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Smolensk Icon of the Mother of God, called “Odegetria. The second type of iconography of the Virgin Mary: guidebook (digitria)

Hodegetria is one of the most revered iconographic images in Orthodoxy. This is an image of the Virgin and Child, which received widespread in Russian iconography. The word “Hodegetria” itself is translated from Greek as “Showing the way” or simply “Guide”.

Icon Mother of God Hodegetria was known to Christians in the very first centuries. Initially it was found in Palestine, then gained fame in Byzantium, Ancient Rus' and in other Orthodox countries.

Today there are many varieties of this icon, but in Russia it is especially revered Smolensk Hodegetria. The icon also served as a source of inspiration for others famous images Our Lady, for example, " Burning bush».

Description of the icon

Several variants of Hodegetria are known however, they all have characteristic features, which always remain unchanged.

Traditionally, this icon depicts the youth Christ in the arms of the Virgin Mary. Christ's right hand is necessarily depicted in a blessing gesture, and in his other hand he most often holds a book or scroll. Usually Christ faces the audience, but sometimes he is depicted in half profile.

In Hodegetria it is usually used half-length image of the Mother of God. But there are also shoulder-length options (for example,), and sometimes the Virgin Mary is even depicted sitting on a throne.

The head of the Mother of God is slightly tilted. She points her hand to Jesus, as if saying: “Here is the Savior of all mankind!” The main meaning of the icon is the worship of the royal Infant, as well as the coming to Earth of the heavenly King and Judge.

The appearance of Hodegetria

According to legend, the author of the very first icon was Evangelist Luke- disciple and companion of the Apostle Paul. He painted this image during the life of the Mother of God at the request of the ruler of Antioch, Theophilos. Also, this icon originally contained a piece of the maforia (robe) of the Mother of God.

Subsequently, the icon of the Mother of God Hodegetria came from Antioch to Jerusalem, and from there the Byzantine Empress Eudokia transported it to Constantinople. The Hodegetria was placed in the Blachernae Church, which is where its second name came from - the Blachernae Icon.

As for the origin of the word “Hodegetria” itself, then there are three versions here:

After the Blachernae Temple icon for a long time was kept in the Byzantine monastery of Odigon, from which its name was derived.
According to legend, one day the Mother of God appeared before two blind men and miraculously led them to the temple in Blachernae. Presenting themselves before her icon, they immediately regained their sight, and from that time on the image began to be called Hodegetria, that is, “Guide”.
With a list of this icon, Emperor Constantine blessed his daughter Anna, who was marrying a Russian prince and was supposed to go to Russian lands. Her journey was long and difficult, and only thanks to the miraculous image, the princess was able to reach her future husband.

For many years the icon (the very first) was guardian of Constantinople. During the siege of the city, they carried it to the walls and performed religious processions with it. However, in 1453, the Turks were able to capture the Byzantine capital and destroyed Hodegetria. Wikipedia says that Ottoman soldiers cut the miraculous image into pieces to get to the frame and precious stones.

The icon was first brought to the territory of Rus' in XI century by Princess Anna, who married Grand Duke Vsevolod of Chernigov. From the very beginning, the image began to be revered by Russian Christians as miraculous.

After the death of Vsevolod, his eldest son, Vladimir Monomakh, transported the image to Smolensk, where it was placed in the Assumption Cathedral. Since then, the image began to be called “Hodegetria of Smolensk”.

Many miracles were associated with the icon. For example, the feat of the Smolensk warrior Mercury became extremely famous. According to a voice emanating from Hodegetria, he attacked the Mongol camp at night and killed many enemies. Mercury himself suffered martyrdom and was later canonized.

In the 14th century, Smolensk passed to Principality of Lithuania. Sofia, the daughter of the Lithuanian prince Vitovt, was married to the Moscow prince Vasily. As a devotee, she took Hodegetria with her, who was placed in the Annunciation Cathedral of the Kremlin. However, already in the 15th century, at the request of the people of Smolensk, the image of the Mother of God was returned to hometown.

During the war with Napoleon, when the soldiers left Smolensk, they took Hodegetria with them. With this icon, the clergy walked around the Russian camp on the eve of the Battle of Borodino to ask the Mother of God for blessings and to encourage the troops.

Unfortunately, during the Great Patriotic War The icon was taken away by the Germans and since then nothing has been known about it. Today in the Assumption Cathedral of Smolensk there is kept very ancient list from Hodegetria, who is also revered as miraculous.

Some other ancient copies of the icon are kept in museums and churches in Moscow, Vladimir and Kostroma. In addition, every church today has its own version of the Hodegetria, and hundreds of churches in Russia have been illuminated in honor of this image of the Virgin and Child.

Some famous variants of Hodegetria

Lists of Hodegetria were repeatedly made. And since initially no iconographic canon existed, numerous variations of the image began to appear, which retained only the features common to Hodegetria.

Of these, the most famous were the following icons Virgin and Child:

Tikhvinskaya,
Kazanskaya,
Georgian,
Iverskaya,

There are also Greek versions of this image - “Psychosostria” and the Constantinople “Perivelept”.

Along with the Smolensk Hodegetria in Rus', the Tikhvin Mother of God. According to legend, it was initially located in Constantinople, and after its fall miraculously ended up in the city of Tikhvin. During the Soviet era, when churches were closed, this image was taken to the USA. And only in our time was it returned to the Tikhvin Monastery.

Another icon with a difficult fate – Georgian. For many years she was in Georgia, but in 1622, after the conquest of the country, she was taken to Persia. Years later, the image ended up in Arkhangelsk, where it was kept for a long time. Today it is considered lost, but there are many lists of it. This image is believed to help during epidemics.

