There are different ways to relate to the legend of Atlantis. However, the fact that such serious people as Mikhail Lomonosov were interested in the problem of the disappeared ancient civilization, and with his submission, the Russian Minister of Education Abraham Norov, gives reason to think.
And many wondered. Only in Russia and the USSR these are poets and writers Vasily Kapnist, Dmitry Merezhkovsky, Valery Bryusov, Vasily Rozanov, Vyacheslav Ivanov, Alexey Tolstoy, Alexander Belyaev …
Preface to the new edition of the book by Doctor of Chemistry, Professor Nikolai Zhirov “Atlantis. The main problems of atlantology”(M., 2004) written by Doctor of Geological and Mineralogical Sciences, Professor, Chief Researcher of the Institute of Oceanology named after P. P. Shirshov RAS Alexander Gorodnitsky.
And for more than 11 years in Russia there has been an organization ROIPA - the Russian Society for the Study of Atlantis Problems. What kind of problems are these? In an interview with journalist Nikolai DOROZHKIN, the historian, culturologist, philosopher, member of the interdisciplinary research group "Origins of Civilizations", President of the ROIPA Georgy NEFEDIEV tells about this.
Georgy Vladimirovich, tell us more about ROIPA - the organization you are heading
- The community of like-minded people dealing with the problem of Atlantis and other ancient civilizations, whose existence is being questioned by historical science, first emerged in Moscow in the early 90s of the last century. At its foundation stood, for example, such writers and scientists as Alexander Kazantsev, Alexander Gorodnitsky, Vladimir Shcherbakov, Alim Voitsekhovsky, the editor-in-chief of the Master newspaper Gennady Maksimovich …
The community was created under the auspices of the then popular magazine "Miracles and Adventures". The editor-in-chief of this publication, well-known journalist Vasily Zakharchenko, and other employees of the magazine provided substantial assistance. Initially, this group of researchers took shape as the Moscow Mystery Club.
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From 1999 to 2002, the community published its own printed organ - the almanac "Atlantis: Problems, Searches, Hypotheses", which published historical and other research in atlantology, in particular information about research and expeditionary projects. Published three issues. It was this almanac that managed to become the consolidating body around which many famous scientists, specialists in various fields of science rallied.
And on June 16, 2000, the 1st Congress of Atlantologists took place in Moscow. Mainly organizational issues were resolved on it. Science fiction writer, president of the Moscow club of secrets, candidate of technical sciences Vladimir Shcherbakov was unanimously named the leader of the Atlantological movement in Russia.
The next step in the formation of the Russian Atlantological movement was the formation on April 25, 2003 of the Russian Society for the Study of the Problems of Atlantis (ROIPA), whose president was Alexander Voronin (1954-2012). The creation of such a society in the history of Russian science was carried out for the first time and was hardly possible without the selfless work of Alexander Alexandrovich Voronin - a real seeker and romantic, selflessly devoted to his dream.
And already on May 22, 2003 in Moscow at the Institute of Oceanology of the Russian Academy of Sciences. P. P. Shirshov, the II Russian Congress of Atlantologists was held. For the first time, a forum of this scale and thematic focus was held within the walls of an academic institute.
The congress was dedicated to the 100th anniversary of the birth of the outstanding Russian atlantologist and chemist Nikolai Feodosyevich Zhirov. His book Atlantis. The main problems of atlantology”, first published in 1964, still remains the world's only fundamental scientific work on this topic.
Zhirov was the first to define some goals and objectives of an unrecognized science based and developing at the intersection of many disciplines. On the initiative of Alexander Voronin, it was decided to create the Museum of Atlantis. N. F. Zhirova. ROIPA possesses a rich Atlantological library, extensive archival documents and materials about Zhirov and other Russian and foreign researchers of ancient civilizations.
It turns out that the creation of ROIPA was a step towards the recognition of atlantology as a science?
- Atlantologists have always stressed the importance of the official recognition of Atlantology as a science. And ROIPA from the moment of its foundation launched an active research work to find historical evidence and artifacts confirming the reality of the great civilizations. And the fact that there are many serious scientists, candidates and doctors of sciences among atlantologists also testifies: atlantology is a science!
What collections and scientific works does ROIPA publish?
- In 2004 ROIPA begins to edit and publish the book series "Library of Atlantis". The following books were published in it: N. F. Zhirov “Atlantis. The main problems of Atlantology "(2004), R. Devin, C. Berlitz" In Search of the Lost Continent "(2004), L. Seidler" The Great Catastrophe "(2004), A. A. Voronin "Sea colonies of Atlantis" (2004), D. Sora "Atlantis and the kingdom of giants" (2005).
In the book of Zhirov, Alexander Voronin first published the biography of its author “Zhirov is the founder of the science of atlantology. Through hardships - to Atlantis”. Later, several editions were published in new series, in which our colleagues took part: O. G. Muck "Heavenly sword over Atlantis" (2007), G. F. Wirth “Chronicle of Ur Linda. The oldest history of Europe”(2007), I. Donnelly“In the world of fire and sand”(2007), F. Joseph“The Surviving Atlanteans”(2008), A. A. Voronin “Treasures and relics of lost civilizations” (2010) and others. In the publishing portfolio of ROIPA there are still many manuscripts that await their potential publisher and thoughtful reader.
