Prince Vladimir Svyatoslavich had twelve sons from different wives. The third in seniority was Svyatopolk. Svyatopolk's mother, a nun, was stripped and taken as a wife by Yaropolk, Vladimir's brother. Vladimir killed Yaropolk and took possession of his wife when she was pregnant. He adopted Svyatopolk, but did not love him. And Boris and Gleb were the sons of Vladimir and his Bulgarian wife. Vladimir planted his children in different lands to reign: Svyatopolk - in Pinsk, Boris - in Rostov, Gleb - in Murom.

When the days of Vladimir came to an end, the Pechenegs moved to Rus'. The prince sent Boris against them. He went on a campaign, but did not meet the enemy. When Boris was returning back, the messenger told him about the death of his father and that Svyatopolk tried to hide his death. Hearing this story, Boris began to cry. He realized that Svyatopolk wanted to seize power and kill him, but decided not to resist. Indeed, Svyatopolk treacherously took possession of the throne of Kyiv. But, despite the persuasion of the squad, Boris did not want to drive his brother out of the reign.

Meanwhile, Svyatopolk bribed the people of Kiev and wrote Boris an affectionate letter. But his words were false. In fact, he wanted to kill all of his father's heirs. And he began by ordering the squad, which consisted of Vyshgorod husbands, headed by Putynya, to kill Boris.

Boris, on the other hand, pitched a camp on the Alta River. In the evening he prayed in his tent, thinking about his imminent death. Waking up, he ordered the priest to serve matins. The assassins, sent by Svyatopolk, approached Boris's tent and heard the words of holy prayers. And Boris, hearing an ominous whisper near the tent, realized that they were murderers. The priest and servant of Boris, seeing the sadness of their master, grieved for him.

Suddenly, Boris saw the killers with naked weapons in their hands. The villains rushed to the prince and pierced him with spears. And the servant of Boris covered his master with his body. This servant was a Hungarian named George. The killers hit him too. Wounded by them, George jumped out of the tent. The villains wanted to inflict new blows on the prince, who was still alive. But Boris began to ask to be allowed to pray to God. After the prayer, the prince turned to his murderers with words of forgiveness and said: “Brothers, having begun, finish what was commanded to you.” So Boris died on the 24th day of July. Many of his servants were also killed, including George. They cut off his head to remove the hryvnia from his neck.

Boris was wrapped in a tent and taken away in a cart. As they rode through the forest, the holy prince raised his head. And two Varangians pierced him again with a sword in the heart. The body of Boris was laid in Vyshgorod and buried near the church of St. Basil.

After that, Svyatopolk conceived a new atrocity. He sent Gleb a letter in which he wrote that his father, Vladimir, was seriously ill and was calling for Gleb.

The young prince went to Kyiv. When he reached the Volga, he slightly injured his leg. He stopped not far from Smolensk, on the Smyadyn River, in a boat. The news of the death of Vladimir, meanwhile, reached Yaroslav (another of the twelve sons of Vladimir Svyatoslavich), who then reigned in Novgorod. Yaroslav sent Gleb a warning not to go to Kyiv: his father had died, and his brother Boris had been killed. And, when Gleb was crying about his father and brother, the evil servants of Svyatopolk, sent by him to kill, suddenly appeared before him.

Holy Prince Gleb was then sailing in a boat along the Smyadyn River. The murderers were in another boat, they began to row towards the prince, and Gleb thought that they wanted to greet him. But the villains began to jump into Gleb's boat with drawn swords in their hands. The prince began to beg that they would not ruin his young life. But the servants of Svyatopolk were inexorable. Then Gleb began to pray to God for his father, brothers, and even for his murderer, Svyatopolk. After that, the cook Glebov, Torchin, stabbed his master. And Gleb ascended to heaven, and met there with his beloved brother. It happened on September 5th.

The murderers returned to Svyatopolk and told him about the order they had carried out. The evil prince rejoiced.

Gleb's body was thrown in a deserted place between two decks. Merchants, hunters, shepherds passing by this place saw a pillar of fire, burning candles there, heard angelic singing. But no one thought to look for the body of the saint there.

And Yaroslav moved with his army to the fratricide Svyatopolk in order to avenge his brothers. Yaroslav was accompanied by victories. Arriving at the Alta River, he stood at the place where Saint Boris was killed, and prayed to God for the final victory over the villain.

The battle on Alta lasted all day. By evening, Yaroslav won, and Svyatopolk fled. He was overcome with madness. Svyatopolk was so weak that he was carried on a stretcher. He ordered to run, even when the chase stopped. So they carried him on a stretcher through the Polish land. In a deserted place between the Czech Republic and Poland, he died. His grave has been preserved, and a terrible stench emanates from it.

Since then, strife has ceased in the Russian land. Yaroslav became the Grand Duke. He found the body of Gleb and buried him in Vyshgorod, next to his brother. Gleb's body turned out to be incorrupt.

Many miracles began to emanate from the relics of the holy martyrs Boris and Gleb: the blind received their sight, the lame walked, the humpbacked straightened up. And in those places where the brothers were killed, churches were created in their name.

The emergence of original hagiographic literature was associated with the general political struggle of Rus' to assert its religious independence, the desire to emphasize that the Russian land has its own representatives and intercessors before God. Surrounding the personality of the prince with an aura of holiness, the lives contributed to the political strengthening of the foundations of the feudal system.

An example of the ancient Russian princely life is the anonymous "Tale of Boris and Gleb", created, apparently, at the end of the 11th - beginning of the 12th centuries.

The author of The Tale retains historical specificity, setting out in detail all the ups and downs associated with the villainous murder of Boris and Gleb. Like the chronicle, the "Tale" sharply condemns the killer - "cursed" Svyatopolk and opposes fratricidal strife, defending the patriotic idea of ​​unity "Russian great country".

The "Tale" does not follow the traditional compositional scheme of life, which usually describes the whole life of the ascetic - from his birth to death. It outlines only one episode from the life of its heroes - their villainous murder. Boris and Gleb are portrayed as ideal Christian martyr heroes. They voluntarily accept the "martyr's crown". The glorification of this Christian feat is sustained in the manner of hagiographic literature. The author equips the narrative with abundant monologues - the cries of the heroes, their prayers, which serve as a means of expressing their pious feelings. The monologues of Boris and Gleb are not devoid of imagery, drama and lyricism. Such, for example, is Boris' lamentation for his dead father: “Alas for me, the light of my eyes, the radiance and dawn of my face, the breeze of my anguish, the punishment of my misunderstanding! Alas, my father and lord! Who will I run to? To whom will I take? Where can I be satisfied with such a good teaching and the testimony of your mind? Alas for me, alas for me! How zaide my light, I don’t dry that one! .. " This monologue uses rhetorical questions and exclamations characteristic of church oratorical prose, and at the same time reflects the figurativeness of folk lamentation, which gives it a certain lyrical tone, allows you to more clearly express the feeling of filial grief.

Pious reflections, prayers, laments that are put into the mouths of Boris and Gleb serve as a means of revealing the inner world of the characters, their psychological mood.

Many heroes pronounce monologues “thinking in your mind”, “saying in your heart”. These internal monologues are the product of the author's imagination. They convey pious feelings, thoughts of ideal heroes. The monologues include quotations from the Psalter, Paremiion.

The psychological state of the characters is also given in the author's description. So, abandoned by the retinue Boris “... in an ace and sadness, depressingly heart and climbed into your tent, crying with a broken heart, and with a joyful soul, pitifully emitting a voice.” Here the author is trying to show how two opposite feelings are combined in the hero's soul: grief in connection with a premonition of death and the joy that an ideal hero-martyr should experience in anticipation of a martyr's end. The living immediacy of the manifestation of feelings constantly collides with etiquette.

Boris and Gleb are surrounded in the "Tale" with an aura of holiness. This goal is served not only by the exaltation and glorification of the Christian traits of their character, but also by the widespread use of religious fiction in the description of posthumous miracles. This typical technique of hagiographic literature is used by the author of the Tale in the final part of the narrative. The same purpose is served by the praise with which the Tale ends. In praise, the author uses traditional biblical comparisons, prayer appeals, resorts to quotations from books of "holy scripture".

The heroes of Christian virtue, the ideal princes-martyrs in the "Tale" are opposed to a negative character - "cursed" Svyatopolk. He is possessed by envy, pride, lust for power and a fierce hatred of his brothers. The characteristic of Svyatopolk is given according to the principle of antithesis with the characteristics of Boris and Gleb. He is the bearer of all negative human qualities. When depicting him, the author does not spare black colors. Svyatopolk "cursed", "cursed", "second Cain", whose thoughts are caught by the devil, he "bad mouth", "evil voice".

Svyatopolk is opposed not only "earth angels" And "heavenly people" Boris and Gleb, but also the ideal earthly ruler Yaroslav, who avenged the death of his brothers. The author of the "Tale" emphasizes the piety of Yaroslav, putting into his mouth a prayer allegedly uttered by the prince before the battle with Svyatopolk.

