Under the bright lights of a concert hall in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan, the air swelled with the ancient rhythms of the steppe, providing Tuohenali Tuxunnali with a sense of familiarity, which calmed him onstage.

His voice then soared from thunderous declarations to tender whispers while his body moved in tandem to illustrate the epic of Manas, with a clenched fist and a sweeping arm. Every gesture illustrated battles and emotions, vividly presenting the ancient stories that have been preserved through oral transmission.

Manas, formed between the 9th and 16th centuries, is one of the three great heroic epics of Chinese ethnic groups, along with King Gesar of the Tibetan people and Jangar of the Mongolian people.

As the man in his 30s delivered the final line of his performance, his golden belt — engraved with a portrait of his great-grandfather, legendary Manas singing master Jusup Mamay — glimmered under the spotlight. A long wave of thunderous applause followed.

Tuohenali's performance in September was part of a cultural event that was held to celebrate the long-standing friendship between China and Kyrgyzstan, a Central Asian country where Manas is also preserved.

The piece he performed — the first excerpt of Manas — not only tells the story of the hero but also weaves in the legends of 40 tribes. After the performance, local Manas experts praised his command of tone and delivery, which they deemed as authentic as that of his predecessors.

"It motivates me to carry forward the epic," says Tuohenali, born and raised in Akqi county, in the Kizilsu Kirgiz autonomous prefecture of the Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region.

Soon after, the Kyrgyz-Turkish Manas University in Bishkek awarded him a gold medal in recognition of his artistry and the epic's shared cultural resonance across borders.

The visit has been one of many events Tuohenali has participated in to share the charm of the epic.

Spanning the myths, folktales, idioms and customs of the Kirgiz ethnic group, Manas is often described as an "encyclopedia" of Kirgiz culture. The full epic consists of eight parts and 18 volumes, containing over 230,000 lines — far longer than Homer's Odyssey.

During a visit to the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region Museum in July 2022, President Xi Jinping watched a live performance of Manas and emphasized that the epic is not only the cultural treasure of the Kirgiz people but also a valuable gem in the treasure chest of Chinese civilization.

He called for greater efforts to preserve, inherit and promote such heritage.

Boasting one of the world's longest epic poems, Manas has carried the spirit, values and history of the Kirgiz people. Originating as early as the 9th century, it tells the story of the warrior Manas, who united scattered tribes to defend their homeland. This narrative of courage, loyalty and justice continues to inspire people today.

Before the founding of the People's Republic of China, Manas existed primarily in oral form, passed down through generations without a written record.

In the 1960s, during a linguistic survey in Xinjiang, researchers from the Xinjiang Federation of Literary and Artistic Circles unexpectedly discovered Jusup, who could recall the entire epic from memory, reciting hundreds of thousands of lines and performing for months. His extraordinary memory and artistry earned him the title "Contemporary Homer".

Through years of recording, transcription and translation by Chinese scholars, the first complete Chinese-language edition of Manas was published in April 2022, based on Jusup's performances.

"The written version provides a solid foundation for diversified interpretation," says Adil Jumaturdi, a researcher at the Institute of Ethnic Literature of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, adding that it has opened new pathways for the epic's performance, study and innovation.

In 2023, the musical drama Manas reignited public enthusiasm across China, drawing younger audiences to explore the ancient tale through modern artistic expression.

Four generations, one mission

"I grew up falling asleep to the rhythm of Manas," Tuohenali recalls.

"My great-grandfather's yurt was my first classroom. I didn't understand the meaning of the words then, but the melody had already taken root in my soul."

His connection to Manas seemed destined from birth. A turning point occurred when, at the age of 12, he completed a performance of a passage for Jusup one evening.

Jusup shook his head gently before he stood up and reenacted the scene, with hands gesturing and eyes ablaze, Tuohenali recalls. "He said, 'A true Manaschi (custodian of this oral tradition) doesn't act. Every gesture, every emotion must come from the heart — you must sing with the soul of Manas itself.'"

