Holy beginnings in rugged region

Published Nov 16, 2014

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Yerevan - Monasteries dot the landscape of Armenia. Many are austere, but each is in a stunning setting.

Armenia was the first country to adopt Christianity as the state religion in 301AD and the Armenian Apostolic Church is still the official place of worship. Services are usually packed to capacity. And it’s not just the elderly; the young are there in their droves.

 

Just across the border, in Turkey, Mount Ararat crouches beneath a snowy mantle. Once it fell within Armenia, before the country was carved up: a slice to Azerbaijan, a swathe to Turkey.

Armenians have not forgotten the genocide of 1.5 million people in 1915, when many were killed in their villages in north-eastern Turkey (adjoining the then Russian-controlled Armenia).

More Armenians live in other parts of the world than within their own country.

The Genocide Memorial on a hillside above the capital city, Yerevan, is a stark reminder of the genocide.

While Yerevan cannot be described as beautiful, it has a certain vibrancy along the main boulevards. The outskirts, though, are less salubrious. Here Soviet-style apartment blocks line the hills around the city bowl, a reminder that the country was part of the Soviet Union until 1991.

According to our young Armenian tour guide, Rafik (or Rafi as he preferred to be called) Santrosyan, his father and grandfather’s generation look back with longing to those days.

“They did not have freedom, but they had jobs and security, good health care and education, which is not the case now,” said Rafi. “Many young people now seek work in Russia or America.”

Decaying, partly completed houses, can be seen everywhere in Yerevan suburbia and, to a lesser extent, in the rest of the country. Apparently, many of their owners had to abandon their building projects when the Russians left and the locals’ finances took a knock.

Several factories closed or now operate on a shoestring. An eyesore, many belch out pollutants, but it is difficult to be an environmentalist when the factory is a town’s only source of income.

While many do not seem affluent, they are not in rags, and the countryside is beautiful, especially when carpets of wild flowers blanket the hillsides. Being mountainous helps add to the grandeur. The only flat area, the extensive Ararat plain, is agriculturally rich.

During our travels, we gained insight into how, before Christianity, paganism reigned. Later, the two existed in tandem – for instance, at Garni a Christian church was built alongside a pagan temple. During an earthquake (prevalent in this region) the Christian church collapsed into the canyon below, while the pagan structure survived and is still standing.

At Garni, we had our first sighting of women selling paper-thin dried fruit rolls, often with crushed walnuts inside, or “fly strips” (walnuts dipped in syrup and dried).

At the Geghard monastery, below towering cliffs, we heard the phenomenal acoustics, amid beautiful singing and chanting. Here, as with monasteries throughout the country, the roof is shaped like an umbrella sheltering the church and the windows are just slits letting in light – a protective measure from more dangerous times.

At Geghard a monk, dressed in black silk hooded robe, was blessing a bowl of salt as a family gathered around. According to Rafi, such a ceremony is a reminder that when Christianity could not wipe out pagan beliefs, it incorporated some.

“Instead of bringing a sacrifice, people bring salt. After it is blessed, they take it back and use it to preserve the meat of the animal that would have been brought as a sacrifice, but is instead slaughtered at home,” said Rafi.

Over the week in which we covered large distances, we were introduced to famous characters from Armenian history, such a Gregory the Enlightener – the instigator of the building of many of the monasteries. These acted not only as places of worship, but also as universities (many still do) and scriptoria – where manuscripts were painstakingly copied and stored (an art no longer practised).

Legend has it Gregory spent 13 years imprisoned in a pit filled with spiders and scorpions. Somehow he survived, some say due to his prayers and holiness, while others say that a noble woman who fell in love with him dropped food and water into the pit every day. The monastery of Khor Virap, one of the holiest in Armenia and with a fabulous backdrop of Mount Ararat, is built above the pit where Gregory was kept captive.

At Khor Virap, vendors cage doves, then offer them to tourists who pay a price to set them free. This practice is based on the story of Noah releasing a dove to see if the waters had receded after the great flood, when the ark settled on Mount Ararat. The doves have been trained to fly back to their owner.