The dramatic nature of the narrative, the emotionality of the style of presentation, the political topicality of the Tale made it very popular in ancient Russian writing (it has come down to us in 170 lists).

MOTIVES OF CANONIZING.

There were quite objective, from the point of view of the Church, grounds for the canonization of a righteous man after his death. The main of them is the glorification of the ascetic of God's piety with the gift of miracles emanating from his relics, that is, a sacred certificate of his holiness (their remains did not get hot). The share of the supreme power - the prince and the church clergy - fell to the confirmation of these miracles performed at the tomb.

To the very canonization of the saints consisted in the fact that on the day of the Assumption of the saint or the day of the discovery of his relics, or on both days, an annual church celebration of his memory was appointed.

The best illustration of what has been said, it would seem, could be the descriptions in the "Tale" and "Reading" of the celebrations for the transfer of the relics of Boris and Gleb and Yaroslav the Wise; and in 1072 by his sons Izyaslav, Svyatoslav and Vsevolod; and in 1115 already the grandchildren of Yaroslav - Vladimir Vsevolodovich and Davyd and Oleg Svyatoslavich ...

The most perfect literary monument of the Boriso-Gleb cycle is considered the anonymous "Tale", the author of which focused on the spiritual side of this historical drama. The task of the hagiographer is to portray the suffering of the saints and show the greatness of their spirit in the face of imminent death. After the death of Vladimir in 1015, his son Svyatopolk seized the throne. Boris knows in advance about Svyatopolk’s plans to kill him, and he is faced with the choice of either going to “fight Kiev” and killing him, or by his death laying the foundation for Christian relations between the princes of humility and submission to the elder. Boris chooses martyrdom. The psychological complexity of this choice is shown, which makes the picture of his death truly tragic, and to enhance the impact on the reader, the author repeats the scene of the murder of the prince three times. There are a lot of prayers in the Tale, Boris prays especially with inspiration before his death. The intonations of lamentation literally permeate the "Tale", defining the main tone of the narration. All this corresponds to the hagiographic canon. But the work is also characterized by a tendency to individualize the hagiographic hero, which contradicted the canon, but corresponded to the truth of life. The image of the younger brother Gleb did not duplicate the hagiographic characteristics of the elder. Gleb is more inexperienced than his brother, therefore he treats Svyatopolk with full confidence. Later, Gleb cannot suppress the fear of death in himself, and begs the killers for mercy. The author created one of the first psychological portraits in Russian literature, rich in subtle emotional experiences of the hero. For Gleb, the destiny of a martyr is still premature. Psychologically reliable image of the hagiographic anti-hero Svyatopolk. He is obsessed with envy and pride, he craves power, therefore he is characterized by the epithets "cursed", "bad". He deserves the punishment for his crime. It is broken by Yaroslav the Wise, and Svyatopolk dies on the run.

