Alano Assumption Monastery. Alansky Holy Dormition Monastery. The legend of the miraculous icon

Of course, the Caucasus is one of the most picturesque areas in our country. Beautiful nature, colorful culture and very often interesting buildings. And I would like to tell you about one such structure. This is the Alansky Holy Dormition Monastery. This city has long been a major Christian center in the Caucasus Mountains and thanks to this, the place has a long history. When you are in these places, you should definitely visit them and see everything with your own eyes.

I have been here and visited the sights. It took a little time, only a couple of hours, but it is worth it to see the monastery and the beautiful nature with which it is surrounded.

Although the city is a fairly old center of Christianity, the monastery has been standing here not so long ago, it is only two decades old and it’s hard to believe when looking at it, because it was built in the classical Byzantine style. But even though it has not existed for so long, it has already become one of the largest spiritual centers in Ossetia and the Caucasus, and also has quite significant weight throughout Russia.

To begin with, as always, I will tell you the coordinates of the monastery so that you know where to go if you want to make a pilgrimage, or just look at this beautiful temple in the mountains, which looks much older than its own years.

Its exact address will look like this: Republic of North Ossetia-Alania, Alagirsky district, village. Hidicus. It is located quite high in the mountains. Next to it is the settlement of Verkhy Fiagdon. It is not so far from the Kurtatinsky Gorge. You can get there by minibus, read more about it on the Internet. In general, the place is quite touristy at the regional level, so there is a message here. But you will still have to walk into the mountains, so be prepared for such a short hike. The main thing is that you will be accompanied by beautiful landscapes.

Although the history of the place, as I already said, is not so ancient, it is still very interesting, and here it is. It began in April 2000 in the city of Beslan. Then, in a former hotel for drivers, the Holy Dormition Monastery was founded, which in turn became over time the highest mountain monastery in all of Russia. At first, the brethren of the monastery were quite small. To be more precise, it consisted of only two monks who had previously undergone spiritual training at the Rylsky St. Nicholas Monastery. And they passed it through the elder Archimandrite Hippolytus. The founding of the monastery in Beslan is also associated with the name of this elder. It was he who, shortly before his death, blessed his students to go to the Caucasus and found a new monastery there. This is how the Alansky Holy Dormition Monastery appeared. Indeed, the place is young, but it already has its own quite interesting history, because many places do not receive such an interesting history even after centuries.

By the way, just a few kilometers from the monastery is the most important shrine of all North Ossetia - this is a copy of the Iveron Icon of the Mother of God. It was presented by the Holy Queen Tamara. But at the moment it is not there, because during the Second World War it was lost, and according to legend, when all the monasteries here are restored, the image will return.

Alan Assumption Monastery- Alansky Holy Dormition Monastery - a refuge for the mourners.

History of creation

The history of the creation of the monastery begins at the turn of two centuries in Beslan at the secular parish of the Most Holy Barbara, the Great Martyr. In January 2000, workers arrived at the charity home for single Orthodox Christians. These are the first monks, a monk and a hieromonk, Ossetians, there are two of them, and they should form the basis of the future monastic brethren.

Before that, they performed pre-monastic service for a year at the St. Nicholas Rylsky Monastery. During their preparation, they were mentored by the legendary Archimandrite Hippolytus, who soon died. He sent workers to become monks in Beslan. Obviously, the elder had an insight into the future tragedy of Beslan, its greatest need for prayer than any other city. There is an undeniable mystery in the fact that an Orthodox monastery opened in Beslan several years before the terrible tragedy that shocked the whole world with its cruelty. On the first day of September, in 2004, a secondary school was captured by Chechen terrorists. All the adults and children there were taken hostage.

Already in the spring of 2000, on the initiative of the rector, Priest Sergius Maltsev, and with the blessing of Metropolitan Gideon of Vladikavkaz, a monastery was founded. It was established by the decision of the Synod on April 19, 2000. The church of St. Barbara was transferred to the resulting monastery, and the church community transferred to the baptismal church of St. George the Victorious, the Great Martyr.

In 2003, Bishop Gideon blessed the creation of a monastery in the famous Kurtatinsky gorge near the village of Fiagdon. In less than a year, zealous monks restore the early 19th century temple, created in honor of the Holy Myrrh-Bearing Women, and erect a fraternal monastic building nearby. Already in the sad February of 2004, its discovery was made. Upon completion of construction, the monastery moves to the Kurtatinskoye Gorge. The monastery courtyard remains in Beslan.

