This book consists of translations from the popular hagiographical, didactical and polemical compilations that circulated in Russia prior to the modern age and which continue to enjoy popularity in some circles to this day. All the texts translated herein appeared prior to the mid-seventeenth century schism, which is seen by most scholars as the event which set off Old-Russian literature, conventionally termed “mediæval,” from the more modern and reformed literary styles and genres. Students of Old-Russian literature are often tempted to think that the texts which usually draw the attention of today’s researchers, post-Soviet and western, have also enjoyed popularity in whilom times. I am speaking of the various chronicles, historical epics and the other not overtly religious works which are scrutinized by scholars for this very reason. These, however, were never popular, nor were they intended for a general audience. Whereas the writs studied in this book (in addition to the liturgical texts, which were by far the most prevalent) were widely read and therefore did exert a great influence on the minds of people from all walks of life. These articles, often in narrative form, are often found in manuscript and printed books broadly termed: compendia, compilations, florilegia, anthologies, chrestomathies, sborniki or tsvetniki. The stories and tales translated in this book illuminate some of the more concise and vivid of these texts.
In the introductions to the chapters I will demonstrate that the translated texts (with the exception of some material in the appendices) were indeed very popular in manuscript and print form. Moreover, many of the books containing them were repeatedly printed in Russia during the short intervals when this was legal (1780s - early 1790s, 1905 - 1918) and when it was not.
The type of translation I employed is generally very literal, that is, word-for-word. I tried to preserve as much of the text as possible - not only its content, but also its structure and style. This renders much of the translation difficult to read and inconvenient, but it may help the reader to remember that the passages were intended to be read out-loud, slowly, pausing at the commas (save for those which were inserted because they are absolutely necessary in modern English usage). It also needs to be remembered that these texts, most of which are considered canonical by hundreds of thousands of people, are not without their grammatical flaws, given that most have undergone countless minor adjustments subsequent their translation from the Greek, sometimes via a southern dialect of Slavonic. By no means do I suggest that anything be altered. On the contrary, I have tried not to introduce my own interpretations outside of the square brackets, italicized words and footnotes. However, translation is not an exact science, and there are often numerous ways to render a text, especially one which does not consist exclusively of constructions which may be termed “sentences.”
As far as the content - much of it may seem gloomy to a modern reader; there are many descriptions of torment and death; young children should probably refrain from reading it. I have tried to select the most curious, shocking, strange, humorous, and controversial excerpts, many of which are not politically-correct. Be you Catholic or Protestant, Muslim, Jew, or a woman, if you forget the medieval context of the writings you are likely to be offended. I hope that the selections will not be too tedious - they are short and very diverse. Some of the articles were not originally translated from the Greek; these provide an especially interesting glimpse into medieval Russian life. Some of the texts were intended primarily for monastic use, but Orthodox laymen valued and read them too. The texts in this book cover over seven centuries (10th to 17th) and represent many styles.
Most of these passages had not previously been translated into English, so this book should be of value to anyone interested in medieval Russian literature, Byzantine martyrology, Orthodox polemic and Old-Believer religious background.
I would like to thank Lydia Fetku for sharing her Slavonic expertise and her encouragement, as well as my sister for computer support.