Caucasian Legends Part 4

"'We are perishing,' exclaimed the messengers, 'hurry, gather ye all!'

"Then from all countries there came together people, educated in the laws of Moses--they came together to openly oppose themselves to the Holy Ghost and, namely, do what was necessary to the world. They crucified the Lord Jesus and drew lots to get his robe. The robe was handed over without quarreling to the Man of Mtzkhet. Thou knowest also that upon the burial of our Lord they placed guards at his tomb, but that he arose according to prediction, and in the tomb there remained nothing but the shroud, which the Apostle Luke took, but no one knows to whom he gave it. As to the vesture of the Lord, which was not found in the tomb, many conclude that the Apostle Peter took it without telling anything about its further fate. I in my turn am more inclined to believe what we heard from the Hebrews of Mtzkhet. The crosses are hidden here at Jerusalem, but this place is unknown to everybody until the Lord doth open it in times to come by his chosen messenger!"

Hearing these words, Nina raised herself and thanked G.o.d and asked: "Well, where then is that land where the robe was discovered?"

"The town of Mtzkhet is in Georgia. This is a mountainous land, the borderland of Armenia, and its inhabitants still continue to practise idolatry. The Chaldean magis have a strong influence over the people,"

replied Niapkhora.

At that time there arrived from Ethesus a woman who had come to visit and pay homage to the Holy Sepulchre and who stopped at Niapkhora's.

"Is the Empress Helen still in the shade of unbelief?" asked Niapkhora of her.

"I am her servant," answered the newcomer, "and know all her wishes, both open and hidden. She would like to become a Christian and be baptized."

"Let me go to the sovereign," Nina began to ask of her mistress, "perhaps our Lord Jesus Christ!"

"Let us first ask the blessing of our most holy Patriarch German,"

answered Niapkhora, and went to him.

Soon they called in Nina and placed her on the steps of the ambo; thereupon German put his hands upon her shoulders and having sighed from the depth of his soul, he said: "Vladyka, Immortal G.o.d! To Thee I commit this orphan, the daughter of a sister of one of Thy servants, and send her to preach Thy faith and announce Thy resurrection everywhere where Thou desirest it to be carried out! Heavenly Jesus! be Thou her companion during the journey, her protector in danger, a refuge, a leader and a teacher as Thou hast been from century to century to all those who feared Thy holy name!"

That very night the Virgin appeared to St. Nina in a dream, to whose happy lot Iveria fell when she together with the apostles drew lots to see who should go to preach the faith of Christ in Georgia. In the hands of the Heavenly Queen there was a vineyard cross, which by her command was tied with some of Nina's hair. The Most Holy Virgin handed the cross to the sleeping girl and ordered her to go in her stead to convert the Iverian people. The Saint awoke with the cross in her hands and hastened to announce to her mother all that had occurred. With happy emotion Sossanna listened to her, kissed her, crossed herself, and blessing her, let her start out, commending Nina to the care of G.o.d.

From her mother Nina went straight to the Ethesian woman, whom she began to hurry up to start out, as her heart was burning with impatience; and notwithstanding the uncertainty and length of the journey, her readiness to do everything to serve G.o.d was so great that she did not have the least fear; this ardor was not left unrewarded by the Leader of Hearts. He Himself appeared to St. Nina, quieted and strengthened her for the coming expedition.

Having reached Ethesus, the Saint, in the house of her companion, found the Tsarevna Ripsime fleeing from the Diocletian torments together with fifty friends. Soon they were joined by three hundred maidens and Saint Gaiane, her nurse. Ripsime grew attached to Nina, because the Ethesian woman told her the latter's story, and the Saint took advantage of the kind feelings of the Tsarevna in order to instruct her still more in the faith; and in the course of this year she baptized the Queen, Gaiane, and seventy men of her suite.

They pa.s.sed two years together at the monastery of Poss-Rhoss. Just at that time Emperor Maximian sent his eunuchs everywhere to seek out the beautiful and good girls and bring them to him--without distinction of rank, extraction, or even religious belief.

