Models of the world vision: an instruction to exploring northeast Siberia for bourgeois Yakov Sannikov

The article addresses the issues offormation of the holistic picture of world vision or any of its types by means of modeling reality by ethnographic science. Methodological techniques of content analysis in combination with case-study within the framework of the author’s program were used to analyze the 19th century document «Instructions to the Yakut bourgeois Yakov Sannikov» providing the guidelines for conducting research in the polar zone of Siberia. It was established that the instruction provides the main directions for recording and describing certain features including descriptions of the landscape, minerals, flora and fauna, habitability and population size, i.e., everything that makes up the picture of the world. It is shown that the instructions made it possible to create a model of the picture of the world close to the scientific view. It was revealed that the principles of constructing a model of the picture of the world include modeling reality on the bases of objective data and knowledge, as well as strategies and a course of action. The hypothesis that is constructed in the process of adaptation and cognitive procedures is confirmed; otherwise, the picture of the world is needed for adaptation to reality. It has been established that the content of the instruction under study does not allow for the construction of models of spiritual development, religious and mythological awareness, etc. To create a general historically determined picture of the world, it is necessary to use additional sources that will show the relationship and characteristic features of models of various types in combination. The content of the instruction under study is a special case of constructing a picture of the world, but the use of the derived results will help in studying various aspects of reality modeling. Traditional pictures of the world and means of modeling reality in traditional societies, which are important for ethnographic science, require further research, in which the stated modeling procedures may be useful.