Translation by D. S. Likhachev

Lord, bless, Father! “The generation of the righteous will be blessed,” says the prophet, “and their descendants will be blessed.” So it happened shortly before our days under the autocrat of the whole Russian land, Vladimir, the son of Svyatoslav, the grandson of Igor, who enlightened the whole Russian land with holy baptism. About his other virtues we will tell in another place, but now is not the time. We will talk about the same that we started in order. Vladimir had 12 sons, and not from one wife: their mothers were different. The eldest son is Vysheslav, after Izyaslav, the third is Svyatopolk, who planned this evil murder. His mother is Greek, formerly a nun. Vladimir's brother Yaropolk, seduced by the beauty of her face, cut her hair, and took her as his wife, and conceived from her the accursed Svyatopolk. Vladimir, at that time still a pagan, having killed Yaropolk, took possession of his pregnant wife. So she gave birth to this accursed Svyatopolk, the son of two fathers-brothers. Therefore, Vladimir did not love him, because he was not from him. And from Rogneda Vladimir had four sons: Izyaslav, and Mstislav, and Yaroslav, and Vsevolod. From another wife were Svyatoslav and Mstislav, and from a Bulgarian wife - Boris and Gleb. And Vladimir put them all in different lands to reign, which we will say in another place, but here we will tell about those about whom this story is.
Vladimir put the accursed Svyatopolk to reign in Pinok, and Yaroslav in Novgorod, and Boris in Rostov, and Gleb in Murom. However, I will not go into too much explanation, so as not to forget the main thing in verbosity, but about whom I started, we will tell this. A lot of time passed, and when 28 years had passed after holy baptism, the days of Vladimir came to an end - he fell into a serious illness. At the same time, Boris came from Rostov, and the Pechenegs again moved the army to Rus', and great sorrow seized Vladimir, because he could not oppose them, and this greatly saddened him. He then called Boris to him, named Roman in holy baptism, blessed and quick to obey, and, giving him many soldiers under his command, sent him against the godless Pechenegs. Boris went with joy, saying: “I am ready to do before your eyes what the will of your heart commands.” About such Pritochnik said: "There was a son obedient to his father and beloved by his mother."
When Boris, having set out on a campaign and not meeting the enemy, returned back, a messenger came to him and told him about the death of his father. He told how his father Vasily had died (this name was Vladimir in holy baptism) and how Svyatopolk, hiding the death of his father, dismantled the platform in Berestovo at night and, wrapping the body in a Carpet, lowered him on ropes to the ground, took him on a sleigh in the Church of the Holy Mother of God. And when Saint Boris heard this, his body began to weaken, and his whole face was wet with tears, shedding tears, unable to speak. Only in his heart did he think like this: “Alas for me, the light of my radiance and the dawn of my face, the bridle of my youth, the mentor of my inexperience! Alas, my father and my lord! To whom shall I resort, to whom shall I turn my gaze? Where else can I find such wisdom and how can I manage without the instructions of your mind? Alas for me, alas for me! How did you go down, my sun, and I was not there! If I were there, I would remove your honest body with my own hands and betray it to the grave. But I did not carry your valiant body, I was not honored to kiss your beautiful gray hairs. O blessed one, remember me at your resting place! My heart burns, my soul confuses my mind, and I don’t know who to turn to, who to tell this bitter sadness? Brother, whom I revered as a father? But he, I feel, cares about worldly fuss and plots my murder. If he sheds my blood and decides to kill me, I will be a martyr before my Lord. I will not resist, for it is written: "God opposes the proud, but gives grace to the humble." And in the epistle of the apostle it is said: "Whoever says, 'I love God,' but hates his brother, is a liar." And again: "There is no fear in love; perfect love casts out fear." So what will I say, what will I do? I’ll go to my brother and say: “Be my father, because you are my elder brother. What will you command me, my lord?
And thinking so in his mind, he went to his brother and said in his heart: “Will I even see my younger brother Gleb, like Joseph - Benjamin?” And he decided in his heart: “Let your will be done, Lord!” I thought to myself: “If I go to my father’s house, then many people will persuade me to drive my brother away, as my father did for the sake of glory and reign in this world before holy baptism. And all this is transient and fragile, like a web. Where will I go after my departure from this world? Where will I be then? What answer will I get? Where will I hide my many sins? What did my father's brothers or my father gain? Where is their life and the glory of this world, and scarlet, and feasts, silver and gold, wine and honey, plentiful dishes, and frisky horses, and adorned and great mansions, and many riches, and tributes, and countless honors, and boasting of their boyars . All this seemed to have never happened: everything with them disappeared, and there is no help from anything - neither from wealth, nor from many slaves, nor from the glory of this world. So Solomon, having experienced everything, having seen everything, mastering everything and gathering everything, said about everything: “Vanity of vanities - all is vanity!” Salvation is only in good deeds, in true faith and in unfeigned love.”
Going his own way, Boris thought about his beauty and youth, and shed tears all over. And he wanted to hold back, but he couldn't. And all who saw him also mourned his youth and his physical and spiritual beauty. And each in his soul groaned from the sorrow of his heart, and all were seized with sorrow.
Who will not mourn, presenting this pernicious death before the eyes of his heart?
His whole appearance was dull, and his holy heart was contrite, for the blessed one was truthful and generous, quiet, meek, humble, he pitied everyone and helped everyone.
This is how the blessed Boris thought in his heart and said: “I knew that evil people would incite my brother to kill me and he would destroy me, and when he sheds my blood, I will be a martyr before my Lord, and the Master will receive my soul.” Then, forgetting mortal sorrow, he began to comfort his heart with God's word: "He who sacrifices his soul for the sake of Me and My teaching will find and keep it in Eternal Life." And he went with a joyful heart, saying: “Lord, merciful, do not reject me, who trusts in You, but save my soul!”
Svyatopolk, having sat down to reign in Kyiv after the death of his father, called the people of Kiev to him and, having generously endowed them, let them go. He sent the following message to Boris: “Brother, I want to live with you in love and I will add more to the possession received from my father.” But there was no truth in his words. Svyatopolk, having come to Vyshgorod at night, secretly summoned Putyla and the Vyshgorod husbands to him and said to them: “Confess to me without hiding - are you devoted to me?” Putyla replied: "We are all ready to lay down our heads for you."
When the devil, the primordial enemy of all that is good in people, saw that Saint Boris placed all his hope on God, he began to intrigue and, as in ancient times, Cain, plotting fratricide, caught Svyatopolk. He guessed the thoughts of Svyatopolk, truly the second Cain: after all, he wanted to kill all the heirs of his father in order to seize all power alone.
Then the accursed accursed Svyatopolk called to himself accomplices of atrocity and instigators of all untruth, opened his filthy lips and cried out in an evil voice to Putyl’s squad: “Since you promised to lay down your heads for me, then go secretly, my brothers, and where you will meet my brother Boris, having improved the time is right, kill him." And they promised him to do it.
The prophet said about such people: “They are quick to kill. Defiled by bloodshed, they bring misfortune upon themselves. Such are the ways of all those who commit iniquity - with wickedness they destroy their souls.
Blessed Boris returned and spread his camp on Alta. And the squad told him: "Go, sit in Kyiv on your father's princely table - after all, all the soldiers are in your hands." He answered them: “I cannot raise my hand against my brother, besides, also the oldest, whom I honor as a father.” Hearing this, the soldiers dispersed, and he was left only with his youths. And it was the Sabbath. In anguish and sadness, with a dejected heart, he entered his tent and wept in contrition of heart, but with an enlightened soul, plaintively exclaiming: “Do not reject my tears, Master, for I trust in You! May I be rewarded with the fate of your servants and share the lot with all your saints, You are a merciful God, and we praise You forever! Amen".
He remembered the torment and suffering of the holy martyr Nikita and saint Vyacheslav, who were killed in the same way, and how her own father was the murderer of Saint Barbara. And he remembered the words of the wise Solomon: "The righteous live forever, and from the Lord is their reward and adornment from the Most High." And only these words comforted and rejoiced.
Meanwhile, evening came, and Boris ordered Vespers to be sung, and he himself entered his tent and began to perform the evening prayer with bitter tears, frequent sighing and continuous lamentations. Then he went to bed, and his sleep was disturbed by dreary thoughts and sadness, bitter, and heavy, and terrible: how to endure torment and suffering and end life, and save faith, and accept the prepared crown from the Hands of the Almighty. And, waking up early, he saw that it was already morning time. And it was Sunday. He said to his priest: "Get up, start matins." Himself, putting on shoes and washing his face, began to pray to the Lord God.
Those sent by Svyatopolk came to Alta at night, and came close, and heard the voice of the blessed martyr singing the Psalter at matins. And he had already received the news of the impending murder of him. And he began to sing: “Lord! How my enemies have multiplied! Many rise up against me" - and the rest of the psalms to the end. And, having begun to sing according to the Psalter: “A crowd of dogs surrounded me and fat calves surrounded me,” he continued: “Lord, my God! I trust in You, save me!” And after that he sang the canon. And when he finished matins, he began to pray, looking at the icon of the Lord and saying: “Lord Jesus Christ! Like you, who appeared on earth in this image and by your own will let yourself be nailed to the cross and accept suffering for our sins, grant me to accept suffering in this way!
And when he heard an ominous whisper near the tent, he trembled, and tears flowed from his eyes, and said: “Glory to Thee, Lord, for everything, for You have honored me with envy for the sake of accepting this bitter death and enduring everything for the love of Thy commandments. You yourself did not want to escape the torment, you did not wish for yourself, follow the commandments of the apostle: "Love is long-suffering, believes everything, does not envy and does not exalt itself." And again: "There is no fear in love, for true love casts out fear." Therefore, Lord, my soul is always in Your hands, for I have not forgotten Your commandment. As the Lord wills, so shall it be." And when they saw the priest Borisov and the youth serving the prince, his master, embraced by sorrow and sadness, they wept bitterly and said: “Our merciful and dear lord! What goodness you are filled with, that you did not want to oppose your brother for the love of Christ, and yet how many soldiers you kept at your fingertips! And having said this, they were sad.
And suddenly they saw those rushing to the tent, the gleam of weapons, drawn swords. And without pity the honest and many-merciful body of the holy and blessed Christ's martyr Boris was pierced. The accursed ones struck him with spears: Putsha, Talets, Elovich, Lyashko. Seeing this, his youth covered the body of the blessed one with himself, exclaiming: “Let me not leave you, my beloved sir, where the beauty of your body fades, here I will be able to end my life!”
He was a Hungarian by birth, named George, and the prince rewarded him with a golden hryvnia, and was loved by Boris immensely. Then they pierced him, and, wounded, he jumped out of the tent in a daze. And those standing near the tent spoke: “Why are you standing and looking! Having begun, let us complete what we have been commanded.” Hearing this, the blessed one began to pray and ask them, saying: “My dear and beloved brothers! Wait a little, let me pray to God." And looking up at the sky with tears, and sighing to grief, he began to pray with these words: “Lord, my God, many-merciful, and merciful, and merciful! Glory to Thee, for having granted me to escape from the seductions of this deceitful life! Glory to Thee, generous giver of life, for vouchsafed me a feat worthy of the holy martyrs! Glory to Thee, Lord-philanthropist, who made me fulfill the innermost desire of my heart! Glory to Thee, O Christ, glory to Thy immeasurable mercy, for Thou hast directed my steps to the right path! Look from the height of Your holiness and see the pain of my heart, which I suffered from my relative - because for Your sake they kill me on this day. I have been equated with a ram ready to be slaughtered. You know, Lord, that I do not resist, do not contradict, and having under my hand all the soldiers of my father and all whom my father loved, I did not plot anything against my brother. He raised as much as he could against me. “If the enemy reproached me, I would endure it; if my hater slandered me, I would hide from him. But You, Lord, be a Witness and judge between me and my brother and do not condemn them, Lord, for this sin, but accept my soul in peace. Amen".