The messengers arrived at the monastery of Poss-Rhoss, beheld Ripsime, and struck by her unusual beauty, they did not yet decide to take her, but began to enquire about her family. Having found out that she was of royal rank, they considered her worthy of becoming Maximian's wife, painted her portrait and went away. Hardly had Maximian glanced at her portrait, when his heart flamed up with some strong pa.s.sion. He announced that in the whole world there was no equal perfection of beauty, that Ripsime was worthy of becoming his wife, that their marriage should be celebrated with unheard of till then solemnity, and he immediately sent messengers to all parts of his immense monarchy so that each subject might come to take part in the nuptial festivities. In the meantime the saints trembled from fear because they knew that this Tsar was like a vessel of anger, sly like a snake in heaven, also not clean, and idolatrous. They imagined that the Tsarevna's portrait would cause them to be very much grieved, and having fasted a long time, they prayed to G.o.d and decided to rely on His holy mercy and secretly run away from this place. And thus the seventy sisters set out for Armenia, in the neighborhood of Vagkarshapat, and reached a splendid town called New Dovin, where the Tsar himself resided.

Here they took up their quarters in poor huts, which surrounded the town from the north and west and were used for pressing out the grapes. Here with laborious work they earned their own living. Having, however, discovered that the Tsarevna Ripsime with her nurse and companions had disappeared in some unknown place, Maximian became perfectly furious and sent messengers to look everywhere for her.

His amba.s.sadors arrived at the court of Trdat, Tsar of Armenia, with the following letter: "The autocratic Emperor to his nearest brother, friend and comrade Trdat--I salute thee. Thy friendship is our most faithful ally; I inform thee above all that the sinful Christian nature is very harmful to us, because it forces the nations to disregard our mightiness and not respect our Majesty. Their religion consists of the following points: they serve a dead and crucified man, adore wood and consider it glorious to die for their Lord. Although they fear not the Jews, they nevertheless fear Him, whom the Jews killed and crucified. In their blindness they defame monarchs, scorn the G.o.ds, attribute absolutely nothing to the powerful brightness of the sun, moon, and stars--saying that these are the creations of the crucified. They anger the whole world to such a degree that fathers and mothers separate themselves one from another, not awaiting death. In vain do our commands and terrible tortures exterminate them, for they appear in still greater numbers! Having by chance seen a young Christian maid, I wished to marry her, but she, instead of desiring to be united with a Tsar, rebuked me like a dirty being and secretly ran off into thy lands. Investigate this affair, my dear brother, order a search to be made, and as soon as thou findest her with her companions, put to death the latter, but send splendid Ripsime hither, or if she pleases thee, take her, for thou wilt not find such a perfect beauty in all Greece. I hope that thou art in good health--adieu, serve the G.o.ds!"

Having read the letter, Trdat began the search, and soon found the saints. Ripsime produced on him exactly the same impression as on Maximian and he also made up his mind to have her become his wife. But the Saint flatly refused him, and so he tortured her together with thirteen companions on the fifth of October; and Saint Gaiane and two others on the following day. The remaining succeeding in hiding themselves; among them was also St. Nina, who by G.o.d's instructions hid herself in the branches of a p.r.i.c.kly rosebush, without flowers. Here she beheld a bright star coming down from the clouds; it served as a footstool to a deacon, in whose hands there was a censer; out of the latter there came such an abundant perfume that the sky really darkened. The deacon was accompanied by innumerable heavenly beings. This was the instant when the martyrs breathed their last breath, united themselves with the heavenly forces sent out after their souls, and together with them rose to heaven.

"Lord Jesus!" exclaimed the Saint, "why dost thou abandon me with aspics and snakes?"

In answer to this lamentation, a voice was heard from Heaven, saying: "Arise and start for the North, where there is a great harvest, but few workers!"