In 2005, at the XII Congress of the Russian Geographical Society (RGO), Professor Alexander Gorodnitsky made a report - "The Legend of Atlantis in the Light of Modern Scientific Data." And in 2006 at the Institute of World Literature. A. M. Gorky RAS, for the first time in Russia, a Ph. D. thesis was defended "The ancient myth of Atlanta and Atlantis: the experience of folkloristic consideration." The author of the work, Julia Kraiko, concludes that Plato's legend about Atlantis is an integral part of the ancient epic, which has archaic pre-Greek origins and originates in the far west.
As far as I know, the III Congress of Atlantologists was already international?
- It took place on November 26-27, 2007 at the Institute of Oceanography. P. P. Shirshov RAS. This forum brought together well-known researchers from all over Russia and a number of CIS countries. Professor Alexander Gorodnitsky, head of the Cosmopoisk association Vadim Chernobrov, full member of the Russian Geographical Society (RGO) Sergei Golubev and many others made reports at the congress.
The congress played a huge role in uniting Russian atlantologists, strengthening ties with foreign colleagues, scientific institutions, currently dealing with the problem of Atlantis in Russia and abroad. The forum was attended by the pilot-cosmonaut, twice Hero of the Soviet Union, Doctor of Physical and Mathematical Sciences Georgy Grechko, known for his interdisciplinary research.
Since the end of 2012, a new almanac "Kronos" has been published, dedicated mainly to Atlantis and other civilizations. To date, two issues have been released. They present the most interesting hypotheses and studies of domestic and foreign scientists. I note that in the last almanac, for 2014, seven original works of our Western colleagues were published.
ROIPA cooperates with the Laboratory of Alternative History and the Third Millennium Foundation. What are their achievements?
- Over the past decade, the Foundation has organized expeditions to various parts of the world to search for the remains of ancient cultures. During these expeditions, geographical points of the planet, interesting from the point of view of atlantology, were explored: Egypt, Mexico, Peru, Bolivia, Greece, Malta, Ethiopia, Japan, Easter Island …
There was obtained irrefutable evidence of the existence on our planet many millennia ago of a highly developed civilization (or a number of civilizations), which left numerous traces in the form of megalithic buildings, statues and other artifacts, on which traces of high-tech processing have been preserved. This civilization perished as a result of a planetary cataclysm that threw humanity for many millennia into a primitive state. To the few survivors of this catastrophe, the achievements of the antediluvian civilization began to seem to be the creations of "gods" whom they tried to imitate, not understanding their essence.
But is it possible to restore the lost principle of operation of some apparatus or mechanism, without having the production, information and social infrastructure supporting it? Perhaps, but only after many generations, when the scientific and technical potential of society will be restored to the lost level. Even now, with all the revolutionary discoveries of the last century, we are not able to answer the question of how the Egyptian pyramids were erected, the trilithons of Baalbek were delivered, or the polygonal masonry of structures in Peru was made.
What do you think prevents the official science from recognizing this as an inexplicable, but irrefutable fact? Why should it be hushed up or declared a pseudoscience?
- This is a very relevant and competent question. Is it only corporate scientific solidarity and ethics, fear of losing career prospects, losing high cathedral tribunes, being known as a charlatan and pseudo-scientist, hinder this recognition? Everything is much more complicated.
The recognition of the mere fact of the existence of pracivilization, which in many respects surpassed the modern one, puts an end to the whole interpretation of historical development that has been suggested to us almost from childhood as a progressive, progressive movement from a simple to a more complex one, as a linear process of an irreversible nature. Regression is allowed only for individual parts, but not for the entire sociocultural community. The spiral development of history, proved by the works of the classics from Hegel to Marx and confirmed by the works of Lev Gumilyov, still remains a taboo area.
Official recognition of this fact means revising the dominant linear paradigm and replacing it with a cyclic paradigm. All the factual material collected to date, a huge number of unexplained artifacts, theoretical developments and concepts work for this. At the junction of many fields of knowledge, the efforts of many researchers are practically realizing the old dream of romantic atlantologists about the recognition of the new interdisciplinary science of atlantology, which will eventually merge into the circle of academic scientific disciplines.
It will include the whole range of our knowledge, methodological approaches, research hypotheses about all the most ancient human civilizations - from Atlantis and Hyperborea to Lemuria and Pacifis. And even if this science does not yet have a single "general course". The main thing is that there is a tendency in it to systematize the accumulated knowledge, to reconstruct the true history of human civilization. And the creation of the Museum of Atlantis. N. F. Zhirov is necessary to preserve the Russian and world Atlantological heritage.
Research into prehistoric civilizations can, among other things, find out the reasons for their disappearance - anthropo- and technogenic, natural, cosmic. This knowledge will arm scientists, as it will make it possible to foresee and prevent such disasters. And these are already problems of a cosmic scale.