August 15/28 the whole Christian world celebrates Feast of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary . This is one of the greatest church holidays. In Orthodoxy it is one of the twelve. On this day, the Holy Church remembers the righteous death (dormition) of the Mother of God - an event colored simultaneously with sadness about the end of the life of the Mother of God and joy about the reunion of the Most Pure Mother with the Son. The Church calls the death of the Mother of God the Dormition (the Slavic word “dormition” means sleep), and not death, because ordinary human death, when the body returns to the earth and the spirit to God, did not touch the Blessed One.

The Mother of God is the most revered and most sacred person after the Lord; it is to Her that all generations of Christians give special honor and worship. Countless churches and monasteries were erected in honor of the Dormition of the Most Holy Theotokos, in every Christian church behind the central entrance marvelous frescoes depict Her holy burial, sublime chants adorned the festive services, and brilliant solemn words were spoken by the Fathers of the Church and later church men on the occasion of the day of Her memory. . All human races vying with each other tried to bring her all the most valuable things in order to please the Virgin Mary in word and deed.

The Mother of God appeared as a unique creation of God, superior to both people and Angels. She alone of all people led an immaculate life and, in a way incomprehensible to all things, became the Mother of God.

The feast of the Dormition of the Blessed Virgin Mary, following the feast of the bright Resurrection of Christ, was revered more than others by the Russian people. “Theotokos Easter” - that’s what they called it in Rus'. And this is no coincidence. Through Her Dormition, the Mother of God has become even closer and dearer to Christians, because became a zealous Intercessor for them before the throne of God . Every time we celebrate the Dormition of the Most Holy Theotokos, it is as if we are celebrating Easter again, this time in summer.

During His execution, Jesus Christ, seeing the Mother of God and the Apostle John, whom he especially loved, standing nearby, said to His Mother: “Wife! Behold, Your son", and to John: "behold, your mother"(John 19:25-27).

From now on The Apostle John cared for the Mother of God until the end of Her life. From now on, we know about the earthly life of the Mother of God only from the apocrypha. She lived in the house of the Apostle John the Theologian in Jerusalem, becoming a common Mother for all the disciples of Christ, and on the day of Pentecost, like them, she received the gift of the Holy Spirit.

The Mother of God led a closed, hidden life, but many knew about Her great wisdom and came from distant countries to talk with Her. Like the apostles, She planted and established the Christian Church with Her presence, word and prayers.

So about 10 years passed, and when the Jewish king Herod began persecuting the Church, The Mother of God, together with the Apostle John the Theologian, moved to Ephesus , which fell to him by lot for the gospel preaching. Living here She visited righteous Lazarus in Cyprus and Mount Athos, blessing it as Her destiny.

The reverence of the ancient Christians for the Mother of God was so great that they preserved everything about Her life that they could notice from Her words and deeds, and even conveyed to us about Her appearance. “She was a Virgin not only in body, but also in soul, humble in heart, circumspect in words, prudent, reticent, a lover of reading, hardworking, chaste in speech. Her rules were not to offend anyone, to be kind to everyone, to honor elders, not to envy equals, to avoid boasting, to be sensible, to love virtue. When did She even offend her parents with her facial expression, when she disagreed with her relatives? When did you become proud in front of a modest person, laugh at the weak, shy away from the poor? She had nothing stern in her eyes, nothing imprudent in her words, nothing indecent in her actions: modest body movements, quiet gait, even voice; so Her bodily appearance was an expression of the soul, the personification of purity. She turned all Her days into fasting: she indulged in sleep only at the request of need, but even then, while Her body was at rest, She was awake in spirit, repeating what she read in her sleep, or reflecting on the fulfillment of assumed intentions, or delineating new ones. She only left the house to go to church, and then only in the company of her relatives. However, although She appeared outside Her house, accompanied by others, She Herself was the best guardian for Herself; others guarded only Her body, and She preserved Her morals Herself.”

According to legend preserved by the church historian Nicephorus Callistus (XIV century), the Mother of God “she was of average height or, as others say, slightly more than average; golden hair; eyes are fast, with pupils the color of olives; the eyebrows are arched and moderately black, the nose is oblong, the lips are flowering, full of sweet speeches; the face is not round and not sharp, but somewhat oblong; her hands and fingers are long... She maintained decorum in conversations with others, did not laugh, did not become indignant, and was not especially angry; completely artless, simple, She did not think at all about Herself and, far from effeminacy, was distinguished by complete humility. Regarding the clothes that She wore, She was content with their natural color, which is still proven by Her sacred head covering. In short, a special grace was revealed in all Her actions.”

Struck by Her beauty even in his old age, the disciple of the Apostle Paul, the Greek Dionysius the Areopagite, testified that if he had not confessed the One God, he would have decided that before him was a “beautiful goddess.”

Shortly before Her death, the Mother of God returned to Jerusalem . She often visited those places that were closely connected with Her Son: Bethlehem, Golgotha, the Holy Sepulcher, Gethsemane, Olivet. There She prayed earnestly, and over time, more and more often, for the Son to take Her to Him as quickly as possible into heaven. According to legend, the Jews attempted to kill Her, for which purpose, by order of the high priests, a guard was placed at the Holy Sepulcher, but at the right moment the soldiers’ vision was taken away, and they could not see the Mother of God.

The Most Holy Virgin awaited the end of her earthly days calmly and even with joy - after all, She knew that there, in Heaven, she would meet Her Son and Her God.One day the Mother of God was in deep prayer on the Mount of Olives. Suddenly Archangel Gabriel appeared before Her and informed Her that in three days Her earthly life would end, that the Lord was pleased to take Her to Himself. To commemorate his words, the archangel handed the Virgin Mary a luminous branch of paradise - a symbol of victory over death and decay - (Dmitry of Rostov clarifies that it was a branch from a date palm), and ordered her to carry it in front of the coffin during burial. With the Heavenly message, the Mother of God returned to Bethlehem with three virgins who served Her (Zipporah, Ebigea and Zoila). The Mother of God, having come home, joyfully informed Her betrothed son John about this, and he informed the Apostle James and through him the entire Church of Jerusalem. The Mother of God ordered to bury Herself in Gethsemane, next to the graves of Her righteous parents and the righteous Joseph the Betrothed.

On the day of the Dormition of the Mother of God, miraculously, almost all the apostles were gathered in Jerusalem to bid farewell to Her. who had previously dispersed to different countries to preach the Word of God. Later than everyone else, the Apostle Paul arrived with his disciples: Dionysius the Areopagite, Hierotheus, Timothy and others from the 70 apostles. She called each of them to Her by name and blessed them. Only Apostle Thomas was absent.

The third hour came when the Dormition of the Mother of God was to take place. Many candles were burning. The holy apostles chanting surrounded the splendidly decorated bed on which the Most Pure Virgin Mary reclined. Suddenly an unspeakable light shone, darkening the lamps; The roof of the upper room opened, and Christ Himself descended with many angels. The Most Holy Theotokos turned to the Lord with a prayer of gratitude and asked to bless all those who honor Her memory. She also prayed to Her Son to protect Her from the dark satanic power, from airy ordeals. Then the Mother of God joyfully surrendered Her soul into the hands of the Lord, and immediately angelic singing was heard. There are many versions regarding the age of the Mother of God at the time of Her Dormition, but it is most likely that She lived to be about 72 years old and died about 57 A.D.

From Her fragrant body the sick immediately began to receive healing. The solemn transfer of the Most Pure Body from Jerusalem to Gethsemane began. Peter, Paul and James, together with the other apostles, carried the bed of the Mother of God on their shoulders, and Saint John the Theologian walked ahead with a heavenly shining branch. The Apostle Peter began singing the psalm “In the exodus of Israel from Egypt,” and solemn hymns began to sound. A cloudy circle in the form of a crown appeared above the bed, illuminated with radiance. This crown floated over the procession all the way to the burial place. The procession was also followed by Jews who did not believe in Christ.

The high priests sent their servants to disperse the procession, kill the apostles and burn the body of the Mother of God, but the angels struck the blasphemers with blindness. The Jewish priest Athonia (according to other legends, Jephonios or Zephaniah), who tried to overturn the bed of the Mother of God, was punished by an angel who cut off his hands. Seeing such a miracle, Affonia repented and with faith confessed the greatness of the Mother of God. He received healing and joined the host of those accompanying the body of the Mother of God, becoming a zealous follower of Christ. Those who were blind also repented and received their sight.

For three days the apostles remained at the tomb of the Mother of God, chanting psalms. On the fourth day, the absent Apostle Thomas returned to Jerusalem and was very sad that he could not say goodbye and bow to the Mother of God. The apostles, taking pity on him, decided to go and roll away the stone from the grave cave to give him the opportunity to say goodbye to the Mother of God. But to their amazement, The body of the Mother of God was not in the cave, only funeral clothes remained. Returning home, the amazed apostles fervently prayed to God that He would reveal to them what had become of the body of the Mother of God. And through their prayers a miracle happened.

