Candidate of Philological Sciences
PHILOSOPHICAL ASPECTS OF INTERFERENCE OF
CULTURES AND RELIGIONS
The purpose of
this article consists in consideration of a question of interference of culture
and religion. Being guided by the point of view that the culture is a certain
level of development of abilities of the person, expressed in types and forms
of the organization of activity of people, their interaction, and also material
values in aggregate created by them, we should define for ourselves: whether is
the religion a culture element? Or after all it is - a basis of a culture. Thus
it should be noted that world religions played an outstanding role in welfare
progress and formation of the person. In this regard, the religion - is
generation of human reason and human activity and consequently in this article
it will be considered in the form of an integral part of development of
society.
It is known that
the religion is a necessary component of public life, including - spiritual
culture. In society it carries out a number of important functions, and one of
them is world outlook. After all in religion as to a form of spiritual
development of the world is carried out its mental transformation and the
organization for consciousness during which is developed its complete picture,
norms, values, ideals and other components of outlook which are defining the
relation of the person to the world and representing itself as culture-logical
reference points and regulators of behavior. However function of religious
outlook consists not only in formation for the person of a certain picture of
the world, and first of all in that thanks to this picture it managed to find
sense of the life, took active part, as in material, and spiritual life of
society.
Thus, the main
role of religion consists in giving to human norms and values of character
absolute, invariable, not depending on an environment of existential
coordinates of life, emergence of new social institutes or change of public
formations and this function is realized through formation of the spiritual
human life which major component is the culture.
Certainly, the
religion is, first of all the spiritual force providing integrity of culture,
it is capable to subordinate and unite round itself all spheres of culture. The
religion makes dual impact on culture. On the one hand: have development its
forms that are connected with a religious cult. On the other hand, religion
domination over culture constrains freedom of the appendix of a creative power.
The tendency to integration of all culture on the basis of religion was
especially strong during Middle Ages era, however prevalence of religion over
culture and spiritual development of people significantly limited freedom of
their thought. Only during new time the culture began to get independent of
religion, secular character. However, it is possible to argue that the culture arose
in religion. Therefore, our main task - interrelation establishment between
religion and culture, as at various stages of development of human society.
During long
evolution of archaic consciousness, its rationalization, in culture ideas of
the supernatural appeared and fixed. On their basis, according to E.B.Taylor,
there are «beliefs in an animation of all nature which reach the highest point
in an embodiment...»/1/. It is belief in the spirits operating by people,
subjects or the world around phenomena.
Representations about supernatural become a basis of development of more difficult vision of the world and impact of the person on environment that is shown in magic (from Greek mageia - sorcery, magic) - the ceremonies connected with belief in supernatural ability of the person to influence other people and surrounding reality. The magic thinking is absolutely indifferent to the contradictions obvious to us. It speaks that in it sensual prevails over logic, irrational over the rational. English scientist J. Frezer writes that the person of that era «never subjects to the analysis thought processes on which his actions are based»/2/.
Our Kazakhstan
researchers hold the opinion that the culture and religion, undoubtedly, are in
close connection from each other. In particular, we share opinion of the
assistant professor of the Karaganda University Z.Baybusanova that «The kernel
role in any tradition executes the fundamental sacred text; the original
culture is inseparable from the moral values as which source the
religion»/3/serves.
Considering the
aforesaid, we come to a conclusion about that, as the religious and cultural
sphere of the public relations, finally, concern the person, they are
inevitably crossed and inter-influenced at each other. Strengthening of
religiousness strengthens public morals and virtue. But thus it is worth to
remember that some world outlook and moral belief acquired in the childhood
grow together with the person and at the adult become already his vital
principles, forming his internal culture.
The religion is
"soil" (F.M.Dostoyevsky) of any culture, even proceeding from word
"cult" etymology in a direct sense there is no other than «religious
service and the ceremonies connected with it»/4/. Therefore quite fair
statement of Absattar Derbisali hadji, Chairman of Spiritual management of
Muslims of Kazakhstan, Supreme mufti, Doctor of Philology: «The culture, literature,
art, traditions and mentality of Kazakhstan citizens "grew" from
Islam … The religion for us is a primary source of spiritual heritage and at
the same time the guarantor of life, the world and independence … The president
of Kazakhstan N.A.Nazarbayev told: «We are Turkic peoples, our religion –
Islam». Through a prism of this historical reality it is necessary to consider
and our spiritual heritage»/5/.
