Gnostic heritage in the prose of D.S. Merezhkovsky
The article addresses the issue of Gnosticism of D.S. Merezhkovsky, as well as gives the opinion of critics, literary scholars and philosophers, some of whom support his Gnosticism (A.V. Amfiteatrov, S.K. Makowski, M.I. Lot-Borodina, E.K. Sozina,Ya.V. Sarychev), whilesomeothersdon’t (N. A. Berdyaev, V.V. Polonsky). The article analyzes the sources, that D.S. Merezhkovsky used for his novels “Julian the Apostate”, “The Resurrected gods (Leonardo da Vinci)” and for his treatise “Unfamiliar Jesus”. These are “Against heresies” by St. Irenaeus of Lyon, “Stromata” by St. Clement of Alexandria, “Adversus Valentinianos” and “Adversus Marcionem” by Tertullian, “Refutation of all heresies” by St. Hippolytus of Rome, “Commentary on the Gospel of John” and “Against Celsus” by Origen, “Panarion” by Epiphanius of Salamin, the Pistis Sophia treatise. It is concluded that the sources are used by Merezhkovskii in order to create a “cultural background” or a proof of his own ideas, not directly related to Gnosticism. The main characters of the writer are doubting people, for whom the truth is double. These characters are autobiographical. Gnostic myths, texts and arguments serve to Merezhkovsky as a material for his work, as a “cultural background” and as a source for his game of ideas and doubts in them.