Introduction. Strannichestvo is one of the most ancient phenomena of Russian culture which took on peculiar forms and filled with various meanings in each particular era. It begins to develop in the XI – XII centuries due to the appearance in the Slavic Christianizing culture of such an occurrence as pilgrimage. Russian people are committed to two different trends in behavioral practices – sedentary and wandering that organically symbiose with each other. The simultaneous existence at the two opposite poles of being gives the Russian mentality unique features and explains the increased interest of researchers in it. Moreover, the studies themselves belong to various fields of knowledge: philosophy, linguistics, cultural studies, aesthetics, art criticism, theology and psychology, filling this concept with specific content. This situation necessitates an analytical review of understanding the word strannichestvo.

Methodology and methods. The work was carried out using the methods of continuous sampling, thematic analysis and identification of semantic dominants. All information on the topic was summarized and distributed in accordance with the interaction between various aspects of the phenomenon under consideration. At that, a discursive analysis was used, which made it possible to trace the perception of a concept in the framework of the discourse that generated it. The main tool in this case is discursive analysis, which suggests that the phenomenon of culture is considered in the framework of the discourse that generates it.

Research Results and Discussion. Strannichestvo belongs to one of the constants of the Russian language and culture. As with many realities that are specific to one country and lacunar to the rest, there is no complete equivalent to denote it in other languages. Russian-English ABBYY Lingvo dictionaries offer the following synonyms for the word strannichestvo. Wandering – travel aimlessly from place to place, without any clear destination (wandering tourists, a band of wandering musicians). Travel – to go from one place to another on a trip, usually over a long distance (She enjoys traveling around Europe.) Pilgrimage – a journey to a place of particular interest or significance (a private pilgrimage to family graves, a pilgrimage to the famous racing circuit). Walking – the activity of taking walks for exercise or pleasure, especially in the country (go on walking tours, a walking holiday). Vagrancy – a way of life in which someone moves a lot from place to place because they have no permanent home or job, and have to ask for or steal things in order to live.

According to R.A. Burkhanov, in Western European languages there is no word that is fully adequate to the Russian word strannichestvo. Its main analogue comes from the Latin term “errare” (wander, roam, err), as, for example, in the French word “errer” or in the English word “errant”, derived from “err” (to make mistakes, to delude oneself), which is directly related to the terms “wandering” and “wanderer”. In German, this meaning is less obvious, but it is also present in words and phrases derived from “wander”, “wanderer”, “wander”, “wanderschaft” (Burkhanov, 2012: 8).

Considering the translation of article titles and keywords, one can see that most researchers are inclined to use wandering (N.V. Fedorova, E.A. Trofimova, M. Rodyan, L.M. Petrova, V.A. Maslova, L.I. Kirsanova) or pilgrimage (E.V. Logacheva, A.Yu. Ilyina, E.V. Ivanova, R.A. Burkhanov, L.V. Alekseeva, N. Litovchenko). Their choice of translation can presumably be explained by the fact that a dictionary entry wandering contains an example of using a combination a wandering preacher, and one of the definitions of pilgrimage sounds like If you make a pilgrimage to a holy place, you go there for a religious reason. In both cases, the words of the English language have a strictly confessional linkage. The word of the Russian language generally does not possess an indication of the connection between the action and the church as an obligatory component.

Even in the Russian language itself, the meaning of the word strannichestvo is constantly elusive depending on the era and the context of its use.

