Civil religion as an identity factor

Annotation

The article is devoted to the phenomenon of civil religion. This concept explains the emergence of important symbolic value systems in the modern world, which are centered on such concepts as “nation”, “people”, “ethnos” and other ethnic and social groups. The article examines the concept of civil religion, its transformation in the modern world during the processes of globalization and glocalization. A number of elements of civil religion that are associated with the modern picture of identity, including Russian, Kalmyk and Oirat, are analyzed. The theoretical basis of the research was the scientific publications of domestic and Western scientists devoted to civil religion. The article uses general scientific methods - analysis, evaluative-descriptive (descriptive) and comparative-historical. The modern Kalmyk identity is inextricably linked with Buddhism, which occupies a traditional place in society, forming key ritual practices and symbolism, and unites the ethnic group. Having replaced traditional religion as an important factor in the integration of society, civil religion was initially aimed at shaping the value of the nation, national feeling. However, at present, the abstract concept of the nation is being replaced by a more complex picture of identities, including social, professional, and ethnic identities. The blurring of national borders leads to the fact that the phenomenon of civil religion can now be traced in various communities that surround themselves with symbolic systems, and therefore with symbols and rituals that are part of a “cult” designed to affirm the value of this community.

Keywords

• identity
• civil religion
• kalmyks
• oirats
• symbolic systems
• anthropology of the sacred
• commemorative practices
• nationalism
• civilizational processes
• buddhism
• Ulan zala
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Contribution of the authors

Koltsov P. M. – scientific management, development of the research concept, substantiation of the purpose of the article, writing the original text; Umgaev S. A. – development of the research concept, processing and analysis of the material, text revision; Nadbitov M. V. – scientific text editing, final conclusions.

Acknowledgments

the study was carried out with the financial support of the Russian Scientific Foundation No. 23-28-10065, “The modern structure of ethnic, religious and civic identity of the Kalmyks in ritual and commemorative practices” (https://rscf.ru/23-28-10065/).

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