Religion of the Abkhazians. Islam in modern Abkhazia

The location of the Eastern coast of the Black Sea, where the Abkhazians originally lived, contributed to the fact that their ancestors were involved not only in the ethno-cultural and political processes that took place in ancient times in the Caucasus, Anatolia, Asia Minor and the Mediterranean, but also in the religious life of these regions. Therefore, the main components of the religion of the Abkhazians are paganism, Christianity and Islam.

Paganism

The earliest pagan beliefs of the Abkhazians date back to the period of the existence of the Hatt civilization (III-II millennium BC). One of the main gods of the Abkhazian pagan pantheon was the god of thunder and lightning Afa. The oldest religious buildings of Abkhazia - dolmens - are also associated with this deity. According to the pagan belief of the Abkhazians, the killing of a person by lightning was considered a visit to the god Afa. The body of the dead was wrapped in an ox skin and hung on a tree. In the event of the death of noble people, after the “air burial”, a “secondary burial” was performed - the remaining bones were placed in dolmens.

The veneration of special sanctuaries in Abkhazia probably also goes back to the cult of the god Afa, in which, according to the belief of the Abkhazians, the god of thunder and lightning sometimes appeared in the form of swirling fire (ball lightning). One of the most revered places is the sanctuary on Mount Dydrypsh.

In ancient times, the Abkhaz also revered the goddess Dzydzlan, the mistress of rivers and lakes. She acts in the form of an insidious and vengeful, but at the same time full of charm, a mermaid. A special rite of begging for rain, which was performed in some regions of Abkhazia in the 20th century, is also associated with this goddess.

Starting from the time of the “Great Greek colonization”, the religious influence of ancient Hellas also went through the colony cities founded by the Greeks on the territory of modern Abkhazia. The Abkhaz have preserved legends about the hero Abrskil, whose prototype in ancient mythology was Prometheus. There is a belief among the people that Abrskil is still located in a cave inaccessible in depth in the village of Chlou.

Christianity

Even before Christianity, under the influence of the religious tradition of the Chaldean civilization, the Abkhazians already had some ideas about the one God Antsva (Chaldean Anu, "father of all gods"). At the same time, the Abkhaz got acquainted with the main events of the biblical history of mankind. In the Abkhazian folklore, fragments of the story of the lost paradise, the Flood and the Babylonian pandemonium have been preserved.

In the religious beliefs of the Abkhazians there are traces of the Old Testament religion, the influence of which came through the Jewish diaspora that appeared in the Caucasus from ancient times.

Christianity began to penetrate into Abkhazia from the middle of the 1st century. Three of the twelve disciples of Christ preached here: Andrew the First-Called, Simon the Zealot and Matthias. At the beginning of the 4th century, the first church institution in Abkhazia, the Pitiund bishopric, was established in Pitsunda, and in 325 the Bishop of Pitsunda Stratofil took part in the First Ecumenical Council. In the 6th century, Emperor Justinian the Great completed the process of Christianization of the ancient Abkhazian tribes and created the autocephalous Abaza Diocese headed by the Archbishop of Sebastopol (Sukhum).

In the middle of the 8th century, an independent Abkhazian Orthodox Church arose, which lasted until the end of the 18th century. In 1851, the Abkhaz diocese was created on the territory of Abkhazia, which was part of the Russian Empire. In 1885 it was renamed the Sukhum diocese. The Sukhum diocese stretched from Ingur to Anapa and by 1917 had 125 church communities.

In 1918, after the occupation of the territory of Abkhazia by the Georgian Mensheviks, the Sukhum-Abkhaz diocese of the then unrecognized Georgian Church was created. In 1943, the Russian Church recognized the Sukhumi-Abkhaz diocese as part of the Georgian Church. Since 1993, the Sukhumi-Abkhaz diocese has been de facto independent.

Today, there are 15 Orthodox churches (out of more than 150) and two monasteries on the territory of Abkhazia. In the capital of Abkhazia there is a Catholic church, a Lutheran church and a church of "evangelical Christians".

The majority of Abkhazians living in the territory of Abkhazia and in the CIS countries profess Orthodoxy. The main national Christian holidays in Abkhazia: Easter, Assumption, New Year (according to the old style).

Islam

The penetration of Islam into the territory of Abkhazia began from the time of the fall of Constantinople and the appearance of the Seljuk Turks on the shores of the Black Sea. In 1454, the Turkish fleet takes the city of Sebastopolis by storm, which is renamed Sukhum, and Christianity begins to weaken.

In the second half of the 18th century, three brothers of the princes Chachba, Zurab, Suleiman and Shirvan, were sent to Istanbul to resolve the issue of succession to the throne. They converted to Islam and refused to return to their homeland, since only a Christian could rule the Abkhazian people at that time. The Abkhazians kidnapped one of the brothers - Zurab Chachba, baptized him in the Ilori temple and declared him the ruler of Abkhazia.

In the 19th century during the Caucasian War, when there was a confrontation between Turkey, Persia and Russia for possession of the Caucasus, a radical change occurred in the Islamization of the Caucasian peoples, including the Abkhazians. Ottoman Turkey put forward the adoption of Islam by the latter as one of the main conditions for its assistance to the Abkhazians and Adygs. In the first half of the XIX century. there was a mass conversion of Abkhazians to Islam (Sunni persuasion). Up to a dozen wooden mosques were built on the territory of Abkhazia during this period.

Today there are two mosques in Abkhazia. The number of Muslims in Abkhazia, according to official figures, is 1,000 people. Numerous Abkhaz diaspora living in Turkey and other eastern countries also profess Islam.

The main Muslim holiday in Abkhazia is Bairam-Kurban.

Hieromonk Dorotheos (Dbar), candidate of theological sciences, doctoral student at the Aristotle University in Thessaloniki (Greece)

"Abkhazian religion"

According to studies conducted in 1994-1998, in essence, the majority of Abkhazians practice their traditional religion (Abkhazian monotheism), even if they formally consider themselves Christians or Muslims. This is manifested in all spheres of Abkhaz life.

