Marife Turkish Journal of Religious Studies

Abstract

The separation between modern and traditional is a gift from modern thought and
was put forward to define non-modern. But both of them are ideal types and there is no
society which is completely separated from tradition. If we define the traditional society
as a society in which custom, folkway and superstition are relatively effective, we can
put Turkmenistan in this category. In this situation, religion takes part in the tradition as
“edep” and “däp-dessur”. The main constituents of Turkmen religious life are rituals
concerning birth and death. The actors who orientate religious life (yaşulu, molla and
işan) are, at the same time, carriers and protectors of tradition. Although it is thought
that there would be no conflict between religion and tradition, in the condition that there
is a conflict, the second one takes precedence.