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diff --git a/old/54036-0.txt b/old/54036-0.txt deleted file mode 100644 index dff8121..0000000 --- a/old/54036-0.txt +++ /dev/null @@ -1,8513 +0,0 @@ -The Project Gutenberg EBook of Armenian Legends and Poems, by Various - -This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere in the United States and most -other parts of the world at no cost and with almost no restrictions -whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or re-use it under the terms of -the Project Gutenberg License included with this eBook or online at -www.gutenberg.org. If you are not located in the United States, you'll have -to check the laws of the country where you are located before using this ebook. - -Title: Armenian Legends and Poems - -Author: Various - -Illustrator: Zabelle C. Boyajian - -Release Date: January 21, 2017 [EBook #54036] - -Language: English - -Character set encoding: UTF-8 - -*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK ARMENIAN LEGENDS AND POEMS *** - - - - -Produced by Jeroen Hellingman and the Online Distributed -Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net/ for Project -Gutenberg (This file was produced from images generously -made available by The Internet Archive/American Libraries.) - - - - - - - - - ARMENIAN LEGENDS AND POEMS - - ILLUSTRATED & COMPILED - - by - - ZABELLE C. BOYAJIAN - - - - WITH AN INTRODUCTION BY THE RIGHT HON. VISCOUNT BRYCE, O.M. - - AND - - A CONTRIBUTION ON “ARMENIA: ITS EPICS, FOLK-SONGS, AND MEDIAEVAL - POETRY,” - - By ARAM RAFFI - - - - LONDON: J. M. DENT & SONS LTD. - NEW YORK: E. P. DUTTON & COMPANY - - - - - - - - Miss Boyajian is giving all the profits of this edition to the Lord - Mayor’s Armenian Fund - - - - - - - - Dedicated - - TO - - THE UNDYING SPIRIT OF ARMENIA - - - - - - - -PREFACE - - -In preparing this book of Armenian Legends and Poems my principal -object was to publish it as a Memorial to an unhappy nation. - -The book does not claim to represent Armenian poetry adequately. Many -gifted and well-known authors have been omitted, partly from -considerations of space, and partly because of the scope of the work. -For instance, I should have liked to include some of the Sharakans -(rows of gems) of Nerses Shnorhali; but the impossibility of -reproducing their characteristic forms in another language, and doing -them any justice, made me decide not to translate any of them. I have -only given a few typical legends and poems, endeavouring, as far as -possible, to convey the local colouring by adhering closely to the -form, rhythm, and imagery of the originals in my translations. I have -also largely based the decorative scheme of the illustrations upon -Ancient Armenian Art as we see it in mediæval missals and -illuminations. - -Should this anthology create an interest in Armenian literature the -Armenian Muses have still many treasures in their keeping which cannot -be destroyed; and another volume could be compiled. - -In conclusion, I wish to express my sincerest gratitude to Miss Alice -Stone Blackwell, of Boston, U.S.A.—one of Armenia’s truest -friends—for allowing me to reprint several of her renderings of -Armenian poems; to G. C. Macaulay, M.A., and the Delegates of the -Oxford University Press, for permission to reprint the “Tale of -Rosiphelee” from their edition of Gower’s Confessio Amantis; to Mr. -William Watson and Mr. John Lane for permission to reprint the sonnet -on Armenia, “A Trial of Orthodoxy,” from The Purple East; and to -the heirs of Vittoria Aganoor Pompilj for permitting me to reprint two -of her poems, “Pasqua Armena” and “Io Vidi,” from the Nuova -Antologia. I wish also to thank Mr. M. E. Galoustiantz for designing -the cover of this book. - -The proceeds of the present edition will be handed over to the Armenian -Fund. - - - ZABELLE C. BOYAJIAN. - - - - - - - -INTRODUCTION - - -Severed for many centuries from Western Europe by the flood of Turkish -barbarism which descended upon their country in the Middle Ages, and -subjected for the last two generations to oppressions and cruelties -such as few civilised people have ever had to undergo, the Armenians -have been less known to Englishmen and Frenchmen than their remarkable -qualities and their romantic history deserve. Few among us have -acquired their language, one of the most ancient forms of human speech -that possess a literature. Still fewer have studied their art or read -their poetry even in translations. There is, therefore, an ample field -for a book which shall present to those Englishmen and Frenchmen, whose -interest in Armenia has been awakened by the sufferings to which its -love of freedom and its loyalty to its Christian faith have exposed it, -some account of Armenian art and Armenian poetical literature. Miss -Boyajian, the authoress of this book, is the daughter of an Armenian -clergyman, whom I knew and respected during the many years when he was -British Vice-Consul at Diarbekir on the Tigris. She is herself a -painter, a member of that group of Armenian artists some of whom have, -like Aïvazovsky and Edgar Chahine, won fame in the world at large, and -she is well qualified to describe with knowledge as well as with -sympathy the art of her own people. - -That art has been, since the nation embraced Christianity in the fourth -century of our era, chiefly ecclesiastical. The finest examples of -ancient Armenian architecture are to be seen in the ruins of Ani, on -the border where Russian and Turkish territory meet, a city which was -once the seat of one of the native dynasties, while the famous church -of the monastery of Etchmiadzin, at Vagarshabad, near Erivan, is, -though more modern, a perfect and beautiful existing representative of -the old type. Etchmiadzin, standing at the north foot of Mount Ararat, -is the seat of the Katholikos, or ecclesiastical head of the whole -Armenian church. There was little or no ecclesiastical sculpture, for -the Armenian church discouraged the use of images, and fresco painting -was not much used for the decoration of churches; missals, however, and -other books of devotion and manuscripts of the Bible were illuminated -with hand paintings, and adorned with miniatures; and much skill and -taste were shown in embroideries. Metal work, especially in silver and -in copper, has always been a favourite vehicle for artistic design in -the Near East and is so still, though like everything else it has -suffered from the destruction, in repeated massacres, of many of the -most highly skilled artificers. - -One of the most interesting features in the history of Armenian art is -that it displays in its successive stages the various influences to -which the country has been subject. Ever since it became Christian it -was a territory fought for by diverse empires of diverse creeds. As in -primitive times it lay between Assyria on the one side and the Hittite -power on the other, so after the appearance of Islam it became the -frontier on which the East Roman Christian Empire contended with the -Muslim Arab and Turkish monarchies. Persian influences on the East, -both before and after Persia had become Mohammedan, here met with the -Roman influences spreading out from Constantinople. The latter gave the -architectural style, as we see it in those ecclesiastical buildings to -which I have referred, a style developed here with admirable features -of its own and one which has held its ground to the present day. The -influence of Persia on the other hand was seen in the designs used in -embroidery, in carpets, and in metal work. The new school of painters -has struck out new lines for itself, but while profiting by whatever it -has learnt from Europe, it retains a measure of distinctive national -quality. - -That quality is also visible in Armenian poetry of which this volume -gives some interesting specimens. The poetry of a people which has -struggled against so many terrible misfortunes has naturally a -melancholy strain. But it is also full of an unextinguishable -patriotism. - -Those who have learnt from this book what the Armenian race has shown -itself capable of doing in the fields of art and literature, and who -have learnt from history how true it has been to its Christian faith, -and how tenacious of its national life, will hope that the time has now -at last come when it will be delivered from the load of brutal tyranny -that has so long cramped its energies, and allowed to take its place -among the free and progressive peoples of the world. It is the only one -of the native races of Western Asia that is capable of restoring -productive industry and assured prosperity to these now desolated -regions that were the earliest homes of civilisation. - - - BRYCE. - - 3, Buckingham Gate, - July 1916. - - - - - - - -CONTENTS - - - PAGE - - Preface vii - Introduction ix - - Reproaches xv - A Trial of Orthodoxy xvi - - The Exile’s Song 1 - The Apple Tree 3 - My Heart is turned into a Wailing Child 4 - O Night, be long 5 - Black Eyes 6 - Yesternight I walked Abroad 7 - Vahagn, King of Armenia 10 - Huntsman, that on the Hills above 11 - Liberty 12 - I beheld my Love this Morning 14 - The Fox, the Wolf, and the Bear 15 - Incense 17 - The Little Lake 18 - Spring 20 - Cradle Song 21 - Ara and Semiramis 23 - Lament over the Heroes fallen in the - Battle of Avarair 25 - The Song of the Stork 27 - Ye Mountain Bluebells 29 - The Sun went down 30 - Birthday Song 31 - Morning 32 - The Founding of Van 33 - I have a Word I fain would say 35 - The Song of the Partridge 36 - The Lily of Shavarshan 37 - Cradle Song 41 - The Wind is howling through the Winter Night 42 - The Armenian Poet’s Prayer 43 - The Chragan Palace 44 - The Dream 46 - The Sorrows of Armenia 47 - Artashes and Satenik 48 - My Death 50 - The Eagle’s Love 51 - Concerning the Rose and the Nightingale 52 - The Arrival of the Crusaders 58 - Like an Ocean is this World 59 - The Rock 60 - The Crane 62 - The Hawk and the Dove 63 - Artavasd 65 - Charm Verses 67 - The Tears of Araxes 69 - The Eve of Ascension Day 73 - “Thy Voice is Sweet” 74 - Christ and Abgarus 75 - Araxes came devouringly 77 - The Parrot’s Song 78 - Earth and Sky 79 - O’er the Mountains High he went 81 - Complaints 82 - A Day After 84 - Without Thee what are Song and Dance to Me? 85 - The Lake of Van 86 - Spring 89 - The Fox 90 - The Tale of Rosiphelee 91 - The Song of the Vulture 98 - Dance Song 101 - Ballad 103 - No Bird can reach the Mountain’s Crest 106 - The Nightingale of Avarair 108 - Thou art so Sweet 110 - The Wandering Armenian to the Swallow 111 - The Christ-Child 113 - The Castle of Anoush 114 - Happiness 118 - Concerning Death 119 - Love One Another 121 - Pasqua Armena 122 - “Io Vidi” 123 - Armenia: its Epics, Folk-Songs, and Mediaeval Poetry 125 - - Chronological Index to Authors 193 - Index to First Lines 195 - - - - - - - -LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS - - - Armenia Frontispiece - The Birth of Vahagn, King of Armenia facing page 10 - Ara and Semiramis 23 - The Founding of Van 33 - Artashes and Satenik 48 - The Wedding 49 - Artavasd 65 - Christ’s Letter to Abgarus 75 - The Lake of Van 86 - The Vision of Rosiphelee, Princess of Armenia 91 - The Lady and the Minstrel 102 - The Castle of Anoush 114 - - - - - - - -REPROACHES - -By “FRIK” - -(Died 1330) - - - O God of righteousness and truth, - Loving to all, and full of ruth; - I have some matter for Thine ear - If Thou wilt but Thy servant hear. - - Lo, how the world afflicteth us - With wrongs and torments rancorous; - And Thou dost pardon every one, - But turnest from our woes alone. - - Lord, Thou wilt not avenge our wrong - Nor chase the ills that round us throng; - Thou knowest, we are flesh and bone, - We are not statues made from stone! - - We are not made of grass or reeds, - That Thou consumest us like weeds;— - As though we were some thorny field - Or brushwood, that the forests yield. - - If that ourselves are nothing worth— - If we have wrought no good on earth, - If we are hateful in Thy sight - That Thou shouldst leave us in this plight— - - Then blot us out;—be swift and brief, - That Thy pure heart may find relief; - This well may be, by Thy intent, - Great Lord and good, omnipotent. - - How long must we in patience wait - And bear unmurmuringly our fate? - Let evil ones be swept away - And those whom Thou dost favour, stay! - - - - - - - -A TRIAL OF ORTHODOXY - -(Sonnet on Armenia) - -By WILLIAM WATSON - - - The clinging children at their mother’s knee - Slain; and the sire and kindred one by one - Flayed or hewn piecemeal; and things nameless done, - Not to be told: while imperturbably - The nations gaze, where Rhine unto the sea, - Where Seine and Danube, Thames and Tiber run, - And where great armies glitter in the sun, - And great Kings rule, and man is boasted free! - What wonder if yon torn and naked throng - Should doubt a Heaven that seems to wink and nod, - And having mourned at noontide, “Lord, how long?” - Should cry, “Where hidest Thou?” at evenfall, - At midnight, “Is He deaf and blind, our God?” - And ere day dawn, “Is He indeed at all?” - - - - - - - -THE EXILE’S SONG - -FOLK SONG - - - Belovèd one, for thy sweet sake, - By whirlwinds tossed and swayed I roam; - The stranger’s accents round me wake - These burning thoughts that wander home. - No man such longings wild can bear - As in my heart forever rise. - Oh that the wind might waft me there - Where my belovèd’s vineyard lies! - Oh that I were the zephyr fleet, - That bends her vines and roses sweet. - - For I am piteous and forlorn, - As is the bird that haunts the night; - Who inconsolably doth mourn - Whene’er his rose is from his sight. - O’er earth and ocean, everywhere - I gaze in vain, with weary eyes. - Oh that the wind might waft me there - Where my belovèd’s vineyard lies! - Oh that I were the zephyr fleet - That bends her vines and roses sweet. - I would I were yon cloud so light,— - Yon cloudlet driven before the wind. - Or yonder bird with swift-winged flight: - My heart’s true way I soon would find! - Oh, I would be the wind so fleet - That bends her vines and roses sweet. - - - - - - - -THE APPLE TREE - -FOLK SONG - - - The door of Heaven open seemed - And in thy house the sunlight gleamed. - - As through the garden’s willow’d walks I hied - Full many a tree and blossom I espied. - But of all trees, the Apple Tree most fair - And beautiful did unto me appear. - It sobbed and wept. Its leaves said murmuringly: - “I would that God had ne’er created me! - The badge of sin and wickedness I am - E’en at thy feast, O Father Abraham. [1] - The apple growing on me first - From Eden came ere it was cursed, - Alas, alas, I am undone! - Why fell I to that evil one?” - - - - - - - -MY HEART IS TURNED INTO A WAILING CHILD - -By N. KOUCHAK - -(Fifteenth Century) - - - My heart is turned into a wailing child, - In vain with sweets I seek to still its cries; - Sweet love, it calls for thee in sobbings wild - All day and night, with longing and with sighs. - What solace can I give it? - - I showed my eyes the fair ones of this earth - And tried to please them—but I tried in vain. - Sweet love, for them all those were nothing worth— - Thee—only thee my heart would have again. - What solace can I give it? - - - - - - - -O NIGHT, BE LONG - -By N. KOUCHAK - - - O Night, be long—long as an endless year! - Descend, thick darkness, black and full of fear! - To-night my heart’s desire has been fulfilled— - My love is here at last—a guest concealed! - - Dawn, stand behind seven mountains—out of sight, - Lest thou my loved one banish with thy light; - I would for ever thus in darkness rest - So I might ever clasp him to my breast. - - - - - - - -BLACK EYES - -By AVETIS ISAHAKIAN - -(Born 1875) - - - Do not trust black eyes, but fear them:— - Gloom they are, and endless night; - Woes and perils lurking near them— - Love not thou their gleaming bright! - - In my heart a sea of blood wells, - Called up by their cruel might, - No calm ever in that flood dwells— - Love not thou their gleaming bright! - - - - - - - -YESTERNIGHT I WALKED ABROAD - -ANONYMOUS - - - Yesternight I walked abroad. - From the clouds sweet dews were falling, - And my love stood in the road, - All in green, and to me calling. - To her home she led me straight, - Shut and barred the gate securely; - Whoso tries to force that gate - Brave I’ll reckon him most surely! - - In the garden she did go, - Gathered roses dewed with showers; - Some she gave her lover, so - He might lay his face in flowers. - - Garments loose and snowy breast, - I slipped in her bosom tender - And I found a moment’s rest, - Clasped within those arms so slender. - Then I raised my hands above— - Grant, O Lord, that I wake never; - On the bosom of my love - May I live and die forever! - - What have I from this world gained? - What advantage gathered ever? - For the hunt my falcon trained - I let fly—it went forever! - - Ah, my falcon, woe the day! - Tell me, whither art thou flying? - I will follow all the way— - Since thou wentest I am dying. - - I am ill, and near my end— - With an apple [2] hasten to me. - I shall curse thee if thou send - Strange physicians to undo me. - - No physicians strange for me— - All my griefs in thee I centre. - Come and take my bosom’s key, - Open wide the door and enter. - Once again I say, ’twas not - I that came—’twas thy love brought me. - In my heart thy love hath got - And its dwelling-place hath wrought me. - - When the falcon hunger feels - Then he finds the game and takes it; - When love thirsts, the lover steals - Kisses from his love and slakes it. - But thou hold’st me with thy charms; - When I kiss thee thou dost bind me: - ’Twas but now I left thine arms, - And my looks are turned behind me. - I am ever, for thy love, - Like the sands in summer, burning: - Looking up to heaven above, - For one little raindrop yearning. - - I would kiss thy forehead chaste, - And thine eyes so brightly gleaming; - Fold mine arms about thy waist— - Thick with all thy garments seeming. - - Oft and often have I said - For my love make garments shining: - Of the sun the facing red,— - Of the moon cut out the lining; - Pad it with yon storm-cloud dark, - Sewn with sea weed from the islets: - Stars for clasps must bring their spark— - Stitch me inside for the eyelets! - - - - - - - -VAHAGN, KING OF ARMENIA - -From the History of Armenia, by - -MOSES OF KHORENE - -(Fifth Century) - - -Concerning the birth of this king the legends say— - - - “Heaven and earth were in travail, - And the crimson waters were in travail. - And in the water, the crimson reed - Was also in travail. - From the mouth of the reed issued smoke, - From the mouth of the reed issued flame. - And out of the flame sprang the young child. - His hair was of fire, a beard had he of flame, - And his eyes were suns.” - - -With our own ears did we hear these words sung to the accompaniment of -the harp. They sing, moreover, that he did fight with the dragons, and -overcame them; and some say that his valiant deeds were like unto those -of Hercules. Others declare that he was a god, and that a great image -of him stood in the land of Georgia, where it was worshipped with -sacrifices. - - - - - - - -HUNTSMAN, THAT ON THE HILLS ABOVE - -By AVETIS ISAHAKIAN - - - “Huntsman, that on the hills above - To hunt the deer hast been, - Tell me, I pray thee, if my love— - My wild deer thou hast seen? - - “He sought the hills his grief to quell— - My darling love, my sun. - He wandered out upon the fell, - My flower, my only one.” - - “Maiden, I saw your lover true, - All girt with red and green. - Upon his breast a rose tree grew - Where once your kiss had been.” - - “Huntsman, I pray, who is the bride - Of my beloved, my sun? - Who tends him, watching by his side, - My flower, my only one?” - - “Maiden, I saw him with his head - Upon a stone at rest. - And for his love, a bullet red - Into his heart was pressed. - - “The mountain breeze caressingly - Played with his jet-black hair, - And blossoms wept unceasingly - Your flower, your lover there.” - - - - - - - -LIBERTY - -By MIKAEL NALBANDIAN - -(1829–1866) - - - When the God of Liberty - Formed of earth this mortal frame, - Breathed the breath of life in me, - And a spirit I became, - - Wrapped within my swaddling bands, - Bound and fettered helplessly, [3] - I stretched forth my infant hands - To embrace sweet Liberty. - - All night long, until the dawn, - In my cradle bound I lay; - And my sobbing’s ceaseless moan - Drove my mother’s sleep away. - - As I begged her, weeping loud, - To unbind and set me free; - From that very day I vowed - I would love thee, Liberty! - - When upon my parents’ ear - First my lisping accents fell, - And their hearts rejoiced to hear - Me my childish wishes tell, - - Then the words that first I spoke - Were not “father, mother dear”: - “Liberty!” the accents broke - In my infant utterance clear. - - “Liberty!” The voice of Doom - Echoed to me from above, - “Wilt thou swear until the tomb - Liberty to serve and love? - - “Thorny is the path, and dim; - Many trials wait for thee: - Far too small this world for him - Who doth worship Liberty!” - - “Liberty!” I made reply, - “O’er my head let thunders burst, - Lightnings flash, and missiles fly— - Foes conspire to do their worst; - - “Till I die, or meet my doom, - On the shameful gallows-tree,— - Till the portals of the tomb, - I will shout forth Liberty!” - - - - - - - -I BEHELD MY LOVE THIS MORNING - -By SAYAT NOVA - -(1712–1795) - - -I beheld my love this morning, in the garden paths she strayed, -All brocaded was the ground with prints her golden pattens made; -Like the nightingale, I warbled round my rose with wings displayed, -And I wept, my reason faltered, while my heart was sore dismayed. -Grant, O Lord, that all my foemen to such grief may be betrayed! - -Love, with these thy whims and humours thou hast wrecked and ruined me. -Thou hast drunk of love’s own nectar, thy lips speak entrancingly. -With those honeyed words how many like me thou hast bound to thee! -Take the knife and slay me straightway—pass not by me mockingly. -Since I die of love, ‘twere better Beauty stabbed and set me free. - -For I have no love beside thee—I would have thee know it well. -Thou for whom e’en death I’d suffer, list to what I have to tell. -See thou thwart not thy Creator,—all the past do not dispel: -Anger not thy Sayat Nova, for when in thy snare he fell -He was all bereft of reason by thy whims’ and humours’ spell. - - - - - - - -THE FOX, THE WOLF, AND THE BEAR - -FOLK SONG - - - The little fox, the wolf and bear made peace; - Like kinsfolk all, they bade their warfare cease. - The fox they consecrate a hermit now;— - False monk, false hermit, false recluse’s vow! - - The little fox a sack found in the street - Through which he thrust his head; then shod his feet - With iron shoes, and got a staff, I trow— - False monk, false hermit, false recluse’s vow! - - The fox has sent the wolf to fetch the bear. - “For him,” he said, “I live this life of care; - Yet never hath he sent me aught to eat:— - Sore are my knees with walking, sore my feet!” - - At morning dawn forth to the hunt they creep; - A ram they catch, a lambkin and a sheep. - Holy dispenser is the wolf proclaimed— - Unjust dispenser, judge unwisely named! - - He gives the sheep as portion to the bear; - The lambkin falls to the poor hermit’s share. - “The ram for me,” he said, “I’m tired and lamed”— - Unjust dispenser, judge unwisely named! - - The bear was wroth, and turned him round about, - And with one blow the wolf’s two eyes put out. - “That sheep for me, a bear so great and famed? - Unjust dispenser, judge unwisely named!” - - The little fox is sore afraid, and sees - A trap laid ready with a piece of cheese. - “O uncle, see, I’ve built a convent here,” - He said, “a place of rest, a place of prayer!” - - The bear stretched out his paw for the repast, - The trap upon his neck closed hard and fast. - “Help me, my little nephew, for I fear - This is no convent, ’tis no house of prayer!” - - The little fox with joy beheld the whole - And sang a mass for his great uncle’s soul. - “The wrong thou didst the wolf has brought thee there; - It is a house of rest, a house of prayer!” - - O sovereign Justice, much thou pleasest me— - Who wrongs another soon shall cease to be. - And fasting in the trap must lie the bear,— - For ’tis a house of rest, a house of prayer! - - - - - - - -INCENSE - -By ZABELLE ESSAYAN - -(Born 1878) - - - The incense at the altar slowly burns - Swayed in the silver censer to and fro; - Around the crucifix it coils and turns, - The brows of saints it wreathes with misty glow. - - And tremulous petitions, long drawn out, - Beneath the lofty arches faint away; - To weary eyes the candles round about - Heave as they flicker with their pallid ray. - - The sacred columns, grey and mouldering, - Support a veil that stirs with voiceless sobs. - Beneath it, like the incense smouldering, - A woman’s darkened heart in anguish throbs. - - Consumed within the censer now, and burned, - The incense through the boundless ether soars. - What Matter was to Fragrance sweet is turned— - The cleansing fire its purity restores. - - Nor shall that woman’s smouldering heart be freed,— - Saved from its cold and adamantine shell,— - Till it is melted, tried, and cleansed indeed, - Till the pure flames shall all its dross expel! - - - - - - - -THE LITTLE LAKE [4] - -By BEDROS TOURIAN - -(1852–1872) - - - Why dost thou lie in hushed surprise, - Thou little lonely mere? - Did some fair woman wistfully - Gaze in thy mirror clear? - - Or are thy waters calm and still - Admiring the blue sky, - Where shining cloudlets, like thy foam, - Are drifting softly by? - - Sad little lake, let us be friends! - I too am desolate; - I too would fain, beneath the sky, - In silence meditate. - - As many thoughts are in my mind - As wavelets o’er thee roam; - As many wounds are in my heart - As thou hast flakes of foam. - - But if heaven’s constellations all - Should drop into thy breast, - Thou still wouldst not be like my soul,— - A flame-sea without rest. - - There, when the air and thou are calm, - The clouds let fall no showers; - The stars that rise there do not set, - And fadeless are the flowers. - - Thou art my queen, O little lake! - For e’en when ripples thrill - Thy surface, in thy quivering depths - Thou hold’st me, trembling, still. - - Full many have rejected me: - “What has he but his lyre?” - “He trembles, and his face is pale; - His life must soon expire!” - - None said, “Poor child, why pines he thus? - If he beloved should be, - Haply he might not die, but live,— - Live, and grow fair to see.” - - None sought the boy’s sad heart to read, - Nor in its depths to look. - They would have found it was a fire, - And not a printed book! - - Nay, ashes now! a memory! - Grow stormy, little mere, - For a despairing man has gazed - Into thy waters clear! - - - Translated by Alice Stone Blackwell. - - - - - - - -SPRING - -By HOVHANNES HOVHANNESSIAN - -(Born 1869) - - - None await thy smiling rays; - Whither comest thou, O Spring? - None are left to sing thy praise— - Vain thy coming now, O Spring! - - All the world is wrapped in gloom, - Earth in blood is weltering: - This year brought us blackest doom— - Whither comest thou, O Spring? - - No rose for the nightingale, - No flower within park or dale, - Every face with anguish pale— - Whither comest thou, O Spring? - - - - - - - -CRADLE SONG - -By RAPHAEL PATKANIAN - -(1830–1892) - - -Mother - - Sweet slumber now creeps o’er thee slow, - Sweet breezes rock thee to and fro: - My baby sleeps, so soft and low - With sweetest songs I’ll sing oror. [5] - - -Baby - - O Mother dear, thou art unkind - My sleepless eyes so long to bind. [6] - Anon I’ll rest, and sleep resigned;— - Release me now, sing not oror. - - -Mother - - Why dost thou shed those tears that flow - Down thy sad cheeks with pearly glow? - Thou’lt break thy heart with sobbing so,— - Whom wilt thou have to sing oror? - - -Baby - - At least my hands and feet unbind— - My tender limbs are all confined; - That gentle sleep my eyes may find, - Then tie me in, and sing oror. - - -Mother - - That tongue of thine is passing sweet, - Yet with thy yards I cannot mete. - Thou wilt not sleep, but at thy feet - Wouldst have me sit, and sing oror. - - -Baby - - All piteously I raise my prayer, - I sob and cry, thou dost not hear. - Thy sweet voice seems to charm thine ear— - I weep, thou singest still oror. - - -Mother - - Hush, hush, and sleep, my baby dear. - My love shall guard thee, year by year, - Until my rose-tree blossoms fair, - Then ‘neath his shade I’ll sing oror. - - -Baby - - Thy heart is made of stone, I see. - I wept and wept, all uselessly. - Now I shall sleep, I can’t be free, - All night, all night sing me oror! - - - - - - - -ARA AND SEMIRAMIS - -From the History of Armenia, by - -MOSES OF KHORENE - - -For a few years before the death of Ninus, Ara reigned over Armenia -under his Protectorate, and found the same favour in his eyes as his -father Aram had done. But that wanton and lustful woman Semiramis, -having heard speak for many years of the beauty of Ara, wished to -possess him; only she ventured not to do anything openly. But after the -death or the escape to Crete of Ninus, as it hath been affirmed unto -me, she discovered her passion freely, and sent messengers to Ara the -Beautiful with gifts and offerings, with many prayers and promises of -riches; begging him to come to her to Nineveh and either wed her and -reign over all that Ninus had possessed, or fulfil her desires and -return in peace to Armenia, with many gifts. - -And when the messengers had been and returned many times and Ara had -not consented, Semiramis became very wroth; and she arose and took all -the multitude of her hosts and hastened to the land of Armenia, against -Ara. But, as she had beforehand declared, it was not so much to kill -him and persecute him that she went, as to subdue him and bring him by -force to fulfil the desires of her passion. For having been consumed -with desire by what she had heard of him, on seeing him she became as -one beside herself. She arrived in this turmoil at the plains of Ara, -called after him Aïrarat. And when the battle was about to take place -she commanded her generals to devise some means of saving the life of -Ara. But in the fighting the army of Ara was beaten, and Ara died, -being slain by the warriors of Semiramis. And after the battle the -Queen sent out to the battlefield to search for the body of her beloved -amongst those who had died. And they found the body of Ara amongst the -brave ones that had fallen, and she commanded them to place it in an -upper chamber in her castle. - -But when the hosts of Armenia arose once more against Queen Semiramis -to avenge the death of Ara, she said: “I have commanded the gods to -lick his wounds, and he shall live again.” At the same time she -thought to bring Ara back to life by witchcraft and charms, for she was -maddened by the intensity of her desires. But when the body began to -decay, she commanded them to cast it into a deep pit, and to cover it. -And having dressed up one of her men in secret, she sent forth the fame -of him thus: “The gods have licked Ara and have brought him back to -life again, thus fulfilling our prayers and our pleasure. Therefore -from this time forth shall they be the more glorified and worshipped by -us, for that they are the givers of joy and the fulfillers of -desire.” She also erected a new statue in honour of the gods and -worshipped it with many sacrifices, showing unto all as if the gods had -brought Ara back to life again. And having caused this report to be -spread over all the land of Armenia and satisfied the people she put an -end to the fighting. And she took the son of Ara whom his beloved wife -Nouvart had borne unto him and who was but twelve years old at the time -of his father’s death. And she called his name Ara in memory of her -love for Ara the Beautiful, and appointed him ruler over the land of -Armenia, trusting him in all things. - - - - - - - -LAMENT OVER THE HEROES FALLEN IN THE BATTLE OF AVARAIR - -By KAREKIN SRVANSTIAN - -(1840–1892) - - - If Goghtan’s bards no longer crown - Armenia’s heroes with their lays, - Let deathless souls from Heaven come down, - Our valiant ones to praise! - - Ye shining angel hosts, descend: - On Ararat’s white summit pause; - Let God Himself the heavens rend, - To come and judge our cause. - - Fly, clouds, from Shavarshan away, - Pour not on it your gentle rain:— - ’Tis drenched with streams of blood to-day - Shed by our brave ones slain. - - Henceforth the rose and asphodel - No more shall on our plains appear; - But in the land where Vartan fell - Shall Faith her blossoms rear. - - Fit monument to Vartan’s name, - Mount Ararat soars to the sky. - And Cross-crowned convents tell his fame, - And churches vast and high. - - Thy record too shall ever stand, - O Eghishé, for where they fell, - Thou forthwith camest, pen in hand, - Their faith and death to tell. - - Bright sun, pierce with thy rays the gloom, - Where Khaghdik’s crags thy light repel, - There lies our brave Hmayag’s tomb,— - There, where he martyred fell. - - And, moon, thy sleepless vigil keep - O’er our Armenian martyrs’ bones; - With the soft dews of Maytime steep - Their nameless funeral stones. - - Armenia’s Stork, our summer guest, - And all ye hawks and eagles, come, - Watch o’er this land—’tis our bequest— - We leave to you our home. - - About the ashes hover still, - Your nests among the ruins make; - And, swallows, come and go until - Spring for Armenia break! - - - - - - - -THE SONG OF THE STORK - -FOLK SONG - - - Stork, I welcome thy return. - Thou stork, I welcome thy return. - Thy coming is the sign of spring, - And thou dost joy and gladness bring. - - Stork, upon our roof descend. - Thou stork, upon our roof descend. - Upon our ash-tree build thy nest, - Our dear one, and our honoured guest. - - Stork, I would complain to thee:— - Yes, stork, I would complain to thee. - A thousand sorrows I would tell, - The griefs that in my bosom dwell. - - Stork, when thou our house didst leave,— - When last our ash-tree thou didst leave, - Cold, blasting winds the heavens filled, - And all our smiling flowers were killed. - - Clouds obscured the brilliant sky; - Dark clouds obscured the brilliant sky. - Up there in flakes they broke the snow, - And Winter killed the flowers below. - - From the mountain of Varag, - From that great hill they call Varag, - The snow did all the earth enfold:— - In our green meadow it was cold. - - In our garden all was white. - Our little garden all was white. - Our tender rose-trees, fresh and green, - All died of Winter’s frost-bite keen. - - - - - - - -YE MOUNTAIN BLUEBELLS - -By AVETIS ISAHAKIAN - - - Ye mountain bluebells, weep with me, - And flowers in coloured crowds; - Weep, nightingale, on yonder tree,— - Cool winds dropped from the clouds. - - All dark around the earth and sky, - All lonely here I mourn. - My love is gone,—light of my eye; - I sob and weep forlorn. - - Alas, no more he cares for me— - He left me unconsoled; - He pierced my heart, then cruelly - Left me in pain untold. - - Ye mountain bluebells, weep with me, - And flowers in coloured crowds; - Weep, nightingale, on yonder tree,— - Cool winds dropped from the clouds. - - - - - - - -THE SUN WENT DOWN - -By AVETIS ISAHAKIAN - - - The sun went down behind the hill, - No light was on the lea, - The fowls and birds slept calm and still, - But sleep came not to me. - - The moon peeped in beneath the eaves, - The Balance rose on high, - The fresh night-wind that stirred the leaves - Spoke to the starry sky. - - Ah, gentle winds and stars of light, - Where is my love to-night? - Ye painted eyes of heaven so bright,— - Saw you my love to-night? - - Day dawned,—unbolted was our door:— - The snowflakes whirled like foam, - ’Tis cloud and storm, the wild winds roar— - Why comes my love not home? - - - - - - - -BIRTHDAY SONG - -By NAHABED KOUCHAK - - - On the morning of thy birth - We were glad but thou wert wailing, - See that when thou leav’st the earth - Thou art glad and we bewailing. - - Let me speak unto thy heart,— - List if thou hast understanding; - Keep thyself from fools apart, - All their flatteries withstanding. - - For the fool, like fire and heat, - Scorcheth everything, and burneth; - But the wise, like water sweet, - Deserts into gardens turneth. - - - - - - - -MORNING - -By HAROUTUNE TOUMANIAN - - - Day dawned. Bright tongues of scarlet flame - Shot up into the sky, - The livid heav’ns blushed, and became - A sea of crimson dye. - - The sun his fiery beams unrolled - Like strands of coloured thread; - Embroidered all the clouds with gold, - And blue, and green, and red. - - Then o’er the mountain, full in view, - Nature’s great Monarch rose: - And from his tent of Royal blue - Hurled darts upon his foes. - - Eternal foe of Gloom and Night, - On high he raised his arm; - His shield of gold, all shining bright, - Sheltered the world from harm. - - - - - - - -THE FOUNDING OF VAN - -From the History of Armenia, by - -MOSES OF KHORENE - - -And after these things Semiramis, having remained in the plain called -Aïrarat after Ara, went into the hill country towards the south. For -it was summer time and she wished to disport herself in the valleys and -the flowery plains. And seeing the beauty of the land and the purity of -the air, the clearness of the fountains and the murmuring of the -gliding rivers, she said, “It is needful that we build for ourselves -a city and palaces in this balmy clime and beautiful country, by the -side of these pure waters; so that we may spend the fourth part of the -year, which is the summer season, with enjoyment in the land of -Armenia; and the three cool seasons of the year we will spend in -Nineveh.” - -And passing over many places she came to the eastern shore of the salt -lake. And on the shore of the lake she saw a long hill lying towards -the setting sun. And south of the hill was a wide valley like unto a -plain, which came down from the eastern flank of the hill unto the -shore of the lake, spacious and of goodly shape. And the rills of sweet -water descending from the mountains ran down the ravines, and meeting -around the spurs of the hills they hastened to join the river. And -there were not a few buildings erected in the valley on the right and -left banks of the waters. And she selected a small hill on the eastern -side. - -After gazing thence for a while that evil and hard-hearted woman -Semiramis commanded that twelve thousand unskilled workmen and six -thousand of her chosen men skilled in all manner of wood, stone, -copper, and iron work should be brought from Assyria and all other -lands to the desired place. And it was done according to her command. -And immediately a great multitude of diverse workmen were brought, and -of wise and gifted workers in all the arts. And she commanded first to -make the dyke of the river, of boulders and great rocks cemented -together with clay, of great width and height; the which it is said -remains firm until this day, so that in the clefts of these dykes -pirates and exiles do fortify themselves as in the caves of the -mountains, none being able to wrench even one stone from the dyke. And -when one looked upon the cement it appeared like a torrent of fat. Thus -having taken the dyke round over much ground she brought it unto the -intended site of the city. There she commanded the multitude of the -workers to be divided into diverse sections, placing over each section -a chosen master of the arts. And under such oppression did she keep -them that after a few years the