The story of another revered icon, Iveron Mother of God, began in the 9th century in Byzantium. At that time, the era of iconoclasm was just underway, and one woman, in order to save this image, lowered it into the sea. The icon miraculously floated to the famous Mount Athos, where the monks saw it. This image of the Mother of God is still kept on Mount Athos in the Iveron Monastery.

The holiday of Smolensk Hodegetria is celebrated on August 10(according to old style - July 28). It was established after Smolensk returned to Russia in 1525. But there are other holidays of Hodegetria, established in honor of her famous lists.

The meaning of the icon of the Mother of God Hodegetria for Orthodox people difficult to overestimate. Traditionally, the Mother of God is revered above all saints and angels, and above her only Christ himself. Orthodox Christians love her like their own Mother, and for them she always remains a source of love and understanding.

That is why Hodegetria became one of the most revered Orthodox shrines, patroness and intercessor of the Russian land. Christians often turn to the image of the “Guide” for help. It is believed that sincere prayer before the Mother of God helps to ward off any misfortune or attack.

Miraculous icon The Most Holy Mother of God, called “Hodegetria” of Smolensk, has been known in Rus' since ancient times. "Hodegetria" translated from Greek means "Guide". There are several versions of the origin of this name, but the fact that the Most Holy Theotokos is a guide to eternal salvation for all Orthodox Christians is an undeniable truth.

According to Church tradition, the Smolensk Icon of the Mother of God, called “Hodegetria,” was painted by the holy evangelist Luke during his earthly life Holy Mother of God at the request of the ruler of Antioch, Theophilus, for whom he wrote an essay on the earthly life of Christ, known as the Gospel of Luke. When Theophilos died, the image was returned to Jerusalem, and in the 5th century, the blessed Empress Eudokia, wife of Arkady, transferred Hodegetria to Constantinople to the emperor’s sister Queen Pulcheria, who placed the holy icon in the Blachernae Church.

The image came to Rus' in 1046 . The Greek Emperor Constantine IX Monomakh (1042-1054), marrying his daughter Anna to Prince Vsevolod Yaroslavich, son of Yaroslav the Wise, blessed her on her journey with this icon. After the death of Prince Vsevolod, the icon passed to his son Vladimir Monomakh, who transferred it at the beginning of the 12th century toSmolensk Cathedral Church in honor of the Dormition of the Blessed Virgin Mary. From that time on, the icon received the nameHodegetria of Smolensk.

Assumption Cathedral (Smolensk)

History of the Smolensk Icon of the Mother of God

In 1238, the army of Khan Batu approached Smolensk. In that army there was a giant warrior who, according to legend, alone was worth almost an entire army. All Smolensk residents came out to pray in front of the image of the Smolensk Hodegetria Guide. The Tatars had already come almost close to the city, no more than 30 kilometers remained by today’s standards, when a certain sexton in the Pechersky Monastery outside the city saw in a vision the Mother of God, who ordered him to bring a warrior named Mercury to Her. Entering the Pechersk Church, Mercury saw with his own eyes the Mother of God sitting on a golden throne with the Child in her arms and surrounded by angels. The Mother of God said that Mercury must save Her own destiny from desecration, which once again indicated Her special protection over the Smolensk land. She also told him about his imminent martyrdom, and that She Herself would not leave him, but would be with him to the end.

Following the command of the Mother of God, the selfless Orthodox warrior Mercury raised all the townspeople, preparing them for the siege, and at night he entered Batu’s camp and killed many enemies, including their strongest warrior. Then, in an unequal battle with the invaders, he laid down his head on the battlefield. His remains were buried in the Smolensk Cathedral. Soon Mercury was canonized as a locally revered saint (November 24), the Smolensk Icon of the Mother of God was also declared locally revered, and the legend “The Tale of Mercury of Smolensk,” which dates back approximately to the 15th - 16th centuries, was written about his feat. Moreover, the legend says that after the burial, Mercury appeared to the same sexton and ordered the shield and spear that belonged to him during his life to be hung at his resting place.

Sandals of the Holy Martyr Mercury - one of the shrines of the Smolensk Cathedral

In 1395, the Principality of Smolensk came under the protectorate of Lithuania. In 1398, in order to avoid bloodshed in Moscow and soften the bitter relations between the Polish-Lithuanian rulers and Moscow, the daughter of the Lithuanian prince Vytautas Sophia was married to the son of Dmitry Donskoy, Grand Duke of Moscow Vasily Dimitrievich (1398-1425). The Smolensk Hodegetria became her dowry and was now transferred to Moscow and installed in the Annunciation Cathedral of the Kremlin. right side from the altar.

Annunciation Cathedral (Moscow Kremlin)

In 1456, at the request of the residents of Smolensk, led by Bishop Misail, the icon was solemnly returned to Smolensk with a procession of the cross. On June 28, according to the old style, at the Monastery of St. Savva the Consecrated on the Maiden Field in Moscow, with a large crowd of people, the icon was solemnly escorted to the bend of the Moscow River, from where the path to Smolensk began. A prayer service was served. Half a century later, in 1514, Smolensk was returned to Rus' (the assault on the city by Russian troops began on July 29, the day after the celebration of the Smolensk Icon).

In 1524, in memory of this event Grand Duke Vasily III founded the Monastery of the Mother of God of Smolensk, which we know better as Novodevichy Convent. The monastery was consecrated and began operating in 1525. From this period, the all-Russian glorification of the icon began, officially established by the Church.

