68 CHAPTER 1
sacral regicide was not a surprising occurrence in the Early Middle Ages. If
this tradition was abandoned in Bulgaria after the conversion to Christianity
(done on a large scale and as a part of the state policy), can the same be said
about Khazaria and its Judaization, which was not only limited in scope, but
also incomplete? Did the observance of such a custom depend on the views of
the nobility, which was susceptible to external influences, or on the beliefs of
the population whose support (or faith in the sacral powers of the ruler) was
vital for the state?
In this sense, Al-Masudi’s account of the sacral regicide in Khazaria is of
importance. According to him, in times of hunger, war or any other unex-
pected disaster, the nobles along with the “common” people went to the king
and demanded the death of the khagan. The king could agree with them or
he could defend the khagan if he thought that the latter had not committed
a crime or sin that deserved such a punishment.220 I do not see a reason to
doubt Al-Masudi’s words. They illustrate the interaction between the beliefs of
the population and the authority of the bek who had the final say in the deci-
sion of whether or not the disasters that plagued the land were caused by the
khagan’s weakness. This does not mean that the khagan had become a hostage
of the bek’s will, since, again according to Al-Masudi, the latter’s power would
be incomplete without the presence of the khagan,221 and the bek could hardly
have been able to constantly replace his suzerain without consequences.
The sources on Bulgaria make sacral regicide, mainly in the wake of mili-
tary defeats, seem possible; there is also an important account that depicts
the killing (strangulation) of the ruler due to blindness. The strangulation is
an additional argument for the existence of this custom in the Bulgarian state,
since it does not involve spilling of blood, thus preserving the sacral power to
pass on to the next ruler.222 Not coincidentally, the initiatory rite of the khagan
includes a near-strangulation precisely at the moment when he determines
the duration not only of his reign, but also of his life. This is why hanging (self-
hanging) is viewed as “identical to climbing the tree”,223 or the cosmic axis that
enables the connection between the world of the humans and the world of
220 Dunlop 1967, 208. An interesting, albeit not entirely accurate, parallel can be found in the
ancient Chinese chronicles, according to which “in Corea the blame was laid on the king
whenever too much or too little rain fell and the crops did not ripen. Some said that he
must be deposed, others that he must be slain” (Frazer 2006, 85).
221 Dunlop 1967, 208.
222 Beshevliev 1939, 26–27; Stepanov 1999a, 142–143.
223 Kaloianov, 2003, 95. Not coincidentally, in Kradin’s opinion the would-be ruler of the
Huns acquired his sacred qualities after the entronization (Kradin 2001a, 141).