Forming the image of Other: Religion in the Geopolitical Maps Around Jungar and Kalmyk Khanates

The first third of XVIII century was very important for Kalmyks and Jungars. The political affairs, where Kalmyks, Russians, Jungars and Manchus as well as the external issues have been communicated, had been closely related with the religious matters, led to intensification of regional political processes. In Kalmyk khanate the Buddhist affairs were under the supervision of the famous Shakur Lama, and it was during his rule when the Islamic issue had had some importance, because it had been closely related with the plan to establish the Kalmyk-Crimean khanate (perhaps, initially the Ottomans’ idea). In Jungaria the situation was even more complex due to the policy of Qing, when the leaders of this khanate were accused in conversion to Islam. The rare word “Thomkar” from Russian archival materials illustrates very special skill of Qing officials - it was “created” for Jungars to define them as being “converted” to Islam. The meaning of all these events allow to suppose, that religion at the time under consideration became the state tool for implementation of the virtual geopolitical maps to change the “usual” image of someone into “necessary” “enemy face”.