Abstract

The article offers a socio-philosophical study of the virtualization of being in Kazakhstan, conceptualized as a process that transforms identity and mechanisms of moral regulation. The analysis reveals a significant gap in the field: the predominance of an infrastructural approach over an ethico-anthropological examination of digital subjectivity. The purpose of the study is to demonstrate that Turkic-Kazakh thought possesses heuristic potential conducive to preserving spiritual selfhood within networked environments.
Methodologically, the research combines philosophical hermeneutics grounded in the intellectual legacy of Abai and Shakarim with digital ethnography, which entails analyzing data from YouTube, Instagram, and TikTok using the YouScan software.
The paper elucidates the role of the ethical concepts tolıq adam, ar-ūiat, and qut as normative foundations for digital ethics. These notions make it possible to distinguish autonomous responsibility from external reputational pressure. Drawing on the cases of online aitys and digital shezhire, the study shows that virtualization does not lead to the disappearance of tradition; rather, it facilitates its “re-assembly” within platform interfaces.
The study culminates in proposing a strategy of “axiological appropriation of technologies” aimed at preserving the cultural code under conditions of algorithmic mediatization.