russian Russian origin, the same idea is carried out in the song "On the Mountains on the Dyatlovs", and the actors in it are the elders of Erzya and the Russian tsar. Russian Russian tsar, as in the legend of the Starling and the Woodpecker, the action takes place on the Woodpecker Mountains, and we are talking about the transition of the Erzya land under the rule of the Russian tsar: the Russian tsar sails on a ship along the Volga past the Woodpecker Mountains, where at this time there is a prayer in honor of the supreme god Erzyan Cham-Pass: "The servants see: on the mountains on the Woodpeckers // A Mordovian in white robes stands, // Stands, prays to his god, // Worships to the mother earth to the east" ^{[9, p. 26]}. The king punishes the servants: "You are my servants, go, // Faithful servants, take it, // Tell the Mordvins to pray: // Here's a barrel of silver for you, old men, // Here's a barrel of gold for you, worshippers, // Go to the Mordovian molyan, // Give the silver to the Old Mordovians, gold" ^{[9, p. 27]}.  It is obvious that "Murza, the tsar of Moscow" does not claim the "Mordovian territory", respects the "worshippers" who worship the "non-Russian" god, and marks his location with expensive gifts. In turn, the old men "took honey, bread, salt, // They sent mighty dishes, // They sent them with young guys. // The young guys, having grown tired, sat down, // Honey, bread and salt ate, // They say: "The old people will not recognize!" // They put earth and yellow sand in the dishes, // They came // And Murza, the Moscow tsar, was presented. // Murza honestly accepts the earth and sand, // Crosses himself, blesses God: // "Glory to you, God to the tsar, // That you gave the land to Mordovia into my hands!" ^{[9, p. 27]}. The Russian tsar is inexpressibly glad, because the donation of land symbolizes the voluntary subjugation of his power.  The Russian song, thus, depicts the entry of the Nizhny Novgorod Erzi into the Moscow state as an accidental, unintentional action on both sides. However, the case is controlled by God. And in this song there are even two gods – the Erzya and the Russian. Providence wants the Erzya and Russian lands to unite, and that is the only reason why an important historical event is taking place. Moreover, everything is arranged by the efforts of the great and ordinary, big and small at the same time: the reason for the realization of the will of God is the trick of young guys who ate gifts intended for Murza and replaced them with symbolic signs of the transfer of territory. "Young guys" are ordinary messengers who are not responsible for anything, who have no right to take responsibility, find themselves in the role of random heroes who decide the fate of the people and the land belonging to them.

The Erzya princes ruled in the Nizhny Novgorod land until the XVII? XVIII centuries. ^[1], at the beginning of the XVII century. they supported Kozma Minin's militia. The song artistically interprets the unification processes, idealizes them, turns them into a poetic image, attractive both for Russians and for Erzya. The unification of the Nizhny Novgorod Erzya with the Moscow state became a mutual benefit, as the Russian tsar also says, thanking God for giving him the Erzya land. The elders of Erzya also took the incident for granted, especially since it happened during their prayer  To the Supreme God, who approved everything by his non-resistance.

The significance of the event is emphasized both by the place of action and its characters:  it takes place on the majestic Woodpecker Mountains, past which two great rivers flow ? the Volga and the Oka, merging together here, as if uniting the whole of Russia. The actors are the venerable elders of Erzya and the benevolent Russian tsar, who respect each other. The Erzya supreme god is invisibly present. All this situation suggests that the event that took place is pleasing to God and has a great future.

From the point of view of philosophical and sociological aspects, the song and the legend unite the Russian and Erzya worlds, form a common society for them, where the co-existence of the two peoples does not have antagonism directed against each other by social and moral forces.