E. V. Ivanova (Ivanova, 2014), on the basis of historical dictionaries, studies the formation of the concept strannichestvo, the emergence of which she directly connects with the Christianization of Russia and the appearance of such a sociocultural phenomenon as pilgrimage in the country. The Dictionary of the Russian language of the 11th – 17th centuries defines travel through synonyms strannichestvo and stranstvo and gives examples of its use taken from the Archangel gospel of 1092 and the Life of Theodosius of the Caves in the Assumption collection of the 12th – 13th centuries. In the XVIII century, the Dictionary of the Russian Academy gives the strannichestvo and stranstvo though with the common definition travel to foreign lands but already in different dictionary entries. The researcher suggests that the idea of strannichestvo in the XII-XV centuries evolved thanks to travels to the Christian shrines of the Middle East. Similarly, to E.V. Ivanova, S.S. Ilyin (Ilyin, 2012: 38-39) analyzes and compares the meanings of the word strannichestvo in the dictionaries of various historical eras, namely: in the dictionary of V.I. Dal (XIX century) and S.I. Ozhegov (XX century). He concludes that V.I. Dal likens strannichestvo to pilgrimage and wandering, and S.I. Ozhegov describes the words strannik, wanderer and vagrant as absolute synonyms. According to the scientist, although these words, like a number of other words of the modern Russian language, are associated with the concept of the road, their semantics and pragmatics can differ significantly. From this position, he delimits the meanings of such words as strannik, exile, traveler and emigrant. Pursuing the same goal, E. V. Falenkova (Falenkova, 2013) compares strannichestvo to pilgrimage, wandering, vagrancy and parasitism, and N. V. Fedorova, in addition to them, with creative searches and romantic journeys of the spirit (Fedorova, 2019: 45). Similar work with dictionaries is also carried out by T. V. Makarova and V. A. Kryzhanovskaya (Makarova, Kryzhanovskaya, 2018), V. Yu. Korovin (Korovin, 2009) and some other researchers of the Russian strannichestvo.

When analyzing the semantics of the word strannichestvo, E. Lassan refers to the concept of the road, trying to prove that movement without a clearly defined goal is an archetypal feature of Russian consciousness, where it is the movement process itself that is valuable. In her opinion, this movement without the intention to reach a certain point and complete the way is Russian strannichestvo, when people do not go somewhere, but leave something (Lassan, 2008). I. V. Konyreva comprehends strannichestvo as a keening model of behavior characteristic of crisis eras, which in particular is the historical transition from the Middle Ages to the New Age. She establishes that the individual bearers of the traditions of keening, along with professional mourners, were holy fools and Kaliki-passers, who served as mediators between the church and the people, between the Orthodox and pagan segments of the Russian culture (Konyreva, 2003).

At the same time E.V. Falenkova ranks strannichestvo and pilgrimage to independent original forms of personal self-identity, occupying a separate socio-cultural niche in the life of society and supported by individual’s religious mentality (Falenkova, 2013: 3). N.V. Fedorova considers strannichestvo to be a possible way to overcome crisis situations, which is actualized in transition periods (Fedorova, 2019: 45). For V.A. Maslova it is a value, concept and image simultaneously, as it combines a spiritual and secular, aesthetic and mental essence (Maslova, 2015: 29).

The identification of synonyms, the study of their semantic similarities and differences allowed researchers to single out the following meanings inherent in the word strannichestvo.

1. Relocation for the performance of religious rites (pilgrimage).

2. Constant aimless movement as a way of life (wandering, vagrancy, parasitism, hoboism).

3. Local movement as a change in situation (travel).

4. Movement under the influence of external circumstances (exile, emigration).

5. Movement as a spiritual development (doing), creative search.

Below each of the presented meanings is considered in more detail.

