Vladimir Megre
Encyclopedia
Vladimir Megre (born 23 July 1950 in Chernigov
Oblast
in northern Ukraine) is a Siberian entrepreneur
from Novosibirsk
, and founder of the Anastasia/"Ringing Cedars" movement.
, in Sergiev Posad (then known as Zagorsk), just east of Moscow.
In the mid-1980s Megre was married, having a daughter (Polina) and living in Novosibirsk, where, like many other new Russian capitalists, he took advantage of Perestroika
and the subsequent collapse of the communist system to launch into an entrepreneurial career. He formed a number of commercial co-operatives
and by the late 1980s had leased a fleet of river steamer
s which plied the waters of the Ob River
north of Novosibirsk.
, where she revealed her philosophy on Man's relationship to Nature, the Universe and God, as well as lifestyle, education, nutrition, spirituality, love, family, sexual relations and other plants. These teachings became the basis for a series of best-selling books, The Ringing Cedars of Russia, first published in 1996. In ten years they sold over 10 million copies and have been translated into twenty languages.
with traditional, even conservative family values
, quite unlike the conventional hippie
alternative lifestyle. This is based on the idea of "kin estates" or self-sufficient family homesteads. Before the publication of the first book in the series, there were virtually no eco-villages in Russia. By June 5, 2004, eight years later, a conference of the Ringing Cedars Movement in Vladimir
, attracted delegates from over 150 eco-villages from across 48 of the 89 regions of Russia
Megré's ideas are similar to those of Russia's agricultural economist Alexander Chayanov
eighty years earlier, referring to harmonious relationship with nature based on sustainable rural settlements consisting of individual family-owned homesteads. Also like Chayanov, Megré presents his ideas in a novel
-like format. He admits using this strategy to minimize initial resistance to his writings.
In addition to Russia, Anastasia centers can be found in Australia, Belarus, Bulgaria, Canada, Croatia, Czech Republic, Germany, Ireland, Israel, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Latvia, Lithuania, Netherlands, New Zealand, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Switzerland, Tajikistan, Ukraine, United Kingdom, and the United States.
One New Age writer relates the Ringing Cedar books to the "great change" Edgar Cayce
prophesied for Russia.
Chernihiv
Chernihiv or Chernigov is a historic city in northern Ukraine. It is the administrative center of the Chernihiv Oblast , as well as of the surrounding Chernihivskyi Raion within the oblast...
Oblast
Oblast
Oblast is a type of administrative division in Slavic countries, including some countries of the former Soviet Union. The word "oblast" is a loanword in English, but it is nevertheless often translated as "area", "zone", "province", or "region"...
in northern Ukraine) is a Siberian entrepreneur
Entrepreneur
An entrepreneur is an owner or manager of a business enterprise who makes money through risk and initiative.The term was originally a loanword from French and was first defined by the Irish-French economist Richard Cantillon. Entrepreneur in English is a term applied to a person who is willing to...
from Novosibirsk
Novosibirsk
Novosibirsk is the third-largest city in Russia, after Moscow and Saint Petersburg, and the largest city of Siberia, with a population of 1,473,737 . It is the administrative center of Novosibirsk Oblast as well as of the Siberian Federal District...
, and founder of the Anastasia/"Ringing Cedars" movement.
Background
Little is known about Vladimir Megre's early life, apart from a few experiences he describes in his writings. One of these occurred in the 1960s when as a teenager he made periodic visits to a monk called Father Feodorit at the Trinity-Sergiev MonasteryTroitse-Sergiyeva Lavra
The Trinity Lavra of St. Sergius is the most important Russian monastery and the spiritual centre of the Russian Orthodox Church. The monastery is situated in the town of Sergiyev Posad, about 70 km to the north-east from Moscow by the road leading to Yaroslavl, and currently is home to...
, in Sergiev Posad (then known as Zagorsk), just east of Moscow.
