The Philosophical Perception of Death in the Life and Work of Guram Rcheulishvili

Abstract

Guram Rcheulishvili’s tragic biography—his life ending prematurely at a young age—constitutes a formative factor in the spiritual dimension of his creative motifs and moral-psychological sensibility. This biographical circumstance establishes a paradigm in which death, within his artistic consciousness, is conceptualized as a process of spiritual purification. From this perspective, Rcheulishvili’s protagonists are frequently situated at a liminal point—between existence and non-existence, between chaos and a clearly defined telos. At this threshold, their lived experience is transfigured into a purification of spiritual perception.

The comprehension of life activates within the human being what is most authentic and most intimate—conscience, love, and gratitude. Death brings to the surface within human consciousness those values that are ordinarily neither recognized nor properly appreciated in everyday existence.

A multifaceted and multidimensional conception of death emerges in Guram Rcheulishvili’s short stories—„სიკვდილი მთებში“ [sikvdili mtebshi] (Death in the Mountains), “ნელი ტანგო” [neli tango] (slow Tango) “თრთვილა“ [Thvirtvila] and “ალავერდობა”  [Alaverdoba] —in which death coexists both as a physical reality and as a spiritual and symbolic vision.

In Guram Rcheulishvili’s literary works, the theme of death manifests itself through several interrelated aspects. It may be associated with the striving for freedom, the defense of dignity, the pursuit of new forms of knowledge, protest against Soviet reality, or an escape from imposed constraints. Regardless of the motivating impulse from which it arises, the theme of death is not solely tragic but is also aestheticized and imbued with symbolic meaning. The writer constructs poetic images of death that serve to illuminate the spiritual trajectory of his characters.

Through his way of life, the tragic premature end of his life, and the ideological depth of his literary work, Guram Rcheulishvili demonstrates that death can be understood not merely as an end, but as a pathway—toward a renewed comprehension of life, spiritual purification, and the recognition of truth.