Many well-known people from various countries have acknowledged that Russia and the Russians have unique features that can be difficult to explain. For example, British Prime Minister Winston Churchill once said that โะ ะพััะธั โ ััะพย ะณะพะปะพะฒะพะปะพะผะบะฐ, ะทะฐะฒะตัะฝััะฐั ะฒ ัะฐะนะฝัะฒะฝัััะธย ะทะฐะณะฐะดะบะธโ (Russia is a riddle wrapped in a mystery inside an enigma). A part of this mystery is the โRussian soul,โ which Russian poets, writers, philosophers, and scholars have been trying to define for centuries.
The concept is, of course, a mixture of ideals and stereotypes. It is something that is different for each individual but also something that helps bind the Russian nation together โ a common cultural narrative and a common explanation for who the Russians are and why Russia is as it is and why Russians are as they are.
Perhaps the most powerful belief is that Russia is comprehensible only to those that live there. One of the most successful in his attempts to describe the Russian soul was nineteenth-century author Fedor Tyutchev, who wrote a famous poem about it, often quoted by Russians to describe their country:
ะฃะผะพะผ ะ ะพััะธั ะฝะต ะฟะพะฝััั,
ะััะธะฝะพะผ ะพะฑัะธะผ ะฝะต ะธะทะผะตัะธัั:
ะฃ ะฝะตะน ะพัะพะฑะตะฝะฝะฐั ััะฐัั โ
ะ ะ ะพััะธั ะผะพะถะฝะพ ัะพะปัะบะพ ะฒะตัะธัั.
(literally translates as:
Russia cannotย beย understoodย with the mind alone,
No ordinary yardstick can span her greatness:
She stands alone, unique โ
Inย Russia, one can only believe.)
The concept of the Russian soul is also heavily permeated in ideals. Many famous Russian writers, such as Tolstoy and Dostoevsky, describe an ideal of ะฝัะฐะฒััะฒะตะฝะฝะพะต, ะณะตัะพะธัะตัะบะพะตะฟะพะฒะตะดะตะฝะธะต ะปัะดะตะน (peopleโs moral, heroic behavior), or ะพัะฒะตัะฐัั ะฟัะพะฑะปะตะผัะฟัะฐะฒะตะดะฝะธะบะพะฒ ะธ ะฟัะฐะฒะตะดะฝะพะน ะถะธะทะฝะธ (tell of problems faced by righteous people and righteous lives). At the same time, Dostoevsky, Gogol, and many other writers depict the misery faced by poor people and lifeโs many injustices, expressing a ะฝะตะฟัะธััะธะต ะทะปะฐ ะธะฝะตัะฟัะฐะฒะตะดะปะธะฒะพััะธ (rejection of evil and injustice).
Yet the concept is also rooted in the practical and physical. Many scholars point out that the Russian soul was formed under the influence of Russiaโs seemingly ะฑะตัะบัะฐะนะฝะธะต ะฟัะพััะพัั (unlimited space) and ัััะพะฒัะน ะบะปะธะผะฐั (severe climate). In Russian, there are verbs that denote that space โstretches,โ almost without any limits: ะฟัะพััะธัะฐัััั, ััะฝััััั. Philosopher Nicolai Berdyaev wrote in his book, Russiaโs Destiny, that, on one hand,ัะพััะธะนัะบะพะต ะฟัะพัััะฐะฝััะฒะพ ะพะฟัะตะดะตะปัะตั ัะธัะพัั ััััะบะพะณะพ ะผะธัะพะพัััะตะฝะธั (Russiaโs space determines the breadth of Russiansโ perception of the world) and, on the other hand, determines the ะฑะตััะพัะผะตะฝะฝะพััั ััััะบะพะน ะดััะธ (ะฐะฝะฐัั ะธั) (shapelessness of the Russian soul (anarchy)). Because they live in such a vast land, Russians were long used to living with very little interaction with the government and generally living by their own wits or by village/community rules.
In terms of the severe climate, due to the short summer, Russians are used to ััะตะทะผะตัะฝะพะต ะบัะฐัะบะพะฒัะตะผะตะฝะฝะพะต ะฝะฐะฟััะถะตะฝะธะต ัะฒะพะธั ัะธะป (working excessively hard for a short time) followed by a ะดะพะปะณะพะต ะฒัะตะผั ะพัะดัั ะฐัั (long period of relaxation). Although often that โrelaxationโ can be in close quarters, with few resources, and mandated by extreme weather. Likewise, in their behavior, Russians can demonstrate a lot of ะบัะฐะนะฝะพััะธ (extremes), because the ััััะบะฐั ะดััะฐ is a combination of pronouced, sometimes ะฝะตัะพะฒะผะตััะธะผัะต (incompatible) character traits: ะดะพะฑัะพัะฐ (kindness) and ะณััะฑะพััั (rudeness) or even ะถะตััะพะบะพััั (cruelty), and because it combines ัะฐัะธะพะฝะฐะปะธะทะผ (rationalism) and ัะฐัะฐะปะธะทะผ (fatalism), and ะฟะพะฒะตััะต (superstition/popular belief) with both ะฟัะฐะบัะธัะฝะพััั (practicality) and ัะตะปะธะณะธะพะทะฝะพััั (spirituality).
