Русское мессианство. Профетические, мессианские, эсхатологические мотивы в русской поэзии и общественной мысли

Late in the XIX c., Russian intellectual elite was deeply impressed by the ideas of Nietzsche propagating the «superhuman» individuality standing over the conventional rules and limitations of society. On the Russian soil, Nietzsheanist prophecy of spiritual «supermoralism» was challenged by the indigenous concept of the «God-human» put forward by the famous philosopher and poet Vladimir Solovyov. His sophiological and historiosophical theories as well as his specific interpretation of the «yellow peril» pattern revealed in treatises, essays and poetry influenced greatly the Russian Symbolists led by Merejkovsky, Block, Bryusov, Vyacheslav Ivanov. Building a new realm of dreams they demanded that the old routine world should be destroyed and replaced by the Myth. Living by the anticipation of the advent of Messiah they kept preparing their readers for the inevitable Apocalyptic catastrophe that was regarded as a prologue to the new history of mankind.

The First Russian Revolution of 1905 was supported and glorified almost unanimously by the leading poets of the time although some tended to regard it as a rehearsal of the Final Judgment. Still Russian intelligentsia demonstrated readiness to accept its fate — to become a holy sacrifice for the messianic ideal of Freedom and People’s Happiness. Inspired by the heroic mythology of Nietzsche and Wagner, they would condemn the government, reject «conservative» laws and approve any bloodshed by the rebels. The defeat of the uprising just gave the intellectuals another several years for developing their liberal views into a complex revolutionary archetype to which many of them remained loyal even during the hardest years of the Bolshevist tyranny. However, in the period between the revolutions, many poets, artists and philosophers managed to predict consciously or subconsciously in their works the awful consequences of the forthcoming revolt and even their own tragic destiny. Still they pursued the kenotic principles of self-abasement and self-sacrificing loyalty to their own newly invented myths of Democracy and Humanism.

The Futurist school and other avant-garde groups formed the extremist faction in the pre-revolutionary Russian culture calling for the annihilation of the traditional ethics and aesthetics in every possible way. The militant manifestoes by Bourlyuk brothers, V. Mayakovsky, V. Khlebnikov, V. Kamensky, B. Livshits claiming the advantages of the modernist art and literature and negating the cultural heritage of the past stipulated the emergence of a popular concept: implementation of a social revolution through the revolution in art.

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The transition from the joyful anticipation of freedom to the realization of the tragedy accomplished was not easy. After the peaceful February bourgeois revolution, it could seem that the advent of Messiah was happening. However, after the bloodless triumph of February the bloody October followed bringing with it many months and years that were nonetheless full of bloodshed. The Civil war was devouring the best sons of Russia — both those who believed in the Bolshevist Utopia and those who did not want to surrender to the barbarian rule. The peasants would massacre each other in vain expectation of Land and Freedom. Merciless terror of The Emergency Committee (Cheka) swept over the towns and villages paralyzed by horror. Time was passing and it was getting more and more clear that nobody would manage lo survive safely till the storm is over.

Few intellectuals of those who have witnessed the October atrocities and the terrible course of the Civil war would cherish any illusions concerning the future of the country. While staying in starving and freezing Moscow after seeing off her husband to the White Army, Marina Tsvetaeva watched the triumphant plebs with horror, pain and disgust. It was at this period that her poetry manifested bitter tones of Biblical prophecy. When by Lenin’s order the freedom of speech was abolished in Russia, when the Civil war broke out and the red terror stamped upon liberal ideals of the intelligentsia with the iron heel, the poet, much earlier than her fellow-writers, came to the realization of the end of Russia — which was for her equal to death.

Irreconcilable hatred for the «Bloody Soviets», the impossibility to bear the violation of freedom and democracy led Zinaida Gippius, Dmitry Merejkovsky and all the other ardent opponents lo the Bolshevist terror into the camp of the White resistance movement and further — to exile, where they were destined to stay forever and watch from the distance the implementation of their worst premonitions.