Novodevichy Mother of God-Smolensky Monastery on the Maiden Field in Moscow

However, Muscovites were not left without a shrine - two copies of the miraculous icon remained in Moscow. One was erected in the Annunciation Cathedral, and the other - “measure in moderation” - in 1524 in the Novodevichy Convent, founded in memory of the return of Smolensk to Russia. In 1602, it was written from the miraculous icon exact list(in 1666, together with an ancient icon new list taken to Moscow for renovation), which was placed in the tower of the Smolensk fortress wall, above the Dnieper Gate, under a specially constructed tent. Later, in 1727, a wooden church was built there, and in 1802 - a stone one.

The Smolensk miraculous image again showed its intercession during the Patriotic War of 1812. On August 5, 1812, when Russian troops abandoned Smolensk, the icon was taken to Moscow, and on the eve of the Battle of Borodino this image was carried around the camp to strengthen and encourage the soldiers for a great feat.

Prayer service before the Battle of Borodino

On August 26, the day of the battle in Borodino, three images of the Mother of God - the ancient image of the Smolensk Hodegetria, together with the Iveron and Vladimir icons of the Mother of God, were carried around the capital in a procession of the cross, and then sent to the sick and wounded soldiers in the Lefortovo Palace, so that they could venerate the shrines and thank before them the Mother of God for intercession and ask for recovery. Before leaving Moscow, the icon was transported to Yaroslavl.

After the victory over the enemy, on November 5, 1812, by order of Kutuzov, the Hodegetria icon, along with the illustrious list, was returned to Smolensk to its native Assumption Cathedral.

In 1929, the Assumption Cathedral was closed, but was not subject to desecration and destruction, like many other temples and churches during that period. Information that can be considered reliable O Smolensk icon Mother of God- prototype of other, subsequent lists ends in 1941, after the capture of Smolensk by German troops. Then, at the beginning of August 1941, the German command headquarters received a message that the list of icons attributed to historical information brushed by the Evangelist Luke, is in the same place, in good condition, the icon is considered miraculous and its location is a place of worship and pilgrimage. Nothing more is known about that icon.

Now in the place of the missing icon there is a list from the middle of the 16th century, which is not inferior to its predecessor in the number of miracles and in popular veneration, but Hodegetria of the apostolic letter is still awaited in Smolensk, they still believe that the time will come and she will reveal herself from some a hiding place, where it was miraculously preserved all these years, as it once was.

Icon of the Mother of God Hodegetria of Smolensk Gateway, copy from the famous Smolensk Icon. Once it hung above the gates of the Smolensk Kremlin; now it is kept in the cathedral on the site of the Smolensk icon lost in 1941.

Lists with icons

There are many revered copies of the miraculous Smolensk Hodegetria. Many copies of that original but lost icon became miraculous (more than 30 in total) - Igretskaya Pesochinskaya, Yugskaya, Sergievskaya in the Trinity-Sergius Lavra, Kostroma, Kirillo-Belozerskaya, Svyatogorsk, Solovetskaya, etc.. All these images in different times and demonstrated their miraculous properties to varying degrees.

Iconography

There is little information left about the iconographic features of the image, since the icon, as is known, was lost in 1941, and therefore no one studied it. It was only known that the icon board was very heavy, the ground was made of chalk with glue, as was done in ancient times, and covered with canvas.

The Mother of God holds the Child in her left hand, the Lord’s right hand is raised in a blessing gesture, and in His left hand is the “scroll of teaching.” On the reverse side were written a view of Jerusalem, the Crucifixion and an inscription in Greek - “The King is crucified.” In 1666, the icon was renewed, and later images of the Most Pure Mother and John the Evangelist appeared at the Crucifixion.

Iconographic image The Smolensk Icon is very similar to the Iveron Icon of the Mother of God, but differs in the strictness of the arrangement of the figures and the expression of the faces of the Mother of God and the Infant.

The meaning of the icon

The Holy Icon of the Mother of God Hodegetria is one of the main shrines of the Russian Church (along with Vladimir and Kazan).

An amazing thing is associated with the Smolensk Icon of the Mother of God historical material, which, through the paths of her wanderings across Western Russian lands, marks all the most important events in the history of Russia up to the last century. It can be said that not a single event where the intercession of the One depicted on it was required was accomplished without Her intervention. Hodegetria the Guide pointed out and defended our west from the aggressive interests of neighboring states that sought to establish their influence in Russian state both military and political means. But even the retreats, which were accompanied by the transfer of the miraculous shrine from its main inheritance - the Assumption Cathedral in Smolensk, were only a strategic necessity, and in no way an agreement with the presence and rule of foreigners and the prevailing Latin faith on our land. The cathedral prayers of Smolensk and Muscovites before her brought their wonderful fruits - sooner or later the enemy was expelled, and the Smolensk Hodegetria returned home to Smolensk.

Believers have received and are receiving abundant gracious help from her. The Mother of God, through Her holy image, intercedes and strengthens us, guiding us to salvation, and we cry out to Her: "You faithful people- All-Blessed Hodegetria, You are the Smolensk Praise and all Russian lands - affirmation! Rejoice, Hodegetria, salvation for Christians!"

Celebration

The celebration of the Smolensk Icon of the Mother of God takes place three times a year - July 28/August 10, established in 1525, when the miraculous image was transferred from the Annunciation Cathedral of the Moscow Kremlin to the Mother of God-Smolensk (Novodevichy) Monastery, founded by Vasily III in gratitude to the Mother of God for the return of Smolensk to Rus' during the Russian-Lithuanian War. The festival was established in memory of the arrival of the Smolensk Icon of the Mother of God to Rus' in 1046.

The second time the celebration takes place on November 5/18 in honor of the victory of Russia in the Patriotic War of 1812.

November 24/December 7 We celebrate the Smolensk Icon of the Mother of God, remembering the victory of the inhabitants of Smolensk over the troops of the Golden Horde common prayer people in front of Her icon - the Smolensk Hodegetria.