In the mid-1980s Megre was married, having a daughter (Polina) and living in Novosibirsk, where, like many other new Russian capitalists, he took advantage of Perestroika
Perestroika
Perestroika was a political movement within the Communist Party of the Soviet Union during 1980s, widely associated with the Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev...
and the subsequent collapse of the communist system to launch into an entrepreneurial career. He formed a number of commercial co-operatives
Cooperative
A cooperative is a business organization owned and operated by a group of individuals for their mutual benefit...
and by the late 1980s had leased a fleet of river steamer
Steamboat
A steamboat or steamship, sometimes called a steamer, is a ship in which the primary method of propulsion is steam power, typically driving propellers or paddlewheels...
s which plied the waters of the Ob River
Ob River
The Ob River , also Obi, is a major river in western Siberia, Russia and is the world's seventh longest river. It is the westernmost of the three great Siberian rivers that flow into the Arctic Ocean .The Gulf of Ob is the world's longest estuary.-Names:The Ob is known to the Khanty people as the...
north of Novosibirsk.
Anastasia and the "Ringing Cedars" books
Megre claims to have met a mysterious young woman named Anastasia on the bank of the River Ob in 1994. She reportedly led him deep into the Siberian taigaTaiga
Taiga , also known as the boreal forest, is a biome characterized by coniferous forests.Taiga is the world's largest terrestrial biome. In North America it covers most of inland Canada and Alaska as well as parts of the extreme northern continental United States and is known as the Northwoods...
, where she revealed her philosophy on Man's relationship to Nature, the Universe and God, as well as lifestyle, education, nutrition, spirituality, love, family, sexual relations and other plants. These teachings became the basis for a series of best-selling books, The Ringing Cedars of Russia, first published in 1996. In ten years they sold over 10 million copies and have been translated into twenty languages.
Back to the Land
The Ringing Cedars series offers material about living close to the Earth in a village of Kin's domains by creating a 'Space of Love'. The books have become the basis for a Russian and increasingly worldwide back to the land movement based on the Russian tradition of self-reliant living on the land, providing physical subsistence and spiritual fulfillment. It is one of a number of such projects in Russia. The books and communities combine deep ecologyDeep ecology
Deep ecology is a contemporary ecological philosophy that recognizes an inherent worth of all living beings, regardless of their instrumental utility to human needs. The philosophy emphasizes the interdependence of organisms within ecosystems and that of ecosystems with each other within the...
with traditional, even conservative family values
Family values
Family values are political and social beliefs that hold the nuclear family to be the essential ethical and moral unit of society. Familialism is the ideology that promotes the family and its values as an institution....
, quite unlike the conventional hippie
Hippie
The hippie subculture was originally a youth movement that arose in the United States during the mid-1960s and spread to other countries around the world. The etymology of the term 'hippie' is from hipster, and was initially used to describe beatniks who had moved into San Francisco's...
alternative lifestyle. This is based on the idea of "kin estates" or self-sufficient family homesteads. Before the publication of the first book in the series, there were virtually no eco-villages in Russia. By June 5, 2004, eight years later, a conference of the Ringing Cedars Movement in Vladimir
Vladimir
Vladimir is a city and the administrative center of Vladimir Oblast, Russia, located on the Klyazma River, to the east of Moscow along the M7 motorway. Population:...
, attracted delegates from over 150 eco-villages from across 48 of the 89 regions of Russia
Megré's ideas are similar to those of Russia's agricultural economist Alexander Chayanov
Alexander Chayanov
Alexander V. Chayanov was a Soviet agrarian economist, and scholar of rural sociology and advocate of agrarianism and cooperatives....
eighty years earlier, referring to harmonious relationship with nature based on sustainable rural settlements consisting of individual family-owned homesteads. Also like Chayanov, Megré presents his ideas in a novel
Novel
A novel is a book of long narrative in literary prose. The genre has historical roots both in the fields of the medieval and early modern romance and in the tradition of the novella. The latter supplied the present generic term in the late 18th century....
-like format. He admits using this strategy to minimize initial resistance to his writings.
In addition to Russia, Anastasia centers can be found in Australia, Belarus, Bulgaria, Canada, Croatia, Czech Republic, Germany, Ireland, Israel, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Latvia, Lithuania, Netherlands, New Zealand, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Switzerland, Tajikistan, Ukraine, United Kingdom, and the United States.
One New Age writer relates the Ringing Cedar books to the "great change" Edgar Cayce
Edgar Cayce
Edgar Cayce was an American psychic who allegedly had the ability to give answers to questions on subjects such as healing or Atlantis while in a hypnotic trance...
prophesied for Russia.