In this regard not
casually in our country for several years there is a careful and in-depth study
of strategically important State program the "Cultural heritage"
initiated by the President N.A.Nazarbayev. The cultural heritage is understood
as such cultural wealth, as the cultural traditions, steady standards of
attitude and behavior, norm of morals, thinking stereotypes, political, legal
and philosophical ideas, esthetic representations. These traditions form
historical roots of modern existence of the people, fix sources of its life. In
this sense the problem of continuity, the relation to a cultural heritage of
the past take an important place in culture philosophy. It gets a special
urgency in the conditions of transformation of society, reassessment of values.
Historical development including cultural development is represented as
difficult, inconsistent multidimensional process. In the history social
realities constantly change, the new spiritual absolutes are born. At all
options of a course of events abundantly clearly the increase of requirement
for expansion of contacts, in deepening of dialogue of cultures without what it
is impossible the further development, maybe, even survival of mankind.
Addressing to the
past, we aspire to actualize those traditions which act as carriers of
universal values. But to address to history it is possible differently: to
scoop in the past precious experience, inherent values, to make history a true
and effective learning tool of the present; but it is possible and to idealize
the past and regretting that irrevocably left out and is not subject to
revival, to try to update, adapt for the present the ideas which long ago have
been already rejected by a course of social development. Therefore this problem
should be considered in dialectic communication, as uniform process, in a
context of the uniform concept of last and modern.
During evolution
the religion inevitably cooperates with many secular, rational components of
spiritual culture, as acts as outer side of evolution of religion. Worldly
elements make essential impact on evolution of illusory systems, washing away
their integrity for, being and in the sphere of the religious influence, many
of them keep the terrestrial character, the informative aspect contradicting
the epistemological and social nature of religion. So, the humanistic ideals
included in religious system, keep the secular functional orientation. The
analysis of interaction of religion with rational elements of culture, national
consciousness, a way of life, identification of the valid role of religion in
spiritual life of the people - an important problem of scientific religious
studies. In process of religion such phenomena, as continuity, traditions,
assimilation, the adaptation, a modernism etc. are shown.
The philosophy of
religion is incompatible with a vulgar approach to religion where it is reduced
to the phenomenon out of culture, anti-cultures, and does not accept an
appropriate level of reflection in religious and philosophical tradition. The
religion is an element of culture which in certain historical conditions plays
an essential role in system of spiritual culture.
As sociocultural
preconditions of religion the phenomena and processes in which finds expression
culture crisis act: deformations in system of values; shift of priorities
towards scientism, technicism or, on the contrary, anti-scientism;
soullessness, reifikation and commercialization of human relationship; art
decline; degradation of morals etc.
In recent years on a proscenium of life there was a mass culture
accenting values of a so-called consumer society. It is often focused on
elements of the unconscious - aggression, violence; dulls consciousness;
resists to development of intelligence and knowledge, sublime moral and
esthetic senses; put barriers on a formation of "I" way,
"Egoism", subjection, generating of faceless and conformism.
Therefore, modern
spiritual culture of Kazakhstan and its prospect not to understand without
identification of interaction of civilizational and formational, nomadic and
settled, east and western, Turkic and Slavic, Pre-Islamic and Islamic, religious
and secular elements. Among values of modern Kazakhstan religion recognition by
a full element of culture and spiritual life, religious pluralism is a priority
of secular culture. According to academician A.N.Nysanbayev:« There is also
such very important question: multipolar globalization and its influence on
religious life. Spiritual and moral, religious truth and religious experience
resist to averaging and unification: it is not correct to bring an attention to
the question of merge of religions and formation, for example, universal
church. Speech can go only about constructive dialogue, about education of the
tolerant relation, a spiritual consent of various religions, and as to
Kazakhstan - first of all Islam and Christianity. In the new, quickly changing
world, in a condition of uncertainty, concern and alarm, voices about the
beginning of the third world war, about collision of Islamic and Christian
civilizations are distributed. We should analyze more deeply possible ways and
forms of productive dialogue of Islam and Christianity on the basis of
spiritual and moral values peculiar to both religions and to show, in what
sense religions are capable to resist the globalization, what is the mechanism of formation of the stable
interfaith relations, what is the limit of globalization»/6/.