The Smolensk Mother of God helps everyone who turns to her with prayers for healing from incurable diseases, in search of family peace and in other difficult and insoluble situations, as the first intercessor for us before God.

Troparion, tone 4

Let us now diligently approach the Mother of God, sinners and humility, and let us fall down in repentance calling from the depths of our souls: Lady, help us, having had mercy on us, struggling, we are perishing from many sins, do not turn away your slaves, for you are the only hope of the imams.

Kontakion, tone 6
The intercession of Christians is not shameful, the intercession to the Creator is immutable, do not despise the voices of sinful prayers, but advance as good help to us who faithfully call Thee: hasten to prayer and strive to entreat, interceding ever since, the Mother of God, who honor Thee.

In Kontakion, tone 6
There are no other imams of help, no other imams of hope, except for You, Lady: You help us, we hope in You and we boast in You: If we were your servants, let us not be ashamed.

Prayer
O Most Wonderful and Above All Creatures Queen Theotokos, Heavenly King Christ our God Mother, Most Pure Hodegetria Mary! Hear us sinners and unworthy at this hour, praying and falling before Your Most Pure Image with tears and tenderly saying: lead us from the pit of passions, O Most Blessed Lady, deliver us from all sorrow and sorrow, protect us from all adversity and evil slander, and from the unrighteous and cruel slander of the enemy. You may, O Our Blessed Mother, save Your people from all evil and provide and save You with every good deed; Do You need other Representatives in troubles and circumstances, and warm Intercessors for us sinners, not imams? Pray, Most Holy Lady, Your Son Christ our God, that He will honor us with the Kingdom of Heaven; For this reason, we always glorify Thee, as the Author of our salvation, and extol the holy and magnificent name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, glorified and worshiped God in the Trinity, forever and ever. Amen.

Second prayer
To whom shall I cry, Lady? To whom shall I resort in my sorrow, if not to You, Lady Lady Theotokos, Queen of Heaven? Who will accept my cry and my sighing, if not You, O Most Immaculate One, the Hope of Christians and the Refuge for sinners? Bend, O Most Pure Lady, Thy ear to my prayer, Mother of my God, do not despise me, requiring Thy help, hear my groaning and inspire the cry of my heart, O Lady Theotokos Queen. And give me spiritual joy, strengthen me, who is impatient, sad and careless towards Your praise. Enlighten and teach me how You should pray, and do not leave me, the Mother of my God, for my grumbling and impatience, but be my protection and intercession in my life and lead me to the quiet haven of blessed peace, and count me among Your chosen flock and there deign me to sing and glorify You forever. Amen.

The Virgin Mother is the boundary between created and uncreated nature, and Her, as the container of the incontainable, will be known by those who know God, and after God, those who sing of God will sing Her. She is the foundation of those before Her, and the eternal Intercessor.

St. Gregory Palamas

The Novodevichy Convent is one of the most beautiful monasteries in Moscow. It is beautiful in any weather, at any time of the year. From childhood and throughout my life I remember the unusually lush thickets of the monastery lilac (for some reason now almost all of it has been cut down). It is difficult to get used to this beauty, and every time you enter under the dark arches of the gate church, you involuntarily freeze and admire.

Inside the monastery walls, in a small wooden house there lived a real ascetic in the world - Pyotr Dmitrievich Baranovsky, the great architect-restorer of the twentieth century, who saved almost a thousand churches and ended his life here, in the main Moscow monastery of the Most Pure One - that is why the street from which the road to the monastery begins is called Prechistenka. Peace to your ashes, servant of God Peter!...

From the window of his room littered with books, folders with measurements and drawings, Baranovsky, while he could still see - in his old age he was completely blind - admired one of the most majestic churches in Moscow - the 16th century Cathedral in the name of Our Lady Hodegetria "called Smolenskaya", which kept a miraculous list with one of the greatest shrines of Rus' - the Smolensk Mother of God.

As long as there is faith in Rus', the Most Pure One preserves this destiny. The northern borders of our country were protected by the image of the Sign of Novgorod, the eastern borders by the Kazan Icon, and the western borders by the Smolensk Icon.

The prototype of the Smolensk Mother of God is very ancient and, according to legend, was written by the Apostle Luke himself for the Antioch ruler Theophilus. After the death of Theophilus, this image of Hodegetria the Guide returned to Jerusalem; in the 5th century, the blessed queen Pulcheria transferred it to Second Rome, to the Blachernae temple. From there the future Smolensk icon came to Rus'. Under what exact circumstances is not known for certain, but it happened no later than the middle of the 11th century. According to legend, the icon became a parental blessing for his daughter Byzantine emperor Konstantin Porfirorodny, who was married to the Chernigov prince Vsevolod Yaroslavich.

After the death of Prince Vsevolod, Hodegetria found a new guardian in the person of his son, the Grand Duke of Kyiv Vladimir II Monomakh - commander, writer (his “Teachings” are still studied in the course of ancient Russian literature) and temple builder. In 1095, he transferred the miraculous work from Chernigov (his first inheritance) to Smolensk, and in 1101 he founded the cathedral church of the Dormition of the Blessed Virgin Mary here. Ten years later, Hodegetria was installed in this cathedral and from that time began to be called Smolensk - after the name of the city, the guardian of which this miraculous one remained for almost nine centuries.

