Vladimir Icon of the Mother of God: photo, meaning, what does it help in?

Our Lady of Vladimir is the most beloved, revered and oldest of the Mother of God icons. The people in Russia have long been perceived as their intercessor before God, her veneration has always been of great importance, it was a vivid manifestation of Russian piety.

The Russians have constantly turned and are turning to the intercession of the Mother of God through her images. Only miraculous icons with the image of the Mother of God, whose days the church annually celebrates, there are more than 150. But Vladimirskaya is the first among them all.

Coming to Russia

From ancient times

The icon was brought from Byzantium together with another significant shrine - the Mother of God Pirogoscha. The very one to which later comes to bow, returned from captivity, the protagonist of the Word about Igor's regiment.

This event took place in the XII century, around 1130. A stone temple was built for the Mother of God Pirogoshcha in Kyiv, and Our Lady of Vladimir, which, of course, no one has yet called, was placed in the Theotokos Monastery not far from Kyiv.

After Prince Yuri Dolgoruky captured Kyiv, his son Andrei Bogolyubsky, without the consent of his father, secretly decided to bring the shrine to Rostov.

Passing by Vladimir, the horses carrying the relic stopped, could not budge. An attempt to change them did not bring results, and the prince realized that he had received a sign: the icon wished to settle in Vladimir.

The prince erected the Cathedral of the Assumption, declared the city of Vladimir the first throne. An image richly decorated according to the Byzantine tradition was transferred to the temple. There was about one and a half kilograms of gold in the riza, not counting stones, pearls, fragments of silver casting.

Already in the time of Bogolyubsky, the Vladimir Mother of God began to be revered as a talisman and talisman of the Russian lands. The chroniclers paid special attention to the icon. Extensive records are devoted to her, explaining many events of history by the influence of the Vladimir Icon.

In 1237, the soldiers of Batu set fire to and plundered the cathedral, the precious salary disappeared., but the miraculous icon survived. The cathedral was soon restored and prayers continued.

A series of marvelous miracles

The history of the icon is full of miracles. Having defeated Khan Tokhtamysh near the Terek in the summer of 1395, Timur Tamerlane, the Great Emir of the Timurid Empire, pursued the defeated ruler of the Golden Horde all the way to Muscovy.

He ruined the Ryazan lands, conquered Yelets, approached Moscow. And then Metropolitan Cyprian decided to call for help the icon of the Most Holy Theotokos. The miraculous icon was delivered from Vladimir. She was carried for ten days in her arms without stopping reading prayers.

On August 26, 1395, Muscovites met the icon at their walls. With continuous prayers, she was brought to the Kremlin. A miracle happened. Timur unexpectedly deployed troops and left the Moscow principality.

Eyewitnesses said that a beautiful woman appeared to Tamerlane during his sleep at the head of an army of many thousands, which, at her command, rushed to the ruler of Samarkand. On the brave man found a terrible horror and Timur decided not to tempt fate.

Since that day, the icon has been revered as the patroness of Moscow. She was returned several times to Vladimir, again transported to Moscow, until she took her place for many years in the Assumption Cathedral of the Moscow Kremlin.

In 1451 another miracle happened. Moscow was surrounded by the Crimean steppe Tatars. The Nogai prince Mazovsha led a huge army.

Metropolitan Jonah organized a procession with the icon along the walls of the city, and the besiegers left. Hearing an unusual noise, the Nogais thought that a well-armed and numerous army of Prince Vasily was moving towards the city and retreated.

In 1480, the shrine was brought to the Russian camp in the area of ​​the Urga River. The victory on the Ugra of Moscow Prince Ivan III over the army of Khan Akhmet eventually led to the fall of the rule of the Golden Horde.

In 1521, thanks to the intercession of the miraculous image, Khan Mahmet Giray left Moscow along with the army, which gave rise to establish another holiday in honor of the icon.

In total, the church annually celebrates three holidays dedicated to the icon: May 21, June 23 and August 26 according to the Julian calendar.

With the image of the Mother of God of Vladimir, Boris Godunov was called by the people to the kingdom. In 1613, the Moscow Metropolitan Arseniy overshadowed with it the winners of the Poles of the militia of Kozma Minin and Prince Pozharsky.

From recent history

Until now, the story of how, during the war years, obeying the oral order of the Father of the Nations, Joseph Stalin, causes controversy, the sky over Moscow flew around the plane with the icon that defended the capital of the Soviet Union from perfidious invaders.

Different versions of the legend attribute the honor of saving the capital of the USSR to different icons. They point to the image of the Tikhvin Mother of God, the legendary Kazan Mother of God.

But many enthusiasts who are trying to find at least some documentary evidence of this miracle are inclined to believe that Moscow, like hundreds of years ago, survived not without the help of the Vladimir Icon.

One of the possible eyewitnesses told a year after the war that as soon as the Douglas transport with the miraculous image of the Mother of God on board circled the capital three times, the weather instantly changed: thick snow began to fall, the air temperature dropped sharply.

