For people who truly believe in the Lord, church symbols have a special meaning. This is protection of family and home from external and internal negativity, support and hope in case of troubles and illnesses, an opportunity to open up to a wise and kind interlocutor who will definitely help.
Icons depicting the Blessed Virgin Mary are especially loved and respected. Such miraculous images include the “Unbreakable Wall” icon. In this image, the Mother of God stands with her palms raised to the heavens and her mournful gaze directed at those praying.
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Meaning of the image
The name of the icon is symbolic; it indicates that faith and hope in the help of Our Lord are indestructible, and the holy icon itself will also be indestructible. The main image, located in the St. Sophia Cathedral in Kyiv, has survived many trials and troubles, but remains unchanged and untouched. Neither fires, nor floods, nor military operations touched this shrine, although the ancient cathedral was attacked and looted more than once.
Since ancient times, the interpretation of the meaning has been preserved great icon in the chronicles. It says that the Mother of God is depicted in gigantic height, since her deeds and mercy are enormous. Her feet rest on a foundation made of pure gold, and that foundation is the inviolability of faith in merciful help, and the gold itself indicates the incorruptibility of her image. The Mother of God in the image stands in the pose of Oranta, i.e. without the baby, this is one of the earliest canonical images.
The military attaches particular importance to this icon.
INTERESTING: there is a lot of evidence that on the battlefields at the time of bloody battles they saw the image of the Virgin Mary with her hands raised to the sky and her gaze fixed on the enemy.
What do they pray to this icon for?
People resort to icons for help in moments of grave disaster. It will help save your home and family from any troubles; the power of the icon can make it so that all troubles will bypass you, and enemies will not be able to cross the threshold. She harmonizes the space around her and strengthens the family unit. True believers believe that only thanks to the icon their families live in complete prosperity and peace.
Priests advise seeking help from the Mother of God in the following cases:
- If you are going on a long trip, for business or pleasure;
- If you are afraid that someone is harboring evil against your loved ones, then you can ask for help and protection;
- When close person became seriously ill or other misfortunes befell the house;
- To restore the family and reconcile with blood relatives;
- If you have become a victim of dirty slander and slander;
- In case of quarrels and strife with your husband, you must first read a prayer and then ask for help.
If you have an important task ahead, you can pray just before leaving the house. If there is great trouble in the house, or a serious illness has struck one of your loved ones, then you need to retire, kneel in front of the image and read a prayer, and then turn to the Most Pure Virgin with a request, as your mind tells you.
Where in the house can you place the icon?
NOT everyone has the opportunity to go to Kyiv and pray to the “Unbreakable Wall” icon. In this case, you can purchase an icon in a church shop and pray as needed at home.
The ideal place for this icon is opposite front door, if this is not possible, then you can hang it directly above the door. In this place, the Virgin Mary carefully watches everyone entering and leaving your home and can provide protection and assistance.
If an unkind person came with dark thoughts and brought evil into your home, then under the vigilant eye of the Mother of God he will begin to feel uncomfortable. In this case, he will leave your house as quickly as possible.
This icon can be given as a gift to everyone you love, so that their home and their family will also be protected from all misfortunes.
A similar icon can be placed in the office, then it will protect the campaign from harm, and if employees believe in God, they can pray in difficult times.
Words of miracle prayer
The all-merciful, heavenly Queen, my faith and hope, a haven for the unfortunate, sick and poor, grieving in anticipation of Salvation, a reliable Protector! See my misfortune, see my sadness and melancholy; save me as I am weak, raise me as I am abandoned and abandoned. Understand my misfortune, resolve it according to your will: for we have no other help except Yours, no other intercessor, no great comforter, only You, O Mother of God, for you will save me and protect me forever and ever. Amen.
Days of icon veneration
The day of celebration of the icon “The Unbreakable Wall” is All Saints Week, on Sunday. (this is the first week immediately after the Holy Trinity).
The name of the icon is given from an akathist calling the Mother of God an indestructible wall for all believers who await salvation from eternal torment.
INTERESTING: there is a belief that nothing threatens Kyiv as long as the Mother of God stretches out her hands over the people in the St. Sophia Cathedral.
The main condition for those who turn to the help of the Most Pure Virgin is sincere faith and pure thoughts. Before turning to the Mother of God with prayer and request, you need to drive out anger from the soul and black thoughts from the mind. If a sincere prayer comes from the depths of the heart, then it will definitely be heard.
