One can only speak specifically about the peculiarities of Russian culture, comparing it with the cultures of well-known neighbors in the near and far abroad.

The features of Russian culture include:

wealth of cultural heritage,

· Connection with Orthodox views and values. Hence - the craving for catholicity, respect for the truth, cultivating gratitude and love for others, while feeling one's sinfulness, a negative attitude towards faith in one's own strength, a negative attitude towards money and wealth, a tendency to rely on the will of God.

· Constant search for spirituality and the meaning of life, with the features of romanticism. The exaltation of Man in general and the belittling of a particular person in particular.

Part of Russian culture is the Russian mentality, which is characterized by:

a certain negativity. In this regard, the majority of Russians more often see themselves as shortcomings, rather than virtues.

・Stay out of the way

Protest attitude to punishment. See Russian mentality

Laziness and love for freebies

Conclusion

So, the researchers did not agree on a single concept of "civilization" and at the present time there are quite a few points of view. For example, there are about three hundred definitions of the concept of culture, and the same with the concept of “civilization”. Each point of view, in its own way, in any aspect of the discussed problem of law. Still, every nation has its own culture, and the researchers of this nation give an assessment of civilization, following the laws of their culture. But still, in many dictionaries such a definition of the concept of "civilization" is given.
Civilization is an external world in relation to a person, affecting him and opposing him, while culture is an internal property of a person, revealing the measure of his development and being a symbol of his spiritual wealth.
As for Russia's attitude to Western or Eastern civilizational types, we can say that Russia does not fully fit into either Western or Eastern types of development. Russia has a huge territory and therefore Russia is a historically formed conglomerate of peoples belonging to different types of development, united by a powerful, centralized state with a Great Russian core. Russia, geopolitically located between two powerful centers of civilizational influence - the East and the West, includes peoples developing both in the Western and Eastern versions.
As a result, since its inception, Russia has absorbed a huge religious and cultural diversity of the peoples who lived on its territory and adjacent to it. For a long time, the development of Russia was influenced by states of both Western and civilizational types. Some scientists distinguish a separate Russian type of civilization. So it is impossible to say exactly which civilizational type Russia belongs to.
The eastern specificity of Russian culture is the result of its history. Russian culture, in contrast to Western European culture, was formed along different paths: it grew on land where the Roman legions did not pass, where the Gothic of Catholic cathedrals did not rise, where the fires of the Inquisition did not burn, there was neither the Renaissance, nor a wave of religious Protestantism, nor an era constitutional liberalism. Its development was connected with the events of another historical series - with the repulse of the raids of Asian nomads, the adoption of Eastern, Byzantine Orthodox Christianity, the liberation from the Mongol conquerors, the unification of the scattered Russian principalities into a single autocratic-despotic state and the spread of its power farther to the East.

Literature

1. Erasov B.S. Culture, religion and civilization in the East - M., 1990;

2. Erygin A.N. East - West - Russia: the formation of a civilizational approach in historical research - Rostov n / D., 1993;

3. Konrad N.N. West and East - M., 1972;

4. Sorokin P.A. Human. Civilization. Society. - M., 1992;

5. Philosophy: Textbook for High Schools / ed. V. P. Kokhanovsky - Rostov n / D .: Phoenix, 1996.

6. Bobrov V.V. Introduction to Philosophy: Textbook - M.: INFRA-M; Novorossiysk: Siberian Agreement, 2000.

No wonder the national culture of Russia has always been considered the soul of the people. Its main feature and attractiveness lies in its amazing diversity, originality and uniqueness. Each nation, developing its own culture and traditions, tries to avoid imitation and humiliated copying. That is why their own forms of organizing cultural life are being created. In all known typologies, it is customary to consider Russia separately. The culture of this country is truly unique, it cannot be compared with either Western or Eastern directions. Of course, all peoples are different, but it is the understanding of the importance of internal development that unites people all over the planet.

The importance of the culture of different nationalities in the world

Each country and each nation is important in its own way for the modern world. This is especially true of history and its preservation. Today it is quite difficult to talk about how important culture is for modernity, because the scale of values ​​has changed significantly in recent years. National culture has increasingly become perceived somewhat ambiguously. This is due to the development of two global trends in the culture of different countries and peoples, which increasingly began to develop conflicts against this background.

The first trend is directly related to some borrowing of cultural values. All this happens spontaneously and almost uncontrollably. But it comes with incredible consequences. For example, the loss of color and originality of each individual state, and hence its people. On the other hand, more and more countries began to appear that call on their citizens to revive their own culture and spiritual values. But one of the most important issues is the Russian national culture, which in recent decades has begun to fade against the backdrop of a multinational country.

Formation of the Russian national character

Perhaps many have heard about the breadth of the Russian soul and the strength of the Russian character. The national culture of Russia largely depends on these two factors. At one time, V.O. Klyuchevsky expressed the theory that the formation of the Russian character largely depended on the geographical location of the country.

He argued that the landscape of the Russian soul corresponds to the landscape of the Russian land. It is also not surprising that for the majority of citizens living in a modern state, the concept of "Rus" carries a deep meaning.

Household life also reflects the remnants of the past. After all, if we talk about the culture, traditions and character of the Russian people, it can be noted that it was formed a very long time ago. Simplicity of life has always been a hallmark of the Russian people. And this is primarily due to the fact that the Slavs suffered a lot of fires that destroyed Russian villages and cities. The result was not only the lack of rootedness of the Russian people, but also a simplified attitude to everyday life. Although it was precisely those trials that fell to the lot of the Slavs that allowed this nation to form a specific national character that cannot be unambiguously assessed.

The main features of the national character of the nation

Russian national culture (namely, its formation) has always largely depended on the nature of the people who lived on the territory of the state.

One of the most powerful traits is kindness. It was this quality that manifested itself in a wide variety of gestures, which even today can be safely observed among the majority of the inhabitants of Russia. For example, hospitality and cordiality. After all, no nation welcomes guests the way they do in our country. And such a combination of qualities as mercy, compassion, empathy, cordiality, generosity, simplicity and tolerance is rarely found in other nationalities.

Another important trait in the character of Russians is the love of work. And although many historians and analysts note that as far as the Russian people were hardworking and capable, they were just as lazy and lack of initiative, one cannot fail to note the efficiency and endurance of this nation. In general, the character of a Russian person is multifaceted and has not yet been fully studied. What, in fact, is the very highlight.

Values ​​of Russian culture

In order to understand the soul of a person, it is necessary to know its history. The national culture of our people was formed in the conditions of the peasant community. Therefore, it is not surprising that in Russian culture the interests of the collective have always been higher than personal interests. After all, Russia has lived a significant part of its history in the conditions of hostilities. That is why among the values ​​of Russian culture they always note extraordinary devotion and love for their homeland.

The concept of justice in all ages was considered the first thing in Russia. This has come from the very moment when every peasant was allocated an equal piece of land. And if in most nations such a value was considered instrumental, then in Russia it acquired a targeted character.

Many Russian sayings say that our ancestors had a very simplified attitude to work, for example: "Work is not a wolf, it will not run away into the forest." This does not mean that the work was not appreciated. But the concept of "wealth" and the very desire to get rich have never been present in a Russian person to the extent that is attributed to him today. And if we talk about the values ​​of Russian culture, then all of it was reflected in the character and soul of a Russian person, first of all.

Language and literature as values ​​of the people

Whatever you say, the greatest value of every nation is its language. The language in which he speaks, writes and thinks, which allows him to express his own thoughts and opinions. No wonder there is a saying among Russians: "Language is the people."

Ancient Russian literature arose at the time of the adoption of Christianity. At that moment there were two directions of literary art - this is world history and the meaning of human life. Books were written very slowly, and the main readers were members of the upper classes. But this did not prevent Russian literature from developing to world heights over time.

And at one time Russia was one of the most reading countries in the world! Language and national culture are very closely related. After all, it was through the scriptures that experience and accumulated knowledge were transmitted in ancient times. In historical terms, Russian culture dominates, but the national culture of the peoples living in the vastness of our country also played a role in its development. That is why most of the works are closely intertwined with the historical events of other countries.