And, looking at his killers with a sorrowful look, with a haggard face, shedding tears all over, he said: “Brothers, when you start, finish what was entrusted to you. And may there be peace to my brother and to you, brothers!”
And all who heard his words could not utter a word from fear and bitter sadness and abundant tears. With bitter sighs, they lamented and wept plaintively, and each one wailed in his soul: “Alas for us, our merciful and blessed prince, guide to the blind, clothing to the naked, staff to the elders, mentor to the foolish! Who will direct them now? I didn’t want the glory of this world, I didn’t want to have fun with honest nobles, I didn’t want greatness in this life. Who will not be amazed at such great humility, who will not humble himself, seeing and hearing his humility?
And so Boris rested, betraying his soul into the hands of the Living God on the 24th day of the month of July, 9 days before the August calendars.
They also killed many youths. They could not remove the hryvnia from George, and, having cut off his head, they threw it away. Therefore, they could not identify his body.
Blessed Boris, wrapped in a tent, put on a cart and taken away. And when they were riding in the forest, he began to raise his holy head. Upon learning of this, Svyatopolk sent two Varangians, and they pierced Boris in the heart with a sword. And so he died, assuming an unfading crown. And, having brought his body, they laid it in Vyshgorod and buried it in the ground near the church of St. Basil.
And the accursed Svyatopolk did not stop at this murder, but in his fury he began to prepare for a greater crime. And, seeing the fulfillment of his cherished desire, he did not think about his villainous murder and the severity of sin, and did not repent of his deed in the least. And then Satan entered his heart, beginning to incite to even greater atrocities and new murders. Thus the accursed one spoke in his soul: “What shall I do? If I dwell on this murder, then two fates await me: when my brothers find out about what has happened, they will lie in wait for me and reward me worse than what I have done. And if not melting, then they will expel me and lose the throne of my father, and regret for my lost land will gnaw me, and the reproaches of those who reproach me will fall on me, and another will seize my reign, and there will be no living soul left in my dwellings. For I have destroyed the beloved of the Lord, and I have added a new sore to the sickness; I will add lawlessness to iniquity. After all, the sin of my mother will not be forgiven, and I will not be inscribed with the righteous, but my name will be taken from the Book of Life. And so it happened, about which we will tell later. Now is not the time yet, but back to our story.
And, having planned this, the evil devil's accomplice sent for the blessed Gleb, saying: “Come without delay. Father is calling you, he is seriously ill.
Gleb quickly got ready, mounted his horse and set off with a small squad. And when they came to the Volga, a horse in a pit stumbled under him in the field and slightly injured his leg. And how Gleb came to Smolensk, departed not far from Smolensk and stood on Smyadyn, in a boat. And at this time, news came from Predslava to Yaroslav about the death of his father. And Yaroslav sent to Gleb, saying: “Do not go, brother. Your father died, and your brother was killed by Svyatopolk.
And, hearing this, the blessed one cried out with bitter weeping and heartfelt sorrow, and so he said: “Oh, alas for me, Lord! Doubly weeping and groaning, doubly lamenting and grieving. Alas for me, alas for me! I cry bitterly for my father, and even more bitterly I cry and mourn for you, my brother and lord, Boris. How was he pierced, how was he killed without pity, if not from the enemy, but from his brother did he accept death? Alas for me! It would be better for me to die with you than to live alone and orphaned without you in this world. I thought that I would soon see your angelic face, but what a misfortune befell me, it would be better for me to die with you, my lord! What am I going to do now, unhappy, deprived of your kindness and wisdom of my father? O my dear brother and lord! If your prayers reach the Lord, pray for my sorrow, so that I may be able to accept the same torment and be with you, and not in this vain world.
And when he so groaned and wept, irrigating the earth with tears and calling on God with frequent sighs, his evil servants sent by Svyatopolk, ruthless bloodsuckers, fierce brother-haters, ferocious beasts that vomited out the soul, suddenly appeared.
The saint was sailing at that time in a boat, and they met him at the mouth of the Smyadyn. And when the saint saw them, he rejoiced in his soul, and when they saw him, they became gloomy and began to row towards him, and he thought - they want to greet him. And, when they swam alongside, the villains began to jump into his boat with naked swords shining like water in their hands. And immediately all the oars fell out of their hands, and everyone died from fear. Seeing this, the blessed one realized that they wanted to kill him. And, looking at the murderers with a meek gaze, washing his face with tears, humbled himself, in contrition of heart, sighing tremblingly, bursting into tears and weakening his body, he began pitifully to beg: “Do not touch me, my dear and dear brothers! Don't touch me, who hasn't done you any harm! Have mercy, my brothers and masters, have mercy! What offense have I done to my brother and to you, my brothers and masters? If there is any offense, then take me to your prince and to my brother and master. Have pity on my youth, have mercy, my lords! Be my masters, and I will be your slave. Do not destroy me, in the life of a young man, do not reap an ear that has not yet ripened, poured with the juice of malice! Do not cut the vine that has not yet grown, but has fruit! I beg of you and put myself at your mercy. Be afraid of the apostle who said through the mouth: “Do not be children of the mind: be like babies for an evil deed, but be of full age in your mind.” But I, brothers, are still young both in deed and in age. This is not murder, but savagery! What evil have I done, tell me, and then I will not complain. If you want to get enough of my blood, then I, brothers, are in the hands of yours and my brother, and your prince. And not a single word put them to shame, but like fierce beasts attacked him. He, seeing that they did not heed his words, began to say: “May my beloved father, and Mr. Vasily, and my lady mother, and you, brother Boris, be the mentor of my youth, and you, brother and accomplice Yaroslav, and you, brother and enemy Svyatopolk, and all of you, brothers and squad, may everyone be saved! I will no longer see you in this life, for they forcefully separate me from you. And he said, crying: “Vasily, Vasily, my father and master! Bow your ears and hear my voice, look and see what happened to your son, how they kill me for nothing. Alas for me, alas for me! Hear, heaven, and listen, earth! And you, Boris, brother, hear my voice. I called my father Vasily, and he did not heed me, do you really not want to hear me? Look at the sorrow of my heart and the pain of my soul, look at the streams of my tears flowing like a river! And no one listens to me, but you remember me and pray for me before the Lord of all, for you are pleasing to Him and stand before His Throne.
And, kneeling down, he began to pray: “Most generous and merciful Lord! Do not despise my tears, have mercy on my sorrow. Look at the contrition of my heart: they kill me for no one knows what, no one knows for what guilt. You know, Lord my God! I remember the words you said to your apostles: “For My Name, for My sake they will raise their hands against you, and you will be betrayed by relatives and friends, and brother will betray brother to death, and they will kill you for the sake of My Name.” And again: “With patience, strengthen your souls.” Look, Lord, and judge: my soul is ready to stand before you, Lord! And we give glory to you, to the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, now and forever and forever and ever. Amen"
Then he looked at the murderers and said in a plaintive and broken voice: “Since you have begun, having begun, do what you were sent to do!”
Then the accursed Goryaser ordered to kill him without delay. The cook, Glebov, named Torchin, took a knife and, grabbing the blessed one, slaughtered it, like a blameless and innocent lamb, on the 5th day of September, on Monday.
And a pure and fragrant sacrifice was offered to the Lord, and he ascended to the heavenly abodes to the Lord, and saw his beloved brother, and both accepted the Heavenly Crown, which they aspired to, and rejoiced in the great and inexpressible joy that they received.
The accursed murderers returned to the one who sent them, as David said: "The wicked will return to hell and all those who forget God." And again: “The wicked draw their sword and draw their bow to strike those who walk in the straight path, but their sword will enter into their own heart, and their bows will be crushed, and the wicked will perish.” And when they told Svyatopolk that “they fulfilled your command,” then, having heard this, he ascended in his heart, and what the psalmist David said came true: “Why do you boast of strong villainy? Iniquity in this day, your tongue has conceived iniquity. You loved evil more than good, more lies than telling the truth. You have loved all kinds of disastrous speech, and your tongue is flattering. Therefore, God will crush you to the end, tear you down and uproot you from your dwelling place and your family from the land of the living.”
When they killed Gleb, they threw him in a deserted place between two logs. But the Lord, who does not leave his servants, - as David said, - "guards all their bones, and not one of them will be broken."
And God did not leave this saint, who had been lying for a long time, in ignorance and neglect, but kept him unharmed and marked the appearances: merchants, hunters and shepherds passing by this place sometimes saw a pillar of fire, sometimes burning candles or heard Angolan singing. And not a single one who saw and heard this came to mind to look for the body of the saint, until Yaroslav, unable to endure this evil murder, moved on the fratricide of the accursed Svyatopolk and began to fight cruelly with him. And always, by the will of God and the help of the saints, Yaroslav won the battles, and the accursed fled to shame and returned defeated.
And then one day this accursed one came with many Pechenegs, and Yaroslav, having gathered an army, went out to meet him on Alta and stood in the place where Saint Boris was killed. And, raising his hands to heaven, he said: “The blood of my brother, as before Abel, cries out to You, Lord. And you will avenge him and, like the fratricide of Cain, plunge Svyatopolk into horror and awe. I pray you, Lord, may my brothers be avenged! If you have departed from here with your body, then by grace you are alive and stand before the Lord and help me with your prayer!
After these words, the opponents met with each other, and the Altskoye field was covered with a multitude of warriors. And at sunrise they went into battle, and there was a slaughter of evil, they fought three times and fought like that all day, and only in the evening Yaroslav defeated, and the accursed Svyatopolk fled. And madness seized him, and his joints became so weak that he could not sit on a horse, and they carried him on a stretcher. They ran with him to Berest. He says: “Let’s run, because they are chasing us!” And they sent to reconnoiter, and there were neither pursuing nor following in the footsteps of him. And he, lying helpless and rising, exclaimed: “Let's run further, they are chasing! Woe is me!" It was unbearable for him to stay in one place, and he ran through the Polish land, driven by the wrath of God. And he ran to a deserted place between the Czech Republic and Poland and then dishonorably died. And he accepted vengeance from the Lord: he brought Svyatopolk to death the illness that seized him, and after death he received eternal torment. And so he lost both lives: here he not only reigned, but also lost his life, and there he not only did not receive the Kingdom of Heaven and did not receive stay with the angels, but was betrayed to torment and fire. And his grave has been preserved to this day, and a terrible stench comes from it as a warning to all people. If anyone does the same, knowing this, he will pay even worse. Cain, not knowing about revenge, accepted a single punishment, and Lamech, who knew about the fate of Cain, was punished seventy times harder. Such is revenge on those who do evil: here is Julian Caesar - he shed a lot of blood of the holy martyrs, and he suffered a terrible and inhuman death: it was not known by whom he was pierced with a spear in the heart. Likewise, this one - it is not known from whom, running away, died a shameful death.
And since then, the strife in the Russian land has ceased, and Yaroslav took over the entire Russian land. And he began to ask about the bodies of the saints - how and where were they buried? And they told him about Saint Boris that he was buried in Vyshgorod. And not everyone knew about Saint Gleb that he was killed near Smolensk. And then they told Yaroslav what they heard from those who came from there: how they saw light and candles in a deserted place. And, having heard this, Yaroslav sent priests to Smolensk to find out what was the matter, saying: "This is my brother." And they found him, where there were visions, and, having come there with many crosses and candles, and with censers, they solemnly laid Gleb in the boat [

