Cheremshanka (; , ''Kalbalu'') is a rural locality (a selo) in Souzginskoye Rural Settlement of

Mayminsky District Mayminsky District (; , ''Mayma aymak'') is an administrativeLaw #101-RZ and municipalLaw #10-RZ district (raion), one of the ten in the Altai Republic, Russia. It is located in the northwest of the republic. The area of the district is . Its adm ...

, the

Altai Republic The Altai Republic, also known as the Gorno-Altai Republic, is a republic of Russia located in southern Siberia. The republic borders Kemerovo Oblast to the north, Khakassia to the northeast, Tuva to the east, Altai Krai to the west, as well ...

Russia Russia, or the Russian Federation, is a country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia. It is the list of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the world, and extends across Time in Russia, eleven time zones, sharing Borders ...

. The population was 445 as of 2016.

Geography

Cheremshanka is located on the

Katun River The Katun ( ; ) is a river in the Altai Republic and the Altai Krai of Russia. It forms the Ob as it joins the Biya some southwest of Biysk.

, 22 km south of

Mayma Mayma (, ) is a rural locality (a selo) and the administrative center of Mayminsky District of the Altai Republic, Russia Russia, or the Russian Federation, is a country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia. It is the list of countries ...

(the district's administrative centre) by road. There are 8 streets. Turbaza "Yunost" is the nearest rural locality. Cheremshanka is located near Mount Sukhaya and Tiberkul Lake.

Culture

Cheremshanka is home to

Old Believers Old Believers or Old Ritualists ( Russian: староверы, ''starovery'' or старообрядцы, ''staroobryadtsy'') is the common term for several religious groups, which maintain the old liturgical and ritual practices of the Russian ...

and to the followers of Vissarion, who was born Sergei Torop and is believed to be the reborn Jesus Christ. He is the founder of the Church of the Last Testament. Cheremshanka is one of several eco-villages inhabited by the followers of Vissarion near Tiberkul Lake. The villages comprise the Abode of Dawn settlement and include the villages of Gulyaevka, Petropavlovka, Tyukhtyat, and Zharovsk. Local legend states that Tiberkul Lake marks the way to the mythical Belovodye.

Religion

The Christian community believes in

reincarnation Reincarnation, also known as rebirth or transmigration, is the Philosophy, philosophical or Religion, religious concept that the non-physical essence of a living being begins a new lifespan (disambiguation), lifespan in a different physical ...

veganism Veganism is the practice of abstaining from the use of animal products and the consumption of animal source foods, and an associated philosophy that rejects the commodity status of animals. A person who practices veganism is known as a vega ...

, harmonious human relations, and predicting the end of the world. The Church of the Last Testament follows many aspects of the

Russian Orthodox Church The Russian Orthodox Church (ROC; ;), also officially known as the Moscow Patriarchate (), is an autocephaly, autocephalous Eastern Orthodox Church, Eastern Orthodox Christian church. It has 194 dioceses inside Russia. The Primate (bishop), p ...

in addition to aspects of

Buddhism Buddhism, also known as Buddhadharma and Dharmavinaya, is an Indian religion and List of philosophies, philosophical tradition based on Pre-sectarian Buddhism, teachings attributed to the Buddha, a wandering teacher who lived in the 6th or ...

and

Taoism Taoism or Daoism (, ) is a diverse philosophical and religious tradition indigenous to China, emphasizing harmony with the Tao ( zh, p=dào, w=tao4). With a range of meaning in Chinese philosophy, translations of Tao include 'way', 'road', ' ...

Cuisine

Since the 20th century, the Christian community has been all-vegetarian, with honey being their only animal-derived food source. The residents of Cheremshanka eat locally-grown food staples that include rye, wheat, buckwheat, millet, rice, peas, lentils, and soybeans. These staples are supplemented with potatoes, carrots, beets, radishes, cabbage, onions, squash, apples, wild berries, dried fruits, nettle, dandelions, mushrooms, and Siberian pine nuts.

References

Rural localities in Mayminsky District {{AltaiRepublic-geo-stub