Later, the Cathedral of the miraculous Mozdok Icon of the Mother of God was built. The newly erected church is like a copy of the ancient temples of Alanya, built of stone in the best traditions of ancient Alanya architecture.

The legend of the miraculous icon

Not far from the monastery there is a chapel where the most important relic of Ossetia - the famous Mozdok Iveron Mother of God icon - was kept for about six hundred years. It was presented by the legendary Georgian Queen Tamara, who reigned in the 12th - 13th centuries. in Orthodox Georgia.

Tamara made a huge contribution to strengthening the Christian faith in Ossetia. She graciously sent an icon to the Church of the Nativity of the Virgin Mary in the village of Mairamykau in the Kurtatin Gorge. This icon was created by a court icon painter who prepared for its creation through a long, grueling fast. The icon he suffered through became famous for centuries for its miraculous divine signs. The temple burned three times and was reduced to ashes, but each time the icon was invariably found unharmed near the conflagration. Mass miraculous healings of physical and mental illnesses with the icon also took place among pilgrims who came to her with faith. For six blessed centuries, the wonderful icon, being in the village of Mairamykau, protected and protected the Alan people. During the Tatar-Mongol invasion, to escape, the Kurtatins hid in the mountains and hid their relic there.

In the 13th century, immediately after returning to great-power Russia, the Alans descended from the mountains that protected them again to the plain. During the resettlement, the train of Kurtatin residents began to settle for the night. It got dark, and they suddenly saw a soft light flowing from the cart on which the icon of the Mother of God was being transported. The shining icon of the Most Holy Theotokos in this way notified them of its desire to remain in that place.

In 1797, a temple was erected on this site for the icon, where it remained for six centuries. But in the 90s of the turbulent 20th century, she disappeared without a trace from the Church of the Iveron Mozdok Icon of the Mother of God. In Alanya they believe that the icon will be found and returned to its place, they pray for it.

Modernity

The Assumption Monastery is the spiritual and educational center of Alanya, just like the Alan Convent. The successful revival of Alan monasticism served as an impetus that initiated grandiose spiritual processes in Ossetia. All kinds of people came to faith, and religious holidays began to attract countless numbers of parishioners. Pilgrims from all over southern Russia flocked to the monastery.

At that fateful moment the Beslan tragedy happened. 3 days before the terrorists seized the school, the Dormition of the Virgin Mary was celebrated. On this occasion, an incredible number of people came to the cathedral in the Kurtatinsky Gorge. A solemn festive service was held, followed by a religious procession. They carried the myrrh-streaming revered copy of the icon to the chapel. And on September 1, the forces of evil fell on Beslan like a tornado. Ossetia was crucified for its faith and geopolitical loyalty to Russia.

The tragedy that happened turned people even more to the Orthodox faith, which saved them from bitterness. People who survived this misfortune began to be baptized. In 2005, almost two hundred people came to the monastery for Baptism and were baptized. Almost a hundred people were baptized on Epiphany night in the waters of the Fiagdon River, and about a thousand Orthodox Christians took a dip. The next day, about a hundred people were baptized in a monastery in Beslan itself.

Alan Monastery is the spiritual and educational center of Orthodox Alanya. He collaborates with the central department to translate church texts into his native language. Church services here are conducted both in Church Slavonic and in the native Ossetian language.

Those who experienced the hardships of war, received serious injuries, and became disabled recently went to one of the holy places of the Orthodox Caucasus, the Alanian Holy Dormition Monastery, which is located in Fiagdon. The excursion to the holy places was organized by Madina Plieva, president of the Foundation for Supporting Those Wounded During Combat Actions in South Ossetia.

A warm welcome awaited guests from South Ossetia at the monastery. Father Stefan, a monk of the Holy Dormition Monastery, prayed for the guests and for the health of all those who came, lit candles in the churches: Isen - the Myrrh-Bearer and the church built in honor of the Mozdok Icon of the Iveron Mother of God.

Construction of the Alansky Holy Dormition Monastery began in 2003. Before this, the spiritual monastery was located in Beslan. Currently there are 14 monks in the temple. Among them is our fellow countryman from the village of Kornis, Znaursky district, German Dzhioev.

Father Stefan made a small excursion into the history of Alan Christianity. He told about how the Great Epiphany of Alanya took place in 916.