wondrous rampart with its gates of -wrought copper was completed. And she made beautiful buildings in the -city, and palaces of different stones decorated with colours, two -stories and three stories high. For each one she did build -summer-houses, separating the various quarters of the town from each -other by beautiful streets. She built also wondrous baths in the midst -of the city for the use of the people, and divided the water passing -through the town into two parts, one for watering the fragrant orchards -and flower-gardens, and the other for the drinking water of the city -and its surroundings. On the east, north, and south of the city she -built pleasure houses, and planted orchards with leafy trees that bore -diverse kinds of fruit and foliage; she also planted many vines. The -whole city she surrounded with stately ramparts, and caused great -multitudes to dwell therein. - -But concerning the far end of the city, and the miraculous works that -were done there, it surpasseth the power of a man to tell, neither can -they be understood by man. For there, surrounded by fortifications, she -did construct the Royal Palace, in great mystery. For the entrances -were hard, and the passages leading out of it like those of hell. -Concerning the manner of its making we have never read a true -description, neither do we propose to weave it into our history; but we -only say that of all royal works it is, as we have heard, esteemed the -first and greatest. And on the west side of the rock—whereon no man -can now make any impression, even with iron—in this adamantine -substance she constructed many temples, bed-chambers, and -treasure-houses; and great trenches, so that none knoweth for what -manner of things she made these marvellous preparations. And smoothing -the face of the rock as one would smooth wax with a pen, she wrote many -inscriptions thereon; so that even to look at it causeth a man to be -amazed. - - - - - - - -I HAVE A WORD I FAIN WOULD SAY - -By SAYAT NOVA - - -I have a word I fain would say—list patiently, Light of my Eyes; -A ceaseless longing fills my heart thy face to see, Light of my Eyes. -How have I sinned that thou shouldst thus offended be, Light of my Eyes? -The world is sated with the world,—I starve for thee, Light of my Eyes. - -A sea of blood is in my heart, and tears forever fill my eyes; -No salve can heal my wound, the cure in my beloved’s presence lies. -All sick of love I lay, and watched her pathway with my longing eyes; -When I was dead she came; ’twas but the layer-out who heard her sighs. - -Fair springtime now is fully here, the meadows gay with leaf and flower; -The hill-sides strewn with violets, the nightingale sent to the bower. -But why cannot his voice be heard? O thorn-tree, whence thy cruel power? -Thy branches pierced his heart; the rose was mourning left within her tower. - -The scarlet poppy thought to tempt and lure the wandering nightingale, -When he was dreaming of the rose tied round with wisps of basil pale. -None pitied him—the rose was plucked by those who first came to the vale. -Alas, poor nightingale, the hedge has caught and pierced thy body frail! - -God knows my life I count but nought; for thee I’d give it joyfully. -Come, let us taste of love’s delights, let him that listeth envious be. -No wish of thine shall be refused, so but thy face I radiant see. -If immortality thou’dst have, my love shall e’en bring that to thee. - -And if I had a thousand woes no murmur from my lips would rise: -Thou art my Ruler, none beside; no sovereign own I otherwise. -Sayat Nova says, “Heartless one, death is not death for him who dies -So thou but mourn him with thy locks spread over him, Light of my Eyes.” - - - - - - - -THE SONG OF THE PARTRIDGE - -FOLK SONG - - - The sun has touched the mountain’s crest, - The partridge rises from her nest; - And down the hillside tripping fast, - Greets all the flowers as she goes past. - - I breakfast on my roof at morn - When to my ear her voice is borne— - When swinging from the mountain side, - She chirps her song in all her pride. - - Thy nest is dewed with summer showers; - Basil, narcissus, lotus flowers, - Enamel it, and breathe to thee - Perfumes of immortality. - - Soft feathers all thy body deck, - Small is thy beak, and long thy neck. - Thy wings are worked with colours rare, - The dove is not so sweet and fair. - - The little partridge flies aloft - Upon the branch, and warbles soft; - He cheers the world, and heals the smart - When seas of blood well in the heart. - - - - - - - -THE LILY OF SHAVARSHAN - -By LEO ALISHAN - -(1820–1901) - - - Armenian maidens, come and view - In Shavarshan a lily new! - - The radiant type of maidenhood, - Crown of Armenia’s pride! - From the fair brow beneath her veil - The wind-stirred curls float wide - With little steps, like turtle dove, - She walks the dew-bright plain; - Her lips drop honey, and her eyes - Effulgent glances rain. - - The beauty of Armenia, - A sun-like mirror clear, - Our Northern star is bright Santoukhd, - The king’s fair daughter dear. - She has come forth, the graceful bride - On whom the East and West - Desire to look, while fires of love - Consume the gazer’s breast. - - Less fair the bright and morning star, - ’Mid cloudlets small and fine; - Less fair the fruit whose rosy tints - ’Mid apple leaves outshine; - Araxes’ hyacinthine flower - That chains of dew doth wear, - All are less beautiful than she, - With gracious mien and air. - - At sight of her, the snowy peaks - Melt and are flushed with rose; - Trees, flowers bud forth; the nightingales - All sing where’er she goes. - The bell-flowers open myriad eyes - When she comes through the bowers; - Beneath her breath, the vales and hills - Alike are clad in flowers. - - Before her have been bent to earth - Foreheads with diadems; - The valley has become a hill - Of scattered gold and gems. - Where passes by with humble grace - Armenia’s virgin sweet, - Fine sands of pearls come longingly - To spread beneath her feet. - - Full many a monarch’s valiant son - Has left his palace home - In Persia or Albania, - In India or in Rome. - Admiringly they gaze on her, - Exclaiming, “Happy he - Who wins the fair Armenian maid - His bride beloved to be!” - - But palace worthy of Santoukhd - The earth can nowhere show, - And for the arches of her brows - This world is all too low. - - The Sky says, “Let her on my throne - Reign queen o’er every land.” - The Ocean says, “My purple waves - Shall bow to her command.” - - There is One greater than the earth, - More wide than sea-waves run, - Higher and vaster than the heavens, - And brighter than the sun. - There is a formidable King - Whose power no bound has known; - The royal maid Santoukhd shall be - For Him, and Him alone. - Her halls of light are all prepared, - And for a footstool meet - The azure sky adorned with stars - Awaits her dove-like feet. - - The sharp sword glitters in the air, - And swift the red blood flows; - Santoukhd, who was a lily fair, - Falls to the earth, a rose. - The sword flashed once, and aspects three - Were in Santoukhd descried; - Her heart dropped blood, and roses red - Sprang up on every side; - Her eyes were violet chalices, - Sweet e’en while they expire; - Her face, like lilies half unclosed, - But on her lips what fire! - - The heaven and earth shine white and red; - Come forth and gather, maids, - - The rose and lily joined in one, - This peerless flower that fades! - Lay in the tomb that youthful corpse, - With Thaddeus, good and brave. - Sweet maiden of Armenia, - Her sweet soil be thy grave! - Armenian maids, a lily new - Is brought to Shavarshan for you! [7] - - - Translated by Alice Stone Blackwell. - - - - - - - -CRADLE SONG - -By RAPHAEL PATKANIAN - - - Nightingale, oh, leave our garden, - Where soft dews the blossoms steep; - With thy litanies melodious - Come and sing my son to sleep! - Nay, he sleeps not for thy chanting, - And his weeping hath not ceased. - Come not, nightingale! My darling - Does not wish to be a priest. - - O thou thievish, clever jackdaw, - That in coin findest thy joy, - With thy tales of gold and profit - Come and soothe my wailing boy! - Nay, thy chatter does not lull him, - And his crying is not stayed. - Come not, jackdaw! for my darling - Will not choose the merchant’s trade. - - Wild dove, leave the fields and pastures - Where thou grievest all day long; - Come and bring my boy sweet slumber - With thy melancholy song! - Still he weeps. Nay, come not hither, - Plaintive songster, for I see - That he loves not lamentations, - And no mourner will he be. - - Leave thy chase, brave-hearted falcon! - Haply he thy song would hear. - And the boy lay hushed, and slumbered, - With the war-notes in his ear. - - - Translated by Alice Stone Blackwell. - - - - - - - -THE WIND IS HOWLING THROUGH THE WINTER NIGHT - -By AVETIS ISAHAKIAN - - - The wind is howling through the winter night, - Like to a pack of angry wolves that cry. - My hapless willows bend before its might; - Their broken branches in the garden lie. - - Alas, my heart, thy love since childhood’s days - Hath wept; thy dream was understood by none. - Seek not in vain a friend to know thy ways— - The soul is born eternally alone. - - Thou from thy hopeless heart that love shalt cast— - That child of earth, false, illegitimate: - Shalt fling it to the night and wintry blast— - Out in the storm—there let it find its fate. - - There motherless and orphaned let it weep, - And let the wind its sobbings onward bear - Unto some desert place, or stormy deep— - But not where human soul its voice may hear. - - The wind is howling in its agony - All through this snow-bound night, with piercing cry; - Alas, beneath the broken willow tree - My shattered love lies dying—let it die. - - - - - - - -THE ARMENIAN POET’S PRAYER - -By ALEXANDER DZADOURIAN - -(Born 1870) - - - O God, ’tis not for laurel wreaths I pray, - For pompous funeral or jubilee; - Nor yet for fame beyond my life’s decay— - All these my country will accord to me. - - One favour, Lord of Heaven, I implore— - One that my land to me will never give: - Grant me a crust of bread, or else such store - Of grace that I on air may learn to live! - - - - - - - -THE CHRAGAN PALACE - -By THOMAS TERZYAN - -(1842–1909) - - - Have you ever seen that wondrous building, - Whose white shadows in the blue wave sleep? - There Carrara sent vast mounds of marble, - And Propontis, beauty of the deep. - - From the tombs of centuries awaking, - Souls of every clime and every land - Have poured forth their rarest gifts and treasures - Where those shining halls in glory stand. - - Ships that pass before that stately palace, - Gliding by with open sails agleam, - In its shadow pause and gaze, astonished, - Thinking it some Oriental dream. - - New its form, more wondrous than the Gothic, - Than the Doric or Ionic fair; - At command of an Armenian genius [8] - Did the master builder rear it there. - - By the windows, rich with twisted scroll-work, - Rising upward, marble columns shine, - And the sunbeams lose their way there, wandering - Where a myriad ornaments entwine. - - An immortal smile, its bright reflection - In the water of the blue sea lies, - And it shames Granada’s famed Alhambra, - O’er whose beauty wondering bend the skies. - - Oft at midnight, in the pale, faint starlight, - When its airy outline, clear and fair, - On the far horizon is depicted, - With its trees and groves around it there, - - You can fancy that those stones grow living, - And, amid the darkness of the night, - Change to lovely songs, to which the spirit, - Dreaming, listens with a vague delight. - - Have you ever seen that wondrous building - Whose white shadows in the blue wave sleep? - There Carrara sent vast mounds of marble, - And Propontis, beauty of the deep. - - It is not a mass of earthly matter, - Not a work from clay or marble wrought; - From the mind of an Armenian genius - Stands embodied there a noble thought. - - - Translated by Alice Stone Blackwell. - - - - - - - -THE DREAM - -By SMPAD SHAHAZIZ - -(1840–1897) - - - Soft and low a voice breathed o’er me, - Near me did my mother seem; - Flashed a ray of joy before me, - But, alas, it was a dream! - - There the murmuring streamlet flowing - Scattered radiant pearls around, - Pure and clear, like crystal glowing— - But it was a dream, unsound. - - And my mother’s mournful singing - Took me back to childhood’s day, - To my mind her kisses bringing— - ’Twas a dream and passed away! - - To her heart she pressed me yearning, - Wiped her eyes which wet did seem; - And her tears fell on me burning— - Why should it have been a dream? - - - - - - - -THE SORROWS OF ARMENIA - - - In many a distant, unknown land, - My sons belovèd exiled roam, - Servile they kiss the stranger’s hand; - How shall I find and bring them home? - - The ages pass, no tidings come; - My brave ones fall, are lost and gone. - My blood is chilled, my voice is dumb, - And friend or comfort I have none. - - With endless griefs my heart is worn, - Eternal sorrow is my doom; - Far from my sons, despis’d, forlorn, - I must descend the darksome tomb. - - Thou shepherd wandering o’er the hill, - Come weep with me my children lost; - Let mournful strains the valleys fill - For those we loved and valued most. - - Fly, crane, Armenia’s bird, depart; - Tell them I die of grief; and tell - How hope is dead within my heart— - Bear to my sons my last farewell! - - - - - - - -ARTASHES AND SATENIK - -From the History of Armenia, - -by - -MOSES OF KHORENE - - -At this time the Alans united with all the people of the mountain -country, and having taken possession of the half of Georgia, spread -themselves in great multitudes over our land. And Artashes collected a -mighty host together, and there was war between the two great nations. -The Alans retreated somewhat, and crossing over the river Kur they -encamped on its northern bank. And when Artashes arrived, he encamped -on the southern bank, so that the river was between them. But because -the son of the King of the Alans was taken captive by the Armenian -hosts and brought to Artashes, the King of the Alans sought peace, -promising to give to Artashes whatsoever he should ask. And he swore an -eternal peace unto him, so that the sons of the Alans might not be -carried away captive into the land of the Armenians. And when Artashes -would not consent to give back the youth, his sister came to the -river’s bank and stood upon a great rock. And by means of the -interpreters she spoke to the camp of Artashes, saying:—“O brave -Artashes, who hast vanquished the great nation of the Alans, unto thee -I speak. Come, hearken unto the bright-eyed daughter of the Alan King, -and give back the youth. For it is not the way of heroes to destroy -life at the root, nor for the sake of humbling and enslaving a hostage -to establish everlasting enmity between two great nations.” And on -hearing such wise sayings, Artashes went to the bank of the river. And -seeing that the maiden was beautiful, and having heard these words of -wisdom from her, he desired her. And calling Smpad his chamberlain he -told him the wishes of his heart, and commanded that he should obtain -the maiden for him, swearing unto the great Alan nation oaths of peace, -and promising to send the youth back in safety. And this appeared wise -in the eyes of Smpad, and he sent messengers unto the King of the Alans -asking him to give the lady Satenik his daughter as wife unto Artashes. -And the King of the Alans answered, “From whence shall brave Artashes -give thousands upon thousands and tens of thousands upon tens of -thousands unto the Alans in return for the maiden?” - -Concerning this the poets of that land sing in their songs:— - - - “Brave King Artashes - Mounted his fine black charger, - And took the red leathern cord - With the golden ring. - Like a swift-winged eagle - He passed over the river, - And cast the golden ring - Round the waist of the Alan Princess; - Causing much pain - To the tender maiden - As he bore her swiftly - Back to his camp.” - - -Which being interpreted meaneth that he was commanded to give much -gold, leather, and crimson dye in exchange for the maiden. So also they -sing of the wedding:— - - - “It rained showers of gold when Artashes became a bridegroom. - It rained pearls when Satenik became a bride.” - - -For it was the custom of our kings to scatter coins amongst the people -when they arrived at the doors of the temple for their wedding, as also -for the queens to scatter pearls in their bridechamber. - - - - - - - -MY DEATH - -By BEDROS TOURIAN - - - When Death’s pale angel comes to me, - And smiling sweetly on my head, - Bids all my pains and sorrows flee,— - Believe not then that I am dead. - - When my cold limbs they shroud with care, - And on my brow love’s tear-drops shed, - And lay me on my ebon bier,— - Believe not then that I am dead. - - And when the tolling bell shall ring - To my black coffin’s muted tread - —Death’s fiendish laughter, quivering,— - Believe not then that I am dead. - - And when the black-robed priests shall sing, - And prayers and incense round me spread, - With faces dark and sorrowing— - Believe not still that I am dead. - - When on my tomb they heap the clay, - And leave me in my lonely bed, - And loved ones turn with sobs away— - Then never think that I am dead. - - But if my grave neglected lie, - My memory too be gone and fled, - And dear ones pass unheeding by, - Ah, then believe that I am dead! - - - - - - - -THE EAGLE’S LOVE - -By SHUSHANIK GOURGHINIAN - -(Born 1876) - - - An eagle sat upon the fell,— - He sat and sang alone. - A pretty maid passed in the dell, - He saw—his heart was won. - - “Ah, lovely maid, enchanting maid, - Alas, thou canst not fly! - Down in the vale thou soon shalt fade, - And like a floweret die. - - “I’d make thee queen, if thou could’st fly, - Of all my mountains steep; - At night I’d sing thy lullaby, - And in my wings thou’dst sleep. - - “Those eyes are like black night to me, - That smile like sunshine bright; - And heaven itself would quickly be - Subdued before thy might. - - “Good Lord, canst thou not fly at all? - Who made thee without wings? - Art thou content down there to crawl - With loathsome creeping things?” - - Thus on his rock the eagle proud - Sat singing, then he sailed - O’er hill and valley, and aloud - The maiden’s fate bewailed. - - - - - - - -CONCERNING THE ROSE AND THE NIGHTINGALE - -By GRIGORIS OF AGHTAMAR - -(Fifteenth Century) - - - The Rose was gone. When to the empty tent - The Nightingale returned, his heart was torn. - He filled the night with mourning and lament, - And wandered through the darkness lone and lorn. - - “To thee I speak, O Garden, answer me, - Why did’st thou not preserve my precious Rose, - Whose perfume breathed of immortality, - Whose colour made her queen of all that grows? - - “May’st thou become a desert parched and dry, - And may the flowers that grow within thee fade; - May thy protecting walls in ruin lie— - By ruthless feet thy soil in waste be laid. - - “Ye trees, now cast away your verdant leaves, - And rushing torrents, your swift courses stay. - Reckless I speak, as one who sorely grieves, - For they have taken my sweet love away. - - “My Rose is gone and I am desolate. - Light of my eyes was she, now darkness reigns. - Both day and night I weep disconsolate. - My reason leaves me, and my spirit wanes. - - “Was it the gardener took her away - And grieved my soul? If never more again - I should behold her face, what shall I say? - Instead of joy, I’ll sing of grief and pain. - - “Or else I fear the mighty wind arose, - And blasted with its strength her petals frail; - Or did the scorching sunbeams burn my Rose - Within her leaves, and turn her beauty pale?... - - “I think perhaps the flowers were wroth with me - And hid her from my sight; I’ll go to them. - Or else the clouds in cruel enmity - Sent hailstones down that broke her from the stem!” - - Then all the flowers together made reply, - “We have no tidings of the Rose at all, - She left us suddenly, we know not why. - We have no tidings of the Rose at all.” - - The Nightingale then rose into the air, - “I’ll ask the birds in friendly wise,” he said, - “If they can tell me why she went, and where; - If not, a sea of tears my eyes shall shed. - - “Birds, do you know what came to pass to-day? - The lovely Rose was stolen from her home. - Know you perchance who carried her away? - Have you seen aught, or heard where she doth roam?” - - They said, “The Lord Creator knoweth all; - No secrets of the heart from Him are hid. - On Him as witness reverently we call— - We have not seen or touched her—God forbid!” - - The Nightingale then sadly made reply, - “What will become of me? From night to morn - I have no rest, and I shall surely die, - Parted from her, with ceaseless longings worn. - - “If in her stead the world to me were given - I would esteem it but a paltry thing; - If choirs of minstrels sang the songs of heaven, - To me their songs as discords harsh would ring. - - “Oh, in what corner have they buried thee? - How shall I e’er forget thy tenderness? - My heart and soul are wounded grievously, - All flowers are dead—this place a wilderness. - - “The Psalmist’s words are now fulfilled in me; - Mournful I go, and like a pelican - About the wilderness roam hopelessly, - Or like an owl the sandy desert scan.” - - The gardener then with soothing words drew near, - “Weep not, she will return, O Nightingale. - The Violet, her forerunner, is here, - And brings thee messages and words of hail.” - - Then he rejoiced and blessed the gardener, - “May’st thou in peace upon this earth abide, - Thy garden flourish with its bright allure, - Its circling walls renew their former pride. - - “May all thy plants grow verdant once again, - And gently sway about upon the breeze, - May they receive fresh brightness from the rain, - And waft sweet perfume human hearts to please!” - - -Then did the Nightingale write a letter unto the Rose who collected all -the Flowers and caused it to be read in their presence. - - - They took the letter to the Rose’s Court, - Where Hazrevart, her minister austere, - Stood on his feet with stately mien and port - And read it out for all the flowers to hear:— - - “I greet thee, O beloved of my heart, - And fain would hear concerning this thy rape. - I trust through God’s protecting care thou art - Perfect in health, as faultless in thy shape. - - “For which with outstretched hands I ever pray, - And beg that length of days be granted thee; - All flowers bend to thee and homage pay, - Thou rulest them in all thy majesty. - - “Thy hue is beautiful, thy perfume sweet, - Each morn thou shinest brighter than the sun. - Happy the day when thee once more I meet,— - For thou art full of grace, my spotless one. - - “Apart from thee, in humble reverence, - I worship thee, and pray for thy return. - I have no sleep at night for this suspense, - Now Spring is here I ever weep and mourn. - - “The icy winter passed—I lived it through, - Still suffering many things because of thee; - They mocked at me, and said thou wast not true— - My Rose had no more love or care for me.” - - Then sent the Rose unto the Nightingale, - And said: “Behold, I send him many flowers. - And they shall cover mountain, hill, and dale, - My Nightingale shall dwell within those bowers. - - “I cannot there return immediately; - A little he must wait, in patient wise: - But if his love is perfectly with me, - Tell him to look for it in Paradise.” - - The Nightingale rejoiced on hearing this - And said: “The beauteous Rose shall then return! - What tidings wonderful of untold bliss! - For all the world her ransom could not earn.” - - And when the sun into the Ram had passed, - The thunder rolled, the storm-clouds broke in showers; - Myriads of blossoms o’er the earth were cast:— - He sought the Rose—she was not of those flowers. - - Until one morn he saw her foliage green, - Lovely and fresh as it had been before: - The Rose was hidden in a silken screen - And every flower worshipped her once more. - - The Nightingale beheld and said: “Thank Heaven! - Blessing and praise from every mouth be breathed; - To Heaven’s King be endless glory given— - For in her bud I saw the Rose ensheathed!” - - Foolish Aghtamartzi, beware this bane, - For this world’s love is ever linked with thorn; - A little while ’tis gladness, then ’tis pain— - What boots the joy which needs must make us mourn? - - - - - - - -THE ARRIVAL OF THE CRUSADERS - -By SAINT NERSES SHNORHALI - -(1102–1173) - - - Once more God hither moves their course; - With countless infantry and horse, - As swell the waves towards the strand, - Fierce and tempestuous, they land. - Like sands that by the ocean lie, - Or like the stars that strew the sky, - They fill the earth where’er they go - And whiten it as wool or snow. - Their voice is like the northern wind, - Driving the storm-cloud from behind. - They clear the land from end to end, - The unbelievers forth they send, - Redeeming from such hopeless plight - All Christians held within their might. - Now in the churches cold and dark, - Once more shall burn the taper’s spark; - And you, my sons, late forced to flee - To distant lands, afar from me, - Shall now return in chariots fair - Drawn by brave steeds with trappings rare. - And I shall lift mine eyes above - Beholding near me those I love. - My arms about you I shall fold, - Rejoicing with a joy untold; - And my black robes aside will lay - To dress in greens and crimsons gay. - - - - - - - -LIKE AN OCEAN IS THIS WORLD - -By HOVHANNES ERZINGATZI - -(Born 1260) - - - Like an ocean is this world; - None undrenched may cross that ocean. - My ship too its sails unfurled, - Ere I knew it was in motion. - - Now we draw towards the land, - And I fear the sea-board yonder:— - Lest the rocks upon the strand - Break and tear our planks asunder. - - I will pray God that He raise - From the shore a breeze to meet us,— - To disperse this gloomy haze, - That a happy land may greet us. - - - - - - - -THE ROCK - -By HOVHANNES HOVHANNESSIAN - - - Above the waters, like a hoary giant, - The rock stands up, majestic and defiant. - The little waves, as to and fro they move, - Greet him with kisses and with looks of love. - - The wavelets of the river laugh and dance, - As in their arms the mirrored sunbeams glance; - And with their smiles of winning, child-like grace, - They woo the rock, and murmur in his face: - - “O Aged-One, why art thou never glad? - The lines that seam thy countenance are sad. - The world is ever changing; thou alone - Art still the same with thy dark face of stone. - - “Free children of the mountains ever free, - We bring rich gifts of jewels unto thee; - Scent thee with perfumes of the mountain rose— - Heaven’s daughter fair, that on our margin grows. - - “Sweet strains of gentle melody we breathe, - And call the fishes from our depths beneath; - And gilded with the spring-tide’s golden rays, - We make thee on our merry revels gaze. - - “And songs of love we warble in thine ear, - From morning dawn until the stars appear:— - We fondle thee, and on thine aged breast - Our passions lull, and bid them sink to rest.” - - The wavelets hasten, moving to and fro, - The rock still sorrows o’er his ancient woe; - The wavelets play, and laughing onward press— - The rock remains, gloomy and motionless. - - - - - - - -THE CRANE - -By HOVHANNES TOUMANIAN - -(Born 1869) - - - The Crane has lost his way across the heaven, - From yonder stormy cloud I hear him cry, - A traveller o’er an unknown pathway driven, - In a cold world unheeded he doth fly. - - Ah, whither leads this pathway long and dark, - My God, where ends it, thus with fears obsessed? - When shall night end this day’s last glimmering spark? - Where shall my weary feet to-night find rest? - - Farewell, belovèd bird, where’er thou roam - Spring shall return and bring thee back once more, - With thy sweet mate and young ones, to thy home— - Thy last year’s nest upon the sycamore. - - But I am exiled from my ruined nest, - And roam with faltering steps from hill to hill, - Like to the fowls of heaven in my unrest - Envying the boulders motionless and still. - - Each boulder unassailed stands in its place, - But I from mine must wander tempest tossed— - And every bird its homeward way can trace, - But I must roam in darkness, lone and lost. - - Ah, whither leads this pathway long and dark, - My God, where ends it, thus with fears obsessed? - When shall night end this day’s last glimmering spark? - Where shall my weary feet to-night find rest? - - - - - - - -THE HAWK AND THE DOVE - -FOLK SONG - - - The Hawk said to the Dove, “My dear, - Why dost thou shed tear after tear, - That go to swell the streamlet clear?” - The Dove said to the Hawk, “I fear - That spring is gone and autumn’s here; - The rills have ceased their glad career, - The leaves and flowers are dead and sere, - The partridges no more we hear; - So I shall weep in my despair, - And from my eyes shed many a tear:— - How shall I find my babies’ fare?” - He said, “Weep not this autumn drear, - For spring will come another year, - And sunshine bring the world its cheer, - And Hope shall for the poor appear. - Upon my pinions thee I’ll bear - Where those tall trees their summit rear, - And high upon those mountains bare - I’ll build a nest with tender care, - I’ll make for thee a dwelling there,— - A hearth laid in that rocky lair, - With chimney open to the air; - The smoke shall to the clouds repair— - And to the South Wind fly our care!” - Autumn gave place to springtime fair, - The rills were loosed on their career - And went to swell the streamlet clear, - Like blood-drops from the boulders bare. - Bright yellow flowers the hills did wear, - And violets, with perfume rare, - And flowers of countless colours fair; - And birds with music filled the air, - And bleating lambs called everywhere - To God for all His love and care. - - - - - - - -ARTAVASD - -From the History of Armenia, by - -MOSES OF KHORENE - - -After the death of Artashes his son Artavasd reigned, and he drove all -his brothers and sisters to the lands of Aghyovd and Arberan, that they -might not live in Aïrarat, on the territory of the King. And when he -had reigned but a little while, as he was riding over the bridge of -Artashat to hunt deer and wild asses on the banks of the Ghin, he was -seized by some visionary terror and lost his reason. And urging his -horse down a steep bank he fell into a chasm, wherein he sank and -disappeared. - -The singers of Ghogtan tell concerning him, that when his father was -dying many people killed themselves according to the customs of the -heathen; and they say that Artavasd was wroth, and said unto his -father: - - - “Now that thou art gone - And hast taken with thee the whole land, - How shall I reign over the ruins?” - - -Therefore Artashes cursed him, and said: - - - “When thou ridest forth to hunt - Over the free heights of Ararat, - The Strong Ones shall have thee, - And shall take thee up - On to the free heights of Ararat. - There shalt thou abide, - And never more see the light.” - - -Old women also tell of him how that he is confined in a cavern and -bound with iron chains. And his two dogs do daily try to gnaw through -the chains to set him free, that he may come and put an end to the -world; but at the sound of the hammers striking on the anvil, the -chains are strengthened. So also even in our own times many blacksmiths -do keep up the tradition and strike the anvil three or four times on a -Monday, to strengthen, as they say, the chains of Artavasd. But the -truth concerning him is as we have declared above. - -Others say that at his birth the women of the house of Ahasuerus did -try to bewitch him, and therefore Artashes tormented them much; and -these same singers say also that the Children of the Dragons stole the -infant Artavasd and put a devil in his place. But unto us it seemeth -that being full of wickedness from his very birth, so also did he end. - - - - - - - -CHARM VERSES [9] - -FOLK SONGS - - - - Snowless hang the clouds to-night, - Through the darkness comes no light; - While my lover, far away, - Line or letter will not write. - - * * * * * - - Snowless hang the clouds to-night, - Through the darkness comes no light; - On this lonely pillow now, - Never more shall sleep alight. - - * * * * * - - Like a star whose brightness grows - On the earth my beauty shows; - Thou shalt long for yet, and seek - My dark eyes and arching brows. - - * * * * * - - I beheld a dream last night, - Saw these haystacks all alight;— - They have borne thy love away,— - Wilt not come and for her fight? - - * * * * * - - Soft winds move beneath the trees - And thy locks wave in the breeze. - Whilst thou roamest hill and field - Sleep my eyelids ever flees. - - * * * * * - - Eden’s smile my vineyard wore, - Flowers bloomed, a goodly store; - Handsome youth and ugly maid— - This was never seen before! - - * * * * * - - For the mountain air I’d die, - For his form so fair I’d die, - Now he’s far off, for the eyes - That have seen him there I’d die. - - * * * * * - - ’Tis a moonlight night to-night, - Eyes so black and cheeks so bright. - Give me but the one I love— - Peace to you then, and good-night! - - * * * * * - - On my finger is a ring, - Crimson rubies, glistening. - He that parts me from my love,— - Satan to his soul shall cling. - - * * * * * - - Long and lone this night to me - Passing slow and wearily; - Passing full of sighs and tears— - Love, what doth it bring to thee? - - * * * * * - - Round the moon a halo grew, - In its depths the storm-cloud drew; - Go and ask them who it was - Turned from me my lover true. - - * * * * * - - Dainty is the frock I wear, - Bright the gauze upon my hair: - Since my love is coy with me, - I’ll be coy, and will not care! - - - - - - - -THE TEARS OF ARAXES - -By RAPHAEL PATKANIAN - - - I walk by Mother Arax - With faltering steps and slow, - And memories of past ages - Seek in the waters’ flow. - - But they run dark and turbid, - And beat upon the shore - In grief and bitter sorrow, - Lamenting evermore. - - “Araxes! with the fishes - Why dost not dance in glee? - The sea is still far distant, - Yet thou art sad, like me. - - “From thy proud eyes, O Mother, - Why do the tears downpour? - Why dost thou haste so swiftly - Past thy familiar shore? - - “Make not thy current turbid; - Flow calm and joyously. - Thy youth is short, fair river; - Thou soon wilt reach the sea. - - “Let sweet rose-hedges brighten - Thy hospitable shore, - And nightingales among them - Till morn their music pour. - - “Let ever-verdant willows - Lave in thy waves their feet, - And with their bending branches - Refresh the noonday heat. - - “Let shepherds on thy margin - Walk singing, without fear; - Let lambs and kids seek freely - Thy waters cool and clear.” - - Araxes swelled her current, - Tossed high her foaming tide, - And in a voice of thunder - Thus from her depths replied:— - - “Rash, thoughtless youth, why com’st thou - My age-long sleep to break, - And memories of my myriad griefs - Within my breast to wake? - - “When hast thou seen a widow, - After her true-love died, - From head to foot resplendent - With ornaments of pride? - - “For whom should I adorn me? - Whose eyes shall I delight? - The stranger hordes that tread my banks - Are hateful in my sight. - - “My kindred stream, impetuous Kur, - Is widowed, like to me, - But bows beneath the tyrant’s yoke, - And wears it slavishly. - - “But I, who am Armenian, - My own Armenians know; - I want no stranger bridegroom; - A widowed stream I flow. - - “Once I, too, moved in splendour, - Adorned as is a bride - With myriad precious jewels, - My smiling banks beside. - - “My waves were pure and limpid, - And curled in rippling play; - The morning star within them - Was mirrored till the day. - - “What from that time remaineth? - All, all has passed away. - Which of my prosperous cities - Stands near my waves to-day? - - “Mount Ararat doth pour me, - As with a mother’s care, - From out her sacred bosom - Pure water, cool and fair. - - “Shall I her holy bounty - To hated aliens fling? - Shall strangers’ fields be watered - From good Saint Jacob’s spring? - - “For filthy Turk or Persian - Shall I my waters pour, - That they may heathen rites perform - Upon my very shore. - - “While my own sons, defenceless, - Are exiled from their home, - And, faint with thirst and hunger, - In distant countries roam? - - “My own Armenian nation - Is banished far away; - A godless, barbarous people - Dwells on my banks to-day. - - “Shall I my hospitable shores - Adorn in festive guise - For them, or gladden with fair looks - Their wild and evil eyes? - - “Still, while my sons are exiled, - Shall I be sad, as now. - This is my heart’s deep utterance, - My true and holy vow.” - - No more spake Mother Arax; - She foamed up mightily, - And, coiling like a serpent, - Wound sorrowing toward the sea. - - - Translated by Alice Stone Blackwell. - - - - - - - -THE EVE OF ASCENSION DAY [10] - -By DERENIK DEMIRJIAN - - - Night with her ebon hair and starry crown - Upon the hills came down. - Her loosened tresses floated all unbound - And veiled her form around. - - The fountain murmured like an endless tale - On her entrancing lips; and it would seem - As if God spake within the silent vale, - And sleeping Earth were listening, in a dream. - - Like blackened clouds, in Jorokh’s stream arise - Those rocks that through her savage waters pierce; - Like dragons twain, they glare with threatening eyes, - Facing each other, arrogant and fierce. - - Wild Jorokh through that fearsome valley flows— - Flows like a caravan that onward sweeps; - First roaring loud, then hushed into repose, - Groping its way through darkness, on it creeps. - - The sounds of Earth are melted into rest, - While strikes the hour of expectation deep; - Earth’s waters heave, against each other pressed, - And breathless listening, all their vigils keep. - - Decked out like lovely brides stand all the flowers; - With nuptial joy the forests trembling wait: - Until Heaven’s blessing fall in sacred showers, - And whispering softly, each may clasp its mate. - - - - - - - -“THY VOICE IS SWEET” - -By SAYAT NOVA - - - Thy voice is soft, thy speech all sweetness flows; - May he protect who hath thy heart, my love! - Thy waist is the gazelle’s, thy hue the rose, - Brocade from Franguistan thou art, my love! - - If I compare thee to brocade, ‘twill fray; - If to a plane-tree, ‘twill be felled one day; - All girls are likened to gazelles thou’lt say— - How then shall I describe thee truly, love? - - The violet is wild, and low of birth; - Rubies are stones, for all their priceless worth: - The moon itself is made of rocks and earth— - All flame, thou shinest like the sun, my love. - - Thy door I seek as pilgrims seek a shrine: - Thine eyes are roses, new-blown eglantine; - Thy tongue a pen, thy hands like paper fine, - A flower fresh from the sea thou art, my love! - - Within my soul thy hand has placed love’s seed; - Thy wiles and coyness make my heart to bleed: - Thy Sayat Nova thou hast slain indeed, - Thine evil fate he bears for thee, my love. - - - - - - - -CHRIST AND ABGARUS - -From the History of Armenia, by - -MOSES OF KHORENE - - -Abgar the son of Arsham began to reign in the twentieth year of the -reign of Arshavr King of Persia. This Abgar was called the Great Man -because of his exceeding meekness and wisdom. In the third year of his -reign the whole of Armenia fell under the jurisdiction of Rome.... -Therefore the Romans sent commissioners unto the land of Armenia who -brought the image of Cæsar and placed it in all the temples. - -At this time was born our Saviour Jesus Christ, the Son of God. - -And there was a dispute between Abgar and Herod. For Herod commanded -that his image also should be placed in the temples of Armenia, with -that of Cæsar; to which Abgar not acceding, the anger of Herod was -kindled against him. And he sent his brother’s son with a great army -against him. And Abgar met and fought him; and he was slain in the -battle and his army fled. - -Soon after these things Augustus died, and Tiberius reigned over the -Roman Empire; and Germanicus sent messengers from Rome unto Arshavr and -Abgar concerning the battle in which Herod’s brother’s son was -slain. Whereupon Abgar was displeased, and thought to prepare for -revolt and war. Then did he build the city of Edessa wherein to keep -the hosts of Armenia, and removed thither his court from Mdzpin, with -all his idols: Nebog, Bel, Batnikol, and Tarata; also with the Royal -Palace he removed the books of the schools belonging to the temples. - -But strife had arisen between his kinsmen of the reigning house of -Persia, and Abgar collected his armies and went to reconcile and pacify -them. And having settled their disputes he returned home; not sound in -his body, but tormented with a painful disease. - -At that time Marinus was governor over Phœnicia, Palestine, Assyria, -and Mesopotamia. And Abgarus sent two of his notables unto him to show -him the treaty of peace between Arshavr and his brother (for the Romans -suspected that he had been to Persia to collect armies against them). -And Marinus received them with peace and great honour, sending word -unto Abgarus, “Fear nothing, only hasten to raise all the taxes.” - -And on their return the messengers went up to Jerusalem to see our -Saviour Christ, having heard of His wonderful deeds. - -And when they had seen Him with their own eyes they returned and told -Abgar; at which the king marvelled, and believed Him to be the very Son -of God. And because His body was tormented with a painful disease -contracted in the land of Persia seven years before, and he was not -able to find any cure by men, he sent unto Him a letter asking Him to -come and heal him of his disease. - - - -The Letter of Abgarus to our Saviour Jesus Christ. - -“Abgarus, a prince of the world, unto Jesus, the Saviour and -Benefactor, Who hast appeared in the City of Jerusalem, greetings. - -“I have heard of Thee and of the healings wrought by Thy hands, -without drugs and without roots; for it is said that Thou givest sight -to the blind, Thou makest the lame to walk, and Thou cleansest the -lepers; Thou curest those who have been long tormented by diseases, and -raisest even the dead. And when I heard all this concerning Thee I -thought that either Thou art God come down from Heaven that workest -these things, or the Son of God. I have written unto Thee that Thou -shouldest trouble Thyself to come unto me, and heal me of my disease. I -have heard also that the Jews murmur against Thee, and think to torture -Thee. My city is a small one, but it is beautiful, and it is sufficient -for us twain.” - - - -And taking the letter they found Him in Jerusalem. And unto this the -gospel beareth witness, saying: “There were some amongst the heathen -that came up to Him.” But our Saviour did not undertake to come at -the time when they called Him, but made Abgarus worthy of a letter -thus. - - -The Answer to the Letter of Abgarus, written at the command of our -Saviour by the Apostle Thomas. - -“Blessed is he who believeth on Me though he hath not seen Me. For it -is written concerning Me thus: ‘They that have seen Me believed not -on Me, but they that have not seen Me shall believe and live.’ And -concerning that which thou hast written unto Me to come down unto thee, -it is needful that I fulfil all that for which I was sent; and when I -have fulfilled it I will ascend unto Him that sent Me. And after My -ascension I will send one of My disciples, who shall heal thee of thy -disease, and give Life unto thee and unto all them that are with -thee.” - - - -This letter did Anan the messenger bring unto Abgarus, with the Image -of the Saviour, which remaineth in the city of Edessa until this day. - - - - - - - -ARAXES CAME DEVOURINGLY - -By HOVHANNES HOVHANNESSIAN - - - Araxes came devouringly, - Swept o’er her boulders scouringly— - Where shall I lay my aching head - Bowed down with grief o’erpoweringly? - - Oh my Araxes, flow serene;— - Tell me, hast thou my sweet love seen? - My heart’s desire is unfulfilled;— - Arax, hast thou more happy been? - - Mount Ararat with clouds is veiled, - My love is lost, my hope has failed. - For pity’s sake an answer give - To my sad heart with grief assailed. - - I sob and weep the livelong night; - Till dawn I watch—I watch and write; - Arax, ere sunrise gild thy waves - To thee I bring my spirit’s blight. - - Upon the rocks the sunbeams dart, - Red flames devour my mourning heart; - Those eyes and brows have left with me - A sorrow which shall ne’er depart. - - - - - - - -THE PARROT’S SONG - -By RAFFI - -(1837–1888) - - - With nuts and sweets and dainty fare, - My lady feeds me oft. - She decks my cage with tender care, - And hands so white and soft. - - But not a moment’s joy can give - This pampering care to me, - Since as a prisoner here I live, - In gilded misery. - - - - - - - -EARTH AND SKY - -By HOVHANNES TOUMANIAN - - - The Sky bent down his piercing gaze one day - On Mother Earth, that far beneath him lay. - And as he looked on mountain, sea, and grove, - On hill and dale, he burnt with thoughts of love. - - Earth lying numbed and frozen ‘neath the snow, - Sudden awoke to springtime’s ardent glow, - And flames of fire her beating heart consumed, - While myriad flowers the air around perfumed. - - And thus they loved, though never side by side, - Though Nature willed they should be parted wide— - The Earth and Sky. - - But when has love accepted with content - An obstacle? When o’er the earth steals night, - The starry Sky, his vision downward bent, - Opens his thousand eyes of shining light, - And gazes on his love in worship still, - Gazes till dawn, and cannot take his fill. - - And as he gazes, all his starry eyes - Are strewn into Earth’s breast of waters blue, - Which foam, and heave, and swell, and strive to rise, - Longing to reach and join her lover true. - - He, more and more inflamed by passion’s fire, - In all the splendours of the night arrayed, - Pours in her ear his longing and desire, - And shows her all his pomp and pride displayed; - Towards her turning - And ever yearning. - - But when he finds his love is out of reach - He turns away, nor utters sound nor speech; - And in the dark the tears that dim his sight - Fall on earth’s cheeks in showers of dewdrops bright,— - Dewdrops of pearl—the tears that heaven weeps, - And then Earth’s bosom swells. Her thousand deeps, - Her boundless oceans, rise once more to meet - The far-off loved one; and her mountain peaks - Like myriad lips rise up the clouds to greet,— - To kiss their gloomy forms, and sullen cheeks. - - And love torments her with its ceaseless fire. - Her waters foam, and writhe, and are convulsed, - Yet never may they reach their heart’s desire,— - Restlessly sobbing, ever more repulsed. - - And from her gloomy throne, - Behind the clouds, alone, - The moon beheld it with her sleepless eye. - And told the Poet how she did espy - That in the darkness of the silent night - Earth heaved her bosom up to Heaven above; - And that the sky smiled on her with delight, - As they exchanged the secret kiss of love; - And for each other sweetest songs they sing - And they embrace each other and caress, - Like living souls, each other gladdening. - - Then on the Poet fell a deep distress, - A jealous sorrow—for he fain would, too, - Possess a love as noble and as true. - - - - - - - -O’ER THE MOUNTAINS HIGH HE WENT - -FOLK SONG - - - O’er the mountains high he went, - Love, love! - In the meadows above - I seek for my love. - With a weary sigh he went. - Love, love! - To fight thou art gone - While I stay here alone. - - Neither quail nor partridge stirred. - Love, love! - In the meadows above - I look for my love - And he left without a word. - Love, love! - To fight thou art gone - While I stay here alone. - - Like a flower’s fragrance sweet - He came past, and vanished fleet. - I beheld him and I loved— - But we never more shall meet. - - When my lover rode away - Not a farewell did I say; - None there is to help him now— - Sourb Carapet, [11] bless his way! - - - - - - - -COMPLAINTS - -By BEDROS TOURIAN - - - Farewell, thou Sun, and Thou, O Power Divine, - That far above my spirit dimly shine. - I go to add another star to heaven:— - For what are stars, but anguished curses, riven - From innocent and hapless souls, that fly - To burn the brow of Heaven? and they supply - Fresh armaments, and jewels fiery red, - To God, the source of lightning flashes dread! - - Alas, what do I say? Send forth thy fires, - O God! Consume this brain that thus aspires - To soar, and dares to pierce the depths of heaven; - And e’en to climb unto the stars has striven! - - Creator of our trembling beings, hail! - Of light and youth, of age when forces fail; - Thou that the roses from my brow hast wrenched, - Hast stilled my trembling lips, my longings quenched; - Mist to mine eyes hast given, sobs to my breath:— - Yet thou hast sworn to smile on me in death! - Ah, surely thou hast kept for me a life - Of fragrance, light, and prayer beyond this strife! - But if my latest breath must perish here - All silently, in this dark atmosphere— - From now a flash of lightning I would be, - Coiled round thy name, and, murmuring ceaselessly, - A curse I would become to pierce Thy side— - God, the Arch Enemy, I would deride! - - Ah me, I tremble, and am pale as death. - My brain seethes like a hell; a sobbing breath - I am amongst the mournful cypress trees, - An autumn leaf soon wafted by the breeze! - - Oh, I would live!—give me of life one spark! - To dream—and then embrace the grave so dark? - My God, how black is this decree of doom - Writ in the lees of dread sepulchral gloom! - Oh, give my soul one drop of living fire— - To love—and live for ever I desire! - Ye stars of heaven, into my spirit fall, - There live, and hear your hapless lover call! - - To my pale brow the springtime brings no rose. - No smile for me in this world’s sunbeams glows. - Night is my coffin, stars for lights flame round. - The moon all weeping seeks my funeral mound. - There are some men for whom no mourners sigh— - It was for them He placed that moon on high; - And he that to death’s portals draweth near - First life would have—and then a mourner’s tear. - - In vain the stars of heaven spelt “Love” for me - And nightingales explained its mystery. - In vain of Love I learnt to know the truth, - And crystal waves reflected back my youth. - In vain the forest silent lay around— - The secret leaves gave forth no breath or sound; - They would not break upon my reverie— - They let me dream of Love eternally. - All, all in vain I saw the flowers of spring - Their incense to my dreams’ fair altar bring; - With their delights they all have mocked at me— - And all the world is but God’s mockery! - - - - - - - -A DAY AFTER - -By BEDROS TOURIAN - - - Slumbering darkly yesterday, - As in deathly sweats I lay, - And two roses fiery red - On my faded cheeks were spread— - On my brow perchance a ray - Of Death’s pallor trembling lay. - And I prayed and longed for death. - Then I heard a sobbing breath.... - I unclosed my weary eyes - And beheld my mother’s tears— - Saw those priceless pearls arise, - Tokens of her love, her fears. - In her heart what grief she bore! - And I was that anguish sore. - Ah, I raged tempestuously, - That black torrent outward leapt [12]:— - God of mercy, pardon me, - For the tears my mother wept! - - - - - - - -WITHOUT THEE WHAT ARE SONG AND DANCE TO ME? - -By SAYAT NOVA - - - Without thee what are song and dance to me? - The castagnettes I throw down wearily. - My heart and thoughts are ever filled with thee, - So rhymes and verses leave me, one by one. - - How can one bandage serve for gashes twain? - How on two masters wait a single swain? - Would not one gardener tend two groves in vain? - For he must graft the saplings one by one. - - Well said our fathers, speaking of such woes, - “I made a garden, others plucked the rose. - Theirs was the sweetness, mine the thorny close.” - In sooth these things befell me one by one! - - Without thee what are riches unto me? - What worth could I in silks or cashmeres see? - Arrayed in rags and sackcloth I would be, - Wandering around the convents, one by one, - - To meet perchance with some one, who might tell, - My fair one, how to free me from thy spell; - For Sayat Nova’s torments far excel - The Seven Wise Men’s complaints told one by one! - - - - - - - -THE LAKE OF VAN - -By RAFFI - - - Unutterable silence here is spread - On every hand, and Nature might be dead. - A lonely exile, here I sit and weep, - And far above, bright Moon, I see thee sweep. - - From Earth’s creation till the skies shall parch - And she dissolve, thou circlest Heaven’s high arch: - Saw’st thou the laurels on Armenia’s brow? - And dost behold her hopeless sorrows now? - - Mournful as I! I wonder dost thou see - How she is ground by heels of tyranny! - And do thine eyes with bitter tear-drops smart - When barbèd arrows pierce her through the heart - - Thy heart is stone, thy pity stark and cold, - For fields of innocent blood thou dost behold - Without a word, and o’er Armenia’s land - Thy nightly compass of the dome hast spanned - With all the brightness that was thine of old. - - O Lake, make answer! Why be silent more? - Wilt not lament with one whose heart is sore? - And you, ye Zephyrs, hurl the waters high - That I may feed them from a mourner’s eye! - - A garden once, luxuriantly fair, - Now is Armenia choked with thorn and tare: - Thou who hast seen her fortunes wax and wane, - Tell me, I pray thee! Must she thus remain? - - Must this unhappy nation ever be - By foreign princes held in slavery? - Is the Armenian and his stricken race - Counted unworthy in God’s judgment-place? - - Comes there a day, comes there a season that - Shall hail a flag on topmost Ararat, - Calling Armenians, wheresoe’er they roam, - To seek once more their loved and beauteous home? - - Hard tho’ it be, O heavenly Ruler, raise - Armenia’s spirit, and her heart’s dark ways - Light with Thy knowledge: understanding so - The mystery of life, her works shall show - That all she does is ordered to Thy praise. - - Then suddenly the surface of the lake - Grew luminous, and from its depths did break - A lovely maid that bore a lantern and - A lyre of shining ivory in her hand. - Was she an Angel in a strange disguise? - Was she a Houri fled from Paradise? - Nay, rather was she of the form and hue - Of the Armenian Muses! - “Tell me true, - O Muse,” I cried, “our people’s destiny! - Speak of the Now and of the Yet-to-be!” - - Then the sweet heavenly Spirit made reply, - “Wipe, O sad youth, the salt tears from thine eye! - I bring glad tidings: better days shall break, - New days of joy, that carry in their wake - The reign of God, Whose will is free and just: - A Golden Age again shall gild the dust! - - “Armenia’s Muses shall awake anew, - And her Parnassus bloom with vernal hue, - And the bright car Apollo whirls on high - Shall sweep the shadows from her clouded sky. - - “For many a day, like thee, we mourned aloud - While the thick darkness wrapped her in its shroud: - Now, O belovèd, may the weeping cease,— - To us has come the olive branch of peace! - - “Cleanse from thy lute the rust that soils its string; - Hasten thee back, and, as thou goest, sing - Such joyful lays as yet may re-inspire - Hearts that are dead with new and tameless fire. - His Will is done; the Time is here; the Day - Dawns; and the Morning Star, so God doth say, - Shall be thy sign.” - Then darkness fell again; - The vision fled; but long there did remain - An echo of the thrilling voice, that blended - With the wild waves whose depths she had descended; - And flowery perfumes filled the air like rain. - - O message dear, and sweet prophetic strain! - What happiness is come to us,—but Oh! - Beautiful Muse, yet one thing would we know— - Can a dead corpse rise up and live again? - - - Translated by G. M. Green. - - - - - - - -SPRING - -By MUGGURDICH BESHIGTASHLIAN - -(1829–1868) - - - O little breeze, how fresh and sweet - Thou blowest in the morning air! - Upon the flowers caressingly, - And on the gentle maiden’s hair. - But not my country’s breath thou art: - Blow elsewhere, come not near my heart! - - O little bird among the trees, - The sweetness of thy joyful voice - Entrances all the Hours of Love, - And makes the listening woods rejoice. - But not my country’s bird thou art: - Sing elsewhere, come not near my heart! - - How peacefully thou murmurest, - O gentle, limpid little brook; - Within thy mirror crystal-bright - The rose and maiden bend to look. - But not my country’s brook thou art: - Flow elsewhere—come not near my heart! - - Although Armenia’s breeze and bird - Above a land of ruins fly; - Although through mourning cypress groves - Armenia’s turbid stream flows by,— - They are the sighing of her heart, - And never shall from mine depart! - - - - - - - -THE FOX - -FOLK SONG - - - The fox ran up into the mill, - He raised his paws, and danced his fill. - Brave Master Fox, ’tis but your due, - In all the world there’s none like you! - - A peck of corn he ground that day, - Which on his back he bore away. - - He ate the village chickens brown, - And trod the upland cornfields down. - - The fox lies on his shaggy side, - His paws stretched out before him wide. - - Sable and fox this fall we’ll catch, - And for my son I’ll make a match. - - Alas, this year no price they made:— - My Hovhannes unmarried stayed! - - - - - - - -THE TALE OF ROSIPHELEE - -From the “Confessio Amantis” by - -JOHN GOWER - -(Died 1408) - - - Of Armenye, I rede þus, - Ther was a king, which Herupus - Was hote, and he a lusti Maide - To dowhter hadde, and as men saide - Hire name was Rosiphelee; - Which þo was of gret renomee, - ffor sche was boþe wys and fair, - And scholde ben hire fader hair. - Bot sche hadde o defalte of Slowþe - Towardes loue, and þat was rowþe; - ffor so wel cowde noman seie, - Which mihte sette hire in þe weie - Of loues occupacion - Thurgh non ymaginacion; - That scole wolde sche noght knowe. - And þus sche was on of þe slowe - As of such hertes besinesse, - Til whanne Venus þe goddesse, - Which loues court haþ forto reule, - Haþ broght hire into betre reule, - fforþ wiþ Cupide and wiþ his miht: - ffor þei merueille how such a wiht, - Which þo was in hir lusti age, - Desireþ nother Mariage - Ne ȝit þe loue of paramours, - Which euere haþ be þe comvn cours - Amonges hem þat lusti were. - So was it schewed after þere: - ffor he þat hihe hertes loweþ - Wiþ fyri Dartes whiche he þrovreþ, - Cupide, which of loue is godd, - In chastisinge haþ mad a rodd - To dryue awei hir wantounesse; - So þat wiþinne a while, I gesse, - Sche hadde on such a chance sporned, - That al hire mod was ouertorned, - Which ferst sche hadde of slow manere: - ffor þus it fell, as þou schalt hiere. - Whan come was þe Monþe of Maii, - Sche wolde walke vpon a dai, - And þat was er þe Sonne Ariste; - Of wommen bot a fewe it wiste, - And forþ sche wente priuely - Vnto þe Park was faste by, - Al softe walkende on þe gras, - Til sche cam þer þe Launde was, - Thurgh which þer ran a gret riuere. - It þoghte hir fair, and seide, Here - I wole abide vnder þe schawe: - And bad hire wommen to wiþdrawe, - And þer sche stod al one stille, - To þenke what was in hir wille. - Sche sih þe swote floures springe, - Sche herde glade foules singe, - Sche sih þe bestes in her kinde, - The buck, þe do, þe hert, þe hinde, - The madle go wiþ þe femele; - And so began þer a querele - Betwen loue and hir oghne herte, - ffro which sche couþe noght asterte. - And as sche caste hire yhe aboute, - Sche syh clad in o suite a route - Of ladis, wher þei comen ryde - Along vnder þe wodes syde. - On faire amblende hors þei sete, - That were al whyte, fatte and grete, - And euerichon þei ride on side: - The Sadles were of such a Pride, - Wiþ Perle and gold so wel begon, - So riche syh sche neuere non: - In kertles and in Copes riche - Thei weren cloþed, alle liche, - Departed euene of whyt and blew; - Wiþ alle lustes þat sche knew - Thei were enbrouded oueral. - Here bodies weren long and smal, - The beaute faye vpon her face - Non erþly þing it may desface; - Corones on here hed þei beere, - As ech of hem a qweene weere, - That al þe gold of Cresus halle - The leste coronal of alle - Ne mihte haue boght after þe worþ: - Thus come þei ridende forþ. - The kinges dowhter, which þis syh, - ffor pure abaissht drowh hire adryh - And hield hire clos vnder þe bowh, - And let hem passen stille ynowh; - ffor as hire þoghte in hire avis, - To hem þat were of such a pris - Sche was noght worþi axen þere, - ffro when þei come or what þei were. - Bot leuere þan þis worldes good - Sche wolde haue wist hou þat it stod, - And putte hire hed alitel oute; - And as sche lokede hire aboute, - Sche syh comende vnder þe linde - A womman vp an hors behinde. - The hors on which sche rod was blak, - Al lene and galled on þe back, - And haltede, as he were encluyed, - Wherof þe womman was annvied; - Thus was þe hors in sori plit, - Bot for al þat a sterre whit - Amiddes in þe front he hadde. - Hir Sadel ek was wonder badde, - In which þe wofull womman sat, - And natheles þer was wiþ þat - A riche bridel for þe nones - Of gold and preciouse Stones. - Hire cote was somdiel totore; - Aboute hir middel twenty score - Of horse haltres and wel mo - Ther hyngen ate þo. - Thus whan sche cam þe ladi nyh, - Than tok sche betre hiede and syh - This womman fair was of visage, - ffreyssh, lusti, ȝong and of tendre age; - And so þis ladi, þer sche stod, - Beþoghte hire wel and vnderstod - That þis, which com ridende þo, - Tidinges couþe telle of þo, - Which as sche sih tofore ryde, - And putte hir forþ and preide abide, - And seide, Ha, Suster, let me hiere, - What ben þei, þat now riden hiere, - And ben so richeliche arraied? - This womman, which com so esmaied, - Ansuerde wiþ ful softe speche, - And seiþ, Ma Dame, I schal ȝou teche. - These ar of þo þat whilom were - Seruantz to loue, and trowþe beere, - Ther as þei hadde here herte set. - ffare wel, for I mai noght be let: - Ma Dame, I go to mi seruise, - So moste I haste in alle wise; - fforþi, ma Dame, ȝif me leue, - I mai noght longe wiþ ȝou leue. - Ha, goode Soster, ȝit I preie, - Tell me whi ȝe ben so beseie, - And wiþ þese haltres þus begon. - Ma Dame, whilom I was on - That to mi fader hadde a king; - Bot I was slow, and for no þing - Me liste noght to loue obeie, - And þat I now ful sore abeie. - ffor I whilom no loue hadde, - Min hors is now so fieble and badde, - And al totore is myn arai; - And euery ȝeer þis freisshe Maii - These lusti ladis ryde aboute, - And I mot nedes suie here route - In þis manere as ȝe now se, - And trusse here haltres forþ wiþ me, - And am bot as here horse knaue. - Non oþer office I ne haue, - Hem þenkþ I am worþi nomore, - ffor I was slow in loues lore, - Whan I was able forto lere, - And wolde noght þe tales hiere - Of hem þat covþen loue teche. - Now tell me þanne, I ȝov beseche, - Wherof þat riche bridel serueþ. - Wiþ þat hire chere awei sche swerueþ, - And gan to wepe, and þus sche tolde: - This bridel, which ȝe nov beholde - So riche vpon myn horse hed,— - Ma Dame, afore, er I was ded, - Whan I was in mi lusti lif, - Ther fel into myn herte a strif - Of loue, which me overcom, - So þat þerafter hiede I nom, - And þoghte I wolde loue a kniht: - That laste wel a fourtenyht, - ffor it no lengere mihte laste, - So nyh my lif was ate laste. - Bot now, allas, to late war - That I ne hadde him loued ar: - ffor deþ cam so in haste bime, - Er I þerto hadde eny time, - That it ne mihte ben achieued. - Bot for al þat I am relieued, - Of þat mi will was good þerto, - That loue soffreþ it be so - That I schal swiche a bridel were. - Now haue ȝe herd al myn ansuere: - To godd, ma Dame, I ȝou betake, - And warneþ alle for mi sake, - Of loue þat þei ben noght ydel, - And bidd hem þenke vpon mi brydel. - And wiþ þat word al sodeinly - Sche passeþ, as it were a Sky, - Al clene out of þis ladi sihte. - And þo for fere hire herte afflihte, - And seide to hirself, Helas! - I am riht in þe same cas: - Bot if I liue after þis day, - I schal amende it, if I may. - And þus homward þis lady wente, - And changede al hire ferste entente, - Wiþinnne hire herte and gan to swere - That sche none haltres wolde bere. - - - - - - - -THE SONG OF THE VULTURE - -By ELIA DEMIRJIBASHIAN - -(1851–1908) - - - A great black bird like to a great black cloud - Hovers forever o’er my spirit bowed. - He is my guardian angel, but alack! - Darker than night he is—than hell more black. - - A fearful-looking bird, with wings wide spread, - Ill-omened as the Devil, and as dread; - He hovers round my wasted body, till - I wonder if I yet have life or will. - - Upon his wings no spot of white appears, - His plumage black sheds horror down, and fears. - Black are his talons—sharp, like daggers fell; - And like a hound I hear him howl and yell. - - His wide-spread pinions hide the light from me; - Heaven dark, and earth a dungeon black I see. - All is in shadow—air and earth and skies— - He even hides the lightning from my eyes. - - I cannot see the paleness of my face, - I cannot see the maiden’s smiling grace; - Black is the lake, the stars and lilies dark; - What was that cry? The bird’s dread calling!—Hark! - - I seem to totter on the brink of hell - And think the evil fowl my corpse can smell. - I seem to hear the goblins fight with him— - Away with thee!—ours is this booty grim!” - - But he is cruel, strong, and merciless— - This great black bird;—he heeds not my distress. - Ten years I’ve lived beneath his deadly wings— - Ten years unceasingly my death-bell rings. - - Ten years ago one night it came to pass - On Moda’s rock I sat and dreamed; alas, - My foe came to me—Carnal was his name: - He shouted, “Vain are Life and Love and Fame!” - - Youthful I was, and armed with Love and Hope - I struggled. “Oh, my soul, arise and cope - With this thy foe, and vanquish him,” I cried. - But ’twas in vain, as I full soon espied. - - My sun and joy since then are on the wane. - My foe cries out, “I, only I, shall reign! - O’er all the universe none rules but me!”— - Then rose a Siren’s voice alluringly.... - - Nirvana and the flesh held me that hour: - God was asleep—my soul was in their power. - Then on the moon I saw a spot appear;— - It grew, and grew ... my heart turned sick with fear. - - I was as dead. The carrion-eating bird - Had left that heavenly corpse—the moon—allured - To earth by me. It sought my bosom where - The image of Christ crucified lay bare. - - Beneath those evil wings I hopelessly - Roam over the earth;—my guardian angel he; - No more the cross I wear, nor in my breast - Dwells holy faith; ’tis death: death without rest. - - Like to the moon, whether I wax or wane - Still am I lifeless, cursed with this bane. - I give the vulture of my flesh to tear, - And shiver when the name of “love” I hear. - - While yet I live he is devouring me: - I cannot bear this pain—Oh, set me free! - I am not dead—Love still dwells with me here. - I am alive—and some call me the “Ner.” [13] - - Ah, gruesome bird, art thou not yet content - These ten long years my body to have rent? - Ah, vulture black—black earth and ebon sky, - ’Tis time that I should lay me down and die. - - - - - - - -DANCE SONG [14] - -FOLK SONG - - - “I have loved your winsome face, - And your never-fading grace. - If they give you not to me - May God send them black disgrace!” - - “Mountain sorrel, fresh with dew, - Sweets I send and honey new; - Is a dainty maid like me - Fit to wed a youth like you?” - - “You are arch, my little maid, - In four plaits your hair you braid, - Make no more pretence to me— - For you love me, I’m afraid!” - - “Drive your plough ahead, and go; - Underneath it thistles grow. - You are reckless, young, and wild— - She is mad would wed you so!” - - “Near your house a field I’ll sow - And I’ll stone the ill-starred crow. - When I have the girl I love - I’ll let all my folly go.” - - “On its way the water flows, - Washing with its waves the rose. - My beloved amidst the youths, - Like a mighty fortress shows.” - - “In the vineyard you have grown, - Where the melon plants are sown, - Day and night upon my lute, - You I sing, and you alone.” - - “Sing a minstrel’s song to me, - Or the blackbird’s rhapsody; - All your praises I deserve, - And my bridegroom you shall be!” - - - - - - - -BALLAD - -By RAFFI - - - Dark forests clothe the mountain-side, - And o’er that mountain’s lofty head - The heavens bend their arches wide, - And, dome-like, round its summit spread. - - A castle stood upon the steep, - Enchanted by a witch’s spell; - A maiden wept within the keep, - Bound by the chains of slav’ry fell. - - Alone and sad, the maiden fair - Sat in her dark and narrow room. - No hope had she, but dire despair - Had worn her heart with thoughts of gloom. - - A minstrel passed—as it befell— - A singer, singing sweetest strains; - He broke the witch’s evil spell, - And loosed the gentle maiden’s chains. - - She ran to him and kissed his face, - And said, “How I have longed for thee! - God, in His mercy and His grace, - Hath sent thee here to set me free!” - - And when, above the mountain steep, - The moon shone out her silver light, - And when the stars began to peep, - Twinkling and scatt’ring jewels bright, - - The minstrel’s love stole out unseen, - With burning thoughts of her belov’d; - All through the woods so dark and green, - Seeking, and seeking him, she roved. - - A hut there was within that wood, - Meet dwelling for some dervish old; - All lined with moss and leaves, it stood - Protected from the rain and cold. - - The minstrel lived within this nook, - And sang alone beneath the trees. - His friend—Firdausi’s wondrous book, - His comrades—Sadi and Hafiz. - - The Houri of the castle there - Spent many happy days and nights— - Immortal souls in Jennet [15] fair - Have never tasted such delights. - - He wiped the tears by sorrow shed, - And healed the wounds by sorrow wrought; - Like captive from a prison fled, - Her cares and woes she soon forgot. - - Broken and aged was her sire; - A mighty Prince, the castle’s lord, - To satisfy his heart’s desire, - Had reft her from him with his sword. - - The Prince held office high at court, - And countless women, bright as day, - Lived in his harem’s vile resort, - And slaves, more than my tongue can say. - - His women, guarded day and night, - Caged in with iron bars he keeps; - But LOVE, more strong than despot’s might, - Breaks through that cage, those bars o’erleaps. - - - - - - - -NO BIRD CAN REACH THE MOUNTAIN’S CREST - -By HOVHANNES COSTANIANTZ - - - No bird can reach the mountain’s crest. - There blow the winds that never rest; - And ‘midst the stars that crown the height, - Saint Gregory’s fair lamp shines bright. [16] - Ah, gentle brother, sweet and brave, - That Light thy sword and spirit save! - - How many rills the mountain yields! - Those rills are streams, that dew the fields. - My brother sweet, those rushing streams - Are like my longings and my dreams. - Happy the maid that loveth thee! - When shall thy heart’s desire be? - - See, in the South a tempest breaks— - tempest howls, the leaflet quakes; - The bluebell hangs its petals bright, - The cock cries out with all his might. - Like showers of gold comes down the rain:— - Why comes my love not home again? - - The Star of Light begins his course, - The brave one mounts upon his horse. - He drives his spurs into its flanks, - And rides away to join the ranks. - Happy the maid that loveth thee, - When shall thy heart’s desire be? - - There comes no news from far away, - Our brave ones rest not from the fray. - ’Tis long that sleep my eyes doth flee— - Our foemen press unceasingly. - ’Tis long for sleep I vainly pray: - There comes no news from far away. - - - - - - - -THE NIGHTINGALE OF AVARAIR - -By LEO ALISHAN - - - Whence comest thou, my moon, gentle and still, - Spreading thy light o’er meadow, vale, and hill, - And o’er this patriarch, that lost in thought - The midnight plains of Avaraïr has sought? - Whereon our fathers, martyred for the right, - As giants fell, to rise as angels bright! - Com’st thou to spread upon their ashes cold - From yonder snowy cloud a pall of gold? - Or would’st thou bind around thy brow of light - A token of Armenia’s life-blood bright?— - Or art thou still in awestruck wonder lost - To think how Vartan fell, with all his host;— - Leaving death’s shadow in his foeman’s breast, - Trusting his soul to God, he sank to rest! - - And thou, Dughmood, that stained with blood I see - Winding amongst thy rushes sobbingly; - Thou breeze that from Magou’s steep rock dost waft, - Or from great Ararat descendest soft;— - Thou too like me dost tremble, and thy wings - Listlessly bear thee on thy wanderings: - O’er hill and dale thou fliest, from wood to wood, - Till on this plain thou stay’st thy wings to brood; - Then bearest on this careworn heart’s last sigh - To echo in Armenia ere it die! - - O friend of aching hearts, soul of the rose, - That breakest with thy voice the night’s repose; - Sing, little Nightingale, from yonder tree— - Armenia’s deathless heroes sing with me! - From Thaddeus’ convent as thy voice I heard, - Praying before the cross, my heart was stirred. - I hastened forth beneath thy magic spell - And found thee on the plain where Vartan fell. - - Ah, Nightingale of Avaraïr, they say - No bird art thou that nightly sing’st thy lay, - But Eghishé, the singer wondrous sweet, - That in the rose’s heart Vartan dost greet. - The winter drives thee far away to mourn; - Spring’s roses bid thee to Ardaz return, - In Eghishé’s sad notes to sob and cry, - To call Vartan, and list for a reply. - - If ever like the fainting Nightingale’s - My voice with you, Togarmah’s sons, prevails,— - Sons of those fathers virtuous and wise, - Who with their glories filled books, plains, and skies;— - If of Armenian blood one drop should flow - Within your veins, or make your hearts to glow; - Or if their glories past you too would share, - To Ardaz with the patriarch repair! - - - - - - - -THOU ART SO SWEET - -By SAYAT NOVA - - -Thou art so sweet thou wilt not pain the minstrel singing songs to thee, -But when he loves thee thou dost frown—in vain he tells his wrongs to thee. - -Love’s fire is such, ‘twill not consume—‘twill burn, and burn, and ever burn: -If in that sea of flame I fall to cool me thou wilt never turn. - -Alas, how shall the minstrel bear thy lightning gleams that pierce his heart? -No pact or treaty wilt thou make—a monarch absolute thou art. - -If thou dost meet with mountains high like wax thou meltest them away; -If cities fair lie on thy path, their pride in ruins thou dost lay. - -In sooth, no compact wilt thou make with him who sings these strains to thee: -Sayat Nova no credit hath when he would tell his pains to thee. - - - - - - - -THE WANDERING ARMENIAN TO THE SWALLOW - -By C. A. DODOCHIAN - - - O swallow, gentle swallow, - Thou lovely bird of spring! - Say, whither art thou flying - So swift on gleaming wing? - - Fly to my birthplace, Ashdarag, - The spot I love the best; - Beneath my father’s roof-tree, - O swallow, build thy nest. - - There dwells afar my father, - A mournful man and grey, - Who for his only son’s return - Waits vainly, day by day. - - If thou shouldst chance to see him, - Greet him with love from me; - Bid him sit down and mourn with tears - His son’s sad destiny. - - In poverty and loneliness, - Tell him, my days are passed: - My life is only half a life, - My tears are falling fast. - - To me, amid bright daylight, - The sun is dark at noon; - To my wet eyes at midnight - Sleep comes not, late or soon. - - Tell him that, like a beauteous flower - Smit by a cruel doom, - Uprooted from my native soil, - I wither ere my bloom. - - Fly on swift wing, dear swallow, - Across the quickening earth, - And seek in fair Armenia - The village of my birth! - - - Translated by Alice Stone Blackwell. - - - - - - - -THE CHRIST-CHILD - -By SAINT GREGORY OF NAREK - -(951–1009) - - - The lips of the Christ-child are like to twin leaves; - They let roses fall when he smiles tenderly. - The tears of the Christ-child are pearls when he grieves; - The eyes of the Christ-child are deep as the sea. - Like pomegranate grains are the dimples he hath, - And clustering lilies spring up in his path. - - - Translated by Alice Stone Blackwell. - - - - - - - -THE CASTLE OF ANOUSH [17] - -By RAFFI - - -“Anoush” in name, but full of bitterness in reality. - -On one side of the road that leads from Tisbon to Ecbatana stands a -steep, pointed crag. Its massive base rises from an extensive bed of -rock, on which Nature has placed it as on a firm pedestal. - -Not a handful of earth is to be found upon its denuded surface. Not a -single plant grows on its hard, stony sides. - -The burning rays of the southern sun have dried and baked it like an -earthen vessel in the potter’s ever-burning fire. From time -immemorial that rock has ever been so. - -It happened one day that Farhat, the great Persian sculptor, passed at -the foot of the rock with his pickaxe on his shoulder. He was aroused -suddenly from the deep meditation in which he had been lost by the -sound of horns and trumpets. He stopped. Greyhounds and hawk-bearers -appeared, gay and thoughtless riders burst into sight like a storm, -then passed away from sight like a storm. - -The dim, shadowy outline of a face remained in his heart; that vision -stole away his peace of mind. Every day at the same hour he was to be -seen on the road waiting,—waiting with the tenderest feelings of his -heart aroused. The beloved vision would appear, and after throwing a -careless glance at him would pass by like a flash of lightning. - -He lost his peace of mind, abandoned his Art, and wandered like one -beside himself in the solitudes of the mountains. - -Days passed, weeks passed, and months passed. One day he was sitting -there waiting. She appeared. But this time there were neither -greyhounds nor hawk-bearers with her. She was alone, with a number of -her maidens. She urged her horse on and came up to Farhat. - -“Hail, great Master,” she said. “What has chained thee to these -mountains—to the solitudes of these desert places? I ever see thee -here.” - -“The joy of sometimes seeing a transcendently beautiful vision light -up the solitudes of these desert places,” answered Farhat. - -“Is thy love so great, then?” she asked, smiling. - -“Who can help loving her that has not a peer amongst the immortals? -Who can help loving her whose breath gives life, whose one glance -confers eternal happiness? Do you think that the heart of him that is -ever occupied with the stone and the chisel becomes so hardened that -there is no room left in it for beauty?” - -“I think not so. He that can give form and life to a shapeless stone, -he that creates beautiful beings out of cold marble, cannot but love -what is beautiful himself. But listen, Artist—to win the heart of the -daughter of the Arian King requires great sacrifices.” - -“I know that great goddesses require great sacrifices.” - -“I do not demand what is impossible—I only wish to try thy love. -Look, Farhat, dost thou see yonder rock?” and she pointed to the -sharp