In search of vedic wisdom: forms of alternative spirituality in contemporary Russia
Date
2020-05-14
Authors
Sadovina, Irina
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Abstract
Tänapäeva Venemaa sotsiaalses õhkkonnas pole alternatiivne vaimsus kuigivõrd soositud. Kuna sedalaadi liikumised on seaduse silmis „ajalooliste religioonidega“ võrreldes teisejärgulised, põhjustavad nad sageli poleemikat ja ajakirjanduslikku sulesõda. Ometi on alternatiivne vaimsus tänapäeva Venemaal üllatavalt elujõuline. Näiteks on veedade tarkus tugevasti mõjutanud rahvapärast psühholoogiat. Kuidas seletada selle nähtuse ja alternatiivse vaimsuse vastupidavust sellises vaenulikus keskkonnas?
Venemaa alternatiivse vaimsuse uurijad käsitlevad neid küsimusi tavaliselt suures plaanis: kas riigis toimunud üldiste religioossete muutuste kontekstis või siis analüüsides üksikute liikumiste dünaamikat. Väidan, et alternatiivse vaimsuse paremaks mõistmiseks on vajalik kolmas vaatepunkt, mis peab silmas miljöösiseseid vastastikuseid mõjutusi ja lõimumisi. Käesolevas uurimuses olen arendanud sellist käsitlusviisi, analüüsides veedade tarkust.
Mu Venemaal tehtud traditsiooniline ja digietnograafiline uurimistöö (2012–2019) lubab väita, et veedade tarkus pole ühtne õpetus, vaid diskursiivne kogum ja rahvausundiline traditsioon, mis tõuseb Venemaa alternatiivse vaimsuse miljöös selgelt esile. Väitekirjas kirjeldan selle kolme põhilist ilmingut: neo-hinduistlikke õpetusi, slaavilikku vaimsust ja rahvapärast psühholoogiat. Üksikuurimustes vaatlen seda, kuidas erinevad osalised (vaimsed otsijad, feministlikud aktivistid jt) on kaastegevad mitmesugustes diskursiivsetes praktikates läbirääkimistest vaidlusteni, mis kokkuvõttes nii loovad kui ka lammutavad veedade tarkuse traditsiooni. Selgitan veedade tarkuse paradoksaalset vastupidavust sellega, et liikumine on tihedalt seotud rahvuslike ja üleilmsete kultuurinähtustega, millest märkimisväärseimad on pöördumine traditsiooniliste väärtuste poole ja neoliberaalse eneseteostuse populaarsus.
The social climate in contemporary Russia is not particularly indulgent towards alternative spirituality. Viewed by the law as secondary to the country’s “historical religions,” such movements often appear at the center of controversies and are vilified in the media. Nevertheless, alternative spirituality in today’s Russia has not only survived but flourished. For example, the teachings of Vedic Wisdom have made successful inroads into popular psychology. How can we explain the resilience of this concept, and the alternative spirituality milieu in general, given the hostile environment? Current scholarship on Russian alternative spirituality tends to approach these questions either by tracing the large-scale changes in the country’s religious landscape, or by focusing on the dynamics of single movements. I argue, however, that the picture of alternative spirituality in Russia is incomplete without a third perspective, which can capture the mutual entanglement of the milieu. In this project, I develop such a perspective by focusing on Vedic Wisdom. Based on traditional and virtual ethnographic research in Russia (2012-2019), this project shows that Vedic Wisdom is not a single teaching, but a discursive cluster that forms a distinct vernacular belief tradition within the Russian alternative spirituality milieu. In the thesis, I describe three of its most influential iterations: neo-Hindu teachings, Slavic-inspired spirituality and popular psychology. In the case studies that make up this project, I show how different actors – from spiritual seekers to feminist activists – engage in negotiation, legitimation, contestation and other discursive practices that make and unmake the Vedic Wisdom tradition. To explain the paradoxical resilience of Vedic Wisdom, I show that it is implicated in broader national and global cultural phenomena: notably, the turn towards traditional values and the popularization of neoliberal practices of the self.
The social climate in contemporary Russia is not particularly indulgent towards alternative spirituality. Viewed by the law as secondary to the country’s “historical religions,” such movements often appear at the center of controversies and are vilified in the media. Nevertheless, alternative spirituality in today’s Russia has not only survived but flourished. For example, the teachings of Vedic Wisdom have made successful inroads into popular psychology. How can we explain the resilience of this concept, and the alternative spirituality milieu in general, given the hostile environment? Current scholarship on Russian alternative spirituality tends to approach these questions either by tracing the large-scale changes in the country’s religious landscape, or by focusing on the dynamics of single movements. I argue, however, that the picture of alternative spirituality in Russia is incomplete without a third perspective, which can capture the mutual entanglement of the milieu. In this project, I develop such a perspective by focusing on Vedic Wisdom. Based on traditional and virtual ethnographic research in Russia (2012-2019), this project shows that Vedic Wisdom is not a single teaching, but a discursive cluster that forms a distinct vernacular belief tradition within the Russian alternative spirituality milieu. In the thesis, I describe three of its most influential iterations: neo-Hindu teachings, Slavic-inspired spirituality and popular psychology. In the case studies that make up this project, I show how different actors – from spiritual seekers to feminist activists – engage in negotiation, legitimation, contestation and other discursive practices that make and unmake the Vedic Wisdom tradition. To explain the paradoxical resilience of Vedic Wisdom, I show that it is implicated in broader national and global cultural phenomena: notably, the turn towards traditional values and the popularization of neoliberal practices of the self.
Description
Väitekirja elektrooniline versioon ei sisalda publikatsioone
Keywords
Vedas, Holy Scriptures, mentality, Russia