FROM MADNESS TO SOVEREIGNTY IN THE TURKIC EPIC SEMIOSPHERE: LIMINALITY, POLITICAL THEOLOGY, AND ARCHETYPES OF EPIC LEGITIMACY

Abstract

This article explores the phenomenon of “madness” in Turkic epic thought from mythological, semiotic, and ideological perspectives. Madness is interpreted not as a psychological disorder or social deviation, but as an archetype of transition, transformation, and political legitimation. The primary material of the study is the epic corpus of The Book of Dede Korkut.
The article demonstrates that the heroic model in Turkic epic tradition is dynamic and develops along the typological line of “Madman – Alp (Hero) – Khagan”. This line reflects a gradual ideological transformation from an archaic shamanistic worldview to an Islamized ethical system and ultimately to sovereign political authority. The figure of Deli Dumrul is analyzed as a symbol of metaphysical transition, while Salur Kazan represents the ideal type of epic sovereignty.
The concept of “epic legitimacy” is introduced and analyzed within the framework of political myth. It is argued that legitimacy in Turkic epic thought is grounded not in legal or rational principles, but in mythological, sacred, and symbolic mechanisms. From this perspective, The Book of Dede Korkut functions not merely as a literary text, but as a corpus of political myth encoding the foundational structures of Turkic political consciousness.
The findings suggest that madness constitutes the primordial chaotic energy, the alp embodies its social form, and the khagan represents its political-sacral culmination. Thus, Turkic epic culture is interpreted as a fundamental mythological system underlying sovereignty and state ideology.