An Orthodox person constantly needs spiritual support, consolation, and a sense of security. That is why, for more than a thousand years that have passed since the Baptism of Rus', Orthodox Christians have placed great hopes on the miraculous images and faces of Orthodox saints, especially on the image Holy Mother of God- a fairly highly revered and important shrine of the Orthodox world.
Tradition of the Russian land about the Orthodox shrine
One of the most revered images among believers is the icon of the Mother of God “The Unbreakable Wall”. The existing narrative about the glorification of the shrine among believers says that the root cause of its popularity was the vision of a monk living in the Eleazar Hermitage. The elder saw in a dream a beautiful city, to which two paths led: one wide and easy, the second winding and almost imperceptible from the side. The bulk of those wishing to get to the city climbed the wide road, where they were immediately captured by a huge giant in his net. The road, small and complicated in appearance, also climbed a steep wall around the magical city. However, having looked more closely, the elder realized that it was along this path that rare travelers pass into the city and remain unharmed. The giant’s net could not reach them, but with a whistle it bounced off the wall erected by the Most Holy Theotokos. Having passed this road, the monk found himself in a wonderful and fragrant city.
The legend of the land of Kyiv about the miraculous protectress
The “Unbreakable Wall” icon is called that way in the world of Orthodoxy for a reason. A Christian can see it in the city of Kyiv by visiting St. Sophia Cathedral. The mosaic icon is impressive in its size: it is a six-meter image located on the inner surface of the dome. For nine hundred years, the shrine appeared to the world unharmed, while Kyiv was repeatedly destroyed during this time, along with the cathedral itself. That is why the name “Unbreakable Wall” became relevant for such a shrine. The icon shows the parishioners the Mother of God standing at her full height, praying. The legend of the city of Kyiv says that the city will be unharmed as long as the Mother of God prays over it.
New birth of a miraculous image
“The Unbreakable Wall” is an icon painted from another image of the Mother of God located in Constantinople. The image in Kyiv, in turn, also became the source for the icon painted for the Resurrection-Myrrh-Bearing Monastery. For a long time this list was unknown; it appeared to the world only in the 60s of the twentieth century in the village of Nikolskoye. Since the beginning of the new millennium, the “Unbreakable Wall” icon again began to show believers its miraculous powers.
Archival data indicate that this icon was consecrated by the All-Russian prayer book John of Kronstadt. This event happened at the beginning of the twentieth century, at the time the icon was in the holy monastery. Then, after the plunder and desecration of the monastery in the era of atheism, the image was in the house of a pious parishioner, who transferred it to the temple. Over the past fifteen years, the icon of the Mother of God “The Unbreakable Wall” has shown the world many miracles and inexplicable phenomena. Several other lists from the “Unbreakable Wall” are known; you can see them in Moscow churches. The “Unbreakable Wall” also became one of the famous shrines of the city of Kaliningrad. The shrine meets parishioners in the Cathedral. A large number of people asking are constantly flocking to her, since it is believed that a prayer said in front of this image of the Mother of God will certainly be heard and given to the one who prays.
"Salvation from troubles with a holy prayer book"
The unearthly power of the strong Orthodox shrine “The Unbreakable Wall” was described by eyewitnesses and witnesses already in the last century. So, when defending the Russian land from the Nazi invaders during the Great Patriotic War Many times, soldiers testified that they saw a woman near places characterized by particularly bloody battles. She stood facing the German dispositions, raising her hands to the sky.
Orthodox writer Nikolai Agafonov described a case of recognizing this woman as an image from the “Unbreakable Wall” icon. A front-line soldier, having gone through bloody battles in the war and having seen this woman praying more than once, went into the temple at the end of the war in order to light a candle for the repose of his fallen comrades and saw the icon “The Unbreakable Wall”, immediately recognized the face of the Mother of God depicted on it and understood who was praying for Russian soldiers.
Protective power icon
It is generally accepted that the “Unbreakable Wall” is an icon whose meaning for believers is primarily its protective power. It is known that the image of the Holy Mother of God on this icon is intended, according to the prayers of the Orthodox, to protect from negative events. First of all, taking into account the history of miracles shown to the world, in front of the icon they ask for peace on Russian land, for protection from invasions and aggression. Many Orthodox Christians prefer to have a list of the “Unbreakable Wall” image at home. In front of a home icon, it is customary to ask for the good intentions of everyone visiting the house, for the protection of those living in it from fires, thieves, and unkind people. At the same time, it is necessary to have the correct information about where to hang the “Unbreakable Wall” icon in your home. It is believed that the place of this icon is opposite the front door. Thus, the Holy Virgin looks at everyone who enters the house. It is generally accepted that those who came with bad intentions will not be able to stay in the house for a long time under the all-seeing gaze of the intercessor, and will hasten to leave it.
