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The article analyzes the phenomenon of ordinary consciousness as a category, whose largely contradictory and paradoxical nature evokes interest. It describes the main approaches to the study of ordinary consciousness and views on its nature in philosophical and psychological concepts. The article analyzes the ratio of ordinary consciousness with the related concepts of "mass consciousness", "common psychology", "group consciousness", "social consciousness". It describes the relationship of ordinary consciousness with culture and its place in the life of an individual as a cultural component, an inherent trait of any historical type of consciousness. The conclusion is that ordinary consciousness acts as an intermediary between the subject and the environment in which it is located, as well as between the individual and society. In addition to this, ordinary consciousness has not only a reflective function, but also acts as a regulator of social and particularly group behavior.

Reviving traditions and customs of the peoples living in the huge territory of our country is one of the sources of cultural values of modern Russians. Studying new archival materials, family chronicles and the pre-Soviet literature which is now stored in largest foreign libraries provides the opportunity to reveal the economic, spiritual, political and social features of Siberians’ culture. The formation of the West Siberian society was very closely connected with the trade organized on the Siberian path and the Great tea way, both from China and from the central part of Russia. The paper focuses on the features of various groups of people involved in caravan trade moving along the Siberian path in the borders of the Tobolsk province. It was there that the Siberian tea drinking culture emerged, imported by Russian and overseas merchants and travelers, to later become a symbol of prosperity, hospitality and education. The new traditions connected with feasting found the reflection in proverbs and sayings, transferred from generation to generation, gradually pulling together city and rural cultures. The use of various blends and types of tea was opposed to the alcoholism which captured the Siberian village in the late 19th century, but didn't yield the results on which the government and the local intellectuals counted. With transition to industrial society, considerable part of traditions including some features of tea drinking culture were lost and forgotten. Therefore today works of the famous culinary specialists and scientists opening bases of food addictions of certain regions, countries and continents enjoy special popularity; museums of local lore will organize exhibitions and expositions, school and university students study these questions within training programmes.

Basing on a wide range of unpublished sources, the paper analyzes the problems of staffing Soviet customs authorities with the examples of Usinskaya and Kosh-Agachskaya customs. The moral, material and educational aspects of this problem, as well as the organizational structure of customs are studied. The paper also provided specific examples of the moral decay of some customs officials, as well as ways to address these issues selected customs administration.

The paper discusses the nature cults of the Tuvans living in Tyva Republic, Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region of China and Kobdos aimak of Mongolia in the comparative aspect. The special attention is paid to the various ceremonies and the customs connected with nature cults which are observed and in modern time. The paper shows that at the present stage the nature cults are experiencing some changes.

Based on a wide range of sources, including unpublished material, the paper addresses the issue of combating smuggling in Western Siberia in the 1920s. In particular, it examines the main forms of trafficking and how to combat it. The study provides a detailed analysis of the problematic aspects.