A significant part of the surveyed residents of Abkhazia, who consider themselves Christians, do not recognize Jesus Christ as the Son of God, do not attend Christian churches, do not take communion and do not observe fasts. Abkhazians who consider themselves Muslims eat pork, drink wine, do not circumcise (considering such an act unworthy of a man) and do not visit Mecca. Judging by the polls, practically no one reads the Gospel or the Quran. All religious holidays - Christian, Muslim and traditional - are celebrated jointly by representatives of different religions and come down to a common feast.

Adherents of the Abkhazian traditional religion claim that they believe in the One God - the Creator of all things (Antsа), invisible and omnipresent. According to some local historians, the Abkhazian religion is a "unique" example of primordial monotheism, allegedly "the most ancient religion of mankind" - a relic that has survived to this day. The ideologists of the modern Abkhaz religion position it as pantheistic, since Antsva has an infinite number of manifestations on earth (that is, he is Nature himself), he is not only good or only evil - he is the focus of both concepts.

A survey of the population of the Gagra and Gudauta regions conducted by the Institute of Oriental Studies of the Russian Academy of Sciences in the fall of 1997 indicates a strong influence of the traditional pre-Christian religion on modern Abkhazians. Thus, during the survey, 199 people or 47.4% of the 420 Abkhazians who called themselves Christians admitted that they themselves or their relatives have traditional sanctuaries, or turned to such sanctuaries for help. For the rest, this figure is as follows: 163 or 66.5% of 245 Muslims, 34 or 47.2% of 72 who found it difficult to determine their religious affiliation, 27 or 37.5% of 72 non-believers, 12 or 70.6% of 17 pagans, 6 or 60% of 10 adherents of the “Abkhazian faith”, and 7 or 43.8% of 16 atheists.

Since the 1990s, the Abkhaz traditional religion has been restoring its position. There are seven sanctuaries (anykha) in Abkhazia, the totality of which is called byzhnykh("seven shrines"). To date, the activities of five of them have been resumed, these are Dydrypsh-nykh, Lashkendar-nykh, Ldzaa-nykh, Lykh-nykh and Ylyr-nykh. The sixth sanctuary of Inal-Kuba is located in the mountain valley of Pskhu, now inhabited by Russians. There is no consensus about the name and location of the seventh sanctuary, some call it Bytkha - the ancient sanctuary of the Ubykhs. Less commonly, Lapyr-nykha, Napra-nykha, Gech-nykha and Kapba-nykha were called as the seventh sanctuary.

Priests - anykha pay(translated as “sons of the sanctuary”) of the seven main Abkhaz sanctuaries, only representatives of certain Abkhaz priestly families can serve: Gochua (Ldzaa-nykha), Kharchlaa (Lashkendar) Chichba (Dydrypsh-nykha), Shakryl (Lykh-nykha) and Shinkuba (Elyr- nykha), Avidzba (Inal-ҟәyba).

Islam

According to a sociological survey in 2003, 16% of the inhabitants of Abkhazia consider themselves Muslims. About 250 survey participants identified themselves as active Muslims, 130 of whom live in the Gagra and Gudauta regions.

Judaism

Most of the Jews who lived in Abkhazia before the start of the Georgian-Abkhaz conflict, being Georgian Jews, for whom Georgian was their native language, were forced to leave the republic, repatriating to their historical homeland Israel or moving to Georgia proper. Those Jews who remained in Abkhazia are mostly Russian-speaking Ashkenazi Jews.

In 2012, there was one synagogue in the city of Sukhum (Inal-Ipa st., 56) in Abkhazia. The total number of Jews in Abkhazia is about 200 people.

Christianity

Orthodox Church

There are now several dozen Orthodox churches in Abkhazia. The Sukhum-Abkhaz diocese was previously subordinate to the Georgian Orthodox Church, but after the outbreak of the war, it actually withdrew from its subordination and has since existed independently, declaring autocephaly. Representatives of the Georgian and Russian Churches qualify the actions of the Abkhaz priesthood as a whole as unauthorized.

Catholic Church

lutheran church

Since 2002, in Sukhum, next to the Catholic parish, there has been a Lutheran parish of St. John (St. Abazinskaya 65), consisting mainly of people of German origin

Contradictions between the religion of the Abkhaz and other religions

There are many contradictions between the traditional religion of the Abkhaz and world religions.

• Muslims are forbidden to attend the funeral, which is not at all acceptable on the part of the Abkhazians.
• The deification of a person, such as in Christianity, is also unacceptable.
• Traditionally, at the Abkhaz feast, the first toast sounds like "wa Antsа ulԥkha ҳat" (Oh Antsva, shine your rays on us). According to Christian customs, such a toast is unacceptable, since it is interpreted as "you remember God only when you feel good." This toast always sounds like "wa Antsa ulԥkha khat" in the mouths of all those who raise it, but they never raise it for Allah, Jesus Christ, the Jewish God, etc.