"And prayers will be rewarded"
There is a lot of modern evidence that the “Unbreakable Wall” is an icon that not only gives people protection, but also heals them from serious illnesses. The first miraculous healing of the twenty-first century was the healing of a believing parishioner by prayer in front of the icon of future blindness. Since then, prayers for healing and recovery have increasingly turned to the heavenly patroness, whose image helps and protects. In the breviary, a Christian believer will find prayers that must be said before this holy image.
You should pray in front of the “Unbreakable Wall” every day in those houses where there is such a home icon. There are two prayers, quite simple to pronounce, small in text, but quite deep in content. Do not forget to also recite the Troparion, Tone 4, and the Other Troparion, Tone 4. Before leaving home, you should pray especially carefully, understanding and accepting with your soul the fact that the “Unbreakable Wall” icon will protect and guard the house in the absence of the owners. The prayer, which is said before leaving the home, is taken from the missal, one of two proposed. At the end of the prayer, you should ask the intercessor in your own words to take the home under protection.
The meaning of the icon for a modern Christian
“The Unbreakable Wall” is an icon whose significance for modern man cannot be overestimated, and it is becoming increasingly important. In the era of the revival of spirituality, Orthodox Christians are increasingly turning to Heaven for help and advice. The difficult times of fratricidal conflicts taking place on Russian soil - the cradle of Orthodoxy - cannot be resolved without turning to the main intercessor of the Russian land - the Mother of God, who stands up to protect her children an unbreakable wall.
Every Orthodox believer wants to protect their family and friends. And often we turn to the miraculous celibate image of the Queen of Heaven “The Unbreakable Wall”, knowing that we will certainly receive the necessary help. The original icon was created in a mosaic design, on it the Most Holy Theotokos stands at full height, raising her hands to the sky. She asks for us, sinners, the All-Merciful God to forgive and protect us from the devil’s machinations.
You can buy an inexpensive icon of the Mother of God the Unbreakable Wall using this link/catalog/ikony/bogoroditsy/bogoroditsa-nerushimaya-stena/. Icons of different sizes and types of execution.
The history of the creation of the image of the Mother of God The Unbreakable Wall
There is a legend that one day a monk from the Spasovo-Eliazarov Hermitage had an amazing dream. The elder saw in the distance a wonderful, unearthly city, to which two different roads led. One of them was wide and flat, the other was narrow and located on a high wall. Then the elder saw a terrible picture: those who were walking along the wide road were caught in a net by a terrible monster and devoured them. Those who climbed the narrow path on the wall entered the beautiful city without hindrance. The net did not reach them because the wall protected them from the monster. And the wall was created by the Queen of Heaven. The monk reached a wonderful city along a narrow road and saw the Mother of God raising her hands to the Lord.
Afterwards the legend spread throughout Kievan Rus, and has been helping people for nine centuries. The image itself was copied from the original image located in Constantinople.
What does the icon of the Mother of God protect from? The Unbreakable Wall
It is believed that the greatest mission of this icon is to protect Orthodox Christians.
- They pray to the image of the “Unbreakable Wall” for peaceful life in our country and protection from external enemies, secret and overt opponents.
- Before the household list, they pray that everyone entering the house has only good intentions, and that all deceit and malice are left at the threshold.
- The home icon of the Mother of God protects your home and when the owners are not at home, you just need to pray with faith, and the Queen of Heaven Herself will stand up for protection from robbers and protect thieves from fire.
- During fervent prayer before the icon of the Mother of God “The Unbreakable Wall,” many healings and spiritual insights occurred and are occurring.
The meaning of the icon of the Mother of God Unbreakable Wall
In Kyiv, the icon of the Blessed Virgin is located in the St. Sophia Cathedral. The six-meter mosaic image located on the inside of the dome is very impressive to Orthodox people. People at the level of physical senses feel the great Divine protection emanating from this image.