Perhaps also due to the extreme weather and lack of regulation, another peculiar feature of the Russian soul is ะฝะตะฟัะตะดัะบะฐะทัะตะผะพััั (unpredictability). The famous French writer Maurice Druon said that ยซััััะบะฐั ะดััะฐ ะฟัะธะฝะธะผะฐะตั ะฒัะต, ััะพ ั ะฝะตะน ะฟัะพะธัั ะพะดะธั, ะธ ัะฟะพัะพะฑะฝะฐ ัะตัะฟะตัั ะพัะตะฝั ะผะฝะพะณะพ ะธ ะดะพะปะณะพ. ะะพ ะฒ ะพะดะธะฝ ะฟัะตะบัะฐัะฝัะน ะผะพะผะตะฝั ะพะฝะฐ ะฒะทััะฒะฐะตััั, ะฟัะพะธัั ะพะดะธั ัะตะฒะพะปััะธั, ะฐ ะฟะพัะพะผ ะดััะฐ ัะฝะพะฒะฐ ะฟะพะฟะฐะดะฐะตั ะฒ ัะฒะพะต ัััะปะพ ะธ ะฟัะพะดะพะปะถะฐะตััั ะพะฑััะฝะพะต ัะตัะตะฝะธะต ะถะธะทะฝะธยป (โThe Russian soul accepts everything that happens to it, and it is capable of enduring a lot for a long time. But at some point, it explodes, a revolution occurs, and then the soul gets back on track, and the usual routine of life continuesโ).
This also manifests itself positively in a unique Russian phenomenon that is very difficult to translate into English: ะทะฝะฐะผะตะฝะธััะน ััััะบะธะน ยซะฐะฒะพััยป (Russiansโ notorious blind trust in sheer luck). ะะพะณะดะฐ ะฟะพะปะพะถะตะฝะธะต ััะฐะฝะพะฒะธัััะฟัะฐะบัะธัะตัะบะธ ะฑะตะทะฒัั ะพะดะฝัะผ, ะบะพะณะดะฐ ะธััะตัะฟะฐะฝั ะฒัะตัะฐะทัะผะฝัะต ัะฟะพัะพะฑั ัะตัะตะฝะธั ะฟัะพะฑะปะตะผั, ััััะบะธะนะดะตะนััะฒัะตั ะฝะฐ ะฐะฒะพัั ะธ ัะฐััะพ ะดะพะฑะธะฒะฐะตััั ััะฟะตั ะฐย (When one ends up in a deadlock, when all reasonable ways to solve a problem are exhausted, a Russian puts his faith in sheer luck and often succeeds). Because of the dominance of both unpredictablity and luck in the Russian psyche, Russians are also prone to ะพััััััะฒะธะต ะฟะปะฐะฝะธัะพะฒะฐะฝะธั (a lack of planning) and simply acting based on instinct.
Although the Russians value their vast lands and know that they number in the millions, Russians generally prefer to keep their close social circles small. They like deep affection in friendship; in friendship, a Russian person will ะฒัะฒะพัะฐัะธะฒะฐัั ะดััะณ ะดััะณั ะดััั ะฝะฐะธะทะฝะฐะฝะบั (lay bare his soul before another person). This explains the roots of ะฝะพััะฐะปัะณะธั (nostalgia) experienced by Russians in other countries: they suffer because of a ะฟะพััะตะฑะฝะพััั ะฒะพะฑัะตะฝะธะธ, ัะพะดััะฒะตะฝะฝะพะน ะดััะต (need for communication, for a kindred spirit). At the same time, there is a spiritual and almost physical connection to the land of the ัะพะดะธะฝะฐ (homeland). Many Russian abroad will remark that ะฝะฐ ัะพะดะธะฝั ััะฝะตั ะฒัะตะณะดะฐ (they feel perpetually โpulledโ towards the homeland).
Emotion, then, is seen as something to give only to special people. Thus, Russians do not appear like they are kind or happy to strangers on the street or in public places because they donโt smile. ะฃะปัะฑะบะฐ ะฝะต ัะฒะปัะตััั ะฟัะธะทะฝะฐะบะพะผ ะฒะตะถะปะธะฒะพััะธ (a smile is not a sign of politeness) in Russian culture; rather, a smile should reflect genuine happiness and a relaxed face is the default. Russian culture has a proverb that expresses a negative attitude towards laughing, which does not exist in most other cultures: ะกะผะตั ะฑะตะท ะฟัะธัะธะฝั โ ะฟัะธะทะฝะฐะบะดััะฐัะธะฝั (Laughing without any reason is the sign of an idiot).
Another major component of the Russian national identity is that they are able to ะฒัะถะธะฒะฐััะฒ ัััะพะฒัั ััะปะพะฒะธัั (survive in severe conditions) without much food. Russians are known for their ัะฐะผะพะฟะพะถะตััะฒะพะฒะฐะฝะธะต (self-sacrifice), they are able to ะฟะพะถะตััะฒะพะฒะฐัั ัะฒะพะตะนะถะธะทะฝัั ะฒะพ ะธะผั ะดััะณะธั (sacrifice their lives for others), which has allowed Russia to be victorious in wars against powerful enemies. Especially strong is the Russian concept of โะฝะฐั.โ Although the Russian language often avoids assuming ownership, which one can argue also reduces personal responsibility, when a Russian refers to a group of people as โะฝะฐัโ (ours), that means that anything must be done for those people. Many times, this will be oneโs immediate family and close friends, but often, especially during times of war, โะฝะฐัโ comes to encompass all oneโs countrymen.
Much of this boils down a sense of individualism within the Russian identity. An interesting and often difficult to understand aspect of Russians is their ะฝะตะฟัะธััะธะต ะบะฐะบะธั -ะปะธะฑะพ ัะฐะผะพะบ ะธะพะณัะฐะฝะธัะตะฝะธะน (rejection of any limits and restrictions). The only limit they accept is ัะพะฑััะฒะตะฝะฝะฐั ัะพะฒะตััั (their own conscience).