Mass baptism of Alans took place in the Nizhne-Arkhyz settlement (not far from the village of Zelenchukskaya, Karachay-Cherkessia). The sacrament was performed in three Alanian churches, which are the oldest Orthodox churches in Russia: the Northern Temple, the Middle Temple, and the Southern Temple. It should be noted that these three Alanian churches, which have survived to this day, are the oldest Christian churches in Russia. The Church of St. George the Victorious (Northern Church) also preserves the oldest font in Russia, where Alans received holy baptism. Also, the baptism of many Alans was performed in running water. The Great Epiphany of Alania played a positive role in the development and strengthening of Alanian statehood. Thus, Alania was introduced into the “Byzantine family” of peoples and acquired a high status, which determined its place in the hierarchy of states. The political authority of Alanya is evidenced by the form of the Byzantine emperor’s address to the ruler of Alanya. In the North Caucasus, only he is recognized as an independent sovereign and spiritual child. In chapter 48 of the essay “The Ceremony of the Byzantine Court” by the Emperor of Byzantium Constantine Porphyrogenitus, only three addressees are named as the spiritual children of the emperor - the rulers of Alania, Armenia and Bulgaria.

Thus began the “Golden Age” of Alania, which continued until the arrival of the Mongol-Tatar hordes of Timur and Genghis Khan, who exterminated our ancestors, destroyed temples and monasteries, mercilessly killed the Alan clergy, and implanted an alien religion in Christian Alania with fire and sword. The almost five-century existence of the great Alan metropolis suggests that Christianity had strong roots here. Torn away from their Christian shrines, the descendants of the Ossetian Alans, driven into the mountains, fleeing from wholesale extermination, moved the Christian shrines dear to them to the mountains of modern Ossetia. Timur's invasion devastated Ossetia. After this misfortune, she once again gains independence for a while.

At the end of the 12th century, Os-Bagatar was born in the Alagir Gorge into an ancient Alan family. Seeing his compatriots in severe oppression, Os-Bagatar decided to free Ossetia from the heavy foreign yoke and unite the Ossetians into one state. To succeed in this, he persuaded his brothers Isaac, Roman and Vasily to take monasticism and devote themselves to missionary work, knowing that only the Christian idea would bind the Ossetians with brotherly love, bring prosperity, order and patriotism to life. Preaching the Gospel diligently, Os-Bagatar, Isaac, Roman and Vasily really soon managed to unite the Ossetians into one state.

Among the wounded from South Ossetia were those whose limbs were amputated. Several hours spent on the bus took their toll - everyone was tired. But Father Stefan’s story was so interesting that the tourists were charged with positive energy.

Despite the invitation of the monks to a common meal, the guests from South Ossetia asked many questions and were interested in the history of the monastery gymnasium. Seeing the sincerity in their eyes, Father Stefan willingly answered questions. He told a story about why a church was being built in honor of the Iveron Mother of God.

As is known, at one time the holy and blessed Queen Tamara made an invaluable contribution to the strengthening of Christianity in Ossetia. At the end of the 12th and beginning of the 13th centuries. In our common faith, Georgia, the famous Queen Tamara reigned. She was the daughter of the Ossetian princess Burdukhan. Burdukhan was such an enlightened Ossetian that the whole of Georgia knew about her. Burdukhan opened a convent in Ossetia and looked after it until the end of her days. She easily translated books from Greek into Ossetian. After the death of Burdukhan, this monastery was patronized by Queen Tamara.

Queen Tamara sent an icon of the Iveron Mother of God to the Church of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary in the village of Mairamykau in the Kurtatinsky Gorge. It was painted by a court icon painter who prepared for his work by fasting for six weeks. This icon subsequently became famous for its miraculous signs. The church burned three times, and each time after the fire the holy icon was found intact on the mountain near the church. Mass healings also took place from spiritual and physical ailments of pilgrims who flocked to the icon with faith. For six centuries the miraculous icon was in the Kurtatinsky gorge, in the village of Mairamykau, protecting the Ossetian land. After the invasion of the Mongol-Tatars, the Kurtatins took their favorite icon with them.

In the 13th century, after voluntarily joining Russia, Ossetians moved from the mountains to the plain, to the Mozdok region, Kurtat migrants stopped for the night. At dusk they saw that light was emanating from the cart in which the icon of the Mother of God was located. The Most Holy Theotokos miraculously announced that she wished to remain in the place where the icon stopped and spent the night in an Ossetian cart. In 1797, a temple was built here for the icon, but in the 90s of the 20th century, the Iverskaya-Mozdok Icon of the Mother of God disappeared from the temple.

