Since Putin came to power, the state has been instilling in people that the world is governed by secret centers of power and that nothing depends on the ordinary person. Therefore, it is not at all surprising that Russians are en masse fascinated by mysticism.
Valery Fyodorov, head of the All-Russian Center for the Study of Public Opinion (VTsIOM), is not only a court sociologist and advisor to the Kremlin administration. He is also one of the main explainers and comforters of Russian society. These days he gave a major interview to one of the court publications. Such interviews are always propaganda and pleasing to the authorities.
Are the youth in Russia stupid?
In this conversation, Fedorov talks about the mass support of Russians for the war against Ukraine, but at the same time complains about the fact that they wanted to work in the field of information technology, but "for some reason" did not want to master specialties that do not require higher education (such as locksmiths and turners for the military-industrial complex).
When asked why in recent years there has been a sharp increase in interest in fortune-telling, magic and any other esotericism in Russia, the prominent sociologist, who has been awarded an order twice, replies that computer civilization, and recently artificial intelligence, have unlearned people, especially young people, to think. According to Fedorov, as a result, the whole society has noticeably become stupider, which is especially true for young people.
However, one wonders why the same young people (and not only) in the West, for example in India or Brazil, where they also use the Internet and ChatGPT, do not become stupid, but create new methods of treatment, build airplanes and improve the Patriot air defense systems? At the same time, the Russian authorities sometimes promise to build a base on Mars, sometimes to "destroy" iPhones with the help of Russian developments, but for some reason they do not succeed in either one or the other.
Putin against "secret forces"
At the same time, there is a widespread fascination with mysticism and various types of "secret knowledge" in Russia. It causes concern even among Putin's court deputies. Andrei Svintsov, deputy chairman of the State Duma's information policy and communications committee, recently said that in 2024, Russians spent 2.4 trillion rubles - half of Moscow's budget - on various magicians, tarot cards and fortune tellers. So, as William Shakespeare said, "there is something rotten in the state of Denmark". And in this case - in Russia.
And it is quite clear what it is. The reason is not the Internet or artificial intelligence. The reason is that in the 25 years since Putin has been in power, state propaganda has constantly convinced people that everything in the world is controlled by secret centers of power, that powerful forces are fighting for influence, that there are no principles, only interests, that there is no democracy, only manipulation of consciousness. And that there are no laws, only the right of the strong. There were enemies everywhere, so it was best to rally around Putin, around power in general, and stop thinking about the meaning of life.
Russian society, which has little knowledge of the West, in most cases does not speak foreign languages, and is traumatized by the sudden, as it seems to them, collapse of the Soviet empire, for the most part readily accepts these explanations. Russians still use them to justify their passivity and unwillingness to take civic responsibility for the country.
However, one cannot help but search for the meaning of life. Against the backdrop of the prolonged bloody war in Ukraine, the semi-isolation of Russia and the spiritual decay of the main religious confessions in Russia, people are rushing into the arms of various types of mediums, witches and "natal chart specialists".
Will Russia repeat the fate of the Romanov Empire?
Such a phenomenon was also observed on the eve of the First World War during the collapse of the Russian Empire. At that time, it was widespread even in the family of the last emperor. The fascination with Grigory Rasputin contributed to the tragedy of the last Romanovs. The same thing was observed in the last years of the Soviet Union: the enormous popularity of the charlatans Chumak and Kashpirovsky is an excellent illustration of the moral crisis of those years.
Does this mean that, against the backdrop of the new wave of mysticism, we should prepare for the collapse of Putin's Russia? I'm not so sure. Unlike 1917 and 1991, today's society is still more educated, almost entirely urbanized and, more importantly, more affluent. It has something to lose and therefore so easily allowed the Kremlin to convince it of its own social and political impotence. And now it fears for its future. A mass turn to esoteric practices is always a sign of such fear. Accustomed to thinking for itself for a quarter of a century, the people now expect answers from elsewhere.
A society that trusts no one
This is safe for the regime for now. But if the dictatorship begins to crumble, it will not wait for help from the "dear Russians". However, the Russian opposition should not rely on such a thing (at least on a mass scale), since they are the ones who will replace the current government. A society that does not trust anyone, and in fact not even the fortune tellers in question, will need a very long time to recover. If this is even possible. And this is the most important question.
This comment expresses the personal opinion of the author and may not coincide with the positions of the Bulgarian editorial office and the DW as a whole.