“Ne geroy, a samyy obyknovennyy chelovek…” (Litovskiy period zhizni L. P. Kar-savina)

Abstract

By means of the analysis of the correspondence between the members of L. P. Karsavin’s family the author proves that the Lithuanian period of the philosopher’s life was the result of his own choice made under the influence of the unfavourable circumstances. It is shown that in Lithuania Karsavin had to face a lot of unpleasant problems, such as the irreverent attitude of his colleagues – religious philosophers to him, lack of attention to those ideas that were important for him, no response to his published works, intellectual and spiritual loneliness. Karsavin was so keenly and deeply worried about this fact that shortly after his moving to provincial Kaunas, he stopped to develop his metaphysics and returned to it only after his arrest in 1949. The letters from Karsavin’s wife let us know how nervous and exhausted the philosopher was at that time being unable to find people educated enough to talk to and discuss his ideas with. To make things worse, there were no reviews or even mentions concerning his published articles and books in the Lithuanian press. All this does not coincide with what is usually told and written about the Lithuanian period of Karsavin’s life, even by some researchers of standing reputation. It is concluded that to understand the real circumstances of the philosopher’s life in the “Lithuanian exile” is necessary to better realize the significance of his activity for the Russian and Lithuanian cultures.