YORTURK ORGANIZATION

The Life of Yoruks

  It gives a huge happiness to Yoruk to climb up hills, to look at unlimited steppes, green plains, curvely flowing rivers, to get old under the sweet smelling Rough juniper’s dark shadow, to lay on the meadow, to listen to the sheeps’, camels’ bells’,oxes’ voice, to sleep with the “siyirtmac’s duduk”, to see the cows running around , to hear the dog barks, the birds songs, to remember the sweet memories by the voice of the “kaval”,to feel the love with the “kemence” voice, the jumps of the billy goat from rock to rock, the horses riding to the water.

  If you straighten out of the place that you are leaning against, you may see the group of tents, the ones runing in front of them, the kids playing “cingirak”. When you open your eyes wider you may see the ones that are going to milk the sheeps and you would wonder “what kind of place is there?” and you will feel longing to the normad groups and phratries that are all over the hills. You would dream of the future and past alltogether , when you see the generous nature which adorned the earth’s surface with green and the sky with blue and the clauds like cotton pieces in it. You would believe that you are rediscovering the earth when you first see this beauty. Whereas the human beings belonging to Yoruk nomad group are seeing this beauty everyday as if it is in their inside and when they are away they feel the plateau longing deep inside.

  To walk around the huge mountains needs courage, Yoruk normad groups give birth to various kinds of  braves, “efe”s, “zeybek”s, youths who set and defended the country, along the history. Yoruks’ were assumed as soldiers all the time. They were in the origin of the Turkish nation. It was natural for them to be borned and dead as soldiers. The enemies which Turkish people used to attack in our history , were bulding their houses up on the hills, in a war the first raiders to those houses were Yoruks. Could the castles stand to the attacks if a Yoruk puts the love of country and the freedom longing with the love of climbing up on hills together? If Yoruk takes the sovereignty of the hills, the war assumed to be won. The history was written like that all the time. That is why the raiders, vanguards, riders, privates, “Alperen”s of the army were chosen from the Yoruk youth.

  It was called “conquerers’ son” to the ones who atended a holy war. It was not so easy to get the name “Zeybek” and “Efe” . If it did not happen in that way would the Oguz Clans who were living around the Hazar Sea and Aral Lake and in the middle of the Middle Asia steppes, reach from the Ancestor Land to the Mother Land and to the abundanced soil of Anatolia or colud they defend the mother land?

  The long lived and experienced Turkmen grandfathers, hennaed handed grand mothers prayed and said “when the sun goes down let the moon rise up, when the moon goes down let the sun rise up and let the light be on them ever” for the braves who were from the billy goat suburb.

  The human beings of Yoruk normad group are in love with the suffer. To handle the hard, to reach the distant, to climb up high is longing for them. They know that the birds are intrepid on their perch. When the Yoruk reaches to the maountains and sets his tent to his mother land, then he becomes happy after all.         

  The braves of the normad group when the night starts to come over puts together the goats which the Yoruks never get sick and tired of watching them playing and hearing the bells they are ringing while they play and braves put the sheeps to the aims. While the girls with copper buckets go to milk the animals, the boys, lads, rascals run to play “cingirak”. It makes a huge noise when coil and oil is put in it. Sometimes you feel the pain in its voice. Maybe it tells the suffers and loves of the land. The youngesters who can not attend to the “cingirak” game begin to play “celik (steel wheel) ”. The game which begins with hands and goes on with feet, waist and stone. When the game is over a huge noise can be heard, it is hard to control the “celik” with a piece of herb.

  When it is twilight the silence falls down on the normad group. The journey of the sheeps to the plain disturbs the silence but the sheeps are also silent and they creep away slowly. Sometimes a dog barks and lets the sheep to go to the mountains. Ofcourse the monsters wait for the sheeps. If the monsters find an unowned herd, they kill them all. The Turkmen husbands say that if a monster eats more than a hundred sheep it will burst with impatience and die. But a monster once ate sixty sheeps at a time. But shepherd dogs are strong they fight with monsters for the sheep till they loose their lives.

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  At mid-night darkness, before going to drive the sheep to the pasture, husbands eat “yufka” and “höþmer” that their wives with hands dyed with henna prepared, drink the ayran made of sack yougurt. While sitting cross-legged around the meal, it’s hard to leave, but he is Yuruk and must walk. His sack hat on head, his “çarýk” under feet, with his sok and diminity, his shepherd pipe on waist that he had put in his sash, his “kepenek” on back, his stick in hand, his gun on shoulder when her husband goes through the darkness, when he loses out of darkness from every hill, whistles seems to be heard. Every whistle has a meaning. This is the communication of Yuruks.