And thus the fourteen-year-old child went out to convert a whole country. She guided herself by the voice of G.o.d and overcame all difficulties: the length of the journey and physical exhaustion, and the fear of wild animals and wicked people and the cold and hunger and want! She went as the apostles went; without a staff, and just like them, she conquered kings, converted whole nations, healed the sick and glorified the name of that G.o.d who had called to her: "Arise and go!" Without losing a moment's time she left for the North.

The dear one constantly reminded her of the following words: "There is a great harvest but few workers!" and in this she seemed to think there was an explanation of the fact that on her fell the G.o.dly choice. Near Khertviss her strength began to fail. From continuous walking she had become quite lame and was forced to stop and go into winter quarters--enduring innumerable privations. In time her health was so much restored that she started again on her expedition.

Having reached the frontier of Djavakhetta she stopped on the bank of Lake Pkaravno, known also under the designations: Pkdrnav, Paraban, Pkanavar, and Tanaravan; from this lake flows out a river called the Mtkouar of Djavakhetta, from which are to be seen high mountains covered with snow even during the summer months. They are the cause of much cold weather in all the neighboring towns and villages. Fear seized Saint Nina.

"O Lord!" she cried out, trembling, "accept my soul!" and she fell to the ground. For two whole days she could not master her fright nor continue her journey. At last hunger forced her to ask for food of some poor fishermen trading on the lake and of the shepherds who guarded their herds on the banks of the lake.

The latter often used to invoke their G.o.ds at night. These were called Armaz and Zaden, and the heathen inhabitants of the lake districts promised them rich sacrifices if they only guarded the herds from any possible evil. Hearing that their prayers were spoken in Armenian, to which Saint Nina was somewhat accustomed as she had served at Niapkhora's, she dared to ask them whither they had come.

"I am an Akovanian from Elrbienik on the banks of the Lopatsh-Tskan"

(this is the left arm of the Alasana, Plinii calls the inhabitants of this region Loubienis), said one of them.

"We are Kakhetines from Sapourtzle and Kindsar near Mouknar," murmured two others.

"But I am a Touissian from Rabatt," added a third one.

"Here is one from the great city of Mtzkhet, where there lives a Tsar and where we have temples of our G.o.ds; in summer we all drive our herds to the banks of the Pkarnav, thus saving ourselves from the unbearable heat of our countries. The reason that the lake has so many names is that each of us p.r.o.nounces its name according to his own language. In the autumn we disperse to our many homes to escape the cold of this district."

"Where is Mtzkhet?" asked Nina with a fainting heart.

"This river unites itself with another one which comes from Kola, changes its name to Mtkonar and flows to Mtzkhet."

She looked at the sides of the river: it was an endless plain. She became frightened upon beholding its boundless limits. Having sighed over the great length of the coming journey, she put her head on a stone near the source of the river and fell asleep.

In a dream there appeared to her a man of middle height with flying hair, and handed her a written roll, which ran as follows: "Carry this in all haste to the idolatrous Tsar of Mtzkhet!" Saint Nina cried bitterly and began to implore and pray: "O Lord! I am a woman, an adventurer, uneducated, I am unable to say much; now how in the world am I to go into a strange land to heathen nations--to a mighty Tsar?"

Then the shining man unfolded the roll in which were written ten commandments as on the tablets of Moses, and gave them to St. Nina to read. She awoke with the roll in her hands. The following were the contents of the roll:

I: Amen--I say unto ye, go on then, for this testament will be proclaimed all over the world, will go from mouth to mouth, and hardly will it be known when doc.u.ments will appear to commemorate the event.

II: Make no difference between men or women. III: As thou goest, instruct all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Ghost. IV: The world is the language of enlightenment and thy glory, O Israel! V: This good deed of heaven will be practised the world over. VI: He who accepts you, accepts Me and he who accepts Me accepts Him who glorified Me. VII: Mary loved the Lord exceedingly, for she always obeyed his commandments. VIII: Not cutting off the bodies of the murderers, the souls of those who are powerful shall not linger. IX: The speech of Jesus to Mary Magdalen: "Go, O woman, and announce my fraternity!" X: "Teach them to promptly and rigidly observe all these commandments and then I shall be with you, in all times and to the end of the world--Amen!"