Painting as a part of Russian culture

Just like literature, painting occupies a very significant place in the development of the cultural life of Russia.

The first thing that developed as the art of painting in the territories of Russia was icon painting. Which once again proves the high level of spirituality of this people. And at the turn of the XIV-XV centuries, icon painting reaches its apogee.

Over time, the desire to draw arises among the common people. As mentioned earlier, the beauties in which the Russians lived had a great influence on the formation of cultural values. Perhaps that is why a huge number of paintings by Russian artists were dedicated to the expanses of their native land. Through their canvases, the masters conveyed not only the beauty of the surrounding world, but also the personal state of the soul, and sometimes the state of the soul of an entire people. Often, a double secret meaning was laid in the paintings, which was revealed only to those for whom the work was intended. The art school of Russia is recognized by the whole world and takes pride of place on the world podium.

Religion of the multinational people of Russia

National culture largely depends on what gods the nation worships. As you know, Russia is a multinational country, in which about 130 nations and nationalities live, each of which has its own religion, culture, language and way of life. That is why religion in Russia does not have a single name.

To date, there are 5 leading directions in the territory of the Russian Federation: Orthodox Christianity, Islam, Buddhism, as well as Catholicism and Protestantism. Each of these religions has a place in a vast country. Although, if we talk about the formation of the national culture of Russia, then from ancient times the Russians belonged exclusively to the Orthodox Church.

At one time, the great Russian principality, in order to strengthen relations with Byzantium, decided to adopt Orthodoxy throughout Russia. Church leaders in those days were without fail included in the inner circle of the king. Hence the notion that the church is always connected with state power. In ancient times, even before the baptism of Russia, the ancestors of the Russian people worshiped the Vedic gods. The religion of the ancient Slavs was the deification of the forces of nature. Of course, there were not only good characters, but mostly the gods of the ancient representatives of the nation were mysterious, beautiful and kind.

Cuisine and traditions in Russia

National culture and traditions are practically inseparable concepts. After all, all this is, first of all, the memory of the people, something that keeps a person from depersonalization.

As mentioned earlier, Russians have always been famous for their hospitality. That is why Russian cuisine is so varied and delicious. Although a few centuries ago, the Slavs ate fairly simple and monotonous food. In addition, it was customary for the population of this country to fast. Therefore, the table was basically always divided into modest and lean.

Most often, meat, dairy, flour and vegetable products could be found on the table. Although many dishes in Russian culture have an exclusively ritual meaning. Traditions are tightly intertwined with the kitchen life in Russia. Some dishes are considered ritual and are prepared only on certain holidays. For example, kurniki are always prepared for a wedding, kutya is cooked for Christmas, pancakes are baked for Shrovetide, and Easter cakes and Easter cakes are cooked for Easter. Of course, the residence of other peoples on the territory of Russia was reflected in its cuisine. Therefore, in many dishes you can observe unusual recipes, as well as the presence of by no means Slavic products. And it’s not for nothing that they say: “We are what we eat.” Russian cuisine is very simple and healthy!

Modernity

Many people try to judge how much the national culture of our state has been preserved today.

Russia is indeed a unique country. She has a rich history and a difficult fate. That is why the culture of this country is sometimes tender and touching, and sometimes tough and warlike. If we consider the ancient Slavs, then it was here that the real national culture was born. Preserving it, more than ever, is important today! Over the past few centuries, Russia has learned not only to live with other nations in peace and friendship, but also to accept the religion of other nations. Until today, most of the ancient traditions that Russians honor with pleasure have been preserved. Many features of the ancient Slavs are present today among the worthy descendants of their people. Russia is a great country that treats its culture extremely sparingly!

2.1. "East-West"

When it comes to Russia, one can hear a wide variety of opinions about its culture, about its past, present and future, about the features and characteristics of the Russian people, but everyone almost always agrees on one thing - both foreigners and Russians themselves. This is the mystery and inexplicability of Russia and the Russian soul.

True, the culture of any nation contains some paradoxes that are difficult to explain. The culture of the Eastern peoples is especially difficult for people of Western culture to understand. And Russia is a country lying at the junction of the West and the East. N. A. Berdyaev wrote: “The Russian people are not a purely European and not a purely Asian people. Russia is a whole part of the world, a vast East-West, it connects two worlds.

Undoubtedly, the geographical position of Russia, born in Eastern Europe and covering the expanses of sparsely populated North Asia, left a special imprint on its culture. However, the difference between Russian culture and Western European culture is not due to the "oriental spirit", which is allegedly "naturally" characteristic of the Russian people. The specificity of Russian culture is the result of its history. Russian culture, in contrast to Western European culture, was formed in other ways - it grew on a land where the Roman legions did not pass, where the Gothic of Catholic cathedrals did not rise, the fires of the Inquisition did not burn, there was neither the Renaissance, nor a wave of religious Protestantism, nor an era constitutional liberalism. Its development was connected with the events of another historical series - with the repulse of the raids of Asian nomads, the adoption of Eastern, Byzantine Orthodox Christianity, the liberation from the Mongol conquerors, the unification of the scattered Russian principalities into a single autocratic-despotic state and the spread of its power farther to the East.

2.2. Christian Orthodox beginning of culture

The Orthodox Church played an important role in the development of the self-consciousness of the Russian people. By accepting Christianity, Prince Vladimir made a great historical choice that determined the fate of the Russian state. This choice, firstly, was a step towards the West, towards a civilization of the European type. He separated Russia from the East and from those variants of cultural evolution that are associated with Buddhism, Hinduism, and Islam. Secondly, the choice of Christianity in its Orthodox, Greco-Byzantine form allowed Russia to remain independent of the spiritual and religious authority of the Roman papacy. Thanks to this, Russia found itself in confrontation not only with the East Asian world, but also with Catholic Western Europe. Orthodoxy was a spiritual force that held the Russian principalities together and pushed the Russian people to unite in order to withstand pressure from both the East and the West. If Kievan Rus had not adopted Orthodoxy, Russia would hardly have been able to emerge as a large independent state, and it is difficult to imagine what would be happening now on its territory.

The baptism of Russia in 988 brought along with Orthodoxy the rich cultural traditions of Byzantium, which was then the leader of European civilization. Slavic writing began to spread in Russia, books, monastic libraries, schools at monasteries appeared, historical “chronicle writing” arose, church architecture and temple painting flourished, the first legal code was adopted - “Russian Truth”. The era of the development of enlightenment and learning began. Russia quickly advanced to a place of honor among the most developed countries in Europe. Under Yaroslav the Wise, Kyiv became one of the richest and most beautiful cities in Europe; "a rival of Constantinople" called him one of the Western guests. The impact of Christianity on popular morality was especially important. The Church waged a struggle against the remnants of pagan life - polygamy, blood feud, barbaric treatment of slaves. She opposed rudeness and cruelty, introduced the concept of sin into the minds of people, preached piety, humanity, mercy to the weak and defenseless.

At the same time, ancient paganism did not disappear without a trace. Traces of it have been preserved in Russian culture to this day; some elements of paganism also entered Russian Christianity.

2.3. Byzantine-imperial ambitions and messianic consciousness

The Mongol invasion interrupted the cultural upsurge of Russia. His traces are deeply embedded in the memory of the Russian people. And not so much because he adopted some elements of the culture of the conquerors. Its direct impact on the culture of Russia was small and affected mainly only in the sphere of the language, which absorbed a certain number of Turkic words, and in individual details of everyday life. However, the invasion was a harsh historical lesson that showed the people the danger of internal strife and the need for a unified, strong state power, and the successful completion of the fight against the enemy gave him a sense of his own strength and national pride. This lesson aroused and developed the feelings and moods that permeated the folklore, literature, art of the Russian people - patriotism, a distrustful attitude towards foreign states, love for the “father tsar”, in whom the peasant masses saw their protector. The "Eastern" despotism of the tsarist autocracy is to a certain extent a legacy of the Mongol yoke.

