Abai and Russian Philosophy: Man and His Values

The article attempts a comparative analysis of the concepts of two national philosophies – Kazakh and Russian. The authors turn to the problem of man, try­ing to understand how Kazakh and Russian thinkers conceive human nature, what concepts, in their opinion, are defining for a human being, what place in the characterization of human nature is occupied by universal, values: life and death, good and evil, love and hatred, mercy and compassion, God and man. In this regard, the authors analyze the legacy of the outstanding Kazakh poet, thinker, public educator and public figure Abai Kunanbaev, his philosophical concept of a universal, integral person (“tolyk adam”). The аrticle reveals the worldview of Abai, whose roots go back to the Muslim humanistic tradition, the motive of his search for moral self-determination of a person. Comparing Abai’s worldview with the views of representatives of Russian religious philosophy (Vladimir Solovyov, Ivan Ilyin, Pavel Florensky), the authors come to the con­clusion that with all the differences between these two philosophies, primarily national ones, human nature is treated in a similar way in them. This primarily concerns the understanding of religious faith as a unifying, forming principle for the inner world of a person, the unifying principle around which such universal human values as mercy, compassion, honor, conscience, national dignity, mutual understanding, peace and harmony are gathered. The authors emphasize that these values, like never before, are in demand by the modern world, torn by con­flicts, contradictions, local wars, a world that has forgotten what love is and what is the genuine truth of life.