Alexander Dugin, ultra-nationalist philosopher described as spiritual architect of Kremlin’s worldview, has urged all unbaptised Russians to be baptised immediately as ‘eternity will arrive soon’
Vladimir Putin’s top ideologist has called upon Russians to brace themselves for the apocalypse – in remarks widely interpreted as a barely disguised allusion to the escalating risk of nuclear conflict between Moscow and its adversaries, including Britain.
Alexander Dugin, 64, an extremist philosopher frequently characterised as the spiritual mastermind behind the Kremlin’s ideology, has cautioned that “eternity” is approaching rapidly, asserting that the window for free will may soon close permanently.
In a doomsday message posted online, Dugin implored all unbaptised Russians to receive baptism immediately and encouraged those avoiding church services to begin attending without hesitation, in preparation for eternal paradise.
“We can’t be sure that eternity won’t arrive soon, and then it will be too late,” he wrote.
“One day, eternity will arrive, and the moment of free choice will disappear. Everything will disappear, but the decision to undergo holy baptism and the church sacraments will remain.”
Whilst Dugin refrained from explicitly referencing nuclear armaments, his ominous rhetoric bears striking resemblance to how Kremlin-supporting ideologists have historically portrayed potential nuclear escalation – as an irreversible breakdown of civilisation following which only religious devotion, rather than politics or personal agency, endures.
His comments emerge amid Russia’s fourth year of conflict in Ukraine, fresh nuclear threats from Moscow, and provocative missile tests including the Oreshnik system that Putin deployed against Ukraine on Friday, merely 40 miles from NATO’s Polish border.
The 8,000 mph nuclear-capable hypersonic missile – hailed by Russian officials as a strategic deterrent – was monitored by Polish air defences, though alliance aircraft weren’t dispatched.
Dugin warned ominously: “This moment of freedom will likely be with us for only a very short time.
“Our faith is in the Saviour. No one can save us except Him. It is to Him that we must go. Without delay.”
Russian Orthodox-nationalist intellectuals have repeatedly depicted nuclear conflict not merely as devastation, but as a metaphysical threshold – a boundary beyond which history, choice and compromise vanish entirely.
Dugin has consistently maintained that Russia faces a civilisational battle against the West, arguing that catastrophic sacrifice might be warranted if it achieves what he terms Russia’s historic destiny.
The philosopher’s personal life has been scarred by tragedy.
In August 2022, his daughter Darya Dugina, 29, a prominent pro-Kremlin pundit, perished in a car bomb attack outside Moscow – a strike Russian authorities attributed to a Ukrainian assassination team.
He was probably the intended victim of the assault.
Following her death, Dugin’s language has become increasingly mystical, fatalistic and apocalyptic. Critics suggest that his most recent statement seems to be a psychological preparation for Russian society to brace for severe escalation, cloaking the possibility of widespread destruction in religious and moral terms.
One critic commented: “When Dugin talks about eternity arriving soon, he isn’t preaching theology – he’s translating nuclear war into something Russians are meant to accept.”
Whether it’s intended as a prophecy, a warning, or ideological conditioning, the message is clear: time is running out.