  The taken  milk has been boiled in the huge cauldron, the yogurt shaken. Morning gets early for Yuruks. For men and women, day starts as soon as the stars are lost in the sky. When it’s the time, goats, sheep start to shout, the cockorels to sing, the dogs to bark. It’s essential to go to bed and get up early. On the red rugs and black hair-cloth on the floor, the felts and tanned fur skins are laid. They lie through the quilts made of sheep-wool. Mountains are cold, but the tent the holes of which are opened in summer made of goat hair, keeps inside cool. In winter in cold and rainy days its holes are shut and it keeps them hot.

  Yuruk gets up early in the morning, takes the hids near by their mother goats and then take them away, open the gate of fence. They run towards the mountains that they miss. The ringing of the bells fill in every where for a moment. Maybe the sepherd’s music, his face’s smilling is the voice coming from the bells. The boys who are eating “gatmar”, that the dyed with hanna handed woman cooked on the oven plate, with milk, ayran and pure butter, go for driving the goats, the dark-skinned young ones go to the mountains full of springs to get the goats heavier. The young boys whose work has finished meet in front of the fountain, want to hear the voice of love. Love isn’t told with words, in the Nomad tent. On one hill the boys with “kemençe” in their hands, on anather hill the girls their hands round their necks, sing their music. Every breath has a meaning while the throat is singing. The ones fallen in love talk with just music; perhaps with the first light of the sun, in the quiet environment, plains and mountains become partners, listen to the music like darlings. “sýrma”, “çitme”, “çift”, “tek, “melikli”, “al”, etc.

  The checked, dyed with hanna handed girls start to embroider on edges of garment, to knit red rug, mixed colored rug, saddle-bag, sack. They tell balled and songs, tell stories all the time. The mothers who’ve finished their work intent are always busy with hand-making and talk to each other in happiness in their neighbours.

  The sheep which are outside in the pasture all night long are lain under the trees in the shadow, when the sun rises up. The husband Yuruk in his tent or in the shadow of juniper tries to sleep at the quiet night.

  All the animals from “köþen” to “þiþen”, from “goduk” to gulin” are friends of the people in the nomad tents. They are burned of their love and tell and sing their poems and songs. Perhaps, yuruks are the only ones who honours the animals, plants and trees see equal with their loves, see the nature in themselves. For this reason, they can’t leave the mountains, their love; they always told their problems to the mountains. They think that only the mountains can be their assistant for their troubles. Everybody knows that animals exist in folk music, all the time plateau and mountains.

  People can’t gain much, they change their wool with other goods, but can’t say anything for their rights. They thank God for their state, it is in their blood. Love of country is the heritage for themselves. They know that if their country exists, they themselves will exist, either. He is experienced and knows how to agree, he is hero, fine in character, knows how to struggle, he is generous and knows to give, he believes in God, know right and low.

  Don’t think that Yuruk don’t act together. Nomads want to be independent also in their own work. They believe that they can struggle with all the world by themselves, they see that strenght in themselves. Just like the saying “only one Turk is equal to all world”. They don’t want anybody to interfere in their work, to touch their independant. If he weren’t  in love of independent and power, he would’t go straight to the mountains.

Would he stand the difficulties?

 If your way goes to Yoruk encampments, if you go near by a shepherd, if you taste “hosmerim”, if you eat pouch yogurt, curds; you would never want to leave the “duge”s and thin doughs which are hidden in the pouch carried over the shoulder and when you drink cold water lavishly or from “kuyner” smelly decanter.

 Goats and billy goats want a hill with spring, sheeps and rams also want imigration on time. The shepherd who goes to shore in autumn is not happy. On the first day the plateau longing starts. When the winter is over, when the herbs start flowering, when the trees start to get green at the shore; white bearded Yoruk grandfather call together the aged board without losing time. The long lived and experienced Yoruk grandfather who sits on the tent’s seat of honor crosslegged, takes his hand out of the girdle, looks at the aged board one by one and says “white goat, black goat again here comes the summer imigration”.well then , the decision has been made.

Girls, swarthy boys, lads, rascals have been started running around excited.

Mukhtar entrusts the middleman instantly to spread out the news all over the nomad groups, the date of the imigration is told to phratries.

The imigration of an other nomad group at the same time is not considered appropriateby the experience of ancesttors. Migration has also its own rules. The migration preperation is done. When the “deveci” star is seen by the east of the sky, “migration improves on the way” is told.

