CC BY
14
values are social justice, stronger morality, the preservation of Islamic culture, and efficient and honest governance of society.
"Prioritety natsionalnoi bezopasnosti Rossiiskoi Federatsii na Severnom Kavkaze," Moscow, 2011, pp. 86-106.
Gebek Gebekov, Cand.Sc. (Hist.) (IIAE DNTC RAS) THE ISLAMIC FACTOR IN POST-SOVIET CULTURE OF DAGESTAN (1992-2006)
The real liberty of conscience for the post-Soviet period in the space of the former union state resulted in emergence of religious traditions. It was marked by construction of mosques, medrece and appearance of Islamic higher education institutions and by a chance of interested people in cities and villages to attend religious courses and to study Arabic. Islam gained in its influence on art.
Renaissance of Islamic traditions, rise of interest of people in religious studies influenced the development of all components of cultural process. The religious feasts were celebrated in clubs, libraries and museums, while the religious world-look became subject to scientific studies based on the objective approach and not the MarxistLeninist ideology. The religious motives more vividly marked the works of writers, painters and artists in Dagestan. The TV and Radio stations arranged Islamic talks. Religious publications were published.
The works of vanguard painters in Dagestan was marked by influence of Islam. The works of painter Ibragim Supyanov were characterized by folk and religious influence. The painting "Zikr" as a symbol of Islamic culture was made in the way of the rite's technique: the paints were put on the canvas by the bare-footed painter. The works of painter Apandi Magomedov created for the 1990s synthesized the
experience achieved by cloth painting (with characteristic pre-Islamic and Islamic symbols) and the modern experiments in painting. The works of the painter for the period of 15 years show his consecutive and more profound mastering of Islamic ritual. The peak of the process was achieved in the cycle of paintings conditionally named "Mavlid". The drawings of young painter Gamid Baliyev are marked by perfect technique. His work "Destiny - Shamil" shows the historic figure. The works of the painter are characterized by a deep morality and religiousness. Under the ascendancy of changes in the country, the attitude of Rasul Gamzatov, the people's poet of Dagestan, like of most representatives of creative intellectuals, to religion was marked by changes. The positive religious motives appeared in his poems. Dargin poet R.Rashidov in his works "Song and Moan of Earth" and "About my Time" proclaimed his new attitude to reality. According to the world-outlook of readers for the 1990s characterized by restoration of religion, on the basis of principles of agitation poetry, the poet created a poem "Balga"("Best Wishes"). The poet speaks in his works about renaissance of "holy" religion, about social injustice in the new society, misery and immorality of behavior of people under conditions of market economy.
Some changes marked the activities of institutions in charge of cultural enlightenment. For the sake of rehabilitation of the image of imam Shamil in the context of new appraisals of the Caucasian war of the first half of the XIX century the Dagestani Museum of Arts started renovation of Franz Rubo panorama dedicated to the assault of aul Ahulgo. In 1997 on the eve of Imam Shamil jubilee, according to the program of the corresponding events, the museum arranged two expositions on the Caucasian war. The museum's officials were awarded the medals for participation in events dedicated to 200 years of
imam Shamil. The expositions dedicated to imam and the events of the Caucasian war were arranged in most branches of the museum.
In connection with re-islamization, 48 club-houses were given to mosques, since formerly, for the fist years of the Soviet power they had been expropriated from Islamic communities. The transfer of the clubhouses to the mosques in most cases was made by decisions of the village meetings. In some cases, like in the Ahvah district, it was done by the court's decision, and the premises were given back to the former owners. The clubs got premises in offices of the local administration, and in some cases new houses were erected for the clubs. The transfer of club-houses to the Islamic communities was arranged mainly from 1992 to 1995.
For the studied period of time more people in Dagestan started to profess Islam. Religion started to play greater role, and it became necessary to create a new structure of relations between the clergy and the cultural institutions. Under these conditions of grater authority of religion it was significant to avoid transformation of state cultural institutions into formal structures existing for their own means. The events in August-September 1999 showed the urgent matter of systemic ideological enlightenment of the rural population.
