The Ideology Of The Ninth And Tenth Centuries 87
Kotskii affirm the existence of concepts, consistent with the overall idea of the
sacral king and the sacral regicide. It can be assumed that similar beliefs were
professed by the majority of the pagan population of Khazaria. This does not
mean that the whole system of values, signified by them, was implemented in
reality. However, accounts of the Khazar dual kingship during the tenth cen-
tury make it clear that the Khazar elite conformed to it. Despite its Judaization,
the Khazar state continued to exist also in the tenth century due to the sup-
port of the pagan population, which was probably the most numerous in the
khaganate. However, “a common ideology does not necessarily mean that
rulers and ruled share identical views [.. .] For a government to function ade-
quately, it seems to be sufficient when there is a certain degree of overlap in
the views on government and policy”.313
1.5 Judaic Influence on the Notions of Power in Khazaria
The way in which the Judaization of the Khazar nobility affected the develop-
ment of the notions of power cannot be traced with certainty. No one knows
what the Khazar dual kingship looked like prior to the conversion to Judaism
(and if it existed at all). Neither is it clear whether the accounts from the Eastern
sources of the tenth century actually reflect the reality in Khazaria. Assuming
that the bek’s power in Khazaria was justified by certain Old Testament motifs
and that the Khazar dual kingship reflected to some extent the king-priest
pair,314 the problem then lies in the vagueness of the Jewish tradition on the
matter. Not accidentally, Christianity, where the concepts of kingship and
priestship are mainly based on Old Testament examples, has yet to reach a
consensus on this. These discrepancies give rise to different views on the two
powers and thus lead to lengthy disputes.315
Muslims use the term “malik” to denote royal, “executive” power, while the
sacral ruler is the Caliph in his role as “the vicar of God”; thus in the Koran
David is referred to as a Caliph.316 While the Arab Caliphs initially held both
powers, during the tenth century and especially after 945 (the fall of Baghdad
to the Buyids) they began to be regarded mainly as sacral figures associated
with spiritual authority (this process initially began during the reign of the
313 Claessen 1988, 24–25.
314 Stepanov 2003a, 221; Petrukhin 2001, 76.
315 On this issue, see Dagron 2006. See also Vachkova 2001; Bakalov 1995; Bozhilov 2008.
316 Dagron 2006, 79.