TALKING AND SUFFERING AND PRAISE TO THE HOLY MARTYRS
BORIS AND GLEB

M hello to you, dear visitors of the Orthodox website "Family and Faith"!

6 August and May 15, the Church prayerfully celebrates the holy saints of God - the noble princes-passion-bearers Boris and Gleb!

WITH The holy princes became famous for their prayerfulness and spirituality during their lifetime. Avoiding the vain and worldly, they aspired to the Heavenly. The elder brother, Boris, quite often read the lives of the saints to his younger brother Gleb, where both admired the courage and steadfastness of the martyrs for the faith of Christ. In the depths of their souls, the brothers also wanted to be martyred in order to win incorruptible crowns in Heaven!

H Below we enclose the Legend of the Holy Passion-Bearing Princes Boris and Gleb, in which their holy and charitable life is described in detail.

Preparation of the text, translation and comments by L. A. Dmitrieva

G Lord, bless, father! “The generation of the righteous will be blessed,” said the prophet, “and their descendants will be blessed.”

So it happened shortly before our days under the autocrat of the whole Russian land, Vladimir, the son of Svyatoslav, the grandson of Igor, who enlightened the whole Russian land with holy baptism. About his other virtues we will tell in another place, but now is not the time. We will talk about the same that we started in order. Vladimir had 12 sons, and not from one wife: their mothers were different. The eldest son is Vysheslav, after him - Izyaslav, the third - Svyatopolk, who planned this evil murder. His mother is Greek, formerly a nun. Vladimir's brother Yaropolk, seduced by the beauty of her face, cut her hair, and took her as his wife, and conceived from her the accursed Svyatopolk. Vladimir, at that time still a pagan, having killed Yaropolk, took possession of his pregnant wife. So she gave birth to this accursed Svyatopolk, the son of two fathers-brothers. Therefore, Vladimir did not love him, because he was not from him. And from Rogneda Vladimir had four sons: Izyaslav, and Mstislav, and Yaroslav, and Vsevolod. From another wife were Svyatoslav and Mstislav, and from a Bulgarian wife - Boris and Gleb. And Vladimir put them all in different lands to reign, which we will say in another place, but here we will tell about those about whom this story is.

Vladimir put the accursed Svyatopolk to reign in Pinsk, and Yaroslav in Novgorod, and Boris in Rostov, and Gleb in Murom. However, I will not go into too much explanation, so as not to forget the main thing in verbosity, but about whom I started, we will tell this. A lot of time passed, and when 28 years had passed after holy baptism, the days of Vladimir came to an end - he fell into a serious illness. At the same time, Boris came from Rostov, and the Pechenegs again moved the army to Rus', and great sorrow seized Vladimir, because he could not oppose them, and this greatly saddened him. Then he called to himself Boris, who was named Roman in holy baptism, blessed and quick to obey, and, giving him many soldiers under his command, sent him against the godless Pechenegs. Boris went with joy, saying: “I am ready to do before your eyes what the will of your heart commands.” About such Pritochnik said: "There was a son obedient to his father and beloved by his mother."

When Boris, having set out on a campaign and not meeting the enemy, returned back, a messenger came to him and told him about the death of his father. He told how his father Vasily had died (this name was given to Vladimir in holy baptism) and how Svyatopolk, hiding the death of his father, dismantled the platform in Berestovo at night and, wrapping the body in a carpet, lowered him on ropes to the ground, took him on a sleigh and placed in the church of the Holy Mother of God. And when Saint Boris heard this, his body began to weaken, and his whole face was wet with tears, shedding tears, unable to speak. Only in his heart did he think like this: “Alas for me, the light of my eyes, the radiance and dawn of my face, the bridle of my youth, the mentor of my inexperience! Alas, my father and my lord! To whom shall I resort, to whom shall I turn my gaze? Where else can I find such wisdom and how can I manage without the instructions of your mind? Alas for me, alas for me! How did you go down, my sun, and I was not there! If I were there, I would remove your honest body with my own hands and betray it to the grave. But I did not carry your valiant body, I was not honored to kiss your beautiful gray hairs. O blessed one, remember me in the place of your rest! My heart is on fire, my soul confuses my mind and I don’t know who to turn to, who to tell this bitter sadness? Brother, whom I revered as a father? But he, I feel, cares about worldly fuss and plots my murder. If he sheds my blood and decides to kill me, I will be a martyr before my Lord. I will not resist, for it is written: "God opposes the proud, but gives grace to the humble." And in the epistle of the apostle it is said: "Whoever says:" I love God, "and hates his brother, he is a liar." And again: "There is no fear in love; perfect love casts out fear." So what will I say, what will I do? Here I will go to my brother and say: “Be my father - after all, you are my elder brother. What will you command me, my lord?

And, thinking so in his mind, he went to his brother and said in his heart: “Will I even see my younger brother Gleb, like Joseph Benjamin?” And he decided in his heart: “Let your will be done, Lord!” I thought to myself: “If I go to my father’s house, then many people will persuade me to drive my brother away, as I did, for the sake of glory and reign in this world, my father until holy baptism. But all this is transient and fragile, like a web. Where will I go after my departure from this world? Where will I be then? What answer will I get? Where will I hide my many sins? What did my father's brothers or my father gain? Where is their life and the glory of this world, and scarlet, and feasts, silver and gold, wine and honey, plentiful dishes, and frisky horses, and adorned and great mansions, and many riches, and countless tributes and honors, and boasting of their boyars? All this seemed to have never happened: everything with him disappeared, and there is no help from anything - neither from wealth, nor from many slaves, nor from the glory of this world. So Solomon, having experienced everything, having seen everything, mastering everything and gathering everything, spoke about everything: “Vanity of vanities - all is vanity!” Salvation is only in good deeds, in true faith and in unfeigned love.”

Going his own way, Boris thought about his beauty and youth, and shed tears all over. And he wanted to hold back, but he couldn't. And all who saw him also mourned his youth and his physical and spiritual beauty. And each in his soul groaned from the sorrow of his heart, and all were seized with sorrow.

Who will not mourn, presenting this pernicious death before the eyes of his heart?

His whole appearance was gloomy, and his holy heart was contrite, for the blessed one was truthful and generous, quiet, meek, humble, he pitied everyone and helped everyone.

This is how the blessed Boris thought in his heart and said: “I knew that evil people were inciting my brother to kill me, and he would destroy me. And when he sheds my blood, then I will be a martyr before my Lord, and the Master will receive my soul. Then, forgetting mortal sorrow, he began to comfort his heart with God's word: "He who sacrifices his soul for me and my teaching will find and keep it in eternal life." And he went with a joyful heart, saying: “Lord, merciful, do not reject me, who trusts in you, but save my soul!”

Svyatopolk, having sat down to reign in Kyiv after the death of his father, called the people of Kiev to him and, having generously endowed them, let them go. He sent the following message to Boris: “Brother, I want to live with you in love and I will add more to the possession received from my father.” But there was no truth in his words. Svyatopolk, having come to Vyshgorod at night, secretly summoned Putsha and the Vyshgorod husbands to him and said to them: “Confess to me without hiding - are you devoted to me?” Putsha replied: "We are all ready to lay down our heads for you."

When the devil, the primordial enemy of all that is good in people, saw that Saint Boris placed all his hope on God, he began to intrigue and, as in ancient times, Cain, plotting fratricide, caught Svyatopolk. He guessed the thoughts of Svyatopolk, truly the second Cain: after all, he wanted to kill all the heirs of his father in order to seize all power alone.

Then the accursed accursed Svyatopolk called to himself the accomplices of the atrocity and the instigators of all untruth, opened his filthy lips and cried out in an evil voice to Putsha's squad: “Since you promised to lay down your heads for me, then go secretly, my brothers, and where you will meet my brother Boris, having improved the time is right, kill him." And they promised him to do it.

The prophet said about such people: “They are quick to kill. Defiled by bloodshed, they bring misfortune upon themselves. Such are the ways of all those who commit iniquity - with wickedness they destroy their souls.

Blessed Boris returned and spread his camp on Alta. And the squad told him: "Go, sit in Kyiv on your father's princely table - after all, all the soldiers are in your hands." He answered them: “I cannot raise my hand against my brother, and besides, also the eldest, whom I honor as a father.” Hearing this, the soldiers dispersed, and he was left only with his youths. And it was the Sabbath. In anguish and sadness, with a dejected heart, he entered his tent and wept in contrite heart, but with an enlightened soul, plaintively exclaiming: “Do not reject my tears, Lord, for I trust in you! May I be rewarded with the fate of your servants and share the lot with all your saints, you are a merciful God, and we praise you forever! Amen".

He remembered the torment and suffering of the holy martyr Nikita and saint Vyacheslav, who were killed in the same way, and how her own father was the murderer of Saint Barbara. And he remembered the words of the wise Solomon: "The righteous live forever, and from the Lord is their reward and adornment from the Most High." And only these words comforted and rejoiced.

Meanwhile, evening came, and Boris ordered Vespers to be sung, and he himself entered his tent and began to perform the evening prayer with bitter tears, frequent sighing and continuous lamentations. Then he went to bed, and his sleep was disturbed by dreary thoughts and sadness, bitter, and heavy, and terrible: how to endure torment and suffering, and end life, and save faith, and accept the prepared crown from the hands of the Almighty. And, waking up early, he saw that it was already morning time. And it was Sunday. He said to his priest: "Get up, start matins." Himself, putting on shoes and washing his face, began to pray to the Lord God.

Those sent by Svyatopolk came to Alta at night, and came close, and heard the voice of the blessed martyr, singing the Psalter at matins. And he had already received the news of the impending murder of him. And he began to sing: “Lord! How my enemies have multiplied! Many rise up against me" - and the rest of the psalm, to the end. And, having begun to sing according to the Psalter: “A crowd of dogs surrounded me, and fat calves surrounded me,” he continued: “Lord, my God! I trust in you, save me!” And then the canon sang. And when he finished matins, he began to pray, looking at the icon of the Lord and saying: “Lord Jesus Christ! Like you, who appeared on earth in this image and by your own will let yourself be nailed to the cross and suffer for our sins, grant me to accept suffering like that!