Relocation for the performance of religious rites (pilgrimage). Philology and cultural studies are characterized by two understandings of the phenomenon of pilgrimage – narrow and wide. In a narrow sense, pilgrimage is a journey that is made in order to worship religious shrines. In a broad sense, pilgrimage is a journey that has undeniable spiritual fulfillment and is performed with the goal of worshiping the Creator of all things (Raskina, 2009: 113). A.Yu. Ilyina, referring to A.V. Nazarenko, gives the etymology of the word pilgrim in Russian as a direct borrowing of the Middle Latin palmarius (palm, overgrown with palm trees). The word penetrates into the Old Russian language closer to the middle of the 12th century, when the pilgrimage movement to the Holy Land intensified sharply after the formation of the Latin Kingdom of Jerusalem. Pilgrims brought a branch of palm to their homeland, so over time they received the generalized name of palomniki (pilgrims) (Ilyina, 2014: 8). R.A. Burkhanov gives a similar etymology of the word, writing that the palm branch served for the pilgrims as a reminder of those palm branches with which the people met Christ at the entrance to Jerusalem (Burkhanov, 2012: 8). Unlike strannichestvo, pilgrimage is a journey for the purpose of communion with the Absolute through the worship of the shrine. The essence of the pilgrimage is expressed through the semantic layer of the sacred category: the pilgrimage ritual is performed in the coordinates of the sacred space and time and implements the spiritual “vertical” relationship of man with the world. Pilgrimage rituals of different cultures and eras reveal their typical features in the target setting (communion with God through veneration of shrines), in terms of content (sacred ideas for society) and in terms of expression (a complex of symbolic languages and a stable composition) (Burkhanov, 2012: 8). According to L.V. Alekseeva, Russian pilgrimage tradition is a unique manifestation of the living Orthodox faith. Pilgrimage differs from other types of travels, first of all, by its value content and spiritual essence. It is connected with the dogmatic system of Orthodoxy (Alekseeva, 2016: 225). A.Yu. Ilyina adds that the Orthodox pilgrimage is a brilliant demonstration of the openness of the Orthodox culture, the absolute sincerity of intentions. The soteriological meaning of pilgrimage consists in fellowship with God, fellowship with the shrine; it acts as a path to salvation (Ilyina, 2014: 7). In this sense, the word pilgrimage fully coincides with one of the connotations of the word strannichestvo, perhaps that is why they interchange each other in the work of E.Yu. Raskina, who explores N.S. Gumilyov’s spiritual wandering in the context of pilgrimage literature. However, strannichestvo differs from wandering to sacred places as it does not know the ultimate goal in the sociophysical space. A strannik differs from pilgrims because the route of the latter is laid from one particular point to another. Earthly roads direct a strannik, who sets himself the task of self-improvement, into a certain spiritual reality (Korovin, 2009: 139). In addition, stranniki, unlike pilgrims, do not know the purpose of their journey within this life (Fedorova, 2019: 44).

Constant aimless movement as a way of life (wandering, vagrancy, parasitism). Distinguishing the concepts of strannichestvo, wandering and vagrancy is a difficult task, because their semantic relationships are looped (Ilyin, 2012: 38). The everyday meaning of the word wanderer evokes associations with frequent and unplanned moving, changes in work and place of residence; the metaphorical use of the word strannik implies the same meanings (Ilyin, 2012: 39). Referring to V.V. Vinogradov, S.S. Ilyin believes that the etymology of the word wanderer is associated with its book use. It is an artificial literary and book formation that arose not earlier than the 16th century (Ilyin, 2012: 39). The word vagrancy has negative, criminal connotations, as vagabonds, the down-and-outs, wander from place to place in search of “profitable” places where honey rivers flow to please them (Korovin, 2009: 138). They live at someone else’s expense, live off the labour of others, doing nothing themselves, that is, they are parasites. Thus, wandering in Russia became ambiguous: it is both a form of true religiosity, and a form of hypocrisy, parasitism (Ilyinskaya, 2008: 110). In part, the strannik is the same vagabond, but the first takes spiritual, vital or existential value from his wandering, and the second is the hostage of circumstances (Fedorova, 2019: 43). At the same time N.I. Ilyinskaya claims that wandering is polar in axiology of strannichestvo, it is marked extremely negatively and is an analogue of abandonment by God (Ilyinskaya, 2008: 111). D.B. Dorofeev thinks that a strannik from a vagabond can be distinguished by the ability to voluntarily and organically accept in themselves those special forms of the action of time and space that sprout in the process of strannik’s life and constitute it (Dorofeev, 2010: 84). T.V. Makarova and V.A. Kryzhanovskaya differentiate the meanings of the words strannik and wanderer on the following grounds: a) the reason for this lifestyle (perhaps, strannik’s desire to wander around the world and wanderer’s having no home); b) the presence of a target (a strannik, unlike a wanderer, may have a goal); c) a person’s attitude to the house (a strannik may dislike his home, a wanderer yearns for it); d) the internal state of man (a strannik is free, a wanderer is submissive to fate); e) the speaker’s attitude to this person (the word wanderer implies compassion) (Makarova, Kryzhanovskaya, 2018: 116).