What is said to be the oldest winery in the world is nearby. A 5 500-year-old shoe, found in the area, is apparently the oldest in the world.

The Holy See of Echmiadzin, a short distance from Yerevan, is to the Armenians what The Vatican is to Catholics. Echmiadzin was the capital of Armenia from 180 to 340AD.

The entrance gate reflects the first meeting between Gregory and King Trdat the Great, who adopted Christianity when the monk allegedly cured him of a demon.

The church here is said to house the spear that a Roman soldier used to pierce Christ’s side after the crucifixion.

The many legends are fascinating. Like the one of Saint Hripsimé, a nun who came to Armenia along with a group of 33 virgins. She was fleeing Emperor Diocletian in Rome who had fallen in love with her. When the vengeful emperor told the Armenian king of Hripsimé’s incredible beauty, he sought her out, also fell in love and offered her marriage. When she refused, he had her stoned to death.

Then there is the tale of a king who promised his daughter in marriage to any man who could design a spectacular church. When one duly produced such a masterpiece, the king had him flung from the turret of one of the towers, so as not to have to keep his word.

The monasteries pass in a religious parade of splendour. Noravank, set in a rocky gorge, is a masterpiece of 13th century sculptor and manuscript artist Momik. It was destroyed by an earthquake in 1840 and restored between 1988 and 1999.

Tatev Monastery, perched on the edge of spectacular Vorotan canyon, can be reached via a steep winding road, or an aerial cableway. The view, as you soar above the serpentine canyon, is spectacular.

The 14th century Selim caravanserai is a “forest” of khachkars (about 1 000 carved stone crosses that incorporate pagan and Christian symbols).

 

Eventually, we found ourselves in the lush alpine region of northern Armenia, where the 12th century Haghartsin Monastery (Dance of the Eagles) built by two brothers, is in a forest. We wandered the restored streets of Dilijan, where artisans have set up trade; and walked through a Molokan village. The Molokans are a sect of Russians who broke away from the Russian Orthodox Church in the 16th century.

Sometimes we stayed in small family-run hotels. Close to the border of Georgia, our final calls were Haghpat and Sanahin monasteries.

We all agreed the latter was probably the most evocative. Its ruined scriptorium and cloisters open on to the forest.

Many of the monasteries have Unesco protection, deservedly so.

National pride even finds its way on to the country’s Dram bank notes. They depict famous poets, writers, activists; images of old Yerevan, and nature in abundance. The 50 000 Dram, for instance, carries Echmiadzin Cathedral, along with Gregory and King Trdat.

As for our guide, Rafi, he got his PhD when he was just 23. Not only was he a specialist in linguistics; he could identify different kinds of architecture with ease. His sense of humour was delightful. By the time we left the country, our group had almost deified him.

 

Where to stay

Regineh Hotel in the ancient quarter of Yerevan has fabulous views of Mount Ararat and pretty gardens. E-mail [email protected]

Nork Residence in one of the suburbs of Yerevan includes breakfast in its tariff. It offers international, Armenian and Persian food and a free shuttle twice a day to the city centre.

Info from: [email protected] or visit to their website http://www.norkresidence.am/

 

Marvel medieval manuscripts

When the famous library of Alexandria burned down, many of its manuscripts could have been lost forever; but help was at hand.

In Armenia, monks had, for generations painstakingly been copying Greek manuscripts into the Armenian alphabet. Now they and their Greek counterparts were able to copy this back into the original Greek – saving priceless works.

The modern visitor learns such snippets at the Mesrop Mashtots Institute of Ancient Manuscripts in Yerevan (or Matenadaran), which holds one of the world’s richest depositories of medieval manuscripts and books.

Covering history, philosophy, medicine, literature, art history and cosmography, these beautifully illustrated manuscripts come from all parts of the world, often donated by wealthy benefactors or people who had them in their family for generations.

Some were carried on foot through dangerous areas in the Middle East or Turkey. Hiding them in innovative ways, they were brought to Yerevan, Armenia, their journeys sometimes taking years. Web: www.matenadaran

Sunday Tribune

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