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Literature

• Abkhazians. Digest of articles. M.: Nauka, 2007. - 547 p. See Two articles of the collection are devoted to the religions of Abkhazia:
  • Aqaba L. H. Traditional religious beliefs of the Abkhazians.
  • Krylov A. B. Modern religious situation in Abkhazia.
• Milovanova N. A. Abkhazia is Christian. Sukhum, 2014. - 332 pages,

Notes

Links

An excerpt characterizing Religion in Abkhazia

The countess was so tired of the visits that she did not order to receive anyone else, and the porter was only ordered to call everyone who would still come with congratulations to eat without fail. The Countess wanted to talk face to face with her childhood friend, Princess Anna Mikhailovna, whom she had not seen well since her arrival from Petersburg. Anna Mikhailovna, with her tearful and pleasant face, moved closer to the countess's chair.
"I'll be completely frank with you," said Anna Mikhailovna. “There aren’t many of us left, old friends!” That's why I treasure your friendship.
Anna Mikhailovna looked at Vera and stopped. The countess shook hands with her friend.
“Vera,” said the countess, turning to her eldest daughter, who was obviously unloved. How do you have no idea? Don't you feel like you're out of place here? Go to your sisters, or...
Beautiful Vera smiled contemptuously, apparently not feeling the slightest insult.
“If you had told me long ago, mother, I would have left at once,” she said, and went to her room.
But, passing by the sofa, she noticed that two couples were sitting symmetrically in it at two windows. She stopped and smiled contemptuously. Sonya was sitting close beside Nikolai, who was copying for her the poems he had composed for the first time. Boris and Natasha were sitting at the other window and fell silent when Vera entered. Sonya and Natasha looked at Vera with guilty and happy faces.
It was fun and touching to look at these girls in love, but the sight of them, obviously, did not arouse a pleasant feeling in Vera.
“How many times have I asked you,” she said, “not to take my things, you have your own room.
She took the inkwell from Nikolai.
“Now, now,” he said, wetting his pen.
“You know how to do everything at the wrong time,” Vera said. - Then they ran into the living room, so that everyone felt ashamed for you.
In spite of the fact, or precisely because what she said was perfectly true, no one answered her, and all four only looked at each other. She hesitated in the room with an inkwell in her hand.
- And what secrets can there be between Natasha and Boris and between you at your age - all just nonsense!
“Well, what do you care, Vera? - Natasha spoke intercessively in a quiet voice.
She, apparently, was to everyone even more than always, on this day kind and affectionate.
“It’s very stupid,” Vera said, “I’m ashamed of you. What are the secrets?...
- Everyone has their own secrets. We don’t touch you and Berg,” Natasha said, getting excited.
“I think you don’t touch it,” Vera said, “because there can never be anything bad in my actions. But I'll tell my mother how you get along with Boris.
“Natalia Ilyinishna treats me very well,” said Boris. “I can't complain,” he said.
- Leave it, Boris, you are such a diplomat (the word diplomat was in great use among children in the special meaning that they attached to this word); even boring,” said Natasha in an offended, trembling voice. Why is she coming to me? You will never understand this,” she said, turning to Vera, “because you have never loved anyone; you have no heart, you are only madame de Genlis [Madame Genlis] (this nickname, considered very offensive, was given to Vera by Nikolai), and your first pleasure is to make trouble for others. You flirt with Berg as much as you like,” she said quickly.
- Yes, I’m sure I won’t run after a young man in front of the guests ...
“Well, she got her way,” Nikolai intervened, “she told everyone troubles, upset everyone. Let's go to the nursery.
All four, like a flock of frightened birds, got up and left the room.
“They told me trouble, but I didn’t give anything to anyone,” Vera said.
— Madame de Genlis! Madame de Genlis! laughing voices said from behind the door.
The beautiful Vera, who produced such an irritating, unpleasant effect on everyone, smiled and, apparently not affected by what she was told, went to the mirror and straightened her scarf and her hair. Looking at her beautiful face, she seemed to become even colder and calmer.

The conversation continued in the living room.
- Ah! chere, - said the countess, - and in my life tout n "est pas rose. Can't I see that du train, que nous allons, [not all roses. - with our way of life,] our state will not last long! And it's all a club, and its kindness. We live in the country, do we rest? Theatres, hunts, and God knows what. But what can I say about me! Well, how did you arrange all this? I often wonder at you, Annette, how it is you, at your age, ride alone in a wagon, to Moscow, to Petersburg, to all the ministers, to all the nobility, you know how to get along with everyone, I'm surprised!
- Ah, my soul! - answered Princess Anna Mikhailovna. “God forbid you find out how hard it is to be a widow without support and with a son whom you love to adoration. You will learn everything,” she continued with a certain pride. “My process taught me. If I need to see one of these aces, I write a note: “princesse une telle [princess such and such] wants to see such and such” and I myself go in a cab at least two, at least three times, at least four, until I achieve what I need. I don't care what they think of me.
- Well, what about, whom did you ask about Borenka? the countess asked. - After all, here is your officer of the guard, and Nikolushka is a cadet. Someone to bother. Whom did you ask?
- Prince Vasily. He was very nice. Now I have agreed to everything, I have reported to the sovereign,” Princess Anna Mikhailovna said with delight, completely forgetting all the humiliation through which she went through to achieve her goal.
- Why is he getting old, Prince Vasily? the countess asked. - I didn’t see him from our theaters at the Rumyantsevs. And I think he forgot about me. Il me faisait la cour, [He dragged after me,] - the countess remembered with a smile.
- Still the same, - answered Anna Mikhailovna, - amiable, crumbling. Les grandeurs ne lui ont pas touriene la tete du tout. [The high position did not turn his head at all.] “I regret that I can do too little for you, dear princess,” he tells me, “order.” No, he is a nice person and a wonderful native. But you know, Nathalieie, my love for my son. I don't know what I wouldn't do to make him happy. And my circumstances are so bad,” Anna Mikhaylovna continued sadly and lowering her voice, “so bad that I am now in the most terrible position. My unfortunate process eats up everything I have and does not move. I don't have, you can imagine, a la lettre [literally] no dime of money, and I don't know what to equip Boris with. She took out her handkerchief and wept. - I need five hundred rubles, and I have one twenty-five-ruble note. I am in such a position ... One of my hopes is now on Count Kirill Vladimirovich Bezukhov. If he does not want to support his godson - after all, he baptized Borya - and assign him something to support, then all my troubles will be lost: I will have nothing to equip him with.
The Countess shed a tear and silently pondered something.
“I often think, maybe it’s a sin,” said the princess, “but I often think: Count Kirill Vladimirovich Bezukhoy lives alone ... this is a huge fortune ... and what does he live for? Life is a burden for him, and Borya is just starting to live.
“He will probably leave something for Boris,” said the countess.
“God knows, chere amie!” [dear friend!] These rich people and nobles are so selfish. But all the same, I’ll go to him now with Boris and tell him straight out what’s the matter. Let them think what they want about me, it really doesn't matter to me when the fate of my son depends on it. The princess got up. “Now it’s two o’clock, and at four o’clock you have dinner.” I can go.
And with the manners of a Petersburg business lady who knows how to use time, Anna Mikhailovna sent for her son and went out with him into the hall.
“Farewell, my soul,” she said to the countess, who accompanied her to the door, “wish me success,” she added in a whisper from her son.
- Are you visiting Count Kirill Vladimirovich, ma chere? said the count from the dining-room, also going out into the hall. - If he is better, call Pierre to dine with me. After all, he visited me, danced with the children. Call by all means, ma chere. Well, let's see how Taras excels today. He says that Count Orlov never had such a dinner as we will have.