The theme of reciprocal relations between the spheres of culture and religion was one of the most urgent problems in the spiritual life of society. Religion should not oppose development of secular and the measures providing the population with useful leisure-time. Politicization of Islam and the trend to establishment of religious control over spiritual sphere of public life caused anxiety. The shaped situation was a consequence of the lower prestige of cultural institutions and the authority of this sphere of public activities. It was particularly dangerous against the background of the negative rising influence of radical religious representatives. Quite often the houses of
culture were unable to compete with more vigorous forms of religious culture. The events of 1999 showed an example of consequences of direct incorporation of alien ideology. The events of the last decade convincingly showed the outcome of underestimation of the spiritual-enlightenment factor in life of rural communities. At the same time, there are many examples, which show that the cultural policy in rural districts is determined not by the authorities but by the religious leaders.
The ban imposed by some representatives of the clergy had a negative influence on cultural activities, attendance of performances, clubs, libraries and schools. The reality was characterized by closing culture's institutions and reduction of students in general schools in some villages. The local authorities often ignored this situation. The opposition of religious fanatics to culture resulted in disruption of planned arrangements (in most distant small settlements).
However, all this does not mean that the activities of the state cultural-enlightenment centers rigidly confronted the official traditional clergy. Vice versa, the attempts were made to look for the means to draw nearer religion and cultural spheres of society. In connection with the growing influence of religion on moral education of the youth the institutions of culture arranged parties-meetings with clergymen.
While for the Soviet period of history of Dagestan the festivities and meetings in clubs were aimed at education of diligence, collectivism, mutual assistance and creative attitude to work, for the post-Soviet period other aims were pursued at the same time. For instance, in connection with wide spread of original Muslim religious traditions in society of Dagestan, the Muslim clergy intensified its activities, and religious feasts ("Uraza Bairam", "Kurban Bairam", "Christmas" and others) were arranged in clubs of Dagestan.
Or the years of reforms, hundreds of mosques were restored or constructed and the network of Muslim education institutions was arranged. While up to 1985 only 27 mosques officially functioned in Dagestan, by the end of 1996 there were 1600 mosques, 600 schools at mosques (mektebs), 25 medreces and 11 Islamic higher education institutions. And 2200 imams, mullahs and alims rendered service in mosques and Muslim education institutions. Besides, teaching of Arabic and Arabic literature was arranged in some higher, in high special and general education institutions of Dagestan. Over one thousand young men were educated in various Muslim countries.
By 2006, the system of Islamic education in the republic was contained of 19 Islamic higher education institutions (about 2300 students), 14 branches of higher education institutions (about 250 students), 113 medreces (about 3000 students) and 94 maktabs (over 700 students). Thus, 6250 people participated in the education process. Many professors of Islamic higher education institutions, side by side with religious education, had received secular education in higher education institutions of Dagestan and abroad. Some professors of Muslim education institutions had scientific degree and status. And 9 out of 19 Islamic higher education institutions had acting license of the ministry of education of the RF. Not a single Islamic Higher education institution had the state accreditation.
A great number of citizens of Dagestan were educated abroad in Islamic education institutions. According to various estimations, the number of people educated abroad accounted for one thousand: Syria (256 people), Egypt (185), Turkey (140), Pakistan (96), Saudi Arabia (59), as well as others in Iran, Jordan, Tunisia and other countries.