In the evening of the same day, the Mother of God Herself appeared to them and said: “Rejoice! I am with you all the days; and I will always be your prayer book before God.” This made the apostles and everyone with them so happy that they lifted up part of the bread supplied for the meal in memory of the Savior (“part of the Lord”) and exclaimed: “Most Holy Mother of God, help us.” This marked the beginning of the rite of offering panagia - the custom of offering part of the bread in honor of the Mother of God, which is still preserved in monasteries. That is why the Dormition of the Blessed Virgin Mary is not a reason for sadness, but a holiday. After all, “with you” means that She is also with all of us “always”...

The Lord, in His special discretion, delayed the arrival of Saint Thomas on the day of the repose of the Most Pure Theotokos, so that the tomb would be opened for him, and the church would thus be assured of the resurrection of the Mother of God, just as earlier, through the unbelief of the same Apostle, she was assured of the resurrection of Christ. There is an Orthodox tradition that on the third day after the burial, the Mother of God appeared to the Apostle Thomas and threw Her belt from Heaven to him as a consolation.

Since then the Church has been celebrating this event. Everything in it is the memory of the earthly life of the Mother of God, sadness and joy, because this is also the day of Her birth for eternal life, where She is placed above the ranks of angels, the day of testimony that the promises of the Lord are immutable, about life and the miracle of the Resurrection...

The Feast of the Dormition of the Mother of God has been established by the Church since ancient times. In the 4th century it was already celebrated everywhere in Byzantium. At the request of the Byzantine Emperor Mauritius, who defeated the Persians on August 15, on the day of the Dormition of the Mother of God (from 595), the holiday became a church-wide holiday. The main purpose of establishing the holiday was to glorify the Mother of God and Her Dormition. Towards this main goal in the IV-V centuries. another is added - denunciation of the errors of heretics who encroached on the dignity of the Mother of God, in particular, the errors of the Collyridians, heretics of the 4th century, who denied the human nature of the Blessed Virgin (as a result of which they denied Her bodily death).

The death of the Blessed Virgin Mary is called Dormition because She “as if fell asleep for a short time, and, as if from sleep, rose up to eternal life,” because death, as the return of its dust to the earth, and the spirit to God, did not touch Her. She only fell asleep, only to awaken at the same moment to an ever-blessed life and, after three days, with an incorruptible body, move into a heavenly, incorruptible dwelling.

Place of the Assumption of the Virgin Mary in Jerusalem

According to legend, Before her death, the Most Holy Theotokos lived in the house of the Apostle John the Theologian. This is where she died.

In 415, on the site of the Dormition of the Virgin Mary, in the place where the house of the Apostle John the Theologian stood, next to the Upper Room of the Last Supper, the Byzantine basilica “Holy Zion” was built, dedicated to the Paschal Last Supper of Jesus Christ and His disciples, as well as the descent of the Holy Spirit on apostles on Pentecost. This temple was destroyed and rebuilt several times (in 614 during the Persian invasion, in 966 and in 1200 by Muslims).

In 1910, on this site, on the top of Mount Zion, a German Benedictine abbey was built - the Monastery of the Assumption of the Virgin Mary (Dormition) (at the end of the 19th century, the Catholic Benedictine Order managed to acquire this plot of land from Sultan Abdul Hamid II).

In the crypt of the temple, in the center of the hall there is a sculpture of the Virgin Mary reclining on a stone.

The most pure body of the Mother of God was buried , as She asked, in the tomb where her parents Joachim and Anna, as well as Joseph the Betrothed, were previously buried. The tomb of the Virgin Mary is located in Gethsemane, at the foot of the western slope of the Mount of Olives, in the Kidron Valley, in Jerusalem (East Jerusalem). In the 5th century, a temple was erected at the burial site. There is a legend that earlier St. Equal to the Apostles Helena built a basilica here. In 614, the temple was destroyed, but the tomb of the Mother of God was preserved.

Tomb of the Virgin Mary, view from the northern entrance to the cuvuklia. The Orthodox throne, installed above the sacred bed, is covered with a red veil.

In 681, the tomb of the Mother of God was opened by decision of the Sixth Ecumenical Council. According to legend, a belt and burial shrouds were found in it.

Nowadays the cave church of the Assumption of the Virgin Mary stands above the tomb.

Much of the modern building dates back to Crusader times. This is an underground temple, with 50 steps leading to it, with chapels of Sts. Godfathers Joachim and Anna and Joseph the Betrothed, located on the sides of the stairs.

The temple has a cruciform shape: in the center is the tomb of the Virgin Mary with two entrances, at the end of the cave there is an altar. In the stone ark is the miraculous icon of the Mother of God of Jerusalem in Russian writing.

Tomb of the Virgin Mary (edicule), view from the west

Tomb of the Virgin Mary (edicule), view from the west. To the left of the entrance is the Armenian throne

The temple belongs to the Greeks and Armenians. It is here, according to tradition, before the Feast of the Dormition from Little Gethsemane near the Church of the Holy Sepulcher that the Orthodox carry the Shroud of the Most Holy Theotokos in a procession along the same path as the apostles once carried the body of the Mother of God to burial.

Reverence Dormition of the Blessed Virgin Mary in Rus'

The Holy Patriarch of Jerusalem Juvenal (420-458) confirmed before the Emperor Marcian (450-457) the authenticity of the legend about the miraculous ascension of the Mother of God into Heaven and sent to his wife, Saint Pulcheria († 453; commemorated September 10), the funeral shrouds of the Mother of God, which he took from Her coffin. Saint Pulcheria placed these shrouds in the Blachernae Church. In 866, the Russian fleet approached Constantinople, and the city was besieged by pagans. The Emperor and Patriarch of Constantinople prayed all night in the Blachernae Church, and then immersed the funeral robe of the Mother of God into the sea. Suddenly a storm arose and scattered the Russian ships in different directions. Rus' suffered a defeat, which marked the victory of Christianity.

It was this event that contributed to the special veneration by Russians of the Mother of God, her Dormition and vestments. The Mother of God became the patroness of the Russian army, and the Feast of the Intercession, dedicated to the robes of the Mother of God, was a holiday that until the 19th century. celebrated only in Russia. The Blachernae Monastery itself, the Intercession and the Dormition acquired a special “military” and “protective” significance for Rus'. That is why, since the time of Saint Prince Vladimir, the main churches of the main cities of Rus' were dedicated specifically to the feast of the Dormition of the Blessed Virgin Mary: the cathedral Kiev temple, the Church of the Tithes. Likewise, the construction of St. Sophia Cathedrals, adopted from Byzantium, gradually turned into the tradition of building cathedrals in honor of the Assumption. It is noteworthy that the first princely church in Kyiv, erected by the holy Equal-to-the-Apostles Prince Vladimir after the baptism of Rus', the Tithes, was consecrated in honor of the Dormition of the Blessed Virgin Mary. Likewise, the construction of St. Sophia Cathedrals, adopted from Byzantium, gradually passed into the tradition of building cathedrals in honor of the Dormition of the Mother of God. Among the famous Assumption churches and monasteries today we can name Holy Dormition Kiev-Pecherskaya and the Pochaev Lavra, the Holy Dormition Pskovo-Pechersky Monastery, the Pyukhtitsky Assumption Convent, the Assumption Cathedrals in Vladimir, in the Holy Trinity Sergius Lavra, the Assumption Church of the Novodevichy Convent.

Assumption Cathedral in the Moscow Kremlin

Built in the 15th century by the outstanding architect Aristotle, the majestic Fioravanti Assumption Cathedral in the Moscow Kremlin became the main cathedral of the Russian land. Here, in front of the most revered by Russians, the miraculous icon of the Vladimir Mother of God, weddings for the great reign and the kingdom, and the coronations of emperors took place. The ritual of “installing” metropolitans and patriarchs was immediately performed.

Celebration of the Dormition of the Virgin Mary in Greece

In Greece, the Dormition of the Blessed Virgin Mary is celebrated almost as widely as Easter. At the center of the celebrations Tinos island , and him miraculous icon of the Mother of God "Tinos" : miraculous healings, volleys from ship cannons, flowers and flags, military bands and religious processions.

A solemn religious procession leaves the temple, the icon is placed on a stretcher carried by sailors

Under the numerous gifts with which believers decorated the icon in gratitude for the miracles, it is difficult to discern the plot of the icon - the appearance of the Archangel Gabriel to the Virgin Mary with good news. Nevertheless, Every year, on the feast of the Dormition of the Blessed Virgin Mary, thousands of people flock to the Greek island of Tinos to make their way on their knees from the port to the temple and touch the miraculous icon.

Everyone passing under the icon tries to touch it with their hand or attach some object to the icon.

There is a direct road from the port to the temple on the hill. Along the side of the road there is a path made of carpet-like material especially for pilgrims.

Sometimes parents take sick children on their backs so that they can receive healing.

In Greece on the island of Kefalonia , or “island of miracles”, as it is called, every year on August 15 to the Church of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary, in the village of Markopoulo, where miraculous icon of Panagia Fedus (translated as “Our Lady of the Serpents”), poisonous snakes crawl. Believers call them “snakes of the Virgin Mary” because on this day they are harmless. They do not exceed one meter in length; they have a cross on their heads, as well as on the tip of their tongue. According to tradition, if snakes do not appear, it is a bad sign. This happened twice - in 1940 before the outbreak of World War II in Greece and in 1953 - before the devastating earthquake.