And when he heard an ominous whisper near the tent, he trembled, and tears flowed from his eyes, and said: “Glory to you, Lord, for everything, for you have honored me with envy for the sake of accepting this bitter death and enduring everything for the love of Thy commandments. We ourselves did not want to escape torment, we did not wish ourselves anything, following the commandments of the apostle: "Love is long-suffering, believes everything, does not envy and does not exalt itself." And again: “There is no fear in love, for true love casts out fear.” Therefore, Lord, my soul is always in your hands, for I have not forgotten your commandment. As the Lord wills, so shall it be." And when they saw the priest Borisov and the youth serving the prince, his master, embraced by sorrow and sadness, they wept bitterly and said: “Our merciful and dear lord! What goodness you are filled with, that you did not want to oppose your brother for the love of Christ, and how many soldiers you kept under your arm! And having said this, they were sad.

And suddenly he saw those rushing to the tent, the gleam of weapons, drawn swords. And without pity the honest and many-merciful body of the holy and blessed Christ's martyr Boris was pierced. The accursed Putsha, Talets, Elovich, Lyashko hit him with spears.

Seeing this, his youth covered the body of the blessed one with himself, exclaiming: “Let me not leave you, my beloved sir, where the beauty of your body fades, here I will be able to end my life!”

He was a Hungarian by birth, named George, and the prince rewarded him with a golden hryvnia, and was loved by Boris immensely. Here he was pierced.

And, wounded, he jumped out of the tent in a daze. And those standing near the tent spoke: “Why are you standing and looking! Having begun, let us complete what we have been commanded.” Hearing this, the blessed one began to pray and ask them, saying: “My dear and beloved brothers! Wait a little, let me pray to God." And looking up at the sky with tears, and sighing bitterly, he began to pray with these words: “Lord, my God, many-merciful and merciful and merciful! Glory to you that you have granted me to escape from the seduction of this deceitful life! Glory to you, generous giver of life, for vouchsafed me a feat worthy of the holy martyrs! Glory to you, Lord, philanthropist, who made me fulfill the innermost desire of my heart! Glory to you, Christ, glory to your immeasurable mercy, for you directed my steps to the right path! Look from the height of your holiness and see the pain of my heart, which I suffered from my relative - because for your sake they kill me on this day. I have been equated with a ram ready to be slaughtered. After all, you know, Lord, I do not resist, I will not contradict, and having under my hand all the soldiers of my father and all whom my father loved, I did not plot anything against my brother. He raised as much as he could against me. “If the enemy reproached me, I would endure it; if my hater slandered me, I would hide from him. But you, Lord, be a witness and execute judgment between me and my brother. And do not condemn them, Lord, for this sin, but accept my soul in peace. Amen".

And looking at his murderers with a sorrowful look, with a haggard face, shedding tears all over, he said: “Brothers, having begun, finish the assignment entrusted to you. And may there be peace to my brother and to you, brothers!”

And all who heard his words could not utter a word for fear and bitter sadness and abundant tears. With bitter sighs, they lamented and wept plaintively, and each one wailed in his soul: “Alas for us, our merciful and blessed prince, guide to the blind, clothing to the naked, staff to the elders, mentor to the foolish! Who will direct them now? I didn’t want the glory of this world, I didn’t want to have fun with honest nobles, I didn’t want greatness in this life. Who will not be amazed at such great humility, who will not humble himself, seeing and hearing his humility?

And so Boris rested, betraying his soul into the hands of the living God on the 24th day of the month of July, 9 days before the August calendars.

They also killed many youths. They could not remove the hryvnia from George, and, having cut off his head, they threw it away. Therefore, they could not identify his body.

Blessed Boris, wrapped in a tent, put on a cart and taken away. And when they were riding in the forest, he began to raise his holy head. Upon learning of this, Svyatopolk sent two Varangians, and they pierced Boris in the heart with a sword. And so he died, assuming an unfading crown. And, having brought his body, they laid it in Vyshgorod and buried it in the ground near the church of St. Basil.

And the accursed Svyatopolk did not stop at this murder, but in his fury he began to prepare for a greater crime. And when he saw the fulfillment of his cherished desire, he did not think about his villainous murder and the severity of sin, and did not repent of his deed in the least. And then Satan entered his heart, beginning to incite to even greater atrocities and new murders. So he spoke in his accursed soul: “What will I do? If I dwell on this murder, then two fates await me: when my brothers find out about what has happened, they will lie in wait for me and reward me worse than what I have done. And if not, then they will expel me and lose the throne of my father, and regret for my lost land will devour me, and the reproach of those who reproach me will fall on me, and another will seize my reign, and there will be no living soul left in my dwellings. For I have destroyed the beloved of the Lord, and I have added a new sore to the sickness; I will add lawlessness to iniquity. After all, the sin of my mother will not be forgiven, and I will not be inscribed with the righteous, but my name will be taken out of the books of life. And so it happened, about which we will tell later. Now is not the time yet, but back to our story.

And, having planned this, the evil devil's accomplice sent for the blessed Gleb, saying: “Come without delay. Father is calling you, he is seriously ill.

Gleb quickly got ready, mounted his horse and set off with a small squad. And when they came to the Volga, in the field a horse stumbled under him in a hole, and slightly injured his leg. And how Gleb came to Smolensk, departed not far from Smolensk and stood on Smyadyn, in a boat. And at this time, news came from Predslava to Yaroslav about the death of his father. And Yaroslav sent to Gleb, saying: “Do not go, brother! Your father died, and your brother was killed by Svyatopolk.

And, hearing this, the blessed one cried out with bitter weeping and heartfelt sorrow, and so he said: “Oh, alas for me, Lord! Doubly weeping and groaning, doubly lamenting and grieving. Alas for me, alas for me! I cry bitterly for my father, and even more bitterly I cry and mourn for you, my brother and lord, Boris. How was he pierced, how was he killed without pity, if not from the enemy, but from his brother did he accept death? Alas for me! It would be better for me to die with you than to live alone and orphaned without you in this world. I thought that I would soon see your angelic face, but what a misfortune befell me, it would be better for me to die with you, my lord! What am I going to do now, unhappy, deprived of your kindness and wisdom of my father? O my dear brother and lord! If your prayers reach the Lord, pray for my sorrow, so that I may be able to accept the same torment and be with you, and not in this vain world.

And when he so moaned and wept, irrigating the earth with tears and calling on God with frequent sighs, his evil servants sent by Svyatopolk, ruthless bloodsuckers, fierce brother-haters with the soul of ferocious beasts, suddenly appeared.

The saint was sailing at that time in a boat, and they met him at the mouth of the Smyadyn. And when the saint saw them, he rejoiced in his soul, and when they saw him, they became gloomy and began to row towards him, and he thought - they want to greet him. And, when they swam alongside, the villains began to jump into his boat with naked swords shining like water in their hands. And immediately all the oars fell out of their hands, and everyone died from fear. Seeing this, the blessed one realized that they wanted to kill him. And, looking at the murderers with a meek gaze, washing his face with tears, humbled himself, in contrition of heart, sighing tremblingly, bursting into tears and weakening his body, he began pitifully to beg: “Do not touch me, my dear and dear brothers! Don't touch me, who hasn't done you any harm! Have mercy, my brothers and masters, have mercy! What offense have I done to my brother and to you, my brothers and masters? If there is any offense, then take me to your prince and to my brother and master. Have pity on my youth, have mercy, my lords! Be my masters, and I will be your slave. Do not destroy me, in the life of a young man, do not reap an ear that has not yet ripened, poured with the juice of malice! Do not cut the vine that has not yet grown, but has fruit! I beg of you and put myself at your mercy. Be afraid of the apostle who said through the mouth: “Do not be children of the mind: be like babies for an evil deed, but be of full age in your mind.” But I, brothers, are still young in deed and age. This is not murder, but savagery! What evil have I done, tell me, and then I will not complain. If you want to get enough of my blood, then I, brothers, are in the hands of yours and my brother, and your prince.

And not a single word put them to shame, but like fierce beasts attacked him. He, seeing that they did not heed his words, began to say: “May my beloved father and Mr. Vasily, and my lady mother, and you, brother Boris, be the mentor of my youth, and you, brother and accomplice, be delivered from eternal torment. Yaroslav, and you, brother and enemy Svyatopolk, and all of you, brothers and squad, may everyone be saved! I will no longer see you in this life, for they forcefully separate me from you. And he said crying: “Vasily, Vasily, my father and master! Bow your ears and hear my voice, look and see what happened to your son, how they kill me for nothing. Alas for me, alas for me! Hear, heaven, and listen, earth! And you, brother Boris, hear my voice. I called my father Vasily, and he did not heed me, do you really not want to hear me? Look at the sorrow of my heart and the pain of my soul, look at the streams of my tears flowing like a river! And no one listens to me, but you remember me and pray for me before the Lord of all, for you are pleasing to him and stand before his throne.

