The Phenomenon of the “Invisibility of Reality” and the “Otherworldly” in Human Consciousness

Abstract

The present article analyses the problems of the formation of human magical thinking and the “invisibility” of everyday phenomena. Within the socio-cultural sphere these phenomena are important for understanding the internal processes of society, the interaction of the individual and society. The paper also examines the problems of dividing consciousness into “ordinary” and “magical”. The article describes the consequences of rejecting the separation of the “visible” and “invisible” worlds in the individual’s mind, the role of religion in shaping the “magical” worldview. The problem of interaction between a man and their outwordly world through religious and magical rituals is analysed. The phenomenon of “invisibility” is poorly understood at the moment and requires increased attention from the scientific community. This term, as well as the concepts of “otherworldly”, “magical”, “magic” and many others are often used to describe phenomena whose essence lies in detachment from the ordinary. These concepts themselves contain the main descriptive role, which can be explained through the analogy of the existence of two “worlds” in an individual’s life – the “visible” and the “invisible”. To understand the role of this division, the moment of formation of a stable consciousness and self-awareness of a person and the formation of the first religious beliefs are considered. It is through them that the division into the world of people and “spirits and the otherworldly” is going on for the first time, since it was through such a dichotomy that it was easier for our ancestors to describe unexplained phenomena. The following describes terms such as “magic” and “invisible”, which are the basis for the formation of a “magic”, or “invisible” reality, since it is through them that interaction takes place.

Funding. The work is part of the research under the Russian Science Foundation grant “Conceptual Framework of Religious Studies: Conceptualisation of Distancing Practices and Paradoxes of “Invisibility” (Religious Names of “Normative”, “Marginal”, “Deviant”)” (Russian Science Foundation Grant No. 25-28-01204).

For citation: Arinin E.I., Frolov M.O. The Phenomenon of the “Invisibility of Reality” and the “Otherworldly” in Human Consciousness. Vestnik Severnogo (Arkticheskogo) federal’nogo universiteta. Ser.: Gumanitarnye i sotsial’nye nauki, 2026, vol. 26, no. 5, pp. 124–132. https://doi.org/10.37482/2687-1505-V548