Villagers notice snakes on the eve of the holiday, often gather with the priest in advance, read prayers and wait for the snakes to appear. Little snakes crawl here, and they are brought to the temple for the Divine Service. They are collected, put on the neck and stroked. Orthodox Greeks believe that this touch brings happiness. During the festive service, snakes are placed on the icon of the Mother of God, and they calmly lie there throughout the not-so-short service. According to ancient tradition, snakes are left in the church all night.

Snakes are mentioned in Christian books, mostly with a negative connotation, but Kefalonia is practically the only place in the world where these reptiles are, as it were, rehabilitated in the eyes of Christian believers.

Material prepared by Sergey SHULYAK

for the Church of the Life-Giving Trinity on Sparrow Hills

God's Law. DORMSION OF THE MOTHER OF GOD

ASSUMPTION. HOLIDAYS

Why is it customary in the Christian world to celebrate the Dormition of the Blessed Virgin Mary, that is, the day of Her death, as a great church holiday? Metropolitan Hilarion (Alfeev) will help you understand the spiritual meaning of one of the most important events of the church year. In his original film, the bishop will talk about how it is customary to celebrate the Dormition in Jerusalem, on the Greek island of Tinos and in the Spanish city of Elche. How does the Orthodox Assumption differ from the Catholic holiday of the Assumption of the Virgin Mary into Heaven? And why do the Spaniards consider this day perhaps the most important of the year?

Troparion, tone 1
At Christmas you preserved your virginity, at your dormition you did not forsake the world, O Mother of God; You reposed to the belly, Mother of the Being of the Belly, and through Your prayers you delivered our souls from death.

Kontakion, tone 2
In prayers, the never-sleeping Mother of God and in intercessions, the immutable Hope of the grave and mortification cannot be restrained: just as the Mother of the Belly was placed in the womb of the ever-virgin One.

Glorification of the Most Holy Theotokos on the Day of Her Dormition
We magnify You, Most Immaculate Mother of Christ our God, and glorify Your Dormition all-gloriously.

Prayer to the Most Holy Theotokos on the Day of Her Dormition
Oh, Most Holy Theotokos, Virgin Lady, the highest angel and archangel and the most honorable of all creatures, angelic great surprise, prophetic high sermon, apostolic glorious praise, fair adornment of saints, strong affirmation of martyrs, saving instruction for monks, inexhaustible abstinence for fasters, virgins in purity and glory, mothers quiet joy, infants wisdom and punishment, widows and orphans to nurse, naked clothes, sick in health, deliverance of captives, floating on the sea in silence, overwhelmed by a calm haven, wandering not difficult for a mentor, traveling an easy passage, toiling a good rest, in the troubles of the present intercessor, the offended protection and refuge, hope for those who do not hope, those in need of help, those who are sad, ever-present consolation, those who are hated, loving humility, salvation for sinners and appropriation to God, firm protection for the faithful of all, invincible help and intercession! Through You, Lady, we see the Invisible One, and we offer a prayer to You, O Lady, Your sinful servants: Oh, most merciful and wonderful Light of the intelligent, Queen, who gave birth to the King Christ, our God, the Life-Giver of all, glorified from the heavenly and praised from the earthly, angelic mind, luminous star, the most holy, the Lady of all creatures, the divine Maiden, the undefiled Bride, the chamber of the Most Holy Spirit, the fiery throne of the invisible King, the heavenly ark, the carrier of the Words of God, the fiery chariot, the chamber of the living God, the ineffable composition of the flesh of Christ, the nest of the heavenly Eagle, God-voiced turtledove, meek dove, quiet and gentle, child-loving mother, an abyss of mercy, opening the cloud of God's wrath, immeasurable depth, inexpressible secret, unknown miracle, not made by hands in the temple of the One King of all ages, fragrant censer, honest scarlet, richly woven purple, spiritual paradise, life-giving Garden branch, beautiful flower, heavenly joy blossomed for us, the cluster of our salvation, the cup of the Heavenly King, in which the wine of inexhaustible grace was dissolved from the Holy Spirit, intercessor of the law, the conception of the true faith of Christ, unshakable pillar, the sword of God’s wrath against the ungodly, the fear of demons, in Braneh victory, faithful keeper of all Christians and the known salvation of all peace!
Oh, all-merciful Lady Virgin and Lady Theotokos, hear us praying to You, and show Your mercy on Your people, pray to Your Son to deliver us from all evil and preserve our monastery and every monastery, and the city, and the country of the faithful, and people who piously resort and calling on Your holy name, from all adversity, destruction, famine, cowardice, flood, fire, sword, invasion of foreigners and internecine warfare, from all illness and every situation, and neither wounds, nor rebuke, nor pestilence, nor any righteous wrath of God Your servants will diminish. But observe and save with Your mercy, O Lady, praying for us, and grant us the beneficial dissolution of the air at the time of the fruitful offering. Ease, uplift and have mercy, having mercy on the Lady, the Mother of God, in every trouble and need that exists. Remember Your servants and do not despise our tears and sighs, and renew us with the goodness of Your mercy, so that we may be comforted with thanksgiving, having found You as a helper. Have mercy, O Most Pure Lady, on Your weak people, our hope. Gather those who are scattered, guide those who have gone astray to the right path, bring back those who have fallen away from the pious faith of their fathers, support old age, bring understanding to the young, bring up babies and glorify the glorifying Thee, and preserve the Church of Your Son to the fullest and preserve for the length of days.
Oh, merciful and most merciful Queen of heaven and earth, Ever-Virgin Mother of God! Through Your intercession, have mercy on our country and its army and all Orthodox Christians, preserving them under the roof of Your mercy, protect with Your honest robe and pray from You, who was incarnate without the seed of Christ, our God, that He may gird us with strength from above against all our visible and invisible enemies. Save and have mercy, O Lady, on the great lord and father of our Kirill, His Holiness the Patriarch of Moscow and All Rus', your Eminence metropolitans, archbishops and bishops of the Orthodox, priests and deacons, and the entire church clergy, and the entire monastic rank, and all the faithful people who worship and praying before Your honorable icon. Look upon us all with the gaze of Your merciful intercession, raise us up from the depths of sin and enlighten the eyes of the heart to the vision of salvation, be merciful to us here and at the Last Judgment of Your Son, pray for us, having reposed in piety from this life, Your servants in eternal life with the angels and archangels and with all the saints come, so that they may appear at the right hand of Your Son and God, and through Your prayer grant all Orthodox Christians to live with Christ and enjoy the joys of angels in heavenly villages. For You are, Lady, the glory of heaven and the hope of earth, You are our hope and intercessor of all those who come to You and ask Your holy help. You are our warm prayer service to Your Son and our God. Your Motherly prayer can do much to implore the Lord, and through Your intercession we dare to approach the throne of grace of His most holy and life-giving Mysteries, even if we are unworthy. Moreover, seeing Your all-honorable image and the Almighty held by Your hand on the icon, we rejoice, sinners, falling down with tenderness, and kissing this love, longingly, Lady, with Your holy, God-pleasing prayers, milk the heavenly endless life and shamelessly stand on the day of judgment at the right hand of Your Son and God ours, glorifying Him, together with the Originless Father and the Most Holy, Good, Life-Giving and Consubstantial Spirit forever and ever. A min.

Dormition of the Blessed Virgin Mary: iconography of the holiday in the art of Byzantium and Ancient Rus'

The Feast of the Dormition of the Blessed Virgin Mary is bright and joyful for every Christian. On the day of the blessed death of the Mother of God, all humanity found a Prayer Book and Heavenly Intercessor, an Intercessor before the Lord. The significance of this great celebration is determined by the church charter - this feast of the Mother of God does not have four ordinary days of after-feast, but eight, the same as one of the greatest lordly feasts - Epiphany. The event being celebrated is preceded by strict fasting, which ranks first after Lent in terms of the degree of abstinence.

Reliable information about the history of the Feast of the Assumption begins only at the end of the 6th century. It is generally accepted that it was installed under the Byzantine Emperor of Mauritius (592–602). Apparently, until this time, the Dormition was a local, not a general church holiday in Constantinople. The establishment of the Dormition in the church calendar was facilitated by the growing veneration of the Mother of God, which the emerging heresies, including Nestorianism, could not shake.

The Gospel says nothing about the earthly life of the Mother of God after the Ascension of the Savior. Information about Her last days was preserved by church tradition. That is why the iconographic sources for the images of the Dormition in Byzantium, the Balkans and Ancient Rus' were widespread apocryphal legends: “The Word of John the Theologian on the Dormition of the Theotokos”, “The Word of John, Archbishop of Thessalonica”, as well as the oldest holiday word on the Dormition of the Patriarch of Jerusalem Modest ( † 632), Words of Saints Andrew of Crete, Patriarch Herman of Constantinople and three Words of Saint John of Damascus (all - VIII century). The legends about the Assumption that have existed for a long time are not the same in scope and differ in details.