The political rise of Russia, interrupted by the Mongol invasion, resumed with the rise and development of the Moscow principality. The fall of Byzantium in the 15th century made it the only independent Orthodox state in the world. The Grand Duke of Moscow Ivan III began to be considered, as it were, the successor of the Byzantine emperor, who was revered as the head of the entire Orthodox East, and called "king" (this word comes from the Roman caesar - Caesar or Caesar). And at the turn of the 15th-16th centuries, the monk Philotheus put forward a proud theory declaring Moscow the "third Rome": "Like two Romes have fallen, the third stands, and the fourth will not be, - already ... the Christian kingdom will not remain otherwise."

The national-state ideology formulated at the end of the 15th century determined the course of Russian history for many centuries to come. On the one hand, this ideology inspired the Byzantine-imperial ambitions and conquest aspirations of Russian tsarism. The Russian state began to expand and turned into a powerful empire. And on the other hand, under the influence of this ideology, all forces were spent on mastering, protecting and developing vast territories and on ensuring economic progress, on the cultural development of the people, they no longer remained. According to the Russian historian V. O. Klyuchevsky, "the state was plump, the people were sickly."

The integrity of the vast country, which annexed territories with a diverse ethnic composition of the population, rested on centralized autocratic power, and not on the unity of culture. This determined the special significance of statehood in the history of Russia and the weak attention of the authorities to the development of culture.

The imperial ideology for five centuries is gaining a strong position in Russian culture. It penetrates the minds of aristocrats and ordinary peasants, gaining a foothold as a cultural tradition glorifying "Orthodoxy, autocracy, nationality." On its soil, a messianic consciousness develops - an idea of ​​the great destiny of Russia given by God in the history of mankind. In its extreme forms, messianism reaches arrogant nationalism: it contemptuously condemns the “decaying” West with its lack of spirituality and the East with its passivity and backwardness, proclaiming the superiority of the Orthodox Russian “spirit” and its coming triumph over the dark forces of world evil. A clear echo of messianism was also heard in Soviet propaganda, which portrayed the image of Russia marching "at the head of all progressive mankind" and fighting "the dark forces of reaction" for the "victory of communism throughout the world."

In the Slavophilism of the 19th century, attempts were made to develop messianic ideas in a moral and humanistic vein. Slavophile journalism loftily spoke of the Russian people as a God-chosen bearer of a special spiritual power, called upon to play a unifying role in building the future world community of peoples. In line with these ideas, heated debates arose around the "Russian idea", that is, around the question of what is the purpose and meaning of the existence of the Russian people.

These disputes continue to this day - mainly in connection with the desire to determine a special, "third" (not Western and not Eastern, not socialist and not capitalist) path of Russia's development.

“What did the Creator intend for Russia?” - this is how Berdyaev formulated the question of the Russian idea. This formulation of the question, however, carries in the subtext the idea of ​​the existence of some specific task, for the solution of which God has chosen Russia and which no other people can solve. Similar ideas about God's chosen people were put forward before, but now interest in them has been lost. The lesson of the history of the 20th century was not in vain: the “German idea” that Hitler managed to seduce his people cost dearly to Germany and all mankind. Now the Germans, the French or the Swedes are unlikely to be heatedly arguing about why God created their countries. In the end, the “idea” of all states is the same: to create conditions for a prosperous and happy life for their citizens (and for all citizens, regardless of their ethnic origin). And there is no need to invent any other "national idea" that assigns a special historical mission to any people.

2.4. From cultural isolation to integration with European culture

After the collapse of the Byzantine Empire, the young Russian Orthodox state found itself surrounded on all sides by countries with a different faith. In these historical conditions, Orthodoxy acts as an ideological force that contributes to the rallying of the Russian principalities and the strengthening of a single centralized state. The concepts of "Orthodox" and "Russian" are identified. Any war with another country becomes a war with the Gentiles, a war for shrines - "for the faith, the king and the fatherland."

But at the same time, Orthodoxy also becomes an isolating factor, separating the Russian people from other peoples of Europe and Asia. His opposition to Catholicism hinders cultural contacts with Western Europe. All cultural trends coming from there are presented as something “spoiled”, not corresponding to the true faith, and therefore they are condemned and rejected. This leaves Russia aside from the development of Western European culture. And alone, and even after the cultural destruction caused by the Mongol conquest, it cannot rise again to the level reached by that time by Western culture. Thus the cultural gap with the West turns into the growing cultural backwardness of medieval Russia.

This backwardness is also facilitated by the commitment inherent in Orthodoxy to the preservation of traditions, the rejection of the “new learning”. In Catholic Europe of the late Middle Ages, there was a rapid flowering of theological and scholastic thought, the network of universities was rapidly expanding, and the formation of experimental natural science began. Such innovations were taken as evidence that the Catholic Church was increasingly falling into heresy. The Russian clergy of the Moscow period was dominated by "honest conservatism and almost fanaticism of schoollessness"1. When Peter I introduced compulsory education for candidates for the priesthood, many priests hid their children and brought them to schools in shackles.

Thus, in the Muscovite period of Russian history, neither the state nor the church were concerned about the development of education and science. Society as a whole - and the boyars, and the small landed nobility, and the merchants, and the peasantry - did not like learning too much. By the end of the 17th century, the cultural, scientific, and technical backwardness of Russia turned into a serious problem, the solution of which depended on which path Russia would take: east or west. Peter I made a choice and turned Russia to the second path. Without this, Russia would most likely have suffered the fate of India or China.

As V. O. Klyuchevsky emphasizes, Peter the Great aimed not only to borrow the ready-made fruits of someone else’s knowledge and experience, but “to transplant the very roots onto their own soil so that they would produce their fruits at home”1. The development of Russian culture after him went exactly in this vein. Its soil was able to absorb plants from any land and grow a rich harvest.

The openness of Russian culture, readiness for dialogue, the ability to absorb and develop the achievements of other cultures - this has become a characteristic feature of it since Peter the Great.

Having cut through the “window to Europe”, Peter I initiated the introduction of Russia to world culture. Russia is on the move. The sparks born from the collision of Russian culture with the culture of Western Europe awakened its rich potentialities. Just as a talented person, perceiving the thoughts of other people, develops them in his own way and, as a result, comes to new original ideas, so Russian culture, absorbing the achievements of the West, makes a spiritual leap that led it to achievements of world significance.

The 19th century became the "golden age" of Russian culture. A galaxy of great Russian writers, composers, artists, scientists, who are not necessary to list - they are known to everyone, has turned it into one of the richest national cultures in the world. In architecture, painting, literature, music, social thought, philosophy, science, technology - everywhere there are creative masterpieces that brought her worldwide fame.

2.5. Gap between ethnic and national culture

Peter understood very well that Russia must make a sharp leap to overcome economic and cultural backwardness, otherwise it would face the fate of a colossus with feet of clay that would not be able to withstand the blows and would be thrown into the backyard of world history. His genius was able to accurately select the decisive condition for such a breakthrough - the presence of knowledgeable, educated people, engineers, scientists and artists. But in Russia there were practically no professionals so necessary for the “carpenter tsar”. Therefore, Peter had to bring them from abroad and at the same time organize the training of domestic personnel. However, the dominance of the "Germans" caused discontent even among his associates. And among the Russians, secular, non-church education was not considered an occupation worthy of a noble person. It was very difficult to raise the prestige of knowledge in the eyes of Russian society. When the Academy of Sciences with a gymnasium and a university was established in 1725, there were no Russians willing to study there. I had to write out from abroad and students. Some time later, the first Russian university (Moscow University was founded only in 1755) was closed due to the lack of students.

A new type of culture began to take shape among a relatively narrow circle of people. It consisted mainly of representatives of the noble elite, as well as Russified foreign specialists and “rootless” people who, like Lomonosov, managed, thanks to their abilities, to achieve success in science, technology, art or move up in public service. Even the metropolitan nobility in a significant part of it did not go beyond the assimilation of only the external side of Europeanized life. The new culture remained alien to the majority of the population of the country. The people continued to live by the old beliefs and customs, enlightenment did not touch them. If by the 19th century in high society university education became prestigious and the talent of a scientist, writer, artist, composer, artist began to command respect regardless of the social origin of a person, then the common people saw “masterly fun” in mental work. There was a gap between the old and the new culture.

