What does the icon of the Tikhvin mother of God look like. The Tikhvin Icon of the Mother of God: how does it help?

The icon of the Tikhvin Mother of God belongs to the Hodegetria type, which means Guide. For the first time, this image is mentioned in the oldest manuscript "The Legend of the Tikhvin Icon of the Mother of God." Its appearance is dated in the manuscript in 1383. She appeared to the fishermen in an unearthly glow on Lake Ladoga. Six times they tried to pick it up, but the miraculous icon moved from one place to another until it stopped over the Tikhvin River. Not numerous in those days, Orthodox pilgrims gathered on the shore and began to pray. Only after that the icon was given into the hands.

The Church of the Assumption was built for the Tikhvin Icon of the Mother of God Holy Mother of God. The wooden church was burned several times, but the holy image was never damaged. Having learned about this, the father of Ivan the Terrible ordered to build a stone church in Tikhvin itself, in order to transfer the icon there.

Many rulers of the Russian land came to pray before the miraculous icon: from Ivan the Terrible to Catherine II. The entire numerous royal house of the Romanovs also venerated the Tikhvin Icon of the Mother of God.

After the revolution of 1917, scientists studied the image, then it was transferred to the local history museum of Novgorod. When the Great Patriotic War began, she was sent to Pskov. Then she ended up in Riga and ended up in the territory liberated by American troops. After the end of the war, she was found in Chicago, in the Holy Trinity Cathedral. Only after the departure of the Communist Party in Russia with ruling seat, it was decided to return the Tikhvin icon to its homeland. To Tikhvin Mother of God-Uspensky monastery she arrived in 2004.

Where is the Tikhvin Icon of the Mother of God now?

During the entire time the icon was in Russia, many lists were made from it, almost all of them were recognized as miraculous.

• In Suzdal there is a copy of the icon with which Xenia Ivanovna Romanova blessed her son, Mikhail Fedorovich, to reign. This image resides in the church of the Holy Great Martyr Demetrius.
• In Novgorod, in the Church of the Resurrection of Christ, there is an amazing list, which back in 1643, after the vision of the Most Holy Theotokos, was bought by two Baltic sailors from a Latin pastor and sent to the Novgorod region.
• In St. Petersburg, the icon of the Tikhvin Mother of God, famous for its numerous miracles, resides in St. Isaac's Cathedral.
• Many lists were distributed throughout the country: in the vicinity of Kazan - the city of Tsivilsk, in Staraya Russa, in the Borisov convent near Kursk and in many other places.

There are also many places in the capital where you can pray at the holy image of the Queen of Heaven. This is first of all

Assumption Cathedral of the Moscow Kremlin

Smolensky Cathedral of the Novodevichy Convent

Athos Chapel at the Vladimir Gates

Church of St. Nicholas on Schepy

and many other Orthodox places.

What do they pray for in front of the Tikhvin Icon of the Mother of God

Despite the fact that the image of the Tikhvin Mother of God many times saved Russian cities from foreign invaders, she is considered a “childish” icon.

• Couples often come to her asking about.
• Mothers ask for good, trusting relationships with their teenage children and for keeping them safe from bad influences.
• People ask for deliverance from mental ailments, especially despondency, feelings of depression, loss in life. will always show the right path in life.

But always remember - like any of Her face - it helps only those who come with strong faith and pure thoughts. It has been noticed that She helps sick children especially quickly. And do not forget to thank the Blessed Virgin after solving your problems.

In the handwritten "Tales of the Tikhvin Icon of the Mother of God", the earliest of which date back to the turn of the 15th-16th centuries, its appearance in the Novgorod land dates back to 1383. “Walking luminously through the air” from one village to another, “carried invisibly by angels,” the icon appeared to local residents until it reached the banks of the Tikhvinka River. The icon appeared to eyewitnesses seven times: first on Lake Ladoga, in the graveyards of Smolkovo on the Oyat River in Imochenitsy, then “on Kozhel on Kukova Mountain”, then on a mountain above the Tikhvinka River and, finally, on the other side of the same river. On the site of the last apparition of the icon in the same year, a wooden church of the Assumption of the Virgin was built, which became the place of storage of the shrine. The church burned three times, but the icon itself each time remained unharmed. The antiquity of the icon was emphasized by its connection with the first image, written, according to legend, by the Evangelist Luke during the earthly life of the Mother of God.

