N.I. Pirogov and the importance of traditional spiritual and moral values for the medical community

November 25th marks the 215th anniversary of the birth of N.I. Pirogov — a great Russian scientist, surgeon, and anatomist, educator and philosopher, citizen and patriot of his homeland, and a man of high moral character. His contemporaries were particularly impressed by the fact that, while being an anatomist, surgeon, and “tester of matter in human nature”, he also became a champion of human spirituality, placing a high value on the recognition and development of human dignity. Many of Pirogov’s moral reflections remain relevant today. Comprehension of traditional spiritual and moral values is relevant to modern medical practice in general and medical humanities education in particular. This article analyzes the views of this 19th-century thinker, as set forth in his manuscripts “Being a Surgeon: Notes of a Doctor”, which helps members of the scientific and medical communities understand and develop a holistic picture of the world in the new biotechnological environment. The article examines such moral challenges in the work of a physician as active action and desire to alleviate the patient’s suffering, the principle of “do no harm” consent to medical intervention, the “individualization” (according to Pirogov) of medical practice, and others. N.I. Pirogov was characterized by spiritual quests. The pages of his diary recount the stages of his spiritual development: from childhood religiosity to materialistic empiricism and the conscious acquisition of faith in the last years of his life. “I don’t think”, Nikolai Ivanovich believed, “that any thinking person has managed to remain guided by the same worldview throughout its entire life”. N.I. Pirogov asserted that he professed the Christian faith precisely as it is expounded by the Orthodox Church. The Orthodox faith directed his entire life, all his professional medical achievements. He was firmly convinced that “faith should never conflict with scientific knowledge”. Recognition of Dr. Pirogov’s convictions is of great importance for achieving public consensus around fundamental spiritual and moral values and for supporting the initiative to canonize him as a saint of the Russian Orthodox Church.