Interpretation of M. Eliade’s Religious Concepts in Modern Society

Abstract

This article analyzes the interpretation of religious concepts developed by the historian of religions Mircea Eliade within the field of religious studies. As a historian of religions, he conducted extensive research into the history of religions and was able to formulate religious concepts.  As a result, he was able to analyze and present to the reader the significance of his concepts in the religious analysis he conducted as a historian of religions. Analyzing the significance of religious concepts, Eliade wrote such works as “Patterns in Comparative Religion”, “The Myth of the Eternal Return”, “Shamanism: Archaic Techniques of Ecstasy”, “Images and Symbols: Studies in Religious Symbolism”, “Yoga: Immortality and Freedom”, and “The Sacred and the Profane”. The relevance of this article lies in its emphasis on the fact that the concepts under study are an important indicator in the contemporary field of religious studies. Mircea Eliade’s religious concepts provide a profound scientific methodology for understanding the essence and history of religion, its role in human existence, and its functioning in society. The article presents the main directions and ideas of this concept in detail, with examples. The concepts of the sacred and the profane, hierophany, archaism, myth, symbol, religious universalism, and time encompass important topics in the field of religious studies. They can also be an important part of the structure of other humanities specialties.