Smolensk Icon of the Mother of God, called "Hodegetria",
in the Holy Dormition Cathedral of Smolensk - prototype
(photo by S. M. Prokudin-Gorsky, 1912)

In the 13th century, the hordes of Batu fell upon Rus', rapidly moving westward. Crying and praying, the Smolensk people fell to the intercession of their Guardian. And a miracle happened: the Most Pure One, through the image of Hodegetria of Smolensk, granted the city miraculous salvation. The Tatars were already standing several miles from Smolensk when a pious warrior named Mercury heard a voice coming from the holy icon: “I am sending you to protect My house. The ruler of the Horde secretly wants to attack My city this night with his army, but I prayed to My Son and My God for My house, so that he would not give it over to the work of the enemy. I myself will be with you, helping my servant.” Obeying the Most Pure One, Mercury raised up the townspeople, and he himself rushed into the enemy camp, where he died in an unequal battle. He was buried in the cathedral church of Smolensk and soon canonized. In memory of Mercury, on the day of his death, a special thanksgiving service was performed before the miraculous image of Hodegetria.

When in 1395 the Principality of Smolensk lost its independence, becoming dependent on Lithuania. But just three years later, the daughter of the Lithuanian prince Vitovt was married to the Moscow prince Vasily Dmitrievich (son of the holy noble prince Dimitri Donskoy), and Hodegetria became her dowry. In 1398, the newly found shrine was installed in the Annunciation Cathedral of the Kremlin on the right side of the royal gates. Muscovites reverently worshiped it for half a century, until in 1456 representatives of the Smolensk people arrived in the reigning city and demanded that the shrine be returned to them. Grand Duke Vasily the Dark (1415-1462), after consulting with bishops and boyars, ordered to “release” the miraculous to Smolensk, leaving her exact list in Moscow. On July 28, in the presence of almost all Muscovites, the icon was solemnly carried through the Devichye Pole to the ford at the steep bend of the Moscow River, beyond which the road to Smolensk began. Here a prayer service was served to the Guide, after which the prototype of the miraculous woman went to Smolensk, and the mourners took the list from Smolensk to the Annunciation Cathedral of the Moscow Kremlin.

In 1514, Smolensk was returned to the Russian state (the assault on the city by Russian troops began on July 29 - the day after the celebration of the Smolensk Icon); in 1524, in memory of this event, Grand Duke Vasily III founded the Novodevichy Convent on the very spot where Muscovites saw off the miraculous work in 1456.

In 1609, Smolensk was besieged by the Polish army, and after twenty months of siege, in 1611, the city fell to a superior enemy. The miraculous Smolensk icon was again sent to Moscow, and when the Poles captured the white stone one, it was sent to Yaroslavl, where it remained until the expulsion of the Poles and the return of Smolensk to the Russian state in 1654, during the reign of Alexei Mikhailovich. On September 26, 1655, the miraculous icon of Hodegetria returned to Smolensk.

The intercession of the Most Pure One for Her beloved destiny was again revealed a century and a half later, during the Patriotic War of 1812. Again Her miraculous image was taken out, first to Moscow - on August 26, on the day of the Battle of Borodino, Smolensk, Iversk and Vladimir icon a religious procession was carried around Moscow, and on August 31, Iverskaya and Smolenskaya visited the wounded in the battle who were lying in the Lefortovo hospital. And when the Russian troops abandoned the Mother See, the Smolensk Icon was transported to Yaroslavl. However, through the intercession of the Most Pure One, this stay of Her miraculous image on the Volga banks turned out to be short-lived: already on December 24, 1812, Hodegetria returned to the Assumption Cathedral of Smolensk.

The Moscow Novodevichy Convent also had to endure a lot. They sent here unwanted queens and princesses - Evdokia Lopukhina, Sophia; Napoleonic “twelve tongues” robbed and plundered it and even tried, before fleeing from Moscow, to blow up the monastery (it was saved by brave nuns who extinguished the already lit wicks). In 1922, Novodevichy was completely closed, dispersing its nuns. For opposing the predatory “seizure of church valuables”, Abbess Vera was sent to the camp; and in 1938, the last confessor of the monastery, Archpriest Sergius Lebedev, died a martyr’s death at the Butovo training ground, where the ashes of tens of thousands of those executed rest. Back in 1925, there were 2,811 tombstones in the cemetery inside the monastery walls; now there are no more than a hundred of them left (including the graves of the historian Sergei Solovyov and his son Vladimir, the great Russian philosopher). The “Museum of the Emancipation of Women” was set up in the desecrated monastery, and in 1934 its buildings were transferred to the State Historical Museum.

Divine services in the Novodevichy Monastery resumed in 1945, when the refectory Assumption Church was re-consecrated here, and since then prayer has been heard here again before one of the Hodegetria lists. The revival of the monastery itself began in 1994, when the nuns returned to Novodevichy, led by Abbess Seraphima (Chernaya), the granddaughter of the martyr Saint Seraphim (Chichagov), who died in 1999; Her successor was Abbess Serafima (Isaeva).

...The last reliable news about the miraculous first image dates back to 1941. Closed in 1929, the Assumption Cathedral of Smolensk was not destroyed: its shrines and utensils remained intact until the start of the Great Patriotic War. On August 1, 1941, the German troops that entered the city notified their High Command that “a very ancient icon, attributed by legend to the Evangelist Luke, later rewritten, ... is in its original place and is not damaged. She... was recognized as miraculous and was a place of pilgrimage for believers.” But when two years later Smolensk was liberated Soviet troops, the icon was no longer there. One can only hope that sooner or later her fate will begin to become clearer - just as it is happening with another miraculous woman who disappeared in that war, Tikhvin.

