This episode was crafted from the book Through Dark Days and White Nights: Four Decades Observing a Changing Russia, written by Dr. Naomi F. Collins. In this insightful and intimate eyewitness-account, we get a glimpse on what life was like in the Soviet Union through the lenses of an American woman. This account is singular, among other reasons, because it portrays the USSR and Russia over the timespan of four decades, with the author “starting as a graduate student in Moscow State University and ending as the wife of the American Ambassador to Russia.” In this journey, one becomes aware of the “hardening of the Cold War atmosphere” in the 1960’s; the period of Détente with Presidents Nixon and Brezhnev, and the "Era of Stagnation" in the 1970’s and 1980’s; Gorbachev’s reforms (Perestroika/Glasnost) and the 1991 coup attempt; the end of the USSR and the traumatic transition to a market economy, led by president Boris Yeltsin in the 1990’s. This account allows us to thrillingly stride through all these historically significant events, but perhaps its most remarkable quality is the emphasis on people's lives, and how “forces of history seemed remote while witnessing actual people, people driven by ideas and fears".

Chapters:

00:00:00 Intro

00:02:07 Chapter I - the 1960’s

00:24:17 Chapter II - the 1970’s

00:47:38 Chapter III - the 1990’s

Credits:

Script: Rudy Durao & Dr. Naomi F. Collins

Narration: Rudy Durão Sound production: Rudy Durão Animations: Kristi Luht Soundtrack: Jingle: Rafael Durão & Theo de Blasis, check them out! https://open.spotify.com/album/0gNEILcD4Mkd4SRQLlEyF5?si=Te5bvq-SRM656f0lgk-qKg

00:04:10 / 00:05:51 - Song of the Volga Boatmen, by Matthew Arthur https://matthewarthur.bandcamp.com/track/song-of-the-volga-boatmen

00:07:22 / 00:10:45 - Mussorgsky, Pictures at an Exhibition, Baba Yaga - adaptation by Rafael Durão #papaelomusic

00:18:50 / 00:20:42 and 01:08:53 / 01:10:01 - ☭ SOVIET liminal spaces with creepy USSR anthem ☭ #deadoctobertv

00:40:37 / 00:44:37 - 'Росинка'' - вокальний ансамбль.Пісня:Прилетів лелека на моє весілля.1988 рiк.

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In this episode we will walk through the physical and spiritual journey of a 19th century Russian pilgrim. The author of the account is unknown. It is commonly thought that it was narrated by a single pilgrim to a starets, or a monk, who wrote it down in the city of Irkutsk, in Siberia. The english version of the book is called “The Way of a Pilgrim”. The hero sets out on a quest on how to pray continuously. After wondering (and wandering) how this could be achieved, he eventually reached his goal with the help of a spiritual father, who taught him the Jesus Prayer. If you are a non believer or an atheist, I ask you not to assume right away that there is nothing relevant for you here, and in case you are a believer and you take active part in a religion, please indulge me for trying to understand the essence without its form. The way this episode was designed, aims to foster further reflection on how we can experience spirituality and an "ecstasy of truth" in our own times, assuming that there is a bridge or a translatability between the rituals we adopt (meditation, mantras, mindfulness) and those of our ancestors, which is something Aldous Huxley described as follows: "If, at any time, men have found satisfaction in a certain kind of activity, it is to be presumed that, at periods when this satisfying activity was not manifested, there must have been some kind of equivalent for it."

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Credits: Text editing: Rudy Durao Narration: Rudy Durão Sound production: Rudy Durão Animation: Kristi Luht Jingle: Rafael Durão & Theo de Blasis, check them out! https://open.spotify.com/album/0gNEILcD4Mkd4SRQLlEyF5?si=Te5bvq

In the 10th century AD, Ibn Fadlan, the hero of this voyage, was sent from Baghdad by the Caliph, on a diplomatic mission heading north, to the King of the Volga Bulghars, in today's city of Khazan, Russia. On its way, he faces harsh environments and unfamiliar cultures, which culminates in the only written source we have of a Viking funeral, and isn’t it marvellous that it is written in Arabic. Since we are talking about a time and space not exhaustively explored by mainstream History, we decided to craft around the main journey, a few mores stories, so that you listener can get a better grasp of this era. We start with a tale from the Arabian Nights, namely The Three Apples, move to a context part, and then we enter the main travelog. Those familiar with the subject already realized that the structure of this episode is a blueprint from the plots of the Arabian Nights themselves, which we could describe as a russian doll pattern of storytelling. A story, inside a story, inside a story, inside a story…

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Credits: Text editing: Rudy Durão; João Manarte Narration: Rudy Durão Sound editing and mixing: Rudy Durão Sound mixing and mastering: Alpine Audio Animation: Kristi Luht Jingle: Rafael Durão & Theo de Blasis, check them out! https://open.spotify.com/album/0gNEILcD4Mkd4SRQLlEyF5?si=Te5bvq-SRM656f0lgk-qKg