- Mon cher Boris, [Dear Boris,] - said Princess Anna Mikhailovna to her son, when the carriage of Countess Rostova, in which they were sitting, drove along a straw-covered street and drove into the wide courtyard of Count Kirill Vladimirovich Bezukhoy. “Mon cher Boris,” said the mother, pulling her hand out from under the old coat and placing it on her son’s hand with a timid and gentle movement, “be kind, be attentive. Count Kirill Vladimirovich is still your godfather, and your future fate depends on him. Remember this, mon cher, be nice, as you know how to be ...

Reflections on some conclusions of the book by A. Krylov "Religion and Traditions of the Abkhazians"

M. Kvitsinia, (Associate Professor of ASU, Candidate of Philosophical Sciences)

With the entry into the new millennium, the rhythm of History, both local and global, is especially felt. The roads of peoples, civilizations that have sunk into oblivion, and those that have not yet been passed, but are inscribed in an unknown future, open up before our eyes. In such an atmosphere of Time, research is of particular importance, its content is directed into the depths of millennia through the prism of the present, in order to preserve original cultures for the future.

The study of the Doctor of Historical Sciences, an employee of the Institute of Oriental Studies of the Russian Academy of Sciences A. Krylov "Religion and Traditions of the Abkhazians (based on field research 1994-2000)", in 2 volumes (M, 2001) is a voluminous study, using a rich ethnographic, historical, linguistic literature, which undoubtedly indicates the depth of the author's knowledge of not only local material, features of the way of life, traditions, the current state of development of the Abkhaz ethnic group, but also problematic, unexplored areas of modern Caucasian studies. From this point of view, the logical and analytical conceptual constructions given in the work regarding the identification of a religious pro-relic, preserved by the Abkhazians in the worship of the Supreme God - Antsea, with the religions of the most ancient civilizations of the world are especially valuable.

The author is consistent and conclusive of the concept that the modern Abkhazians are a people professing their own faith faith in the Supreme God-Antsea, which is rooted in the depths of prehistoric times. According to the scientist, now the national traditional religion is being revived in Abkhazia, this is facilitated by the Government, the President, and Time. An interesting picture of the religiosity of the Abkhazians, which was revealed by the author in the course of field research: now 49.3% of Abkhazians consider themselves Christians, 28.7% are Muslims, 3.2% are pagans and believers in the Abkhazian faith (in the modern everyday consciousness, paganism and Abkhazian faith is replaced in the meaning of traditional, folk religion).

Who are Abkhazians by faith, if they, calling themselves Christians or Muslims, are not such in essence, as the author writes about this despite the results of the survey given by him? maybe; Does this contradiction make sense? Paradoxically, apparently there is. The whole intrigue of this apparent incident is that there is no clear distinction between what History has left us since the time of Sumer, perhaps even further, and what the Abkhazian faith has and leads to - to the formation of a national-state religion, not which so far has its own name, or to Orthodox Christianity, and perhaps to Islam.

The author clearly defines the traditional religion as autochthonous, which developed among the Abkhazians and other peoples of the Caucasus in the process of their historical development without the formative influence of world religions. And the fact that in the work, in its final part in particular, the Hattian trace of this religion is emphasized is valuable and confirms the theory of pra-monotheism. The author took his own step in this direction, greatly supplementing the theory of autochthonous Abkhazians in their land. J. Regelson and I. Khvartskya came to this in the work "Adam's Land". Apparently, today it is very difficult to see the valuable core of this work, the Abkhazian pra-monotheism as such intuitively and logically defined by the authors (this concept is only being evaluated in Russian religious studies).

Assessing all the merits of the work, it is impossible not to note the controversial issues and inconsistencies arising from the text itself and creating a feeling of some reticence, in particular, regarding the characteristics of the modern God-Antsea: firstly, today's God-Antsea in the minds of the Abkhazians is not that purely Abkhazian Antsea, who was worshiped by the proto-Abkhazians in ancient times, history left a noticeable imprint in his understanding; secondly, "modern God-Antsea is God in the mouth, in verbal statements, formulas, easily replaced in practice in cult deeds by Jesus, Allah; thirdly, modern God-Antsea unconscious, internal, psychogenetic patron of the Abkhazians, patron of the country fourthly, the resuscitation of God-Antsea in its original (prehistoric) form in modern Abkhazia seems impossible due to the underformation of the traditional religion itself, the lack of a clear organization of the worship of Antsea, the lack of actions of all the "any" and the priesthood in the form of a hierarchized "caste". that the monotheism of Antsea implies the subordination of other sanctuaries to one, a clear delineation of the function and position of each anykh among the seven anykh.Singling out one anykh, for example, only Dydrypsh-anykh, and subordinating other anykhs to it, diminishes the significance and autochthonous nature of these anykhs, violates the traditions of respect, equal reverence, observed by priests from time immemorial.

