Cultural practices of aesthetic exploration and preservation of epic heritage

The article is devoted to characterizing the features of the epic culture of the Sakha people at the beginning of the 17th - early 21st centuries. It is noted that in the twentieth century the tradition practically begins to disappear together with the transformation of the traditional way of life of the Sakha. However, modern mass culture allows today to preserve and broadcast artistic epic traditions in mass festivals. The article analyzes the epic festivals of the Republic of Sakha (Yakutia) of the beginning of the XXI century: «Children of the Olonkho Land», «Munha Olonhoto», «Glory, Great Olonkho!». Such traditional epic festivals in the republic are a platform for the preservation and revival of spiritual values among the younger generation. In an artificially created epic environment during festivals, natural mastering of the epic tradition and olonkho knowledge takes place. The analysis allows to present festival movements as a modern cultural practice of aesthetic exploration and preservation of the epic heritage of Sakha.