Castration and the Heavenly Kingdom: A Russian Folktale

by Laura Engelstein

Of the many sects that broke from the official Russian Orthodox church in the eighteenth century, one was universally despised. Its members were peasants from the Russian heartland skilled in the arts of animal husbandry who turned their knives on themselves to become "eunuchs for the kingdom of heaven's sake." Convinced that salvation came only with the literal excision of the instruments of sin, they were known as Skoptsy (the self-castrated). Their community thrived well into the twentieth century, when it was destroyed in the Stalinist Terror. In a major feat of historical reconstruction, Laura Engelstein tells the sect's astonishing tale. She describes the horrified reactions to the sect by outsiders, including outraged bureaucrats, physicians, and theologians. More important, she allows the Skoptsy a say in defining the contours of their history and the meaning behind their sacrifice. Her deft handling of their letters and notebooks lends her book unusual depth and pathos, and she provides a heartbreaking account of willing exile and of religious belief so strong that its adherents accepted terrible pain and the denial of a basic human experience. Although the Skoptsy express joy at their salvation, the words of even the most fervent believers reveal the psychological suffering of life on society's margins. No foreign tribe or exotic import, the sect drew its members from the larger peasant society where marriage was expected and adulthood began with the wedding night. Set apart by the very act that guaranteed their redemption, these "lambs of God" became adept at concealing their sectarian identity as they interacted with their Orthodox neighbors. Interaction was necessary, Engelstein explains, since the survival of the Skoptsy depended upon recruitment of new members and on success in agriculture and trade. Realizing that some prejudices have changed little over the centuries, Engelstein cautions that "we must not cast the shadow of our own distress on the story of the Skoptsy. Their physical suffering was something they willingly embraced." In Castration and the Heavenly Kingdom , she has produced a remarkable history that also illuminates the mysteries of the human heart.

Genres: Religion, History, Nonfiction, Russia, Christianity

304 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1999

About the author

Laura Engelstein is an American historian who specializes in Russian and European history. She served as Henry S. McNeil Professor Emerita of Russian History at Yale University and taught at Cornell University and Princeton University.

Reviews

[Mathew · Rating 4 out of 5]

Engelstein's book is, to my knowledge, the most comprehensive look at the Skoptsy that exists in the English language. She does an excellent job of providing a balanced, nuanced look at the sect that doesn't just focus on the lurid details of castration (though there's plenty of that). Much of the book is translated primary source documents that are fascinating to read. Most importantly, Engelstein treats the Skoptsy as sincere believers, and even though much of their beliefs were inconsistent and strange she portrays them as sincere and thoughtful. Such a solid treatment of religious believers can be hard to find, especially for a group as strange as the Skoptsy.

My only complaint is that the book repeats itself, and a few times I felt like I was re-reading something that had already been covered.

[Christopher Fox · Rating 3 out of 5]

The author is certainly conversant with her subject but I found the book rather repetitious. There's only so much one can say about the cult, their practices,and the persecutions they suffered under various regimes over 200 years. The documentation and extracts from personal stories are impressive but the book did not completely satisfy my curiosity about these God-fearing if misguided peoples, a curiosity that stemmed from a mention in a biography of Peter the Great. The single biggest question that I did not find an answer to was "Why?" I read intensively for about a hundred pages and skimmed the rest.

[Naomi · Rating 4 out of 5]

I initially picked up this book and looked at the photos of the Skoptsy's self mutilation. I then sat down to browse the book at greater depth. I didn't read it cover to cover (read: I read perhaps one or two chapters) but I really enjoyed Laura's tone in talking about a group of people that were perhaps greatly misunderstood. Engelstein made a beautiful comment that I have never forgotten, “we must not cast the shadow of our own distress on the story of the Skoptsy. Their physical suffering was something they willingly embraced.”

[Shawn · Rating 3 out of 5]

you ever love God so much you chop off your dick and balls?

[Ella · Rating 4 out of 5]

Pretty fascinating look at a pretty fascinating sect, contextualising both the Skoptsy themselves and nonfiction writing about the Skoptsy in their times and places. If you’re not into reading about religious trials this probably isn’t the book for you, but if you, like me, read more about heresy trials than is probably good for you, it’s a good read. Also a fairly fascinating look at how the rhetoric of antisemitism was used to demonise Christian outgroups through implicit (or explicit) comparison to Jews in the Russian Empire and in the 1930s Soviet Union.

[Emil · Rating 3 out of 5]

Now I know it's impossible to write a history book without letting your own personal editorializing and embellishments slip in, but at the very least you could try to do it less. Makes one wish they could just read the source material.