Having read the roll, Saint Nina became convinced that this apparition came directly from the Lord. She ardently prayed that the Lord might soothe her, and committing herself to his will, she immediately followed the course of the river. At first it flowed towards the West through wild and sterile countries. The journey became still more terrible through the number of wild animals filling these deserts with their fearful roaring, but not one of them attempted to approach and touch the protege of G.o.d. Only when the river turned to the East did they begin little by little to disappear. Driven on by fear she forgot exhaustion and went rapidly ahead, hardly stopping a minute to catch breath. Soon after the turn of the river Saint Nina overtook some travellers going to Ourbishi or Ouriat-Oubani (which means "Street of the Hebrews"), and joyfully followed them, but at Ourbishi a disappointment awaited her; instead of believers of the real G.o.d she found people who bowed down and adored fire, wood, and stone; her heart burned with indignation, but the Lord comforted her by instructing some Jews to give her a hospitable reception, which she made use of for about one month, when the following spectacle aroused her feelings:

She beheld a great crowd of people going towards Mtzkhet, and as she heard from her host that there were Hebrews there, she followed the people in the distance and thus happened to reach her point of destination upon the fete of Armaz. Before reaching the bridge near Mogontka this large crowd stopped like one man to bow down to the fire, and Saint Nina cried bitterly at the loss of such a large, large number of human souls, ransomed by the most precious blood of our Lord Jesus Christ. On the sixth of August, 324 A. D., on the day of the Transfiguration of the Lord, Saint Nina, according to tradition, accomplished her first wonder. Upon that day appointed for the feting of the idol Armaz, it was the duty of the Tsar and Tsaritsa to take part in the ceremonies. From early in the morning numberless crowds of people, like flowers in the field, filled the streets, shouting and hurrying, each one trying to excel his neighbor in ornamenting their respective houses with carpets, fine shawls and other such articles, all along the road by which the royal cortege was to pa.s.s. First there arrived the Tsaritsa Nana, surrounded by the wives and daughters of the aristocracy. She was followed by the Tsar with a numerous suite. Songs of praises and blessings were heard among the crowd of the nation. With great pomp the procession ascended the mountain to adore their G.o.d, who was cast of clean gold, while at his side there stood two inferior G.o.ds of silver, who wore gold cuira.s.ses and in their aquamarine eyes had artificially made rolling emerald pupils. These last idols were of human proportions and inside of them a mechanism was hidden, through which their hands (in which there were sharp swords) cut down all those who dared to approach the chief G.o.d without making a sacrifice, or all those who adored other and foreign G.o.ds instead. On the Roman bridge, Saint Nina joined the procession.

"What in the world does all this mean?" she asked of a Jewess.

"This is the G.o.d of G.o.ds--Armaz, who calls the people to do him homage. No other idol can compare with him, because each of us puts on his best garment to-day and holds a flag in his hand as a sign of joyousness."

In the meantime the procession had reached its destination. The Tsar bowed down to the ground, surrounded by whole clouds of incense. The sacrificers offered their victims. The Tsaritsa, the n.o.bility, innumerable hordes of people followed the example of their ruler to the greatest displeasure of the Saint, who with all her heart prayed to Him, who had made her glorious and lo! a short-breathed West wind came up, at first softly, then always stronger and stronger, and finally turned into an oragan.

Losing their breath and feeling choked, the Tsar ran away and the sacrificers and the nation too, but the orcano turned into a perfect rain of stones--not allowing even half of those fleeing to seek shelter. Stones of such a size poured down that not every grown up man could raise them with both arms, and they continued to ransack the temple and idols, until all had been turned to ashes and dust.

