Trifonov Day: why today you can not be sad, mystical omens
Many people around the world associate February 14 with the celebration of Valentine's Day. However, Orthodox believers on this day remember the life of the martyr Tryphon of Apamea, who is the patron saint of hunters, field workers and many others. Read more about the saint and his life, the veneration of the saint in Russia, as well as traditions, prohibitions and omens associated with the Trifonov day - in the material "Izvestia".
Trifon's day: what Church holiday on February 14
Martyr Tryphon was born in the III century in the village of Kampsada in Phrygia (historical region in the west of Asia Minor; now - the west of modern Turkey). From a young age he had God's gift to cast out demons and to heal people of ailments. In doing so, Tryphon did not demand money from people, but asked for only one thing - faith in Christ, by whose grace, as he said, he healed the sick. One of the most famous miracles he performed was the healing of the daughter of Roman Emperor Gordian III (238-244) from demon-possession. After this, many people became aware of Tryphon's miraculous gift.
But there were other, no less amazing events in his life. So, once he saved his native village from starvation with the help of prayer, when the grain fields there were being exterminated by insects.
However, not everyone was enamored with the Christian faith that Tryphon preached. In 249-251, when the state was ruled by Emperor Decius Trajan, known for his persecution of Christians, the saint was denounced, indicating that he himself professed Christianity and led others to this faith. Then Tryphon was seized and brought for interrogation, during which he did not give up God and for this he was subjected to cruel tortures. But his faith in Christ did not waver even during his sufferings, and he endured all his tortures steadfastly. As a result, Decius decided to execute Tryphon. Then the saint in prayer asked the Lord for special grace for all those who would later pray to him.
The execution of the martyr by beheading was to take place in Nicea (now Iznik in Turkey) in the year 250. But when the instrument was brought over Tryphon, he departed to the Lord.
The faithful wanted to bury Tryphon in the same place where he underwent terrible tortures, but the saint appeared to them in a vision and ordered them to commit him to the earth in his homeland. At first they did so, but later his relics were transferred to Constantinople and then to Rome.
Now the head of St. Tryphon of Apamea is kept in Kotor, on the coast of Montenegro.
Part of the relics of St. Tryphon was brought to Russia in 1803. For about a hundred years the relics were kept in the Moscow Church of the Martyr Tryphon in Naprudny, but after the revolution it was closed and the relics were transferred to the Church of the Icon of the Mother of God "Sign" in Pereyaslavskaya Sloboda. Here they are still kept to this day.
The memorial day in honor of St. Tryphon in Russia has long been celebrated, and the Church of the Martyr Tryphon in Naprudny is associated with one of the posthumous miracles of the saint.
The exact dates of the event are unknown, but there is a legend according to which during the reign of Ivan III Vasilyevich (1462-1505), when he was hunting, falconer, boyar Ivan Yurievich Patrikeev missed the tsar's favorite gyrfalcon. Then the great sovereign ordered the falconer, who was his cousin, to find the bird. According to legend, their relations were strained: Ivan III was angry with Patrikeev for his willfulness in Lithuanian affairs. As a result, the boyar was given only three days to find the bird.
Having traveled through all the nearest forests, Patrikeev failed to find the gyrfalcon. On the third day, exhausted, he stopped near Moscow, near the present-day Maryina Grove, and began to pray diligently to Tryphon, who was considered the patron saint of hunters. The saint heard the prayer and appeared to Patrikeev in a dream. He was on a white horse, with a royal gyrfalcon in his hand and explained where to look for the bird. When the falconer awoke, he saw that the missing gyrfalcon was sitting on a pine tree exactly where Trifon had indicated.
Icon of the Holy Martyr Tryphon in the Main Church of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation
Returning to Ivan III, the boyar told him about the miracle that had happened. It was because of this event that first a chapel and then a church were built on the place where the holy martyr appeared to Ivan Patrikeev in a dream. The exact dates of erection are unknown, but it is believed that it happened in 1492. According to one version, the Italian architect Aristotle Fioravanti may have participated in its construction.
It is because of this event that St. Tryphon is depicted in Russia on frescoes and icons at the waist and with a falcon on his arm or riding a white horse. There is even an opinion that this very saint used to be depicted on the coat of arms of Moscow.
However, there is another version of what happened. A similar legend involves already the grandson of Ivan III, Ivan the Terrible, and instead of the boyar Patrikeev, it talks about an ordinary falconer Trifon. The legend is reflected in the novel "Prince Silver" by Alexei Tolstoy.