crag. “Thou must create palaces for me out of that rock, so -that I may look down from the summit with delight, and watch how the -Tigris threads the beautiful plains of Assyria with its silvery curves, -or how the tall palm-trees of Baghistan wave at the breathing of the -gentle zephyrs. And in the heart of the rock thou must make storehouses -for my treasures, and underneath there must be dwelling-places for my -horses. When all this is ready I shall be thine.” - -She spoke, and rode away. - -Years passed away. The pickaxe and hammer of the Master worked -untiringly at the unyielding rock. The ceaseless sounds of the heavy -blows were to be heard day and night. The work was carried on -successfully. Love strengthened the genius of the great Master, and the -beauty of the Arian King’s daughter fired him with enthusiasm. He -made chambers, he made state-rooms, he made halls decorated with -pictures, and out of the solid rock he created a palace of marvellous -beauty. He made the walls of the apartments live with pictures carved -in relief. In one place he sculptured the battles that the old heroes -and giants of Iran had fought with devils and evil spirits; in another -the glory and greatness of the ancient kings of Iran, and festivals -celebrating their victories and deeds of prowess. He drew on the stone -the valiant acts of ancestral kings, their virtues, and the benefits -that they scattered over the land of the Arians. He worked all these -wonders for the one being to whom he had devoted all the passion of his -love. He worked them all so that she might be continually reminded of -the glorious past of Iran, that her heart might continually be rejoiced -with the noble pride that she was the descendant of a great dynasty -born of the gods, which had always done god-like deeds. - -She came and saw it all. - -“It is very beautiful,” she said, “but there is no water -here—there are no trees. Make fountains for me that shall throw the -water up higher than the clouds. Plant trees for me under whose shadow -I may rest;—rest in thine arms!” - -She spoke, and rode away. - -He turned the courses of far distant streams and brought the water by -underground channels to the very summit of the rock. He shaped the -stone, dug out basins, and created silvery fountains. Day and night the -never-ending supply of water rose out of the fountains, and dewed the -surrounding plants with pearl-like drops. He levelled the surface of -the rock, and covered it with earth brought from distant places. He -planted trees and made lofty hanging gardens that looked as if they -were growing in the air. Years passed. The trees grew and gave fruit, -the flowers blossomed and filled the scented gardens with their -gladdening perfumes. The birds came and filled the place with their -happy songs. But she who was to have been the queen and pride of that -beautiful paradise did not appear. - -One day the Master sat at the foot of the palace he had made, leaning -his chin on his hand and looking sorrowfully down the road. A peasant -came up singing, and sat down beside him to rest a little. - -“Whence comest thou?” asked the Master. “Thou art fortunate in -being so happy.” - -“From Tisbon,” said the peasant. “And why should I not be happy -when all the world is rejoicing?” - -“What has happened?” - -“Dost thou not know that in town the wedding has already been going -on for seven days and seven nights? The wine is flowing in rivers, and -there is no limit to the dainty fare. They are eating, drinking, and -making merry. The whole town resounds with the strains of music, and -the feet of the dancers are never weary. I also came in for my share of -good things—I ate and drank as much as I could, and now I am taking -home what will be enough for my wife and children for many weeks.” - -“Whose wedding is it?” - -“The King’s.” - -“To whom is he married?” - -“To Anoush.” - -The Master spoke no more. He only started as one struck by lightning, -then remained motionless. Then he rose and walked with weak, trembling -steps towards the palace he had created. He looked around, and for the -last time raised his sorrowful eyes to all the work that was the result -of passionate love and beautiful Art. Then he entered into his -work-room. His tools were lying about. He took up a heavy hammer and -came out on to the narrow ledge. “She deceived me!” he said, and -threw the hammer up into the air. It turned over and over, then fell on -to his head. His warm blood sprinkled the wonders that were the work of -his hands. - -Farhat did not obtain the desire of his heart, but the name of his -beloved Anoush remained with that stone fortress, and it was called the -Castle of Anoush. - -That rock-hewn palace which was prepared to be the temple of love and -everlasting happiness became a hell full of tears and unending -suffering. It was there that the Kings of Persia imprisoned the -Armenian Kings who fell captive into their hands. - - - - - - - -HAPPINESS - -By ARSCHAG TCHOBANIAN - -(Born 1872) - - - Weary of vainly seeking Happiness - In city alleys full of sound and strife, - I hastened from the noisy human press,— - The labyrinth of this dark, grovelling life. - - I said, “The mountain knows its place of rest,” - And clambered up above the level plain; - But the bald Titan answered me distressed:— - “Dullness alone doth Time for me ordain.” - - I left the mountain and approached the winds— - Those infinite, proud spirits, ever free; - “We are the sighs of griefs that to your minds - Must still remain unknown,” they answered me. - - And then above the winds and clouds I rose, - Soared to the skies, and asked the stars of Heaven. - “We are the tears that flow from countless woes,” - The answer by those eyes of darkness given. - - Above the stars, in the lone fields of space, - I saw God musing, sorrowful and mild. - “Father,” I cried, “where is Joy’s dwelling-place?” - He said, “I also do not know, my child.” - - - - - - - -CONCERNING DEATH - -By HOVHANNES TULKOURANTZI - -(1450–1525) - - - O evil man, with passions fraught, - How long wilt thou strive after sin? - Enough the ill that thou hast wrought: - Repent,—a holier life begin. - - From Adam’s time until this day, - No soul hath had immortal breath; - Thou heed’st not what the Scriptures say— - The sinner’s punishment is death. - - He that had palaces of gold, - And brilliant cities, fortress-bound, - Hath left behind his wealth untold, - And lies beneath the sodden ground. - - Who loved to quaff the spicy wine, - And spent his life in ribaldry, - I saw him like a swollen swine,— - loathsome corpse, unsavoury. - - The man that rode an arch-necked steed - And flashed his sword around to slay, - I saw him penitent indeed:— - Between two wooden planks he lay. - - And evil wenches, women fair, - Who dress in robes of gaudy dye, - Who love to curl and braid their hair— - Their brightness with the sun might vie: - - They swing about, and turn, and sway, - And are beloved of every man; - But hateful when Death comes are they, - To all who would their features scan. - - Christ sits upon the throne of Light, - Rewarding those who loved His Word, - Crowning the just with glory bright - And penitents His voice that heard. - - Ah, Hovhannes Tulkourantzi, - Listen with open heart and ear; - Seek out some way diligently - To win the crown of glory there. - - - - - - - -LOVE ONE ANOTHER - -By BEDROS TOURIAN - - - Undying Love, Whose beams forever glow - On rose-red Golgotha’s stupendous brow; - Wilt Thou those shafts still in Thy bosom keep? - What guardest Thou?—bones, spectres, chasms deep,— - That in the echoes of the mountain-side - Thy noble words, “Love one another,” died? - - Effaced and trampled is the poor man’s tomb; - The poor man’s candle flickers out in gloom; - And in that darkness starving children weep, - While in the palace revels high they keep. - The rich man’s carriage dashes gaily past, - The beggar’s lonely corpse to earth is cast. - - The pallid angel of Gethsemane - Tears doth not heed nor flowers, nor glory’s plea. - The poor find rest in his cold arms alone, - For in Death’s shroud the high and low are one. - Though lightning-winged the winds cry o’er the moor, - “Love one another,” here none love the poor. - - - - - - - -PASQUA ARMENA [18] - -By VITTORIA AGANOOR POMPILJ - - - Non fu di fiele abbeverato? Il petto - non gli squarciò l’ignobile scherano? - Non fu percosso, irriso, e un’empia mano - non lo inchiodò sul legno maledetto? - - Pur, quale mai più glorïoso e forte - risorgere, se ancor tuona la voce - dell’Osanna, e dovunque apre una croce - le braccia, dall’idea vinta è la morte? - - Armenia, ed anche a te squarciato il seno - vedo dai nuovi farisei. Raccolto - hanno il fango a scagliartelo sul volto; - per dissetarti apprestano il veleno. - - Ma se l’insazïata orda ferina - sulle tue membra flagellate e grame - oggi rinnova la tortura infame - del Golgota, la tua Pasqua è vicina. - - - - - - - -“IO VIDI” - -By VITTORIA AGANOOR POMPILJ - - - Accostarsi all’oscuro - mio letto, dalle porte - raggianti, io vidi il puro - angiolo della morte. - - Una dorata ciocca - velava gli occhi suoi: - diceva la sua bocca - sorridendo:—Mi vuoi?— - - Rapita io nella bianca - sua desiata faccia, - io, di vane opre stanca, - a lui tendo le braccia; - - e, mentre l’affannoso - mio cor s’apre alla fede - del perfetto riposo - che solo egli concede; - - mi sibila vicina - una maligna voce: - “Destati; orsù, cammina, - ripiglia la tua croce!” - - - - - - - -ARMENIA: - -ITS EPICS, FOLK-SONGS, AND MEDIAEVAL POETRY - -By ARAM RAFFI - - -The country that is called Armenia consists of a large plateau, covered -with numerous mountain ranges, which are intersected by many valleys -and passes, as well as by rivers and lesser streams of considerable -depth. The climate differs in various parts of the country, the -meteorological conditions ranging from frost and snow to extreme heat. -Over the plains towers Mount Ararat, on which, as we read in the Bible, -the Ark rested after the Flood. Here also is the traditional site of -the Garden of Eden, and the four rivers mentioned in Genesis as rising -in the Garden still flow through the Armenian land. - -The origin of the Armenian people is enveloped in mystery, but it is an -established fact that Armenia has had a civilisation of its own from a -very early date, and that the Armenians are one of the most ancient -races in the world. They have had their periods of independence, but, -on account of its geographical position, Armenia has seldom figured as -one of the great ruling states of the world, although it has repelled -by arms invasions of such nations as Assyria. Assyrian records are -filled with descriptions of conflicts with Armenian kings; King Assur -Nazir Haban (1882–1857 B.C.) gives this account of one of his -“victories”:—“They (the people of Ararat, or Urardu) fled to -the impregnable mountains so that I might not be able to get at them, -for the mighty summits were like drawn swords pointing to the skies. -Only the birds of heaven soaring on their wings could reach them. In -three days I was there, spreading terror in places where they had taken -refuge. Their corpses, like autumn leaves, filled the clefts. The rest -escaped to distant inaccessible heights.” - -Notwithstanding the boasts of the Assyrian kings, they did not succeed -in permanently crushing the independence of Armenia. - -Tigranes the Great brought Armenia more in contact with distant foreign -lands. In his time his country began to be considered of importance by -Greek and Roman historians. The Romans sent Lucullus to engage in war -with Tigranes in order to crush his growing power. This is -what—according to Plutarch—Lucullus said of Tigranes:— - -“In Armenia Tigranes, King of Kings, is seated, surrounded with that -power which has wrested Asia from the Parthians, which carries Grecian -colonies into Media, subdues Syria and Palestine, cuts off the -Seleucidae and carries their wives and daughters into captivity.” -Cicero says of Tigranes the Great:—“He made the Republic of Rome -tremble before the prowess of his arms.” - -To give even a short outline of Armenian folklore and poetry it is -essential to point out those agencies and influences which have served -to originate that literature. Hence its literature and history, like -those of all countries, are interwoven. Notwithstanding its periods of -greatness, Armenia was unable, as we said above, to continue to be a -powerful and independent state. Thus we see Armenia serving as a bridge -between armies engaged in war, and such has been its fate in all -periods, even up to the present time. - -It fell successively under the dominion of Assyria, Babylonia, and, -finally, of Persia when, after the time of Cyrus, the kingdom of Persia -was extended by Darius over nearly the whole of Asia. Although Armenia -became a tributary of Persia, it still had its own independent king. - -The Median Empire had been founded probably in 677–672 B.C. From that -time Iranian influence was strongly felt in the politics, language, and -social organisation of Armenia, and the Iranian religion, with its -terminology, names of divinities, and many folk-beliefs, permeated -Armenian paganism. - -Moreover, the Armenians, being the near neighbours of the Persians, -closely resembled them in their manner of life and their religion. -After the conquest of Alexander the Great, Armenia, like all other -Asiatic nations, fell under Greek dominion. Then the Macedonian rule -gave way to the Parthian, and the dynasty of the Arsacidae held sway, a -king of that race being set over Armenia and founding an independent -Armenian dynasty. The Arsacidae introduced Greek civilisation and -culture into Armenia. During this period the character of the Armenians -changed. Not only their religion but their manners and customs became -different from those of the Persians. The rule of Macedonia over -Armenia lasted 180 years (330–150 B.C.). The Graecophile Arsacid -dynasty lasted 376 years (150 B.C.-226 A.D.). These long periods -brought the Armenians into close contact with the Greeks and separated -them from the Persians. - -To the periods which we have outlined belongs the literature of Armenia -preceding the introduction of Christianity. Of this literature the -remains that have come down to us consist of legends, songs, and -fragments of epics. Of the epics we have some records and summaries, -chiefly found in the History of Moses of Khorene (5th century A.D.), -who has also preserved some of the heroic songs in their original form. -These epics relate the history of Armenian ancestral and mythical -heroes, to whom are ascribed the foundation and development of the -Armenian nation. In them we see Armenian ideals of the earliest times. -As these ideals are closely interwoven with the religious beliefs of -the pre-Christian period, let us now cast a glance at Armenian -Paganism. - -It is said by ancient Armenian historians that the Armenians were -originally worshippers of the One True God, but they, like all other -nations, deserted Him and took up with various religions. Sun-worship -was one of these; Zoroastrianism also had its turn; in due course, the -Greeks introduced their own deities; even India succeeded in making its -influence felt. Strabo has it that the Armenians, during the period of -the Arsacid dynasty, were of the same religion as the Parthians. It -appears that the Armenians fused together Zoroastrianism and the -polytheism of Greece and other nations, thus combining eastern and -western religion. One result of this fusion was that though the -Zoroastrians made no visible representation of their God, the temples -of Armenia were full of images, brought from Mesopotamia, Asia Minor, -and Greece. - -The principal god of Armenia was Aramazd, whom the Armenians called -“the Architect of the Universe, Creator of Heaven and Earth.” He -was also the father of the other gods. The Armenians annually -celebrated the festival of this god on the 1st day of Navasard, [19] -when they sacrificed white animals of various kinds—goats, horses, -mules, with whose blood they filled goblets of gold and silver. The -most prominent sanctuaries of Aramazd were in the ancient city of Ani -in Daranali, the burial-place of the Armenian kings, as well as in the -village of Bagavan in Bagravand. [20] - -Aramazd had an attendant incorporeal spirit, named Tir or Grogh -(“writer”), whom he sent to earth to watch men and record in a book -their good and evil deeds. After death, human souls were conducted by -Tir to Aramazd, who opened the book at each soul’s record, in -accordance with which he assigned a reward or punishment. In a village -near Vargharshapat there was a temple of this god, where the priests -interpreted dreams after consulting his oracle. The influence of Tir -was great in Armenia, for he was a personification of hope and fear. -There are traces of the cult of this god in the Armenian language. It -is still usual to hear, used as a curse, the expression, “May Grogh -take you!” The son of Aramazd was Mihr, Fire. He guided the heroes in -battle and conferred wreaths on the victors. The word mehian -(“temple”) is derived from Mihr; also some Christian names. One of -the months in the ancient Armenian calendar (Mehekan) was named after -him. His commemoration-day was celebrated with great splendour at the -beginning of spring. Fires were kindled in the open market-place in his -honour, and a lantern lighted from one of these fires was kept burning -in his temple throughout the year. This custom of kindling fires in the -spring is still observed in some parts of Armenia. [21] - -Although the Persians and the Armenians were both worshippers of Mihr, -the conceptions and observances of the two nations differed. The -Armenian sacred fire was invisible, but the Persian was material and -was kept up in all the temples. For this reason the Armenians called -the Persians fire-worshippers. But the Armenians had also a visible -fire-god, who, although material, was intangible—the sun—to which -many temples were dedicated and after which one of the months (Areg) -was named. - -Long after the introduction of Christianity, there was a sect of -sun-worshippers existent in Armenia, who were called “Children of the -Sun.” A small remnant of them is still supposed to be found, dwelling -between the Tigris and the Euphrates. Traces of sun-worship are also -evident in the Armenian language and in the Armenian literature of -Christian times. Some sayings and phrases are still in use which -contain references to sun-worship, such as the expression of -endearment, “Let me die for your sun!” and the oath, “Let the sun -of my son be witness.” - -One of the most famous Armenian goddesses was Anahit, who answered to -the Greek Artemis and the Roman Diana. She was a “pure and spotless -goddess,” and, as a daughter of Aramazd, was “mother of -chastity,” as well as the benefactress of the whole human race; -“through her the Armenian land exists, from her it draws its life; -she is the glory of our nation and its protectress” [22]; and for her -the ancient Armenians felt intense love and adoration. - -Many images and shrines were dedicated to her under the names of “the -Golden Mother,” [23] “the Being of Golden Birth,” etc. Every -summer there was a festival in her honour. On that day, a dove and a -rose were offered to her golden image, whence the day was called -Vardavar, which means “the flaming of the Rose.” On the -introduction of Christianity, the temple of Anahit was destroyed and -her festival became the Feast of the Transfiguration of Christ; it -falls in the last days of the year according to the ancient Armenian -calendar; but the name “Vardavar” still remains and doves are still -set flying on that day. This is also the Armenian “water-day,” -during which the people amuse themselves throwing water at each other. -[24] - -Anahit was sought also in cases of great sickness. - -The sister of Anahit was Astghik, [25] the goddess of beauty, a -personification of the moon, corresponding to the Phoenician and -Sidonian Astarte. Strange to say, the Persians had no goddess of -beauty, but the bright sky of Armenia, its numerous valleys, the -torrents running down from snow-capped mountains, the lakes, the -cultivated fields and meadows tended to strengthen the sense of beauty, -and, therefore, Armenia had a goddess of beauty, who was not to be -found in the pantheon of the neighbouring country. - -The Armenians assigned Astghik a husband worthy of her. He was Vahagn, -deified on account of his valour. In ancient songs, he is credited with -a miraculous birth. The fires of heaven and earth, and the sea crimson -in the light of dawn, travailed to bring him into being. [26] As we -shall see later, Moses of Khorene has preserved portions of these -songs. Vahagn was called Vishapakagh (Uprooter of dragons), as he -cleared the Armenian land of monsters and saved it from evil -influences. His exploits were known not only in Armenia, but in the -abode of the gods. Having stolen corn from the barns of King Barsham of -Assyria, he ran away and tried to hide himself in heaven. From the ears -he dropped arose the Milky Way, which is called in Armenia the Track of -the Corn-stealer. - -The third daughter of Aramazd was Nané or Nooné. She was the goddess -of contrivance. It was believed by the Armenians that contrivance was a -necessary power for a woman, because, in the management of the -household, she had to make big things out of small ones, and -circumstances were already against her on account of the vicissitudes -which Armenia was constantly undergoing. - -Sandaramet, the wife of Aramazd, was an invisible goddess and a -personification of the earth. Aramazd sent rain upon her, which brought -forth the vegetation on the earth. She came to be a synonym of Hades -and was very frequently referred to as such in theological books and in -the hymnary of the Christian Church. - -Besides these gods of their own, the Armenians also adopted alien -divinities. When Tigranes brought a number of Phoenicians to Armenia as -prisoners, they brought with them their god Ammon, from whose name -comes the word Ammonor, [27] “the day of Ammon”—the New Year. -Assyrian, Arab, and other emigrations also led to the introduction of -foreign deities. An Armenian king, when he brought home captives, also -introduced the gods of those captives, whose images were placed in the -temples beside those of the native gods that they most closely -resembled. Even Indian fugitives brought the brother-gods, Demetr and -Gisanes, whose images were not like those of the other gods of Armenia, -for the images of the gods of Armenia are, as a rule, small, whereas -these were very tall, with long black hair and black faces. There was -also a great immigration of Jews into Armenia, and this influenced the -Armenians in the direction of monotheism. Besides the principal gods, -there were also secondary ones. These were spirits, corresponding to -angels, who acted as guardians to different classes of natural -objects:—Kadjk, [28] who occupied the mountains; Parik, who presided -over flocks; and many others. - -Water was honoured in Armenia as a masculine principle. According to -Tacitus (Annals, vi. 37) the Armenians offered horses as sacrifices to -the Euphrates, and divined by its waves and foam. Sacred cities were -built around the river Araxes and its tributaries. Even now there are -many sacred springs with healing powers, and the people always feel a -certain veneration towards waters in motion. - -There were gods who lived in the waters and destroyed harmful monsters -of the deep. There was also a god who breathed out a mysterious -atmosphere which destroyed malignant creatures. One wonders whether -this is a foreshadowing of the fear of microbes. All the gods of this -class were friendly to agriculturists. - -There were also “Haurot-Maurot,” the name of a flower (hyacinthus -racemosus Dodonei) first mentioned by Agathangelos. The Arabs -incorporated them in the Quran (ii. 96) as two angels sent down to live -in Babel in human circumstances. - -Alk, who dwelt in the waters, was a very harmful devil. He used to live -in the corners of houses and stables, and in damp places. He had eyes -of fire, nails of copper, teeth of iron, and the jaws of a wild boar. -He carried a sword of iron in his hand and was a bitter enemy to -pregnant women, near whom he sat at the time their child was born. - -There were nymphs, who were guardians of women. They wandered through -gardens and amid streams, but were invisible. They attended weddings -and frequented bathrooms and the women’s quarters in general. These -nymphs and spirits were innumerable. Every woman was supposed to have a -guardian nymph. The nymphs were supposed by some to be immortal and -endowed with perpetual youth; others described them as mortal though -they never grew old. There was also a group of male spirits who were -regarded by some as mortal, by others as immortal. They wandered with -the nymphs through forests, gardens, and other open places. They were -imagined as very tall, with features like those of men; some were -half-man and half-animal. Some were called Parik, “dancers”; others -Hushka parik, “dancers to a melody in a minor key.” - -In some places, even now, a belief in these nymphs (or fairies) -survives. Many stories are told of their beauty, their marvellous -dancing, and their wondrous music. They are never called by the name of -“nymphs,” but are spoken of by the people of the country as “our -betters.” Still in some parts of Armenia, in May and October, a -festival is held annually in honour of them, generally by the women in -the Public Baths. They assemble early in the morning and remain till -late at night, dancing, eating, and bathing. - -Before the people thought of building temples, they worshipped their -gods in forests and on mountains. One of these forests was the Forest -of Sos. According to tradition the son of Ara the Beautiful, Anushavan, -who devoted himself to the worship of this sacred place, was called, -after the forest, Sos. The priests derived oracles from the rustling of -the leaves in this holy wood. - -Besides temples, which were numerous in Armenia, there were, all over -the country, altars and shrines, as well as images and pictures. - -To sum up, the pre-Christian religion of Armenia was at first a kind of -nature-worship, which developed into polytheism. There were two -elements in Armenian religion, the native and the foreign. - -Besides nature-worship, there was a recognition, among the Armenians, -of the Good and Evil Spirit, but predominance was given to the former. -It is curious that, in the Armenian pantheon, there is no god of evil, -and Armenian epic heroes are always described as fighting against evil -spirits. - -In Armenian epics, the immortals stand in the background, the most -prominent place being assigned to legendary heroes, to whom poets -attribute divine descent, thus tracing the origin of the Armenian race -to the gods. Unfortunately, the greater part of these epics is lost, -though a few fragments are preserved, in their original shape, by Moses -of Khorene. - -The following is one of these fragments, which gives the general -conception of the gods and the heroes descended from them:— - -“Glorious and awful were the former gods. They were the cause of the -greatest blessings of the earth; also of the beginning of the world and -the generations of men. From them arose a race of giants, with great -limbs, fantastical, of stupendous stature, who, in their arrogance, -conceived the impious idea of tower-building. But by the wrath of the -gods, a mighty wind arose, overthrowing and shattering the structure. -The speech of men was confused; there was general bewilderment.” - -Among the giants mentioned in this passage was Haik, the brave and -illustrious chief—a famous archer, who is the patronymic hero of -Armenia, and is described by Moses of Khorene as having curly hair and -being beautiful to look upon, with brawny arms, well-set shoulders, and -fiery eyes. Recoiling from submission to Belus, he, with his followers, -went northwards to the foot of a mountain, where they took up their -abode. Belus sent emissaries to him, bearing the following message:— - -“Thou hast departed and hast settled in a chill and frosty region. -Soften thy hard pride, change thy coldness to geniality; be my subject, -and come and live a life of ease in my domain. Thus shalt thou find -pleasure.” - -Haik’s answer was to prepare for combat. The fights between Haik and -Belus are minutely recounted. The dress of the two champions, their -looks, their weapons, are all described in detail. At last Belus was -vanquished and slain by his adversary. - -Before the time of Moses of Khorene, Haik was known as a great hunter -like the Greek Orion. In the passages in Job and Isaiah where -“Orion” appears in the English Bible as the name of a -constellation, “Haik” appears in the Armenian version. - -The country that Haik conquered was named Hayastan, after him. - -He was succeeded by Armenak, who extended the boundaries of his -kingdom. This expansion is thus described by Moses of Khorene:— - -“Armenak, taking with him all his host, goes to the north-east. He -descends on a plain surrounded by high mountains, through which, from -the west, murmuring streams flow. The plain extends towards the east. -From the foot of the mountains gush springs no less limpid, mingling -together to form little rivers, which, with gentle flow, run round the -edge of the plain, parallel to the base of the mountains. - -“But the southern mountain, with its white peak, at first rises -straight up; afterwards it curves, looking beside the other heights -like a hoary stooping elder amid youths.” - -Armenak was succeeded by Aramais. This king took up his abode on a hill -beside a river, where he built a town which he named Aramavir. The -river he called by the name of his grandson, Araxes. He had a son, -named Shara, who was a glutton and had an immense number of children. -He sent him to a very fertile place which was called, after him, -Shirak. Moses of Khorene quotes a proverb relating to Shara:—“If -thou hast the gullet of a Shara, our stores are not the stores of a -Shirak.” - -Shara had a son, Amasa. After him Mount Ararat was named “Masis.” - -Moses of Khorene mentions another descendant of Haik, whose name was -Tork. He was ugly and of tremendous strength. He was able to break -great stones with his hands. Once, when he was on the shore of the Sea -of Pontus, he hurled huge rocks at the ships of his enemies and sank -them. This incident reminds us of the Cyclops Polyphemus, in the -Odyssey. Tork had also artistic proclivities. After dividing large -stones with his hands, he smoothed them with his nails, and with his -nails covered them with drawings of eagles and other pictures. [29] - -Then the historian gives a table of royal names down to Aram, whom he -describes as industrious and patriotic, and who said that he would -rather die for his fatherland than endure the sight of strangers -devastating it. He collected an army of 50,000 and drove the foreign -invaders out of Armenia. Epic poems, according to Moses of Khorene, -praise Aram’s valour in his conflicts with Barsham, King of Assyria, -whom he eventually subdued. He was succeeded by Ara the Beautiful. - -The romantic love of Semiramis for this king, which was a favourite -theme of ancient Armenian song and epic, is elaborately recounted by -Moses of Khorene. A translation of his narrative is given on page 23 of -this volume. There are several variants of this story, which is still -related in Armenia, and the names of many places as well as many -superstitions can be traced to it. - -Semiramis invited Ara to Nineveh to be her husband, promising him the -half of the kingdom, but Ara refused her offer, having a wife already. -Semiramis thereupon sent an army against Ara, with orders to capture -the king alive and bring him to her; but, instead of the living king, -they brought his corpse. Semiramis, who, as is well known, was wont to -practise magic, laid the body on a certain high place, in order that -the gods might descend and restore it to life by licking the wounds. -This height is still called Lezk, and in former times others used it -for the same purpose as Semiramis. The idea of this mode of cure -probably originated from the fact that wounded men, lying unconscious -on the battlefield, have often been revived by the licking of dogs and -other animals. - -In Moses of Khorene we find this story about the childhood of Sanatruk. -One day, he, under the care of his mother and his nurse, was walking -among the mountains of Kordua, when suddenly a high wind arose, -accompanied by a snowstorm, and separated the mother from her son. For -three days and nights the nurse and the child were buried in the snow, -but the gods sent a miraculous white animal which rescued them and -brought them home alive. [30] - -But, though such legends as these may have some foundation in fact, -there are others that are entirely fabulous, like the following, which -is related by Moses of Khorene:— - -The heir to the principality of Ardzruni, when a boy, fell asleep in -the open air. A storm of rain came on and drenched him; and then the -hot sun shone down and scorched him with its rays; whereupon an eagle -flew up and hovered over his head with outspread wings, sheltering him -from the assaults of nature. - -In the fourth century A.D., we find a similar story told of Prince -Mushegh Mamikonian. After his death his relatives put his body on a -high tower, believing that the spirits would descend and restore him to -life. This story is found in Faustus Byzand (A.D. 337–384). - -The animals figuring in such stories as these are not represented as -merely adjuncts to man, but as independent individuals who act in -accordance with their own characters and inclinations. Plato, in his -Republic, gives a slightly different version of the legend of Ara. Er -was an Armenian (or, as some commentators say, “The son of -Armenios”), a native of Pamphylia. He was slain in battle, and ten -days afterwards, when the bodies of the dead were taken up, already in -a state of corruption, his body was found unaffected by decay and -carried away home to be buried. And on the twelfth day, as he was lying -on the funeral pile, he returned to life and told them what he had seen -in the other world. - -The name “Er” is evidently a variant of Ara. The story, as told by -Plato, has all the features of a transplanted legend. - -Moses of Khorene says that, after the death of Ara the Beautiful, -Semiramis passed the rest of her days in Armenia, which place she -greatly loved. Here she established the city of Van. A picturesque -account of its foundation given by the historian is included in this -volume (page 33). - -The following account is given of the end of Semiramis:— - -Being pursued by her enemies, she ran away on foot, and, becoming -thirsty, she stopped to drink water from the Lake of Van. Here she was -overtaken by the “swordsmen,” whereupon, after taking off her magic -bracelet and throwing it into the lake, she herself was turned into -stone. - -With regard to the bracelet of Semiramis, the following story is even -now commonly told in the neighbourhood of Van:— - -Once Semiramis saw a bracelet in the hands of some little boys, who had -found it in the river, and were examining it with curiosity. Semiramis, -knowing that the bracelet had magic powers, took it away from the -children. By means of this jewel, she allured youths to their -destruction. This licentiousness brought her into general disfavour. An -old man, at last, snatched the bracelet from her and ran with it -towards the sea. Semiramis rushed after him in a fury, but, not being -able to come up with him, she let down her long hair and used it as a -sling to hurl a great rock at him. The weight of the rock pulled out -her hair. The rock itself fell into a ditch near Artamet. Semiramis, -through fear and amazement, was turned into stone. The old man threw -the bracelet into the Lake of Van. Even now a rock is shown at Artamet -which bears the name of “the Rock of Semiramis.” - -Then Moses of Khorene speaks of Tigranes I., who, in conjunction with -Cyrus, put an end to the kingdom of Media. The epics say of Tigranes -that “his face was of lovely hue, his eyes were soft and lustrous, -his shoulders stalwart, the calves of his legs were well-shaped, he was -altogether fair to look upon; in food and drink he was moderate; he was -of lofty mind, eloquent in speech, and masterly in the conduct of -affairs. Just and equitable, he weighed each man’s acts in the scale -of his mind. He was not jealous of the great nor did he despise men of -low estate, but spread the mantle of his care over all men alike. He -increased our treasures of gold, silver, and precious stones. Under -him, men and women wore fine garments, of divers colours, richly -embroidered, which made the ill-favoured to look fair and the beautiful -to look like demi-gods. - -“Tigranes, the bringer of peace and prosperity, caused all men to -grow fat with butter and honey. In his day, the infantry became -cavalry, slingers became skilful archers, dagger-bearers were equipped -with swords, and naked soldiers were provided with shields and -armour.” - -The historian adds that the splendour of the arms and equipments was -enough of itself to drive back the enemy. - -As the head of a band of warriors, he performed many valorous -deeds:—“We were under the yoke of others, but he put other nations -under our yoke and made them our tributaries.” - -His rival, Astyages, King of Media, was always suspicious and -distrustful of him. - -One night Astyages had a terrible dream. The next morning he summoned -his courtiers. They found him sighing, looking on the ground with -gloomy mien, and heaving groans from the depths of his heart. “When -the courtiers inquired the reason of his behaviour” (continues the -historian) “the king remained silent for hours, then in a sad voice -he related his dream, which was as follows:— - -“‘To-day I was in an unknown country, close to a mountain, which -rose very high above the ground; its summit was covered with ice. It -seemed to me to be in Armenia. After I had gazed for a long time, it -appeared to me that there was a woman sitting on the summit. Her -garments were purple. Her face was covered by a blue veil. Her eyes -were beautiful. She was tall, with rosy cheeks. She was in travail, and -for a long time I looked on her with admiration, then I beheld her give -birth to three heroes, all of equal stature: the first, sitting on a -lion, soared towards the west; the second, seated on a leopard, went -towards the north; the third, bridling a huge dragon, defiantly -attacked our kingdom. In these confused dreams, I seemed to be standing -on the roof of my palace, and the covering of my chambers was adorned -with beautiful fountains of variegated colours. The gods that had -crowned me were standing there, with wondrous faces, and I, with you, -was honouring them with incense and sacrifice. Suddenly looking up, I -saw the man who was seated on the dragon wing his course in our -direction, desiring to overthrow our gods. I advanced to the attack and -engaged in fight with that youthful hero. First of all, with lances we -pierced each other’s bodies, calling forth rivers of blood, and past -our sunlit palace flowed a crimson sea. For hours we fought also with -other arms. But, to be brief, the fight ended in my defeat. I was -bathed in sweat, sleep forsook me, and ever since I have felt as if I -had no life in me. For all these visions signify that the Armenian -king, Tigranes, is about to attack us. And whosoever amongst you, by -counsel or deeds, wishes to aid me, and aspires to the honour of being -a king, equal to myself, let him speak.’” - -Then the story goes on to tell how Astyages, in order to prevent -Tigranes from making war on him, proposed that his rival’s sister, -Tigranuhi, should be his wife; therefore Astyages sent to Tigranes one -of his councillors with a letter accompanied by many precious gifts. -Moses of Khorene gives the letter, which runs as follows:— - -“Thou knowest, beloved brother, that of all the gifts of the gods to -us none is more precious than the multitude of our dear ones, -especially when they are wise and valiant. The reason of this is that, -in such case, quarrels will not arise from outside, and if they arise, -they will be unable to make their way within and will disperse -themselves. Having seen the great advantage of such relationships, it -has entered my mind to confirm and strengthen the love that is between -us, so that, both of us being secured on all sides, we may be able to -carry on the affairs of our kingdom in greater safety. All this will be -ensured, if thou wilt give me to wife thy sister Tigranuhi, the Great -Lady of Armenia. I hope that thou wilt look favourably on this -proposal, that she may be the Queen of Queens. Mayest thou have a long -life, fellow sovereign and dear brother.” - -We have presented this letter as a matter of curiosity, because in none -of the early European epics are there texts of letters. This usage is -characteristically oriental. In Isaiah we read of the letter of -Sennacherib to Hezekiah; there is also a letter in the Persian -Firdusi’s Shah-nameh. - -After his marriage with Tigranuhi, Astyages tried to set her at enmity -with her brother, and once he contrived cunningly to entice Tigranes to -become his guest in order that he might slay him. But his wife -perceived his treachery and secretly sent a message to her brother. -Tigranes accepted the invitation of Astyages, but came accompanied by a -great army. He postponed his attack till his sister had made her -escape. In the battle which ensued, Astyages was killed. - -Of this Tigranes, Xenophon says a great deal in his Cyropaedia, from -which we cite the following incident:— - -The Armenian king having revolted against Cyrus, the latter invaded -Armenia and conquered him. Cyrus intended to deal very severely with -the rebel monarch, but Tigranes, the son of the Armenian king, -persuaded him to be more lenient. Xenophon gives a long conversation, -discussing the terms of peace, in the course of which Cyrus asked -Tigranes, who was newly married and greatly loved his wife, what he -would give to regain her freedom, she having fallen into the hands of -the victor, together with the other women of the royal family. -“Cyrus,” was the Prince’s reply, “to save her from servitude, I -would lay down my life.” - -On which Cyrus replied: “Take, then, thine own, for I cannot reckon -that she is properly our captive, for thou didst never flee from us.” -Then, turning to the king, he added: “And thou, Armenian, take thy -wife and children, without paying anything for them, that they may know -they come to thee freely.” - -On the return of the king and prince, after this interview, there was -much talk at the Armenian court about Cyrus; one spoke of his wisdom, -another of his patience and resolution, another of his mildness; one -also spoke of his beauty, his fine figure and lofty stature, whereupon -Tigranes turned to his wife, saying: “Dost thou think Cyrus -handsome?” - -“Indeed,” she answered, “I never looked at him.” “At whom, -then, didst thou look?” asked Tigranes. “At him,” was the reply, -“who said that, to save me from servitude, he would give his own -life.” - -Of all the epics from which Moses of Khorene has derived incidents or -of which he gives fragments, the only one that has survived among the -people in complete form, with numerous variants, is Sasmadzrer. There -is a reference in the Bible to the story which is related in this poem. - -In 2 Kings xix. 37, and Isaiah xxxvii. 