A lot has been said and written about the inscrutable ‘Russian soul’ – yet, it still keeps its mystery. No wonder. Here are some of our thoughts about the common traits of the people inhabiting this multiform and contradictive country. Certainly, the picture is only approximate, as those traits vary greatly depending on an age group, region, education, profession, belief, etc. Yet, we hope it will help you understand the Russians better.
'Spacious soul' or 'big nature' - that will be the first thing to hear from a Russian if asked about the Russian national character. The phrase has become a commonplace, while its meaning is not so easy to define.
"Russian people are altogether spacious people, just like their land, and extremely inclined to the fantastic and disorderly", - a Dostoyevsky's character says in "Crime and Punishment".
Just picture the vast expanses of this country stretching over the continent and uniting Europe and Asia, with a great variety of landscapes, nations and cultures … and you will perceive its infinity reverberating in the unconscious collective mind of its people. One life would not be enough to visit all the places of this land; its spaces are hard to take control over and its riches seem impossible to waste. Hence, the Russian generosity and spontaneity, our weakness for extremes and longing for the unknown, as well as our unpredictability and lack of order and certainty.
"Go there no one knows where and bring nobody knows what"-that is the task given to the main hero in many Russian tales. The mission sounds absurd; yet, the hero gets a magic object (a clew of threads or an apple) rolling before him and showing the right path to follow. Similarly, a Russian person is guided by intuition (one's inner voice or the Lord's will, whatever) rather than by mere reason.
Not that logic is null and void here, far from it. Yet when planning something in this country, keep free space left for alternative ways and be prepared that with the Russians some plans might change and events take quite another turn all of a sudden; do not get upset beforehand, anyway - it may happen that some additional opportunities will come your way.
"All that is done is done for the better" - one of the favorite Russian sayings goes. On the one hand, it implies optimistic and adventurous outlook, on the other hand, sheer fatalism and passivity - the opposites coming together in Russian people - drifting throughout life, we are apt to adapt to ever-changing circumstances rather than to oppose them. That feature is quite understandable if you take into account our history of upheavals and cataclysms, from the Tatar yoke with numerous barbaric forays to the 20th century with world and civil wars, revolutions, repressions, coup d'etats and shocking reforms.
Tomorrow is not secured - how can one 'build' one's life (what is quite normal for a Westerner)?
"Hope for the better and be ready for the worst" - the Russians say. And our most common hope is that 'it will work out somehow by itself'. 'A peasant needs thunder to cross oneself and wonder'. Perhaps it is for that notorious Russian carelessness that we are easily beguiled and made use of by various leaders coming in a long train.
Justice and law .Unfortunately in Russia these two notions are far from being synonyms. The Russian people and the authorities are concordant about one thing, which is mutual mistrust. Subconsciously, the state is perceived as a mechanism encroaching upon the rights and freedoms of its citizens instead of protecting them. "The severity of law is compensated with its loose observance", - they joke here. The laws can be manipulated in the interests of the mighty of this world, we know from experience. No law can provide for every eventuality of life, we believe. So, relations between individuals are regulated by the idea of justice (as a moral feeling), which is prior to law in Russia. If you are facing the notorious red tape or predicaments caused by certain public or legal agents, do not hesitate to discuss it with your Russian friends. Your indignation will be shared with great pleasure: we use every chance to criticize and jeer at the officialdom, militia and government. Perhaps you will also get some expert advice concerning ways out.
Revolutionists or conformists? Russian patience seems endless as a Russian open country. This people have revealed its ability to endure any privations and severities - an almost superhuman ingeniousness in surviving inhuman living conditions. Moreover, one can suspect a sort of liking to bearing this cross, a certain pride for it. The spiritual experience of the Russian people not in the least proceeding from its sufferings, has given the world invaluable works of art and literature.
The habit for hardships and peaceful nature make the Russians conformists: we dislike open conflicts and prefer compromising. "A lean compromise is better than a fat lawsuit", - that's quite true for us. We can long put up with pressure and injustice (though at heart we might rebel) - but once we explode with all our long suppressed offences - there is no stop to it, watch out!
Lazy or efficient? Russian laziness is almost as notorious as Russian 'spacious soul'. Every Russian soul harbours Yemelya, the great idler, a fairy-tale hero, who does not have to get off his favourite place - a stove, as it can carry him anywhere and all his wishes are fulfilled by magic.