The formation of mature iconography of the Dormition dates back to the post-iconoclastic era. Two ivory plates date back to the end of the 10th century - for the setting of the Gospel of Emperor Otto III from the Bavarian Library in Munich and a plaque from the Metropolitan Museum in New York (ill. 1). The general composition of the Assumption scene in both monuments will become traditional for the art of Byzantium and Ancient Rus'. The Mother of God is depicted in the center on a bed, on either side of Her are the weeping apostles, behind the bed stands the Savior with the soul of the Mother of God, depicted in the form of a swaddled baby. In some Balkan monuments (frescoes of the Church of the Ascension in the Žiča monastery, 1309–1316; frescoes of the Church of the Mother of God “Hodegetria” in the Peć Patriarchate, c. 1335), the soul of the Virgin Mary in shrouds will be depicted with wings.

The composition has been found in icon painting since the 11th century (an icon from the monastery of St. Catherine in Sinai), and has been part of the festive epistiles since the end of the 11th century (Deesis, twelve apostles and twelve feasts from the same monastery).

The Dormition of the Mother of God, like the Resurrection of Christ, symbolized the trampling of death and the resurrection to the life of the next century. The images of the Assumption have a complex liturgical interpretation. Thus, the bed with the body of the Mother of God is clearly likened to the throne in the temple, and the arrangement of the apostles in two groups, headed by Peter and Paul, on either side of it - their presence at the Eucharist and communion under two types. Christ behind the bed was the image of a bishop at a meal. The image in some monuments of the Apostle Peter with a censer in his hand indicated, perhaps, the incense of the holy gifts in the liturgy, and the image of the Apostle John falling to the bed of the Virgin Mary indicated a priest kissing the throne. Often in the Assumption scene two or four bishops were depicted, along with the apostles standing before the Mother of God. These images of saints Dionysius the Areopagite, Hierotheus, Timothy of Ephesus and James, brother of the Lord, according to legend, who were present at the Dormition of the Mother of God, symbolized the bishop’s communion of the priests in the sacrament of the Eucharist. The angels who fly to Christ in the scenes of the Assumption with covered hands, as if to receive the holy gifts, seem to serve at the liturgy as deacons. According to tradition, the Dormition was depicted as an event taking place in the house of John the Theologian in Jerusalem - in the Zion Upper Room, where the Descent of the Holy Spirit on the Apostles had previously taken place. The stage is usually surrounded by architectural buildings.

Around the 11th century, an expanded version of the iconography of the Assumption, the so-called “cloud type,” became widespread. At the top of the composition (for example, in the fresco from the Church of Hagia Sophia in Ohrid, Macedonia) the apostles are depicted flying to the bed of Our Lady on the clouds. According to the “Word of John the Theologian,” the apostles, whom the Blessed Virgin wished to see before Her death, were miraculously raptured by angels from different countries and brought to Jerusalem, and the apostles Andrew, Philip, Luke and Simon Thaddeus were awakened from their graves.

The oldest example of a “cloud Assumption” in Rus' is an icon from the early 13th century, coming from the Novgorod Tithe Monastery (now in the State Tretyakov Gallery) (ill. 2). At the top of the icon there is a blue semicircular segment of the sky with golden stars and figures of angels carrying away the soul of the Mother of God. A rare and touching iconographic detail of this icon is the red shoes standing at the foot of the Mother of God’s bed. This is a symbol of Her leaving the earthly path.

Most often, one or more burning candles are depicted at the bed of the Virgin Mary, symbolizing a prayer to the Lord. On the Pskov icon of the Dormition of the first quarter of the 14th century (Fig. 3), a jug-stamna inserted into a bowl is depicted near the bed - this is one of the poetic symbols of the Mother of God, found in Byzantine and Old Russian hymnography. The Blessed Virgin is likened to a golden barrel containing manna from heaven, made at the command of Moses. The closest iconographic analogy to the icon in question is the fresco of the Cathedral of the Transfiguration Monastery in Pskov (mid-12th century) (ill. 4). In both monuments, the general composition and poses of the apostles are repeated; the stage is flanked by high chambers, inside of which the weeping women of Jerusalem are depicted. However, on the icon the apostles do not have halos, and the “glory” - the mandorla of Christ - is held by the angels surrounding it.

In the 15th century, icons of the Dormition were widely distributed in Rus', depicting the miracle of the cutting off of the hands of the wicked Jew Authonia (Athonia, in some sources - Jephonia) by an angel in the foreground, in front of the bed. Perhaps the popularity of the plot at that time and in the 16th century was associated with the fight against heretical movements. For the first time this plot was recorded in the fresco of the Church of Panagia Mavriotissa in Kastoria (the turn of the 12th–13th centuries), and in ancient Russian art - in the frescoes of the Snetogorsk Monastery and the Church of the Assumption on Volotovo Field.

In Russian icons of the Assumption of the second half of the 15th century - from the Assumption Cathedral of the Moscow Kremlin (c. 1479), from the Kirillo-Belozersky Monastery (1497, now in the Tretyakov Gallery), from the Assumption Cathedral in Dmitrov (late 15th century, now in the Andrei Rublev Museum) - a detailed iconographic diagram is presented. The apostles are depicted traveling on clouds, at the bed of the Mother of God are the sobbing women of Jerusalem, apostles and angels, in the foreground is the scene of the cutting off of the hands of Auphonia. The upper part of the icon depicts the heavens opening, to which the Mother of God is lifted up by angels in “glory.” This detail is interpreted in the “Word on the Dormition” of St. Andrew of Crete: “The door of the heavenly gates has risen to receive into the heavenly kingdom... the Most Heavenly Door of God.” Examining the icon from the Assumption Cathedral (ill. 5), E. Ya. Ostashenko notes the design and color of the “glory” of the ascending Mother of God, which has no analogues in other monuments. Instead of the traditional blue hues here, the outer outline of the "glory" is made up of two shades of red, while the inner parts include a radiance with short rays. Apparently, the red color of “glory” and the rays inside it are associated with a number of poetic images of the Mother of God, for example, with the image of the “Woman clothed with the sun” (Rev. 12: 1) and the image of the Church, which was clothed with the “Sun of Truth - Christ.” A special feature of the above-mentioned icon of the Assumption of 1497 from the Kirillo-Belozersky Monastery is the depiction of the episode with the Mother of God presenting her belt to the Apostle Thomas. According to one of the legends about the Assumption, Thomas arrived late, when the Mother of God was already ascending to heaven, and received the belt from Her hands. Having joined the rest of the apostles, he told them about his meeting with the Mother of God, thereby testifying to Her ascension to heaven.

Along with the developed and detailed iconographic types discussed above, a short version of the iconography of the Assumption was also widespread at the same time. Thus, the Russian Museum houses a Novgorod icon of the 15th century (Fig. 6), which does not contain images of angels, apostles flying on clouds and traditional figures of apostles at the bed of the Mother of God. The overall composition of the icon is distinguished by extreme laconicism - only the Savior Himself and two saints stand before the Mother of God. At the top of the icon are the half-figures of St. John the Baptist and St. Archdeacon Stephen. This is connected either with the dedication of the altars of the church from which the icon comes, or with the desire of the customer of the icon to see the patron saints of his family on the image of the Dormition.

The icon of the Assumption from the mid-16th century from the Vladimir-Suzdal Museum-Reserve stands out with an interesting iconographic feature. If in all the monuments discussed above, Christ was most often depicted frontally, holding the soul of the Mother of God with both hands, then here He is presented in a spread, blessing the Mother of God with his right hand, lying on the bed. This detail appears to appear in the “cloud” version of the Assumption in the first half of the 16th century and spread widely in the 16th–17th centuries. The Savior is also represented blessing the Mother of God on a 16th-century icon from the collection of the Russian Museum (ill. 7). It also depicts the ascension of the Mother of God, sitting on a throne, to the open gates of heaven, behind which are visible the angelic ranks, the Heavenly city (in the form of a cruciform tower) and several trees of paradise.

The placement of the Assumption scene in church paintings in the 16th century was also associated with heavenly symbolism. Thus, in the decoration of the Archangel Cathedral of the Moscow Kremlin and the Assumption Cathedral in Sviyazhsk, this plot is placed above the altar conch, which allows us to interpret this composition based on ideas about the symbolism of the altar space as a heavenly, heavenly place.