38, we read:— - -“And it came to pass, as he (Sennacherib) was worshipping in the -house of Nisroch his god, that Adramelech and Sharezer, his sons, smote -him with the sword; and they escaped into the land of Armenia.” - -Moses of Khorene tells the same story, adding that the Armenian king -assigned an abode to Sharezer in the south of Armenia and to Adramelech -in the south-east. - -The epic, referred to above, relates the doings of the two brothers and -their descendants in Armenia, among the rest the founding by them of -the city of Sassoon. - -The poem is divided into four parts. It is still transmitted orally, -word for word, in Armenia; in many places in poetical form. During the -last forty years, several versions of it have been taken down in -writing and published, and these have received much attention from -scholars. We cannot do more than mention this most interesting -production; the space at our disposal forbids our giving even an -outline of its contents. - -So far we have derived our information from the prose versions of -passages in the epics found in Moses of Khorene either as quotations or -as paraphrased in his own words. But that historian has also given a -few extracts from the poems in their original form, being the first -historian to do so. To these extracts we now turn. - -Although they are very few, they convey some idea of ancient Armenian -poetry. The historian says he has himself heard these poems sung to the -accompaniment of various musical instruments, of which he gives long -and minute descriptions. According to him, these poems were sung -chiefly in the province of Goghtan (the present Agulis, in Russian -Armenia). This place abounded in gardens and vineyards, and produced a -variety of good wines. The people were gay and fond of merry-making. -Their love of the old pagan religion and manners still continued long -after their conversion to Christianity. In this respect they resembled -the Saxons of Germany, and, even in the early part of the fifth -century, they observed pagan rites, sometimes openly, sometimes -secretly. One of the old Armenian songs, describing the birth of the -Armenian king Vahagn, is given in this volume, page 10. This is -supposed to be a myth describing the rise of the sun over the sea. - -At sunrise the sky gradually becomes light; between the light and the -darkness there is a kind of struggle; all nature is waiting in -expectancy of a life-giving power, of the rising of the sun. It seems -to be this expectancy of nature and man that the poet likens to the -travail of heaven, earth, and sea. The “crimson reed” is perhaps -the long red gleam sent forth from the East over the sea at dawn. - -We have already referred to Vahagn when dealing with Armenian -mythology. In the Armenian translation of the Bible, in 2 Maccabees iv. -19, the name “Vahagn” is substituted for “Hercules.” This name -is derived from the Sanscrit words vah, “to bring,” and agn, -“fire,” and therefore means “fire-bringer.” In connection with -this, it is interesting to compare the Armenian legend with a similar -legend in the Rig-Veda. The word “Agni” is the same as “Agn.” -The god Agni was born of the rising sun, to the accompaniment of -thunder and lightning; of Vahagn the song says: “Out of the flame -sprang the child.” “His hair was of fire and a beard had he of -flame”; Agni had “flaming hair and a golden beard.” A comparison -of the two poems shows that the similarity between them arises, not -from the imitation of one poet by the other, but from identity of -theme, for the belief in a fire-god or fire-hero is common to all -mythologies. According to Agathangelos, Vahagn was a favourite deity, -and his temple at Taron was famous. King Tiridates, when greeting the -Armenian people in a manifesto, says: “May Vahagn, of all Armenia, -send you courage!” He puts the name of Vahagn after the names of -Aramazd and Anahit. But, in Moses of Khorene, Vahagn is little more -than an ordinary king, the son of Tigranes I., though the historian -gives the story of his birth and his fights with dragons, as related by -the poets. He also calls Vahagn the first of the Vahuni or priestly -caste; but this caste was far more ancient than the historian thinks, -as sun worship is one of the oldest forms of religion. [31] - -Moses of Khorene says, moreover, that there was an image of Vahagn in -Georgia, where he was worshipped as a god. - -As to the form of this poem—we note the parallelism, similar to that -of the old Hebrew songs: “To Sisera a prey of diverse colours, a prey -of diverse colours of needlework, of diverse colours of needlework, on -both sides” (Judges v. 30). [32] - -The Song of Deborah, from which we have just quoted, is supposed to be -the oldest passage in the Bible, and is a good specimen of ancient -oriental poetry. - -The songs quoted in Moses of Khorene are also examples of this poetry, -and will therefore be welcome to scholars, as throwing light on this -class of ancient literature. - -The ancient Armenian form of verse has, doubtless, its own national -peculiarities. One of its characteristics is that it consists of one -main idea expressed in two or more sentences, regularly connected with -one another. There are no complex sentences, only short simple ones, -and the manner of expression is direct and definite, but, in order that -they may not tire the ear by monotony, they are, by means of -parallelism, systematically interwoven so as to form one consistent -whole. Thus the different sentences become related to one leading -thought. The words are carefully chosen and harmonious to the ear. -Metaphor and allegory abound. In colour and splendour these songs might -vie with any classical poem, and their existence is a proof that long -before the Christian era the Armenians had a perfected poetical -language, which, in its construction, imaginative force, brilliancy, -and grammatical development, bears the impress of literary culture. - -Most of the nouns and adjectives in this poem are in the diminutive -form, which expresses endearment:— - - - karmrik = reddish - achkunk = little eyes - egheknik = little reed - aregakunk = little suns - patanekik = little boy - - -The adjectives used here do not qualify the nouns, but simply serve as -epithets, or attributes, like the adjectives in the Homeric poems. The -Armenian word dzirani, [33] used in this poem, does not always mean -“red”; applied to a robe it means “red,” applied to a belt it -means “variegated”; it may originally have had the sense of -“pleasing” (cf. Russian krasni, which originally meant -“beautiful,” but now denotes only “red-coloured”). - -Another of these extant songs, belonging to the time before the -Christian era, has, as its theme, the love story of King Artashes II., -one of the greatest kings of the Arsacid dynasty. The former, as well -as all the other stories we have mentioned, belong to the Haikazian -dynasty, but the story of Artashes II. belongs to the Arsacid dynasty -and is contained in the second book of Moses of Khorene, the contents -of which are less legendary than those of the first book. When -narrating the story of Artashes, the historian addresses himself to -Sahak Bagratuni, by whose command his history was written, in these -terms:— - -“The doings of Artashes are known to thee, through the epical songs -which are sung in the province of Goghtan; that is to say, his founding -of Artaxata (Artashat), [34] his alliance by marriage with the royal -house of the Alans, his sons and their descendants, the loves of -Satenik with the Vishapazuns (progeny of dragons) who were of the race -of Astyages; his wars with them, the overthrow of their dynasty, their -slaughter, the burning of their palaces, the rivalries of the sons of -Artashes, the intrigues of their wives, which further fomented the -discord amongst them. Although these things are well known to thee -through the epical songs, I will, nevertheless, narrate them again and -will explain their allegorical meaning.” - -Then Moses of Khorene gives, in detail, a prose account of the deeds of -Artashes and his son Artavazd, as they are related in the epic of -Artashes, quoting, in the course of his narrative, the songs given in -this volume on pages 48 and 49. - -Besides these songs, there are included in the history two or three -metrical lines, which must be extracts from the epic. One of these -lines contains the reply of the Alan king when he is asked to give his -daughter in marriage to Artashes: “From whence shall brave ...” -(see for the rest page 48, the last lines, in this volume). The same -poem contains a description of the wedding (see page 49 of this -volume). - -We learn from ancient Armenian historians that weddings were times of -great festivity, especially royal weddings. All the people of the -country, old and young, were astir. In the great square they danced and -sang, hand in hand. There was a special kind of song sung on these -occasions, called “Tzutzk.” - -The marriage of Satenik was unhappy, because, besides the Vishapazuns, -she loved Argavan, the chief of the Median prisoners, who was greatly -honoured by Artashes. Another of the verses quoted by Moses of Khorene -refers to this amour of Satenik. These lines throw some light on the -nature of ancient Armenian metre. We quote the text here:— - - - “Tencha Satenik tenchans - Zartakhoir khavart - Ev ztitz khavardzi - I bardzitzn Argavana.” - - -The sense of the passage is not very clear, as it contains two words -the signification of which is disputed. M. Emin holds that the meaning -of these two words is the same, both signifying “crown,” and he -interprets the line as saying that Satenik loves Argavan so dearly that -she would gladly exchange her royal crown for his princely diadem. -After much controversy among scholars, Professor Khalatian discovered -that, in one Armenian dialect, these words are the names of certain -plants, about which there was a superstition that, if they were put -under the pillow of the beloved being, and afterwards under the pillow -of the lover, mutual affection would be ensured; therefore, according -to Professor Khalatian, the passage means that Satenik was desirous of -getting these plants from under Argavan’s pillow. - -In the time of Artashes science and poetry flourished. - -One of the sons of this king, Vroir, was a poet; another was Artavazd, -who was disliked by the people. The poem says that, when the prince was -born, the Vishapazuns stole him, and substituted a devil in his place, -and it was this evil spirit that went by the name of Prince Artavazd. - -In this poem, also, there is an account of the obsequies of Artashes, -which were celebrated with great splendour, for he was dearly beloved -by his subjects, many of whom committed suicide at his grave, not -caring to survive him. His son Artavazd, who was present, became very -jealous and uttered a complaint which Moses of Khorene gives in the -words of the epic (see page 65 of this volume). - -We have omitted many other incidents of the story of Artashes, as given -by Moses of Khorene, but it may be gathered, from what we have of the -Artashes epic, that the whole poem was very lengthy. - -From other sources we know that the poem was sung by minstrels as late -as the eleventh century, for the well-known scholar of that time, -Grigor Magistros, says in one of his writings that he has heard it, and -he quotes some of its lines in their original form. - -Artashes died in a foreign country while engaged in a campaign. In his -last moments he is seized with home-sickness, as he remembers his -fatherland. He recalls the spring of life and of the year, when the -light of dewy morn, like a thin mist, is spreading over the towns and -villages. The poem gives his dying words:— - - - “Who will give me the smoke of the chimneys and the morn of Navasard, [35] - The running of the stag and the coursing of the deer? - We sounded the horn and beat the drum - As is the manner of kings.” - - -We have already said that Artashes was a popular king, much beloved by -his people, whose death was greatly lamented; this being so, no doubt -the Artashes epic must have contained some striking dirges, composed in -honour of this monarch, but unfortunately neither Moses of Khorene nor -Grigor Magistros records any such songs in connection with him. The -despair and melancholy which cast their shadow over pagans is -conspicuous in ancient Armenian funeral songs. There were companies of -professional mourners, called egheramark (“mothers of -lamentation”), also there were groups of singing maidens. All these -followed the corpse, dressed in black, with dishevelled hair, solemnly -clapping their hands and moving in a slow dance. Moses of Khorene gives -details of such obsequies as we have mentioned. Even now in some parts -of Armenia such companies of mourners exist. Faustus Byzand describes -minutely the funeral of a prince and gives also an account of the -funeral of Queen Tigranuhi, of whom we have already spoken, adding that -the songs sung in her praise, on this occasion, were such that Tigranes -felt that they uttered all that was passing in his own mind. - -The subjects of funeral songs were the life of the deceased, his -stature, the manner of his death, and his domestic relations, so that a -collection of these songs would furnish a biography. - -We have also details of these dirges from other sources. The song opens -with a prologue, addressing the deceased and calling on him to arise -from his slumbers and carry on his usual occupations. It then goes on -to rebuke him for being deaf to the prayers of the survivors and -vouchsafing neither word nor smile. Next comes a description of the new -dwelling that the departed has chosen for himself; the grave—an abode -without doors or windows. Then comes a repetition of the words spoken -by the dead man during his last illness, followed by a series of -laudatory epithets, and finally there is the recognition that all -prayers for his recovery have been unanswered, followed by an epilogue, -taking farewell of the deceased and sending messages by him to dead -relatives and friends. - -We learn from Moses of Khorene that, in his time, besides the epics, -there was other pre-Christian Armenian literature, written and -unwritten, of various kinds. We have had examples of songs and epical -stories in their gradual development from the stage when man was weak -and ignorant, when the people sought after the supernatural and the -marvellous, and the subject of epic songs was the mystic relation -between nature and man, to the stage when the heroes are no longer -gods, but men endowed with valour and every other virtue, without spot -or flaw. The stories we have described are sufficient to prove that -Armenia had a large store of epic and heroic poems, of which unhappily -only fragments have come down to us. - -Some specimens of other branches of pre-Christian literature figuring -in the list of Moses of Khorene are Temple Books and Histories of -Temples. Throughout ancient times members of the priestly class were -the chroniclers of the nation’s history and its instructors in -wisdom; and there is no doubt that this was the case in Armenia. We -know that the famous Gnosticos Bardazan, in the second century A.D., -came to Armenia to collect material for his history, and in the -fortress of Ani he made extracts from the Temple History, which was a -chronicle of the doings of the Armenian kings. - -Armenia had its own written histories which were, for the most part, -destroyed on the introduction of Christianity in the fourth century -A.D. Moses of Khorene mentions an Armenian historian named Ughup, who -was a priest presiding over the temple of Ani in 150 B.C. - -To continue the list—we find Books of the Kings, containing -chronicles of kings and their works, and Collections of Historical -Songs, which were kept in the temples. These collections were in -existence in the fifth century A.D. Moses of Khorene gives extracts -from them and they were also sung by minstrels. - -Tueliatz Songs recounted the doings of kings and princes in -chronological order, hence their name, Tueliatz, or chronicles. - -There were also other species of literature, such as Historical -Legends, not included in the list, from which Moses of Khorene makes -quotations elsewhere, such as the History of the Origin of the -Bagratuni Race, the History of Haik, and four other books, without -titles, of which he speaks with great admiration. - -There is mention of a poet, by name David, who wrote The Wars between -Armenia and Media, founding his narrative on Armenian minstrel songs. -Unfortunately, none of his works have come down to us. - -There is also mention of an Armenian translation, from the Greek, of an -epic called Legends of Aramasdes and Hermia. Some scholars think that -this must be one of the lost books of Homer, as there are still extant -some fragments of an Armenian translation of the Homeric poems. - -The Hindoos believed that originally dramas were invented by the gods -and were performed in heaven. They were brought to earth by Brahma and -introduced to men. Whether the ancient Armenians held a similar belief -we cannot tell, but it appears that they had, in early times, a drama -of their own. The themes of their plays were the doings of the gods of -the earth, but there is no record that in Armenia drama ever reached -such a high level as it attained in Greece. It may be noticed that, -though Persia, the neighbour of Armenia, was rich in lyric and epic -poetry, it produced no dramatic literature. It is true that, in -Mohammedan times, the Persians had a religious drama; but this merely -formed part of their worship and has never had an independent -development. - -But the Armenians must have done better, as mention is made of Armenian -drama by Greek and Roman writers, from whom we learn that King Artavazd -I. [36] wrote tragedies, some of which were known to Plutarch. We also -learn from Plutarch and others that, in the time of Tigranes II., there -were theatres in Armenia, and Plutarch records that, when Lucullus -entered Tigranocerta, he found a body of actors busily engaged in -preparing to produce a drama in the theatre newly built by Tigranes, -and made use of them in the games and other public diversions in honour -of his victory. Armenian historians also make mention of the theatres -in Armenia. As late as the fifth century A.D., Hovhannes Mandakuni, a -religious author, wrote an essay against theatres and actors, which -shows that, even after the introduction of Christianity, drama survived -in Armenia. - -At later periods, in Law Books, restrictions on theatres are mentioned. - -In order to determine the date of the Heroic Poems, we must define the -different periods of Armenian history. It is now generally accepted by -scholars that, towards the end of the seventh century B.C., the Vannic -or Chaldean kingdom fell before the invading hordes of Cimmerians or -Scythians, and, during the period of anarchy, Armenians also entered -the country, which was henceforth to bear the name of “Armenia.” -The only uncertainty with regard to this migration is about the date. -It is universally agreed that it cannot have been later than the -seventh century B.C., though it may have been earlier. In the fifth -century B.C. Xenophon found Armenia an established kingdom under -Tigranes I. Vahe was the last of the Haikazian dynasty. He fell in the -war with Alexander the Great in 330 B.C. - -The next Armenian dynasty was that of the Arsacidae, of which the first -king was Wagharshag I., whose reign began in 149 B.C. - -All the epical songs that we have mentioned belong to the Haikazian -period, except the Artashes Cycle, which belongs to the Arsacid period. -During the 185 years between these two periods, there was no national -independence to supply themes for new epics and therefore there is no -heroic poetry belonging to this interval. - -The second period of Armenian literature (before the establishment of -Christianity) extends from the accession of the Arsacid dynasty to the -fourth century A.D. - -During this period, learning flourished and the libraries in the -temples and palaces were the centre of culture. The libraries in -palaces were open to any one who wished to consult the archives with a -view to writing histories of the countries, and in the temples the -priests were engaged in compiling records of the past. In these -libraries the histories of the Haikazian dynasty were kept. To this -period belongs the epic of Artashes. - -Under the rule of the Arsacidae, the number of the nobles greatly -increased and the chief amusement of the king and the nobility was -sport. Nearly every noble had his own park, which was full of all kinds -of deer and in which special sporting parties were given. One of the -chief attractions of these parties was the minstrels who sang songs -specially composed for the occasion. As upwards of seventy families -were ennobled under the Arsacidae, and entertainments were given both -by them and by those of lower rank, it will be understood that the -number of minstrels must have been large. - -As we have mentioned, to this period belongs the Artashes Cycle (A.D. -85–126). - -We have also some evidence as to the date of the epics from foreign -sources. Armenian epics must have been known, not only in Armenia -itself, but in other countries. In migration, their form must sometimes -have changed, as, in Plato, we have found the legend of Ara transformed -into the story of Er. As the story of Ara was known to Plato, we may -take for granted that it existed in the fourth century B.C. - -Strabo gives an erroneous etymology of the name “Armenia,” which he -derives from “Armenios.” [37] Perhaps he had heard of Aram, whose -story is told in the epics. This story is known to us through Moses of -Khorene, who derives the word “Armenia” from Aram, and says that -the country was called by this name only by foreigners. As to the -etymology of the word “Armenia,” there are many different opinions -which we cannot discuss here; we will only say that the name -“Armenia” is found in an inscription of Darius Hystaspes (510 -B.C.). - -We confine ourselves to one more foreign reference to Armenian epics, -viz., that of the philosopher Olympiodorus, who, in an assembly of wise -men at Athens, gave an account of an old book which had existed in -former times and which contained the history of Noah and his -descendants. He added that the incidents related in this book were -still sung by Armenian minstrels to the accompaniment of various -musical instruments. - -We have frequently quoted Moses of Khorene, whose work contains all the -extant remains of the epics and all the information that has come down -to us with regard to these poems. In fact the first book of his -History, as well as the first nine chapters of Book II., consists of -summaries and quotations from epics, together with other legends. In -taking leave of the pre-Christian period of Armenia let us cast a -glance on this historian and his work. - -Moses of Khorene was born some time between A.D. 404 and 408. He was -one of those young Armenians who were sent by the ecclesiastical -authorities to Greece for higher education. After completing his -studies, he worked in the libraries of Alexandria, Palestine, and other -places. On his return from Palestine, he was shipwrecked on the coast -of Italy; thence he went to Rome, Athens, and Byzantium, returning to -Armenia about 440. He found his benefactors dead, the Arsacid dynasty -extinct, and Christianity endangered by the Persians. It is said that -on his return he was so disappointed in both the clergy and the -laity—being especially grieved by the ignorance of the former—that -he retired into solitude and remained concealed for some time. It -happened that the Catholicos Gute, while travelling, alighted at a -certain village where he was entertained by the peasants, each of whom -made a short speech in his honour. An old man who was of the company -was urged also to say something. At first he excused himself on the -plea that he was a stranger, but, on being further pressed, to the -surprise of all present, he recited an impromptu ode greeting the -Catholicos and ended by disclosing his identity, proclaiming himself -Moses of Khorene. At first the Catholicos was incredulous, but, on a -careful examination of the old man’s features, he recognised him as -one of his former fellow-students, whereupon he burst into tears and -held him in a long embrace. - -That day was one of great rejoicing in Armenia, and, soon after, Moses -became Bishop of Bagravand. - -These Armenian students educated abroad were looked on askance by some -of the ignorant clergy, and, for this reason, some of the former used -to retire and study in seclusion. In his History, Moses of Khorene -inveighs bitterly against these illiterate priests. - -Ghazar Pharpe says:— - -“Moses, the philosopher of blessed memory, met with much opposition -and annoyance from the unlearned clergy, who called this enlightened -man a heretic, and in their ignorance found fault with his books, -besides performing many unfriendly acts towards him.” - -After this passage, several pages of the manuscript are missing. The -next page we have begins:— - -“They exhumed his bones from the grave and threw them into the -river.” - -It is doubtful whether these words refer to Moses or to some one else. - -Moses of Khorene attempted to write the history of two or three -thousand years, beginning with dark and unknown ages, weaving his -materials in such a way as to produce a vivid and life-like picture, -tinged with the colours of all the centuries which he depicts. He -writes in poetic language and his style is simple and picturesque. -Every event recorded by him becomes beautiful, noble, and great. There -is not a paragraph, not a sentence, which falls below the general level -of the work. The History is a marvellous panorama, which, as it -unfolds, fills us with ever fresh wonder and admiration. The story of -Tiridates is narrated in such a way as to draw tears from every reader -and—to use an Armenian expression—to make him feel as if the hairs -of his head had turned into thorns. He speaks with such warm admiration -of Tigranes that it might be thought he was speaking of a contemporary. - -In the following passage he displays strong feeling, in reference to -one of his teachers whom he found dead on his return from abroad. - -“Where is the calm of those gentle eyes, which to the just gave rest, -and inspired the guilty with awe? - -“Where is the smile of his cheerful lips, as he met his pupils? - -“Where is the hope that enlivened the tedium of weary journeys? that -gave repose in the midst of labour? - -“How shall I write my tragedy? and who is there to weep at it?” - -One sees by his writing that Moses was a man of strong character, with -firm principles, neither vacillating nor superficial. The reader is -profoundly impressed by his words; they sink deeply into him, pressing -like lead on a tablet, and casting him under the spell of the author. -This effect is due, in part, to his convincing power; it is impossible -not to realise what he records. His statements are concise; what others -would take pages to express, he conveys in a few words. In descriptive -powers he is unrivalled, not only among Armenians, but even as compared -with Greek and Roman historians. His graphic pictures of people and -places, together with his remarks and reflections and his frequent -quotations from the national epics, prove his historical skill and -literary taste. - -In a word, as one reads him, one feels him to be a genius of the first -magnitude. - -Moses of Khorene wrote his History at the request of Sahak Bagratuni, a -man of noble or princely birth. The History consists of three books. -Book I., as we have already said, is mainly based on national epics and -legends. Although these relate only to a few heroes, the treatment is -very elaborate. - -Then comes the history of 180 years, over which he passes very lightly, -merely giving a list of names, with a few words added to each. This -shows that, for this period, he has not been able to find any material -in the native epics and songs. - -Book II. relates to the Arsacid dynasty, speaking also of the -introduction of Christianity, and going on to the death of Tiridates -and of Gregory the Illuminator. - -Book III. contains the history of the successors of Tiridates up to the -sad end of the Arsacid dynasty. This book ends with a long lament over -the pitiful plight of Armenia. It contains also a bitter invective -against the author’s contemporaries—princes, judges, clergy, -soldiery—in short against all who, being careless of duty and -regardless of the ideal, lead the people astray. - -Moses of Khorene has left other works besides his History, one of which -is a Geography, containing, among other things, an account of the -British Isles. - -For 1400 years, the History of Moses of Khorene was revered and -accepted as the only authentic History of Armenia; and it was not till -the nineteenth century that criticism was directed against it, not only -by Armenian scholars, but also by French, German, Italian, English, and -Russian scholars. This criticism was chiefly levelled at the principal -source from which the Armenian historian professed to draw his -information. - -Arshak the Great, according to Moses, after casting off the Macedonian -yoke and conquering Assyria, set his brother, Wargharshak, on the -throne of Armenia. So commences the Arsacid dynasty. The new king -wished to know what kind of men had been ruling the country before him. -Was he (he asked) the successor of brave men or of bad men? He found an -intelligent man, a Syrian, named Mar-Abas-Katina, and sent him to his -brother, Arshak the Great, with this letter:— - -“To Arshak, the king of the earth and the sea, whose form and person -are like unto the gods and whose triumphs are above those of all kings; -the greatness of whose mind can fathom all things of earth, -Wargharshak, thy youngest brother and comrade in arms, appointed by -thee King of Armenia, greeting. Victory ever attend thee. - -“I have received from thee the behest to encourage bravery and -wisdom. I have not forgotten thy counsel. On the contrary, I have done -all that my mind could devise or my skill carry into effect, and now, -thanks to thy guardianship, I have put this country in order. And next -I want to know who, before myself, has subdued the land of Armenia, and -from whom are descended the noble families who are established here. -There does not seem to be any fixed grade of classes; among the chief -men, it is impossible to ascertain which is highest and which lowest; -so that some confusion ensues. I therefore beg that the archives may be -opened in the presence of this man whom I have sent to present himself -in thy great country, in order that he may bring back the information -that is desired by thy son and brother.” - -This Syrian (says the historian) found in the library at Nineveh a book -translated from the Chaldean into Greek, by order of Alexander the -Great, which contained various ancient histories. From this book -Mar-Abas copied only the authentic history of Armenia, which he took -back to Wargharshak, who, esteeming this document his most precious -treasure, preserved it with great care in his palace and engraved part -of it on a stone monument. - -It is this document of Mar-Abas-Katina that Moses of Khorene cites as -his chief authority for the early authentic history of Armenia, though -he also mentions several other native and foreign writers as sources of -his work. - -With regard to these statements, critics point out that the library of -Nineveh was not in existence in the second century B.C., as it was -destroyed in 625 B.C.; some even maintain that Mar-Abas-Katina was a -fictitious personage, invented by Moses of Khorene to give more weight -to his own statements, in accordance with the universal custom of his -time, when contemporary writings were continually ascribed to the great -men of old or even to imaginary characters. Moses of Khorene, say these -critics, was himself a great lover of the folklore, legends, and epics -of his country, but he knew that, if he gave these as his only source -of information, his History would gain no credence, especially as, at -the period when he wrote, just after the establishment of Christianity, -everything pagan was regarded with suspicion. Moreover, Moses, being -himself a bishop, could not have avowed such a source for all his -statements, though, as we have said, he quotes from the epics and says -that some of the contents of his work are derived from them. It is, -however, generally admitted that Moses of Khorene had in his hands such -a book as he describes and that this book was one of his sources. The -book has even been traced. - -As to Mar-Abas-Katina, although his book may not have been compiled -under the circumstances described in the History, Moses may have -believed that he was the author of the book in his possession. -Professor Mar has even found, in Arabic literature, some independent -traces of Mar-Abas-Katina. - -There is also some controversy about the date of Moses of Khorene -himself. By some he is placed even as late as the seventh century, -because his writings contain references to events as late as that -period. - -But it is not difficult to account for this without disputing the -generally received date of the historian, for, when we consider how -many ancient books have been re-edited, we see how easily the work -before us may have been touched up by a later hand in the seventh -century. [38] - -In concluding this account of Moses of Khorene, we must acknowledge -that he has not only rendered much service to Armenian history, but -that his book is one of the great works of all literature, and, if it -were better known, would take a high place among the masterpieces of -the world. - -The most momentous event in the national life of Armenia—an event -which was the chief determining factor in the early history of the -country—was the change of religion made by the adoption of -Christianity, the foundation of which had been already laid by King -Abgarus (A.D. 3–34) and the preaching of the Apostles St. Thaddeus -(A.D. 33–48) and St. Bartholomew (A.D. 49), and finally established -by Tiridates (A.D. 286–342). By this the Armenians were entirely -severed from the pagan Persians and brought into close contact with the -Greeks, whose representative was then the Emperor of Byzantium. As a -result of this religious agreement, a treaty was concluded in 319 -between Tiridates and Constantine, the first Christian Emperor of Rome, -by which the two Christian monarchs bound themselves to defend each -other against all pagans. - -The adoption of Christianity meant, to the Armenians, a revolution in -their whole view of life, a severance from their ancestral beliefs, -though these beliefs have left traces in Armenian folklore which are -visible even to this day. These beliefs and the folklore arising out of -them were regarded by the Christian clergy as a poisonous flower grown -up in the fields of paganism. The historians of the period have -chronicled the efforts of the clergy to exterminate every relic of the -old faith. Temples were pulled down and churches built in their stead; -images and other monuments were broken in pieces; heathen books and -records were destroyed; pagan festivals were turned into Christian -ones. We learn from Faustus of Byzantium