Russian laziness is dreamy and meditative. In a philosophic sense, it is opposed to the worldly haste and 'vanity of vanities'. At times we cannot but submit to our 'Mummy-Laziness' and indulge in musing and wool-gathering - and that in the very thick of work! Not that we welcome or severely criticize it - we rather take it as an elemental force, which can as well endow one with insights and original ideas. Yet, most of these great ideas are not realized for that very laziness. We'll think ten times if something is worth our efforts, before we move a finger.
If you are working in Russia, keep in mind that a Russian person needs time to 'pull oneself together', that is to focus all one's 'infinite soul' on a definite goal. But when ready and interested and emotionally involved, one can beat records in efficiency.
We enjoy challenges and beating records and can work overtime for that - isn't that a good compensation for our tendency to be late at work? Your venture might be a great success if you resort to the famous Russian serendipity…if it clicks incidentally.
Generous spendthrifts. The vastness of this land implies our full-handedness. Fond of making handsome gestures, we enjoy surprising our friends and guests with generous gifts and regales. Even if the hosts are having hard times, they will do their best to treat their guests well.
Naturally, the same generosity is expected from you - and it should be sincere. Pettiness and greediness are considered real sins here. Counting expenses on friendly meetings or checking the bill in a restaurant will seem petty. It is natural that everyone contributes to the common good as much as one can. Not long ago it was ok to lend money to a friend in need and forget about it. Nowadays, the commercialization of this country makes the Russians more and more tough-minded and shrewd. But that is not natural for us. It is in our blood to share what we have and hope on somebody's help. Who knows better than the Russians that material wealth is the most unreliable thing? 'God has given, and God will take it back', a Russian saying goes, often used with regard to money and possessions. 'Give, spend and God will send' also suits here. Deep down, the privacy of material possessions is doubted. Surely that has to do with the notorious
Russian collectivism, which is more than just an aftermath of the Soviet times. It takes its roots in the communal living of the Old Rus and the Orthodox moral values. Our inclination to work jointly for the common good, share what we have and rely on somebody's help is based on the feeling of kindred with other people. That is well reflected in the Russian language: a number of words denoting blood relations, such as sonny, mummy, grandpa, grandma, daddy, daughter, sister, etc. can be used when informally addressing somebody, even strangers. The most intimate word expressing deep feelings between soulmates is rodnoy (akin and that's why dear).
"Better have a hundred friends than a hundred roubles". In Russia it works a hundred-per-cent. Personal relations play here a more important role than one's social status or bank account. The dark side of it is that a person's success often depends on profitable connections rather than on one's talents and professionalism. However, this misuse of the unwritten law on mutual aid is weakening nowadays, together with the feeling of fellowship. Yet, it is still habitual among students and co-workers to help each other rather than compete, which is more customary for the Westerners.
"What is good for a German, for a Russian is death", - another Russian saying goes. Nowadays Russia bent on the Western and European standards is driving towards stability and living on credit, convenient but binding. Yet, it will hardly ever become that stable. Extra stability verging on routine is very suppressing for the Russians. Smooth and scheduled living and working void of variation and collision, that makes a European feel comfortable will depress a Russian. Yet, there is no such a risk - we'll always find some entanglements to use our century-old cultivated resourcefulness.
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Interesting introduction to Russian Culture. Having spent 2 years in Riga(Latvia) and Russia I would like to offer some thoughts. It was easy to adapt to Western European cultures, the "core" of these cultures was the same as American culture, just slightly more refined - less bellicose and more cultured. I have been grasping at Russian Culture for years and yet a complete understanding evades me. Possibly because of my incomplete knowledge of the language or maybe because I have already learned to think another way. Conversely I have noticed that Russians have no problem understanding American culture. One insightful event occured at a dinner party. I brought bottles of champagne and vodka, laid them down and left the room. I came back later only to find them empty, drank by people I did not know. My companion at the party explained that once I brought the alcohol to the party it was communal property and a Russian wouldn't think twice about opening it. I thought to myself in the USA even my closest friend would have asked before opening the bottles. After initial shock I realized the Russian way reflected the communality of Russian people and was much more beautiful than the American Way. I hope to collate some of my insights into Russian Culture in the next few days.
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