In the 17th century, monumental temple icons of the Assumption appeared, accompanied by stamps in which the “Tale of the Assumption” was illustrated. Thus, on the 1658 icon from the Assumption Cathedral of the Moscow Kremlin, the stamps depict the prayer of the Mother of God before her death, the farewell of the Mother of God to her loved ones, the journey of the apostles, their conversation with the Mother of God and other scenes. The most detailed story about the Dormition of the Virgin Mary ends with the image of the Mother of God on a bed in the Garden of Eden. The same story about the Assumption is contained in the stamps of the Assumption icon of the late 17th century from the Andrei Rublev Museum (ill. 8). In the last mark, the Mother of God, as in the traditional iconography of the Assumption, is depicted lying on a throne, behind and in front of him are two burning candles. Not only the apostles stand at the bed of the Mother of God - in the lower right corner the Old Testament righteous are depicted bowing, among them the prophets David and Daniel can be noted. The presence of the Old Testament righteous at the Dormition of the Mother of God, as well as the prudent thief with a cross standing behind Mary’s bed, directly indicates that the event depicted in the icon takes place not on earth, but in heaven, or rather, in paradise. Particularly noteworthy is the fact that the subject of the stamp in question is written on a white background. It was this color that, from the very birth of Christian art, symbolized paradise, as A. N. Ovchinnikov writes about this: “Any image on a white background should be understood as participation in paradise.”

- autumn Easter, how to prepare for it and how to spend it, Archpriest Artemy Vladimirov talks about the event of the holiday.

The main and greatest monastic laurels and monasteries in Rus' are named in honor of the Dormition

Quickly, as it always happens, alas, the gracious, bright, fine days of the Assumption Lent flew by, sometimes, however, punctuated by autumn rain. Left behind is an imperishable radiance, the non-evening light of the holiday. And now - the Assumption - the autumn Russian Easter, as this wonderful day is called. It is wonderful that our people consider the Dormition of the Lady Theotokos a special celebration. Otherwise, why are the main and greatest monastic laurels and monasteries named in honor of the Assumption? Assumption Pochaev Lavra, the destiny of the Mother of God on earth - the Assumption Kiev-Pechersk Lavra, the main temple of the Trinity-Sergius Lavra - in honor of the Dormition of the Mother of God, the Pskov-Pechersky Assumption Monastery, where these days are so solemn and beautiful that almost all of the people flock here Russia in order to help the monks and workers of the monastery lay out a path of fresh flowers along which the priesthood will carry the ancient miraculous icon of the Blessed Virgin Mary. However, in any parish church, dear friends, if you want to actively outwardly express your love for the Queen of Heaven, you can take part in this holiday. I'll tell you exactly how to do this.

Work hard for the Mother of God - take part in laying out a path of fresh flowers along which Her icon will be carried

For the Assumption, the temple is usually decorated with white lilies and roses. Lilies frame the icon of the Assumption itself; in vases, these royal flowers are fragrant with a delicate aroma, creating a special atmosphere. In the center of the temple there is a shroud with the image of the Mother of God, who had just surrendered Her immaculate soul into the hands of Jesus Christ, who appeared to Her, as is typical for the Son of God, who during his earthly life was in complete obedience to His Mother, until He went out for public preaching . So, according to your wealth, according to your desire and will, bringing one, two, three lilies or roses to the temple, you will feel that incorruptible beautiful flowers of paradise are opening in your heart, which will not be touched by earthly withering, because the Mother of God none of Her benefactors, those who honor Her virginity and Her heavenly glory are not left without consolation, without help, without reward. If you happen to be in some Russian monastery - the Tolga convent on the banks of the beautiful Volga, in the Pskov-Pechersky monastery I mentioned, I suggest you take part in laying out the path. In Pechory, they begin this holy task within a few days, and of course, with clean hands, and most importantly, with pure thoughts. If any of you wants to quit smoking, but can’t part with the evil passion that has ingrained itself under the skin like a poisonous larva, if you are tired of your own irritability or struggling with despondency, if you want to gain those qualities with which the Queen of Heaven Herself shines ... And She, remember, completely exuded grace. Her lips were anointed with peace and understanding, her heart was never troubled by any thought of hostility. Friendly, smiling, quiet and taciturn, She knew how to console every person who came to Her in accordance with his age: with babies she was gentle, like a mother; respectful to old people; She brought chastity to the young men with Her outer image alone, for the atmosphere of virginity hovered over Her; she taught spouses to live a temperate life with mutual care for each other; For the apostles, She was a teacher, thanks to Whose instructions they were not embarrassed by any persecution and malice, Jewish or pagan, but with great boldness they glorified the risen Lord and preached the news of His rising from the dead.

So, taking part in this sweet earthly task, in these efforts to decorate the monastery, laying out a path of fresh flowers, pray mentally: “, Lady Theotokos, I want to be Your pure son... grant me the grace to be Your pure daughter... help me return home , into the circle of household members, into your home changed/changed so that the mind is not darkened by earthly vanity, the lips are not mired in condemnation and idle talk, and the heart has finally learned to preserve that blessed peace, that peace and quiet with which it is imbued here in Your abode . Mother of God, I will work a little and decorate this path along which the priesthood will pass, holding the icon of the Assumption in their hands, and You help me, because I am tormented by pressure, its changes, sometimes thick, sometimes empty, ischemia, palpitations, tormenting me and migraine, and gout…” – each of us, dear friends, as you well know, has our own set of ailments, our own medical record. It’s a long way from the doctor, and the medicines are expensive. Of course, we are not canceling therapy at all, what medicine prescribes to us. But on the Dormition days we deeply believe that the Mother of God will stretch out Her invisible right hand to us, touch with Her tender, incorruptible fingers the aching body and wounded soul, and we will gain the strength and strength that people who touched with faith the bed of the Mother of God then gained. in Jerusalem, in the 1st century after the Nativity of Christ.

According to legend, the Queen of Heaven passed away at the age of just over 70 years. I would like, dear friends, to remind you that a few days and hours before the Lord called His Most Pure Mother to the heavenly villages, on the Mount of Olives under the canopy of olive trees, where Her Son and God once spoke with intimate, sublime conversations, with the teaching of Kingdom of Heaven to the apostles, the Mother of God kneeled, watering Her face with tears, prayed to the Lord Jesus Christ that He would release Her soul from the body and would release Her from the visions of unclean spirits. Such was the humility of the most honest cherub and the most glorious without comparison seraphim, who surpassed the angels with her purity and surprised heaven with her moral perfections. Such was Her humility, Her humble self-esteem, that She asked the Creator to deny fallen spirits access to Her immaculate soul. The Queen of Heaven knew that the ascent from earth to heaven is the final exam, a test that you and I will certainly undergo, one sooner, the other later, but we all must die once and appear at the Judgment Seat of Christ. This is why the Feast of the Assumption is very important for each of us.

If we give ourselves the trouble not to be late for the all-night vigil and, like a candle spreading light and warmth, we pray at the shroud of the Mother of God, looking at Her radiant face, contemplating this beauty of lilies and roses; let us begin the Divine Mysteries at the Assumption Liturgy, and having partaken, we will maintain the solemn mood of the heart, we will not allow any worldly malice, vain curiosity, intemperance in food and drink, over-judging the shortcomings of others to steal the beads of Divine grace from our hearts, then, undoubtedly, they will intercede for us at the hour of our own death. Read the Canon on the Exodus of the Soul (it can be found in large prayer books), and you will see how these words are pronounced on the face of a dying person: “O Queen of Heaven, I tremble and do not know where to turn my gaze: evil spirits frighten me and try to drag me down. the bottom of hell, but You, like a meek dove, spread Your grace-filled wings over me. Accept me as Your child, fired from all sides, wounded by demonic cackling and laughter, protect me from these predatory dogs and birds, but send me guardian angels who will lead my soul to the gates of the Mountainous Jerusalem, and through Your intercession may I be worthy to see Christ the Savior and enjoy His face, so that the dark forces are crushed and do not find a single flaw or dark part in me.” This, dear friends, is how we should pray in advance. He who is forewarned is forearmed. The one who honored the Dormition of the Mother of God will himself be honored by the Virgin Mary and will not be put to shame at the hour of exodus.

And if, God forbid, one of us becomes hardened, loses faith, begins to defile his lips with unclean curses hated by the Queen of Heaven, corrupts himself with carnal sins and remains unrepentant, then is it not about such unfortunates that it is said: “The death of sinners is cruel”?

The Feast of the Assumption serves as our best preparation for our own death.

That is why the Feast of the Assumption serves for us, dear friends, as the best preparation for our own death and at the same time gives us hope that God, through the intercession of the Mother of God, will add to us hour by hour, day by day, month by month, year by year, so that we, Having repented of all their sins, they glorified the name of the Lord with deeds of repentance, deeds of faith and love.

Returning to the historical outline of the Feast of the Assumption, let us remember that the Archangel Gabriel appeared to the Virgin Mary in the Garden of Gethsemane, the one who, from Her tender years, from her youth, from the shrouds of her infancy, spiritually led the Virgin Mary and with his presence marked the main milestones of Her life. It was from his hands, according to legend, that the Queen of Heaven once ate the immaterial heavenly bread daily while staying in the silence of the Jerusalem Temple. Archangel Gabriel, as you remember, the Immaculate Virgin Mary about the riches of God's Providence - that, in the event of Her humble consent, the Spirit of the Lord will descend on the Virgin and weave together under Her heart in the immaculate womb a beautiful Fruit - the Holy Son of God, in whose face it is wonderful Humanity and Divinity will unite. Here too, shortly before the Dormition, the Archangel Gabriel appears to Mary the Mother of God, who has already labored in establishing the Church of Christ on earth, having already visited Athos when the idols fell and demons fled in horror from this lot of the Mother of God. And the archangel handed over a luminous paradise branch, which became a sure sign of notification of Her approaching blessed death.