that laws were even made -against the use and the singing of pagan songs, but, notwithstanding -this persecution, according to Faustus and other historians, the -Armenians “languished for these songs.” Even as late as the fifth -century, when there was an attempt to restore paganism in Armenia, -Vasak Suni had books of these songs copied and distributed among the -people in order to win them back to heathenism. This had the effect of -rekindling hostility against the songs, and the books were destroyed -when Christianity finally triumphed, although, as we have shown above, -echoes of the songs are to be heard as late as the eleventh century. - -Gregory the Illuminator (A.D. 239–325), who converted Armenia to -Christianity, belonged to the royal race of the Arsacidae. He had -studied at Caesarea. He and his family had hellenising tendencies in -religion, education, and politics. There was a section opposed to -Hellenism which favoured Syrian ideas and, in politics, inclined to -Persia. At this early period of Christianity, the Bible was read in -Greek in the north-west provinces of Armenia, while in the south-east -provinces it was read in Syriac. During this period, schools were -established for the education of the young on Christian principles. Out -of the pupils in these schools about 100 were chosen to be sent to -educational centres abroad, where Greek learning was taught. At the -time when this contact of Armenians with Greek culture took place, the -ancient glories of Hellas were past, and Greek scholars busied -themselves chiefly with theological subtilties. Of course the main -object of educating the students from the Christian schools was to -indoctrinate them in religious lore and fit them for the priesthood, -but, nevertheless, the youths also brought away with them a tincture of -Greek culture, and this led to the rise of the Golden Age of Armenian -literature. - -It was the aim of the Greek Empire at this time to make the Armenian -Church a branch of the Greek Church and to gain a political ascendency -over the Armenians, but the head of the Armenian Church and the leaders -of the intellectual movement were resolved on religious and national -independence. Towards that end two important steps were taken. In 404, -the Armenian alphabet was invented, and, in 491, the Armenian Church -was separated from the Greek Church. - -The Armenian language belongs to the Indo-European group. Though it has -been regarded by some as an offshoot of the Iranic branch, recent -scholars of eminence have maintained its right to rank as a distinct -branch, intermediate between the Iranic and the European. It has a very -independent character and many peculiarities of its own; it has also -great strength and flexibility. It has a great number of roots, and is -capable of expressing ideas of all kinds and denoting fine shades of -meaning. It is read from left to right like European languages. It is -rich in particles, to which circumstance its expressiveness is partly -due. It has also a treasure of dialectic words, which have the effect -of importing vigour to Armenian speech. It is not harsh in sound, as -has been alleged by some who are imperfectly acquainted with it. Its -alphabet consists of thirty-six characters, with which it is possible -to represent every variety of sound, consisting of vowels as well as -consonants; it has no vowel points, in this respect resembling the -European, and differing from most oriental, alphabets. The spelling is -almost perfectly phonetic. - -The language of the period with which we are dealing was Grabar or -Ancient Armenian, which remained the literary language till the -beginning of the nineteenth century and is still the Church language, -being used in all religious services. Modern Armenian has not departed -very widely from Grabar. During pagan times, the Armenians had an -alphabet of their own, but, on the introduction of Christianity, it was -discarded on account of its pagan origin. - -The honour of being the inventor of the new Armenian alphabet belongs -to St. Mesrop (361–440), a former secretary of King Tiridates. He -found some of the ancient letters and invented others to complete the -alphabet in 404. St. Mesrop and St. Sahak (353–439) were the -forerunners of the Armenian intellectual movement, the former as the -inventor of the alphabet, the latter, together with his pupils, as the -translator of the Bible into Armenian. This translation is called -“the Queen of Translations.” The language is so simple and direct, -and, at the same time, so beautiful, that there is nothing to be -compared with it. - -The Armenian translation of the Bible is the foundation-stone of -Armenian Christianity. Perhaps no translation of the Scriptures has -ever made so deep an impression on a people as this one has made on the -Armenians. By them it was taken as a symbolical history of their own -country. Did not the events recorded in the very first chapters happen -in Armenia? and also the second Creation after the Flood? Did not their -beloved mountain, Ararat, figure in the latter story? In the Bible they -found even the names of their national heroes, Haik and Vahagn, though, -as we have seen, for the latter names only the translators are -responsible. Other Bible stories resemble the records of Armenian -history. Moses led his tribe from the land of bondage into a land of -freedom, just as Haik did. All the stories of suffering under a foreign -yoke and of revolt against oppression have their parallels in the -annals of Armenia. - -At the end of the fourth century (374–383), Nerses the Great was -Catholicos. During these ten years he displayed great energy. Under his -rule, many councils were held and many regulations drawn up to -safeguard the morals of the people. In addition to this, a number of -schools, hospitals, orphanages, almshouses, and other charitable -institutions arose under his supervision. A contemporary historian says -that during Nerses’ term of office, upwards of 2000 abbeys and -monasteries were built. These religious houses served as centres, not -only of religious life, but also of learning, where numerous -ecclesiastics and teachers were trained. This intellectual movement, -which was of a purely religious and educational character, not merely -lived through the political tempest of those times, but gradually grew -and progressed. In the year 400, the representative of the Arsacid -dynasty on the throne was Vramshapuh, an able monarch, who, being -himself a lover of peace, did much to encourage and foster the -intellectual movement and to keep the country free from foreign foes -and internal dissensions. King Vramshapuh reigned twenty-one years and -it was, approximately, these years that constituted what is called -“the Golden Age of Armenian literature.” - -St. Sahak (353–439), who, with St. Mesrop, was the moving spirit of -the intellectual movement, was Catholicos during part of this period. - -The Golden Period was of short duration, only lasting twenty-five -years, but it was rich in achievements. The students educated abroad on -their return originated a new literature, pervaded by Christian ideas. -They considered themselves as torch-bearers in the new movement, and -all their work is animated by inspiration. - -This period is one of marvellous activity. The new national alphabet -had charms that wrought like magic and, coupled with the new religion -of hope, captivated all Armenian hearts. Armenians realised that it was -a religion for the people, not merely for the great and powerful. All -over Armenia national schools were opened. Nearly every book of -importance written in Greek and Syriac was translated into Armenian, as -well as some of the Latin authors. Translation was a recognised -profession, and “translator” was a title of honour, like the -European “doctor.” There are upwards of fifty chronicles and -histories written in ancient Armenian, which is richer in literature -than the Greek of the same period, and the Armenian language is so -flexible and so well adapted to the exact rendering of every kind of -literature that if, for instance, the Anabasis of Xenophon were lost, -it might be reproduced in Greek, almost word for word, from the -Armenian version. Among the writings which now survive only in -Armenian, the originals having been lost, are the Homilies of St. John -Chrysostom, two works of Philo on Providence, together with some of his -Biblical commentaries, the Chronicle of Eusebius, the works of St. -Ephrem and others. - -Besides translations, Armenia produced, during the period with which we -are concerned, original works, chiefly of an historical character. -These give very succinct accounts of the Persian and Mongol invasions, -and throw fresh light on the state of the East during the Middle Ages. -As these works lie outside our present subject, we cannot here even -name their authors. Those who wish to investigate them are referred to -what we have written elsewhere. [39] - -What is most remarkable is that, at the very beginning of the -intellectual movement, when the alphabet had just been formed, the -literary language is so highly developed, so rich and subtle, that it -is more like a language which is the product of centuries of culture. -This very fact shows that culture was no novelty in Armenia. The new -movement only introduced a fresh era in Armenian civilisation. - -Twenty-five years after the introduction of the Armenian alphabet, the -Arsacid dynasty fell (428), the last king being Artashir III. From this -time the Armenians have ceased to be politically independent. - -From 432 onwards, the greater part of Armenia was governed by Persian -satraps. The Persians regarded with great apprehension the adoption of -Christianity in Armenia, as this caused the Armenians to enter into -closer relations with the Greeks. As a matter of fact, at the end of -the fourth century, the Greeks came to aid the Armenians in driving -away the Persians. It was the aim of the Persians to eradicate -Christianity from Armenia. In order to further this object, they -declared war on the Greek Empire. The latter, instead of fighting, made -peace with the Persians, accepting very humiliating terms. The -Armenians were left to their fate, but, nevertheless, they resolved to -stand up for their religion against the Persian monarch, who led a -great army against them with the intention of enforcing Zoroastrianism. -At this time there was no Armenian king. The majority of the remaining -princes and nobles, however, formed a regular army, the people gladly -serving as volunteers, though there was a very small party, led by -Prince Vasak Suni, that were inclined, for political reasons, to -entertain the Persian proposals. - -All this took place between 449 and 454. The first religious war (451) -is known as Vardanantz, because Vardan Manikomian, who was the -commander-in-chief of the Armenian army of defence, was the moving -spirit in the struggle of Armenian Christianity against the religion of -Persia. He fell in the battle of Avarair, but his fame survived him and -he is the most beloved of Armenian heroes. - -This war, though it crushed the hopes in which the Armenians had -indulged themselves of regaining their political independence, -nevertheless convinced the Persians of the impossibility of uprooting a -religion which was so firmly implanted in the hearts of the people. - -The first religious war was followed by a second, in which the Armenian -princes offered a valiant resistance and the Persians were obliged to -give way. The leader of the resisting princes was appointed satrap by -the Persians. Thus Armenia won back partial independence, the Persians -themselves appointing an Armenian satrap and proclaiming religious -liberty. The Chief of the Magi, who was sent to convert the Armenians -to Mazdiism, returned unsuccessful and reported to the Persian king: -“Even if the immortals themselves came to our aid, it would be -impossible to establish Mazdiism in Armenia.” Although Vardan and his -followers perished in this war, and although the Armenians, apparently, -lost the battle, the struggle resulted in the triumph of the ideal for -which Armenia was struggling—that of religious freedom. This the -Persians realised and never, after this time, did they make any attempt -to force the Armenians to change their faith. Neither did any of the -various Mohammedan conquerors venture on any steps towards bringing -about the conversion of the whole Armenian nation, though they have -enforced conformity on a small scale; they have had to content -themselves with political supremacy. The Mohammedan world has realised -that Christianity is a great power in Armenia, and this is the reason -why the religious heads of the nation—the Catholicos and the -patriarchs—meet with great consideration, not only from the -governments of Christian states, but also from Mohammedan powers; both -by Christian and by Mohammedan countries which have rule over Armenia -these dignitaries are recognised as representatives of their country, -not only in religious, but also in secular affairs. Thus the Christian -National Church has been one of the chief factors of the unity and the -national consciousness which exists among Armenians even up to the -present day, and this is the reason why the battle of Vardan is -regarded as a national triumph and is still annually commemorated. [40] - -When Armenia had ceased to be an independent state, its literature -became more religious, as the clergy were anxious to foster devotion. -Christianity introduced a new kind of poetry, namely, Church hymns and -chants. These were called, in Armenian, sharakans. They were not only -written in metre, but they were composed with a view to being sung. The -word sharakan means a “row of gems.” Historians of the Middle Ages -say that the sharakans were mainly written by the “translators,” -i.e., by writers of the fourth and fifth centuries. As a matter of -fact, very few sharakans were written after the thirteenth century. -Since then, no prayers or hymns have been introduced into the Armenian -Church. - -It is said by writers of the Middle Ages that St. Sahak arranged the -sharakans for ten voices and St. Stephanos for twenty-six voices, -corresponding to created things—elements, plants, birds, and animals. -There were also women sharakan writers. One of these was Sahakadukht, -who lived in the eighth century. She not only wrote, but also composed -music, and taught singing. Out of modesty, she used to hide behind a -curtain, whence she gave instruction to both sexes. An historian of the -time, Ghevond Eretz, says of her sharakans: “They were angelic songs -on earth.” Singing was considered a great art in Armenia, and -musicians were called “philosophers.” Several of such -“philosophers” were canonised and had the word “philosopher” -prefixed to their names. The fame of some of these musicians spread to -foreign lands. This explains the fact that, when Catholicos Petros -Getadardz went to Constantinople, he took with him a company of -musicians, whom he presented, as a gift, for the service of the -Byzantine court. - -There was a revival of sharakan-writing in the thirteenth century, -which was a flourishing literary period. It was during this time that -Bishop Khachatour Tarinetzi invented distinctively Armenian musical -notes, which are quite unrelated to European ones, so that the -Armenians had now, not only an alphabet of their own, but also their -own musical notation, and their hymns could be set to music. This -notation was improved in the eighteenth century. - -Armenian hymns are written in a style which is not only picturesque, -but which also has a charm of its own; its colours are very rich; the -pictures it conjures up are vivid. When one remembers that many of them -were written when national life and death were hanging in the balance, -because of foreign oppression, at a time when they had no one to turn -to but the Creator, we understand how it is that so much tenderness, -hope, and devotion are embodied in these “rows of gems,” nor can -one help thinking that Armenian is the natural language for religious -poems. A vein of mysticism runs through many of these hymns, especially -through those written by Gregory of Narek (951–1009), one example of -which—“The Christ-Child”—appears on page 113 of this volume. -But this mysticism is not obscure; on the contrary, it is to the hymn -what light and shade are to a picture serving to bring it into touch -with nature. - -Hymns have always been popular among the Armenians. Even peasants know -them by heart and sing them. The hymn tunes are unique, being entirely -independent of those of other Christian nations. Their somewhat strange -rhythm recalls the chorus of singers round the altars of the pagan -gods. No doubt some pagan melodies have found their way into the -Christian hymn tunes of Armenia. - -The Armenians are rich in folksongs. The music to which these songs are -set possesses great charm. In it, also, the rhythm is most important. -An Armenian composer, speaking of these folksongs, says:— - -“By means of those ethereal and heavenly waves of melody one sees -enchanting mermaids who, after dancing on the banks of large and small -lakes and poising themselves on the waters, allure towards themselves -the pagan Armenians, offering love kisses to all minstrels.” - -In later years Armenian music and poetry were affected by European -influence, but in her hymns and folksongs she has musical treasures -that are all her own. - -Side by side with the written literature of this period, the unwritten -literature continued to grow. The latter consists mainly of folktales, -fables, and proverbs. - -It is easy to distinguish a Christian folktale from a pagan one by the -different ideals embodied in it. Some of the folktales of this period -have arisen out of historical events. - -In the folktales, it is the youngest child that is the hero or heroine. -These stories express the people’s outlook on life and are the -product of their experiences, which have been handed down from -generation to generation. - -There is a great deal of folklore current in Armenia, some of which has -been collected and published. - -Grigor Magistros says that, in his time, unwritten fables in rhyme were -very popular. - -There are also many Armenian proverbs. It seems to have been a custom -in ancient times—and the usage is still retained in some places—for -a man to go and meet the girl he wishes to marry on the banks of a -stream or in a forest and to ask her a riddle. If she gives the correct -answer to the riddle, he marries her. - -Here are a few of the riddles used on these occasions:— - -“What paper is it that you cannot write on? and what sort of pen can -write on this paper?” - -A maiden who desires to marry the man should answer:— - -“The heart is the paper on which no pen can write; language is the -pen that writes on the heart.” - -“What rose is it that opens in the winter and in due time fades and -is gone?” - -Answer: “Snow is the rose that opens in the winter; when summer -comes, it fades and is gone.” - -“The brother chases the sister, the sister the brother, but neither -can catch the other.” - -Answer: “The sun and the moon.” - -There is another usage, belonging especially to young girls, which has -given rise to an extensive literature. This literature consists of -charm-verses, which are used for fortune-telling. A selection of these -is given on pages 67–68. - -Once a year, on the Eve of Ascension Day, young maidens who want their -fortunes told decorate a bowl with certain specially selected flowers. -Into this bowl each girl casts a token—a ring, a brooch, a thimble. -After filling the bowl with flowers of seven different kinds, and water -drawn from seven springs, they cover it with an embroidered cloth and -take it by night to the priest, who says a prayer over it. They then -put it out in the moonlight, open to the stars, leaving it till dawn. -Next morning, at daybreak, furnished with provisions for the whole day, -they go out of the village carrying the bowl, to the side of a spring, -to the foot of a mountain, or into an open field, gathering, on the -way, various kinds of flowers, with which they deck themselves. Arrived -at their destination, they first play games, dance, and sing, then they -take a beautiful little girl, too young to tell where the sun rises, -who has been previously chosen for their purpose and gaily dressed for -the occasion, and who does not know to whom each token belongs, and -cover her face with a richly wrought veil, so that she may not see what -is in the bowl. The child draws the articles out of the bowl, one by -one, and holds each in her hand. While she does this, one of the party -recites a charm-song, and the owner of each token takes the song which -accompanies it as her fortune. - -There are thousands of these charm-songs. In form they are very simple. -Sometimes two consecutive lines deal with quite distinct subjects, -though they rhyme together and their construction is the same. Each is -a perfect poem. - -After the end of the Arsacid dynasty, Armenia remained under the rule -of Persia for two hundred years. During this period, sometimes the -whole country fell temporarily into the hands of the Greeks; on other -occasions the same fate befell a few provinces. Speaking generally, -after the fall of the Arsacidae, the eastern—and more -extensive—part of Armenia remained under Persian rule, and the -western—and smaller—part came under Greek dominion. The Greeks and -the Persians were continually fighting with one another for the -possession of the whole country. Armenia was the battlefield, and the -sufferer was always the Armenian people. After the Arabs had embraced -Mohammedanism, they formed a powerful empire, conquering Mesopotamia -and then passing on to Persia. They forced the Persians to become -Mohammedans, and in 640 entered Armenia. Eastern Armenia, which was -then in the hands of the Persians, fell into their possession. - -The Greeks greatly dreaded the taking of Armenia by the Arabs, as it -formed a strong barrier against the assault of the Greek colonies in -Asia Minor. Therefore, as they had before fought in Armenia against the -Persians, so they now proceeded to fight against the Arabs; and again -Armenia was the battlefield and the sufferers were the Armenians. The -Greeks came from time to time demanding tribute of them, and if their -demand were resisted, the people were plundered and slaughtered. On the -departure of the Greek army, the Arabs came, making the same demand. -Thus, during the first two hundred years following the fall of the -Arsacidae, the Armenians were between the two fires of the Persians and -the Greeks, and then for another two hundred years between the two -fires of the Greeks and the Arabs. During this period, the Armenian -princes offered resistance from time to time and succeeded in regaining -independence for short intervals. The governors set by the Arabs over -Armenia were in the habit of persecuting the native princes, to prevent -them from organising revolts. Of these governors, the most bloodthirsty -were Kashm and Bugha. The former cunningly invited all the Armenian -princes to the town of Nakhejevan, where they assembled in the church; -whereupon, by order of the government, the church was surrounded by -piles of wood and set on fire, and the princes burnt alive (704). The -army was then set to plunder and slaughter the Armenians and burn the -towns and villages, as the people, deprived of their princes, could -offer no resistance. Many were exiled to the Arab capital, Damascus. -Bugha (850) surpassed even Kashm in his cruelty, but we need not -chronicle his atrocities here. Under such governors as these, the -tribute and the taxes were enormous, and the people became very poor. -There were, however, also good governors, during whose rule the people -were free from oppression and were allowed to pursue their peaceful -occupations. - -But gradually the power of the Arabs declined. - -The Armenians took advantage of the weakening of the Arab power to form -independent kingdoms. One of the principal noble families during the -period of Arab dominion was that of the Bagratuni. This family was rich -and powerful and had much land in its possession. Under the Arsacidae, -the head of this family was hereditary “coronator” (i.e., he had -the privilege of putting the crown on the king’s head, on the -occasion of a new sovereign). During the rule of the Arabs, the command -of the Armenian army was given to this family. The Bagratuni, though -extremely courageous and patriotic, were also cautious and tactful in -their relations with the Arabs, whom they served faithfully, thus -gaining the respect of the Khalifs. As they also won the love and -esteem of their own countrymen by rebuilding and restoring what the -Arabs had destroyed, they were able to act as mediators between the -Khalifs and the Armenian people. In wars against the enemies of the -Arabs, members of this family had many successes. Once a Persian prince -revolted against the Khalif and a Persian army of 80,000 marched into -Armenia. The Arabs were too weak to make any resistance, but Ashot -Bagratuni with his troops defeated the invaders. After the victory, the -Khalif of Bagdad sent a crown to Ashot, thus making him a king, -thinking, “He is so powerful that, if I do not give him a crown, he -will seize one for himself.” - -Thus in 885 Ashot became the first king of the Bagratuni dynasty. The -Greek emperor, Basil I., also sent a crown to Ashot, with a view to -gaining the friendship and influence of Armenia. During the dominion of -the Bagratuni, the régime of the Arsacidae was restored and the -country prospered. Ani, which was the seat of government during the -greater part of this period, though formerly it was little more than a -fortress, became one of the most flourishing cities of the time. It was -full of fine edifices—churches, palaces, museums, etc.—and was -called “the city of a thousand and one churches.” Its fame even -spread to foreign lands. - -There were several other noble Armenian families with ambitions. In 908 -one of these—the Ardzruni family—made the lands they held into a -kingdom, called Vaspurakan, with Van as a capital city. In taking this -step they were encouraged by the Arabs, who were watching with alarm -the growing power of the Bagratuni. - -In 908 another Armenian kingdom was set up with Kars as its capital. - -Ashot III., who was then the king of the Bagratuni dynasty, was quite -aware that the Arabs were encouraging the formation of small Armenian -kingdoms, but he offered no opposition, leaving his rivals alone to -serve the people each in his own way. - -This Ashot was one of the greatest sovereigns of this dynasty. He was -called “Ashot the Compassionate” because of his love of the people -and his numerous charitable provisions for their benefit. It was said -that he would never dine without sending for some beggars out of the -street to share the meal with him. - -The most renowned as well as the wisest and most powerful king of this -dynasty was Gagik I. (990–1020), under whom the country enjoyed its -period of greatest prosperity. - -The danger of the Arabs was past, but now a new peril threatened the -East, that of the Seljukian Turks, who came from Central Asia in search -of a new country. Persia and Mesopotamia fell before them and they -entered Armenia. Several of the Armenian princes offered them stout -resistance with some success, but, fearing that this success was only -temporary, others transferred themselves and their subjects to more -secure parts of the country. - -The Seljuks conquered Persia and established a Persian kingdom of their -own, but the new Persia was no longer Zoroastrian, but Mohammedan. -Armenia again became a battlefield. The Greeks also claimed the city of -Ani, and this led to many conflicts in which the Armenians made a brave -defence. The town, however, fell through treachery and the Greeks -devastated some parts of the country, treating the inhabitants no -better than the Arabs and the Seljuks had done. In order to weaken the -power of Armenia, they also made attempts to exterminate the native -princes and nobles. - -About the same time, the Seljuks again invaded Armenia and completed -the desolation which the Greeks had begun. They wrought great -destruction in Ani. - -The last king of the Bagratuni dynasty was unable to re-establish his -kingdom and was killed by the Greeks. His two sons and his grandson -were poisoned. So ended the race of the Bagratuni whose dynasty had -lasted 160 years. - -During the rule of this house, the country had a period of rest and the -energies of the people were directed to the restoration and development -of the country. The ruined monasteries and churches were rebuilt, -schools were again established; commerce, arts, and handicrafts throve. -This was a particularly flourishing time for the national architecture, -which now assumed a new character. Most of the Armenian abbeys and -churches were built during this time, and as these places had always -been seats of learning, alternative erudition revived, original writing -and the transcription of manuscripts going on briskly within the -convent walls. The literature of this period is chiefly of a religious -character. In it we see traces of Arabic influence—the influence of -the eighth century, when Arabic literature was at its zenith. The chief -debt of Armenian literature to the Arabs is the introduction of rhyme, -which is first found in Armenian verse in the eleventh century. - -In dealing with this period, as we are only concerned with Armenian -poetry, we must leave unmentioned the historians and other famous prose -writers. - -The most remarkable Armenian poet under the Bagratuni dynasty was -Grigor Narekatzi (951–1009), who has been called the Pindar of -Armenia and has also been canonised as a saint. From his pen came -elegies, odes, panegyrics, and homilies. His sacred elegies -(ninety-five in number) are elevated in style, showing Arabian -influence, and very pure in sentiment. His canticles and melodies are -still chanted in the Armenian Church. Verbosity is a characteristic of -his work; in one passage the word “God” is accompanied by ninety -adjectives. - -He was greatly loved and revered by the people, but he aroused jealousy -in some of his ecclesiastical colleagues. On one occasion, they went to -the Catholicos with accusations against him. The Catholicos appointed -priests to investigate the case. These priests repaired to the abbey -where Grigor Narekatzi was, arriving about dinner time on a Friday. To -their surprise they found roast pigeons on the table, and reminded -Grigor that it was fast-day, whereupon the latter said, addressing -himself to the pigeons: “If that be so, off with you!” and the -roasted birds took to themselves wings and flew away. The astonished -investigators, without going into the case, turned back and reported -the miracle to the Catholicos. Of course this is an extravagant legend, -but it shows the high estimation in which Grigor Narekatzi was held by -his contemporaries. - -The greatest work of this writer and the one on which his fame rests is -Narek. It is divided into ninety-five chapters, and is a tragic -devotional monologue composed of poetical prayers. Here the author -reveals his heart and soul in converse with God. Hope, fear, love, -faith, repentance, entreaty, aspiration, breathe as if mingled with -tears in fine and noble lines and periods. There is a copious stream of -epithets, a flood of rhetoric, an unfailing flow of ideas. With all -this wealth of diction, this work is sincere and strikingly original, -and gives evidence of the author’s high-soaring imagination. He -begins with an address to God, in which he represents himself as one of -the vilest of creatures, saying that, if all the trees in all the -forests of the world were pens and all the seas ink, they would not -suffice to write down his sins, but towards even such sinfulness as -this the mercy of God is great, and the Creator is so powerful that it -will be possible for Him to bleach the sins as white as snow. - -This work gives evidence that its author had, on the one hand, great -love of God and a firm faith, and on the other hand a vivid imagination -and poetic fire. All this he has worded together with great skill. - -Narek is a mingling of prose and verse. It begins in prose and then -breaks into verse, then again, after continuing to some length, returns -to prose, and so on. It was printed for the first time in 1673 at -Constantinople; in all thirty editions have been published in different -places. It stands by itself, being the only long mystic work in -Armenian literature, mysticism being quite alien to the typical -Armenian mind. Even the mysticism of Narek and a few other works of the -same period has its own peculiarities. It is not so obscure as ordinary -mysticism, partaking, rather, of the nature of allegory. -Notwithstanding its unusual character, Narek was formerly regarded with -veneration little short of that accorded to the Bible itself. Within -recent times superstitious people ascribed to it miraculous medical -qualities, believing that if certain chapters were read over a patient -he would be cured. It was also believed that if any one read certain -chapters—forty in number—with concentrated attention, banishing -thought of everything else, he would have the power of controlling -devils, but this it is said is very difficult and even dangerous, -because while the reading is going on, evil spirits come and try to -distract the mind of the reader, annoying, terrifying, and even -torturing him; if his attention wanders, he may become possessed. All -this shows the value and importance that were attached to Narek. At the -end of this work, the author states that he finished writing it in the -year 1001–2. Gregory of Narek also wrote several songs. Some of his -prayers and sharakans are used in the church services. Another great -writer of this period was Grigor Magistros (—— -1058) who produced -poetry of some value. He was of princely lineage and, unlike the -Armenian authors who were his predecessors or contemporaries, he was a -layman. He gained reputation as a linguist, a scholar, and a writer, -and was one of the greatest politicians of his time. He received the -title of “duke” from the Greek emperors Constantine and Monomachus. -Early in life he gave up politics and retired to his estate, where he -devoted himself to literary pursuits. He wrote both poetry and prose. -His chief poetical work is a long metrical narration (a thousand lines -in extent) of the principal events recorded in the Bible, from the -Creation to the Resurrection of Christ. The author states that this -work was written in three days at the request of a Mohammedan noble who -wished to make acquaintance with the Christian Scriptures and who, -after reading the poem, became converted to Christianity. Grigor -Magistros was almost the first poet to adopt the use of rhyme, -introduced into Armenia by the Arabs. In his work Grigor Magistros -tells some interesting stories which he has learnt from the peasants. -One is the following. The lark, fearing that heaven would fall down, -lay on her back, stretching up her feet towards the sky, thinking she -would thus prevent the catastrophe. Some laughed at her and said, -“With your spindle legs, you want to become a tree, O bird, with a -mind capacious as the sea.” The lark replied, “I am doing what I -can.” - -At the end of the eleventh century, chronicles and histories were -written in ancient Armenian (Grabar), but there was also a language of -the people, in which books for popular use, such as collections of -medical recipes, began to be written at this period, as well as songs. -When the country again lost its independence many migrations took -place. It was not only peasants and citizens who migrated; some of the -nobles also sought more secure dwelling places in mountainous -districts. The majority of these settled in the region of the Taurus -Mountains, and there the emigrants multiplied to such an extent that -they equalled the Greeks in number. In their new home they built many -churches and abbeys, where they educated the boys of the settlement. -Soon they established a number of villages and small towns, and the -princes set up fortresses. The Byzantine emperors rather encouraged -this progress, as they thought that the existence of small -buffer-states on their frontier would serve as a barrier against the -attacks of Mohammedan countries. One of these princes, Rubin by name, -established himself there in 1080. He chose an impregnable stronghold, -and the Armenians of the neighbourhood came and put themselves under -his protection. Other Armenian princes, settled in the surrounding -districts, adopted him as their chief. Having concentrated and -strengthened his power, he ruled his little realm—which was called, -after him, the Rubinian Principality—with great wisdom for fifteen -years. He was succeeded by his son, Constantine, in 1095. Constantine -extended his dominions by taking some almost impregnable fortresses -from the Greeks. During his reign many Europeans began to come, with -their armies, to the East. They wore the badge of the cross on their -arms, and were therefore called “Crusaders.” They cleared Palestine -and Syria of Mohammedans and set up new Christian principalities in -those countries. The Armenians called these strangers “Latins” -because they were all Catholics of the Roman Church. Constantine -rendered great services to the Crusaders by furnishing them with -guides, providing them with provisions, etc., and the European princes, -as an acknowledgment, conferred on him the title of “marquis.” - -The successors of Constantine extended still further the boundaries of -the principality. After gaining possession of the mountains and -strongholds, they came to the plains of Cilicia and imposed their rule -as far as the sea-coast. At this time the Byzantine Empire was very -weak, and the Mohammedan Seljuks and Arabs were not very strong, as -they had become divided among themselves and were engaged in strife -with one another. The Crusaders had also formed new Christian -principalities in those regions, so that the Rubinians had no fears -either of Mohammedans or of any other foe. Precisely one hundred years -after the accession of Rubin I., the Armenians possessed the extensive -reach of territory between the Taurus Range and the sea, where they had -built many fortresses, towns, and even ports. - -Leo II. (1185) succeeded in repelling the attacks of the Sultan of -Damascus and other Mohammedan rulers, even taking some towns from them. - -During this period, Saladin, Sultan of Egypt, taking advantage of -dissension among the crusading princes, attacked them, and took -Jerusalem and the rest of Palestine (1187). - -Then a new Crusade was started, led by the German Emperor Frederick -Barbarossa. This monarch sent emissaries to Leo, asking his help -against the Mohammedans, promising him a crown as a reward. Leo -supplied the Crusaders with provisions and rendered them other -assistance. Barbarossa died without fulfilling his promise, but the -crown was sent by his successor, Henry VI., after consultation with the -Pope of Rome. Leo was crowned king in 1198. The following year, the new -Armenian king also obtained recognition from the Byzantine Emperor, who -sent him a crown. Leo still further extended his dominions and put the -whole kingdom into excellent condition. He did not, like the -Bagratunis, re-establish the régime