In the Banya I Changed My World View

Abstract

The Soviet Union collapsed, but banyas remained. After 1991, various threads of the banya’s history were taken up by different parts of the Russian population. Some saw them as places for contemplation and camaraderie; others went for sex, to conduct business deals, to connect with tradition, or to feed their souls. Still others saw them as primarily about health. But it was also a place of corruption, suspicion, danger, and transgression. In the West, they went from being an odd habit restricted to immigrants from the former Soviet Union to a mainstay of American cities catering to people seeking an authentic spa experience. Banyas showed up in films, novels, and journalistic accounts of Russia as a key to understanding Russian culture.