Tradition testifies - whoever does not believe or wants to check, please read the detailed account of the Feast of the Dormition of St. Demetrius of Rostov - it can be in Russian, it can be in Church Slavonic, it can be in English, as you wish - that this branch was placed in the Zion upper room , near the bed, where the Most Pure Virgin lay down with a luminous face, having managed to convey Her blessing to the apostles, gathered by the invisible power of God in the Zion upper room at the hour of Her departure. The incredible, the impossible happened: it was as if the roof of this building had opened, and in Heavenly Glory the risen Christ, surrounded by archangels and angels, appeared here, stepping on the stone slabs of this room, and received into His hands, like a pure, immaculate dove, the soul of the Most Holy Theotokos. Look at the icon of the Assumption, and you will see: the Queen of Heaven lying down, Her virgin and incorruptible body, and above Her in the mandorla, that is, surrounded by heavenly powers, the Son of God, and in His arms it is as if a child, swaddled in clean linen swaddling clothes. What kind of child is this? And this is the soul of the Most Holy Theotokos, who has never been separated from the Heavenly Father, neither in word, nor in deed, nor even in thought.

On this, dear friends, we probably need to complete our reflection, because we are all children of God. All ages are submissive to Divine love. And best of all, it is best to enter the Feast of the Dormition under the arches of the church with a soul of childlike faith, kindly, joyful, friendly towards everyone, forgetting completely insignificant and unnecessary grievances, having outlived suspiciousness, shaking off the dust of despondency from one’s feet, so that, with ardent, sighted faith, love With trembling and trust in the heavenly help of the Mother of God, approaching Her icon, hear the words of the Dormition troparion: “In the Dormition you did not forsake the world, O Mother of God.”

history of the holiday

Information about the last years of the earthly life of the Blessed Virgin Mary can be gleaned from a number of apocrypha and some pious traditions.

The events of the Dormition and burial of the Virgin Mary are known from such sources as “The Tale of the Dormition of the Virgin Mary” by Pseudo-John the Theologian (mid-5th century), “On the Exodus of the Virgin Mary” by Pseudo-Meliton of Sardinia (not earlier than the 4th century), the work of Pseudo-Dionysius the Areopagite , “Word of John, Archbishop of Thessalonica.” One of these apocrypha is placed in the “History of the Church” by Nicephorus Xanthopoulos. The history of the appearance of the Feast of the Assumption is also described by the Monk John of Damascus in the work “Second Homily on the Dormition of the Mother of God,” which quotes the words of the Jerusalem Bishop Juvenal. All of the listed apocrypha are fairly late works (V-VI centuries) and differ from each other in content.

Most researchers agree that the Virgin Mary lived on earth for 72 years and died around 57 AD.

At the time of Her Dormition, the Mother of God lived in Jerusalem, visiting Golgotha ​​and the Holy Sepulcher for prayer. One day, during prayer, the Archangel Gabriel appeared to Her, saying that in three days She would go to Christ God. Calming Mary so that She would be ready for this hour, the archangel announced to Her: “...Thy Son and our God, with the archangels and angels, cherubim and seraphim, with all the heavenly spirits and souls of the righteous, will receive You, His Mother, into the heavenly kingdom, so that You may live and reign with Him for an infinite time.” In commemoration of his words, the archangel presented the Virgin Mary with a branch of the tree of paradise, instructing her to carry it in front of the coffin of the Virgin Mary during burial.

Before her death, the Mother of God wanted to gather at Her bed the apostles, who by that time were preaching the Christian faith in different countries. Through the prayer of the Most Holy Theotokos, the Holy Spirit miraculously, as legend says, on the clouds, gathered the apostles from different parts of the earth so that they could worship the Most Holy Virgin before Her Dormition.

Having seen the apostles, the Mother of God joyfully surrendered Her soul into the hands of the Lord. This is how Saint Demetrius of Rostov describes the last moments of the Mother of God: “Suddenly in the upper room the indescribable light of Divine glory shone, darkening the lamps. Those to whom this vision was revealed were horrified. They saw that the roof of the upper room was open and the glory of the Lord was descending from heaven - the King of glory Himself, Christ, with tens of angels and archangels, with all the heavenly powers, with the holy forefathers and prophets who once foretold about the Blessed Virgin, and with all the righteous souls was approaching to His Most Pure Mother."

The apostles buried the Mother of God in the tomb of Her parents, the righteous Joachim and Anna, in which the ashes of Her husband, Joseph the Betrothed, rested, at the very foot of the Mount of Olives, or the Mount of Olives, near the Garden of Gethsemane, where Christ so loved to talk with his disciples and where He was taken by the Jews .

Tradition tells the story of how the Jewish priest Afonia, who was passing by, tried to overturn the bed with the body of the Virgin Mary, but his hands were immediately cut off by an unknown force. After Athonia’s deep repentance, his hands became whole again with divine power, and he himself accepted the Christian faith.

According to the apocrypha, the Apostle Thomas was the only one of Christ’s disciples who did not make it to the funeral of the Mother of God (he came to Jerusalem on the third day after the burial). Then the apostles led him to the tomb so that he could also venerate the body of the Mother of God. As St. Demetrius of Rostov narrates, “when the holy Apostles, having rolled away the stone, opened the coffin, they were horrified: there was no body of the Mother of God in the coffin - only funeral shrouds remained, spreading a wondrous fragrance; The holy Apostles stood in amazement, wondering what this meant! Kissing the funeral shroud remaining in the tomb with tears and reverence, they prayed to the Lord to reveal to them where the body of the Most Holy Theotokos had disappeared.”

In the evening of the same day, when the apostles all gathered together at a meal, and the Apostle Peter, raising the ukruh as usual in memory of Christ, said: “Great is the name of the Holy Trinity,” Christ’s disciples saw the Most Holy Theotokos in the air, surrounded by angels. Our Lady blessed the apostles with the words “Rejoice! “I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” The Most Holy Virgin extended her maternal blessing through the apostles and to all Christian believers until the very last times.

Establishment of a holiday

Until the 4th century, the Dormition of the Blessed Virgin Mary was not celebrated among Christians as a general church holiday. The final establishment of the church celebration of the Dormition in all parts of the Christian world occurred only around the 8th century. The day of the celebration of the Assumption on August 15/28, according to the “History of the Church” by Nicephorus Callistus Xanthopoulos, was established by Emperor Mauritius, who issued a special edict (second half of the 6th century).

The event of the Dormition of the Blessed Virgin Mary was glorified by the canons of St. Kozma Mayumsky and etc. John of Damascus in the 8th century, and the stichera of the holiday were written in the 5th century by Patriarch Anatolius of Constantinople. The holiday has long been preceded by fasting, which was approved in the 12th century. at the Council of Constantinople under Patriarch Luke. The celebration of the Dormition of the Most Holy Theotokos was always held with special solemnity in Gethsemane at the site of Her burial, where a temple was erected in which the funeral shrouds of the Mother of God were kept. In the 4th century. the sacred cover was transferred to the Blachernae temple.

In monasteries and some churches, for the sake of special honoring of the holiday, a special service is performed for the burial of the Mother of God. This service is known from manuscripts of the 15th century and is performed in the likeness of the Matins service on Great Saturday. In the 16th century, this service was very common in the Russian Church, but in the 19th century it was practically forgotten and was performed only in a few places. Currently, the rite of burial of the Mother of God is performed in many cathedral and parish churches on the second or third day of the holiday. The service begins with an all-night vigil; during the Great Doxology, the clergy goes to the shroud with the image of the Mother of God lying in the middle of the church; Its incense is performed, and then the shroud is carried around the temple. After this, the believers are anointed with oil, litanies and dismissal are read.

In Orthodoxy, the holiday is one of the twelve holidays and lasts 9 days - from August 15/28 to August 23/September 5. The holiday is preceded by a two-week Assumption Fast from August 1/14 to August 14/27, which is the strictest after Lent.

The spiritual meaning of the holiday

The Church calls the death of the Mother of God the Dormition, and not death, therefore ordinary human death, when the body returns to the earth and the spirit returns to God, did not touch the Blessed One: “The rules of nature are conquered in You, O Pure Virgin,” the Holy Church sings in the troparion of the holiday, “ For the Nativity is virgin, and the belly is betrothed to death: after the Nativity the Virgin, and after death is alive, saving ever, O Mother of God, Thy inheritance"(irmos 9 songs of the canon).

The feast of the Dormition of the Blessed Virgin Mary is also called the “Second Easter”.

This name is evidence that the Dormition of the Mother of God, like the Resurrection of Christ, is salutary for the entire human race as the trampling of death and resurrection to the life of the next century. Like the ascended Savior, the Most Holy Theotokos, in Her appearance to the apostles, promised to be with the human race “all the days until the end of the age.”