In the name of the icon one can hear the call to be the same unbreakable wall in faith, on which Christians who are weaker in the faith, relatives and friends, can lean at any time. And do not lean in any direction from the teachings of Christ.
Other famous lists from the icon of the Blessed Virgin Mary and their location
There are also other, not even listed, types of icons inspired by ancient legend.
- The image in Kyiv was an example for the image painted for the monastic monastery of the Resurrection-Myrrh-Bearer. This list was hidden until the beginning of the twentieth century, and was discovered in the village of Nikolskoye. In the archives there was evidence that the list for the monastery was consecrated by the righteous man of the Russian land, John of Kronstadt, and during the years of persecution and destruction of churches, one Orthodox Christian woman managed to hide the icon and only many years later, after the end of the persecution, she transferred it to the temple.
- There are several lists in Moscow churches.
- In Kaliningrad, this copy of the icon of the Mother of God is in the Cathedral. Sailors often turn to him asking for protection of their loved ones while they are at sea.
If you keep an icon in your house, hang it opposite the front door, and the Most Holy Theotokos will protect you like a wall.
Prayers
Troparion, tone 4
Let us now diligently approach the Mother of God, sinners and humility, and let us fall down in repentance calling from the depths of our souls: Lady, help us, having had mercy on us, struggling, we are perishing from many sins, do not turn away your slaves, for you are the only hope of the imams.
Kontakion
Chosen from all generations to the Mother of God and the Queen, before Her most pure image, the Indestructible Wall called, we offer thanksgiving songs of praise to You, O Blessed One. You, who have incomprehensible power and unspeakable love, save us from all troubles and sorrows, and let us call to You: Rejoice, Mother of God, Indestructible Wall, our Intercessor and consolation.
First prayer
My Most Blessed Queen, My Hope, Mother of God. A friend of the orphans and the strange Representatives. Those who mourn in joy, those who are offended by the Patroness, behold my misfortune, behold my sorrow. Help me, as I am weak, Feed me as I am strange... Weigh my offense, resolve it, as if it were a will. For the imam has no other help, except for You, no other Representative. Not the good Comforters, Only You, O Mother of God... May you preserve and cover me, forever and ever. Amen. Most Holy Theotokos, Enlighten us with the light of Your Son. Hallelujah, hallelujah, hallelujah.
Second prayer
Oh, our gracious Lady Theotokos, Ever-Virgin, accept from us this song of gratitude and offer up to our Creator and Creator your warm prayers for us unworthy, may He, the Merciful, forgive us all our sins, evil and unclean thoughts, nasty deeds. Oh, Most Holy Lady, have mercy and send down a gift according to each need: heal the sick, comfort the sorrowing, bring the lost to reason, protect the infants, raise and teach the young, encourage and instruct men and wives, support and warm the old, be with us both here and in life eternal Wall, Indestructible, deliver us from all troubles and misfortunes and from eternal torment, and always singing Your Motherly love, we praise with all our hearts Your Son, with His Father and the Holy Spirit, forever and ever. Amen.
Prayer three
And You, Lady, not in vain called the “Indestructible Wall”, be for all those who are hostile against me and plotting dirty tricks on me, truly a kind of barrier and an indestructible wall, protecting me from all evil and difficult circumstances. Amen.
Since ancient times, the image of the Most Holy Theotokos was considered miraculous, having the ability to help those who came to it with repentance, to ask for forgiveness and the blessing of the Queen of Heaven. One of the most famous icons with the face of the Blessed Virgin is the “Unbreakable Wall” icon - the protector of all those who ask, capable of protecting the believer and his loved ones from any adversity.
History of the icon
The miraculous image of the Mother of God is located in the St. Sophia Cathedral in Kyiv. According to ancient chronicles, it was created by order of Yaroslav the Wise, who began the construction of Hagia Sophia in 1034. The prototype of the icon is the famous Oranta, kept in Constantinople. According to the testimony of ancient historians, one of the copies of Oranta was brought to Kyiv just during the construction of the temple, and the icon painters were instructed to create a copy of it.
In turn, several lists of the icon were made. The most famous of them is located in the Resurrection-Mironositsky Monastery near the village of Nikolskoye (Astrakhan region). Throughout the Soviet era, known for its intolerance towards the church, it was kept by one of the parishioners, and only at the end of the 20th century it appeared before the believers.
Today, lists from the miraculous image can be seen in other cities - Moscow, Kaliningrad, Stavropol.