From the middle of the 16th century, the miraculous Tikhvin Icon of the Mother of God began to be identified either with the Blachernae Hodegetria, from the Blachernae Church in Constantinople, from where, shortly before the capture of the city by the Turks, it was miraculously transported in 1383 to the banks of the Tikhvinka River, 70 years before the fall of the Eastern Roman Empire, or with the “Our Lady Roman, which was considered a list from the miraculous image of Lida, made by Patriarch Herman at the beginning of the 8th century. During the iconoclastic heresy, this image, as tradition says, miraculously sailed across the sea from Constantinople to Rome. And after the Triumph of Orthodoxy, he returned there in the same way. A special role in the fusion of the mentioned images of Hodegetria was played by the fact of the appearance of the icon on the Tikhvinka River. After the annexation of Novgorod to Moscow in 1478 and the capture of Constantinople by the Turks, the appearance of the icon “on Tikhvin” began to be perceived as the abandonment of the shrines of Rome and the second Rome (Constantinople), which had lost their piety, for the sake of staying in the new lot of the Mother of God - Holy Rus', which became the third Rome. In 1507-1515, in Tikhvin, by decree and at the expense of Grand Duke Vasily Ioannovich, a stone Assumption Cathedral was built specifically for the worship of the icon. From that time on, the miraculous icon became known as the Tikhvin Icon. In the 16th century, Tikhvin became a famous place for pilgrims. In 1527, the church was visited by Vasily III, and in 1547, on the eve of the Kazan campaign and just a few days before the wedding to the kingdom, John IV, who founded the Tikhvin Mother of God Assumption Monastery here in 1560.

In 1910, at the initiative of the Committee for the Guardianship of Russian Icon Painting, the ancient icon was uncovered from under G.O. Chirikov. After the closure of the Assumption Monastery in the 1920s, the icon was an exhibit of the local museum of local lore. Until 1941, the icon was in the Tikhvin Museum. During the occupation of Tikhvin in November 1941, the icon was taken out of the cathedral by the Germans and sent to Pskov, where it was handed over to the Pskov Spiritual Mission. There she stayed for two years, where she, as the most important value, was issued weekly on Sundays to the Trinity Cathedral for worship. Then, in the spring of 1944, the icon came to Riga, Libava, Jablonec nad Nisou, the American occupation zone in Germany. As a result of long wanderings, in 1950 the miraculous image was transported to the Holy Trinity Cathedral in Chicago, where the rector and custodian of the icon was first Archbishop John (Garklavs) of Riga, and then his adopted son, Archpriest Sergius (Garklavs), who devoted his whole life to preserving the icon . According to the will of Archbishop John, the return of the icon to Russia was to take place only when the Tikhvin Convent was revived. In 1995, the monastery was transferred to the Church, the Assumption Cathedral was restored and consecrated. In 2004, the icon was solemnly returned to its historical place in the Tikhvin Assumption Monastery of the Mother of God.

Miracles of the Tikhvin Icon of the Mother of God

Tradition reports many miracles associated with the Tikhvin icon of the Mother of God. One of them is believed to be related to the liberation of the Tikhvin Assumption Monastery from the invasion of the Swedes in 1613, led by General Delagardie. The Mother of God appeared to the novice Martinian, led by Varlaam Khutynsky, Zosima Solovetsky and Nicholas the Wonderworker. “Tell the governors and all people,” said the Wonderworker, “The Most Holy Theotokos, the common prayer house for the Christian race, begged Her Son, Christ our God, to deliver you from enemies, and you will see the mercy of God and victory.” A spiritual eclipse struck the Swedes, who took to flight after it seemed to them that they were surrounded by a myriad army.

Troparion and kontakion for the holiday

Troparion, tone 4

For now, the sun is very bright in our air, all the time and 3k0 on yours in Lchtse. and with 3 rays, shine your S enlighten2 the whole world. sіyu2 great 1kaz rwssjz, ћkw some divine gift, with 8 higher blissful perception, reproducing tz bgom ™ and dv7o, and 3 t you r0zhdshagosz hrtA bga of ours. є3mY same pray1сz, qzhce tsrce btsde, and 3rd save all cities and 3 countries2 xrtianskіz, unharmed t all naveet enemies, and 3 save all and 4th those worshiping with faith, more than your image, dv7o not arty.