of the Arsacidae, but tried to -imitate European institutions, inviting many French, English, and -German experts to his kingdom, giving them appointments in the court, -the army, and the council. Many new schools were opened in this reign -in which the teaching was entrusted to learned Europeans as well as to -Armenians. - -Arts and handicrafts, commerce and agriculture also flourished under -this king. Leo died in 1219 after a reign of thirty-four years. For his -great services to his people, he was called “Leo the Benefactor.” - -It was under the rule of this king that Armenia entered into close -relations with Europe. Just as the Zoroastrian Persians and afterwards -the Greeks had inflicted all kinds of persecutions on the Armenians in -order to convert them to their religions, so also in the reign of Leo -II. and for many years afterwards the popes of Rome did everything -possible to make the Armenians join their Church. The popes promised -the Armenians help against the Mohammedans, they even offered to -organise a Crusade, but the first condition was that the Armenians -should become Catholics. When the Armenians did not accept these -advances, a number of Catholic priests came to Armenia and tried to -convert them. These priests were called “Unitors.” At this time the -Tartars (who were heathens) became very strong and conquered Persia. -The Armenian king when this conquest took place was Hetum. This king, -though he maintained friendly relations with the courts of Europe, -attached little weight to promises emanating from these quarters; he -therefore formed an alliance with the Tartars against the Mohammedans. -He tried to indoctrinate his new allies in Christian ideas and almost -effected their conversion to Christianity. That he did not quite gain -his object is due to external causes. Hetum, in conjunction with the -Tartars, fought successfully against many Mohammedan sultans, but the -Egyptian mamelukes grew strong and the Tartars became Mohammedans -(1302), whereupon enmity arose between them and the Armenians. Three -Mohammedan races—Seljuks, Tartars, and mamelukes—one after another -attacked Cilicia, devastating the country and plundering many towns. -The Armenians asked assistance from the Pope and from European kings; -help was promised from France, but it never came, so the Tartars -conquered Cilicia and slew its king, who, however, was avenged by his -youngest brother, Ashin, who collected an army and drove the Tartars -out of the country (1308). - -The Mohammedan kingdoms became very powerful at this time. The -mamelukes dominated, besides Egypt, Arabia, Palestine, and Syria as far -as the Euphrates. - -The common aim of all the Mohammedan governments was to destroy the -independent kingdom of Armenia, because it was the only Christian state -in Asia that was capable of rendering assistance to European sovereigns -should any of them enter on a new Crusade in order to gain possession -of the Holy Sepulchre. When the mamelukes heard that the European -states were planning a new Crusade, they formed an alliance with the -Tartars and the Sultan of Iconia and devastated Cilicia. But the -Armenians made a brave defence and the mamelukes granted a peace for -fifteen years. By this peace it was agreed that the King of Armenia -should pay a certain amount of tribute and the mamelukes should restore -the places they had taken. Again there was talk of a Crusade, and the -Sultan of Egypt again attacked Cilicia. Leo V. (King of Armenia) asked -for help from Europe, but the only assistance given was 10,000 florins -sent by the King of France and a few sacks of corn from the Pope. This -was not what the Armenians wanted; in fact they were again left to -their fate. The Mohammedan sultan offered to restore Leo’s kingdom if -he would swear on the Cross and the Gospels that he would have no -dealings with the Crusaders. Leo V. died in 1341, and as he had no -children the throne passed to the Lusignan dynasty. - -There were only four kings of this dynasty: the last king was Leo VI. -(1365–1375). He was taken prisoner when the sultan invaded and -devastated Cilicia. Thus ended the kingdom of Armenia. After a few -years, through the mediation of John, King of Castille, Leo was set at -liberty. He came to Europe to ask for help in regaining his kingdom. -There was a talk of a Crusade specially on behalf of the Armenians, but -it never went beyond the stage of promises, and the last King of -Armenia died in Paris in 1393 and is buried there in the Abbey of St. -Celestin. - -We have spoken mostly of Cilicia during this period. If we wish to -complete the picture of the devastation of Armenia, we must name -Zenghis Khan, Tamerlane (1387), and other enemies of the human race, -but we will not enter into particulars of their work of desolation. - -The period whose history we have sketched (twelfth to fourteenth -centuries), especially the two former centuries, is called the Silver -Age of Armenian literature. The independence of Armenia gave a -breathing space which facilitated the production of literary works. -This is the period of the revival of learning and also the period when -Armenia came in contact with the countries of Western Europe and became -acquainted with Western civilisation. - -Catholicos Nerses, surnamed “the Gracious,” is the most brilliant -author of the beginning of this period (1100–1173). He was the -great-grandchild of Grigor Magistros, and his brother Grigorios was -Catholicos before him. His songs and sharakans are greatly loved by the -people and some of the latter are sung in the churches. He was -canonised as a saint. Nerses was the first Armenian to write very long -poems. He followed his great-grandfather in using rhyme. There is a -great variety of metre in his works. As a rule his long poems are -written in eight-feet lines, the same rhyme being employed nearly -throughout the poem. This practice he abandoned in certain cases for, -as he himself remarks, “it might tire the reader”! He has also -poems written in couplets of short lines, which are the most musical -and successful of his works. Some of his poems have peculiarities of -their own. He sometimes begins the lines of the first stanza with A, -those of the next with B, and so on in alphabetical order, or he uses -the same letter for the beginning of the first line and the conclusion -of the last. He also sometimes makes metrical acrostics of his own -name. Of course these contrivances were in common use in his time. -Sometimes he makes acrostics of the titles or names in dedications of -his poems. But these artificialities do not spoil the poem or give the -impression of a tour de force, in fact they are so unobtrusive that -they might easily escape the reader’s notice. In all he has written -15,000 lines. - -One of his long poems entitled Jesus the Son consists of 4000 -eight-feet lines. These lines, with very few exceptions, end with the -Armenian syllable -in. Some of the songs in this poem are very -beautiful and are sung in churches. - -Another of his long poems is an elegy on the Fall of Edessa which was -taken from the Crusaders by the Turks in 1144. This is an allegory: the -town itself recounts its misfortunes and addresses itself to other -cities of the world, to the mountains, to the seas, and begs them not -to judge her by what she is in her present condition, but assures them -that she was once a crown bearer and in a most happy state, but now she -is in mourning, and misfortune has befallen her. As Nerses was a -contemporary of the event which forms the subject of the poem, the -latter has an historical value, being a first-hand source of -information relating to the times of the Crusaders. - -Nerses also wrote a long poem narrating the history of Armenia from the -days of Haik up to his own time. Leo III., one hundred and fifty years -after the poet’s death, asked the bishop Vahram Rabun to continue the -poem from the death of Nerses to his own time (1275), thus giving the -annals of the Rubinian dynasty. In writing this sequel, in 1500 lines, -he said: “It is a bold act to continue the work of Nerses the -Gracious,” but he adds that, knowing that with gold thread embroidery -black threads are sometimes introduced, he consented to undertake the -labour. - -It is not within our province here to describe the great work achieved -by Nerses in other directions, but he was much beloved by his people -and has left an immortal name as the greatest personality of his age. -We only here record one incident to show the breadth of his ideas. In -the town of Edessa pestilence was raging and sufferers from the disease -were taken out of the town and segregated. It was considered hopeless -to cure them, as it was believed that the disease came as a punishment -from God. Nerses sent out an epistle to the plague-stricken people, -offering them consolation, saying that, in compensation for their -suffering, they would receive eternal bliss. In this letter, he -declares that the disease was not sent from Heaven as a punishment and -people should not avoid the sick; on the contrary, it was their duty to -care for their brethren when they were in distress, and he assured them -that, with patience and right treatment, it was possible to get rid of -the disease. - -This counsel made an immense impression on the people, as they had the -word of the Catholicos that this was not a heaven-sent chastisement; -they nursed the patients and in a short time the pestilence was stayed. - -This idea of Nerses, though it is now commonly held, was very -remarkable in the age in which he lived. Nerses the Gracious is -considered the Fénelon of Armenia. Some of his elegies are perfect -gems of poetic art. One of his prayers is divided into twenty-four -verses, according to the twenty-four hours, one verse to be used each -hour, but, seeing that this is sometimes impracticable, he says that it -might be read in three portions of light verses in the morning, at -noon, and at night. If this division is also impossible, he recommends -that it should be read in two portions, in the morning and evening. -This prayer has been translated into thirty-six languages, of which -English is one. - -An example of the work of Nerses the Gracious, entitled “The Arrival -of the Crusaders,” is given in this volume on page 58. - -This is hardly a representative poem and is not the best specimen of -the author’s work. It was inserted because of the interest of the -Crusades for Europeans. The gems of his work may be found among the -sharakans, which we can say without hesitation will bear comparison -with any work of this class in any language of the world. -Unfortunately, it is impossible to do justice to these hymns in a -translation. Nerses also wrote verses for children, and riddles, both -in the vernacular. - -In general, his language is simple and expressive. He also composed -short fables, according to a contemporary historian; some of these were -recited at weddings and other festivals. - -Mkhitar Gosh was the author of one hundred and fifty fables, marked by -good taste, purity, and elegance. He died in 1213. He is called the -Aesop of Armenia. - -The following is a specimen of Mkhitar Gosh’s fables: The owl sent -matchmakers to the eagle, asking his daughter in marriage, in these -terms: “You are the ruler of the day; I am the ruler of the night. It -will be better for us to form an alliance by marriage.” - -The proposal was accepted. - -After the wedding, the bridegroom could not see by day and the bride -could not see by night. Therefore the falcons ridiculed them, and their -marriage was unhappy. - -This fable is meant as a warning against marriages between Christians -and pagans. - -Many of Mkhitar Gosh’s fables are very original and have a charm of -their own. - -Another famous fabulist was Vardan Aigektzi. His collection of fables -is called The Book of the Fox. Several additions have been made to this -work by later hands, so that the book has no uniformity of style and -some fables in the collection are childish and trivial. - -This is one of the fables in this book: - -Mankind is like three fools. The first went to the tops of the -mountains trying to catch a wind, and take it home, but though he tried -a hundred years he never caught a wind that was as big as a drop of -rain. The second, taking with him a number of servants and a great deal -of money, sat down by the side of a river, trying to use its waters as -a tablet on which to inscribe an elegy, but he could not form a word or -trace a letter, though he laboured for a hundred years. The third tried -to surpass the others by undertaking two enterprises at once. He had a -huge bow made with arrows to match, and tried by night to shoot at the -stars and other heavenly bodies and bring them home, that he alone -might have light, but he could not catch a spark. Besides this, during -the day he ran after his own shadow, but never caught it, though he -tried for a hundred years. - -The moral of this fable is the futility of human life and human -endeavour. “Vanity of vanities; all is vanity.” - -Moses Kaghankatvatzi (seventh century) mentions in his history some -interesting fables. In one of them, which arose when there was a great -famine in the land, the story is put into the mouth of a -personification of the grain millet, whose narrative is to this -effect:— - -“I, Millet, was lying in an unknown place in the village of Kaku, in -the province of Shakashen. All the purchasers treated me with contempt -and rejected me. Then came my brother, Famine, and dominated the land. -From that day I went and sat on the tables of the King and the -Catholicos.” - -Armenian apologues and proverbial sayings are worthy of attention. Here -are a few characteristic specimens; some of these are rhymed in the -original, in others the contrasted words rhyme:— - -One fool threw a stone into a well; forty wise men were unable to get -it out. - -He crossed the sea safely, and was drowned in a brook. - -They were reading the Gospel over the wolf’s head. He said: “Hurry -up! The sheep will get past.” - -They asked the partridge: “Why are your feet red?” “From the -cold,” he replied. “We have seen you in the summer as well,” they -rejoined. - -Are you the corn of the upper field? (Who are you that you should be -set above others?) - -A black cat has passed between them. (Referring to friends who have -quarrelled.) - -Whenever you touch a stone, may it become gold! (A blessing.) - -The donkey began its tricks on the bridge. - -Light for others, fire for the house. (A saint abroad, a devil at -home.) - -The black donkey is tied up at the gate. (A worthless thing is always -at hand.) - -Here is a riddle by Nerses Shnorhali:— - -I saw an outspread white tent, wherein black hens were perched, that -laid eggs of various kinds and spoke in human language. (A book.) - -Between the end of the thirteenth century and the beginning of the -fourteenth lived, almost contemporaneously, three great poets, all -ecclesiastics:—Constantine Erzingatzi, Hovhannes Erzingatzi, and -Frik, who were almost the last singers of the dying Armenian kingdom. - -The first of these, Constantine Erzingatzi, was born about 1250–1260 -in Erzingan. From early youth he showed poetic talent and gained favour -from the people, but incurred the jealousy of his own associates. In -one of his poems he says he cannot tell why his enemies hate him and -expresses a desire to know their reason. Erzingatzi had a friend, a -certain Amir Tol, who lived in Tabriz. Erzingatzi used to send his -poems, as he wrote them, to this friend, who entered them in a book. -The poems in this collection number twenty-two. The manuscript is -preserved in the library of St. Lazare, Venice. The themes of -Erzingatzi’s poems are—among other things—the love of the rose -and the nightingale, the beauty of nature, the wedding of the flowers, -spring, dawn, and morning. In his love poems, he throws over his -emotions a mystic veil of celestial hue, and some of his lines rise to -a higher level than ordinary amorous verse. For him, love and beauty -are one and the same. He says that one who is without love has no sense -of beauty. He calls his lady-love a breeze of spring, and himself a -thirsty flower, but a flower on which only a hot southern blast is ever -blowing, so that his love-thirst continually endures. He likens his -mistress to the radiant heavenly bodies—the sun, moon, and -stars—but her light is stronger than that of all other luminaries, -for it alone can illumine his darkened heart. - -Erzingatzi says that, if he is to have any share in the life of love in -this world, he will be content with one hour of “morning love” that -springs from the heart. For that he is willing to exchange his life. He -prays to God for such love, always emphasising the word “morning.” - -Among his works is a beautiful poem on Spring, which begins with a -hundred thousand thanksgivings for the blessing that has flown down -from heaven to earth:— - -“It was dark and every stone was ice-bound; there was not a green -herb, but now the earth arrays itself anew. The winter was like a -prison, the spring like a sun that rises in the night. Everything is -merry and joyous; even the dew-bringing cloud thunders gently, spanning -the earth with its bow and causing many swift rivers to flow, which, -without distinction, throw into rapturous intoxication all places of -the earth. - -“Terribly roar the streams that come down from the mountains, but, -after strolling to and fro among the meadows in loving fashion, pass on -to touch the face of the sea. - -“The birds sing sweetly; the swallow chants psalms, the lark comes, -reciting the praise of the morning. All leap into life—plants, birds, -beasts with their offspring; they all form themselves into one great -flock and dance together. The flowers have assembled in the garden. The -Nightingale, proclaiming the glad things of the great resurrection, -also enters the garden, seeking the Rose. - -“When the time is ripe, she opens, and the other flowers, when they -see the splendour of the Rose, run off, over hill and dale, and, from -fear, lose their colour. The Nightingale is intoxicated with the sweet -odour of the Rose. Then takes place a festival of nature and the Rose -sings her own praise.” - -The original text of this poem is a real achievement as regards -language, poetical expressions, and art, showing that Erzingatzi was a -master of his craft. - -Erzingatzi was also the author of a long narrative poem, called Farman -and Asman, recounting the love adventures of a Persian princess. This -was composed at the request of a Syrian knight and shows some traces of -Persian influence. - -Another long narrative poem of this writer, entitled A Girl’s -Questions, seems to owe something to Arabic literature. - -Erzingatzi is also the author of many didactic poems. Here are a few -stanzas from another of his poems:— - - - “Waken from your dreams - And behold, you that were sleeping, - How through all the night - They their sleepless watch are keeping. - Ever circling round - By the will of God who made them: - And heaven’s arches wide - To uplift and hold He bade them. - - “I awoke from sleep - And a while I stood and waited. - When the long night passed, - When appeared the dawn belated,— - Many stars of light - Watching stood to greet the morning; - Servants of our God, - All the sky of night adorning. - - “Then a Star arose - Near the Morning Star, in Heaven; - Fairer than all stars, - Radiance to that Star was given. - - “When the moon beheld - She bade all the stars to vanish. - All turned pale, and set, - As she spoke their light to banish. - Cleared was heaven’s face - And the sun arose in splendour; - Then a Child appeared, - Sweet the Name He had, and tender.” [41] - - -Hovhannes Erzingatzi (b. 1250) was educated in a monastery on the -confines of Georgia and Armenia under a bishop who was renowned for his -learning. He returned to Erzingan in 1272 and travelled to Jerusalem in -1281, in the course of his journey passing through Cilicia in order to -visit the Armenian royal seat, where King Leon was then reigning. By -his learning and talents he attracted the attention of the Catholicos, -who appointed him director of all the schools in the city. - -By order of the Catholicos, he wrote a grammar, remarkable for its dear -and comprehensible style and language. He also came under the notice of -the king. At the annual horse race two of the king’s sons were among -the competitors. On this occasion Erzingatzi made a speech, which left -a great impression and gained him recognition as an orator. In Cilicia -he learnt Latin and made several translations from that language into -Armenian. He wrote many Biblical commentaries, besides other religious -and devotional works, as well as treatises on astrology; but his fame -rests chiefly on his verse. In addition to religious and moral poems, -he wrote love songs, and lays relating to nature. In his ethical as -well as in his love poems we find quaint metaphors and similes. - -As, for instance, in the following stanza, where our poet seems to be -forestalling Bunyan:— - - - “All my sins I once amassed - And sat down before them weeping. - When the caravan went past - With my load I followed, leaping. - Then an angel that we met, - ‘Woful pilgrim, whither farest? - Thou wilt there no lodging get - With that burden that thou bearest.’” - - -In another poem, entitled “Like an Ocean is this World,” which -appears on page 59 of this volume, he uses the metaphor afterwards -employed in Donne’s Hymn to Christ and Tennyson’s Crossing the Bar. - -His love poems are exquisitely fresh and rich. - -The aesthetic character of his love and his enthusiasm for beauty are -shown by his declaration, in one of the poems, after a rapturous -expression of his passion for a lady of whom he gives a rich-hued -word-portrait, that the only thing that keeps his feelings within -bounds is the knowledge that, after death, her face will wither and its -colours fade. - -In 1284 he went to Tiflis, the capital town of Georgia, where he gave, -in the newly-built church, on the occasion of its opening, a discourse -on the movements of the heavenly bodies. This subject had a great -fascination for him and he treated it in a manner that deeply impressed -his hearers, including the king’s son who was present. His discourse -was not a sermon, but a poetical oration. On the prince’s asking him -to write a poem on the same subject, he wrote one of a thousand lines. -At the desire of another prince, he composed another poem on the same -theme. - -Khachatur Kecharetzi (better known by his pen-name, Frik) was a priest -who was born at the end of the thirteenth century and died about 1330. -He wrote many poems, several of which are of an allegorical character; -also laments on the state of his country, and several mystic and other -religious poems, as well as love songs; but his most characteristic -work is the poem addressed to God, asking why He is unmindful of the -terrible condition of the Armenian nation, and also enumerating the -inequalities of the world, showing how the wicked prosper and the -righteous suffer. - -“If we are useless creatures” (he says) “unworthy of Thy care, -why dost Thou not entirely destroy us?” - -An extract from this long poem is given in this volume on page xv. - -At the close of the fourteenth century, the glory of Cilicia vanished, -as the Armenian kingdom became extinct, after an existence of nearly -three hundred years; and Armenia once more became the scene of turmoil -and bloodshed. - -The fifteenth century opened with the invasion of Tamerlane, when the -country was again desolated and subdued. This was a century of the -overthrow of Eastern civilisation. - -The Byzantine Empire, shaken from its foundation, was dashed to pieces, -and its capital, Constantinople, fell into the hands of the Ottomans -(1453), a new Mohammedan power, which aspired to become master of the -whole of Asia. The Turcomans and, later, the Persians, tried to check -the advance of the Turks into their territories. Hence commenced a long -series of wars between the two Mohammedan states which continued -through four centuries, and Armenia passed now into the hands of the -one, now into the hands of the other. The country was again the scene -of war, wherein reigned desolation, fire, and death. - -After the occupation of Constantinople, Turkish influence extended over -most of the eastern part of Armenia. - -From this time, migrations of Armenians out of their own country into -different parts of the world became more frequent. - -Twenty years after the invention of printing (1476) a grammar in many -tongues was published in France, which contains several pages in -Armenian. - -In 1512 the first Armenian printed book was issued in Venice. After -that Armenians set up presses in various countries. - -Notwithstanding the political position of the country, its poetry -continued to flourish and assumed a definite character; and the voices -of the poets rose continually louder and louder. This century, together -with the two preceding and the two following ones, forms a flourishing -age for poetry. - -The chief poets of this century are:—Hovhannes Tulkourantzi, Mkrtich -Naghash, Grigoris of Aghtamar, Nahapet Kouchak, Arakel Sunetzi. - -Hovhannes Tulkourantzi (1450–1525) was Catholicos of Sis. He is a -poet of the days of spring, flowers, beauty, love. He wrote also moral -and religious poems, besides other things. He cannot understand how it -is possible for one who loves a beautiful woman to grow old and die. - -“Whosoever loves you, how can he die? How can his face grow pale in -death?” - -He sings of the sanctity of family life, warning his readers against -the strange woman “who brings torment and grief. Even his lawful wife -brought trouble to Adam; what then is to be expected of the -stranger?” - -He has a striking poem on Death, which he addresses thus:— - - - “There is nothing so bitter as thou, no venom is more bitter; - only Hell surpasseth thee, and it is thou who bringest Hell in thy - train. Solomon remembered thee, saying, ‘Of what profit is my - wisdom? Say not I am a King possessing gold and treasures.’ - - “Alas, O death! thou hast a grudge against the sons of Adam and - thou avengest thyself on them. - - “Thou didst not consider that Moses was a prophet, nor art thou - ashamed of assaulting David; thou takest even Father Abraham; thou - draggest King Tiridates from his throne; and thou respectest not - the Emperor Constantine. [42] - - “If a hero is attended by 1000 horsemen and arrayed in six coats - of armour, thou shootest thine arrows at him and bringest him down, - then thou castest him into prison and before the entrance thou - placest a great stone.” - - -The poem continues:— - - - “Like an eagle flying far, - Forth on wide-spread wings thou farest; - All the strong ones of the earth - In thy wing-tips rolled thou bearest.” - - -In other poems we see his susceptibility to passion and his sense of -love’s power. In one of these poems he depicts [43] a bishop of 100 -years old whose beard had turned from white to yellow and who, when -officiating at the altar, suddenly uttered the name of a lady in his -invocation before the cross. - -Mkrtich Naghash was Archbishop of Diarbekr. He lived when the country -was in difficult political circumstances. His talents were appreciated -not only by Armenians, but also by the Mohammedan rulers with whom, -thanks to his tact, he established friendly relations, whereby he was -able to protect his compatriots from many oppressions. He built a -church, which he adorned with beautiful pictures of his own painting. -But, after the death of the Mohammedan princes who were his patrons, -tyranny and oppression began again under their successors. He went to -Byzantium to solicit aid for his suffering countrymen, but returned -disappointed. - -Besides his artistic skill, he was a poet of considerable merit. His -poems are generally on moral and religious themes—the vanity of the -world, avarice, and so forth; he also wrote songs of exile, and love -songs. - -In his poem on avarice he says that that vice is the root of all evil: -“Kings and princes are continually fighting against one another, -watering the country with blood. They destroy flourishing towns; they -drive the inhabitants into exile; and spread desolation wherever they -go; and all this is through avarice.” - -He goes on to specify other evils springing from this sin. - -In the love songs of Mkrtich Naghash, the Rose and the Nightingale -whisper to each other fiery love speeches complaining of each other’s -cruelty. Then they admonish each other not to let their passion consume -them, and sing each other’s praises. - -This is an extract from one of his songs of exile: “The thoughts of -an exile from his country are wanderers like himself. If his mind is -wiser than Solomon’s, if his words are precious pearls, in a foreign -land they bid him be silent and call him an ignorant fool. His death is -as bitter as his life; there is no one to cross his hands over his -heart; they laugh as they cover him with earth; no mourner follows him -to the grave. But I, Naghash, say that an exile’s heart is tender. In -a foreign land, what is sweet seems gall; the rose becomes a thorn. -Speak gently to an exile; give him a helping hand, and you will expiate -your sins which rankle like thorns.” - -These songs of exile (or pilgrim songs) are a special feature of -Armenian poetry and for ages have been written by various poets. They -are original and often quaint and express the feelings of Armenians who -live far from their native mountains and fields, showing how they pine -for the land of their birth, reflecting the natural beauties of their -fatherland, and their yearning for their hearth and the dear faces of -home. - -In 1469 in the town of Mardin there was an epidemic of smallpox, which -caused many deaths. He thus describes one of the victims: “A youth -beautiful to see, the image of the sun; his brows were arches; his eyes -like lamps guiding him by their light. This lovely child lay on the -ground, writhing piteously, looking to right and left, while the -terrible Angel of Death was busily engaged in loosing the cords of his -soul. Then the boy cried, saying: ‘Pity me and save me from the hands -of this holy angel, for I am young.’ Then he turned to his father, -and asking help from him, said: ‘There are a thousand desires in my -heart and not one of them fulfilled.’ - -“The father answered: ‘I would not begrudge gold and silver for thy -redemption; but these are of no avail. I would willingly give my life -for thine.’ In the end the light of the child’s life was -extinguished; the lovely hue of his face faded; his sea-like eyes lost -their lustre; the power of his graceful arm was cut off.” - -Here is a translation in verse of a poem on a mysterious Flower:— - - - “All the lovely flowers that were - One by one have left and gone, - One Flower too there was that went - Mourned and wept by every one. - Sweetest fragrance had that Flower, - Scent that filled the earth and air, - So that all the flowers of earth - Sought in love this Blossom fair. - Some for this sweet Flow’ret’s sake - Paled and withered languidly; - Many for this Flow’ret’s sake - Blossomed like the almond tree. - God Himself had sent that Flower, - But all did not know its worth. - He that gave took back His own, - Many wept upon the earth. - And the Flower went to a place - Where all flowers rejoiced and smiled; - Flowers of many a brilliant hue - With its sweetness it beguiled. - From its beauty other flowers - Borrowed lustre, and they glowed; - Every blossom in its kind - To that Flower knelt and bowed.” - - -Grigoris of Aghtamar was born about 1418 and was Catholicos of -Aghtamar, an island in the Lake of Van, which has picturesque -surroundings fit to inspire a poet; so that it is not surprising that -our Catholicos became a singer animated by poetic fire, the exponent of -love and beauty—of the Nightingale and the Rose. - -It is evident, from his works, that Grigoris had a great love of life. -We see this especially in a poem entitled The Gardener and his Garden. -The Gardener, says the poet, enters his garden every morning and hears -the sweet voice of the nightingale as he examines the newly planted -flowers of various colours. This beautiful spot he surrounds with a -hedge, bringing stones from the river, thorns from the mountain. He has -just built arbours, made a fountain, introduced little running brooks, -and planted vines, when, all of a sudden, a voice utters the command: -“Come out of thy garden.” It is Death who beckons him out. He -expostulates: “I have not yet seen life and light; I have not yet -seen the fruit of the garden; I have not yet smelt the rose; I have not -yet drunk my wine or filled my casks; I have not plucked flowers for a -nosegay. I have not yet rejoiced over my garden.” - -But his prayers are not heeded; obedient to the unchangeable law of the -universe, he at last capitulates to the Angel of Death. - -After describing the Gardener’s death and burial, the poet goes on to -tell what happens to the garden after its owner has left it; the rose -fades; the other flowers disappear; the hedge is broken down, and what -was once a lovely garden becomes a scene of desolation. - -This is his description of the face of his lady-love. He likens her -eyebrows to a sword; the sparkle of her eyes to a sharp lance; her eyes -to the sunlit sea. She is, he says, as straight as a willow; her lips -are like harp strings; her teeth, a row of pearls; her tongue is sugar; -and, wherever she rests, the place becomes a garden. She has fragrance -sweeter than the violet of the spring; she is like a white rose, pure -and sweet, like a newly opened flower; a young almond plant. Her face -is red and white, like an apple of the forest. She soars high, like a -daring eagle. She is brilliant as a peacock with golden feathers. - -We have in this volume (page 52) a translation of one of Grigoris’ -longer poems, entitled “Concerning the Rose and the Nightingale,” -in which it is interesting to note that—quaintly enough—the poet -gives the text of a letter sent with great pomp, by special messengers, -to the Rose; adding the consequence which followed, and the verbal -answer returned. - -The subject of the Rose and the Nightingale is a Persian one -originally, but the outstanding characteristics of the Armenian -versions consist in the refinements and subtleties of the feelings -described, the deference paid to the Rose, and the idea of continuity -and faithfulness in love. These feelings are minutely described in this -beautiful poem, and summed up in the Rose’s message to the -Nightingale on p. 56:— - - - “I cannot there return immediately; - A little he must wait, in patient wise: - But if his love is perfectly with me, - Tell him to look for it in Paradise.” - - -These ideals constitute the difference between the mentality of -Mohammedanism and Christianity. - -Nahapet Kouchak was a fine poet of the seventeenth century. He is -called the Psalmist of Love. Although there is a slight resemblance in -style between his writings and those of the Persian poets, his poetry -is original. The works attributed to him have only recently been -published as a whole; they have been translated into French and other -languages, and greatly admired. Some critics have placed him higher -than Sadi and other Persian poets. (Examples of his work are given on -pages 4, 5, and 31.) - -Arakel Sunetzi was the Metropolitan of the province of Suni. He appears -to have possessed a thorough acquaintance with the writings of his -time. His chief work is the Book of Adam, a long narrative poem, -telling the story of the Fall in the style of a romance in which -theology, lyrics, heroic lays, and folklore are all fused together. - -Adam, though because of his great love for his wife he was inclined to -yield to her petition, yet wavered, not knowing whether to hearken to -his spouse or to his Creator. “But his mind went with his eyes; he -deserted God, but not the woman; for, without Eve, half of his body was -dead, and with the other half it was impossible to live.” - -Among the lyrics in this book is one entitled The Rib, of which we -subjoin two stanzas:— - - - “The rib is bow-shaped, so her face, - Sped by her looks, is like a dart; - Who gazeth on a woman’s grace, - No salve or drug can cure his smart. - - “And for the rib is high and low— - One side is vaulted, one is round, - Her face doth love and sweetness show - Whilst in her heart fierce hate is found.” - - -Here is a passage from another poem of Sunetzi’s entitled The Glory -of the Saints, describing the Resurrection:— - - - “Opened are the tombs; - Now rise the dead that long in dust have lain. - Decked with brilliant hues, - Bright as the sun, they cannot fade again. - While the earth, renewed, - Doth greet the Lord, all fresh and dazzling white; - And the heavens are decked - More richly than before, sevenfold more bright. - Then in heaven shines forth - With arms stretched out like rays, the Holy Rood. - With the Cross appear - The hosts of fire—a countless multitude. - Butterflies dance forth - Amongst the angels—none may mark them out.” - - -In the sixteenth century, Turkish and Persian wars became fiercer and -the Armenian history of this century becomes the record of the -sufferings of the country during these wars. Poets of this period were -Nerses Mokatzi, Minas Tokhatzi, Ghazar of Sebastia, Sarkavak Bertaktzi. - -Nerses Mokatzi was an ecclesiastic and poet. Very few of his works have -come down to us. One of the poems we have—entitled The Dispute -between Heaven and Earth—is interesting. The poet begins by saying -that Heaven and Earth are brothers. One day these brothers disputed as -to which of them was the greater. “Of course,” says the poet, -“the Heaven is high, but the Earth is more fruitful.” - -He then goes on to report a dialogue between the brothers in which each -enumerates his own possessions, declaring them superior to those of the -other. The following is a short prose summary of this dialogue:— - - - Heaven. Surely I possess more than you. The stars, with their - radiance, are all in my domain. - - Earth. The flowers, with their six thousand colours, are in mine. - - Heaven. If I withhold my dew, how will your flowers array - themselves? - - Earth. You derive your dew from the sea, which originates in me. If - I cut off the source of the sea, how would you get your dew? - - Heaven. I have something else that you have not: should I veil my - sun your flowers would fade. - - Earth. Oh, I will bring forth waters from my abyss to keep my - flowers alive. - - Heaven. The lightning and the hail could destroy your flowers if I - willed it so. - - Earth. I have mountains and valleys that would intercept them and - shield the flowers. - - Heaven. All brave and wise men are buried in your depths. - - Earth. When God recalls the souls that are His, what is to be done? - If I did not receive and conceal their bodies, the angels would - flee from the deathly odour, and Heaven and Earth would be shaken. - - Heaven. The Nine Orders of Angels are all here with me. - - Earth. In my realm are the Apostles and Prophets. - - Heaven. I am the Heaven of Seven Regions; the Sun, the Moon, and - the Creator-God sitting on His throne all have their abode in me. - - Earth. Your Seven Regions will be shaken from their foundation. The - Sun, the Moon, and the Stars will be cast into the darkness and - your Creator-God, with His throne, will descend to me. The Judgment - will be held in my domain. - - “Heaven then bent down its head - To