Abstract
The aim of the study was to identify the directions and patterns of transformation of sacred categories within Mircea Eliade’s hermeneutical system under the conditions of the globalised and digital culture of the twenty-first century. The research was theoretical-analytical and used systemic, content analytical, phenomenological, and comparative-hermeneutical approaches. The analysis covered a corpus of Mircea Eliade’s key works, as well as interpretations by scholars Bryan S. Rennie and Douglas Allen. The results of content analysis showed a significant prevalence of certain categories: symbol (≈150 occurrences), sacrum/profanum (≈120), and myth (≈110), among others. The comparative-analytical stage revealed dynamic transformations within Eliade’s categorical system, including changes in the significance of sacrum/profanum, symbol, and archetype, reflecting the adaptation of sacred categories in a globalised and digital context. The categories myth and repetition retained stability (8 and 7 points respectively), demonstrating the resilience of the mythological and ritual contours of sacred experience. The obtained data indicate a transition from a vertically hierarchical model of sacred consciousness to a network structure in which the sacred is realised through digital media, visual symbols, and communicative spaces. It was established that archetypal forms – axis mundi, light, centre, circle – are integrated into digital architecture and the visual codes of mass culture, performing their former functions of sacred mediation. The practical significance of the study lies in the possibility of applying its results to the analysis of symbolic systems in digital media, architecture, and visual communication, as well as in the development of interdisciplinary models for studying sacred semiotics in a global cultural context.