Local movement as a change in situation (travel). According to V.A. Maslova, strannichestvo is, first of all, a travel, which is a biological condition for the existence of mankind, since free movement in search of food is the most important way of human life (Maslova, 2015: 26). However, moving with the tribe (within the collective) and moving towards a known or unknown goal alone are two different strategies for cultural being. In the first case, the individual remains “at home” (among his own); the second situation is the result of exile (forced or voluntary) and acts as the main cultural scenario. Thus, travel is one of the main cultural subjects that arose in antiquity and retained its relevance in our era (Korovin, 2009: 136). Among travelers V.Yu. Korovin distinguishes two figures: a tourist fixed on the object of a tourist trip and a strannik whose purpose of travel is connected with the process of movement itself. Unlike a strannik, a tourist is more likely to seek new impressions than philosophical meanings (Korovin, 2009: 138). According to A.Yu. Ilyina, the worldview that determines modern tourism is characterized by the following features: exotic appears as Other, distant lands as Infinity, antiquity as Eternity, novelty as Knowledge, incomprehensible as Truth, ancient as Wisdom, diversity as Beauty, pleasure as Blessing, wonder as Miracle, joy as Grace (Ilyina, 2014: 10). Traveling is possible in conditions of increased comfort, that is, a traveler can get to the destination without any difficulties and inconveniences (Ilyin, 2012: 42). The image of the traveler is not connected with the lack of his attachment to the house, which is a characteristic feature of the strannik (Ilyin, 2012: 42). For stranniki, their home was no longer a vital value, and their personal living space was no longer embodied in the sense of a specific place of stay. The whole country became such a living space (Alekhina, 2010: 32-33). O.V. Golotvina connects the concept of homelessness with such qualities of a Russian character as eternal dissatisfaction with existing things and striving for a pipe dream. It is a state of a person experiencing a spiritual crisis that has arisen as a result of a historical and social breakdown and the erosion of traditional national values. Initially, this concept was characterized not so much by a material sign of the absence of walls and roof, wandering, loss of hope and longing, as by the metaphysical homelessness of the homeowner, his godlessness, and lack of spirituality and loss of tradition (Golotvina, 2018: 17).

Movement under the influence of external circumstances (exile, emigration, expatriation). V.Yu. Korovin believes that strannichestvo is closest to the concept of migration, which indicates the movement of people (both within the country and crossing its borders) associated with a change of place of residence (Korovin, 2009: 137). Alienation from home is present in Russian culture, in addition to the forms listed above, in such forms as emigration and expatriation. Emigrants, people who were forced to leave their home, V.Yu. Korovin classifies as “poor against their will” (the victims of the routs and fires, pestilences and famine) and the “unfortunate fugitives” (people, oppressed and offended by relatives; landless peasants; victims of evil people; freaks, cripples and blind people). An expatriate is a person who finds himself outside the homeland of his own free will, but does not have the goal of settling there. These include pragmatic wanderers (coachmen and tradesmen who do not want to peasant; seafarers and other seekers of new lands; merchants seeking to acquire wealth) and intellectual wanderers (voyagers traveling by land or sea to different places and countries most often with the purpose of obtaining education) (Korovin, 2009: 137). Emigration is not strannichestvo either, if a person who has left his homeland integrates into another culture, adds S.S. Ilyin (Ilyin, 2012: 42). Exile is either forced rejection (the other side of enslavement) or the search for happiness in another culture due to the inability of the individual to change the world around him (Ilyin, 2012: 42). A person who has abandoned his native land, a habitable place due to negative circumstances or repression and for this reason forced to wander, cannot be called a strannik. Strannichestvo does not involve sacrifice, coercion; a strannik is a man of thinking and action, not of a psyche and ordinary reaction (Ilyina, 2014: 9). Strannichestvo without faith, without God is a meaningless movement under the influence of external circumstances, but not one's own choice, will and mission of asceticism (Fedorova, 2019: 43). The traveler and émigré are brought together by a belief that somewhere in the real geographic space there is a certain semblance of an “ideal island” which he is deprived of in the present situation. At the same time, the alienation of a traveler is not accompanied by a special experience of the melancholy feeling of losing his beloved object. He is in constant search of the most reliable and authentic, often creating, on the basis of what he saw, a mythological image of an earthly “paradise” or “hell”, which he will seek or repel in retrospect (Korovin, 2009: 138).

