Abstract

Introduction. In the context of the COVID-19 pandemic, which spread around the world in early 2020, special attention is paid to external transformations in human life: forced staying at home, using personal protective equipment in public places, social distance, etc. Nevetheless, the inner world of a man is susceptible to serious transformations. Another necessary element that structures the world of self (J. Deleuze’s point of view) is turning into a potential carrier of the virus. Therefore, the problem of human reflection with the goal of taking care of oneself in a crisis situation is of particular relevance. The aim of the study is to substantiate the effectiveness of spiritual practices of the period of Antiquity and the early Middle Ages as forms of caring of the internal in a person in the pandemic. Methods. The author uses general scientific methods: analysis and synthesis, induction, deduction, abstraction. In addition, a comparative historical method, an interpretation method and a systematic approach are applied. With the help of the dialectical approach, the connection between the external and the internal in a person was designated. Scientific novelty of the study. Three scenarios of human responses to self-isolation in the context of an event (external) – meaning (internal) are outlined: orientation to an external event; creating an external event; appeal to the self. Results. In the context of self-isolation, staying alone with himself, a person faced a problem, a crisis of identity (empirical evidence for this problem was provided by psychologists and psychotherapists in Chelyabinsk and the Chelyabinsk region). This problem is due to the fact that the pandemic has reduced many of the person’s connections with the outside world (work, study, relationships with friends and relatives) and / or transferred them to a remote format. Therefore, consciously or optionally, at the level of an unreasonable request, a person has a need to rethink his self. Rethinking is a reflexive procedure when a person re-learns to communicate with his self. M. Foucault analyzed and systematized examples of spiritual work with I, looking into the practices of care of the self in ancient thinkers’ and early Christians’ studies. Conclusion. The COVID-19 virus has made significant adjustments to human life. No less adjustments were made to the events (F. Girenok) that fill the life of a person. A man’s replies to changes in his being can be laid between two poles: event and meaning. Even while at home, many continue to focus on the external, creating something of their own (for example, audiovisual production) or consuming the results of others. At the same time, orientation to meaning involves focusing on oneself. Philosophers and theologians who practiced self-care about two millennia ago, proposed different forms of reflection, pursuing one goal, to learn to talk with oneself.