The article examines the main approaches to the analysis of A. Bely’s poetry, determines the most relevant and productive strategies, and critically comprehends the religious and philosophical views, motifs and images of his contemporaries. It presents an analytical review of articles, reviews, and the first monograph, as well as diaries, memoirs and notes of contemporaries, allowing us to consider Bely against the background of the era, and to identify features of his religious and poetic consciousness.