Issues of Sufism research in Russia in the first half of the 20th century

Annotation

The article is devoted to the study of the contribution of Russian Orientalists to the study of Sufism. The evolution of Sufism as a spiritual and cultural phenomenon of Islam in the multiethnic space of Russia has an impact on its culture, philosophy and traditional values, becoming increasingly important for its study. The relevance of the research is determined by a significant increase in the interest of domestic and foreign researchers in Sufism with its special philosophical and mystical basis, original ritual practice, and the specificity of texts with artistic value. The purpose of this article is to study and analyze research approaches in the works of prominent Russian Orientalists A. E. Krymsky and E. E. Bertels and evaluate their contribution to understanding the essence and evolution of Sufi ideas. The sources for writing the article were the analysis of the works of A. E. Krymsky and E. E. Bertels, as well as thematic collections of documents. The historiographical analysis of the scientific literature has revealed the peculiarities of the approaches of researchers who have influenced the formation of the image of Sufism, who have shown the versatility of Sufism and its importance in the world of Arabic philosophy and literature. The theoretical and methodological basis of the research on the history of philosophical thought are the fundamental conclusions and statements contained in the works of Sufi poetry and philosophy. When researching the system of views of Russian Orientalists, the author relied on historical-philosophical, historical-logical, biographical, comparative and systematic methods of analysis and was guided by general scientific principles and methods. The results of the study showed that the research of A. E. Krymsky and E. E. Bertels developed in line with the positivist science prevailing in the first half of the 20th century. The analysis of the researchers' creative biographies allows us to deepen our understanding of the peculiarities of their philosophical systems, and can also be useful in reconstructing the atmosphere of Russian intellectual life during the difficult period of the early 20th century – the middle of the 20th century. Covering in his works the history of the emergence of Sufism through the prism of philosophy, literature, and history, the versatility of Sufi teaching is revealed to us as not contradicting Orthodox Islam as a phenomenon of its cultural and spiritual development.

Keywords

• Russian Islamic studies
• A. E. Krymsky
• E. E. Bertels
• Islamic culture
• Arab-Muslim culture
• Islam
• Sufism
• asceticism
• mysticism
• dhikr
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References

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