Abstract: The object of this research is music as a semantic process. The subject is problematization of the concept of meaning in music. The goal lies in outlining the main strategies for conceptualization of the musical meaning within the framework of the history of music-aesthetic teachings. The authors pursue the following tasks: conduct critical analysis of the basic music-aesthetic concepts, explore their metaphysical origins and ideological prerequisites, determine the conceptual boundaries of the concept of musical language. The acquire results lie in determination of the fundamental strategies for rationalization of music: music as mathematics, and music as language. Within the framework of these strategies, analysis is conducted on various concepts of the meaning in music and their metaphysical prerequisites. Among these concepts are musical ethos, world harmony, music affects, musical expression, and semiotics of music. The author clarifies the concept of music as language from the perspective of a range of discursive attitudes: musical language as a natural language of feelings (theory of musical expression), and musical language as a semiotic system. The scientific novelty of consists in application of the new approach towards reconsideration of the basic music-aesthetic concepts from the standpoint of the development of autonomization of the musical meaning. The research results justify drawing a clear boundary between the scientific and nonscientific discursive use of such common comparisons as “music as language” and “music as mathematics”. The conclusion is made the solution to problem of the specificity of formation and functionality of the autonomous musical meaning requires going beyond the narrow field of consideration of music as a semantic process towards the holistic experience of aesthetic perception.

Keywords: semiotics of music, musical expression, musical affects, musical ethos, musical language, musical meaning, musical aesthetics, philosophy of art, Langer, Bonfeld

Abstract: The subject of this research is the interpretation of the phenomenon of post-secularism in modern scientific discourse (the late XX – early XXI centuries). The object of this research is post-secularism as a phenomenon of modernity. Research methodology leans on the comparative and descriptive analysis. J. Habermas, introducing the concept of post-secular, noted that the process of secularization in the West is not only dialectical, but also incomplete; and secularization itself has strayed from the "right path" of its development. This launched the discussion on the post-secular. The interpretation of the post-secular can still be polar or mutually exclusive, requiring certain systematization of views, which is presented in this article. The conclusion is made that modern scientific discourse contains different interpretations of the post-secular. The first implies rejection of the secular, accompanied by revival of the religious, infiltration of religion into the sphere of active social relations, realization of the erroneousness of secularization and correction of these errors; in this sense, the concept of desecularization is rather appropriate. The second interpretation of post-secularism is counter-secularization: the process of desecularization intensified by revanchist sentiments of the reviving religiosity. Such post-secularism, focuses non on the correction of errors, but full dismantling of everything secular, which entails natural tension on all levels. Counter-secularization is not focused on dialogue and is potentially dangerous for its fundamentalist continuation. The third interpretation views post-secularism as the natural, self-generated continuation and/or development of secularism; the so-called “New Enlightenment”, which due to its unreligious religiosity and extreme relativism devalues the reviving sacred, originating either its transformation from the traditional religiosity to somewhat ecumenical, or the emergence of something new, in essence, pseudo-transcendent, which would be the final victory of the secular. Actualization of the possibility of choice and the choice itself between transcendence and pseudo-transcendence is the essence of the phenomenon of post-secularism.

Keywords: religious resurgence, secularization, fundamentalism, dialogue of civilizations, the New Enlightenment, counter-secularization, desecularization, post-secularism, post-atheism, clash of civilizations

Abstract: The existing representation of juxtaposition of the religious literature of the late Middle Ages and contemporary to it university philosophy requires clarification. It is particularly difficult to draw this boundary in texts of the tradition of the so-called "German mysticism". This question is discussed on the basis of the German-language work “The Mystical Treatise on the Mass and Its Effects in the Loving Soul” (Mystischer Traktat über die Messe und ihre Wirkungen in der minnenden Seele). The treatise has survived in several manuscripts of the late Middle Ages, the earliest of which is the manuscript Cgm 89 (BSB, München, near 1375). The conducted historical-philosophical analysis of the selected passages of the anonymous treatise on the Mass indicates the presence of complex combination of stylistically diverse fragments consisting of rearrangement of topoi that belong to both scholastic and religious literature of the late Middle Ages. In enunciation of the doctrine of the Eucharist, the author of the treatise resorts to metaphorical language, description of personal experience of the church sacrament. At the same time, the text identifies the references to Aristotle's treatise "On the Soul" used by the author as the philosophical foundation to describe the process of connecting the soul to God. The conclusion is made that the anonymous treatise on the Mass testifies inappropriateness of rigid juxtaposition of the traditions of religious literature and scholastic philosophy, which still can be encountered in the overall description of the Medieval intellectual culture.