Such was the price that Russia paid for the sharp turn in its historical path and the way out of cultural isolation. The historical will of Peter I and his followers was able to enter Russia into this turn, but it was not enough to extinguish the force of cultural inertia that dominated the people. Culture could not withstand the internal tension created at this turn and went apart at the seams that had previously connected its various guises - folk and lords, rural and urban, religious and secular. The old, pre-Petrine type of culture retained its folk, "soil" existence, rejected alien foreign innovations and froze in almost unchanged forms of Russian ethnic culture. And the Russian national culture, having mastered the fruits of European science, art, philosophy, during the XVIII-XIX centuries took the form of a master, urban, secular, "enlightened" culture.

The separation of the national from the ethnic, of course, was not absolute. For example, classical Russian literature or music, as it were, was built on top of its ethnic basis and used folklore, old folk tunes. But in the works of outstanding writers, poets, and composers, folk motifs took on forms and meanings that went far beyond their original sound (take Pushkin's fairy tales or Mussorgsky's operas as an example), and sometimes even beyond the limits of common people's perception (for example, in journalism, in instrumental music). ).

“Russia in the 18th and 19th centuries lived a completely non-organic life ...,” wrote N. A. Berdyaev. - The educated and cultural strata turned out to be alien to the people. Nowhere, it seems, was there such an abyss between the upper and lower layers as in Petrine, imperial Russia. And no country lived simultaneously in such different centuries, from the 14th to the 19th centuries and even to the century to come, to the 21st century.

The gap between ethnic and national culture has left its mark on the life and customs of the Russian people, on the socio-political life of the country, on the relationship between different social strata of society. In social thought, he gave rise to an ideological controversy between the "Slavophiles" and the "Westerners". It determined the peculiarities of the Russian intelligentsia, which painfully experienced their isolation from the people and sought to restore the lost connection with them. It is no coincidence that Russian culture in its pre-revolutionary "Silver Age" was permeated with decadent motifs: the cultural elite, losing touch with the people's "soil", felt the approach of tragedy. Many of its influential spiritual leaders moved away from the problems of public life into the world of "pure art". The crisis of Russian society, which eventually led to the October Revolution of 1917, was prepared not only by the economic, but also by the cultural split between the “tops” and “bottoms”.

2.6. Culture of Soviet Russia: up the stairs leading down

In the process of building socialism in the USSR, along with the country's politics and economy, culture also underwent a radical transformation. On the basis of the development of the industrial economy, the growth of the urban population, the state support for science and art, a cultural revolution took place in the country. The historical merit of the Soviet government was the creation of a new system of general public education, the surprisingly rapid elimination of illiteracy of the Russian population, the development of the press and the publication of unprecedentedly large circulations of fiction, scientific and educational literature, the familiarization of the broad masses of the people with cultural values, the formation of a large layer of the new, Soviet intelligentsia. All this led to the fact that the historical gap between the cultural life of the "bottom" and "top" of Russian society was largely overcome. The unity of Russian culture was restored. As a result, in a few decades Russia has become a country of universal literacy, a "reading" country, surprising foreigners with people's craving for knowledge and the high prestige of education, science, and art in the eyes of the whole society.

But it came at a high cost. Departure from the country after the revolution and the death of many outstanding cultural figures from Stalinist repressions, as well as the narrowly utilitarian orientation of training specialists, significantly reduced the cultural potential of the intelligentsia. Some ethnic traditions of the Russian people were lost (including moral and religious ones). And most importantly, culture was placed under strict party-state control. The totalitarian regime, established by the party leadership of the USSR, subordinated the entire culture to its ideological requirements and made it its servant. Loyal glorification of the party and its leaders was put forward as a social order for artists. Any dissent was severely punished. Culture has become monolithic, but has lost the freedom of development. Its unity more and more turned into uniformity. Only "socialist realism" was allowed in art. In technology and science - only "planned" work approved by the relevant state authorities. In contrast to the official socialist culture, a cultural underground took shape - "samizdat", "underground", songwriting, political anecdote. But any attempt to publish even a hint of criticism of the “party line” was strictly suppressed by vigilant censorship.

The totalitarian unification of culture necessarily required the protection of its "ideological purity" from harmful foreign influences. Therefore, the Soviet government fenced off its socialist culture from abroad with the "Iron Curtain". Again, as it was in the era of Muscovite Russia, Russian culture was isolated from the "pernicious" West. The cycle of its development, begun by Peter the Great, has come to an end.

The inevitable consequence of the unification and isolation of culture, as in the past, was the emergence and strengthening of stagnant tendencies in it. Breaking away from world culture, Soviet culture began to lag more and more noticeably behind the level of advanced countries - especially in the field of technology and science. Cultural officialdom in art, the education system, and scientific policy have lost momentum. Spiritual priorities corroded, the economy also began to falter. The highest achievements of culture, under the burden of a general decline in social indicators, lost their "lifting power" and only emphasized the inharmony and one-sidedness of the country's cultural life. The evils inherent in totalitarianism led culture to a dead end. To get out of it, she had to throw off the political and ideological chains of totalitarianism. This happened in the 1990s, along with the collapse of the entire Soviet social system.

Russian culture again - for the third time (after Prince Vladimir and Peter the Great) - turned "to face the West." On the crest of this new historical wave, she again faced the need to assimilate the experience of other cultures, "digest" it in herself and organically include it in the orbit of her own being. The current sharp turn in the development of Russian culture is given to the people, perhaps no less hard than it was under Vladimir and Peter. But it takes place in completely different historical conditions and is associated with difficulties specific to them.

2.7. Traditional installations of Russian culture

There is an extensive literature devoted to the description of the ethno-cultural stereotypes of the Russian people. These descriptions are very heterogeneous, and it is impossible to bring them together into a coherent and consistent picture of the “Russian soul”. A single national character, which would be inherent in the Russian people "in general", is not made up of them. However, based on the study of Russian culture in its historical development, it is possible to single out some traditional attitudes characteristic of it - common ideas, values, ideals, norms of thinking and behavior that are imprinted and stored in national culture, receive approval in society and influence the way of life of its members. . The most important of them include:

collectivism;

selflessness, spirituality, impracticality;

extremism, hyperbolism;

the fetishization of state power, the conviction that the entire life of citizens depends on it;

Russian patriotism.

Let's take a closer look at these settings.

Collectivism was developed as a cultural norm requiring the subordination of the thoughts, will and actions of the individual to the requirements of the social environment. This norm took shape in the conditions of communal life and the patriarchal way of life of the Russian peasantry. On the one hand, it contributed to the organization of peasant labor and the entire way of village life (solving issues “with the whole world”), and on the other hand, it received approval from those in power, since it facilitated the management of people. Many folk proverbs reflected the collectivist orientation of the behavior of a Russian person: “One mind is good, but two are better”, “One is not a warrior in the field”, etc. Individualism, opposing oneself to the team, even simply unwillingness to maintain communication are perceived as disrespect and arrogance.

Russia did not survive the Renaissance, and the idea of ​​the uniqueness, intrinsic value of the human person, which he introduced into Western European culture, did not attract much attention in Russian culture. A much more frequent motive was the desire to "be like everyone else", "not stand out." The dissolution of the personality in the mass gave rise to passivity, irresponsibility for one's behavior and for personal choice. Only towards the end of the 20th century did the idea that individualism has no less social value than collectivism gradually penetrate into our society. But even now it is hardly mastering such concepts as human rights and individual freedom.

Selflessness, the elevation of spirituality, the condemnation of the tendency to acquire, hoarding has always met with recognition in Russian culture (although it has not always served as a de facto norm of life). Altruistic sacrifice, asceticism, "burning of the spirit" distinguish historical and literary heroes, who have become models for entire generations. Undoubtedly, the high spirituality of Russian culture is associated with the Orthodox Christian cultivation of holiness and carries a religious beginning.

