Reflection of Kazakh society in Abay’s «Words of edification»

Abstract

The article deals with the depiction of Kazakh society in Abai’s “Words of Edification”. Of course, the legacy of the great Abai is the spiritual landmark of the Kazakh people. “Words of Edification” is one of the priceless works of the steppe genius. If the main object of the author’s attention is a person, then the goal of Abai’s reflections is the education of the individual.

In his works, Abai proclaimed: “Do not be the son of only your father, be the son of the people.” In answering the question of how to make a person's life meaningful after birth, he developed his humanistic programme.

What can we get from a comparison of the morals of the Kazakh people, who were subjected to Abai in their time, and the morals encountered today? Or are there innate character traits that can be corrected? Why did Abai exclaim: “If I had power, I would cut out the tongue of anyone who claims that a person is incorrigible”?! What can be done to correct a person's temperament? The main goal of this work is to find answers to the questions posed and prove the relevance of Abai’s “Words of Edification” in modern conditions. To achieve this goal, the key points of the thinker’s thoughts were subjected to comprehensive analysis.