The religious publications played a special role in mass media of the post-Soviet history of Dagestan. The emergence of new type of publications in the republic was the caused by objective situation's
changes started in life of the Soviet society in the middle of the 1980s and is the result of the direct return of peoples of Dagestan to the faith of their ancestors for the first time after the long period of atheistic education. The first religious newspapers "Islamic News" and "Call of Islam" were registered in October 1990. They were followed by the other publications: in August 1991 - newspaper "Put Islama" ("The Way to Islam"), in February 1992 - newspaper "Khikmat" ("Wisdom"), in 1994 - newspapers "Prozrenie" ("Insight"), "Arrayatul Islamiya" ("Banner of Islam"), "Modjahed" ("Fighter for Faith") and magazine "Musulmanskaya tsivilizathiya" ("Muslim Civilization"), in January, February and November 1995 - correspondingly newspapers "Islam", "Assalam" ("Peace and Well-being") and "Shariah", in August 1996 - newspaper "Nurl Islam" ("Light of Islam"). Since August 1997 newspaper "Caliph" started to be published. The corner-stone of the Islamic press was enlightenment of the honest, respectable and law-abiding member of society. One of the shortcomings of religious mass media was the fact that they preferred religious propaganda and did not pay necessary attention to religious enlightenment. But despite this fact, the significance of religion in life of the peoples of Dagestan let religious newspapers stay in center of society's attention.
The religious press contributed greatly to the cause of counteraction against religious extremism in the republic, to exposure of aggressive essence of wahhabism aimed at the split of integrity of Russia, although some Islamic newspapers with the connivance of state authorities promoted, nevertheless, formation of ideology of wahhabism and other extremist trends of Islam in Dagestan. In AugustSeptember 1999, almost all publication means of mass information of Dagestan disapproved assault of fighters from Chechnya, wahhabism and religious extremism. The journalists' collectives of newspapers and
magazines of Dagestan were seized by wave of patriotism. In their publications they raised the patriotic spirit of the people of Dagestan.
In parallel with the study of the Arabic language and Islamic faith, there was raised the interest to religious publications issued in Dagestan before 1917 and in other countries in Arabic and in languages of peoples of Dagestan. Since the great majority of the population of Dagestan does not master the Arabic graphic, for the last time the texts with the Arabic graphic were translated to the contemporary alphabets of the languages of Dagestan and published in various books, magazines and newspapers, side by side with many works published before 1917. For instance, in 1993 the collection of texts (376 pages) "Paihamarny elu bulan" was published in the Kumyk language (transliteration and comments were made by G.M.-R.Orazayev). The second volume was published in 1997. There were published many works of Abusufyan, son of Akai from N.Kazanishcha, the book "Mavlidy" was published in 10 thousand copies (transliteration made by S.Khaibullayev). The book consisted mainly of ods about Prophet Mukhammed and some religious figures. In 2006 the collection of mavlids in the Kumyl language was published twice (transliteration by G.M.R. Orazayev).
The realization of peace-making and enlightenment potential of religion by means of institutions of culture should be carried out with good consideration to prevent dissemination of ideas of Islamic extremism. For the post-Soviet period a lot was done for religious propaganda in society. It was a significant shortcoming that the atheist propaganda is not being carried out. The dissemination of religious ideas should be correlated with popularization of the atheist world-outlook in order to prevent the fault into one of the sides. Religion may and should oppose negative features in life of society, but at the same time the religious figures should cooperate with scientific, cultural and
education institutions of the republic in order by common efforts to raise the level of culture in society of Dagestan.
"Dagestanskiy vostokovedchecky sbornik", Makhachkala, 2011, pp. 57-66.
Yu. Azikova,
Political analyst (The Social-Humanitarian Institute of Kabardino-Balkaria State University) STRATEGIC APPROACHES TO DE-POLITICIZATION OF "CIRCUSSIAN QUESTION"
For study of the de-politicization strategies of "the Circassian question" it is possible to single out two approaches.
The first approach is presented in declarations and publications of representatives of the opposition's Adyg public organizations and of experts, who express the same point of view. To their mind, the Circassian question from the beginning was raised as a political problem, and therefore the attempts to de-politicize it are doomed to failure.
The second approach reflects the reaction of the official Russian structures and political analysts and experts, who support the government; this approach aims at de-politicization of this question and exclusion of unpredictability of further development of the situation and the risks connected with social and state security. To their mind, the problem connected with "the Circassian question" may be regarded from the point of view of humanitarian aspects of the problem without obligatory politicization.
Just in the way of the second approach it is quite lawful to raise the question about "strategies of de-politicization of the Circassian