The primacy of the spirit over the despicable flesh and everyday life, however, in Russian culture turns into a contemptuous attitude towards worldly calculation, “philistine satiety”. Of course, practicality and striving for material goods are not at all alien to Russian people; "business people" in Russia, as elsewhere, put money at the forefront. However, in the traditions of Russian culture, "petty calculations" are opposed to "broad movements of the soul." It is rather not prudent forethought that is encouraged, but action “at random”. The desire for the heights of spiritual perfection results in unrealistic good dreams, behind which there is a “dear heart” practical helplessness, inactivity and simply laziness. A Russian person evokes sympathy for reckless daredevils, drunkards who are ready to live from hand to mouth, if only not to take on the hardships of systematic labor. Discussion of the famous question: "Do you respect me?" It is built on the premise that respect is won exclusively by outstanding spiritual qualities, which do not necessarily have to be manifested in outstanding deeds.

The vast expanses of Russia and the large number of its population over the course of many centuries have constantly affected Russian culture, giving it a tendency to extremism, hyperbolism. Any idea, any business, against the backdrop of the enormous Russian scale, became noticeable and left its mark on culture only when it acquired a huge scope. Human resources, natural wealth, a variety of geographical conditions, the magnitude of distances made it possible to carry out in Russia what was impossible in other states. Accordingly, the projects attracted attention when they were grandiose. The faith and devotion of the peasants to the tsar-father were hyperbolic; national ambitions and hostility to everything foreign among the Moscow boyars and clergy; the deeds of Peter I, who planned to build a capital city in a swamp in a few years and turn a huge backward country into an advanced and powerful state; Russian literature, which reached the deepest psychologism in Tolstoy and Dostoevsky; fanatical acceptance and implementation of the ideas of Marxism; genuine popular enthusiasm and incredibly naive spy mania of the Stalinist era; "hugeness" of plans, "turns of the rivers", "great construction projects of communism", etc. The same passion for hyperbolism and extremism is manifested even now - in the "new Russians" puffing out their wealth; in the boundless rampant banditry and corruption; in the arrogance of the creators of financial "pyramids" and the incredible gullibility of their victims; surprising for a country that went through the Gulag and the war against fascism, violent outbursts of fascist-nationalist sentiments and nostalgic love for "the order that was under Stalin"; etc. The tendency to exaggerate everything that is done is perceived by the Russian person as a cultural norm.

Since the autocratic state power throughout the history of Russia has been the main factor ensuring the preservation of the unity and integrity of a vast country, it is not surprising that in Russian culture this power was fetishized, endowed with a special, miraculous power. There was a cult of the state, it became one of the main shrines of the people. State power seemed to be the only reliable defense against enemies, a bulwark of order and security in society. Relations between the authorities and the population were traditionally understood as patriarchal-family: the “tsar-father” is the head of the “Russian family”, vested with unlimited power to execute and pardon their “little people”, and they, “the children of the sovereign”, are obliged to fulfill his orders, because otherwise the family will decline. The belief that the tsar, although formidable, is just, is firmly ingrained in the people's consciousness. And everything that contradicted this faith was interpreted as the result of the harmful interference of intermediaries - the royal servants, boyars, officials, deceiving the sovereign and distorting his will. Centuries of serfdom taught the peasants that their life is not subject to the law, but to the arbitrary decisions of the authorities, and one must “bow down” to them in order to “find the truth.”

The October Revolution changed the type of power, but not the fetishistic cult with which it was surrounded. Moreover, party propaganda took this cult into service and gave it new strength. Stalin was portrayed as the "father" of the people, "the luminary of science", endowed with extraordinary wisdom and insight. His debunking after his death did not change the general tone of praising the wisdom of the "collective leadership" and its "only true Leninist course." Children at the holidays thanked the Central Committee of the CPSU "for our happy childhood." The leaders were glorified like saints, and their images served as a kind of icons. Of course, many were skeptical about this whole parade. But dissatisfaction with the government tacitly assumed its full responsibility for the troubles of society. Protests against the autocracy and arbitrariness of officials also proceeded from the belief in their omnipotence.

The fetishization of state power remains an attitude of public consciousness in present-day Russia as well. The notion that the government is so omnipotent that both the happiness and unhappiness of the population depends on it still reigns among the masses. Our government is responsible for everything: it is scolded for non-compliance with laws, non-payment of salaries, high cost, rampant banditry, dirt on the streets, family breakdown, the spread of drunkenness and drug addiction. And it is possible that for the growth of the economy and welfare (and sooner or later it will begin!) They will also thank the authorities. The cultural tradition worked out by history does not give up its positions overnight.

The special character of Russian patriotism is historically connected with the cult of power and the state. The attitude that has developed in culture organically combines love for the motherland - native land, natural landscape, with love for the fatherland - the state. The Russian soldier fought "for the faith, the tsar and the fatherland": it goes without saying that these things are inextricably linked. But it's not only that.

The age-old religious opposition of Russia to the pagan East and the Catholic West has done its job. Surrounded on all sides by "gentiles", the Russian people (unlike the Western Europeans, who have not experienced this) have developed a sense of their uniqueness, uniqueness, and exceptional dissimilarity from other peoples. The messianic ideas, superimposed on this feeling, have shaped Russian patriotism as a cultural phenomenon that presupposes a special historical fate for Russia, its special relations with all mankind and duties to it. Thus, patriotism, along with its "internal" content, also acquires an "external", international aspect. On this cultural basis, the Marxist ideas about the great historical mission of Russia, which is destined to lead the movement of all mankind towards communism, rapidly spread. "Soviet patriotism" was the direct heir of Russian patriotism. The "fraternal assistance" of the Soviet Union to other countries following it seemed to be a difficult, but honorable burden - the fulfillment of obligations that fell to the lot of our country due to its exceptional role in the history of mankind.

The collapse of socialism was a severe test for Russian culture. And not only because the financial and material support of institutions of culture, education, science from the state has fallen catastrophically. The transition to a market economy requires significant changes in the very system of cultural norms, values ​​and ideals.

Contemporary Russian culture is at a crossroads. It breaks the stereotypes that have developed in pre-Soviet and Soviet times. Apparently, there is no reason to believe that this breakdown will affect the fundamental values ​​and ideals that make up the specific core of culture. However, calls for the "revival" of Russian culture in the form in which it existed in the past are utopian. There is a reassessment of values, age-old traditions are being shaken, and it is difficult to say now which of them will stand and which will fall victim on the altar of a new flourishing of Russian culture.

Lecture 14

Formation and characteristic features of Russian culture

The origin of the Russian ethnos, the time frame, origins and historical roots of the ancient Russian civilization is a complex and partly unresolved problem. In the domestic literature, there are different points of view on this issue. However, scientists agree that the real predecessors of the Russian ethnos were the Eastern Slavs, who belonged to the group of Indo-European peoples. Indo-Europeans are agricultural tribes with a bright and interesting culture, formed by the 6th millennium BC. e. in the region of the middle and lower Danube and the Balkan Peninsula. Gradually settling across the territory of Europe, the Indo-Europeans interacted with the indigenous population, partially assimilated it, as a result, new cultures arose, one of which was East Slavic. In the formation of the Russian ethnos, the tribes of the Balts, Germans, Celts, Finno-Ugric peoples in the south, Iranians and Scytho-Sarmatians, etc., neighboring with the Eastern Slavs in the north, took a direct part. the tribes that Nestor wrote about in The Tale of Bygone Years was the result of the mutual mixing of several ethnic components: Indo-European, Turkic, Baltic, Finno-Ugric, Scythian-Sarmatian, and to some extent Germanic.

In the process of ethnogenesis, the Slavs learned about the world around them, formed an idea about it, which they vividly and figuratively translated into a system of religious beliefs, into a cycle of agrarian-magic rituals, as well as rituals associated with the cult of ancestors. Thus, the Slavic pagan picture of the world was formed.

Slavic paganism went through several stages in its development. The first stage of paganism of the distant linguistic ancestors of the Slavs fell on the time of the Mesolithic, this is the era of "beregina" and "ghouls". It should be noted that this is a universal stage of beliefs, including those of the Indo-Europeans. People "laid trebs to ghouls and shorelines", both of them seemed to them in the plural, that is, they were not personified. They were presented as the forces of good and the forces of evil, to which people made sacrifices. With the onset of the agricultural stage of development, people became dependent on weather conditions: the sun, rain, so ideas were born about the almighty, formidable and capricious deities of the sky, on whose will the harvest depended. All magical-religious beliefs of the early farmers are connected with the agrarian cult. A woman was considered a symbol of fertility. Farmers identified a woman's ability to bear children with the ability of the earth to bear fruit. It is not surprising that female deities, Rozhanitsy, were the first to appear in a matriarchal agricultural society; The male god arose later, with the advent of patriarchy.

