National, International, Armenia, and Community News and Opinion

The Armenian Reporter | February 7, 2009 17
Armenia
Celebrating St. Sarkis with salty cookies
Many young
Armenians go to bed
thirsty to see their
future love in their
dreams
by Betty Panossian-Ter
Sarkissian
YEREVAN – On February 7, the
Armenian Apostolic Church commemorates
the Day of St. Sarkis,
the patron saint of the youth and
the mediator of love for young Armenians.
A holiday unique to the
Armenian Church, St. Sarkis has
been declared as the day for blessing
the youth by Catholicos of All
Armenians Karekin II. St. Sarkis
is celebrated with mass in the Armenian
churches, followed by an
exchange of gifts and sweets by
young girls and boys.
The history behind the
saint
“1700 years back, the commemoration
of the Day of St. Sarkis had
served the goal of establishing the
identity of the Armenian Christian
Church and to the nationalization
of the Armenian Church,” ethnographer
Hranush Khratyan says.
In the 4th century, Sarkis was
a prince and a commander of the
army in Cappadocia, bordering the
Armenian kingdom. Not only was
he a brave commander, but also a
great preacher of Christianity. During
the reign of Julianos the Apostate
(360–363) when the followers
of Christianity were persecuted, by
divine command General Sarkis
and his son fled the borders of the
Empire and took refuge in Christian
Armenia. Seeing that King
Julian was preparing a great attack
against Persia and wishing to keep
his country out of danger, King
Diran suggested General Sarkis
serve in the army of King Shabouh
of Persia. Many of the officers in
the Persian army, witnessing the
faith and the miracles that General
Sarkis achieved with his prayers accepted
Christianity. This caused the
wrath of the Persian King and the
mob in its rage killed the General
and his son. Later, Mesrob Mashtots
brought their relics to Armenia,
buried them in Ashtarak, and
built a church over them.
Folk traditions and
legends
The religious basis of the legend of
St. Sarkis developed folk tales and
traditions.
On the eve of St. Sarkis, young
girls and boys eat salty cookies right
before going to bed in an attempt
to find out the identity of their soul
mate. They are not to drink any
water, so as to add to their thirst
and whoever offers them a glass of
water in their dreams, will become
their future husband or wife.
Another legend says that young
girls are to place a plate of wheat
flour outside their window and
wait for the trace of the amulet of
the horse of St. Sarkis. Whoever is
lucky enough to find the trace of
the amulet in her plate, means that
her most secret wishes, mostly related
to the man of her dreams, will
come true.
“Before I got married, I always ate
salty cookies on the eve of St. Sarkis.
That tradition was so exciting,
that together with my cousins and
girlfriends, we always waited eagerly
for that day,” says Seda Abrahamyan,
27, from Yerevan. “But I
have never seen my future husband
in my dreams,” she laughs.
Rediscovering the roots
In the recent years, as the western
tradition of celebrating St. Valentine’s
Day as the day of love has
been finding stronger roots in the
life of Armenians in Yerevan, the
The Armenian Church is paying special attention to St. Sarkis Day. Photolure.
Day of St. Sarkis has attained a new
mission, rivaling that of St. Valentine
and reminding young people
that Armenians have their own
national patron saint for love and
youth.
“In recent years the Day of St.
Valentine was easily established
among the youth as a tempting
novelty since the Day of St. Sarkis,
among many other national and
religious days, had been expelled
Hovhannes Toumanian’s “Paregentan” retold
from the lives of the Armenians
during the Soviet era,” explains
Ms. Kharadyan. “It was only at that
time that the Armenian Church
in Armenia recalled St. Sarkis as
a guardian from the storms, but
mostly as patron for love and the
youth, carrying the same functions
as St. Valentine’s Day,” she adds.
“Our culture of holidays in Armenia
is very poor, and any attempt
to revive our national holidays is
positive,” says Ms. Kharadyan. “So
few of our Armenian national holidays
are widespread in Armenian
society and they lack a scenario of
celebration.”
For the past several years the Araratian
Patriarchal Diocese has carried
out an exhaustive campaign in
the form of publications and folk
festivals to spread the tradition of
marking St.Sarkis among young
Armenians.
“I am glad to say that the interest
in and knowledge of St. Sarkis is
living a rebirth with the youth in
Armenia,” says Eliza Manukyan,
the head of the Press Center of the
Diocese. “If in the past, the youth
asked questions mostly on when
the salty cookies should be eaten,
last year and this year the youth
want to know more about the spiritual
aspects of marking St.Sarkis.”