Today, like the sun, brightly ascended to us in the air, the all-honorable icon of Your Lady, and with the rays of Your mercy, shine through the whole world. This great Russia, like some divine gift, having reverently received from above, glorifies Thee the Mother of God the Virgin, and from Thee Christ our God is born: pray to Him, Oh! Madam Queen Theotokos, may all the cities and countries of the Christians be delivered unscathed from all the slander of the enemy, and save all those who worship by faith, Your most pure image, Virgin unsophisticated.

Kontakion, tone 8

For the benefit of people in 8 d0m, saving tsRts and 3 bcds: the unspeakable darkness of є3S, the rise of good morning is right. it belongs to an exceedingly 3S image, and 3 blissfully crying out: first of all, for the saving care of the world, above all, and 3 svetozarno to8 you came, enlighten2 us lightly creating the feast of your coming. and3 strengthen2 glorious tS people, and3zdno foes2 victorious1z and4m giving11, and3 all flowing to8 you, and3 by faith sing1schyz tz save2. Yes, we call you, raduisz dv7o my salvation.

People come to the house of the saving Queen and Mother of God for Her unspeakable mercy. Benevolence has come running under Toi faithfully, falling down to Her most pure image, and piously crying out: Lady for the saving look of the world, having come to us peacefully and luminously, enlighten us lightly creating the feast of Your coming. And strengthen the people who glorify Thee, fairly victorious over their enemies, and all flowing to Thee, and by faith singing Thee, let us call Thee, rejoicing at the Virgin of the world salvation.

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Russian Faith Library
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Iconography of the Tikhvin Icon of the Blessed Virgin Mary

The Tikhvin icon belongs to the iconographic type of icons Mother of God Hodegetria, characteristic feature which is communication of the Blessed Virgin with the Christ Child, their address to each other. The image of the Virgin is half-length, the Infant sits on the left hand of the Mother. The Child's legs are bent at the knees, and His right foot is under the left. In his left hand he holds a scroll, with his right hand he blesses. The image of the Mother of God on the Tikhvin icon is almost identical to the Smolensk icon of the Mother of God, the main difference is in the tilt of the head.

Tikhvin icon of the Mother of God. Paintings

Temples in honor of the Tikhvin Icon of the Blessed Virgin Mary

Tikhvin Church located in Suzdal on the site of the long-disappeared Andreevsky Monastery, founded in the 13th century. The building of the church itself was built in the 17th century. Earlier, on the site of the Tikhvin Church, there was the Andreevsky Monastery; a warm chapel in the name of the holy Apostle Andrew the First-Called serves as a monument to the monastery that used to be here. In the inventory of the city of Suzdal in 1617, this monastery is not mentioned, therefore, the monastery no longer existed at that time. The inventory shows the Andreevsky meadow, which belonged to the aforementioned monastery, and it is said about the inhabitants of the nearby area that they were ruined and beaten by the Lithuanians in 1611. Probably, the Andreevsky monastery was plundered and destroyed at that time. When the existing Tikhvin Church was founded is not known with accuracy, but it can be assumed that it was founded not earlier than the 17th century, because it is not listed in the inventory of the city of Suzdal in 1617. The church has an ancient icon of the Tikhvin Mother of God, locally venerated. Ananiy Fedorov said about this icon: “ The icon of the Tikhvin Mother of God in 1513 by the Tsar Grand Duke Vasily Ioannovich brother to Moscow and returned to this church the miraculous icon of the Most Holy Theotokos of Tikhvin with decorations and sent priestly vestments, which are stored in the church in the sacristy».

Located in the Republic of Tatarstan, Verkhneuslonsky district, in the village. Sobolevsky. On the site of a new church in the village of Sobolevskoye, there was a wooden single-altar church in the name of the Assumption of the Most Holy Theotokos, built in 1903 with donated funds.

The former Old Believer Church of the Russian Orthodox Church is located in Moscow.

Edinovercheskaya is located in the village of Pavlovo-on-Neva, Leningrad Region. The parish was founded in 1991. By the end of the 90s, a wooden temple was built in the name of St. Sergius Radonezh.

According to many testimonies, the Tikhvin Icon of the Mother of God is the same age as the Blessed Virgin Mary, because this icon was painted by the Evangelist Luke. The Tikhvin icon has shown people countless times miraculous phenomena that play a crucial role in the life of all mankind.