Description and meaning
For nine centuries, the shrine has adorned the central altar apse of the St. Sophia Cathedral. The height of the figure of the Mother of God is approximately 6 meters. It was made using the mosaic technique: craftsmen pressed pieces of smalt, a glassy translucent mass, into the still damp layer of plaster. 177 shades of color were used to create the icon.
The Icon of the Mother of God “Unbreakable Wall” displays the following meaning:
The name of the icon was given by words from an akathist praising the Mother of God and calling her an indestructible wall, which will become salvation for believers. The image of the Blessed Virgin “The Unbreakable Wall” is considered miraculous, full of divine power, because, despite numerous attacks on the temple and the fact that Kiev was repeatedly subjected to destructive raids and robberies, despite natural disasters, epidemics and wars, not a single disaster affected bright face, he remained unapproachable.
There is also an ancient belief that the “Unbreakable Wall” icon means, according to which the city above the Dnieper is not in danger as long as the Queen of Heaven stretches out her hands in prayer above it.
Who will it help?
Today, as before, thousands of believers flock to the ancient city to go under the arches of Sophia of Kyiv and see the miracle with their own eyes, ask for help and protection.
Knowledge about the meaning of the “Unbreakable Wall” icon and how it helps allows you to pray before the holy image of the Mother of God in the following cases:
- Before a long trip, you need to pray shortly before leaving home. With this prayer, the believer asks to protect his home from evil during his absence.
- If the relatives of the person praying need protection from any harm.
- When a misfortune happens in the house or someone close to you becomes seriously ill, you need to pray to the Mother of God in solitude, kneeling before the icon. You need to read the prayer as prescribed by the canons of the church, and then ask the Blessed Virgin for protection from troubles and illnesses in your own words.
- In case of marital quarrels and the desire to strengthen and preserve the family, a prayer is also read first, and then a request for protection of the home follows.
- When a person has become a victim of slander.
- With the threat of wars and conflicts.
It is important to remember that the icon helps only those who sincerely believe, therefore, before turning to the Most Pure Virgin, you should repent of your sins, cleanse your soul of evil, and your mind of dark thoughts. Prayer should come from the heart, and not be some kind of convention or fashion statement.
You should firmly remember the canonical text of the two prayers addressed to the image of the Blessed Virgin. Their translation into modern language sounds something like this: “Most Holy Virgin, be merciful to us, heal the sick, give comfort to the mourning, and faith to the lost. Help save children, raise the young, encourage women and men, support and warm the elderly. Deliver us from troubles, torment and sorrow. We will forever sing your maternal love and give praise to your Son and Heavenly Father and the Holy Spirit. Amen!".
Selecting a location
Those wishing to contact the Protectress should best go to the Kiev Saint Sophia Cathedral or to any city where one of the icon lists is kept. If this is not possible, you need to buy the image, and then ask yourself where to hang the “Unbreakable Wall” icon.
The best place for it is in the house, directly opposite the entrance or above the door: from there the Blessed Virgin will be able to watch everyone who enters the house. It is believed that a person who comes with malicious intent will feel uncomfortable under her all-seeing gaze, and he will try to shorten the time of his visit, and next time he is unlikely to want to cross the threshold of the home. Before hanging the icon, you must read a prayer and ask the Mother of God for intercession.
There should not be any foreign objects near the image of the Protectress; you cannot hang the icon in the corner or next to any household appliances: TV, computer. It is also undesirable to place the “Impenetrable Wall” icon in a home iconostasis, where it will be visible only to the person praying: the Holy Face can protect only when the eyes of everyone who enters the house meet Her eyes, capable of guessing people’s secret thoughts.
Can I give it to someone else?
Protect your loved ones or friends from harm, help establish family life, save them from illness and bring peace and happiness to their home by giving them an icon that has miraculous powers - a completely natural desire for a believer. But is it possible to do this? Do I need to wait for any occasion (holiday, birthday, wedding) or can the gift be given on any chosen day?
The Church does not object to offerings of this kind; moreover, it believes that icons can and should be given when a person especially needs the support and protection of higher powers. But there are several conditions, without which the gift may lose its miraculous power and even cause misfortune.
This will not happen if:
In all other cases, the “Unbreakable Wall” will be the best gift for relatives, a talisman against evil and disease, protection and support that helps you survive adversity.