Until its disappearance, the prototype of Smolenskaya was never subjected to detailed scientific study. According to old descriptions, the board on which the icon was written was unusually heavy, primed with chalk and glue and covered with canvas; The Most Pure One is depicted at half height, waist-deep, supporting the Child with her left hand. The Savior blesses those praying with His right hand, and holds a scroll with His hand. Outerwear Mother of God - dark brown, lower – dark blue; The Baby's clothes are dark green and gold. On the reverse side of the prototype was written the Crucifixion with the Greek inscription “The King is crucified” and a view of Jerusalem. When painting was renewed in Moscow in 1666, figures of the Mother of God and John the Evangelist, which were not there before, were added to this Crucifixion. Features of the Smolensk Icon are the frontal position of the Child; a very slight turn of the Mother of God towards His Child; Her head is slightly bowed; characteristic hand position.

The celebration of the Smolensk Icon takes place on July 28 according to the Christian calendar. Once upon a time on this day in the Mother See there was a religious procession from the Kremlin, along Prechistenka and Devichye Pole to the Novodevichy Convent. By the beginning of the twentieth century, there were more than three dozen miraculous and especially revered lists of Smolensk, churches dedicated to this image stood in many cities, towns and monasteries of the Russian land, in Moscow alone there were four Smolensk churches, in St. Petersburg - five. And today, throughout all the Smolensk churches of Russia, the troparion to the Most Holy Theotokos sounds before Her icon, called “Hodegetria”:

Troparion, tone 4

Kontakion, tone 6

The intercession of Christians is not shameful, the intercession to the Creator is immutable, do not despise the voices of sinful prayers, but advance as good help to us who faithfully call Thee: hasten to prayer and strive to entreat, interceding ever since, the Mother of God, who honor Thee.

Kontakion, tone 6

There are no other imams of help, no other imams of hope, except for You, Lady: You help us, we hope in You and we boast in You: If we were your servants, let us not be ashamed.

Prayer before the Smolensk Icon of the Blessed Virgin Mary, called "Hodegetria"

To whom shall I cry, Lady? To whom shall I resort in my sorrow, if not to You, Lady Lady Theotokos, Queen of Heaven? Who will accept my cry and my sighing, if not You, O Most Immaculate One, the hope of Christians and refuge for sinners?

Incline, O most pure Lady, Thy ear to my prayer. Mother of my God, do not look down on me, requiring Your help, hear my groaning and inspire the cry of my heart, O Lady Theotokos Queen. And give me spiritual joy, strengthen me, who is impatient, sad and careless towards Your praise. Enlighten and teach me how You should pray, and do not depart from me, the Mother of my God, for my grumbling and impatience: but be my protection and intercession in my life and lead me to the quiet haven of blessed peace, and count me to your face Thy chosen flock and there deign me to sing and glorify Thee forever. Amen.

Holy Dormition cathedral Smolensk

Cathedral of Smolensk Saints

Akathist to the Icon of the Mother of God “Hodegetria” (Guide Book) Smolensk

The Smolensk Icon of the Mother of God belongs to the Hodegetria iconographic type. The name can be translated from Greek as “Guide”.

This is one of the most common images in Byzantine and Russian art.

Smolensk Icon of the Mother of God: compositional features

The composition of the Hodegetria iconography is as follows: the Mother of God and the Infant Christ are depicted almost frontally, their faces facing the praying person do not touch. The head of the Mother of God may be slightly inclined towards the Son, the hand raised in a prayer gesture at chest level. The Divine Infant sits in the arms of the Mother; He blesses with his right hand, holds a scroll with his left, and less often, a book. The Mother of God is most often represented in a half-length image, but there are also full-length and shoulder-length versions, for example, the Kazan Icon. The Baby can be located either to the right or to the left of the Virgin Mary; more often He is depicted sitting on the left hand of the Blessed Virgin.

Mosaic icon. 1st half of the 13th century National Gallery, Palermo, Italy

The idea of the image of Hodegetria

The defining theological idea of this image is the coming into the world of the Son of God, the incarnation of God for the sake of the salvation of mankind. The Fragile Baby is the Heavenly King and the Coming Judge. Gesture right hand The Mother of God can be interpreted not only as a prayer, expressing Her personal prayer to God. With this gesture, the Mother of God seems to point believers to the One to whom their thoughts and prayers should be directed.

N.P. Kondakov, who studied the iconography of the Mother of God, believed that the image of Hodegetria is one of the most ancient. It developed in Palestine or Egypt before the 6th century. Since the 6th century, it has spread widely throughout Orthodox East and Byzantium.

Mosaic icon. Byzantium. XIII century Monastery of St. Catherine, Sinai, Egypt

According to Church Tradition, the first such icon of the Virgin and Child was painted by the Apostle and Evangelist Luke. In the middle of the 5th century, this image, along with other shrines, was brought from the Holy Land to Constantinople by Empress Eudokia, wife of Emperor Theodosius the Younger. Some sources report that the icon was placed in the temple convent Odigon, but on Holy Week the icon was transferred from the monastery to the imperial palace. Near the monastery there was a spring that healed the blind. The nuns took care of those who came to the source. The area was called “place of guides” or “place of leaders”, and the monastery began to be called Odigon - “Guide”, “Guide”. Based on the name of the monastery, the main shrine - the icon of the Mother of God - began to be called Hodegetria. Initially given as a topographical name, it was also endowed with a deep meaning: the Mother of God is a guide to believers, instructing them in the true, even if protecting them from the enemy. The icon was one of the most revered shrines of Constantinople and was considered the palladium of the city. During enemy attacks, the image was raised to the city walls.