“We, the monks of the holy Alan monastery, believe that in due time the miraculous icon - the Apostle of the Caucasus - will return to the Kurtatin Gorge - the lot of the Most Holy Theotokos,” Father Stefan ended his story on this note.

Following the ancient monastic tradition, the guests were invited to a common meal. Afterwards, with great honor, they were presented with gifts - icons. Everyone was pleased with the excursion.

According to the president of the foundation, Madina Plieva, similar trips and excursions to the holy places of Ossetia give those wounded during the fighting in South Ossetia the opportunity to believe in themselves.

I will do everything in my power to ensure that at least for a while my wards forget about their ailments. Therefore, we will organize such trips in the future.

Marfa VAZAGOVA

About ten days ago, it so happened that I visited Alanya with the Hungarian delegation. Not the one with the sun, palm trees and sand. Why do we need the Turkish coast?))) In our Russian Alania, where there are mountains, stones and alpine meadows. I'm going to do a series of posts on this trip. Today the first of them is about the Fiagdon Monastery.

Alansky Holy Dormition Monastery is the southernmost and highest mountain monastery in Russia.

Until the 18th century, the miraculous copy of the Iveron Icon of the Mother of God was located here - a gift from the holy Queen Tamara. During the Great Patriotic War, the icon was lost. The monks of the Holy Dormition Monastery, founded several years ago, have now rebuilt the Iversky Church of the Blessed Virgin Mary. The new church of the monastery is an exact copy of the ancient Alanian temples, built of stone in the traditions of Byzantine architecture.

On the bank of the Fiagdon River there is a font in which the sacrament of baptism is performed.

The inside of the temple has not yet been painted, but services are already taking place. They serve in the monastery in Russian.

The Monastery of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary is one of two North Ossetian Orthodox monasteries. It is located in the village of Khidiskus in the Kurtatinsky or Fiagronsky gorge, which is 50 km from the administrative center of the region - Vladikavkaz, and is the highest (about 2 thousand meters above the sea) and southern Russian monastery.

The monastic chronicle dates back to 2000. The original location was the city of Beslan, where it was founded in the building of the former railway depot club, rebuilt as a temple of the Military Medical Center. Barbarians. At first, the brethren consisted of only two people. Then the basis of the community were the Ossetians, who in 1999 were in the Rylsk monastery of the Kursk region under the spiritual leadership of Elder Hippolytus, who sent his disciples to Beslan. In 2000, the monastery was officially established by the decision of the Synod.

After this, the monastic community changed its place of residence, which became the St. George Church of the Trinity temple complex in Beslan.

Soon the monastic community moved again - to its current location in a picturesque gorge. In 2003-2004, the small Church of the Myrrh-Bearing Women, built around 1858, was revived, from which only fragments of the walls remained when the monks arrived. At the same time, a monastic building and utility buildings were built.

Later, following ancient examples, a stone cathedral church of the Assumption Monastery was erected in honor of the Iversko-Mozdok Icon of the Mother of God, the main Ossetian shrine. It must be said that 5 km from the Assumption Monastery, in the village of Mairamykau, which translates as the settlement of Mary the Mother of God, the ancient Church of the Nativity of the Mother of God was preserved, where for six centuries the miraculous Mozdok image was located, donated to the people of Ossetia by the Georgian Queen Tamara, whose mother was an Ossetian. During the revolutionary years of the early twentieth century, traces of the shrine were lost. However, there is a legend that with the revival of monasteries in Ossetia the image will be found.

During the first decade of its existence, the monastery became a real spiritual beacon of the North Caucasus, on a par with the Alan Convent, and since that time many pilgrims from all over Southern Russia began to visit it. In addition to the Church Slavonic language, Ossetian is also used in the liturgical life of the monastery. Let us note that the brethren of the monastery are taking part in the work of translating liturgical and liturgical texts into this language.

There is a subsidiary farm in the monastery - the monks keep cows and chickens, and there is also an apiary.

In 2011, 14 people lived in the Alan Monastery. In addition to the monks, laborers arrive for obedience.

Shrines: the miraculous image of the Dormition of the Mother of God of the 19th century, created in the Kiev Pechersk Lavra on a stone from the Assumption Cathedral.

Diocese: Vladikavkazskaya.

Address: Russia, rep. North Ossetia-Alania, Alagirsky district, village. Hidicus.

Updated: November 6, 2017 by: Alexander