In the modern situation, anykha is a stable religious unit within a certain territorial distribution and family affiliation. Anykha is not only an autonomous formation, but also a sacramental phenomenon, traditionally having power precisely within the boundaries and certain functions assigned to it. The collection of any necessarily requires the centralization of one of them (let us recall the failed attempt of Vladimir the Baptist to subordinate the rest of the deities that had their own sanctuaries to Perun).

In the study, we read: "The peaceful coexistence of traditional religion and Orthodoxy in the past was explained primarily by the fact that the clergy actually abandoned the struggle against religion, which, according to all church canons, should be considered pagan." In fact, the historical presence of the Abkhazians under ideological pressure from outside for many centuries formed in them religious tolerance towards other religious influences (to Catholicism during the period of Genoese influence, to Islam during the Turkish presence, to Orthodox Christianity in the form of a selective attitude) . For historical reasons, the Abkhaz could not become "pure" traditionalists, Christians or Muslims. Therefore, it is not surprising that neither in the time of Evliya Celebi (the first third of the 17th century), nor today, those who consider themselves one or the other know little about the content of the Koran or the Bible. There is no need to talk about the religious education of peoples under the conditions of mountain feudalism or the Soviet era. Several generations turned out to be outside the national-religious traditions (the author writes quite convincingly about the position of some and the priesthood in Abkhazia in Soviet times), and today we can only note the trends of the ethno-religious revival of the Abkhazians. And that is why it is precisely at present that the syncretism, the mixing of elements of various religions in the minds of the Abkhaz - traditional, Christian, Islamic, is manifested to the greatest extent, each of which, to a lesser or greater extent, affects the entire set of views of an individual. Of course, this form of consciousness of the Abkhaz developed as a result of the influence of historical events and phenomena on the life of the ethnos. Therefore, considering modern religious traditions in isolation from Christian and Islamic ideological guidelines means rejecting one part of the whole system (Antsea-Jesus-Allah),

Religious tradition has always been and is an element of spiritual culture. Apsuara as an ethnogenetic social code of life has always prevailed in the behavioral culture of the Abkhazians. For Abkhazians, both in the past and in the present, it doesn’t matter who is in front of him - a Muslim, a Christian, a traditionalist, etc., what is more important is what kind of person he is, is it possible to be friends with him, share his innermost self, etc. Abkhaz, according to the laws of Apsuara, he believes that everyone has the right to choose a faith, so long as this faith does not restrict his freedom, does not encroach on the sacred Apsny (this explains the negative attitude of the state towards Jehovah's Witnesses). A vivid example of the primacy of religious tolerance and adherence to the principles of apsuar we find in the author of the book, who describes the opening of the Ylyr-nykh sanctuary in June 1998, which was attended not only by traditional priests, but also by Orthodox priests. The observance of the principle "one does not go to a strange monastery with one's own charter" applies not only to priests, but also to Orthodox priests. Every person, whether it be a priest or a priest, knows what place he has been given according to the Abkhaz law at this or that ceremony. A common understanding prevails here that there are many religions. God is one and everyone worships him. In this case, it is necessary to talk about the high religious culture of the ethnic group.

At the end of the work, the author defines the position of the traditional religion among the Abkhazians as officially state, while emphasizing the absence of professional clergy in it in the past, which, in his opinion, led to the preservation of the most archaic forms and presentation. These judgments raise some objections, since the revival of national-religious traditions in a secular state does not yet mean giving them the status of a state religion. The patronizing steps of the Abkhaz leadership and society are explained by their understanding of the significance of their own cultural roots, traditions, respect for the spiritual heritage of History, because everything that is native remains native, it lives within the ethnic group and is felt by them. There is no doubt that the holding of prayers at the level of surnames, the existence of the principle of inheritance of the rights of a particular person among the cult priesthood led to the preservation of archaic initial religious ideas.

In Abkhazia, essentially democratic traditions of attitude to faith have always been strong, in which respect for one's own and foreign religions was combined. Therefore, today the state pursues a policy in the matter of religion, based on the observance of the principle of freedom of conscience. This principle is enshrined in the state symbols of Abkhazia. It is known that the green and white alternation of the seven stripes of the national flag of Abkhazia is evidence of the religious tolerance of the Abkhazians, the peaceful coexistence of Islam and Christianity in the consciousness and behavioral culture of the ethnic group.

Today there are 11 active Orthodox churches and two active monasteries in Abkhazia. The geography of their length from Pitsunda to Chuburkhinj (Galsky district). The clergy consists of 13 people, six of them represent the Abkhazian clergy, one of which is Father Dorotheus (D. Dbar) Candidate of Theology. Abkhazian Orthodox Church, headed by Fr. Vissarion, is experiencing the beginning of a process of spiritual rebirth.

The Islamized part of the Abkhazian population (mostly returned descendants of mahajirs) also has the opportunity to satisfy their religious needs. The construction of mosques in Sukhum and Gudauta is a vivid example of the balanced policy of the Abkhaz authorities on this issue. Christian sectarianism in Abkhazia is represented mainly by the non-Abkhaz part of the population.

The outstanding German philosopher G.V. F. Hegel in his work "Philosophy of History" noted that "when we deal with the past and deal with a world far from us, such a present is revealed to the spirit, which, being the actual activity of the spirit, rewards it for its efforts." Indeed, the efforts of the scientist in enriching the ethnographic material on Abkhazia have been rewarded a hundredfold. For many generations of the future, these books will convey one of the most ancient cultural heritage of mankind - the religious traditions of the ancient Abkhaz ethnos.

The geographical position of Abkhazia (on the one hand, Georgia and Russia, on the other hand, Turkey) contributed to the emergence of two main religions here - Christianity and Islam. But, throughout the history of the state, the bulk of the population continued to believe in the Supreme God Antsea.

