A teleological study of human existence spans a broad range of dimensions: human beings’ standing in society and in the universe, their relations with different levels of the cosmos (including the metaphysical level if it does form part of the overall imago mundi), their value system, and the idea of the ultimate development purpose of both individuals and the entire humanity. The paper aims at defining the specifics of human goal-setting in both Russian and broadly defined Western cultures using comparative, diachronic, axiological, and phenomenological methods. Unlike previous research, this work dates the philosophical and anthropological divergence between the Russian and Western cultures to an earlier period. The goal of human beings’ development is ultimately transhumanist, i.e. going beyond human nature into the realm of the divine. In the Russian tradition, this goal was to be achieved via fully unfolding the divine element in the human nature. This is a Christian paradigm. The Western tradition has formed the self-deification paradigm, going beyond human nature through the purely human effort and in contravention of the Christian paradigm, a divergence that continues and deepens even until today. The article outlines the brief history of the transhumanist effort and showcases its relevance for the current developments in various cultures across the globe.