The Tikhvin icon of the Mother of God belongs to the “Odigrian” type of images of the Blessed Virgin Mary: On this icon, the Virgin is depicted at the moment of a conversation with her child Christ, while he is depicted holding the Gospel in his right hand, and blessing with his left hand.

In this article, you will learn: in what cases the holy image helps, its role, the day of veneration of the Divine image, and in which temples it is kept.

In which temples is stored

The divine image, painted by the Byzantine monk Luke, is one of the most important relics of the Tikhvin Church, which is located in Belokamennaya. As the legend says: during the war years, when the Nazis were approaching Moscow, the ministers of the church gave this icon to the pilots so that they would fly around the city with it. And a miracle happened, the Nazis were defeated.

Copies of the miraculous Tikhvin Icon Mother of God is also located in the Assumption Church of the Moscow Kremlin.

Among other things, this holy image is also found in several metropolitan churches, such as:
Trinity Church;
Cathedral of the Virgin Mary in Sushchev;
Women's Novodevichy Convent;
Cathedral of the Intercession of the Blessed Virgin Mary, which is located on Lyschinskaya Hill;
In the city of Zyuzin there is a cathedral of the Orthodox rulers Gleb and Boris;
Also in Bogorodskoye, the icon is kept in the Cathedral of the Transfiguration of the Savior.

Miracles Revealed by the Tikhvin Icon of the Mother of God

Getting rid of infertility

For more than twenty years, the married couple of Elena and Vladimir tried in vain to have a child. Elena and Vladimir went through a lot so that children's laughter finally sounded in their house. Married couple even tried IVF, but unfortunately, twice, ended unsuccessfully, and medical report doctor became a sentence for the couple.

Then Elena decided to turn to the Most Holy Theotokos by reading the akathist in front of the Tikhvin icon, and after a while Vladimir's wife felt that her dream had come true. But insanely worried about the unborn child, Elena read prayers day and night. And the Mother of God heard all her requests and on time, the heir Michael was born in the family of Elena and Vladimir.

Protection from misfortune

Marina heard many times about the miraculous properties of the Tikhvin Icon of the Mother of God and that this face especially helps children, but she herself never prayed before the miraculous face for help. But one day, trouble happened in her family. Valentina, Marina's daughter, was bitten by a tick, she was immediately given an injection, but after a while Valya became very ill, she developed a strong fever.

Doctors began to fear that these were signs of encephalitis, and Marina went to the temple and began to read a prayer in front of the Tikhvin Icon of the Mother of God, so that she would help protect her daughter from misfortune. And the Mother of God heard Marina's prayer, and a day later Valechka recovered and the disease subsided.

What helps

A prayer read before this icon of the Most Pure Theotokos can manifest a miraculous effect:
Assists patients in healing psychological trauma and diseased joints;
If you have to make an important fateful decision, they advise you to pray in front of the Tikhvin Icon, because, according to many sources that testify that this face protects against intrigues and tricks of enemies, and also protects against dishonest transactions;
This icon is the protector of children, which is why it is sometimes called a child icon. The holy image of the Virgin helps to find peace of mind of a rebellious soul, and also protects children from diseases;
The Tikhvin icon helps to get rid of paralysis, epilepsy and can help people gain sight;
Most believers believe that the Tikhvin image can help in relations between relatives and in strengthening family ties;
Virgin Mary girls can help in conceiving a child, as well as facilitate childbirth;
This shrine is able to protect children from the adverse influence of the streets, peers and helps to find true comrades.

Purpose of the Tikhvin Icon of the Most Pure Theotokos

This icon is one of the miraculous holy images of the Virgin Mary, which revealed to people a huge number of miraculous events. With the help of this image, at the command of the Most High, the Mother of God has been helping the Christian people for six centuries.

Because not in vain Tikhvinskaya miraculous icon, like Kazanskaya, was revealed on fire at a difficult time for Christians and is depicted mainly in the style of Hodegetria - the Guidebook: “The Mother of God walked along the Novgorod land, and people followed her to find a house near the Tikhvinka River.”

With her icon, the Mother of God showed the place of the future monastery and cathedral. After a short time, the wooden church caught fire three times, which was a sign that the Blessed Virgin Mary said that it was necessary to build a monastery of the Tikhvin Icon of the Mother of God from stone, since severe trials would soon come to the Novgorod land.

And according to the decree of the Russian prince Vasily Ivanovich and at his expense, a stone Assumption Church was built in the middle of the fifteenth century.