That lesson became Tuohenali's guiding principle. From then on, he became immersed in memorizing every verse, reciting for hours each day.

In his great-grandfather's later years, Tuohenali would read aloud to him for more than four hours a day and seek his guidance.

Although Jusup passed away in 2014, his legacy endures in the family's shared sense of cultural duty.

Tuohenali's performances gradually expanded beyond the family yurt to wider audiences. In the winter of 2020, he performed Manas passages about falconry before local master falconers in Akqi, blending oral literature with a living craft that won enthusiastic applause.

Tuohenali's academic path mirrors his artistic journey.

"From undergraduate to doctoral studies, my focus has always been on Manas," he says with a smile.

"My PhD dissertation was entirely about the first excerpt — the same one my great-grandfather sang. It's a heavy topic, but with guidance from Professor Hu Zhenhua, a leading Manas scholar, I successfully completed it. The book is being prepared for publication."

For him, academic research and artistic practice mutually enrich one another.

He says that after more than two decades of performing Manas, each time he sings it, he discovers something new.

"That experience helps me analyze emotion and character with authenticity. And my research, in turn, pushes me creatively. By comparing versions from Kyrgyzstan and beyond, I've found gaps and possibilities — maybe even room for a new-generation hero in future adaptations," he adds.

Today, he can perform continuously for more than eight hours, but endurance is no longer the goal. "What matters most is passing on the spirit my great-grandfather taught me — the soul behind the song," he notes.

In June, after earning his doctorate from Minzu University of China, Tuohenali returned to his hometown of Akqi to nurture young cultural inheritors and dig further into local resources related to Manas.

Now, his days follow what he calls a "three-in-one" rhythm — teaching, promoting and memorizing Manas.

As a Manaschi of the new generation, Tuohenali sees innovation as a vital means of revitalization. "Innovation means letting the epic walk with the times and live in people's daily lives," he explains.

In 2022, he was invited to Inner Mongolia autonomous region's Baarin Right Banner — one of China's three epic protection bases — for a seven-day cultural exchange. There, he trained 11 Mongolian performers who didn't speak the Kirgiz language to sing excerpts from Manas.

"They first translated the verses into Mongolian so they could understand the story," he recalls.

"By the end of the week, all 11 performed five minutes of Manas onstage and sang with confidence."

This cross-ethnic collaboration, he says, perfectly embodies Manas as a shared cultural bridge. "The inheritance and development of Manas reflect the very essence of building a strong sense of community among all ethnic groups in China."

A legacy renewed

Manas is a magnificent heroic epic, and it tells the saga of Manas and his seven generations of descendants who fought for unity and peace, reflecting the Kirgiz people's courage, love for their homeland, and pursuit of harmony, says Manas researcher Adil.

Since the 1960s, China has undertaken systematic research, recording and translation of Manas.

Collaborative efforts by institutions such as the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences and Minzu University of China have established "Manas studies" as a globally recognized field of scholarship.

In 2006, Manas was inscribed on China's first national intangible cultural heritage list. In 2009, it joined UNESCO's Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity.

Through decades of oral transmission, the epic has reached artistic heights — blending narrative, philosophy and ethnography. It vividly depicts the rituals, landscapes, and lives of ancient Kirgiz society, from battles and weddings to hunts and horse races, Adil explains.

With years of experience, Tuohenali has performed before ever-expanding audiences, using his unique approaches, particularly for those who have no prior knowledge of the epic.

"I don't start with background. I sing the most touching parts: the hero's journey, his emotions. Even if listeners don't understand the language, they can feel the pride, love and strength within the melody," he says.

Looking ahead, Tuohenali plans to record all eight parts of his great-grandfather's performance, digitize the materials, and publish new research on 14 shorter stories of the epic that remain untranslated. He also hopes to train a new generation of Manaschi in Akqi and to one day see Manas adapted for film.

"I dream that all eight excerpts of Manas can be brought to the big screen — blending cultures and inspiring the world," he says.