Eneolithic farmers developed the following system of ideas: the land, plowed and sown, was likened to a woman “carrying in her womb”, rain was personified with a woman’s chest; over the sky, earth and rain dominated the two mistresses of the world - Rozhanitsy, mother and daughter. In the Bronze Age, another deity appears - Rod. This male patriarchal deity took a dominant position in relation to the Rozhanitsy.

In the life of the Eastern Slavs, a significant place was occupied by holidays and funeral pagan rites. Three main holiday complexes of rituals were associated with the agrarian cult: "winter Christmas time" from December 24 to January 6, the Kupala cycle of "green Christmas time" from June 19 to 24, and the autumn holidays of Rod and Rozhanits from August 29 to September 9. These ritual holidays are associated with prayers and spells for a good harvest. The funeral rite of the Eastern Slavs has gone through a long evolutionary path, it harmoniously combines two cults: agrarian and the cult of ancestors (one of the oldest human cults). Before the adoption of Christianity, the Eastern Slavs followed the rite of burning the ashes of deceased relatives on funeral pyres. This ceremony coincided with the development of agriculture. At this time, the idea of ​​the soul is born, which, together with the smoke of a fire, rises to heaven; the ashes of relatives, that is, what remained after the funeral pyre, were buried in the earth, which was a source of benefits for farmers.

With the advent of statehood, the pantheon of ancient Russian gods becomes more complex. The god of the sky appears - Svarog, the god of the sun - Dazhdbog, the god of the wind - Stribog and others. The development of agriculture contributed to the formation of the cult of the goddess - Makosh - the mistress of the cornucopia and mother earth. The development of cattle breeding led to the cult of the god Veles, the patron of cattle.

At the third stage of the development of the pagan religion of Ancient Russia, a hierarchy of gods begins to form and their pantheon is gradually being created. The main deity is Perun - the god of thunder and lightning, the patron of the princely squad. All other gods are included in this pantheon, partially expanding and changing their functions. So, the god of cattle Veles becomes at the same time the god of wealth and trade.

The Slavs had fairly developed forms of pagan rituals, that is, an organized, ordered system of magical actions, the practical purpose of which was to influence the surrounding nature in order to make it serve the interests of farmers. Pagan rituals were not inferior to Christian ones in terms of pomp, solemnity and power of influence on the human psyche. Pagan beliefs, which required a visual symbolic embodiment of religious ideas, contributed to the development of ancient Russian art.

Thus, as a result of the synthesis and partial assimilation of various cultures, the formation of the initial foundations of statehood and religious ideas, a peculiar society was formed in a significant part of Eastern Europe - Ancient Russia, which laid the foundation for the formation of the Russian ethnos and the Russian state.

Chronologically, the period of medieval Russian culture is limited by the framework from the 11th to the 17th centuries. It includes the formation of the culture of the ancient Russian people: Kievan Rus; preservation of cultural traditions during the Mongol-Tatar rule; formation of the culture of the Russian people.

By the 9th century on the territory of Eastern Europe, as a result of creating the necessary prerequisites for the emergence of statehood, two tribal centers have developed. In the south with the center in Kyiv and in the north with the center in Novgorod. The instigator of the unification of the north and south was the Novgorod prince Oleg, who seized Kyiv in 882 by deceit. The ancient Russian state formed by Oleg was a federation of principalities headed by the great Kievan prince. Relations between Kyiv and other lands were regulated by treaties. The agreement determined the right of the prince to polyudie - the main source of the well-being of the prince and his squad.

The unification of the lands and the “adulting” of the tribes was not an end in itself, the reasons are much more pragmatic: tribute (polyudye), and this is mainly furs, fish, wax, honey and the subsequent profitable trade in these goods with Byzantium and the Caliphate. For more convenient trade, Oleg subjugated the territory of the trade route from the "Varangians to the Greeks." And although, as already mentioned, the level of social development of the Norman and Slavic tribes did not differ significantly, the Varangians are a foreign ethnic group that needed to take root, so violence was an essential means of getting used to. Evidence of this is the chronicle story about the campaign of Prince Igor to the land of the Drevlyans for tribute and the tragic events that followed. During the reign of Svyatoslav, the tribal princes were finished: they were either exterminated or reduced to the role of posadniks. Almost all the East Slavic lands ended up in the hands of the Volodimir tribe, that is, the dynasty of the great Kievan princes. However, this does not mean that the people in the X-XI centuries. was powerless, we should not forget that the Slavic tribes had not yet stepped over the system of military democracy, therefore the Varangian princes with squads were forced to recognize both the council of the tribal nobility and the people's assembly, since they were not in a state of constant war with the conquered population according to their strength, and they themselves did not yet know another level of social relations. And yet, it was at this time that there was a tendency to separate the princely power from the people, this is due to the “foreignness” of the Rurikovichs. In the function of the Kyiv prince in the tenth century. included military and diplomatic leadership, that is, the organization of defense and campaigns, and they themselves certainly participated in military campaigns, maintained military-political dominance over the "tortured" neighbors. The great princes also had religious power: they made sacrifices to the gods before the campaign, carried out religious reforms, in fact, performed the duties of high priests. The princes were engaged in the regulation of social relations, they themselves judged in difficult situations, imposed fines, the princely court was decided publicly. They, together with respected representatives from the lands, carried out legislative work, in the XI-XII centuries. Pravda by Yaroslav and the Yaroslavichs, the Charter of Vladimir Monomakh, church princely charters were developed. Thus, gradually the forms of state administration merged together the once disparate tribes. But once again it is necessary to recall that the prince in Kievan Rus is not yet an autocratic sovereign, he was resisted, or rather, free communities were co-rulers of the princes.

The population that Kievan Rus united was sedentary, that is, agricultural, the economy was of a pronounced natural character, therefore, the tribes and tribal unions of the Slavs did not experience economic attraction to each other at that time. The interest of the Varangians in this ethnic area was determined by the specifics of the crafts that the population was engaged in (hunting fur-bearing animals and game birds, beekeeping, wax production, the demand for these products has already been mentioned). This form of material production determined the geography of the conquests of the Varangian princes in the 10th century, i.e., it can be argued that, to a certain extent, the specific feature of the economy of the East Slavic tribes also influenced the formation of the initial borders of the state.

The merger of the territory took place at the behest of the Grand Duke and his retinue, but one must also take into account the fact that people of the same agricultural and fishing psychology were united, there were no deep contradictions in the culture of material production, this is one of the positive factors in the formation of a single state.

A significant role was played by the factor of the common language, which internally cemented the lands of Kievan Rus. Representatives of all East Slavic tribes understood each other, which means they unconsciously felt kinship. There are many interpretations of the ethnonym "Slavs", usually it is produced from "glory" or from the "word", believing that the tribes that understood each other called themselves that way.

It has already been said about the paganism of the Slavic tribes; paganism, along with other deep internal factors, helped create a unified state. The Varangians, who came to the Slavic lands, were overwhelmingly also pagans, thus, there were no deep contradictions in religious beliefs. The only thing that introduced a certain misunderstanding into the relationship was the diversity of the names of the pagan gods, since in different tribes the same functional god was called by different names. Therefore, in 980, Prince Vladimir tried to create a harmonious combination from the multi-colored pagan deities, reflecting, in his opinion, the picture of the surrounding world. Only he did not put the spatial principle as the basis of the Zbruch idol, but the principle of hierarchy, that is, he singled out the main god - Perun (the patron saint of warriors, weapons, war) and his subordinates: Khorsa (the deity of the solar luminary), Dazhdbog (an ancient deity nature, sunshine, “white light”, giver of blessings; he was the patron of Russian princes and the people they ruled), Stribog (“Father-God” or “Sky-God”, the ancient pre-eminent deity of the sky, he is also known in the Slavic lands under the names of Rod, Svyatovit, Svarog), Simargla (the god of seeds, sprouts, plant roots, the guardian of shoots and greenery, in a broad sense - a symbol of armed goodness), Makosh (“Mother of the Harvest”, the ancient goddess of earth and fertility). With some dissimilarity of the ideas underlying the Rod-Svyatovit (Zbruch idol) and the Pantheon of Vladimir, these two compositions of deities represent the highest form of pre-state paganism, since they are an attempt, albeit through a pagan worldview, to streamline the picture of the surrounding world and public life.