In addition to this legend in Russia also formed the idea of St. Trifon as a helper in farming, because he was considered the protector of fields from insects, creepers and rodents. Because of this, our ancestors in case of damage to crops necessarily made a round of the fields with a prayer service to the holy martyr.
What you can and can not do today, on Trifon's day
On the day of the memory of St. Tryphon, believers are sure to visit the church. You can come to any church, but in Moscow the Orthodox have the opportunity to pray in the two most important ones: the Church of the Icon of the Mother of God "Sign", where the relics of the martyr are kept, and in the Church of the Martyr Tryphon in Naprudny.
The holy martyr Tryphon helps many, but especially he is asked for healing from illnesses and bodily ailments, as well as prayed for in case of famine or spoilage of crops. In addition, the saint can be asked for financial and family well-being, harmony, health of relatives and friends. People working in agriculture also pray for the preservation of crops and abundant harvest.
The most popular prayers to the saint:
Troparion. "Thy martyr, O Lord, Tryphon/ in his suffering received an incorruptible crown from Thee, our God:/ having Thy strength,/ the tormentors put down,/ crush and the demons of weak insolence./ By his prayers/ save our souls." (translation: "Thy martyr, O Lord, Tryphon by his deed received an incorruptible crown from Thee, our God; for he, having Thy strength, put down the tormentors, crushed and the demons of weak insolence. By his prayers, O Christ God, save our souls");
Kondak. "With Trinitarian firmness/ you destroyed polytheism from the end, O glorious one,/ you were honorable in Christ, and having overcome the tormentors in Christ the Savior,/ you received the crown of your martyrdom/ and the gift of divine healings,// as invincible" (translation: "By the power of the Trinity thou hast destroyed polytheism within the bounds of the earth, O glorious one, having become honorable before the Lord; and having overcome the tormentors by Christ the Savior, thou hast received the crown of thy martyrdom and the gift of divine healings, as invincible");
Prayer. "O holy martyr of Christ Tryphon, hear now and at every hour the prayer of us, servants of God (names), and intercede for us before the Lord. Thou didst once heal the daughter of the king, who was tormented by the devil in the city of Rome: so also preserve us from his evil wiles all the days of our life, and most especially on the day of our last breath, intercede for us. Pray the Lord that He may grant us also to be partakers of the everlasting joy and gladness, so that with you we may together be honored to glorify the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Comforter, and the Holy Spirit, for ever and ever. Amen."
Since in Russia the martyr was considered the protector of fields from rodents, as well as the protector of domestic birds, the people began to call him Trifon the Mouse Man. And it was accepted on this day to "spell" mice, so that they did not spoil the haystacks and abundantly feed poultry.
Our ancestors believed that on February 14 it is not necessary to wash, otherwise all health will be washed away. It was also undesirable to take sharp objects in the hands, because in this case the condition of a person could worsen. It was also not worth being alone on this day, otherwise you could spend the whole year alone.
Women also tried not to sweep the house to avoid money problems.
It is important that Trifon's day falls on the time of winter meat-eating (the period between Christmas and the beginning of Lent, when meat is allowed to eat on any day). This period was also the time of weddings. Those girls who had not yet been married prayed to the martyr Tryphon and asked for good grooms and marriage.
Omen - folk and weather - for February 14
Tryphon's day falls on February 14, and the next day comes one of the bipedal feasts - the Purification of the Lord, which the peasants perceived as the moment of the meeting of winter and summer. Because of this, the day of the saint's memory also bore the name of Trifon the Winterizer. In connection with all this, our ancestors actively observed the weather and identified a number of regularities:
- if there are many stars in the sky on Trifon's day, spring will come late;
- if the sky is covered with transparent white clouds in the evening, the weather will be good;
- if the day was warm, the next month will be warm too;
- if it was frosty, spring will be late and cold;
- snowfall on February 14 heralded a rainy spring;
- long icicles - long flax will grow.
There were also omens related to relationships:
- if a cat approaches on the street on this day, the companion will be unreliable. That's why girls were afraid to meet these animals on the street;
- a faithful future spouse will be if a dog comes on February 14;
- if you stumble on St. Tryphon's memorial day, you'll have unrequited love;
- if you accidentally break a mirror, disagreements will be solved.
Переведено сервисом «Яндекс Переводчик»