Christianity

The first Christian community arose in Abkhazia at the beginning of the 4th century, in Pitsunda. The establishment of this religion is associated with the name of the Byzantine emperor Justinian. In the 6th century, the first Church of the Virgin Mary was built in Pitsunda. A little later, with the help of Byzantium, Christianity became the state religion. They built churches and temples, preached. Some temples erected at that time have survived to this day. So, for example, the Mokva Temple, built by the Abkhazian king Leon in 965.

As a result of its political and territorial growth, the Abkhazian state rendered direct assistance to the adoption of Christianity by the North Caucasian peoples. In particular, at the initiative of the Abkhazian kings, the Alans were baptized - Inal-Ipa writes about this in his book "Abkhazians"

In the 10th century, a reform of the Abkhazian church life took place. Leadership passes to the Georgian Orthodox Church. Since the end of the 13th century, the main myrrhs, meetings of bishops and solemn ceremonies have been held in the Pitsunda church. The Greek language of divine services was replaced by Georgian. This played an important role in the spread of the Georgian language and writing in Abkhazia.

At the end of the 15th century, the Turks invaded Abkhazia and began to preach Islam. Christianity returns to the territory of the state after joining the Russian Empire in the middle of the 19th century. The mass conversion of Abkhazians to Orthodoxy began.

At the beginning of the 20th century, a desire arose in Abkhazia to create its own national church with services in the Abkhaz language. With the help of the Bishop of Sukhumi and Russian priests, several church books and services were translated.

Since 1920, as in the entire territory of the USSR, the activities of religious organizations in the territory of Abkhazia were subjected to serious restrictions. As a result, several functioning temples remained and the number of believers significantly decreased. But, already in the 1980s, there was an increase in interest in religion in Abkhazia, the first Abkhaz priests appeared since the establishment of Soviet power.

After the Georgian-Abkhaz war, church life in Abkhazia began to be restored by a small group of parish priests who remained after the war on the territory of Abkhazia. They formed a diocesan council and elected Priest Vissarion Aplia as the temporary administrator of the Sukhumi-Abkhaz diocese. With his leading role, services were resumed in many churches, including in the Abkhaz language. Two unrecognized church jurisdictions operate on the territory of Abkhazia - the Abkhaz Orthodox Church and the Holy Metropolis of Abkhazia. Despite the canonical difficulties, church life in Abkhazia is developing, new churches and monasteries are opening, during the service in churches the name of Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and All Russia is commemorated.

Abkhazia is a fairly large center of Orthodox pilgrimage. The most visited holy places are New Athos, where the grotto of St. Apostle Simon Kananit, a temple of the tenth century, built on the resting place of the Apostle, and the New Athos Monastery.

Islam

Islam begins to penetrate into Abkhazia at the end of the 15th century with the appearance of the missionaries of Sultan Turkey on the territory of the state. The first of the Abkhazians to accept Islam were representatives of the upper class - princes and nobles. Many of them were closely connected with Turkey economically and politically. Gradually, the upper class becomes the backbone of Islam in Abkhazia. In the 17th century, two large wooden mosques were built in Sukhum.

Turkish mullahs were the main promoters of Islam in Abkhazia. They often acted as healers, which could not but influence the conversion of people to Islam. Islam has left its imprint on some rituals and aspects of folk life. Muslim tombstones with epitaphs were made in the cemeteries of feudal families. Abkhazian Muslims stopped eating pork meat. As a result, in the middle of the 19th century, pig breeding in Abkhazia fell into decline. Another indicator of the influence of Islam, according to Inal-Ipa, is the assimilation by the Abkhazian princes and nobles of Muslim male and female names with the feudal title "bey".

But, in general, despite the active preaching activities of Turkish missionaries, only the ruling class of the population turned out to be adherents of Islam.

After the annexation of Abkhazia to Russia, the tsarist government and the Russian Orthodox Church organized the Society for the Restoration of Orthodox Christianity in the Caucasus, and active missionary activity took place. Islam among the Abkhazians was practically outlawed. Violators of imperial rules are punished with deportation to Siberia, deprivation of parental rights, fines, divorces.

In the second half of the 19th century, the mass eviction of Muslim Abkhazians to Turkey began, the so-called mahadzhirstvo. The deserted lands began to be populated by colonists, encouraged by the administration in every possible way. An important condition for this was the Christian religion. Thousands of newly arrived Russians, Armenians, Greeks began to "explore" new lands. Settlers were exempted from duties, they were provided with benefits.

Islam in Abkhazia is slowly, but reviving. This is also due to the fact that many Abkhazians - descendants of mahajirs - are returning to their historical homeland. All Turkish Abkhazians are ethnic Muslims, many of them are sincere, observing all the precepts of Islam. The Spiritual Administration of Muslims of Abkhazia was established in Sukhum in 1995. At present, a line is being drawn in Abkhazia for rapprochement between the Muslims of the Republic and the Muslim community of Russia. Contacts are maintained with the Spiritual Administrations of Muslims of the Russian Federation, the republics of the North Caucasus, including the Department of Religious Affairs of the Republic of Turkey, with our many thousands of diaspora in Turkey on various religious issues.

Paganism or traditional religion

Until the middle of the VI century. Abkhazians for the most part were pagans. Since ancient times, they have attached exceptional importance to tribal shrines, the cult of which was practiced in family tribal prayer places dedicated to the patron gods of the clans. The hierarchy of tribal deities was headed by the god Antsea. In addition, there is a whole pantheon of patron deities: "Azhveipshva" - the patron of forests and wild animals, to whom hunters sacrificed before going hunting; "Aitar" - the patron of livestock, prayer and sacrifice to which was performed during the breeding season; "Jajja" - the goddess of fertility and crops; "Gvynda" - the patroness of bees and apiaries; "Shvashvy" - the patron of blacksmithing; "Erysh" - the patroness of weaving; "Dziuara" - the patroness of water and rain; "Afy" is the patron of thunder and lightning. Of all the deities listed, Anchva, Dziuara and Afy are the most preserved in the people's memory.