Another sign was that during the Great Patriotic War The Tikhvin Icon of the Mother of God has disappeared. This sign was understood by Archpriest Sergius, his son, and Archbishop John of Riga. It was they who defended this icon, and therefore sent it to the Holy Trinity Church in Chicago for preservation.

But already after the war, almost all the relics taken out were again returned to the Russian Land and returned to their cloisters, among which was the Tikhvin Icon of the Mother of God.

All this indicates that this holy image is not the usual layers of paint with a primer that were applied to a wooden board, but in fact a miraculous image that keeps a living image in itself and opens the way to a world where Angels watch and protect everyone who is on really believes who really needs help, those who ask for blessings and help.

Day of veneration of the Tikhvin Icon

The divine face of the Blessed Virgin Mary was found at the end of the thirteenth century, and since then every year on the twenty-ninth of June (ninth of July) is considered the day of memory of the Tikhvin icon.

A prayer before the Tikhvin face of the Mother of God renders to every Orthodox who, with pure thoughts and with a good heart, turns to the Mother of God for help. Here is how the prayer to the Tikhvin Mother of God sounds:

“O Most Holy and Most Pure of all people, the Lady of Heaven, our Savior, the Most High Jesus Mother, the Blessed Guide Mary! Do not despise the prayers of our, Your sinful and humble Servants at this time, asking and worshiping Your Holy Face with weeping and tremblingly saying: deliver us of impure emotions, Queen of Heaven, heal us from various sorrows and misfortunes, protect us from every disease and evil tongue, and from the unjust and terrible hardening of the unfriendly. You can, because you are our Merciful Mother, protect your believers from various troubles and reward and save with various blessings; to whom, if not You, any Patron in misfortunes and sorrows, and a merciful Intercessor for us, unworthy, and sinners. Ask, Lady of Heaven, the Servant of His Jesus our Savior, let him open the doors of Heavenly Paradise to us; for this we constantly praise You as our Helper in the salvation of us unworthy, and we exalt the most pure and most holy name of God the Father and the Son of God and the Holy Spirit, in the life-giving Trinity of the glorified and revered Almighty now and forever, and forever and ever. Amen".

TIKHVIN ICON OF THE MOTHER OF GOD

The fate of the Tikhvin Icon of the Mother of God is closely intertwined with the history ofonly in the North-West of Russia, but throughout our country. She revered as patroness ruling dynasties and as a defender, a "strong helper" in military affairs. No wonder it is often called the "palladium of Russia". Since visiting the shores of Tikhvin Basil III Tikhvin was called the "royal pilgrimage". The highest persons visited Tikhvin until the beginning of the twentieth century. The “military glory” of the Tikhvin Icon began in the 17th century. Many generations of Russian soldiers went to defend the Motherland with its images.

The Tikhvin Icon of the Mother of God is one of the most revered copies of the Blachernae Icon of the Mother of God, or Blachernitissa., the mention of which begins around 439 AD, when it was transferred from Jerusalem to Constantinople. Blachernae Church was built here for her. According to its type, it belongs to the Hodegetria-Guidebook, which, according to legend, was written by the Evangelist Luke.

During the iconoclastic heresy, this image, as tradition says, miraculously sailed across the sea from Constantinople to Rome. And after the Triumph of Orthodoxy, he returned there in the same way. In 1383, 70 years before the Ottomans captured Constantinople, the icon miraculously disappeared from the temple, but reappeared in front of astonished fishermen over Lake Ladoga. The icon appeared through the air in seven places as evidence of its miraculous power(which was important at a time when the process of Christianization of Rus' was still ongoing and the Russian North was not sufficiently covered by it) and finally stopped over the Tikhvinka River.

In the previous six times, the icon was not given into the hands of anyone, flying from place to place, as if indicating the path to follow for it. But here, on the banks of the Tikhvinka, all those gathered began to pray before her, and she descended into their arms. Immediately, in the presence of the priests, with a prayer, they laid a wooden crown - the basis of the future structure, prepared a plank for further construction and, leaving it under guard for the night, left. The next morning, to great horror and sadness, the builders who came and the watchmen who fell asleep at night did not see either the icon or the crown. They did not grieve for long - and the icon, and the crown, and the tes were on the other side of the river. The Mother of God herself indicated the final place for the stay of Her Tikhvin icon.