The miraculous copy of the “Unbreakable Wall” icon is one of the most revered and important shrines of Orthodoxy. This image, through the prayer of believers, protects from a variety of misfortunes, disasters, invasion of enemies into the house, curses of enemies and ill-wishers. The Mother of God becomes an indestructible wall between them and the believer who turns to the image in prayer. Miraculous events, healings and testimonies associated with this icon testify that even these days the Mother of God listens to our prayers.
Protection for you and your loved ones
The name of the icon is taken from an ancient prayer that calls the Mother of God “the unbreakable wall.” In fact, the Kiev mosaic icon of the Mother of God remained undamaged by any disasters for eight centuries, showing Orthodox Christians around the world a miracle of indestructibility. Therefore, Christians believe that the “Unbreakable Wall” will protect them from the rampant elements, attacks from enemies and evil spirits.
In the home, this image has a place opposite the door, opening which every guest, invited or uninvited, appears before the holy face. If the guest has unkind thoughts, or he himself is unkind, then he will feel awkward in front of the Mother of God and will hurry to leave as quickly as possible. While in the house, the image will protect you and everyone in your household from evil spells and illnesses, and various unwanted events.
They say prayers in front of the icon when they leave home for a long time, for example, when going on a long trip or business trip. In such cases, one of the prayers should be read every day of departure, and at the end of the prayer, in your own words, ask the Mother of God to take your house under her protection, or, as the Orthodox say, under cover. The “Unbreakable Wall” icon is also considered healing - people prayed in front of it for the healing of physical and mental ailments.
First prayer
To my Queen, my hope, to the Mother of God, friend of the orphans and the strange, to the Representative, to the sorrowing, to the Joy of the offended, to the Patroness! See my misfortune, see my sorrow; help me as I am weak, feed me as I am strange. Weigh my offense, resolve it as if by will: for I have no other help except You, no other intercessor, no good comforter, except You, O Mother of God, for you will preserve me and cover me forever and ever. Amen.
Second prayer
Oh, our gracious Lady Theotokos, Ever-Virgin, accept from us this song of gratitude and offer up to our Creator and Creator your warm prayers for us unworthy, may He, the Merciful, forgive us all our sins, evil and unclean thoughts, nasty deeds. Oh, Most Holy Lady, have mercy and send down a gift according to each need: heal the sick, comfort the sorrowing, bring the lost to reason, protect the infants, raise and teach the young, encourage and instruct men and wives, support and warm the old, be with us both here and in life eternal Wall, Indestructible, deliver us from all troubles and misfortunes and from eternal torment, and always singing Your Motherly love, we praise with all our hearts Your Son, with His Father and the Holy Spirit, forever and ever. Amen.
Troparion, tone 4
Let us now diligently approach the Mother of God, sinners and humility, and let us fall down in repentance calling from the depths of our souls: Lady, help us, having had mercy on us, struggling, we are perishing from many sins, do not turn away your slaves, for you are the only hope of the imams.
Another Troparion, tone 4
Like an indestructible wall and an omnipotent cover of the treasures of Thee, Thy servants, the Lady Theotokos, driving away the darkness of sins and sorrows. We also cry out to You: grant world peace and light and salvation to our souls.
The mosaic image of the Mother of God, which served as the main icon for the list, has been towering over the main altar of the Kiev St. Sophia Cathedral for eight centuries. According to the iconography, the type of image is Oranta. This type is characterized by arms raised to the sky, on which a cover is sometimes depicted.
In the 19th century, the spiritual writer, poet and playwright A. Muravyov made a wonderful description of the icon: “On a golden stone, against the background of a golden field, in a shining veil stands the Mother of God, the Queen of Heaven in full height. The golden cover is outweighed by left shoulder, a chiton of the same bright heavenly color and the same pale blue arms. The forehead and shoulders of the Virgin Mary are decorated with burning stars. This image is called “The Unbreakable Wall”, since for eight centuries it has not been subject to any, even minor, destruction.” This image, according to research, came to us from Constantinople, from the image of the Virgin Mary Blachernitissa.
The old man who had a dream
From legends it is known that the icon of the Mother of God “The Unbreakable Wall” appeared in the dream of Elder Gabriel from the Spaso-Eleazar Hermitage. He saw in front of him a wonderful city, to which a wide, comfortable road led. Many people walked along this road, not noticing that a terrible giant, the enemy of man, threw a chain on those walking and dragged them into captivity.