Iconography

The composition of the iconography of the Dormition of the Blessed Virgin Mary dates back to the post-iconoclastic era. Two ivory plates date back to the end of the 10th century - the setting of the Gospel of Emperor Otto III from the Bavarian Library in Munich and a plaque from the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York. The general composition of the Assumption scene in both monuments will become traditional for the art of Byzantium and Ancient Rus'. The Mother of God is depicted in the center on a bed, on either side of Her are the weeping apostles, behind the bed stands the Savior with the soul of the Mother of God, depicted as a swaddled baby.

Some of the earliest mural images of the Dormition of the Blessed Virgin Mary that have survived to this day belong to the 10th-11th centuries. The painting of the Assumption Church in Ateni (Georgia) dates back to the beginning of the 10th century. On this early monument, in addition to the apostles at the bed of the Mother of God, the saints are depicted, who, according to Pseudo-Dionysius the Areopagite, were present at the Assumption. These are James of Jerusalem, brother of the Lord, Dionysius the Areopagite, Hierotheus of Athens and Timothy of Edessa.

A fresco from a cave church in Goreme (Cappadocia, Turkey), dating back to the 11th century, testifies to a fairly well-established composition. In the center, on a purple bed decorated with gold carvings and a white ornamented cover, the deceased Mother of God is depicted. Behind the bed is Christ, who accepted the soul of His Mother in the form of a swaddled baby. The Lord hands Her to one of the two angels, who must ascend Her to the heavenly abodes. On both sides of the bier are the apostles, whose figures have been preserved in fragments. On the left in front of the bed is the Apostle Peter, performing incense; on the right, the Apostle Paul falls at the feet of the Virgin Mary; behind the bed, John the Theologian crouches at the very head of the bed.

Throughout the 10th - 11th centuries, the compositional scheme of the Assumption remains virtually unchanged. Only a few details are added to it, such as, for example, architectural scenes in the background, indicating the historical place where the event of the Assumption took place - the upper room on Mount Zion in Jerusalem. In the window niches of buildings, virgins and wives of Jerusalem are often depicted, to whom, according to the “Word of John, Archbishop of Thessalonica,” the Apostle Peter preached.

Sometimes the soul of the Mother of God is depicted not in the arms of Christ, but in the covered hands of an angel carrying Her to heaven. If there is enough free space for the image (as, for example, in the painting of the Church of the Holy Trinity of the Sopočany Monastery), then the artist places above the bed of the Mother of God a whole host of heavenly forces hovering around the figure of the Savior.

At the end of the 13th - first half of the 14th century, the version of the “cloudy Assumption” became widespread. In this iconographic version, the apostles, miraculously delighted from different countries, are depicted not only at the bed, but also in the upper part of the composition flying on clouds to Jerusalem. In Rus', such an image is first found on an early 13th-century icon from the Church of the Nativity of the Virgin Mary of the Tithe Monastery near Novgorod.

On the temple icon from the Pskov Church of the Assumption “on Paromenye” (first quarter of the 14th century) in front of the bed of the Mother of God, instead of a traditional candle, a vessel of a complex shape is depicted. The jug-stamna inserted into the bowl here recalls the ancient prototype of the Mother of God - the golden stamna with manna, kept in the Ark of the Covenant. On this Pskov icon, the figure of Christ is inscribed in a dark blue mandorla, which appears in the iconography of the Assumption no earlier than the end of the 12th century.

At the turn of the 12th - 13th centuries, the iconography of the Assumption was supplemented by a plot with the cutting off of the hands of Athos, depicted in the foreground of the composition in front of the bed of the Mother of God. At the same time, the figures of Athonia and the angel cutting off his hands are deliberately reduced as secondary elements of the composition. This plot was first recorded in the fresco of the Church of Panagia Mavriotissa in Kastoria (the turn of the 12th-13th centuries), and in Rus' the episode with the “Miracle of the cutting off of the hands of Athos” appears in the paintings of the cathedral of the Snetogorsk Monastery (1313), the Church of the Assumption on Volotovo Field (1360- e years), the Church of Fyodor Stratelates on the Stream (around 1380) and is present on many icons of the 15th - 16th centuries.

The secondary subjects of the composition of the Dormition can also include the depiction of the episode with the Mother of God presenting her belt to the Apostle Thomas, as can be seen on the icon of the Dormition of the Mother of God from the Kirillo-Belozersky Monastery of 1497. According to one of the legends about the Assumption, the Apostle Thomas, who did not have time for the funeral of the Mother of God, witnessed Her ascension into heaven and received a belt from Her hands. Having joined the rest of the apostles, he told them about his meeting with the Mother of God, thereby testifying to Her bodily ascension.

In the 17th century, large-scale icons of the Assumption with stamps appeared, which illustrated the “Tale of the Assumption.” Thus, on the 1658 icon from the Assumption Cathedral of the Moscow Kremlin, the stamps depict the prayer of the Mother of God before her death, the farewell of the Mother of God to her loved ones, the journey of the apostles, their conversation with the Mother of God and other scenes. The most detailed story about the Dormition of the Virgin Mary ends with the image of the Mother of God on a bed in the Garden of Eden.

A similar story about the Assumption is written on the stamps of the Assumption icon of the late 17th century from the Andrei Rublev Museum. In the last mark of this image, not only the apostles stand before the bed of the Mother of God - in the lower right corner the bowing Old Testament righteous are depicted, among whom are the prophets David and Daniel, and behind the bed of Mary is written the figure of a prudent thief with a cross, indicating that the event depicted on the icon is taking place not on earth, but in heaven. In this regard, it is especially noteworthy that the subject of the stamp in question is written on a white background. It was this color that, from the very birth of Christian art, symbolized paradise (A. N. Ovchinnikov: “Every image on a white background should be understood as participation in paradise”).

When talking about the iconography of the Dormition of the Blessed Virgin Mary, it is important to note that many of the visual elements that make up this composition have a hidden liturgical meaning. Thus, the bed with the body of the Mother of God is undoubtedly likened to the throne in the temple, and the arrangement of the apostles in two groups, headed by Peter and Paul, on either side of it - to their presence at the Eucharist and communion under two types. Christ behind the bed represents the image of the bishop at the meal. The image in some monuments of the Apostle Peter with a censer in his hand indicates the incense of the holy gifts in the liturgy, and the image of the Apostle John falling to the bed of the Virgin Mary indicates a priest kissing the throne. The images of the four saints, according to legend, who were present at the Dormition of the Mother of God, symbolize the bishop's communion of the priests in the sacrament of the Eucharist. The angels flying to Christ in the Assumption scenes with their hands covered, as if to receive the holy gifts, are images of deacons.

Miraculous and revered icons

Among the numerous miraculous and locally revered images of the Dormition of the Blessed Virgin Mary, a number of the most famous icons can be distinguished.

One of the oldest miraculous icons of the Dormition of the Mother of God was painted in 1147 and is now in the collection of the State Tretyakov Gallery. She is known for the miraculous salvation of the city of Pskov in 1581 during the invasion of the Polish king Stefan Batory, as well as in 1812 during Napoleon's invasion of Russia.

The Icon of the Dormition of the Mother of God (Kievo-Pecherskaya) is one of the oldest revealed icons of the Russian Orthodox Church. According to legend, the Mother of God Herself presented this icon to four Byzantine architects, who in 1075 brought the image to Saints Anthony and Theodosius of Pechersk. The icon was glorified by many miracles. Its iconographic feature is the Gospel standing in front of the bed of the Mother of God.

The Icon of the Dormition of the Mother of God (Ovinovskaya) became famous in 1425 in the Kostroma province.

The Icon of the Dormition of the Mother of God (Pskov-Pecherskaya), together with the image of “Tenderness,” showed a miracle in 1581 during the siege of Pskov by the Polish king Stefan Batory. The chronicle recorded the first healing from the image in 1473.

The Icon of the Dormition of the Mother of God (Pükhtitsa) appeared in the 16th century on Estonian soil. She was found by simple shepherds at the roots of an oak tree after the appearance of the Most Holy Theotokos at the holy spring.

The Icon of the Dormition of the Mother of God (Semigorodnaya) was painted by the Monk Dionysius of Glushitsky, the founder of the Glushitsky monastery, located in the Kadnikovsky district of the Vologda province. It is believed that from the monastery he founded, this icon of the Mother of God was transferred by some hermits to a distance of 20 miles from the monastery, to impenetrable forests beyond the Dvintsa River in the Semigrad volost.

The Icon of the Dormition of the Mother of God (Dalmatian) is named after the monk Dalmat, the founder of the Dormition Dalmatovsky Monastery in the Perm province.

Notes

1. The holiday in honor of the Dormition of the Virgin Mary was originally called “Blessed Memory.” It was under this name that it began to be celebrated in Syria in the 5th century. In the 6th century, the name of the holiday was changed to “Feast of the Dormition of the Mother of God.”