In those years, this was perceived as transferring her from a country that had lost piety to a new inheritance of the Mother of God - to Holy Rus', while leaving the first and second Rome - Constantinople, and moving to the third Rome - the Moscow kingdom. The icon began to be perceived as a confirmation of the special status of Russia in the face of God and, accordingly, as a vivid symbol of the Russian centralized state. This was associated with a special iconographic type of the Hodegetria icon, as a "Guide".

The widespread veneration of the Tikhvin icon in the Moscow principality begins with Vasily III. Vasily's arrival at Tikhvin was connected with the circumstances of his private life. In 1525, he divorced Solomoniya Saburova and she was tonsured. In January 1526, Vasily Ivanovich marries Elena Glinskaya. New hopes for the birth of an heir, associated with a new wife, were diligently supported by pilgrimages to famous shrines, contributions to monasteries and cathedrals, and prayers for childbearing. By his zeal, instead of a wooden church built on the site of the appearance of the icon, a stone one was erected in honor of the Dormition of the Theotokos.

Ivan the Terrible raises the veneration of the icon of Our Lady of Tikhvin to a new level. Throughout his life, he treats this icon with special reverence, considering it his patroness. For example, in 1552, on a campaign against Kazan, during the overnight stay of the Russian troops on the Pyan River. The icon of Our Lady of Tikhvin appeared to the tsar in a dream and strengthened him "overcoming the enemies." Later, Ivan Vasilyevich founded a monastery on this site and presented him with a copy of the miraculous created in Tikhvin. He comes to worship the Tikhvin Icon 15 days before the wedding to the kingdom (and before the wedding with Anastasia) - to receive a blessing on the title of "king" ("Caesar") from a shrine revered for Roman and Constantinople. In 1560, by order of Tsar Ivan the Terrible, a monastery was built at the Church of the Assumption of the Virgin, surrounded by a stone wall.

The Tikhvin Icon of the Mother of God was closely associated with the family of the new Russian tsars. In the Kostroma Ipatiev Monastery, the mother of the boyar Mikhail Fedorovich Romanov, the old woman Marfa, blessed him with a list from the Tikhvin icon for the kingdom.

In 1613-1614, the Swedish troops, led by General Delagardi, having captured Novgorod, tried more than once to destroy the monastery, but the monastery was saved by the intercession of the Mother of God. So, once, in view of the approaching Swedish army, the monks decided to flee from the monastery, taking the miraculous icon, but could not move it. This miracle stopped the faint-hearted, and they remained in the monastery, trusting in the protection of the Mother of God. Insignificant in number, the defenders of the monastery successfully repulsed the attacks of the enemy forces that were much superior to them. The advancing Swedes either imagined a large army of Russians coming from Moscow, or some kind of heavenly army, and they turned to flight.

When the Swedes suffered a final defeat in 1617, at the request of the Tsar's ambassadors, a list was made from the Tikhvin Icon of the Mother of God. The conclusion of a peace treaty in the village of Stolbovo near Tikhvin between Tsar Mikhail Fedorovich and King Gustav II Adolf on February 10, 1617 took place before this face of the Virgin. Under the terms of the agreement, the Swedish king recognized the Romanov dynasty. Prior to this, the new dynasty was recognized only by England, the Stolbovsky Treaty marked the beginning of international recognition of the legitimacy of the Romanov dynasty. The image was then transferred as a revered shrine to the Assumption Cathedral of the Moscow Kremlin, and later, at the request of the Novgorodians, it was transferred to the Novgorod St. Sophia Cathedral. Thus, from the beginning of the 17th century, the all-Russian veneration of the Tikhvin Icon of the Mother of God began.

The Tikhvin icon and its lists were famous for miraculous rescues and military deeds.

Field Marshal B.P. Sheremetev was saved from a bullet by the icon of the Tikhvin Icon during the Battle of Poltava. He founded in his estate Borisovsky Tikhvinsky convent, and his descendants, generation after generation, gave rich gifts to the icon in Tikhvin.

At the beginning of the 19th century, the frigate "Tikhvinskaya Bogoroditsa" sailed in the squadron of Rear Admiral Sarychev between Kronstadt and Luebeck. The hieromonks of the Tikhvin Bogoroditsky Monastery took care of the Russian navy. In particular, the feat of Hieromonk Kirill gained fame, who on July 28 and 29, 1855, during the bombardment of the Sveaba fortress by the enemy fleet, on the Ezerkil ship, served prayers on the deck of the ship even during the strongest skirmish, inspiring the sailors with his example.