A festive event marking St. Sarkis,
unprecedented in its magnitude,
took place at Lovers’ Park in
Yerevan, organized by the Diocese
and the Boghossian Gardens Fund.
The festival included acrobats, national-traditional
games, folk dance
groups, and a concert. A horseman
went around the gardens passing
out gifts and salty cookies.
On St. Sarkis, all the churches of
the Araratian Patriarchal Diocese
were open until midnight. Ms. Manukyan
recalls last year’s celebration
“when the churches were so
crowded throughout the night that
many people lit their candles on the
outside walls of the churches.” f
connect: www.araratyan-tem.am
adapted by Betty
Panossian-Ter Sarkissian
Once upon a time, a man and his
wife lived in a village. They did not
like each other. The man called his
wife silly and the wife called her
husband the same, too, and they
kept quarreling all the time.
One day, the husband buys several
pounds of butter and rice and
takes it home to his wife.
The wife loses her temper. “When
I say you are silly, you do not believe
me. What were you thinking
buying so much butter and rice! Is
it you father’s funeral, or your son’s
wedding”
“What funeral! What wedding!
What are you talking about Keep
them aside. They are for Paregentan,”
answers the husband.
The wife calms down and puts
the sacks aside.
Time passes. The wife waits and
waits for Paregentan, but he does
not show up. One day, while she is
sitting at the doorstep, she notices
a young man hurrying down the
street. She starts calling out to him.
“Brother! O brother! Could you be
the Paregentan”
The passerby notices that there is
something silly about this woman
and thinks: “Let me say ‘yes’ and
see what happens.”
“Yeah! I am Paregentan. What is it
that you want”
“What I want is to say that we are
not your servants to take care of
Celebrating the feast of Paregentan (akin to Fat Sunday). Photo: Photolure.
your butter and rice. It is enough
already. Are you not ashamed of
yourself What are you waiting
for! Come inside and take your
sacks out of our home,” the woman
says.
“Do not get upset, dear Madam.
That is the very reason I am here.
All this time I have been looking for
your house and could not find it.”
Saying this, the young man takes
the sacks of butter and rice and
quickly makes his way toward his
own village.
In the evening, the husband returns
home. The wife boasts:
“That Paregentan came along, I
gave him a good talking to and he
took his stuff away with him.”
“What Paregentan What stuff”
“That butter and rice. I saw that
he was hurrying along the street
looking for our house. I called him
in, gave him a piece of my mind,
and made him take his sacks away,”
replies the wife.
“For Heaven’s sake! When I tell
you are silly, you are indeed silly.
Where did he go”
“There he went,” the wife says
pointing to the direction Paregentan
went.
The husband mounts his horse
and runs after Paregentan. On
his way, Paregentan turns around
and notices a horseman dashing
towards his direction. He takes in
that this must be that woman’s
husband. Quickly, he hides the
sacks behind the bushes.
The horseman comes up to the
man.
“Good day, brother.”
“Good day.”
“Have you seen a man passing
this way”
“Yes, I have.”
“What was he carrying on his
back”
“Sacks of butter and rice.”
“He is the one I want. How much
time has passed since”
“Quite some time.”
“What do you think Can I make
it to him on horseback”
“How could you! You are on
a horseback and he is on his feet.
Whilst your horse shifts his four
feet, first the first one, then the
second, then the third, and then
the fourth, the man will quickly
run away with his two feet, onetwo,
one-two, one-two, and will
beat you in the race.”
“Then what should I do”
“What do you think you should
do If you want to, you can leave
your horse with me and run on
your feet the same way as that man
did. Perhaps then you could catch
him.”
“That is a good idea,” says the husband
and, leaving the horse with
Paregentan, continues his way on
foot. As soon as he is out of sight,
Paregentan mounts on the horse
together with the butter and rice,
turns away, and runs.
For a long while, the husband
goes on foot and seeing that he is
not making it to the man, turns
back. He comes back to the same
point and sees that his horse has
gone, too.
He goes back home. The husband
and his wife start quarreling
all over again, the husband for the
butter and the rice, and the wife
for the horse.
Up till now the husband and the
wife keep quarreling. The man calls
his wife silly, and the wife calls his
husband the same, and Paregentan
snoops in and laughs. f