The spiritual life of society and the individual

The society is a complex, multidimensional organism. In addition to the economic sphere, the field of politics and government, social institutions, there is also a spiritual plane. It penetrates into all the above-mentioned spheres of collective life, often exerting a strong influence on them. The spiritual life of society is a system of ideas, values, concepts. It includes not only the accumulated baggage of scientific knowledge and achievements of previous centuries, but also ethical norms adopted in society, values and even religious beliefs.

All the wealth of people's feelings, the upsurge of their thoughts, the most brilliant creations and accomplishments create a certain fund. This is the spiritual life of society. Philosophy, art, religion, morality and science, on the one hand, store the ideas, theories, and knowledge accumulated by previous generations, and on the other, constantly produce new achievements. The spiritual sphere is pervasive: it affects other strata of the life of society. So, for example, respect for human rights leads to the creation of democratic states, where the people have the opportunity to monitor the official leaders.

The spiritual life of society is a complex phenomenon. However, for convenience, this area of activity is divided into theoretical and practical (applied). The first, based on the experience of predecessors, creates new ideas, creates new ideals, makes breakthroughs in scientific achievements and produces a revolution in art. These invisible new knowledge and ideas, images and values find their expression in visible objects: new devices and techniques, works of art and even laws. The practical sphere stores, reproduces, distributes, and also consumes these developments. This changes the consciousness of people, members of society.

The spiritual life of society and the individual is a single whole. People are different, and therefore their spiritual existence is sometimes strikingly different. The environment affects a person, especially at an early age, at the stage of education and training, a huge influence. People absorb the knowledge and skills accumulated by mankind in the past centuries, master them. Then comes the turn of empirical knowledge of the world: the individual, through his experience, takes something, but rejects something from what the collective offers him. There are, however, still laws with which a person has to reckon, even if he does not share the moral values that these institutions gave rise to.

It can be said that the spiritual life of society constantly affects the inner world of the individual. It is born as if twice: first a biological individual is born, and then - in the process of education, learning and rethinking of one's own experience - a person. In this sense, the society has a huge, creative influence on it. After all, as Aristotle said, man is a social animal. And even if the individual professes the Hottentot morality (if I steal from another - it's good, and if I'm stolen it's bad), then in public he will behave differently, that is, mimicry under a citizen with modern, generally accepted moral values (steal - Definitely bad).

On the other hand, the society is inconceivable without its members, without separate people. That is why the spiritual life of the society receives constant recharge from individual representatives, creators, scientists, religious leaders. Their best deeds are included in the treasury of the culture of mankind, developing the society, moving it forward, improving. In this sense, personality does not act as an object, but as a subject of spiritual values.