And, kneeling down, he began to pray: “Most generous and merciful Lord! Do not despise my tears, have mercy on my sorrow. Look at the contrition of my heart: they kill me for no one knows what, no one knows for what guilt. You know, Lord my God! I remember the words you said to your apostles: “For my name, for my sake they will raise their hands against you, and you will be betrayed by relatives and friends, and brother will betray brother to death, and they will kill you for the sake of my name.” And again: “With patience strengthen your souls.” Look, Lord, and judge: my soul is ready to stand before you, Lord! And we give glory to you, to the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, now and forever and forever and ever. Amen".

Then he looked at the murderers and said in a plaintive and broken voice: “Since you have begun, having begun, do what you were sent to do!”

Then the accursed Goryaser ordered to kill him without delay. The cook, Glebov, named Torchin, took a knife and, grabbing the blessed one, slaughtered it, like a blameless and innocent lamb, on the 5th day of September, on Monday.

And a pure and fragrant sacrifice was offered to the Lord, and he ascended to the heavenly abodes to the Lord, and saw his beloved brother, and both received the heavenly crown that they were striving for, and rejoiced at the great and inexpressible joy that they received.

The accursed murderers returned to the one who sent them, as David said: "The wicked will return to hell and all those who forget God." And again: “The wicked draw their sword and draw their bow to strike those who walk in the straight path, but their sword will enter into their own heart, and their bows will be crushed, and the wicked will perish.” And when they told Svyatopolk that “they fulfilled your command,” then, having heard this, he ascended in his heart, and what the psalmist David said came true: “Why do you boast of strong villainy? Iniquity in this day, your tongue has conceived iniquity. You loved evil more than good, more lies than telling the truth. You have loved all kinds of disastrous speech, and your tongue is flattering. Therefore, God will crush you to the end, tear you down and uproot you from your dwelling place and your family from the land of the living.”

When they killed Gleb, they threw him in a deserted place between two logs. But the Lord, who does not leave his servants, as David said, "guards all their bones, and not one of them will be broken."

And this saint, who had been lying for a long time, God did not leave in ignorance and neglect, but kept him unharmed and marked the phenomena: merchants, hunters and shepherds passing by this place sometimes saw a pillar of fire, sometimes burning candles or heard angelic singing.

And not a single one who saw and heard this came to mind to look for the body of the saint, until Yaroslav, unable to endure this evil murder, moved on the fratricide of the accursed Svyatopolk and began to fight cruelly with him. And always, by the will of God and the help of the saints, Yaroslav won the battles, and the accursed one was put to shame and returned defeated.

And then one day this accursed one came with many Pechenegs, and Yaroslav, having gathered an army, went out to meet him on Alta and stood in the place where Saint Boris was killed. And, raising his hands to heaven, he said: “The blood of my brother, as before Abel, cries out to you, Vladyka. And you will avenge him and, like the fratricide of Cain, plunge Svyatopolk into horror and awe. I pray you, Lord, - may he be rewarded for this. And he prayed and said: “Oh, my brethren, although you have departed from here in body, you are alive by grace and you will help me before the Lord and with your prayer!”

After these words, the opponents met with each other, and the Altskoye field was covered with a multitude of warriors. And at sunrise they went into battle, and there was a slaughter of evil, they fought three times and fought like that all day, and only in the evening Yaroslav defeated, and the accursed Svyatopolk fled. And madness seized him, and his joints became so weak that he could not sit on a horse, and they carried him on a stretcher. They ran with him to Berest. He says: “Let’s run, because they are chasing us!” And they sent to scout, and there were no pursuers, nor those following in his footsteps. And he, lying helpless and rising, exclaimed: “Let's run further, they are chasing! Woe is me!" It was unbearable for him to stay in one place, and he ran through the Polish land, driven by the wrath of God.

And he ran to a deserted place between the Czech Republic and Poland and then dishonorably died. And he accepted vengeance from the Lord: he brought Svyatopolk to death the illness that seized him, and after death - eternal torment. And so he lost both lives: here he not only reigned, but also lost his life, and there he not only did not receive the kingdom of heaven and did not receive stay with the angels, but was betrayed to torment and fire. And his grave has been preserved to this day, and a terrible stench comes from it as a warning to all people. If anyone does the same, knowing this, he will pay even worse. Cain, not knowing about revenge, accepted a single punishment, and Lamech, who knew about the fate of Cain, was punished seventy times harder. Such is revenge on the evildoers. Here is Julian Caesar - he shed a lot of blood of the holy martyrs, and he suffered a terrible and inhuman death: it is not known who was pierced by a spear in the heart. Likewise, this one - it is not known from whom, running away, died a shameful death.

And since then, the strife in the Russian land has ceased, and Yaroslav took over the entire Russian land. And he began to ask about the bodies of the saints - how and where were they buried? And they told him about Saint Boris that he was buried in Vyshgorod. And not everyone knew about Saint Gleb that he was killed near Smolensk. And then they told Yaroslav what they heard from those who came from there: how they saw light and candles in a deserted place. And, having heard this, Yaroslav sent priests to Smolensk to find out what was the matter, saying: "This is my brother." And they found him, where there were visions, and, having come there with crosses, and many candles, and with censers, they solemnly put Gleb in a boat and, returning, buried him in Vyshgorod, where the body of blessed Boris lies; having dug up the earth, here Gleb was laid with due honor.

And this is what is wonderful and marvelous and worthy of memory: for so many years the body of Saint Gleb lay and remained unharmed, not touched by any predatory beast or worms, it did not even turn black, as usually happens with the bodies of the dead, but remained bright and beautiful, whole and fragrant. So God preserved the body of his passion-bearer.

And many did not know about the relics of the holy martyrs lying here. But, as the Lord said: “A city standing on the top of a mountain cannot hide, and, having lit a candle, they do not put it under a bushel, but put it on a candlestick so that it shines for everyone.” So God set these saints to shine in the world, to shine with numerous miracles in the great Russian land, where many suffering people are healed: the blind receive their sight, the lame run faster than the chamois, the hunchbacked straighten up.

It is impossible to describe or tell about the miracles being performed, truly the whole world cannot accommodate them, for there are more marvelous miracles than the sand of the sea. And not only here, but also in other countries, and throughout all the lands, they pass, driving away diseases and illnesses, visiting those imprisoned in dungeons and shackled. And in those places where they were crowned with martyr's crowns, churches were created in their name. And many miracles happen to those who come here.

I don’t know, therefore, what praise to give you, and I’m perplexed, and I can’t decide what to say? I would call you angels, for without delay you appear to all who mourn, but you lived on earth among people in human flesh. But if I call you people, then by your countless miracles and help to the weak you surpass the human mind. Whether I proclaim you emperors or princes, you surpassed the most simple and humble people with your humility, and this led you to high places and dwellings.

Truly you are Caesars to Caesars and princes to princes, for with your help and protection our princes defeat all opponents and are proud of your help. You are our weapons, Russian lands protection and support, double-edged swords, with them we overthrow the audacity of the filthy and trample the devilish machinations on earth. Truly and without a doubt I can say: you are heavenly people and earthly angels, pillars and support of our land! You defend your fatherland and help in the same way as the great Demetrius did his fatherland. He said, "As I was with them in joy, so in their destruction I will die with them." But if the great and merciful Demetrius said so about only one city, then you are not about a single city, not about two, not about some village, you are baking and praying, but about the whole Russian land!

Oh, blessed are the tombs that received your honest bodies as a valuable treasure! Blessed is the church in which your holy tombs are placed, keeping your blessed bodies in themselves, O saints of Christ! Truly blessed and majestic of all Russian cities and the highest city that has such a treasure. There is no equal to him in the whole world. Vyshgorod is rightfully named - higher and higher than all cities: the second Thessalonica appeared in the Russian land, healing free of charge, with God's help, not only our united people, but bringing salvation to the whole earth. Those who come from all lands receive healing for free, as in the holy Gospels the Lord said to the holy apostles: “Freely you have received, freely give.” Of these, the Lord himself said: “He who believes in me, in the works that I do, will do them himself, and will do more than these.”

But, O blessed martyrs of Christ, do not forget the fatherland where you lived your earthly life, never leave it. In the same way, always pray for us in prayers, so that misfortune and illness will not befall us, and the bodies of your servants will not touch. Grace has been given to you, pray for us, because God has set you as intercessors and intercessors for us. Therefore, we resort to you, and, falling down with tears, we pray that we will not be under the heel of the enemy, and the hand of the wicked may not destroy us, may no harm touch us, remove hunger and troubles from us, and deliver us from the enemy's sword and internecine strife, and from every trouble and attack, protect us who trust in you. And bring our prayer to the Lord God with zeal, for we sin greatly, and there is a lot of iniquity in us, and we act out of order with excess and without measure. But, hoping for your prayers, let us cry out to the Savior, saying: “Lord, one without sin! Look from your holy heavens at us, the poor, and although we have sinned, forgive us, and although we do iniquity, have mercy, and those who have fallen into error, like a harlot, forgive us and, like a publican, justify! May your mercy descend on us! May your kindness pour on us! And do not let us perish because of our sins, do not let us fall asleep and die a bitter death, but deliver us from the evil reigning in the world and give us time to repent, for many of our iniquities are before you, Lord! Judge us according to your mercy, Lord, for your name is called in us, have mercy on us and save and protect us with the prayers of your glorious martyrs. And do not betray us to reproach, but pour out your mercy on the sheep of your flock, because you are our God and we send glory to you, the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, now and forever and forever and ever. Amen!"

