On the problem of interaction between verbal and visual elements in the sacral space

The research of the sacral space and its structure is one of the urgent and, on the other hand, one of the insufficiently explored subjects today. It is important that, from the point of view of the religious conscience, verbal and visual elements of the sacral space have the same origin, associated with the interaction between the ''sacral reality'' and people. Despite the leading role of language in culture as a whole, it is necessary to take into account that the basis of religion is an experience, and not always the verbal one. For example, Apostle John's substantiation of the truth of Christianity: ''That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we have looked upon, and our hands have handled, of the Word of life'' (1 In.1:1), which speaks about the visual element (a vision of Christ) as a source of faith, and verbal text is a means of transfer of experience. From that time the visual element remains an important part of Christian worship, thus, visual elements, like miracle icons and relics, have a special role, as if they replace experience of direct communion with God of first Christians. Visual elements keep an important role since the Baptism of Rus. According to the chronicle, Duke Vladimir makes the final choice in favour of Orthodoxy after his ambassadors visited the divine Liturgy in the great Church of Hagia Sophia in Constantinople: the main way of perception of Christianity is to enter into the sacral space of the temple, therefore, the religious experience is not preceded by the formation of the sacral space, and is caused by them. All the space, created by the Christian cult, is perceived as a new translator for the culture of Christian values. Considering the leading role of language in culture, the role of the verbal text as a factor of formation of the sacral space in Russia is more important than in the Byzantine Empire. Russian liturgical texts orient the person to enter into the reality of the Sacral history through visual images created by, for example, the use of aorist forms of verbs, with regard to the gospel events, which forms the attitude to them basing on personal experience. The text does not simply create a visual image of the ''sacral reality'', but also directly introduces a believer in it, and sanctifies the worldly space, an example of which is the ceremony of following the entrance of Christ into Jerusalem on palm Sunday. This ritual existed prior to the reforms of Patriarch Nikon - aorist forms and other elements of the performance were abolished, which indicates the direct impact of the verbal text on the visual. Thus, the priority of religious experience as the source of religion causes priority of the visual element of the sacral space. However, with the distance in time from the source of religion and its spread on other cultures the role of the verbal text can reinforce as the translator of religious values, which is influenced by the leading role of language in culture. In this case, the verbal text directly forms the sacral space and influences all its elements.

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