Nikolai recounts a legend about the origin of dalyn shinj, or traditional weather forecasting by burning a sheep’s shoulder blade: In ancient times, Kalmyks did not have a calendar. Because they could not predict the weather and seasons, nomads suffered a lot from livestock mortality, cold and hunger. It was in such circumstances that one wise man decided to produce a calendar. One day his papers got scattered by the wind. The sheep grazing nearby picked the flying papers one by one and chewed them. What was written on the papers miraculously appeared on the shoulder blades of the sheep. Since then Kalmyks burn a sheep’s shoulder blade to forecast the weather.