Word as a philosophical and mythological-religious concept

The article deals with mythological, religious and philosophical aspects of the concept Word that form its inner content. The Word is one of the most significant notions inherent to all cultures as the word is the main tool of cognition and expressing thought, as well as communication. The article identifies three major levels of interpretation of the concept Word: mythological, religious, and philosophical. On the mythological level, the word is perceived as a magical and sacred entity, capable of creation or destruction, having a power to impact man and nature. Examples from Vedic, Zoroastrian, Slavic, and Uzbek linguocultures demonstrate that spoken words, names, and sacred speech formulas function as instruments of transformation and communication with supernatural powers. From the positions of Philosophy, Word being correlated with the ancient Greek notion of Logos (Heraclitus, Plato, the Stoics) is interpreted as an “idea” identical with being itself. The ideas of ancient philosophers laid the foundation for the religious interpretation of the Word, according to which the Divine Word is the creative principle of the world through which the act of creation is carried out. The study concludes that the concept Word serves as a fundamental cultural category reflecting the unity synthesizing different mythological and religious senses and meanings. The analysis of complex, multi-layered structure of this concept necessitates a multidisciplinary approach, integrating the data of linguistics, philosophy, theology, and cultural studies.

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