According to Moscow legend, the miraculous icon of the Tikhvin Mother of God from the Church of the Tikhvin Icon of the Mother of God in the village of Alekseevsky Church was surrounded by an airplane around Moscow, and after that the defeat of the Nazis began near the Mother See. Soon the city of Tikhvin was also released.

In 1910, at the initiative of the Committee for the Guardianship of Russian Icon Painting, the ancient icon was uncovered from under G.O. Chirikov. The Church, taking into account the fear that existed for centuries since the time of Tsar Mikhail Fedorovich, before touching the letter of the icon, (since, “Hiding the most pure likeness”, the Mother of God herself stopped anyone who touchesapproached her image), proclaimed this a new miracle of the Mother of God.

In 1924 the Tikhvin Convent was closed. Until 1941, the miraculous icon was in the Tikhvin Museum of Local Lore, and after that it traveled a long way: during the occupation by the Nazi troops, it was transferred to Pskov, to the Spiritual Mission. For two years she was there, she was especially given out for Sunday service in the Trinity cathedral. Then the icon was transported to Riga, and after a while it ended up in the American occupation zone in Germany, from where it ended up in Chicago. Here the Tikhvin Icon of the Mother of God was kept in the Holy Trinity Cathedral, where the rector was Archbishop John (Garklavs) of Riga, who brought the icon here in 1949, and then his adopted son, Archpriest Sergius, who devoted his whole life to preserving the icon. According to the will of Archbishop John, the return of the icon to Russia was to take place only when the Tikhvin Convent was revived.

In 1995, the monastery was transferred to the Church, the Assumption Cathedral was restored and consecrated.

On July 9, 2004, after 60 years of wandering abroad, the icon was solemnly returned to its historical place in Tikhvin Mother of God Dormition Monastery .

The Tikhvin Icon of the Mother of God special meaning in the history of our State and in our days. The tradition of receiving the blessing of the Tikhvin Icon of the Mother of God, the first person in the state, has also been restored. His Holiness Patriarch Alexy II of Moscow and All Rus' blessed Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin on the day of the inauguration of Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin precisely with the Tikhvin Icon of the Most Holy Theotokos, which today does not cease to be the palladium of the Russian state.

Troparion, tone 4
Today, like the most bright sun, your all-honorable icon rises in the air for us, the Lady, enlightening the world with rays of mercy, even greater Russia, like a gift of the Divine from above, reverently perceives, glorifies Thee, the Mother of God of all, the Lady, and magnifies joyfully from Thee born Christ our God. Pray to him, O Lady Queen Theotokos, that he may keep all the cities and countries of Christianity unscathed from all the slander of the enemy, and save by faith those who worship His Divine and Your Most Pure image, Virgin unsophisticated.

Kontakion, tone 8
A patron, people, to the Virgin Mother of God, the Queen, thanking Christ God, and to Toya miraculous icon touchingly looking down and crying out to Her: O Lady Mary! Having visited this country of Your honest image with a miraculous appearance, save all Christians in peace and good time, heirs showing heavenly lives. We truly call you: rejoice, Virgo, salvation of the world.

Prayer of the Mother of God before the icon of Her Tikhvin
We thank Thee, O Blessed and Most Pure, Most Blessed Virgin, Lady, Mother of Christ our God, about all Your good deeds, I even showed you to the human race, and especially to us, the Russian people of Christ, about them below, even the angelic tongue will be pleased with praise. We thank Thee, as even now Thou hast surprised Thy unspeakable mercy on us, Thy unworthy servants, with the miraculous self-appearance of Thy Most Pure Icon, and with it thou hast enlightened the whole Russian country. The same we sinners, bowing with fear and joy, crying out to You: O Most Holy Virgin, Queen and Mother of God, save and have mercy on Your people, and give them victory over all their enemies, and save the reigning cities, and all the cities and countries of Christianity, and deliver this holy temple from every slander of the enemy, and grant all for the benefit of those who have now come in faith and praying to Your servant, and worshiping to the holy image Yours, for blessed are you with the Son and God born of You, now and forever and forever and ever. A min.

