Otgontenger mountain. The name means “youngest sky.”
Photo by L. Elbegzaya.
An ovoo (rock pile shrine) with a metal soyombo symbol (national symbol of Mongolia, which appears on the flag, and in this blog’s icon). Description of the meaning of the soyombo from wikipedia:
Fire is a general symbol of eternal growth, wealth, and success. The three tongues of the flame represent the past, present, and future.
Sun and moon symbolise that the Mongolian nation will exist for eternity as the eternal blue sky.
The two triangles allude to the point of an arrow or spear. They point downward to announce the defeat of interior and exterior enemies.
The two horizontal rectangles give stability to the round shape. The rectangular shape represents the honesty and justice of the people of Mongolia, whether they stand at the top or at the bottom of society.
The arga-bilge (Yin-yang) symbol illustrates the mutual complement of man and woman. In socialist times, it was alternatively interpreted as two fish symbolizing vigilance, because fish never close their eyes.
The two vertical rectangles can be interpreted as the walls of a fort. They represent unity and strength, relating to a Mongolian proverb: “The friendship of two is stronger than stone walls.”
Photo by Susan Fox.
Mongolia doesn’t really seem like a waterfall sort of place, but there are some!This is Orkhon falls. You can tell it is in Mongolia by the small ovoo shrine of rocks and blue offering scarves up at the top. Photo by Susan Fox.
The Nomadic Report show at the ARKO Art Center in Seoul shows art made by South Korean artists who traveled to Mongolia and Antarctica for inspiration. The gallery show runs until March 23.
I love the photos of the ”Moving Ovoo Meditation” performance in the Gobi desert, which looks a lot like an actual ovoo (bottom picture - an ovoo is a pile of stones used to mark a mountain pass or other holy area. When traveling past an ovoo, it is traditional to circle the pile three times and add a stone, milk, or vodka. The ceremonial blue scarves represent the sky. Photograph by Qfl247)