In other words, we can say that the unification of the territory and people, already destined for each other by fate, was accomplished.

Since the X century. Christianity became the dominant form of integration of the medieval culture of Russia. Christianity formulated a new and unified Christian picture of the world for the entire state. It is well known that Christianity in Kievan Rus was painfully implanted into a full-blooded and not obsolete pagan psychology. Dual faith could be traced until the second half of the 13th century, it was especially pronounced among the people. But the purposeful introduction of Orthodoxy into all spheres of life did its job: the public consciousness was saturated with Christian spiritual values, they became the official moral foundation of the state, helped to strengthen its unity. According to V. V. Bychkov, culturally, this is the time of active familiarization of Russia with Christian values, and through them with the values ​​accumulated and created by the ancient peoples of the Middle East, Greece, Rome, Byzantium; this is the time of the formation of national spiritual values, the formation of an original understanding of the world (in line with Orthodoxy), the formation of a peculiar aesthetic consciousness and high artistic culture.

Christianity came to Russia from Byzantium. There were political and economic reasons for this, but we are interested in another aspect: aesthetic. Why was the consciousness of the Slavs closer to Byzantine aesthetics? After all, the originality of the aesthetic consciousness of the Slavs not least contributed to the choice of the form of religion by the state, and then its formation and getting used to it.

The analysis shows that the aesthetic consciousness of the Eastern Slavs was characterized by vivid imagery and rich imagination, well-developed associativity of thinking. Strength in the view of ancient man was one of the main evidences of the fullness of life, therefore, in the epic of almost all peoples, the cult of strength and its aestheticization constantly appear. Slavic folklore has preserved the motive of strength in epics. The contemplation and description of superhuman forces both frightened and pleased, this is well felt in the texts of epics that have survived to this day, they contain a mixed feeling of delight and fear of the uncontrollable elements of physical forces.

Another motif is connected with the aestheticization of strength - the description of heroic equipment, clothes, and dwellings. At the social level, one of the expressions of strength was wealth, and artificial beauty (luxurious utensils, clothes, jewelry, skillful work) was a sign of wealth for an ancient person. Therefore, direct admiration for power (it also contained destructive energy) in the popular consciousness of the Eastern Slavs took more indirect forms - in the aestheticization of wealth, luxury, and skillful decorations that the bearer of power was endowed with. Aestheticization of wealth in folklore is often clothed in beautiful forms. "Golden" in folklore is always the highest degree of appreciation.

Thus, one of the fairly obvious aspects of the East Slavic aesthetic consciousness can be considered the aestheticization of precious materials. One of the reasons for it, undoubtedly, was their brilliance, sparkling, that is, kinship with light. The aesthetics of light and brilliance of precious materials was inherited from antiquity, it was continued in medieval pagan and Christian culture.

Byzantine aesthetics and artistic culture translated the cheerful Slavic worldview, closely connected with nature, into the language of refined Christian aesthetics, it filled it with new content, because in some manifestations Byzantine aesthetics was understandable and close to the Slavs.

Christianity in Russia, according to many scientists, was perceived first of all and most deeply at the level of artistic and aesthetic consciousness, it was in this direction that Russia most actively, fruitfully and distinctively developed its spiritual culture throughout the medieval period. But the Christian opposition man - God was not immediately perceived in Russia in all its refined Byzantine sense, the ancient Russian people turned out to be the most sensitive to the specific artistic and aesthetic realizations of this opposition.

People came to the realization of the opposition man - God through aesthetic consciousness: a keen interest in the "beauty of the church" and the magnificent ritual side of Christianity, since all this was part of the concept of beauty among the pagan Slavs. The richness and brilliance of the interiors of the church and the rite amazed those present and led them to think about the greatness and power of God, and respect for power was one of the components of Slavic aesthetics. It is no coincidence that the chronicle tells how the ambassadors of Prince Vladimir were amazed and subdued by the external splendor of the St. Sophia Cathedral in Constantinople. The prince, judging by the chronicle story, including under the influence of their impressions of what he saw, decided to introduce Russia to Christianity. The architecture of the temple, painting, music, the word, that is, the synthesis of arts in the aesthetics of the liturgy (church service) created a sensual image of the beautiful, luminous, but at the same time powerful God Almighty. Initiation to faith in a single Christian Creator God through pagan sincerity and sensuality is a peculiar feature of the comprehension of Christianity in Russia, it went on for a long and difficult time, but by the 15th century. deeply rooted in the psychology of man and culture and became inseparable from ancient Russian aesthetics.

The programming of a new picture of the world in the minds of people went in several directions. One of the most important was, of course, the direct impact on human emotions, which, in turn, created a deep sensory perception of the emerging worldview and its aesthetics. The sensory perception of a person was struck by the architecture of the cross-domed church and the aesthetics of the liturgy, through them it comprehended the new faith, and through a single Orthodox form of worship in different parts of the country, people felt belonging to a single culture.

In Russia, it was introduced from the 11th century. a single architectural style of the temple: cross-domed. During the heyday of Kievan Rus, magnificent cathedral churches were built, glorifying its greatness. Even Vladimir, for the construction of the first stone church in Kyiv - the Assumption of the Virgin (Church of the Tithes) - invited Greek masters, who introduced Russia to the cross-domed church building system, it was rooted in all ancient Russian architecture. The basis of the cross-domed temple is a square or rectangular room with four pillars in the middle, the pillars were connected by arches that supported the drum of the dome. The center of the temple was the domed space, flooded with light penetrating through the windows of the drum. The central nave with the transept created the shape of a cross in plan. On the east side, as a rule, three apses adjoined the building, in large temples there could be five, churches were built with one apse. The altar was located in the middle apse.

The temple is a symbolic model of Christianity, its internal structure embodied the Christian idea - the salvation of man from sinful thoughts and communion with divine grace. One of the main categories of medieval Christian culture is the category of time. Time in Christianity was understood as a direct vector that connects the creation of the world and the Last Judgment. Earthly life (a human vector) is given to people so that they make their ascent to God through a righteous life. The central nave in the temple symbolically expresses this straight line (from the birth of a person to his ascent to God), a person walks along the nave from the west (entrance) to the east to the altar, where the “divine essence” resides, that is, it passes symbolically from the visible world to the world invisible. The upper register of the murals with Pantocrator - (Christ the Almighty) - and the apostles in the dome - this is the "higher world" that belongs to God; lower register with paintings from the earthly life of Jesus Christ - the physical world; their middle register is connected by a composition of intercession, more often it is a deesis composition on the main row of the iconostasis: the Savior, before whom the Mother of God and John the Baptist pray, is a symbolic image of the Church praying for sinful people, reuniting them with Jesus Christ.

God, according to Christian teaching, appears as absolute beauty. Manifestations of God in Christian churches are presented through its modifications: light and color. The gospel idea is known that God is light (“uncreated light”, i.e., uncreated), he is its essence, but it is inaccessible to sight, it can only be comprehended by the righteous with supersensible-sensory vision in the act of a special mystical practice. However, the thought of the luminous essence of God opened wide scope for aesthetic consciousness and artistic creativity, manifested in the architectural forms of the church. The windows on the facades of the church, especially the windows of the drum of the dome, focus powerful beams of light into the space under the dome; in the dome, according to the canon, there is an image of Christ the Almighty. Light and image are combined in the perception of a person, falling into beams of light, he sensually feels the presence of God and connection with him. This is facilitated by the burning of candles and the flickering of the colors of the icons.

