“We are in the Same Boat”: Results and Prospects of the International Aitmatov Forum

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On December 12-15, 2023, the International Forum dedicated to the 95th Anniversary of the birth of Chingiz Torekulovich Aitmatov “We are in the same boat. Creativity in Russian” was held in Bishkek. Every great culture, capable of enriching humanity with the material and nonmaterial results of its evolutionary movement, objectively is emblematized in the names of individuals who act as its leaders and guides to the world. The name of Chingiz Torekulovich Aitmatov, a writer and philosopher who created literary works of a unique voice and “world-spread sound,” became such an emblem of Kyrgyz culture. They resonated in all sides of the earth and were not only in demand, but also heard, as evidenced by their translations into many languages of the world. Moreover, the work of Ch. Aitmatov became an impulse for the further development of the Eurasian and world cultural system: painting, theater, cinema, music, philosophy, science, passing through the stages of perception, interpretation and reflection of Aitmatov’s metatext, has been reaching a fundamentally new level: the level of generating new meanings and production of new cultural objects. This suggests that Kyrgyzstan is actively participating in the process of “terraforming” the humanistic space in which we all will exist in the coming era. The work of the Forum showed that “in the same boat” there are representa- tives not only of different cultures, but also of different areas of activity. It united people of science and art, outlined numerous trajectories of creative and cognitive search, confirmed the idea that the time of immanent, self-contained loci of knowledge has passed, and Knowledge of the present and future is born in synthesis - both interdisciplinary and human. “A Forum with a Human Face” - this is perhaps how we can characterize this large-scale event. Organized at the highest level, it not only allowed its participants to be heard and seen, but also did not deviate from its main task: to pay tribute to the memory of the great cultural figure - and the great Man. The work of scientific sections, thematically and compositionally united by the personality of Chingiz Torekulovich Aitmatov, outlined the radius of topical problems of modern humanities, requiring new heuristic settings and the development of an adequate navigation map. Chingiz Aitmatov is a creative phenomenon that consistently transforms the world: its aesthetics and axiology, the abstract and the material. As part of the sectional discussions, important directions of Aitmatology and related disciplines of the humanitarian cycle were identified: Ø scientific source study; Ø translation studies in the aspect of intercultural cooperation and the search for adequate translation strategies and tactics; Ø philosophical anthropology; Ø semiotic, in particular, linguosemiotic research; Ø comparative literary studies from the point of view of the formation of meaning-making space in areas of interaction (dialogue between Kyrgyz and EVENTS Бахтикиреева У.М., Валикова О.А. Полилингвиальность и транскультурные практики. 2024. Т. 21. № 1. С. 175-178 Belarusian, Kyrgyz and Uzbek, Kyrgyz and Tatar, Kyrgyz and Russian, etc.) cultures; Ø personality ecology as a multidisciplinary area of research; Ø Aitmatov’s artistic cosmology and the process of intertextual and pheno- menological acculturation; Ø the influence of a creative personality on the semantic space of the intermedial level (painting, graphics, cinema, music, etc.). Taking into account the need for a comprehensive understanding of the stated problems with an emphasis on interdisciplinarity, the following proposals were accepted for consideration: Ø to form a “Eurasian platform” as a research platform for producing new knowledge in the field of Aitmatology and in the context of Eurasian theory. The unfolding project of the site is the creation of an Institute for the Study and Preservation of Eurasian Civilization (a letter prepared by Doctor of Philosophy S.Sh. Tursunaliev). Ø to promote the formation of the scientific and cultural Aitmatov Center with headquarters in Bishkek, the work of which will be aimed at solving the tasks set at the Forum, in particular, providing its resource base, human resources, information, legal, and technical support. Ø actively promote the further dissemination of the “Aitmatov text” at the level of further translations of his works and active reflection - scientific and artistic; Ø introduce the “Aitmatov text” into educational interdisciplinary programs of higher education (initiative project - the course by Doctor of Philology, Professor of the Institute of Russian Language (RUDN University) U.M. Bakhti- kireeva “Intercultural Communication in Literary Dimension”); Ø to establish publication cooperation between Aitmatov researchers and the interdisciplinary journal “Polylinguality and Transcultural Practices” (Higher Attestation Commission of the Russian Federation); Ø within the framework of international research and creative cooperation of scientists and representatives of art, prepare a feature film about C.T. Aitmatov on the 100th anniversary of the writer; Ø provide the basis for the preparation of documentary series “Sayings of the Living” (about Ch.T. Aitmatov and other outstanding cultural figures). Ø combine the work of the Forum with large organizational centers in Russia and the CIS (one of the possible implementations is the “Nomadic Forum” model); Ø prepare a collective monograph “Chingiz Aitmatov and Law”, developing the issues of Personality and Law in the context of the life situation of modern society, as a fundamental theoretical and practical justification for the concept of a new moral and legal state; Ø regularly conduct international creative events united by the personality of C.T. Aitmatova (“Rereading Aitmatov. Flash mob”; participation in the project EVENTS Bakhtikireeva U.M., Valikova O.A. , 2024, 21 (1), 175-178 of the Institute of Russian Language at RUDN University “Agora Polylingual: Languages of Art”). The work of the sections and the subsequent discussion demonstrated to the international community that Bishkek, already one of the largest cultural centers in the Eurasian space, has enormous potential for expanding its meaning-forming and functional capabilities. The identified problems, directions and proposals were discussed with the Forum participants and received full support. The reception of delegates became a warm Reception of Guests: far from etiquette formalism, it allowed us to join the hospitable and lively Bishkek, to see the sincere efforts of each team representative aimed at extremely attentive attitude and treatment of each participant - Guest of the Forum. The efforts of the organizers, striving to make the delegates’ perticipation rich both intellectually and eventfully, cannot be overestimated. All the work of the Forum, into which resources and efforts were invested by the well-coordinated team of the Ministry of Culture, Information, Sports and Youth Policy of the Kyrgyz Republic, the director of “Art-Araba” Damira Zhumanovna Alyshbaeva, also showed the organizational readiness of the Kyrgyz Republic to be one of the centers of knowledge of the whole Eurasian space, and the willingness of participants to come to real, “materially measurable” results, reflected in the Resolution project following the event. We express our deep gratitude to the organizers of the Forum. We hope that the cooperation and community that has strengthened within the framework of this project will continue and bear fruit. We are confident that the celebration of the 100th anniversary of Chingiz Torekulovich Aitmatov will unite unique ideas and projects of creative individuals from different countries. And the most powerful final project in terms of intellectual output, of course, will take place in Kyrgyzstan. We will live in hope of new meetings and in the belief that we will be useful with our vision and contribution.