Empress Evdokia. Marble icon with inlay. From the church of Lipsa Monastery. X century Archaeological Museum, Istanbul

Researchers believe that it was with the icon of the Odigon monastery that a procession of the cross was held throughout Constantinople on Tuesdays. During this prayer procession, a miracle regularly occurred, which was described by the Russian pilgrim Stefan Novgorod, who visited the capital of Byzantium in 1348 or 1349. The heavy, large icon was carried across the square by only one person. “That icon is taken out every Tuesday. This is an amazing sight: then all the people come together, and they come from other cities. This icon is very large, skillfully bound, and the singers walking in front of it sing beautifully, and all the people cry with tears: “Lord, have mercy!” ... It’s a wondrous sight: seven or eight people place the icon on the shoulders of one person, and he, by the will of God, walks as if unburdened by anything,” reports Stefan. Numerous miracles and healings took place in front of the icon.

Our Lady Hodegetria. Byzantium. 1st quarter of the 15th century

According to one version of the legend, the icon written by the Apostle Luke and brought from the Holy Land ended up in the Blachernae Church, where there was also a healing spring and where other shrines were kept: a robe and part of the belt of the Virgin Mary. Perhaps one of the copies made from the original icon by the apostle was placed in the Blachernae church. It is known that with original image Several lists were made that became famous for their miracles. In any case, in the Blachernae Church there was a particularly revered icon of the Mother of God Hodegetria.

Blachernae icon. Wax mastic. XIII – XIV centuries Assumption Cathedral of the Moscow Kremlin

Numerous copies of the miraculous image of the Mother of God Hodegetria were sent to all parts of the empire and beyond. From Byzantium, the iconographic type of Hodegetria came to Rus', where, based on the place of creation, stay, or miraculous discovery, similar icons received names: Toropetskaya, Smolenskaya, Tikhvinskaya, Iverskaya, Sedmiezernaya, Kazanskaya.

Our Lady Hodegetria. Pskov. The end of the XIII - the beginning of the XIV century. Tretyakov Gallery, Moscow

History of the Smolensk Icon of the Mother of God “Hodegetria”

The icon of Our Lady Hodegetria, called “Smolensk”, arrived in Rus' in the middle of the 11th century. In 1046, the Byzantine Emperor Constantine IX Monomakh blessed his daughter Anna with this icon for her marriage to Prince Vsevolod, the son of Yaroslav the Wise. After the death of Vsevolod, his son, Vladimir Monomakh, moved the icon to Smolensk, where the Church of the Assumption of the Virgin Mary was founded, in which the shrine was subsequently placed.

According to legend, when the hordes of Khan Batu approached Smolensk in 1239, the city was saved from destruction through the intercession of the Mother of God. A warrior named Mercury, praying in front of the icon, received instructions from the Mother of God to fight the enemy standing near the walls. The Mongols saw that Mercury was helped in battle by lightning-fast men and a radiant Wife. Seized with horror, throwing down their weapons, the enemies fled, driven by an unknown force. Mercury suffered a martyr's death in battle and was canonized by the Church.

Our Lady Hodegetria. Byzantium. Mid-15th century Private collection.

At the end of the 14th or beginning of the 15th century, the icon of the Mother of God Hodegetria was brought from Smolensk, captured by the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, to Moscow, where, as a particularly revered shrine, it was placed in the Annunciation Cathedral, on the right side of the royal gates. There are three versions of the circumstances under which the icon ended up in Moscow. One of possible options The transfer of the icon is associated with a dynastic marriage. Perhaps the Grand Duke of Lithuania Vytautas gave this icon to his daughter Sophia, the wife of the Grand Duke of Moscow Vasily Dmitrievich, when she was in Smolensk in 1398 to meet with her father and received from him many icons in Greek writing. According to another version, the last of the Smolensk princes, Yuri Svyatoslavovich, expelled in 1404 by Vitovt, arrived in Moscow and brought with him the icon of Hodegetria along with other icons. The third version, set out in the Russian Vremennik, says that a certain Yurga, Pan Svilkoldovich, when he left Svidrigail, the Lithuanian prince, for the Grand Duke of Moscow Vasily Vasilyevich, plundered Smolensk on the way, took the icon of Hodegetria along with other things and brought it as a gift to the Moscow to the Grand Duke.

In 1456, Bishop Misail of Smolensk arrived in Moscow, accompanied by the governor of the city and noble citizens. The people of Smolensk asked the Moscow Grand Duke Vasily Vasilyevich the Dark to return the icon to Smolensk. The prince, seeing in this step a guarantee of the future reunification of Smolensk with Moscow, decided to return the shrine. An accurate, “measure in measure” list was made of the icon, which remained in Moscow, in the Annunciation Cathedral. In a religious procession, the icon was taken out of the Kremlin, walked to the Maiden Field, which is at the entrance to the Old Smolensk Road, and after the prayer service, the icon was released to Smolensk. On the list icon, a scroll in the hand of the Child is depicted in vertical position. Researchers suggest that this feature was also on the sample - the Smolensk icon of the Mother of God Hodegetria, sent from Constantinople.

List of the Smolensk Icon of Hodegetria. Moscow. 1456 Recorded in the 19th century. Armory Chamber, Moscow Kremlin museums

In 1514, the troops of the Grand Duke of Moscow Vasily III Ivanovich Smolensk is recaptured from Lithuania. In memory of this event, in 1523, the prince founded the Novodevichy Convent not far from the place where Muscovites said goodbye to the icon. On July 28, 1525, the copy of the icon that was kept in the Annunciation Cathedral was solemnly transferred from the Kremlin to the monastery church, consecrated in the name of the Smolensk Icon of Hodegetria. In 1927, this icon, thanks to its rich gold frame from the time of Boris Godunov and the pearl robe, was transferred to the Armory Chamber.