About Boris, what a view. This faithful Boris was of good roots, obedient to his father, obeying his father in everything. He was handsome in body, tall, with a round face, broad shoulders, thin at the waist, kind eyes, cheerful face, a small beard and mustache - for he was still young, shone royally, was strong, was decorated with everything - like a flower he bloomed in his youth of his own, he was brave in his armies, wise in advice and reasonable in everything, and the grace of God blossomed in him.

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"The Tale of Boris and Gleb" is one of them. It is a pity that many works of that time were lost for centuries. Probably, we do not know about a number of masterpieces of the Old Russian word. All the more valuable for us is the surviving "The Tale of Boris and Gleb". A brief summary and analysis of it will give you some idea about this work.

It was created in the middle of the 11th century and is dedicated to the history of the murder of Boris and Gleb, who were later canonized. Based on research and Metropolitan Macarius, it is believed that Jacob Chernorizets created the "Tale of Boris and Gleb." The summary of the work presented below will give you an idea of ​​​​its plot. And the analysis that you will find in the second part of the article will help you understand its meaning.

Sons of Vladimir

The Tale of Boris and Gleb begins with a story about the sons of Vladimir. A summary of this part of the work is as follows. The Russian prince Vladimir Svyatoslavich had twelve sons. They were born from different wives. Svyatopolk is the third in seniority. His mother, a nun, was stripped. She was taken as his wife by Vladimir's brother, Yaropolk. However, Vladimir killed him and took possession of his wife when she was pregnant. The prince adopted the born Svyatopolk, but did not love him. From his Bulgarian wife, Vladimir was born and put his children to reign in different lands: Boris - in Rostov, Svyatopolk - in Pinsk, Gleb - in Murom.

Death of Vladimir Svyatopolk seizes the throne

When the days of Vladimir were already coming to an end, the Pechenegs attacked Rus'. The prince sent Boris against them. He went on a campaign, but did not meet the enemy. When Boris was already returning back, the messenger told him that his father had died. He also said that Svyatopolk wanted to hide his death. Boris, listening to this story, began to cry. He realized that the goal of Svyatopolk was to seize power in his own hands and kill him. However, Boris decided not to resist. Svyatopolk really treacherously seized the throne. Boris, despite the persuasion of his squad, did not try to drive him out of his reign.

Boris' murder

Svyatopolk, meanwhile, bribed the people of Kiev. He wrote an affectionate letter to Boris. However, his words were false. In fact, he longed for the death of all the heirs of Vladimir. Svyatopolk began by giving the order to kill Boris to his squad. It consisted of Vyshgorod husbands, and was headed by Putynya.

Boris spread his camp on the river. Alte. He prayed in the evening in his tent, thinking that he would soon die. Waking up, Boris ordered the priest to serve Matins. The killers sent by Svyatopolk approached his tent and heard the words of prayers. Hearing a whisper, Boris realized that the killers had come. Seeing his sadness, the priest and servant grieved for him.

But then Boris saw the killers who were walking with weapons in their hands. They pierced the prince with spears. Boris' servant tried to stop them. He covered the master with his body. This servant was named George, he was a Hungarian. The assassins speared him too. George, wounded by them, jumped out of the tent. The prince was still alive, and the villains wanted to inflict new blows on him. However, Boris began to ask to be allowed to pray to God. After reading the prayers, he turned to the killers, asking them for forgiveness, and then told them to finish their job. This is how Boris died. It happened on July 24th. Many of his servants were also killed, including George. In order to remove the hryvnia from his neck, they cut off his head.

The prince was wrapped in a tent, and then taken on a cart. Boris raised his head as they rode through the forest. Two Varangians again pierced him with a sword in the heart. The body of the prince was laid in Vyshgorod. He was buried at the church of St. Basil.

Yaroslav's warning

However, the dramatic events of the work "The Tale of Boris and Gleb" did not end there. The author writes further that after some time Svyatopolk decided to carry out a new atrocity. The prince sent a letter to Gleb, in which he informed that Vladimir, his father, was seriously ill and asked him to come. Gleb believed and went to Kyiv. At the Volga, he injured his leg and stopped near Smolensk, on the river. Smyadyn. Meanwhile, news of Vladimir's death reached Yaroslav, one of the 12 sons of Prince Vladimir Svyatoslavich. Yaroslav at that time reigned in Novgorod. He sent a warning to Gleb not to go to Kyiv, since his father had died and Boris had been killed. When the prince was crying for them, Svyatopolk's servants suddenly appeared before him, who were sent to kill him.

The murder of Gleb

Gleb was sailing at this time along the river. Smyadyn on your boat. The killers were in the other boat. They began paddling towards him. Gleb thought that their intention was to greet him. However, the villains began to jump into the prince's boat with drawn swords. Gleb began to beg them to save his life. However, the servants of Svyatopolk were inexorable. Gleb began to pray to God for his brothers, father, and even for Svyatopolk, his murderer. After that, Torchin, his cook, stabbed his master. Gleb ascended to heaven, where he met his beloved brother. It happened on September 5th.

The killers returned to Svyatopolk. They told him that they had carried out the command. The evil prince rejoiced...

Miracles at the place where Gleb's body was located

Gleb's body was thrown between two decks in a deserted place. Shepherds, hunters and merchants passing by saw burning candles there, a pillar of fire, heard angelic singing. However, no one guessed that the body of the saint was in this place.

Slash on Alta, the flight of Svyatopolk

Meanwhile, Yaroslav with his army moved to Svyatopolk in order to avenge his brothers. Victories accompanied Yaroslav. Arriving at the river Alto, he stood at the place where Boris was killed, and prayed to God for victory over the villain.

The battle on Alta lasted all day. Yaroslav defeated the enemy in the evening, and Svyatopolk (his portrait is presented above) fled. Madness overwhelmed him. He became so weak that he had to be carried on a stretcher. Even after the chase stopped, the prince ordered to run. He was carried on a stretcher across the whole of Poland. Svyatopolk died in a deserted place between Poland and the Czech Republic. His grave has been preserved. A terrible stench emanates from her.

Yaroslav's reign

And since then, strife has ceased on Russian land. Yaroslav became the Grand Duke. He found the body of Gleb and buried him next to his brother, in Vyshgorod. His remains were found to be incorrupt.

Miracles at the grave of Boris and Gleb

Many miracles began to come from the relics of St. Boris and Gleb: the lame walked, the blind saw their sight, the hunchbacked straightened up. And where the brothers were killed, churches were built in their name.

This concludes The Tale of Boris and Gleb. We will supplement the summary of the work with its analysis. From it you will learn about the author's attitude to the main characters, their images and the meaning of the work.

Analysis of the work

An excellent example of hagiographical genre is "The Tale of Boris and Gleb". we should start with the fact that it is certainly valuable for Russian literature, history and culture in general. This is a real find for people who are interested in hagiographic literature. Originally, figuratively, brightly written this work. The author, who created The Tale of Boris and Gleb, put his whole soul into his creation. Its analysis must necessarily include a story about the images of Boris and Gleb, which are central in the work.

The author's attitude to Boris and Gleb

Before these brothers, the creator of the work bows down. He tries to tell the reader as much as possible about their ideal behavior and spiritual beauty. Reading the work, you are imbued with admiration for the brothers to whom "The Tale of Boris and Gleb" is dedicated. The theme of the work, of course, is wider than the description of their deeds and heroic death, but they occupy a central place in it. Today you rarely meet a kind, good person without a second thought. Boris and Gleb are just such people. These are examples of purity and innocence. You will be convinced of this if you read "The Tale of Boris and Gleb". Reviews of the work speak of the deep impression that its main characters make on readers.

Personal qualities of the brothers

The meekness of the brothers, their angelic character leaves an amazing trace in the soul. Their readiness to accept death in the name of the Lord also conquers. The brothers decided to carry their cross to the end. They voluntarily accepted martyrdom, refusing to go to war against their older brother. Boris and Gleb simply could not take power by force.

Fairy tale and reality

The author told us a beautiful, touching, sad story. He told us about good and evil, about strength and weakness, about youth and love (to the fatherland, brotherly, filial). It is known that Boris and Gleb are not fictional characters, but real people. In the history of Rus', their murder took place. However, the story about these people seems like a beautiful and kind fairy tale, which grandmother tells in the evenings. With bated breath, we follow what is happening. We feel sorry for the boys. However, evil, as usual, must be punished. Yaroslav avenged his brothers Svyatopolk. Boris and Gleb are buried in the same grave, which is one of the symbols of Rus'. The story of Boris and Gleb has been passed down from generation to generation. An analysis of the work dedicated to these brothers is of great interest even today. After all, this is a work of great artistic power. Describing the "Tale of Boris and Gleb" briefly, we can say that it affirms the ideas of Christianity and patriotism.