The old man wondered how he could get into the city and not become the prey of the giant. Taking a closer look, he saw another way - a steep path that rose along the wall that high fenced the city. Rare travelers walked along this path, but no matter how the giant tried to throw a net over them, it returned without prey.
Looking at this, the elder remembered the Akathist to the Most Holy Mother of God: “Rejoice, Indestructible Wall of the Kingdom...”. Walking along this path, the elder more than once heard the whistling of nets above his head, but the enemy’s plan was thwarted by the wall. When he reached the city, he saw blooming gardens, joy and reverence. How could he have ended up there if the Unbreakable Wall had not protected him from enemy networks?
Finding an image - indicated by the Mother of God
The list of the “Unbreakable Wall” image became known only in the last century. In 1972 in the Astrakhan region, p. Nikolskoye, the restoration of the Church of the Nativity of Christ began to be carried out by Archpriest Pavel Ryabykh, who later accepted the schema (schema-abbot Paisius). The times were not easy, the churches were closed, and the icons, at best, were taken home by believers. While collecting images from courtyards, in the neighboring village of Zlatozubovka he found the image of the “Unbreakable Wall”. The keeper of the image for many years was the old woman Maria Anshakova, who prayed in front of the image every evening.
For more than 30 years, the blackened and dilapidated icon was in the temple. She was placed in a far corner, where she might have been forgotten if not for an amazing incident in 2001. A resident of the village of Solenoye Zaimishche, an elderly woman, Agrippina Yakovlevna Eremeeva, earnestly prayed to the Mother of God to save her from deteriorating eyesight. One day the old woman saw a dream in which the Most Pure One told her to go to the image of the “Unbreakable Wall”, which was hidden in the corner of the Church of the Nativity of Christ in the village of Nikolskoye. The grandmother fulfilled the commandment of the Mother of God and told the local priest about her dream.
They paid attention to the icon and began to restore it. During the restoration work, an inscription was discovered on the back side, which stated that the icon was painted for the Resurrection-Myrrh-Bearing Monastery. And it was consecrated by Saint John of Kronstadt himself in 1906, as evidenced by documentary evidence. Perhaps it was this connection with the great saint that became the reason for the miraculous properties of the image?
Miracle-working icon...
And there were many miracles. When, after restoration, it was installed in the church in the village of Nikolskoye, parishioners began to venerate it with all zeal, and the miraculous properties of the image were revealed in their entirety.
There were all sorts of miracles: after prayers a parishioner was completely healed from inoperable cancer, a murderer confessed, a man who had disappeared 11 years ago was found, a couple who had decided to divorce were reconciled. It’s impossible to retell everything. Today the icon is decorated with numerous gifts from pilgrims; a lamp is constantly burning in front of it, the oil from which is distributed to pilgrims.
Eyewitnesses from the fields of the Great Patriotic War claim that in the hottest spots they saw a woman who stood with her hands raised to the sky, turning to enemy units. One of these testimonies is described in full detail in the book of the teacher of the Samara Theological Academy, Archpriest Nikolai Agafonov. The story is easy to find by its title - The Unbreakable Wall.
The story tells about the miracle of salvation in one of the most difficult battles in the entire history of the Great Patriotic War - the battles on the Kursk Bulge - of a front-line soldier and his friend. The warriors saw a woman with her arms raised as hope of victory dried up. Still managed to win. Years later, a front-line soldier came to remember his deceased friend in the temple and recognized in the image of the “Unbreakable Wall” the same woman who raised her hands. It was the Blessed Virgin Mary!
The meaning of the icon today
In Kuban in 2002, a significant event took place in the city of Apsheronsk - a convent was founded and named after the image of the “Unbreakable Wall”. The creation of new churches and monasteries in honor of the Mother of God speaks volumes - about the need for Her protection, about care in our difficult, confusing times. People do not find clarity on earth, and look for it, directing their gaze to the Fatherland common to all - to heaven.
But according to all legends, the Mother of God is the Intercessor and Intercessor of the Human race at the Throne of God in heaven. And for everyone who comes to her for help, she was and will be an “unbreakable wall.”
But the Mother of God herself does not leave us, going around her destinies - she appears where Her special attention or intervention is needed, finds those through whom Her lost iconographic images, so necessary for our time, are found. For us, her deeds are miracles, but for Her they are hard, eternal work, which she took upon herself voluntarily, only out of an all-encompassing Love for humanity.
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