THE SHEPHERD AND THE ARTIST: IGNATIUS BRYANCHANINOV’S SPIRITUAL PROSE

The article looks at the works of St. Ignatius Bryanchaninov. His dialogue Christian Shepherd and Christian Artist (1851) reflects the holy bishop's views of art. In its highest form, art should follow the Gospel, said St. Ignatius. In this article we analyse his meditative prose (Ascetic Experience, A Word on Death, etc.) A special focus is made on lyrical and philosophical autobiographic fragments which can be compared to Turgenev's Poems in Prose. These texts describe the moments of spiritual balance and inner peace which are rare in secular prose. Citing some fragments from Ascetic Experiences as an example, we show how “strong and profound spiritual impressions” take the shape of aesthetic expression. Our study of Ignatius Bryanchaninov's works led us to the notion of epiphanic vision and writing, and to a more general conclusion that these works can be described as belonging both to the patristic tradition and Russian literature.