Keywords: Tegernsee, soul, Aristotle, treatise on the mass, Christian mystics, scholasticism, spiritual literature, German mystics, medieval philosophy, Eucharist

Abstract: The subject of this research is the approach of S. L. Frank towards the study of the religious-mystical experience of Christianity based on the conceptual matrix of "wise ignorance" and phenomenological method, which underlies the metaphysical system in his philosophy of religion. The authors examine in the specificity of philosophical mysticism of S. L. Frank and points of its intersection with the Christian religious-mystical experience. The unfolding of phenomenological approach to in-depth layers of the religious-mystical experience of Christianity means the functionality of philosophical reflection within the universal paradigm of Christianity, and thus, the characteristic archetype of religious-mystical experience. Special attention is given to the role of individual mystical-religious experiences of the philosopher and their rational categorization in creating his philosophical system. The main conclusions lie in theoretical provisions that Frank's philosophy of religion, outlined by him as a philosophical mystical theology, became the platform for the apophatic model of "wise ignorance", which led to theoretical reflection of the profound layers of not only mystical-philosophical, but also the religious-mystical experience of Christianity. The authors’ contribution lies in substantiation of the statement that the peculiarity of mystical-theological phenomenology of S. L. Frank is that it represents a version of contemplative mysticism and cannot be viewed as a special philosophical reflection on the diversity of Christian mysticism and the model of Christian mystical theology, which in no way detracts from the interdisciplinary nature of generalizations of the philosopher. The novelty of this article consists in explication of the philosophy of religion of S. L. Frank as a system of conceptual representations, which based on the model of apophatic "sophisticated ignorance", reflects the essential component (archetype) of the Christian religious-mystical experience underlying its diversity and divergence.

Keywords: apophaticism, transcendence, God, phenomenology, Frank, religious mysticism, philosophy of religion, religious faith, Orthodoxy, Christianity

Abstract: The paper investigates the characteristics of cultural identity comprehension in China in the early 20th century, with a special emphasis on the impact of Oswald Spengler's "The Decline of the West" on this comprehension. There are multiple mentions of Spengler in the articles and essays of Chinese students who studied in Germany in the early 1920s; by the 1930s, his philosophical ideas had served as a basis for the emerging Chinese cultural concepts. Chinese universities featured “The Decline of the West” as a subject of lectures and even separate courses. Later works on Chinese modern history mention that the publication of "The Decline of the West" appears near as important as the end of World War I. This paper analyzes why Spengler's Eurocentric concept resonated so strongly with Chinese culture, and what kind of discourse can be used for analyzing this resonance within the framework of the philosophy of culture. The paper suggests that there was a multidimensional influence of "The Decline of the West" on Chinese approach to culture. On the one hand, the mere fact that Spengler’s theory could spring from Western philosophical tradition was significant to Chinese intellectuals. By 1920s China had been gradually abandoning its strategy of radical Westernization of Chinese society, and the "The Decline of the West" validated the idea of "Chinese culture" as an autonomous entity. On the other hand, the conceptual complex of Spengler’s ideas was also integrated in Chinese thought. The paper looks specifically into this type of integration which is rooted in the unique nature of Chinese philosophical tradition. It proves that despite the fragmented and to a large extent intuitive blending of Spengler's morphology of culture into Chinese philosophy, that kind of blending can still be viewed as a method of philosophy of culture. Oswald Spengler’s philosophical approach can therefore be reconceptualized through the lens of non-Western philosophical traditions, with further prospects of its application in postcolonial research.

Keywords: cultural consciousness, Chinese culture, history of China, Spengler, The Decline of the West, philosophy of history, Chinese philosophy, philosophy of culture, cultural form, philosophical reception

Abstract: Military technologies developed on the basis of transhumanistic ideas on the possibility of designing a human with given physical, mental, intellectual and other qualities that are able to influence the content of armed struggle in modern military conflicts. Biotechnological expansions and technical interventions in the physicality of military officers, on the one hand reduce the individual risk during combat operations, significantly increase functional indicators of the body, and maintain stable mental state; while on the other hand, increase the probability of application of military force and pose urgent social, anthropological and ethical problems. The subject of this research is the aspects of military activity associated with the projects of biotechnological expansion of the capabilities of the military. The article aims to assess the degree of impact of transhumanistic ideas upon military activity, as well as outline the consequences of biotechnological intervention in the physicality of military officers The theoretical-methodological framework leans on the systemic analysis; views of B. G. Yudin, P. D. Tishchenko and O. V. Popova on biotechnological improvement of a human. The scientific novelty lies in the statement that human is reasonably considered the weakest link in functionality of the complex military-technical systems; based on this factor and the effect from the growing NBIC-convergence, military science contributes to the rapid growth of projects on biotechnological improvement of the military. Biotechnological design of "soldier of the future" is justified by the desire to achieve military-technological superiority over the potential enemy. The advanced research in this area are carried out by scientific organizations of the US Department of Defense and are mostly secret. In this regard, there is no grounds to believe that the developers of military technologies, relying solely on pragmatic reasons of combat effectiveness, would not cross the fine line that separates human improvement and transmutation. The accompanying risks are critical, unpredictable changes in the military affairs and the nature of armed struggle. The constraining measures imply the development of international standards of human improvement for military purposes.

Keywords: convergent technologies, NBIC technologies, NBIC convergence, military activities, human enhancement, biotechnologies, biotechnological design, transhumanism, bioethics, DARPA