the Earth in adoration, - You too, children of the Earth, - Bow to her in adoration. - What is higher than the Earth? - Praise and love bring to enwreathe her. - For to-day we walk on her - And to-morrow sleep beneath her.” [44] - - -This poem is interesting, as it breathes the spirit of the revival of -popular poetry, with its worship of nature, beauty, and love, of which -things the Earth is the personification. Hence the poet exalts Earth -above Heaven. Here we see also a change of ideas. The older Christian -poets were churchmen and sang contempt of the present world and -concentration on the joys of heaven. This new note, struck from the -beginning of the fifteenth century, gradually grows bolder, and sounds -forth daringly, as we hear it in this poem, which seems all the more -remarkable when we remember that its author was a priest. This is the -song, not of a lover of vanities, but, rather, of an enthusiast, who -loves beauty and has learnt that it is good to live on the earth, -because it also contains beautiful things that are worth living for. -This poem also shows the conquest of learning and science which, at the -time it was written, had found their way into Armenia as well as -elsewhere, perhaps through the new Armenian colonies formed in Europe -and other parts of the world. - -Minas Tokhatzi, a humorous poet, lived in Poland. He wrote verses on -Toothache and on Tobacco (descanting on its objectionable odour and -showing how the smoker becomes its slave); also on Flies. - -To convey an idea of his art, we give the substance of the last-named -work:— - -“The flies,” says the poet, “for some reason or other, went forth -to combat against me. They also entered into a conspiracy with my -penknife. Knowing of this, I implored the knife not to listen to the -accursed insects, who had already caused me enough pain. The attack was -begun in a novel fashion; the flies came, buzzing, in gay and merry -mood, and settled on my hands and arms in a friendly manner, asking me -to write them something in red ink. At the same time, the penknife, -playing me a perfidious trick, cut my hand. I protested against this -treatment. The penknife justified itself by saying it had acted thus -because I had told a lie. I got a few moments’ rest, after this, from -the flies, till, at dinner-time, I met with three of them, who -announced that more were coming. The combat was renewed. During the -night, the flies were relieved by their allies, the fleas.” - -Ghazar of Sebastia, an ecclesiastic, has fallen under the spell of some -eyes “as deep as the sea.” He describes the torment under which he -is pining away and his longing for his mistress’s arrival, like the -longing of a patient for his physician. The face of his love (he says) -is like glistening amber; her eyes are so bewitching, that - - - “The sun and moon have unto thee come down, - Lovingly on thy locks they hang, and gleam; - And clustering stars thy beauteous forehead crown, - Aflame and drunken with thy love they seem.” - - -There is nothing known of Sarkavak Bertaktzi, but this poem from his -pen is interesting:— - - - “O vine, you should commended be - For you are beautiful to see; - Your fruit is of all fruits most fair:— - The crown and diadem they wear. - Like strands of gold your branches spread, - Like ropes of pearl the grapes they thread. - For some are dark and some are white, - And some are red, transmitting light. - Some glow like amber in the dusk, - Perfumed with frankincense and musk. - Left us by the Creator’s care,— - From Eden’s fields a keepsake rare. - To us on earth you seem to be - The fruit of immortality. - To Noah you were by angels borne - His heart to gladden and adorn. - Your fruit when gathered from the vine - Unto the wine-press we assign; - Your juice like crimson roses glows - And through the press in torrents flows. - Then into jars we pour the meath, - There without fire to boil and seethe. - How many kings around you press, - Your name how many princes bless! - The Sovereign’s heart you fill with joy, - With power to conquer and destroy; - If he is wroth with any man, - And places him beneath his ban, - One drop of you immediately - Would move his heart to set him free. - The man that from his birth was blind, - Drinking of you, his sight doth find; - Of glorious cities he can tell, - Wherein his footsteps never fell. - The dumb, that halted in his speech, - To prate with fluency you teach. - More glibly than a parrot, he - Will jest and wanton dotingly. - At mass, within the sacred cup, - The holy priest doth raise you up. - Disease and pain through you will cease, - By you all sinners find release. - To town and village you are borne, - To convent, wilderness forlorn; - Where men do not your sparkle see, - No mass nor service can there be.” - - -The seventeenth century resembles its predecessor as regards the -political position of Armenia, except that the misery is even greater. - -During the last years of the eighteenth century, the Russian conquest -of Armenia began. - -At the end of the eighteenth century an Armenian monk named Mkhitar -Sepastatzi established at St. Lazare in Venice an Armenian Brotherhood, -who devoted themselves to literature. This Brotherhood is still in -existence, and has a branch in Vienna. During this period of more than -a century its members have printed hundreds of old MSS. of historical -value. They have also produced many works dealing with history and -other branches of learning, and translations of foreign classics, thus -rendering a great service to Armenian literature. - -It will be remembered that Byron stayed at St. Lazare and studied -Armenian, He actually took part in the publication of an -Armenian-English dictionary and grammar. - -For centuries music and song have become a joy to Armenians through -minstrels called ashoughs. Ashoughs are invited to all weddings and -other festivities, where they are the life of the party and the makers -of merriment. They sing also on the bridges and in the squares, and -wander from courtyard to courtyard. Their song is not always merry; it -is sometimes sad, sometimes even bitter. They always carry with them -their saz or tar or kamancha, oriental instruments, on which they -accompany their songs. Many of the ashoughs are blind. To be an ashough -is considered a high attainment. In order to acquire the art, any one -who aspires to become an ashough first observes a fast of seven weeks, -then goes to the monastery of Sourb Karapet, which is the Parnassus of -Armenian musicians. “Sourb Karapet” is John the Baptist, who is the -patron saint of Armenian minstrels. In the Near East, ashoughs (who are -mostly Armenians) are greatly admired not only by Armenians, but by -Persians, Turks, and other races, as some of them sing in other -languages besides Armenian. Some ashoughs sing their own verses, but as -a rule the songs are the composition of a special class of poets. The -songs of these other ashoughs often reveal deep feelings and many of -them are high-class poems. - -As a typical ashough author, I will only mention Sayat Nova. His lyre -attained extreme sweetness; he combines all the vivid colouring of the -East with soft and refined shading. He was born in 1712. He was a -special favourite at the court of the Georgian king. In his own words, -he “sat in the palace among the beauties and sang to them,” but his -songs seem not merely to be poems in praise of court beauties, or for -their amusement; they seem an expression of the deep feelings of his -heart. A word-picture of his lady-love will be found on page 74 of this -volume (“Thy Voice is Sweet”). - -His love is so intense that one sees at once that he is capable of deep -feelings and one is drawn to him; yet this love is pure and unselfish. -He describes his love as a sea and himself as a little barque floating -on it. For ten years he has wooed the lady as a prince, but without -success; he will not relinquish the pursuit of her, but resolves now -for seven years to pay court to her in the character of a -pilgrim-minstrel. - -He is even content only to sleep on her doorstep. There is something -else that is a part of his life, namely, his kamancha. He threatens to -cut the strings of his instrument if he is a week without seeing his -beloved. - -Once he comes face to face with his lady-love and says:— - -“What avails me now a physician? The ointment burns, and does not -heal the wound, but your medicine is a different one.” - -But she replies that she has no remedy for him. In another poem he is -in despair, and says:— - -“Without thee, of what use is the world’s wealth? I will don the -habit of a monk and visit the monasteries one by one. Perhaps in one of -them I shall discover a way of redemption from my hopeless love.” -(See “Without Thee what are Song and Dance to Me?” on page 85 of -this volume.) - -In another poem he expresses the wavering between earthly and heavenly -life, saying:— - -“If one obeys the will of the soul, then the body is offended. How -shall I escape this sorrow?” - -At last he carries out his declaration and becomes a monk. He secludes -himself from the world in a lonely monastery, far away from Tiflis; but -once he hears that a minstrel has come to that city whom none can -equal, whereupon he steals out of the monastery, disguised as a layman, -and taking his saz with him, goes to Tiflis, enters into contest with -the new minstrel, and conquering him, saves the honour of his native -town. - -In 1795 Agha Mohammed Khan laid waste Tiflis and many other towns of -that region. His soldiers entered the monastery where Sayat Nova was -praying and commanded him to come out and become a Mohammedan if he -wished to save his life; but he replied, in verse, that he was an -Armenian and would not deny his Christ. He was therefore martyred on -the spot. Other poems of his appear on pages 35 (“I have a Word I -fain would say”), 14 (“I beheld my Love this Morning”), 110 -(“Thou art so Sweet”). - -We have given specimens of mediaeval Armenian poetry; we now proceed to -indicate in outline its most striking characteristics. - -The theme of the Armenian pagan minstrels was the heroic deeds of their -country’s history. The adoption of Christianity imparted to Armenian -poetry a specific form and tone. At the same time it was the revival of -the old Armenian valour, which, strengthened by the circumstances in -which the Armenians lived, produced a religious poetry of great purity -of feeling, and of a depth and solemnity unequalled by any other poetry -of this class. - -In the Middle Ages, the poetry gave expression to the love and other -emotions of the Armenian poets. - -A new poetry of the now Mohammedan Persia written in modern Persian -came into being almost simultaneously with the Armenian poetry of the -Middle Ages. - -Firdusi, Omar Khayyam, Sadi, Hafiz, with a splendid retinue of less -famed singers, made Persian the language of verse which, together with -Arabic poetry in its earlier stages, no doubt had some influence on the -Armenian poets of the Middle Ages; but this influence affected form -rather than spirit or character. - -Armenian mediaeval poetry does not possess the burning hues of oriental -verse, and is perhaps less luxurious, but the grace, charm, ease, and -fancy of the Armenian lays are inimitable, and their originality and -occasional quaintness are so marked that one feels there is a magic in -them. These characteristics are the outcome of the mutual assimilation -of eastern and western art, so that the poetry of Armenia, like its -language, its art, its Church, stands by itself. - -In comparing Armenian with Persian and Arabic poetry, one must remember -that the Armenians, as Christians, were not polygamists; and that, to -them, marriage was sanctified by the law of God and man. This is what -the great Persian poet Sadi says of women: “Choose a fresh wife every -spring, or every New Year’s day, for the almanac of last year is good -for nothing.” It would have been impossible for any Armenian poet to -entertain such an idea as that. - -Whereas women are so cheap in the eyes of the Persian poet, Armenian -girls endowed with beauty were considered by their parents and the -community very precious possessions, to be zealously guarded, as they -were in constant danger of attracting the attention of their Mohammedan -lords and being forcibly carried off into harems. This fact had the -effect of mingling compassion with the Armenian poets’ admiration of -a girl’s beauty and made them write more feelingly of women. - -It must also be remembered that, whereas Mohammedanism looks upon woman -as a soulless being, in the eyes of a Christian she possesses a soul as -precious as that of a man. - -It is an interesting fact that love poems were written by the clergy, -often by ecclesiastics of high position, who, by the law of the -Armenian Church, are vowed to celibacy. One explanation of this is that -they were born poets, and only regarded love as one among many feelings -fitted to be the subject of verse. Their use of the first person is -only dramatic. - -There are also many folksongs which differ, in style and character, -from the love-songs of poets. The spirit of these songs is that of -Armenian pagan poems. The following is an example of songs of this -class. It describes the adventure of a girl. - - - “I beheld a youth to-day - As at dawn I walked unheeding, - And the youth stopped on his way, - Struck my cheek, and left it bleeding. - Then my mother questioned me, - ‘Who was it that struck you?’ saying, - ‘’Twas a thorn, as near the tree - With the roses I was playing.’ - ‘May the tree turn dry and sear - Which thy pretty cheek left bleeding!’ - ‘Mother, dear, oh, do not speak, - ’Twas a youth that stopped to kiss it. - ’Twas for luck he kissed my cheek, - If thou curse him he will miss it!’” - - -Armenian religious and devotional poetry has characteristics of its -own. This class of literature falls into two divisions. In the first -division are works of a purely literary character written in old -Armenian; in the second, works meant for popular use, written in the -language of the people. These latter are written in a more familiar -style, proverbs and paraphrases being often introduced, in a -picturesque fashion, which appeals to the unlearned. - -As an example of the popular class of literature we give an extract -from a poem about Gregory the Illuminator, who was cast by King -Tiridates into a well infested with serpents and other loathsome -creatures:— - - -“‘Take the saint and put him into the prison where - dragon-serpents are assembled.’ -They took the saint and put him in the prison where the - dragon-serpents were assembled. -And the poisonous serpents inclined their tongues in worship. -And said: ‘Pity us, O Saint Gregory, and hearken to the complaint - of us, dragon-serpents. -It is many thousands of years since we drank water from the springs; -We have not drunk water from the springs, but only the blood of condemned men. -We have eaten no green herbs, but only the flesh of the condemned.’” - - -The poet goes on to tell how St. Gregory when he came out of the well -set free the dragon-serpents in answer to their prayer. - -This poem is very old, being written in the fifth or sixth century at -the latest. The metre is that of the pagan poets. - -We cite here another poem of this class—an allegorical description of -Christ on the Cross:— - - - “A little Bird I saw—a peerless One— - Upon the four-armed Sign, that peer hath none. - O Peerless One, who is like Thee, Thou Peerless One? - Thou alone. - - “Its silvery wings were of a matchless white - More brilliant than the sun’s clear, matchless light. - O Matchless One, who is like Thee, Thou Matchless One? - Thou alone. - - “Piteous Its voice—a great, transcendent sigh; - Mighty, as Gabriel’s transcendent cry. - Transcendent One, who is like Thee, Transcendent One? - Thou alone. - - “Within Its eyes, gem-like, unrivalled tears; - Surpassing those the morn unrivalled wears; - Unrivalled One, who is like Thee, Unrivalled One? - Thou alone.” - - -A characteristic species of Armenian poetry is the lullaby. There are -hundreds of old Armenian cradle-songs which are still sung by mothers -to their infants, and they are exquisitely dainty and sweet. - -Here are some stanzas from one of these songs:— - - - “Thou art lovely, feet and all, - Whom wouldst have to be thy playmate? - Hush, the silver moon I’ll call— - The bright star to be thy playmate. - - “Crimson rose and petals wide, - Thou hast bloomed, our garden’s pride. - As many suns shine on thy years - As the leaves our garden bears. - - “Oror, hush, the deer are here, - The deer have come from the hills so high, - Have brought sweet sleep to my baby dear, - And filled it in his deep, deep eye.” - - -There are series of Armenian folksongs for every event in life—birth, -marriage, death, and so on. - -The following is a folksong of death, being the lament of a mother over -her dead son:— - - - “As to-night I walked alone - To the earth my ear inclining, - From the ground I heard a moan,— - My son’s voice I heard repining. - ‘Do not leave me in the ground, - With the serpents round me crawling. - “Food in plenty we have found,” - To their young ones they are calling, - “From his ribs we’ll gnaw the flesh, - From his eyes drink water fresh.”’ - All the night I found no rest, - I cried out, ‘Give me a knife, - I will plunge it in my breast, - I will have no more of life!’” - - -Yet another feature of the literature of this period is the -contemporary history in verse. We come across metrical narratives of -great events written by those who experienced them. There is a long and -vivid description in verse, by an eye-witness, of the siege of -Constantinople. The poet is Abraham Vardapet. - -There are also agricultural and craft songs, which are sung by workmen -over their labour. - -These songs are adapted to the movements necessitated by each -occupation. - -Another marked difference between Armenian and Mohammedan literature is -that Armenians are entirely free from the fatalism which is a -distinctive feature of the Mohammedan view of life. - -Sadi relates, in his Gulistan, the story of a fisherman that gives the -Mohammedan conception of Fate. This fisherman had caught a fish which -his strength did not allow him to drag to shore. Fearing to be drawn -into the river himself, he abandoned his line, and the fish swam away -with the bait in his mouth. His companions mocked him, and he replied: -“What could I do? This animal escaped because his last hour, fixed by -fate, was not yet come. Fate governs all, and the fisherman cannot -overcome it more than another, nor can he catch fish, if fate is -against him, even in the Tigris. The fish itself, even though dry, -would not die, if it were the will of fate to preserve its life.” The -poet adds: “O man! why shouldst thou fear? If thy hour is not come, -in vain would thy enemy rush against thee with his lance in rest: his -arms and his feet would be tied by fate, and the arrow would be turned -away, though in the hands of the most expert archer.” - -The spirit of Armenian poetry is neither despondent nor fatalistic. Its -songs are of dawn, of spring, of sunrise, of struggle; not of sunset. -And perhaps this clinging to hope and this desire to live is the only -secret of the survival of the Armenian nation. Armenian poetry is the -product of dwellers in a hill country. To them mountains, deep valleys, -clear skies, running brooks are familiar every-day companions. - -This brings us down to the Renaissance of Armenian literature which -took place almost simultaneously in Russia and Turkey, but the field of -modern Armenian literature is such a wide one that we cannot attempt an -analysis of it here. There are, however, some examples of modern -Armenian poetry in this volume. - -The occupation of the Armenian provinces by Russia in 1828, with the -attendant emigration of thousands from Persia and Turkey into Russian -Armenia, strengthened the nation. National schools were soon opened, -supported by the Armenians themselves. An Armenian Academy was -established in Moscow in 1815 and a Seminary in Tiflis in 1826. Many -Armenians went to Moscow and Petrograd, and also to foreign -universities, especially to those of Germany, Switzerland, and France. -The educational revival produced a new era, and a new Armenian -literature came into being. Many Armenian newspapers and reviews were -founded and published in different places. Tiflis was the centre of the -literature and learning of Russian Armenia. A similar revival of -letters occurred in Turkish Armenia. In 1860 a national and -ecclesiastical constitution was granted to the Armenians in Turkey. For -Turkish Armenians the literary centres were Constantinople and Smyrna. -In the latter city, good work was done in translating western classics, -but Constantinople was the chief seat of Armenian culture in Turkey. -Thus Armenian literature became divided into two branches—Russian -Armenian and Turkish Armenian—each of which has its own peculiarities -of language, style, and tone. It was poetry that first burst into bloom -and reached maturity soonest. At first the motifs of the poems were -mainly national. The imagination of the poets was kindled by the past, -present, and future of Armenia, its sufferings, its national beauty, -its shortcomings. They looked forward to a national regeneration. They -were apostles of light, science, learning; and pointed out new paths of -national salvation. The result of all this was the production of some -beautiful national songs. These songs are not triumphant anthems like -those of other countries; they are songs of suffering, but with a note -of hope. Then Armenian poetry developed a truer relation with what had -been created in literature and art, and the poets looked at things in a -new way, and assumed new poetical forms. It combined poetry and -imagination with passionate feeling for life and truth. Some of the -poems of this period are of exquisite workmanship, breathing the very -spirit of the time. - -As we have said, Armenian poetry of the nineteenth century is so full -of merit and of such intense interest that it would be impossible to do -it justice without writing at great length. We have already exhausted -the space at our disposal, and hope to devote a separate work to it. - -Persian and Arabic poetry are things of the past, but Armenian poetry, -like the Armenian nation, has an unquenchable vitality, ever advancing -towards new horizons, and soaring to loftier heights. - - - - - - - -CHRONOLOGICAL INDEX TO AUTHORS - - - Moses of Khorene, fifth century— PAGE - Vahagn, King of Armenia, 10 - Ara and Semiramis, 23 - The Founding of Van, 33 - Artashes and Satenik, 48 - Artavasd, 65 - Christ and Abgarus, 75 - - Folk Songs— - The Exile’s Song, 1 - The Apple Tree, 3 - The Fox, the Wolf, and the Bear, 15 - The Song of the Stork, 27 - The Song of the Partridge, 36 - The Hawk and the Dove, 63 - Charm Verses, 67 - O’er the Mountains High He went, 81 - The Fox, 90 - Dance Song (Haberban), 101 - - Author Unknown, mediaeval— - Yesternight I walked Abroad, 7 - - Saint Gregory of Narek, 951–1009— - The Christ-Child, 113 - - Saint Nerses Shnorhali, 1102–1173— - The Arrival of the Crusaders, 58 - - Hovhannes Erzingatzi, b. 1260— - Like an Ocean is this World 59 - - “Frik,” d. 1330— - Reproaches, xv - - John Gower, d. 1408— - The Tale of Rosiphelee, 91 - - Hovhannes Tulkourantzi, 1450–1525— - Concerning Death, 119 - - Grigoris of Aghtamar, fifteenth century— - Concerning the Rose and the Nightingale, 52 - - Nahabed Kouchak, fifteenth century— - My Heart is turned into a Wailing Child, 4 - O Night, be long, 5 - Birthday Song, 31 - - Sayat Nova, 1713–1795— - I beheld my Love this Morning, 14 - I have a Word I fain would say, 35 - “Thy Voice is Sweet”, 74 - Without Thee what are Song and Dance to Me?, 85 - Thou art so Sweet, 110 - - Leo Alishan, 1820–1901— - The Lily of Shavarshan, 37 - The Nightingale of Avarair, 108 - - Mikael Nalbandian, 1829–1866— - Liberty, 12 - - Muggurdich Beshigtashlian, 1829–1868— - Spring, 89 - - Raphael Patkanian, 1830–1892— - Cradle Song, 21 - Cradle Song, 41 - The Tears of Araxes, 69 - - Raffi, 1837–1888— - The Parrot’s Song, 78 - The Lake of Van, 86 - Ballad, 103 - The Castle of Anoush, 114 - - Karekin Srvanstian, 1840–1892— - Lament over the Heroes fallen in the Battle of Avarair, 25 - - Smpad Shahaziz, 1840–1897— - The Dream, 46 - - Thomas Terzyan, 1842–1909— - The Chragan Palace, 44 - - Elia Demirjibashian, 1851–1908— - The Song of the Vulture 98 - - Bedros Tourian, 1852–1872— - The Little Lake, 18 - My Death, 50 - Complaints, 82 - A Day after, 84 - Love One Another, 121 - - William Watson, b. 1858— - A Trial of Orthodoxy, xvi - - Hovhannes Hovhannessian, b. 1869— - Spring, 20 - The Rock, 60 - Araxes came devouringly, 77 - - Hovhannes Toumanian, b. 1869— - The Crane, 62 - Earth and Sky, 79 - - Alexander Dzadourian, b. 1870— - The Armenian Poet’s Prayer, 43 - - Arschag Tchobanian, b. 1872— - Happiness, 118 - - Avetis Isahakian, b. 1875— - Black Eyes, 6 - Huntsman, that on the Hills above, 11 - Ye Mountain Bluebells, 29 - The Sun went down, 30 - The Wind is howling through the Winter Night, 42 - - Shushanik Gourghinian, b. 1876— - The Eagle’s Love, 51 - - Zabelle Essayan, b. 1878— - Incense, 17 - - C. A. Dodochian— - The Wandering Armenian to the Swallow, 111 - - Hovhannes Costaniantz— - No Bird can reach the Mountain’s Crest, 106 - - Derenik Demirjian— - The Eve of Ascension Day, 73 - - Haroutune Toumanian— - Morning, 32 - - Vittoria Aganoor Pompilj, d. 1910— - Pasqua Armena, 122 - “Io Vidi”, 123 - - - - - - - -INDEX TO FIRST LINES - - - AUTHOR. TRANSLATED BY PAGE - -Above the waters, like a hoary giant Hovhannes Hovhannessian Z. C. Boyajian 60 -Accostarsi all’oscuro Vittoria Aganoor Pompilj 123 -A great black bird like to a great black - cloud Elia Demirjibashian Z. C. Boyajian 98 -An eagle sat upon the fell Shushanik Gourghinian Z. C. Boyajian 51 -Araxes came devouringly Hovhannes Hovhannessian Z. C. Boyajian 77 -Armenian maidens, come and view Leo Alishan Alice Stone Blackwell 37 -Belovèd one, for thy sweet sake Folk Song Z. C. Boyajian 1 -Dark forests clothe the mountain-side Raffi Z. C. Boyajian 103 -Day dawned. Bright tongues of scarlet - flame Haroutune Toumanian Z. C. Boyajian 32 -Do not trust black eyes, but fear them Avetis Isahakian Z. C. Boyajian 6 -Farewell, thou Sun, and Thou, O Power - Divine Bedros Tourian Z. C. Boyajian 82 -Have you ever seen that wondrous - building T. Terzyan Alice Stone Blackwell 44 -Huntsman, that on the hills above Avetis Isahakian Z. C. Boyajian 11 -I beheld my love this morning Sayat Nova Z. C. Boyajian 14 -If Goghtan’s bards no longer crown Karekin Srvanstian Z. C. Boyajian 25 -I have a word I fain would say Sayat Nova Z. C. Boyajian 35 -I have loved your winsome face Folk Song Z. C. Boyajian 101 -In many a distant, unknown land 47 -I walk by Mother Arax Raphael Patkanian Alice Stone Blackwell 69 -Like an ocean is this world Hovhannes Erzingatzi Z. C. Boyajian 59 -My heart is turned into a wailing child Nahabed Kouchak Z. C. Boyajian 4 -Nightingale, oh, leave our garden Raphael Patkanian Alice Stone Blackwell 41 -Night with her ebon hair and starry Derenik Demirjian Z. C. Boyajian 73 - crown -No bird can reach the mountain’s crest H. Costaniantz Z. C. Boyajian 106 -None await thy smiling rays Hovhannes Hovhannessian Z. C. Boyajian 20 -Non fu di fiele abbeverato? Il petto Vittoria Aganoor Pompilj 122 -O’er the mountains high he went Folk Song Z. C. Boyajian 81 -O evil man, with passions fraught Hovhannes Tulkourantzi Z. C. Boyajian 119 -Of Armenye, I rede thus John Gower 91 -O God of righteousness and truth “Frik” xv -O God, ’tis not for laurel wreaths I - pray Alexander Dzadourian Z. C. Boyajian 43 -O little breeze, how fresh and sweet Muggurdich Beshigtashlian Z. C. Boyajian 89 -Once more God hither moves their course Saint Nerses Shnorhali Z. C. Boyajian 58 -O Night, be long—long as an endless year Nahabed Kouchak Z. C. Boyajian 5 -On the morning of thy birth Nahabed Kouchak Z. C. Boyajian 31 -O swallow, gentle swallow C. A. Dodochian Alice Stone Blackwell 111 -Slumbering darkly yesterday Bedros Tourian Z. C. Boyajian 84 -Soft and low a voice breathed o’er me S. Shahaziz Z. C. Boyajian 46 -Stork, I welcome thy return Folk Song Z. C. Boyajian 27 -Sweet slumber now creeps o’er thee slow Raphael Patkanian Z. C. Boyajian 21 -The clinging children at their mother’s - knee William Watson xvi -The Crane has lost his way across the - heaven Hovhannes Toumanian Z. C. Boyajian 62 -The door of Heaven open seemed Folk Song Z. C. Boyajian 3 -The fox ran up into the mill Folk Song Z. C. Boyajian 90 -The Hawk said to the Dove, “My dear” Folk Song Z. C. Boyajian 63 -The incense at the altar slowly burns Zabelle Essayan Z. C. Boyajian 17 -The lips of the Christ-child are like to - twin leaves Saint Gregory of Narek Alice Stone Blackwell 113 -The little fox, the wolf and bear made - peace Folk Song Z. C. Boyajian 15 -The Rose was gone. When to the empty - tent Grigoris of Aghtamar Z. C. Boyajian 52 -The Sky bent down his piercing gaze one - day Hovhannes Toumanian Z. C. Boyajian 79 -The sun has touched the mountain’s crest Folk Song Z. C. Boyajian 36 -The sun went down behind the hill Avetis Isahakian Z. C. Boyajian 30 -The wind is howling through the winter - night Avetis Isahakian Z. C. Boyajian 42 -Thou art so sweet thou wilt not pain Sayat Nova Z. C. Boyajian 110 -Thy voice is soft, thy speech all - sweetness flows Sayat Nova Z. C. Boyajian 74 -Undying Love, Whose beams forever glow Bedros Tourian Z. C. Boyajian 121 -Unutterable silence here is spread Raffi George M. Green 86 -Weary of vainly seeking Happiness Arschag Tchobanian Z. C. Boyajian 118 -Whence comest thou, my moon, gentle and - still Leo Alishan Z. C. Boyajian 108 -When Death’s pale angel comes to me Bedros Tourian Z. C. Boyajian 50 -When the God of Liberty Mikael Nalbandian Z. C. Boyajian 12 -Why dost thou lie in hushed surprise Bedros Tourian Alice Stone Blackwell 18 -With nuts and sweets and dainty fare Raffi Z. C. Boyajian 78 -Without thee what are song and dance to - me? Sayat Nova Z. C. Boyajian 85 -Ye mountain bluebells, weep with me Avetis Isahakian Z. C. Boyajian 29 -Yesternight I walked abroad Author Unknown Z. C. Boyajian 7 -Charm Verses Folk Songs Z. C. Boyajian 67 - - -PROSE LEGENDS - -Ara and Semiramis Moses of Khorene Z. C. Boyajian 23 -Artashes and Satenik Moses of Khorene Z. C. Boyajian 48 -Artavasd Moses of Khorene Z. C. Boyajian 65 -Christ and Abgarus Moses of Khorene Z. C. Boyajian 75 -The Castle of Anoush Raffi Z. C. Boyajian 114 -The Founding of Van Moses of Khorene Z. C. Boyajian 33 -Vahagn, King of Armenia Moses of Khorene Z. C. Boyajian 10 - - - - - - - - -NOTES - -[1] The “feast of Father Abraham” means plenty. - -[2] An apple is the symbol of love. - -[3] Armenian babies are tied tightly into their cradles when they are -put to sleep. - -[4] This and the other translations by Miss Alice Stone Blackwell are -reprinted from Armenian Poems, by the translator’s kind permission. - -[5] Oror—lullaby. - -[6] Armenian babies have their eyes bandaged when they are put to -sleep, and they are tied into their cradles. - -[7] Santoukhd was martyred by the order of her father, King Sanadroug, -for becoming a Christian. - -[8] The late Hagop Bey Balian. - -[9] A great number of these little poems exist. They are traditional, -and are used for fortune-telling. On the Eve of Ascension Day all those -who wish to have their fortunes told place some little trinket into a -bowl containing seven different kinds of flowers and water from seven -springs. The bowl is left open to the stars until dawn, when the party -assemble and select a child who cannot tell where the sun rises to take -the trinkets out as the verses are repeated. The owner of the token -takes the verse preceding its being brought out as his or her fortune. - -[10] The Eve of Ascension Day is the time when betrothals are arranged -and destinies decided. - -[11] The patron saint of lovers. - -[12] The poem entitled “Complaints,” written a few days before his -death. - -[13] “Ner”—the Antichrist, concerning whom the Armenians have -many traditions. - -[14] Haberban. - -[15] The Paradise of Mohammed, where the souls of the blest are waited -upon by beautiful houris, and fed with delicious fruits. - -[16] Above the summit of Aragatz, the mountain that faces Ararat on the -far side of the plain, a weird light is sometimes visible, -traditionally called the Lamp of Saint Gregory the Illuminator. - -[17] Anoush - sweet. - -[18] This and the following poem are reprinted from Nuove Liriche, by -Vittoria Aganoor Pompilj, Roma. Nuova Antologia. - -[19] Navasard fell, according to the later calendar of pagan Armenia, -in August. - -[20] See Agathangelos (fourth century A.D.). - -[21] Annual bonfires are kindled by Armenians on the festival of -Candlemas, or the Purification of the Blessed Virgin Mary (February -13/2). - -[22] Agathangelos. - -[23] Statues of massive gold were consecrated to her, one of which was -captured by the soldiers of Antony (Pliny, H. N., xxx. 24). - -[24] At each festival, the Armenians had to show what progress they had -made during the past year, in art and in other occupations, and races -and other competitions took place, the victors being crowned with -wreaths of roses. When the doves were set flying the High Priest -sprinkled the people with the waters of the Aradzani—a tributary of -the Euphrates—and the people in their turn sprinkled each other. The -customs dated back to traditions of the deluge—that universal baptism -with which God cleansed all the sinful earth, and the same expression -of love and forgiveness is manifested in the presence of the dove at -the baptism of Jordan. See Raffi’s Samuel, chap. ix. - -[25] Astghik means in Armenian “little star.” - -[26] It is a curious coincidence that Venus, the Greek goddess of -beauty, was also the wife of a fire-god, Vulcan. - -[27] Some say that Ammanor was an ancient Armenian god and not foreign. - -[28] Kadjk means in Armenian “brave ones.” - -[29] Zarmaïr, another king of this dynasty, took part in the defence -of Troy. The historian emphasises the fact that he was killed by -Achilles himself. - -[30] It is interesting to recall, in this connection, some passages of -Strabo. Speaking of Armenia he says:—“It is said that people -passing by the foot of the mountains are often buried in the snow which -falls from the summits. In order to be prepared for such a mishap, -travellers carry with them two long sticks for the purpose of making -breathing places for themselves, should they be covered by the snow. -The sticks, at the same time, serve as signals to any other travellers -who may happen to be passing.” - -[31] Cf. the original text of the Armenian poem which is as follows:— - - Երգներ երգին և երգիր Erkner erkin ev erkir - Երգներ և ծիրանի ծով Erkner ev dzirani dzov - Երգն ի ծովուն ուներ Erkn i dzovun uner - Զգարմրիգ եղեկնիգն. Zkarmrik eghegnikn. - Ընգ եղեգան փող, ծուխ ելաներ Ŭnd eghegan pogh, dzukh elaner - Ընգ եղեգան փող, քոց ելաներ Ŭnd eghegan pogh, botz elaner, - Եվ ի քոցտին պատանեկիկ վազեր, Ev i botzuin patanekik vazer, - Նա հուր հեր ուեր, Na hur her uner, - Ապա թե բոց ուներ մօրուս Apa te botz uner morus - Եվ աչկունքն եին արեգակունք. Ev achkunkn ein aregakunk. - -[32] The following lines from a Chaldean description of Ut-napisti, the -Chaldean Noah’s sacrifice after the Flood, furnish an example from -Assyrian poetry:— - - “The gods smelled a savour, - The gods smelled a sweet savour, - The gods gathered like flies over the sacrifice.” - -[33] Dziran in Armenian means “apricot,” therefore dzirani = “of -apricot colour.” - -[34] Strabo says about Artaxata that it was built upon a design which -Hannibal gave to King Artaxes (Artashes), who made it the capital of -Armenia, and Tournefort, the famous French botanist, who travelled in -Armenia in the seventeenth century, exclaims, in reference to this -fact: “Who could have imagined that Hannibal would come from Africa -to Armenia to be engineer to an Armenian king? But so it is.” - -[35] April, when the New Year commenced. - -[36] The son of Tigranes the Great. - -[37] “Armenios, one of the Argonauts, who was believed to have been a -native of Rhodes or of Armenion in Thessaly, and to have settled in the -country which was called after him, Armenia” (Strabo, xi. 530, etc.; -Justin, xlii. 2; Steph. Byz. S. V. Αρμενια). - -[38] Translations of Moses of Khorene: Latin (with Armenian text), -Whiston (G. & G.), London, 1736; Italian, Cappelletti (G.), Venice, -1841; Tommaseo (H.), Venice, 1849–50; German, Lauer (M.), Regensburg, -1869; French (with Armenian text), Le Vaillant de Florivel (P. E.), -Paris, 1841 (2 vols.), and in Langlois’ Collection, vol. ii.; -Russian, M. Emin, Moscow. - -[39] See Travel and Politics in Armenia, by Noel Buxton, M.P., and Rev. -Harold Buxton; with Introduction by Viscount Bryce and a Contribution -on Armenian History and Culture by Aram Raffi. Smith, Elder & Co. 1914. - -[40] The history of this war is recorded by Eghishé, a contemporary -ecclesiastic, whose work is more widely read than any book except the -Bible. He is a poet rather than an historian. - -[41] All the metrical translations quoted are by Miss Z. C. Boyajian. -Like her other translations in this volume they are almost literal -renderings; and the original metre has been kept. - -[42] These monarchs are mentioned because they were the first Christian -sovereigns. - -[43] In the Armenian Church there are two classes of clergy—the -higher order to which bishops belong and who do not marry, and the -lower order of parish priests who do marry. - -[44] It is interesting to compare this with a Persian poem by Essedi of -Tus called a dispute between Day and Night. In the former the Earth is -victorious, in the latter the Day. The Persian is essentially -Mohammedan in spirit and conventional, whereas the Armenian is almost -modern. - - Day. By day the pious fast and pray; - And solemn feasts are held by day. - - Night. Day can but paint the skies with blue, - Night’s starry hosts amaze the view. - - Day. ... I am a Moslem—white my vest, - Thou a vile thief, in sable drest. - Out, negro-face!—dar’st thou compare - Thy cheeks with mine, so purely fair? - - ... The Sun is ruddy, strong, and hale: - The moon is sickly, wan, and pale. - Methinks ’twas ne’er in story told - That silver had the worth of gold! - The moon, a slave, is bowed and bent, - She knows her light is only lent, - She hurries on, the way to clear, - Till the Great Shah himself appear. - - From “The Rose Garden of Persia.” - - - - - - -End of the Project Gutenberg EBook of Armenian Legends and Poems, by Various - -*** END OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK ARMENIAN LEGENDS AND POEMS *** - -***** This file should be named 54036-0.txt or 54036-0.zip ***** -This and all associated files of various formats will be found in: - http://www.gutenberg.org/5/4/0/3/54036/ - -Produced by Jeroen Hellingman and the Online Distributed -Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net/ for Project -Gutenberg (This file was produced from images generously -made available by The Internet Archive/American Libraries.) - -Updated editions will replace the previous one--the old editions will -be renamed. - -Creating the works from print editions not protected by U.S. copyright -law means that no one owns a United States copyright in these works, -so the Foundation (and you!) can copy and distribute it in the United -States without permission and without paying copyright -royalties. 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