2. Until the 13th century, in Byzantine art, the soul of the Virgin Mary, lifted up by angels, was depicted as a baby in white shrouds. The first Byzantine monument, where the ascending soul of the Mother of God is depicted not as a baby, but as an adult Virgin, was the “Golden Gate” of the Cathedral of the Nativity of the Virgin Mary in Suzdal (1230). This image has allowed some researchers to believe that in this case not only the ascension of the soul of the Mother of God into heavenly glory is represented, which happened immediately after separation from the body, but her bodily resurrection by Christ after burial.

3. A rare iconographic detail of the Novgorod icon is the red shoes standing on the foot in front of the bed of the Virgin Mary, which in this context may be an image of leaving the earthly path. It is known that, according to the ceremonial customary in the Roman Empire, red shoes could only be worn by persons of royal blood, including the Mother of God, as she came from the family of King David. Also interesting features of the icon include two tall candlesticks with candles standing behind the bed.

4. A lighted candle is written in front of the bed of the Mother of God according to the own instructions of the Mother of God, who wished for a candle to burn in the upper room (according to the account of John of Thessalonica).

Troparion, tone 1

At Christmas you preserved your virginity, / at the Dormition you did not forsake the world, O Mother of God; / You reposed to the belly, / Mother of the Beings of the Belly, // and through Your prayers you delivered our souls from death.

Kontakion, tone 2

In prayers the never-sleeping Mother of God / and in intercessions the immutable Hope / the grave and mortification cannot be restrained: / like the Mother of the Belly / placed in the belly // in the womb of the ever-virgin one.

Greatness

We magnify You, / Immaculate Mother of Christ our God, / and glorify the all-glorious // Your Dormition.

Prayer

O Most Holy Theotokos, Virgin, Lady, the highest Angel and Archangel and all creatures, the Most Honest, angelic great surprise, prophetic high sermon, apostolic glorious praise, fair adornment of saints, strong affirmation of martyrs, saving instruction for monks, inexhaustible abstinence for fasters, virgins in purity and glory, mothers quiet joy, infants wisdom and punishment, widows and orphans to the Nurse, naked clothes, sick in health, deliverance of captives, floating on the sea in silence, overwhelmed by a calm refuge, wandering not difficult for the Mentor, traveling easy passage, toiling good rest, in the troubles of the present Intercessor, the offended Protection and refuge, hope for those who do not hope, those who require a Helper, those who are sad, ever-present consolation, those who are hated, loving humility, salvation for sinners and appropriation to God, firm protection for the faithful of all, invincible help and intercession! By You, Lady, we see the Invisible One, and we offer a prayer to You, Lady, Thy sinful servants: O Most Merciful and Most Wonderful Light of the intelligent Queen, who gave birth to the King Christ, our God, the Life-Giver of all, glorified from heavenly and praised from earthly, angelic mind, radiant star, the Most Holy One, the Lady of all creatures, the Godly Maiden, the Undefiled Bride, the chamber of the Most Holy Spirit, the fiery Throne of the Invisible King, the heavenly ark, the carrier of the Word of God, the fiery chariot, the chamber of the Living God, the ineffable composition of the flesh of Christ, the nest of the Heavenly Eagle, the God-voiced Turtle, Dove meek, quiet and gentle, Mother of the child-loving, an abyss of mercy, dispelling the cloud of God’s wrath, immeasurable depth, inexpressible in secret, an unknown miracle, opened without hands to the Church of the One King of all ages, fragrant censer, honest scarlet, God-woven purple, spiritual paradise, life-giving garden branch, beautiful flower, heavenly joy that has blossomed for us, the grape of our salvation, the cup of the Heavenly King, in which the wine of inexhaustible grace has dissolved from the Holy Spirit, Intercessor of the Law, conceived the true faith of Christ, an unshakable pillar, the sword of God’s wrath against those who oppose God, intimidation of demons, victory in battle , the unfaithful Guardian of all Christians and the known salvation of the world! O All-Merciful Lady, Virgin Lady, Mother of God, hear us praying to You, and show Your mercy to Your people, pray to Your Son to deliver us from all evil and preserve our monastery and every monastery, and the city, and the country of the faithful, and people, piously running and calling on Your holy name, from all adversity, destruction, famine, cowardice, flood, fire, sword, invasion of foreigners and civil wars and wounds, from all illness and every situation, and neither wounds, nor reprimand, nor pestilence, nor any Your servants will be humbled by the righteous wrath of God. But observe and save with Your mercy, O Lady, praying for us, and grant us the beneficial dissolution of the air during the time of fruitful offering. Ease, uplift and have mercy, O most merciful Lady, the Mother of God, in every trouble and need that exists. Remember Your servants and do not despise our tears and sighs, and renew us with the goodness of Your mercy, so that we may be comforted with thanksgiving, having found You as a Helper. Have mercy, O Most Pure Lady, on Your weak people, our Hope. Gather those who are scattered, guide those who have gone astray to the right path, bring back those who have fallen away from the pious faith of their fathers, support old age, bring the young to reason, raise children and glorify the glorifying Thee, and most importantly, preserve the Church of Thy Son and preserve the length of days. O Most Merciful and Most Merciful Queen of Heaven and Earth, Ever-Virgin Mother of God! Through Your intercession, have mercy on our country and its army and all Orthodox Christians, preserving them under the roof of Your mercy, protect us with Your honest robe and pray from You, who was incarnate without the seed of Christ, our God, that He may gird us with strength from above against all our visible and invisible enemies. Save and have mercy, O Lady, on our Great Lord and Father Alexy, His Holiness the Patriarch of Moscow and All Rus', your Eminence metropolitans, archbishops and bishops of the Orthodox, priests and deacons and the entire clergy, and the entire monastic rank, and all the faithful people who worship and praying before Your honorable icon. Look upon us all with the gaze of Your merciful intercession, raise us from the depths of sin and enlighten the eyes of the heart to the vision of salvation, be merciful to us here and at the Last Judgment of Your Son, pray for us, having reposed in piety from this life, Your servants in eternal life with the Angels and The Archangels and with all the saints may appear at the right hand of Your Son God, and through Your prayer grant all Orthodox Christians to live with Christ and enjoy the joys of angels in the Heavenly villages. For You are, Lady, the glory of Heaven and the hope of the earthly, You are our Hope and Intercessor of all those who flow to You and those who ask for Your holy help. You are our warm prayer book for Your Son and our God. Your Motherly Prayer can do much to implore the Lord, and through Your intercession we dare to approach the Throne of Grace of His Most Holy and Life-Giving Mysteries, even if we are unworthy. Moreover, seeing Your all-honorable image and Your hand holding the Almighty on the icon, we rejoice, sinners, falling with tenderness, and kissing this love, hoping, Lady, with Your holy, God-pleasing prayers to reach Heavenly endless life and shamelessly stand on the day of judgment at the right hand of Your Son and our God , glorifying Him together with the Originless Father and the Most Holy, Good, Life-Giving and Consubstantial Spirit, forever and ever. Amen.

Orthodox iconography is unusually multifaceted. A special place among the shrines is occupied by images dedicated to church events and holidays. Almost every important fact in Christian history is dedicated to a specific icon.

Orthodox icon painters could not ignore the feast of the Dormition of the Blessed Virgin Mary. An amazingly beautiful icon is dedicated to him, undoubtedly worthy of attention both from art critics and among believers.

So, the composition includes the following elements:

• In the center: a bed covered with cloth, on which the body of the Mother of God is located.
• Before the bed: mourning apostles.
• Behind the bed: Jesus Christ bending over the body of His Mother, and holding Her soul in his hands (depicted as a newborn wrapped in cloth).
• Angels fly over the Lord and the soul of the Mother of God.

Each icon of the “Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary” necessarily includes all these elements. You will learn about what they pray for in front of this image in the next part of the article.

We also note that there are several different iconographic types of images of the Assumption of the Virgin Mary. Some of them are significantly enriched with other elements, others are more modest. The type of image of the Dormition on the icon depends on the personal preferences of the icon painter, on the era in which he lived and many other factors. However, undoubtedly, each of the icons of the Dormition of the Virgin Mary deserves attention.

What to pray for in front of the image

In many Orthodox churches there is an icon of the Dormition of the Blessed Virgin Mary. What do believers pray for when standing in front of this shrine? There are no restrictions on requests (except, of course, for sinful requests). However, it is known that traditionally Orthodox believers ask for help in front of this shrine in the following situations:

• Healing diseases (mental and physical).
• Strengthening faith.
• The granting of virtues and deliverance from sins, addictions, and so on.
• Justification in case of slander, denunciation of untruth.
• Parting words for the dying.

If you don't find your request on this list, don't worry. In any case, you can ask for the prayerful intercession of the Virgin Mary. This can be done both in an Orthodox church and at home.

We remind you: you need to pray not only when you are in a difficult life situation or have problems. Do not forget to thank the Most Pure Virgin for her heavenly intercession in joyful moments of life. It is definitely worth it if your request expressed in the prayer reading has been fulfilled. You can also follow the pious tradition and order a prayer service in front of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary icon. How does prayer in front of an image help? To summarize: any pious request, if the Lord pleases, will be fulfilled.

However, much still depends on the sincerity and faith of the person praying. Pray with your soul and diligently, then the Most Pure Virgin will definitely hear you.