Another place of public recognition of the works by the great Turkmen poet, Magtymguly Fraghi, has appeared on the map of the Russian Federation. A solemn ceremony of unveiling a bust of the classic of world literature took place in the atrium of the All-Russian State Library for Foreign Literature named after M. I. Rudomino in Moscow. This day became a kind of exclamation mark in the sequence of events of the year on the Russian soil dedicated to the 300th anniversary of the birth of the genius of Turkmen poetry that were held with the organizational support of the Turkmen diplomatic mission.
It is deeply symbolic that no other territory outside Turkmenistan can boast as many monuments to Magtymguly Fraghi as the Russian Federation. Back in 2008, the first monument to Magtymguly in Russia was erected in the village of Edelbay in Blagodarensk district of Stavropol region. The bronze bust of the poet was gifted by the Turkmen government to the Turkmen people of Stavropol. A large Turkmen diaspora lives in five districts of this region – Ipatovsk, Turkmen, Blagodarnensk, Arzgirsk and Neftekumsk. In total, they account for over 15 thousand people in 11 municipalities. The Stavropol Turkmens represent a single ethnic community who are united by the native Turkmen language.
In May 2009, a grand opening ceremony of another monument to the 18th century Turkmen poet and thinker took place in the center of Astrakhan. The majestic monument donated to Astrakhan by the government of Turkmenistan was erected in the park in front of the local university. The fact is that the southern Russian region is also densely populated by the Turkmen diaspora – descendants of the Turkmens who moved there during the time of Peter the Great. There is a legendary historical version according to which Magtymguly Fraghi personally visited the Astrakhan lands, including a settlement, now known as Funtovo.
In 2018, a new school for 190 students named after Magtymguly Fraghi opened in the village of Funtovo-1 in Privolzhsk district of Astrakhan region. It was erected by Turkmen builders using funds from Turkmenistan. A large bust of the poet was installed in the school lobby. The action was designed as a festive gift from Turkmenistan for the 300th anniversary of Astrakhan region, as evidenced by a special plaque on the facade of the building.
And now Magtymguly Fraghi has got the “Moscow residence” in the very heart of Russia. The atrium of the capital’s temple of foreign literature – the M. I. Rudomino State Library – features a large number of busts of great writers and thinkers. Now, the image of Turkmenistan’s most revered poet and philosopher has taken a worthy place among the world’s geniuses of creative thinking. A big delegation comprising representatives of the Ministry of Culture of Turkmenistan, singers, poets and musicians arrived in Moscow from Ashgabat to participate in the ceremony. Among the guests of the celebration was Ashgabat’s sculptor Zakhid Babayev, who sculpted the image of Magtymguly for the new monument on the Moscow soil.
Director General of the State Library of Foreign Literature Pavel Kuzmin and Head of the Turkmen diplomatic mission in Russia Esen Aydogdyev addressed the Russian admirers of the Turkmen poetic genius with welcoming remarks. They noted the indisputable fact that the literary heritage of Magtymguly Fraghi remains a fundamental element of the national identity of the Turkmen people.
Representatives of the Ministry of Culture of the Russian Federation, foreign diplomats accredited in Moscow, Russian and Turkmen writers, poets and literary scholars who spoke at the ceremony noted that Magtymguly Fraghi changed the Turkmen poetic language, bringing it closer to the folk speech. His works marked the beginning of an era that experts consider part of a unique period in the history of the Central Asian culture, which is call the “golden age” of Turkmen literature. Magtymguly’s works are known throughout the world and still relevant because they vividly present the enduring universal values – love for the Motherland, spirituality, humanism, peacefulness, call for creation, friendship and brotherhood. Magtymguly Fraghi’s poems have been translated into dozens of world languages.
History has taught Turkmens as a people to value peace, harmony and good neighbourliness above all else. It is these concepts that Magtymguly bequeathed to his descendants as a moral standard. This testament has been preserved in Turkmenistan and carried to the present day. The significance of Magtymguly’s philosophical and political heritage has outgrown purely national boundaries and become a common human heritage. And the new monument to the poet on the Moscow soil is convincing evidence of this.
It happened that on the day of the opening of the monument to Magtymguly in Moscow the Turkmen diplomatic mission hosted a ceremonial reception in the Russian capital on the occasion of the thirty-third anniversary of Turkmenistan’s independence. This evening, the theme of the international ideological heritage of the great Magtymguly received a new, especially solemn resonance.
Deputies of the Federation Council and the State Duma of the Federal Assembly of the Russian Federation, senior officials of the Russian Foreign Ministry, foreign diplomats accredited in Moscow, representatives of the business circles of the two countries, heads of public associations, figures of science and culture, journalists and representatives of the Turkmen diasporas from the regions of the Russian Federation gathered that evening to congratulate the hosts of the ceremony on the significant date.
Addressing the audience, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Turkmenistan to the Russian Federation Esen Aydogdyev noted that all the years of cooperation between Turkmenistan and Russia have been marked by the high level interstate dialogue and invariably characterized by mutual support and trust in the international arena. Speaking about the development of bilateral relations, the Ambassador noted that the peoples of Turkmenistan and Russia are linked by centuries-old historical ties, traditions of equal, good-neighborly relations. According to the head of the Turkmen diplomatic mission in the Russian Federation, the year marked by large-scale celebrations of the 300th birth anniversary of the great Turkmen poet and philosopher Magtymguly Fraghi has become a landmark year on the Russian soil, where they pay tribute to the greatness of the creative and philosophical heritage of the genius of Turkmen literature.
Deputy Foreign Minister of the Russian Federation Andrei Rudenko warmly congratulated the participants of the celebration, noting the invariably fruitful nature of bilateral ties in the political, trade, economic, cultural and humanitarian spheres. Congratulations and best wishes to the President and the people of Turkmenistan were conveyed by the heads of foreign diplomatic missions accredited in Moscow, representatives of the Russian scientific and cultural intelligentsia.
According to the good tradition, all the guests were treated to exquisite dishes of the authentic Turkmen cuisine. The atmosphere of traditional Turkmen hospitality and cordiality was supported by the performances of the leading masters of Turkmen pop music who came to Moscow as part of a large delegation of artists. The guests of the evening listened to popular Turkmen and Russian songs performed by Turkmen artists.