The heathens fled in terror; this mountain, such a short time before so crowded with people, had now been totally cleared of men and upon it sat only Nina, who was not at all terrified by the fearful spectacle. She saw in this a new proof of the all mightiness of her own G.o.d, and under his powerful protection she quietly lay down and peacefully fell asleep on a huge block of stone.

The next day, by the order of the Tsar, one of the n.o.blemen went to inspect the scene of the disaster of the preceding day. He beheld Saint Nina, concluded by her dress that she was a traveller from some distant land, and with customary Georgian hospitality, invited her to stop at his home. But his offer was by no means accepted by the Saint. She continued her journey along the banks of the river and finding on the road an eye of one of the G.o.ds, she took it along with her. Upon reaching the junction of the Koura and Aragva, where formerly there stood a town and a fortress, she resolved to take a rest and pa.s.s the night at that point of the cape, where till then there still remained the ruins of the church of Favora.

At that time beautiful, well-shaped, high birches grew there, with magnificent shady branches. They were planted by Tsar Bartom, who often rested in their shade; this custom was long observed by the n.o.bility and well-known men and almost every sunny day some one from the aristocracy pa.s.sed the day under the branches of the birches. On one of these trees Saint Nina painted a cross and lived under it in constant prayer till the twelfth of August. On that day came to refresh herself with the coolness of the famous trees, the lady of the royal court Krokhana with her servant, a Greek woman. The latter by the order of her mistress asked the Saint who she was, what she was undertaking, and whether she did not need something. The Saint said that she was "Tevee," i. e., a prisoner of war (which does not mean that she was a servant, as some writers out of pure ignorance expressed themselves in describing her life) and did not tell of her real extraction. Krokhana immediately invited her to follow her to the palace, but the Saint refused even this invitation.

Within three days, i. e., on the day of the a.s.sumption of the Holy Virgin, she crossed the Mtkovar and entered the royal fruit gardens. Near the place where now stands the church of the Katholikoss (Patriarch) and a pillar erected by G.o.d, there lived in those times a guardian, whose wife Anastasia hastened to come out to meet the stranger. She embraced her like an old and dear friend, kissed her, washed off her dusty feet, rubbed her exhausted body with strengthening fragrant b.u.t.ter and having offered her bread and wine, asked her to take a rest and to recover after the long, long journey. Here the Saint remained nine months, frequently visiting Ourbishi, where some Hebrews lived, in the hope of finding out something more about the Lord's robe; and indeed the Lord blessed her attempts. She made the acquaintance of Abiatkar, the descendant of Elios, whom she quickly converted to Christianity together with all his family. "When she arrived," said Abiatkar in his tale, remembered in Georgian History, "I received a letter from Jewish priests in Antiochia, in which they expressed themselves thus":

"The Lord divided the kingdom of Israel into three parts, which were owned by the Romans, Armenians, and Barbarians. There will be no more prophets; all that he told us through the inspiration of the Holy Ghost was fulfilled, we are scattered all over the world and our fatherland is occupied by the Romans. O Jews! let us now weep with our nation, for we offended G.o.d, the Creator of all beings."

Looking over now the books in which Moses teaches us: "each one who on earth calls himself G.o.d shall be put to death!" Why is it possible then that we sinned in killing Jesus of Nazareth? We actually see that in ancient times, when our forefathers sinned before G.o.d and forgot Him, He lowered them to servitude and made them experience all the horrors of captivity; but when they turned again to Him and invoked Him, He saved them from need. From the scriptures we know that this happened seven times in ancient history. Now, then, when our fathers put their hands on the son of a poor woman, G.o.d deprived us of his mercifulness and support and lo! our government fell to pieces, we were separated from our temples and our nationality was forgotten. That was about three hundred years ago. The Lord does not hear our prayers and does not send us help, from which we conclude that perhaps this man was sent by G.o.d. Thus did they write me several times and aroused doubts in my soul, to explain which, I applied to Saint Nina. I asked her who was Jesus and why the Son of G.o.d became a simple man.