“Beautiful” (God) could also be manifested through the symbolism of color, as well as its combinations. In Byzantium, a rich color symbolism was developed, which found its artistic embodiment in church painting. Purple was considered divine and royal; blue and blue are the colors of the transcendent spheres; white is the color of purity; black - a symbol of death, hell; red is the color of life, fire and salvation. The symbolism of the golden color was ambiguous, which acted, first of all, as an image of divine light and really expressed it in temple painting: mosaics and icons. That is why ancient masters laid out golden mosaic backgrounds, and icon painters painted images on gold backgrounds. The bright and resonant colors of the icons conquered the emotional sphere of the ancient Russian man deeper than the abstract bookish word. Thus, the architecture of churches, their symbolism introduced the Christian worldview, made it close, understood, native to the people inhabiting these territories, connected the people and culture with a new “cultural meaning” - Christian values ​​and traditions that grew on these values. With the assistance of the architecture and symbolism of churches, a new "image of the world" was formed.

Over time, the outlines of ancient Russian churches became a sign, a symbol of belonging of the territory and people to a single ancient Russian, and then Russian culture. After the invasion of Batu, the construction of churches in Russia freezes, even in Novgorod and Pskov, which also suffer from the Swedes and Germans. For almost the entire thirteenth century temple construction is not carried out, maybe wooden churches were built, but, of course, they did not survive. However, already at the end of the XIII century. stone architecture in these cities is being revived. Novgorod masters no longer built such powerful cathedrals as St. Sophia's or St. George's, they revived the type of temple of the second half of the 12th century: a small four-pillared, single-domed, as a rule, with one apse. Firstly, there were no funds for grandiose construction, the princes stopped building churches in Novgorod, it became very independent and did not always kindly treat its princes, and secondly, boyar families, merchants or residents of a certain parish (street residents) began to act as customers ), so the churches ceased to give the impression of power, but from this they did not become less majestic and calmly strict, they radiated tremendous power that corresponded to the spirit of the time and the mores of the people of that time.

Moscow art and, in particular, architecture, developed on the artistic traditions of pre-Mongolian Russia, a special role belonged to the culture of the Vladimir-Suzdal principality, where in the 12th century. such masterpieces of architecture as the Assumption and Demetrius Cathedrals in Vladimir, the Church of the Intercession of the Virgin on the Nerl were built. At the turn of the XIV-XV centuries. and also in the first three decades of the fifteenth century. the church architecture of the Moscow principality developed for itself some common features: clarity of proportions, harmony, dynamism. When you look at these calm, balanced churches, you feel that they were built by people who have accumulated enough moral and physical strength to repulse the Golden Horde, reunite and establish themselves among neighboring peoples and states.

The rise of the construction of churches in the XIV-XV centuries. not accidental. Deeply rooted in the genetic memory of the people, the silhouettes of cross-domed churches became a sign of the revival and restoration of the ties of ancient Russian culture. So, it is no coincidence for the fifteenth century. the work of Andrei Rublev, because the artistic image of the "Trinity" radiates with calmness, poise and strength (it does not matter that this is expressed through the icon-painting canon), this is nothing more than a reflection of certain trends in a culture emerging from a long lethargic sleep. Such a style in icon painting not only reflected, but also directed the development of culture into a single national channel, since Andrei Rublev’s painting is a philosophy in colors, a philosophy of love, hope, kindness, forgiveness, mercy, mutual understanding.

The role of ancient Russian literature in the formation of a single medieval culture of Russia was enormous; it, like church aesthetics, introduced the ideas of Christian spiritual values ​​into the public consciousness, brought up a sense of belonging to a single ancient Russian culture.

The sermon of love for people, as opposed to the enmity and strife that constantly reigned among the Russian princes, sounds with particular force from the Russian chroniclers, who most clearly saw the sad consequences of not fulfilling this seemingly simple, but difficult-to-implement moral commandment. The ancient Russian chroniclers were monks, so it is no coincidence that in their writings, seemingly not directly related to religious literature, the motif of Christian ethics sounds; it is no coincidence that the first victims of the princely civil strife, the brothers Boris and Gleb, innocently killed, became the first Russian saints. Christian formulas of basic moral norms and laws were immediately filled in Russia with specific historical, social or everyday content, transferred to the soil of reality and either rooted in it as vital guidelines, or discarded as having no practical application. "The Tale of Bygone Years", "The Tale of Boris and Gleb", "The Word of the Destruction of the Russian Land", "Zadonshchina" and a number of other works, telling about the tragedies of fratricidal wars or about the unity of Russian people, manifested in the Battle of Kulikovo, are saturated with thoughts of mutual understanding and the unity of people, about the need for the presence of love in their relationship, and not aggressiveness; these works brought up a sense of belonging to one religion, one people, professing it, and finally, to one culture, they formed a patriotic-state trend in culture.

A special place among the moralizing literature accessible to all segments of the population was occupied by "Domostroy" - a code of practical everyday morality, this, in fact, is the same religious ethics, only translated into everyday language. It was compiled by Archpriest Sylvester in the 16th century. (Sylvester was the spiritual mentor of Ivan the Terrible), that is, already in the period of the centralized Russian state that had taken shape. "Domostroy" included: firstly, the rules of faith, secondly, the veneration of the king and secular authorities, thirdly, the rules of relations with representatives of the spiritual authorities, fourthly, general everyday rules and economic economic instructions. "Domostroy" considered and regulated a person's life from birth to death through the prism of religious and moral principles. An important place in Domostroy was occupied by the problems of intra-family relations: how to raise your children in the teaching and fear of God; how to teach children and save them with fear; how to love father and mother children, and cherish, and obey them, and console them in everything; how to teach a husband to his wife, how to please her God, and adapt to her husband, and how to better arrange your house, and know all kinds of household order and needlework, and teach servants. In the final part of the instruction, Sylvester once again reminds us that it is necessary to live in the commandments of God, the fear of God, Christian law, good cares, and do all things in a divine way. Thus, "Domostroy" is a kind of result that completed the formation of the Christian picture of the world and reflected it not from the heights of philosophical and religious, but from the point of view of an ordinary person.

Thus, the formation of the typological unity of the culture of Medieval Russia was influenced by the following factors: the form of material production, the unity of language and writing, ancient Russian paganism, the form of social, and later state relations. Orthodoxy was the dominant form of integration of medieval culture, therefore the culture of Medieval Russia, like the culture of the European Middle Ages, is viewed through the prism of Christianity, since it determined all aspects of life in this period of time.

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Essential features of Russian national culture

There are specific features of Russian culture from ancient times to the 20th century:

1. Russian culture is a historical and multifaceted concept. It includes facts, processes, trends that testify to a long and complex development both in geographical space and in historical time. The remarkable representative of the European Renaissance, Maxim Grek, who moved to our country at the turn of the 16th century, has an image of Russia that is striking in depth and fidelity. He writes about her as a woman in a black dress, sitting thoughtfully "by the road." Russian culture is also "on the road", it is formed and developed in constant search. History bears witness to this.

2. Most of the territory of Russia was settled later than those regions of the world in which the main centers of world culture developed. In this sense, Russian culture is a relatively young phenomenon. Moreover, Russia did not know the period of slavery: the Eastern Slavs went directly to feudalism from communal-patriarchal relations. Due to its historical youth, Russian culture faced the need for intensive historical development. Of course, Russian culture developed under the influence of various cultures of the countries of the West and the East, which historically outstripped Russia. But perceiving and assimilating the cultural heritage of other peoples, Russian writers and artists, sculptors and architects, scientists and philosophers solved their problems, formed and developed domestic traditions, never limiting themselves to copying other people's samples.

3. The long period of development of Russian culture was determined by the Christian-Orthodox religion. For many centuries, temple building, icon painting, and church literature became the leading cultural genres. Until the 18th century, Russia made a significant contribution to the world artistic treasury through spiritual activities associated with Christianity.

4. The specific features of Russian culture are determined to a large extent by what the researchers called the “character of the Russian people,” all researchers of the “Russian idea” wrote about this, and faith was called the main feature of this character. The alternative "faith-knowledge", "faith-reason" was decided in Russia in specific historical periods in different ways, but most often in favor of faith.

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