In front motar belled camels which carry the most valuable ruddy kilims and then “yoz”s, “tulu”s, “maya”s, “kosek”s, “ýrafan”s, mares, colts, “gulin”s, the donkeys which carry stuff, donkeyfoals, “goduk”s, owes, bulls, calves, goats, billy goats, “cepic”s, kids, rams, sheeps, “sisek”s, lambs, in short all the animals which are domesticated and assumed as close friends of Yoruk, are arranged in order one by one. While the mukhtar and aged boards are going in front, the experienced horseman ride around the imigrants.

When yoruk begin to climb the huge mountains which do not give enterance, the imigration becomes harder. Either the horse’s horseshoe falls on the way or the rawhide sandal has been torned, the human being of Yoruk goes on his way saying; “loaded camel does not have a rest”.

While the migration is going on, when the night comes over and the imigrants arrive to the place to stay for the night, the loads on camels, horses and donkeys are taken away from them. It is time for a rest. A fire is burnt instantly and “tarna”s are cooked. The breads in the pouch which are carried over the shoulder have been taken out. The fresh milks are milked and begin to be boiled and the meal is eaten all together. On the other hand fire is increased, “cura”s are played, in front of “cura” imigrants dance and when it is time to sleep, the guards begin their work, the mountains are not auspicious. Especially on migration roads, the beds are laid and imigrants sleep on them, again it is time to go on the road when the “deveci” star is seen above the darkness of night. Because in “Yoruk” normad groups it is believed that the “deveci” star shows the roads.

When it is nearby the plateau, “Yoruk” begins to get the smell of the Rough Juniper. Whish you know how fresh it is, gives presence and trust to human being. When it is said “plateau”, it reminds “ Rough Juniper”. Yoruk looks at the Rough Juniper’s shadow and instantly builds his tent under it. Ofcourse the Rough Juniper does not forget the animals either, it sometimes becomes aim, sometimes it becomes halo and sometimes it becomes an area for lambs to run.

Ancestors have told; “pear makes you cry, poplar make you tinder, willow makes you say, the shadow of Rough Juniper is the main plateau”.

The other name of the Yoruks is “alighter and settler”. It is impossible to give up migration for Yoruks. When they arrive to the plateau it means arrived to the mother land which has been missed. They want to celebrate this happiness and assist each other. They find a wide  place which has green meadow and gurgling water to shelter the imigrants and the other nomad groups. This place is generally called “assist place”,”assist hill”.

The assist place which Oguz Clan and Turkmen Yoruks become together is called; “the place that brave becomes harvest”.                      

The games that Turkish people had played for years is played once again. A show of power, low and unity takes place on the top of the huge mountains. All of the nomad groups’ people attend to the plays. They share the happiness together and they show their skills. In Yoruk’s Culture power can not be shown by  money or ranks are easly get. Power can be shown by wrist, wisdom and courage.

The way Yoruk rides, walks, dances Zeybek, talks, sits,all of these are the symbols of courage. Because the ancestors did in the same way and sons went doing on and this must go on.

On the plays of Yoruk, duns do not generally take place, because they see the power in themselves not in the gun, they bring up themselves.

They start the plays with horse riding. While the man are playing “cirit”, celik comak”, “wrestling”, “cýngýrak”, “an dasi”, “arap”, “yanik”, the women do not stand still, they play “kaya” and “gocek”.

When it is time for melodies and dances; “cura”, “baglama (a pluched instrument with three double strings)”, “saz (a stringed instrument)”, “duduk”, “sipsi”, “kaval ( shepherd’s pipe)”, and “kemence (small three stringed violin)” are played, folk songs are singed.

You can see the players that are playing “slow Zeybek”, “brisk Zeybek”, “Teke Zortlamasi”, “Comlek Broker” in the middle.

Those plays mustn’t be despised by saying “just a game”. If you look carefully you may see the camels’ walking, the jumps of the billy goat from rock to rock, the human being walking under the Rough Juniper, the sheeps that are walking slowly on the meadow than running to the water.

Every play has a meaning and an expression way. And after all these Yoruks spread all over their mother land, group by group. Essentially it is easy to alight a land which has been travelled before.

When life passing by at Yoruk nomad groups, people are close friends, outspoken, full of life, brave, decent, generous, mature, it is the origin of Turkish people, they are respectfull to their elders, loyal to their government, when they pass over the problems, they become happy and thank God, on the cold days “kepenek” is enough for them, they know thw difficulties of life but can not set out of the mountains, they have character and they are addicted to their FREEDOM with love.