From “religion” to “spirituality” in socialist Bulgaria: Vanga, Nicholas Roerich, and the mystique of history
The article delves into processes unfolding in Bulgaria in the 1970s, centring around two figures: Vanga, known as the seer of Petrič, and the mystic painter Nicholas Roerich, to demonstrate the changes in the structure and meaning of categories related to religion that occurred in the peri...
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| Main Author: | |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
Institute for Balkan Studies SASA
2024-01-01
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| Series: | Balcanica |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://doiserbia.nb.rs/img/doi/0350-7653/2024/0350-76532455241V.pdf |
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| Summary: | The article delves into processes unfolding in Bulgaria in the 1970s,
centring around two figures: Vanga, known as the seer of Petrič, and the
mystic painter Nicholas Roerich, to demonstrate the changes in the structure
and meaning of categories related to religion that occurred in the period of
“mature socialism”. The first section looks into the activities of the
clairvoyant Vanga and her changing status to uncover the gradual process
that transformed her from a local vračka (healer/witch) into the “Bulgarian
Pythia”. The second and longest section is dedicated to the Nicholas Roerich
Program of 1978, promoted at the highest level in the framework of the
celebration of 1300 years of the Bulgarian state, and its impact on coining
a peculiar concept of spirituality. The third and final part explores the
links between Roerich, Vanga, the notion of spirituality, and a certain
vision of history. |
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| ISSN: | 0350-7653 2406-0801 |