According to the ideas of Abazins related to Abkhazians, in the past, the surrounding nature was inhabited by evil and good spirits (uyd, almasty, shaitan, bnagIv, pchagIv), which could harm a person or help him. Natural disasters often led to the emergence of various rituals associated with turning to the forces nature. In our opinion, this is due to the fact that, alone with nature, a person resorts to various methods of self-survival.

For centuries, the Abkhazians have preserved totemic ideas about the relationship of their clans with this or that animal or plant, with some natural phenomenon. The meaning of the surnames that have survived to this day is explained by the veneration of animals or plants by the ancestors. For example, in the surnames Adzhba, Dzhanba, Dzhopua, the root stem "adzh" ("j") means "oak".

Throughout the history of Abkhazia, the people did not forget to honor their national traditions and rituals. Currently, among the Abkhazians, there is an active revival of traditional religion, the importance of which in the life of society has been steadily increasing in recent years. Their task was the legal registration and registration of the Abkhaz traditional religion.

Syncretism

The religious ideas of the Abkhazians, as a significant part of the ethnic spiritual culture and morality, have repeatedly become the subject of research analysis. At the same time, most authors focused on their individual components: traditional (autochthonous) religion, Orthodox Christianity, Sunni Islam and, to some extent, other religions and cults. Meanwhile, the phenomenon of the religious culture of the Abkhazians lies in its complex, syncretic nature - R. Bartsyts believes.

Abkhazians only formally accepted different beliefs, but always adhered to the traditional Abkhazian religion. Signs of Christianity can be seen in traditional Abkhazian prayers, where at the end of any service they answer "Amen". Christian temples are built next to traditional places of worship.

The open and tolerant nature of the Abkhazian traditional beliefs ensured the progressive process of incorporating into the religious culture of the people the cult and ritual norms most appropriate to its spirit, introduced by the two world religions. The fusion of these three main components formed the original image of the Abkhazian religious syncretism, as R. Bartsyts writes about. All religious holidays - Christian, Muslim and pagan - are celebrated jointly by representatives of different religions and are reduced to a common feast.

References:

1. Bartsyts R.M. Abkhazian religious syncretism in cult complexes and modern ritual practice. Monograph. Moscow. 2009.
2. Janashia N. Abkhazian cult and way of life. Printing house of the Academy of Sciences, 1917
3. Dzidzaria G.A. Makhajirism and problems of the history of Abkhazia in the 19th century. Sukhum, "Alashara", 1975.
4. Dimitri Dbar (Hieromonk Dorotheos): Religious Trends in Modern Abkhazia. Sukhum, 2012.
5. Gabnia S.S. Sign system in the traditional culture of the Abkhazians.
6. Inal-ipa Sh.D. Abkhazians. Sukhumi, "Alashara", 1965.
7. Krylov A. Religion and traditions of the Abkhazians (based on field research in 1994-2000). M., 2001.
8. Tatyrba A. Islam in Abkhazia (a look through history). 2008 B.m.

Elvira Kozlova,

especially for the site "Country of Abaza"

Inal-ipa Sh.D. Abkhazians. Sukhumi, "Alashara", 1965, p. 569

Inal-ipa Sh.D. Abkhazians. Sukhumi, "Alashara", 1965, p. 586

Bartsyts R.M. Abkhazian religious syncretism in cult complexes and modern ritual practice. Monograph. Moscow. 2009., p. 4

"Abkhazian religion"

According to studies conducted in 1994-1998, in essence, the majority of Abkhazians practice their traditional religion (Abkhazian monotheism), even if they formally consider themselves Christians or Muslims. A significant part of the surveyed residents of Abkhazia, who consider themselves Christians, do not recognize Jesus Christ as the Son of God, do not attend churches, do not take communion and do not observe fasts. Abkhazians who identify as Muslims eat pork, drink wine, do not circumcise, and do not visit Mecca. Judging by the polls, practically no one reads the Gospel or the Quran. All religious holidays - Christian, Muslim and pagan - are celebrated jointly by representatives of different religions and are reduced to a common feast.

Abkhazians claim that they believe in the One God - the Creator of all things (Antsva), invisible and omnipresent. Some religious scholars agree with this opinion. There is even a hypothesis that the Abkhazian religion is a unique example of primordial monotheism, the oldest religion of mankind - a relic that has survived to this day. But in fact the religion of the Abkhazians is pantheistic, since the tradition claims that Antsva has an infinite number of manifestations on earth (that is, he is Nature himself), he is not only good or only evil - he is the focus of both concepts.

A survey of the population of the Gagra and Gudauta regions conducted by the Institute of Oriental Studies of the Russian Academy of Sciences in the fall of 1997 indicates a strong influence of the traditional pre-Christian religion on modern Abkhazians. Thus, during the survey, 199 people or 47.4% of the 420 Abkhazians who called themselves Christians admitted that they themselves or their relatives have traditional sanctuaries, or turned to such sanctuaries for help. For the rest, this figure is as follows: 163 or 66.5% of 245 Muslims, 34 or 47.2% of 72 who found it difficult to determine their religious affiliation, 27 or 37.5% of 72 non-believers, 12 or 70.6% of 17 pagans, 6 or 60% of 10 adherents of the “Abkhazian faith”, and 7 or 43.8% of 16 atheists.