Movement as a spiritual development (doing), creative search. If the first four of the above types of strannichestvo, recorded by lexicographical sources, are reflected in the collective consciousness of the Russian people, spiritual development is to a greater extent formed in the individual consciousness of its most significant representatives. Therefore, in the scientific circulation there is a great deal of studies devoted to spiritual strannichestvo presented in the works of writers, poets, musicians, singers, painters.

Artists not only fix the stages of their spiritual searches, but also create images that duplicate their wandering aspirations. A sign by which a wanderer can be identified with a great measure of accuracy is not only his following the chosen path, but also his appearance. So, in the early lyrics of S.A. Yesenin, as indicated by E.V. Logacheva, these signs are miserable robes and unpretentious things that embody the poet’s ideas about Christ’s earthly path and people asking for mercy in his name: a holey undercoat, a discoloured armiak, birch bark bast shoes, a crook and a bag (Logacheva, 2017: 32). Similarly looks the old pilgrim Poyarkov, to whom P.I. Melnikov-Pechersky gives features that bring him closer to the images of the holy monks described in hagiographic literature: an ashen-colored face, hair gray as moon, a worn frock coat, a knapsack over his shoulders, a walking stick (Alekseeva, 2016: 231). Although the appearance of the elders Mardarius and Varlaam does not correspond to the traditional image, this does not bother Grisha, who is touched by the ostentatious piety of the wanderers (Alekseeva, 2016: 229), that is, the determining criterion is still not their appearance, but their behavior. It is it that M.V. Nesterov reflects in his paintings, where humble and ascetic wanderers, full of selfless love, prayerfully teach and awe the surrounding nature (Trofimova, 2014: 241). Peace and quiet, the mysterious touch of the divine and the mood of bright joy become the embodiment of universal love. Each of the characters is not in an amorphous indefinite space, but at a specific point corresponding to one or another stage of the way.

E.V. Falenkova considers the concept of spiritual strannichestvo on the basis of the works of L.N. Tolstoy. She reveals that Tolstoy’s model of strannichestvo appears as a strategy of the hero’s way, the spatial movement of whom is caused by the realization that independence from his social environment can only be achieved by moving away from it. During the journey, the hero goes through three stages: degradation, transfiguration and resurrection. The first and second stages are the literary character’s loss of the purport of life and its search; the third is comprehension of his earthly destiny and acquisition of inner freedom (Falenkova, 2013: 12). The spiritual strannichestvo of the character from N. S. Leskov’s story “Peacock” goes a slightly different way. But just like that of L. N. Tolstoy, he comes to the understanding that the meaning of life is love for his neighbor and, therefore, for God. L. M. Petrova (Petrova, 2015) distinguishes the following stages of Peacock’s spiritual development: from illusory freedom and the realization of his superiority over others – through the temptation of vain passion and sinful fall – to repentance and humility. At the same time, Leskov assigns a special role in the internal purification of man to suffering. Writers B. K. Zaitsev and I. S. Shmelev introduce the concept of spiritual strannichestvo into the sphere of church life, thus expanding its artistic boundaries. According to N.V. Lau (Lau, 2011), in their works, gaining faith most often occurs through the character’s love for his neighbor, as in previous cases, but unlike them, this is only the first step on the way of his moral formation. Along this path, wanderers are confronted with religious miracles, sorrows, temptations, and repentance that help strengthen their faith. Fundamentally important, all this time they are under the guidance of an experienced mentor.

Another feature of Russian strannichestvo is associated with the “emotional experience” of space. Although a literary text reproduces space as an objective category, its representation in each case is unique, as it reveals the originality of the subjective worldview of its author.