We can note that
process of globalization is too culture process. Dialogues of cultures are
conducted at different levels. Dialogue of religions becomes one of
characteristic features of a modern era. The mass culture is born on a joint of
misunderstanding and dialogues of cultures and subcultures. Dialogue is all
history of mankind. Interaction of cultures, their dialogue – an optimum basis
for development of the interethnic, international relations. And on the
contrary, when in society there is an interethnic tension and, especially, the
interethnic conflicts, dialogue between cultures is complicated, interaction of
cultures can have limited character. Interreligious dialogue turns into a
national problem in the countries with confessional non-uniform societies, it
turns into the international problem in the world in which international and
intercultural ties steadily grow and extend. Into dialogue are involved
the(voluntarily or besides it) more and more wide layers of believers, and be
adequately understood it can only in a context of sociocultural development of
the modern world. Process of internationalization of life of mankind – one of
defining lines of our era.
As we can see, concept of dialogue especially is actually for modern
culture. Dialogue means by itself an interaction of subjects more or less equal
in rights. As well as between people, dialogue between cultures is impossible
without a distance. But what is it such intercultural distance?
In the explanatory dictionary the term "distance" is defined
as distance. But with reference to an intercultural distance we cannot use this
word in its direct sense. Most likely, here to speak about "distance"
in mental area, between consciousnesses of carriers of any cultures more
pertinently. It also is that O. Spengler called "soul". In its
understanding of "shower" it is not reduced to reason, it is
"soul" of each culture which realizes itself, first, through symbols
and phenomena, indirectly specifying on pra-symbol cultures, secondly, in a set
of individual lives. Therefore the soul of each culture is unique and cannot be
up to the end explained by a rational way. O. Spengler said that «to each great
culture secret language of a world-feeling, quite clear only is inherent in
what soul quite belongs to this culture»/7/.
Thus, the subject of this article was devoted to studying of interrelation
of culture and religion. To the social and philosophical, historical and
epistemo-logical problem which importance admits traditionally and discussed in
respect of value of evolutionary changes and dynamics of these two spheres of
public life. It is the question of world outlook and ideological character
defining in many respects welfare and political development, both the separate
countries, and the world community as a whole. Their integration on the basis
of tolerance, mutual penetration and spiritual enrichment. After all at any
distinctions in religion and culture levels of development, or their ratios
among themselves, they always remain essential factors of private and public
life.
Role of religion and culture, their unity and equation, is great not
only in formation of national identity, but also for elimination of the
conflicts on the ethnic-confessional soil. Especially, when development of
interfaith dialogue, intercultural ties and cooperation becomes effective
alternative of hostility, cultural dissociation and religious intolerance. The
unity of religion and culture, it is rather - religions and cultures, in the
conditions of accommodation in one territory and close social interrelations of
people of various national traditions, are of great importance. It is possible
even to tell - key as mention on the basis of interaction of various religious
and cultural and historical way of a life the widest range of questions of the
organization of their joint life; since stay in child care and school
facilities, and finishing conditions of joint work or rest.
Besides, it is necessary to consider that one of important ways of
protection of national and state interests from negative influence of processes
of globalization and waves of undesirable currents is further strengthening of
bases of the democratic, constitutional state and civil society through wide
use of heritage of ancestors and national values. In today's conditions the
state cannot be indifferent concerning a problem of religious consciousness of
the citizens which has a direct connection with further progress of society.
Literature:
1.
Taylor E.B. Primitive culture. - M, 1989. - page 129.
2.
J.
Frezer. Gold branch. - M, 1980. - page 20.
3.
Baybusanova
Z. Humanistic content of culture of Islam//"Express
K", No. 343 (16729) dated 03.06.2009
4.
Ozhegov
S. I. Russian dictionary. Prod. The thirteenth, correc. – M:
Russian, 1981. – Page 276.
5.
AbsattarDerbisalihadji.
Mosques and Madrasah of Kazakhstan (history and
present)//Prostor. – 2006. - No. 9-10. – Page 103-115.
6.
Nysanbayev
A.N. Globalization and Central Asia. See http://www.analitika.org/article.php?story=20051103220005672&mode=print
7.
Spengler
O. Decline of Europe. T. 1. M, 1993. Page 342