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‘Сooperation with Bees’: Religious Apiology in Modern Nativism. Article I.

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.37816/2073‑9567‑2026‑79‑32‑46
  • УДК / UDC: 299.4: 394.21: 908
  • Publication Type: Research Article
  • For Citation:

    Shizhenskiy, R.V., Saberov, R.А. “‘Сooperation with Bees’: Religious Apiology in Modern Nativism. Article I” Vestnik slavianskikh kul’tur, vol. 79, 2026,
    pp. 32–46. (In Russ.) https://doi.org/10.37816/2073‑9567‑2026‑79‑32‑46 
  • Author 1: Roman V. Shizhenskiy
  • Information about the Author 1:

    Roman V. Shizhenskiy — DSc in Philosophy, Docent, Chief Scientific Officer Scientific Research Center for Religious Studies and Ethnopo‑
    litical Studies, Pushkin Leningrad State University, Petersburgskoye High., 10, lit. A, 196605 St. Petersburg, Pushkin, Russia.

    ORCID ID: https://orcid.org/0000‑0002‑8765‑2241 

    E‑mail: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
  • Author 2: Rushan А. Saberov
  • Information about the Author 2:

    Rushan А. Saberov — Senior Lecturer, Departments of Social Sciences and Technologies, Institute of Basic Education, National University of Science and Technology, Leninsky Ave., 4, build. 1, 119049 Moscow, Russia; Senior Lecturer, Departments of Russian History and Auxiliary Historical Disciplines, Faculty of Humanities, Minin Nizhny Novgorod State Pedagogical University (Minin University), Ulyanova St., 1, 603005 Nizhny Novgorod, Russia.

    ORCID ID: https://orcid.org/0000‑0003‑1502‑3718 

    E‑mail: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
  • Abstract: One of the systemic elements of modern Russian religious nativism, regard‑ less of belonging to the “camps” of historical (in this case, traditional beliefs of Finno‑ Ugric peoples) and new paganism (“Rodnovery”, Tengrinism, Wiccanism, etc.), is nature‑centrism. The Mari traditional faith should be recognized as a vivid example of chronological, worldview and ritual “stability” with an acceptable individual reading of religious foundations. The paper deals with the peculiarities of Mari prayer dedicated to the patrons of bees, as well as those who took place in the “Mÿksh kÿsoto” (“sacred grove of bees”). The specificity of the research (Article №1) lies in the choice of the source base, represented by an interview with the informant‑initiator of the grove open‑ ing, an active participant of the cult events, wild‑hive beekeeper A.I. Kislitsin. Results of the analysis obtained made it possible to establish the thematic blocks (pantheon, calendar, sacral space, ritual), realized in the discourse of praying to bees, as well as the main worldview concepts (bee: “God's bird”, “guardian of the people”, “praying bee”). In addition, the paper presents the respondent's views on the reasons for the discovery of sacred space, the cyclical nature of ritual practices, the peculiarities of the “small sacrament” (prayers and sacrifices), and the uniqueness of the pantheon of bee keepers.
  • Keywords: Mari traditional religion, cult, apiology, individual interview, religious nativism, ritual elements
  • Страницы / Pages: 32–46
  • Received: May 13, 2025
  • Approved after Reviewing: December 01, 2025
  • Publication Date: March 25, 2026

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