In 1602, in Smolensk, an exact copy was written from the miraculous icon, which was placed in the tower of the Smolensk fortress wall, above the Dnieper Gate, under a specially constructed tent. Later, in 1727, a church was built there. In 1666, the ancient Smolensk icon was in Moscow for the second time: it was brought here by Archbishop Barsanuphius of Smolensk to renew the painting, which had darkened over time.

In 1812, during the French invasion, the icon was taken from Smolensk by Bishop Irinei (Falkovsky) and taken to Moscow, where residents could pray before it in the Assumption Cathedral. On the day of the Battle of Borodino, August 26, Muscovites walked around the White City, Kitay-Gorod and the Kremlin walls in a religious procession with Smolensk, Iveron and Vladimir icons. Before the occupation of Moscow by the French, the Smolensk icon was sent to Yaroslavl, where it remained until the very end of World War II, and then returned to Smolensk. The icon, which was located in the Assumption Cathedral of Smolensk until 1941, was revered as the original one, brought from Constantinople. IN about the time of the Great Patriotic War ancient icon disappeared without a trace.

The Virgin Mother is the boundary between created and uncreated nature, and Her, as the container of the incontainable, will be known by those who know God, and after God, those who sing of God will sing Her. She is the foundation of those before Her, and the eternal Intercessor.

St. Gregory Palamas

Inside the monastery walls, in a small wooden house, lived a real ascetic in the world - Pyotr Dmitrievich Baranovsky, the great architect-restorer of the twentieth century, who saved almost a thousand churches and ended his life here, in the main Moscow monastery of the Most Pure One - hence the street from which the road begins to the monastery, called Prechistenka. Peace to your ashes, servant of God Peter!...

The prototype of the Smolensk Mother of God is very ancient and, according to legend, was written by the Apostle Luke himself for the Antioch ruler Theophilus. After the death of Theophilus, this image of Hodegetria the Guide returned to Jerusalem; in the 5th century, the blessed queen Pulcheria transferred it to Second Rome, to the Blachernae temple. From there the future Smolensk icon came to Rus'. Under what exact circumstances is not known for certain, but it happened no later than the middle of the 11th century. According to legend, the icon became a parental blessing for the daughter of the Byzantine Emperor Constantine Porphyrogenitus, who was married to the Chernigov prince Vsevolod Yaroslavich.

After the death of Prince Vsevolod, Hodegetria found a new guardian in the person of his son, the Grand Duke of Kyiv Vladimir II Monomakh - a commander, writer (his “Teachings” are still studied in the course of ancient Russian literature) and temple builder. In 1095, he transferred the miraculous work from Chernigov (his first inheritance) to Smolensk, and in 1101 he founded the cathedral church of the Dormition of the Blessed Virgin Mary here. Ten years later, Hodegetria was installed in this cathedral and from that time began to be called Smolensk - after the name of the city, the guardian of which this miraculous one remained for almost nine centuries.

The intercession of the Most Pure One for Her beloved destiny was again revealed a century and a half later, during the Patriotic War of 1812. Once again, Her miraculous image was taken out, first to Moscow - on August 26, on the day of the Battle of Borodino, the Smolensk, Iverskaya and Vladimir icons were carried in a procession around Moscow, and on August 31, the Iverskaya and Smolenskaya icons visited the wounded in the battle who were lying in the Lefortovo hospital. And when the Russian troops abandoned the Mother See, the Smolensk Icon was transported to Yaroslavl. However, through the intercession of the Most Pure One, this stay of Her miraculous image on the Volga banks turned out to be short-lived: already on December 24, 1812, Hodegetria returned to the Assumption Cathedral of Smolensk.

...The last reliable news about the miraculous first image dates back to 1941. Closed in 1929, the Assumption Cathedral of Smolensk was not destroyed: its shrines and utensils remained intact until the start of the Great Patriotic War. On August 1, 1941, the German troops that entered the city notified their High Command that “a very ancient icon, attributed by legend to the Evangelist Luke, later rewritten, ... is in its original place and is not damaged. She... was recognized as miraculous and was a place of pilgrimage for believers.” But when Smolensk was liberated by Soviet troops two years later, the icon was no longer there. One can only hope that sooner or later her fate will begin to become clearer - just as it is happening with another miraculous woman who disappeared in that war, Tikhvin.

Until its disappearance, the prototype of Smolenskaya was never subjected to detailed scientific study. According to old descriptions, the board on which the icon was written was unusually heavy, primed with chalk and glue and covered with canvas; The Most Pure One is depicted at half height, waist-deep, supporting the Child with her left hand. The Savior blesses those praying with His right hand, and holds a scroll with His hand. The outer garments of the Virgin Mary are dark brown, the lower ones are dark blue; The Baby's clothes are dark green and gold. On the reverse side of the prototype was written the Crucifixion with the Greek inscription “The King is crucified” and a view of Jerusalem. When painting was renewed in Moscow in 1666, figures of the Mother of God and John the Evangelist, which were not there before, were added to this Crucifixion. Features of the Smolensk icon are the frontal position of the Child; a very slight turn of the Mother of God towards His Child; Her head is slightly bowed; characteristic hand position.

The celebration of the Smolensk Icon takes place on July 28 according to the Christian calendar. Once upon a time, on this day, a procession of the cross from the Kremlin, along Prechistenka and Devichye Pole to the Novodevichy Convent took place in the Mother See. By the beginning of the twentieth century, there were more than three dozen miraculous and especially revered lists of Smolensk; churches dedicated to this image stood in many cities, towns and monasteries of the Russian land; in Moscow alone there were four Smolensk churches, in St. Petersburg - five. And today, throughout all the Smolensk churches of Russia, the troparion to the Most Holy Theotokos sounds before Her icon, called “Hodegetria”:

Troparion, tone 4

Kontakion, tone 6