Abkhazia, according to the Abkhazians themselves, is a land chosen by God for its beauty, and the people of Abkhazia are its trusted guardian. The positions of the traditional Abkhazian religion are definitely being strengthened. Abkhazia is guarded by seven sanctuaries-anykhs, the totality of which is called "byzhnykha" ("seven sanctuaries"). To date, the activities of five of them have been resumed, these are Dydrypsh-nykha, Lashkendar, Ldzaa-nykha, Lykh-nykha and Ylyr-nykha. The sixth sanctuary of Inal-Kuba is located in the mountain valley of Pskhu, now inhabited by Russians. Regarding the name and location of the seventh sanctuary, our Abkhaz interlocutors did not have a unanimous opinion, some of the respondents called Bytkha, the ancient sanctuary of the Ubykhs, as such. Less commonly, Lapyr-nykha, Napra-nykha, Gech-nykha and Kapba-nykha were called as the seventh sanctuary.

Priests - "anykha payu" (translated as "sons of the sanctuary") of the seven main Abkhazian sanctuaries can only be representatives of certain Abkhazian priestly families: Gochua (Ldzaa-nykha), Kharchlaa (Lashkendar) Chichba (Dydrypsh-nykha), Shakryl (Lykh-nykha) ) and Shinkuba (Elyr-nykha), Inal-ҟәyba (Avidzba).

Islam

Mosque in Sukhum

According to a sociological survey in 2003, 16% of the inhabitants of Abkhazia consider themselves Muslims. About 250 people are active Muslims, 130 of whom live in the Gagra and Gudauta regions.

Judaism

Orthodox Church

According to ancient church tradition, Christianity in Abkhazia was first preached by the Holy Apostles from the Twelve, Andrew the First-Called and Simon Zealot, who was martyred in Nicopsia (present-day New Athos). By the 4th century, Christianity had firmly established itself on the territory of Abkhazia, as evidenced by the presence of an episcopal see in Pitiunta (Pitsunda). In 325 Bishop Stratophilus of Pitiunta took part in the First Ecumenical Council in Nicaea. Pages of the biography of one of the most prominent Christian figures, Patriarch of Constantinople St. John Chrysostom, who, being in exile, died in the Abkhaz Komans. As a state religion, Christianity was established on the territory of Abkhazia under the Byzantine emperor Justinian the Great in the 6th century. In the medieval period, dozens of churches were built on the territory of Abkhazia, both large cathedrals and small parish churches. Many of the medieval temples of Abkhazia are outstanding architectural monuments. The most famous cathedrals are in Pitsnda and with. Mokva. By the XIV century. The Abkhazian Church already functions as an autocephalous Catholicosate, which de jure existed until 1795, when the last Catholicos Maxim died in the Kiev-Pechersk Lavra. However, with the fall of Constantinople and the beginning of the establishment of Ottoman rule in the Caucasus, there is a sharp decline in Christianity. By the beginning of the XIX century. on the territory of Abkhazia there are only local centers of church life. And only with the advent of the Russian Empire in the region begins a stormy, supported at the state level, the process of the revival of Christianity in Abkhazia. A significant part of the local ruling elite, headed by the sovereign prince of Abkhazia Seferbey (George), leaves Islam and accepts Christianity. In 1851, an episcopal department was established in Abkhazia. In 1875, the Athos monks founded the New Athos Monastery on the territory of Abkhazia. The Orthodox Russian Church begins to carry out active missionary and educational activities among the Abkhazian population. During this period, the first Abkhazian writing was created, the Holy Scripture was translated into the Abkhazian language. Before the February Revolution, the Orthodox Church, in essence, was the dominant religion in the territory of Abkhazia. During the period of Soviet power, the Abkhaz diocese was included in the restored Georgian Catholicosate. As in the entire territory of the USSR, the activities of religious organizations during this period were subjected to serious restrictions. As a result, several functioning temples remained in Abkhazia and the number of believers significantly decreased. Since the end of the 80s, as well as throughout the USSR, in Abkhazia there has been an increase in interest in religion, the first Abkhaz priests since the establishment of Soviet power appear. As a result of the Georgian-Abkhaz war of 1992-93. The Abkhazian church found itself in an extraordinary situation. In view of the fact that most of the Georgian clergy, headed by Patriarch Ilia II, openly supported the Georgian military invasion of Abkhazia, the local Orthodox diocese, after the defeat and retreat of the Georgian troops, de facto found itself outside the control of the GOC. Church life in Abkhazia began to be restored by a small group of parish priests who remained after the war on the territory of Abkhazia. They formed a diocesan council and elected Priest Vissarion Aplia as the temporary administrator of the Sukhumi-Abkhaz diocese. With his leading role, services were resumed in many churches, including those in the Abkhaz language. Thanks to the support of the Russian Orthodox Church, several Abkhazians received a spiritual education and were ordained to the priesthood. At present, the canonical position of the Abkhazian Church remains unsettled. On the one hand, all Orthodox churches recognize Abkhazia as part of the canonical territory of the GOC, on the other hand, church life in Abkhazia is supported by priests, for the most part who are clerics of the Russian Orthodox Church. There are two unrecognized church jurisdictions on the territory of Abkhazia - the Abkhazian Orthodox Church and the Holy Metropolis of Abkhazia, the creation of which in May 2010 was initiated by several clerics who left the subordination of Priest Vissarion Aplia. Despite the canonical difficulties, church life in Abkhazia is developing, new churches and monasteries are opening, during the service in churches the name of Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and All Russia is commemorated. Abkhazia is a fairly large center of Orthodox pilgrimage. The most visited holy places are New Athos, where the grotto of St. Apostle Simon Kananit, the temple of the tenth century, built on the resting place of the Apostle, and the New Athos Monastery itself, as well as with. Komany, in which the stone coffin of St. John Chrysostom is located, the source of St. Basilisk and the place of the third acquisition of the Head of St. John the Baptist.

Catholic Church

Literature

• Abkhazians. Digest of articles. M.: Nauka, 2007. - 547 p. See abstract. Two articles of the collection are devoted to the religions of Abkhazia:
  • Aqaba L. H. Traditional religious beliefs of the Abkhazians.
  • Krylov A. B. Modern religious situation in Abkhazia.

Notes

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