For example, N.S. Gumilev conceptualizes space as a form of being (a certain principle of the world); as a spiritual reality (other being) and as an earthly world (the realm of the physical and the sensual) (Shantalina, 2006: 253). These types of space in his poetry do not deny each other; moreover, they interact with each other. Thus, as S.M. Karpenko writes, Gumilev expands the boundaries of geographical space, which is already endless, distant and unexplored, with the areas of spirit’s being, in which both the vectors of the movement of thought and the vectors of the movement of the soul are represented (Karpenko, 2004: 29). Unlike Gumilyov, I.A. Brodsky places his lyrical hero in a horizontal space composed of things such as a chair, a mirror, a square, a fountain, a violin, a plaster bust, and so on. For him they have all the attributes of the subject: they can change, enhance the perception of the world, or convey meanings (Kirsanova, 2012: 41). I. A. Romanov emphasizes that Brodsky’s lyrical hero is a marginal whose alienation from society is revealed through the motive of strannichestvo; he is an eternal wanderer suffering in a foreign environment (Romanov, 2004: 80). Brodsky’s strannichestvo passes along the plane “forward or left, backward, but not upward” (Kirsanova, 2012: 44). E. Lassan, on the contrary, speaks of the universal orientation of the Russian soul “to the vertical plane”, characterizing its desire to get into a fundamentally different, transcendental world (Lassan, 2008: 219). Such a soul has Father Matthew from L. M. Leonov’s novel “Pyramid” (1994), because he comprehends the circuit of things in the Universe, and this planetary awareness of reality, expanding space to the dimensions of the universe, leads him on a path to infinity (Bondarenko, 2009: 94). Understanding of strannichestvo as a derivative of cosmism was laid long before Leonov in the Russian culture of the Silver Age (Trofimova, 2014: 236). E. A. Trofimova proves that in spiritual strannichestvo N. K. Roerich saw the ability of man to ever problematize himself and his place in the Universe. On his canvases, the image of the wanderer is connected with “silver threads” with horizons, distances, celestial architecture and the macrocosm (Trofimova, 2014: 243).

The concept of space is inextricably linked with the concepts of the way and road, between which a reference identity is often established, since their difference is manifested only in metaphorical use (Lassan, 2008: 212). As M. B. Krasilnikova supposes, N. V. Gogol was the first in classical Russian literature to set the motive for the road, which in his works is endowed with a special artistic and semantic load, combining spatial and temporal coordinates in the image of the whole Russia (Krasilnikova, 2008: 203). For the writer, the road is important in itself as a symbol of the transition from one place in space or state to another. E. Lassan hypothesizes that in Soviet times the idea of the road as a movement without a clearly defined reference point was widely used for ideological purposes. So, to build communism, it was necessary to go to it, as to a shining peak, but the timing of its achievement remained somewhere in the boundless future (Lassan, 2008: 215). To prove her point of view, the scientist gives an essay on the songs of the 20-60s of the last century, conveying the named idea. Later, as if in corroboration, though with the undoubted protest component of rock poetry and the active assertion of its position in the new sociocultural space, the metal group Black Obelisk (1986-1997) perceives the road as the meaning of its own existence. In many poems by its leader Anatoly Krupnov, the beginning and end of the wanderer’s path coincide, so that the starting point also turns out to be the goal of the movement (Ilyin, 2011: 253). Similar parallels “way – movement” and “way – creativity” are distinguished in the associative-semantic field of N. Gumilev’s poems by S.M. Karpenko (Karpenko, 2004: 28).

The movement of a person through various types of space turns into myth-making. All collections of A. Bely, according to N. Litovchenko (Litovchenko, 2016), can be taken as a single meta-text, the dominant feature of which is strannichestvo. Having overcome the long spiritual way, the lyrical hero of the poet finds a solution to his main life task: how to open and transform the world in himself and around him. This problem is consonant with the eschatological motive prevailing in the religious consciousness of A. Bely. At that, the symbolist poet uses mythology, which, in his opinion, contributes to the transformation of the world. M. Rodyan (Rodyan, 2015) shows that in his work M. A. Voloshin also relies on the plots of ancient mythology, biblical tales and medieval legends; in particular, she calls the legend of Cain and the legend of the Eternal Jew. Voloshin’s understanding of strannichestvo expands to relentless inner anxiety and the search for his true self, which is characteristic of every person, regardless of the circumstances of the time in which he resides. Suffering cleans people of filth, and the search for God makes them strive to understand their destiny on earth. Mythology firmly holds its position in the work of poets of the XXI century. So, Yu. P. Kuznetsov’ poem “Descent into Hell” (2002) is written in the genre of vision, which combines mythology and modernity. The author, in the guise of a secret spectator, actualizes the image of a spiritual wanderer who, instead of arranging life on earth, seeks the City of Heaven and does not calm down until he finds God and unites with him (Ilyinskaya, 2008). The transition to the sacred level is carried out through initiation, bringing a person into the borderline state between life and death, which is either a dream or a vision.