Yakov Porfiryevich Starostin

Servant of the Lord

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Orthodox believers revere the Tikhvin Icon of the Mother of God. This image is popular big love because it has paramount importance for the safety of the state. The Tikhvin icon of the Mother of God is a Hodegetria, that is, a guide. The icon painter depicted the Virgin Mary in dialogue with the Son. She reverently bows her head to Christ, who is still a baby. Here he is both judge and leader: right hand blesses, and holds the sacred scroll with his left.

The icon has a fateful meaning for Russia and a long interesting story full of wonders. The image of Hodegetria was first depicted by Luke. The Evangelist captured the Mother of God during her earthly life. The rest of the icon painters were guided by this image. And the history of the Tikhvin Hodegetria dates back to the 14th century.

In glorious Novgorod at that time, the Tikhvin Mother of God was a relic, therefore the year of birth of the icon is well known: 1383. The image appeared after the image of the Virgin and Child appeared in the sky above Ladoga.

The pagan northern tribes had the opportunity to see the face of the Virgin seven times. Over the Tikhvinka River, she appeared two whole times. A miraculous vision made many pray right on the shore, and then the icon, according to legend, itself descended from heaven into the hands of people. At this place, as expected, they decided to build a temple. The icon disappeared the next morning and was found on the other side of the river. There was also a plank for the creation of the first monastery. It is believed that the Mother of God herself determined her place on Orthodox land.

A sign never happens just like that, so the saints should be given their due. The icon was sent for blessing to the homeland of St. Luke, from where it went to Jerusalem, and then to Constantinople. A temple was built for her, and the parishioners began to call the Blachernae icon.

The miraculous movement of the Virgin continued when Rus' began to approach Ottoman Empire. Hodegetria left the Byzantine temple and again found herself in the temple of Tikhvin. The image of the Blessed One is closely connected with the fall of Byzantium and the rise of the yoke. Orthodoxy seems to have chosen a new center for itself. From that time on, thoughts about centralization began to come to the Russian princes.

Mother of God and the Russian State

The icon "Our Lady of Tikhvin" has withstood many trials. The temple, built of logs, burned to the ground several times. The icon always remained untouched among the ruins. Ivan the Terrible ordered the construction of a new stone temple. This is how the Assumption Cathedral appeared, but the beginning of its existence was almost marked by a terrible tragedy - the stone collapsed and buried twenty workers under it. When the bodies began to get out, they were found alive.

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Ivan the Terrible came to pray at the Assumption Cathedral before the military battle near Kazan in 1547. The tsar decided to establish a new monastery here, which would later withstand the attack of the Swedes and all the difficult years. Although there were significantly fewer monks than professional warriors, the Polonians could not take the temple in any way. They say they saw thousands of thousands of troops descending from heaven to help. Peace with the Swedes was concluded as a result of this icon.

A prayer addressed to the Mother of God of Tikhvin was on the lips of many Russian rulers. Peter, Catherine and Elizabeth came here to ask for advice on how to make statehood in the country. The whole house of the Romanovs repeatedly visited the Tikhvin Cathedral.

The temple withstood a lot, but it could not endure the Soviet explosives, and in 1924 the temple was gone. The icon of the Mother of God was sent to the local history museum of the city.

Mother of God, icon of Tikhvin , was written off several times. Each of the lists is also capable of performing a miracle. One of the icons is located in Kyrgyzstan, in Karakol. In 1897, the monastery was plundered, the Mother of God was shot at point-blank range to increase the damage, but the lead flew off from the icon, as if it was covered with armor.

There is also a legend about the war years. Hodegetria helped the soldiers when in 1941 they were already surrounded near Moscow. Miraculously the attack was repulsed, although the forces were not equal. According to legend, Stalin himself ordered a helicopter flight with a list of icons around the capital. Shortly thereafter, Tikhvin was also released.

How does prayer help?

The icon is often prayed for health, one's own and the child's. With her, you will definitely improve relations with a teenage child. She is considered one of the most powerful protective baby icons. Parents read sacred texts before the face of the Mother of God and the Son in order to build relationships with their children.

What to ask for:

• to make childbirth easy;
• about conception;
• about protecting children from dark forces and crimes;
• to find contact with a teenage child;
• about deliverance from madness;
• to alleviate depression;
• about the sight of the blind;
• about protecting the home and family from enemies.

Children and adults can refer to this icon with the usual prayer to the Mother of God or in their own words. The most important - sincere faith and hope for help. Never demand anything from an icon. The meaning of prayer must be revealed to your soul. God helps those who do not forget about him and in joy.