Nature itself came to the aid of the defenders of Moscow.

Where is the image now?

In the Assumption Cathedral of the Moscow Kremlin, the Vladimir Icon of the Mother of God was located until the revolution itself. Before her, emperors were crowned and patriarchs were elected, they prayed for her to grant victories, they took a military oath.

After the legendary robbery of the Patriarchal Sacristy in 1918, it was confiscated from the cathedral along with many Kremlin valuables and relics. The icon was placed in storage in the Armory.

According to another version, it was undergoing another restoration in the workshop of Igor Grabar. In total, the icon was repainted more than four times, not counting minor repairs to the image.

According to the description, the icon that has come down to us is absolutely not similar to the original work of the Byzantine master. In 1926, the Historical Museum became her refuge. In 1930, the leadership of the Tretyakov Gallery managed to convince the authorities to transfer the icon to the State Tretyakov Gallery.

Today, the icon is constantly in the Church of St. Nicholas in Tolmachi. It is a house church at the State Tretyakov Gallery.

In addition to this icon, there are other exhibits from the gallery's collection.: liturgical utensils, icons, crosses. Every year on the feast of the Holy Trinity, Andrey Rublev's "Trinity" is given to the Temple for temporary storage.

The kiot for the Mother of God of Vladimir was made by the Belgorod carver V. Aksenov and V. Panteleev. The temple is open to visitors, services are held in it.

On patronal feasts, the image is transferred to the Kremlin and exhibited in Moscow's Assumption Cathedral for general veneration.

How does an icon help?

Its miraculous power is manifested not only in protection from enemies. Since the time of Prince Bogolyubsky a large number of people receive spiritual and physical healing sincerely asking the icon of the Mother of God of Vladimir for help.

Protects against accidents.

When Prince Andrei Bogolyubsky took the icon to the Rostov lands, a full-flowing river stood in his way. The prince sent a man to search for a ford, but finding himself in the middle of a stormy river, he sank to the bottom like a stone.

The prince prayed to the icon, and a miracle happened - the man got out of the water unharmed.

Facilitates childbirth

Chronicles claim that the wife of Prince Andrei suffered greatly and could not be relieved of her burden for more than two days.

The prince defended the service and when it ended he washed the icon with water, and sent the water to the princess. Having taken a single sip, she immediately gave birth to a healthy child and recovered herself..

Treats diseases of the heart and blood vessels

It shows the greatest strength in the treatment of diseases associated with blood vessels and the heart. There is a mass of evidence of this from the time already almost forgotten to the present day.

There is a story about a woman from Murom who suffered from a heart disease. Having sent all her jewelry to Vladimir, she asked for holy water from the icon of the Virgin. And when she drank the brought water, she was immediately cured.

Saves from fatal accidents

Prince Bogolyubsky built the Golden Gate in Vladimir. Many people came to see them. But suddenly, with a large crowd of people, the gate separated from the walls and fell.

The reason for this was the dry lime. As many as 12 people remained under the rubble. Having learned about the tragedy, Prince Bogolyubsky began to pray before the icon of the Virgin.

Sincere prayer was heard. The gates were raised and all the people were alive, no one was found to have any injuries.

And even in front of the icon it will help to understand yourself, your experiences. It will allow you to see the right path in life, the Mother of God will strengthen faith and soften anger. We miss the goodness so much.

Prayer

O All-Merciful Lady Theotokos, Heavenly Queen, Omnipotent Intercessor, our shameless Hope! Thanking Thee for all the great blessings, in the generations of the Russian people from You who were, before Your most pure image, we pray to Thee: save this city (or: this whole, or: this holy abode) and your forthcoming servants and the whole Russian Land from gladness, destruction , land of shaking, flood, fire, sword, invasion of foreigners and internecine warfare. Save and save, Madam, our Great Lord and Father (name of the rivers), His Holiness the Patriarch of Moscow and All Russia, and our Lord (name of the rivers), His Grace Bishop (or: Archbishop, or Metropolitan) (title), and all the Most Reverend Metropolitans, Orthodox archbishops and bishops.

Give them good governance of the Russian Church, keep the faithful sheep of Christ indestructible. Remember, Lady, and the entire priestly and monastic rank and their salvation, warm their hearts with zeal for God and, worthy of your title, strengthen each one. Save, Lady, and have mercy on all Your servants and grant us the path of the earthly field without blemish.

Establish us in the faith of Christ and in zeal for the Orthodox Church, put into our hearts the spirit of the fear of God, the spirit of piety, the spirit of humility, give us patience in misfortune, abstinence in prosperity, love for neighbors, forgiveness for the enemy, prosperity in good deeds. Deliver us from every temptation and from petrified insensitivity, on the terrible day of Judgment, vouchsafe us with Your intercession to stand at the right hand of Your Son, Christ our God, and He deserves all glory, honor and worship with the Father and the Holy Spirit, now and ever and forever and ever . Amen.