The concept of strannichestvo at the modern stage of language development. Although the word strannichestvo, according to the Explanatory Dictionary of D. N. Ushakov (1935-1940), was obsolete in the last century, it is understandable and familiar in the XXI century, even though it acquired some new meanings over time. Due to cardinal technical and social changes, modern man has significantly increased opportunities for movement. According to E. A. Trofimova, travel has become a form of consumption due to the increased comfort zone, pushing strannichestvo with its risks and adversities into the background and leaving it for the homeless (Trofimova, 2014: 236).

At present, in place of a single type of strannichestvo come its specialized manifestations, each of which reveals a single feature of the once unified semantic complex. For example, L. G. Melnikova believes escapism to be a modern strannichestvo, which she understands more as building a communicative barrier between a person and society than immersing in a fictional world invented by an escapist (Melnikova, 2008: 80). She divides the types of strannichestvo into truly religious and feignedly virtuous; forced and actively social, but each of them is both a physical and mental going away; moreover, they are all real. A peculiar form of escapism is a psychological dependence, in particular, gaming, considered by L.G. Melnikova as an escape to virtuality, because it allows players to experience sensations unattainable in real life. The network information and communication society has generated yet another new phenomenon – digital nomadism. As noted by I.N. Terentyeva, this novelty manifests itself in the escape of network nomads from the usual forms of sociality in order to achieve a higher level of freedom through the use of high-tech intermediaries in various types of communication with people (Terentyeva, 2017: 254). To recognize the inhabitants of network spaces and establish effective interaction with them, the researcher suggests drawing on the Russian experience in understanding a wanderer, a tramp, a rogue, and a fraudster. S.S. Ilyin, along with escapism, ranks stalking in the post-apocalyptic urban space as a modern form of strannichestvo. He draws attention to the fact that stalking has developed as a preparation for physical survival in extreme conditions, and its difficulties and dangers metaphorically emphasize the wanderer’s spiritual way (Ilyin, 2012: 43). The kinds of stalking varies depending on the objects: post-pilgrimage (visiting the destroyed religious buildings), digging (sallying forth in the subway, underground bunkers, sewers), roofing (climbing towers, power transmission pylon, mobile communication poles), infiltration (penetrating into areas not meant for people to stay). Thus, stalking received modern connotations thanks to Tarkovsky’s film which visually demonstrated a hero-stalker and seriously changed the character, bringing him closer to the Orthodox holy fools.

Though outward concrete, all these varieties of strannichestvo, according to researchers, are connected with categories of the highest order. L.L. Studen analyzes the development of Russian cosmism in the XX – XXI centuries as a daring attempt by man to cross not only the borders of the Earth, but also the borders of his own nature (Studen, 2010: 223). He chronologically sequentially compares two directions of this worldview: the technical, associated with rocket space navigation, and the occult, implying an energetic transmutation of man himself. The scientist comes to the conclusion that for interstellar flights that are impossible in the physical world, it is necessary to develop a technology for moving into the “thin” worlds, that is, two ways to conquer space must merge into one.

Conclusions. To conclude, strannichestvo is a complex multidimensional phenomenon in the Russian language and culture. Its complexity is manifested in the absence of clear boundaries in the semantic complex that this word denotes. Besides, some of its individual parts intersect with a whole series of concepts which are similar but not identical to it. The many-sidedness of strannichestvo has become its constant characteristic which splits its integrity into a mass of manifestations with mutually complementary and contrasting signs. The review shows that there is no single denominator for perceiving strannichestvo as a holistic phenomenon in research. With the same degree of activity it is studied in different fields of scientific knowledge. At the same time, one can confidently talk about a deepening trend towards a detailed analysis of the concept. This particularization outlines the actual parameters for evaluating the semantic complex, which can be perceived as its structural characteristics. These include: the perception of strannichestvo as tangible or spiritual, real or imaginary, with a confessional or social purpose, of one’s own free will or apart from it, along a known route or to new areas, with a plan or without it, with a purpose and without it. Any of them in each case is combined with the rest in various proportions. This situation necessitates a further analytical review of the concept of strannichestvo which will allow seeing it in its multifaceted integrity.