Christ's halo kept the date of his coming. What does a halo over your head mean? What do the halos above the heads of saints symbolize?

There are things that are considered “generally known” in certain circles; it is all the more surprising to come across an opinion that contradicts what, it would seem, all Orthodox Christians should know. And I had to be convinced of this more than once.
Thus, for those who know the “Law of God” as part of Sunday school, this material can be skipped... And for those who are interested, I present a new article for the March issue of the magazine "Loza"

Images of saints in Orthodox iconography have one common attribute - a halo. A halo, as we know, is a circle symbolizing the holiness of the person depicted (sometimes, a halo can also signify the royalty of a character or, in more rare cases, accompany a figure that is an allegory of a time of day, a natural phenomenon, a city or a country).

All halos are, to a greater or lesser extent, the same type, and only the halo of the Lord Jesus Christ has certain differences.

Even during the period when the iconography of the Savior was just taking shape, various attempts were made to highlight His image with various signs. For example, the monogram of Christ was inscribed in the halo (the combined Greek letters “chi” and “rho”, the so-called “chrisma”), and on the sides of the figure of the Lord the first and last letters of the Greek alphabet “alpha” and “omega” were written (“I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end, says the Lord, who is and who was and who is to come, the Almighty." (Rev. 1:8)). Which once again demonstrates the Divinity of Christ.

Later, the main symbol of our salvation, the cross, began to be depicted in the Savior’s halo. This attribute is very firmly entrenched in the iconography of Christ and remains to this day an almost indispensable attribute of it. Such a halo is called cross.

The shape of such a cross was different at different times, as was the color. The cross could be white, golden ocher, red, purple, or sky blue.

It could be flat, have a conventional volume, simple or decorated with “jewels”.

Over time, the Greek word “ό ών”, which means “Existing”, began to be inscribed in the three visible blades of the cross. “And Moses said to God, Behold, I will come to the children of Israel and say to them, The God of your fathers has sent me to you. And they will say to me: What is His name? What should I tell them? God said to Moses: I am Existing. And he said, Thus shall you say to the children of Israel: Jehovah has sent me to you.” Exodus 3:13,14) .

For a long time, Constantinople was the center of development of Christian iconography; it is all the more interesting that the letters in the halo of Christ in Byzantium itself appeared relatively late, while they were already used on the periphery of the Byzantine world - for example, in Southern Italy and Rus'.

So, “ό ών”, the Greek letters “omicron” (in this case, this is a masculine article) and “omega” with “nu” (“ni” in Byzantine pronunciation), in fact, the word “being” itself. Usually on icons they are located as follows: in the upper blade “omicron” and below from left to right relative to the viewer, “omega” and “nu”.

Less often, letters are arranged clockwise and even counterclockwise.

There are many examples in world culture when the meaning of a certain symbol is forgotten and, over time, begins to have a different meaning. Unfortunately, this happened with the letters of the cross halo. By the 16th century, practically no one knew the Greek language in Rus'. The interpretation of “ό ών” - “existing” was lost. However, I really wanted to unravel the mystery of the “mysterious letters”. Greek letters are very similar to Slavic ones (especially since the fonts at that time were practically the same), the Greek “omega”, with superscripts, was mistaken for the Slavic letter “from” T. And this already gave a certain scope for interpretation.

In Old Believer literature, which ignored Greek sources, there are several options for interpreting the new letter combination: T OH. For example: T - “there are also father marks”, O - “mind”, N - incomprehensible.” Or: T- “came from heaven”, ABOUT - “They don’t know Me” N - “crucified on the cross”, etc. There were also popular interpretations, like: “He is Our Father.”

In the same way, the nine lines of the cross in the halo (a rudiment of volume) also began to be endowed with symbolic meaning, for example - 9 ranks of angels. What relation the angelic ranks have to the cross of Christ is absolutely unclear, but at first glance it may seem that there is nothing terrible in these alternative readings.
But still. The very tendency to attach deep meaning to random little things (like the same lines of the cross) and invent your own interpretations, ignoring the historical meaning of the symbols, can sooner or later lead to sad results.
So, recently, information has been spreading that supposedly the date of the end of the world is encrypted in the Savior’s halo: http://samlib.ru/n/nostr_a_g/kod2.shtml

This technique, taking advantage of our illiteracy and inertia, is often used by various sectarian groups. Knowledge of your tradition is the best antidote.

Priest Pavel Florensky once remarked that everything mysterious is simple.

You are fully convinced of this by studying the iconography of the halo.

And indeed, iconographically, the halo seems to be the simplest form element of the icon. But in terms of the content contained in it, the halo is one of the most rich and complex.

Iconology did not ignore him either. However, little place was given to him in theological and art historical works. The most representative work in terms of volume was written back in the 19th century and has now been forgotten.

Since then, many events have happened, and the main thing for us in this matter is the discovery of icons and frescoes from records, which has unfolded since the beginning of the 20th century, which significantly influenced iconology and increased it. But in the works of modern times, halos are spoken about either in a very general way or one-sidedly.

Therefore, it makes sense to turn to the iconology of the halo.

Let's start with the word itself. It came into our speech through the German language in the 19th century. The German “nimbus”, meaning “radiance, corolla”, arose on the basis of the Latin “nimbus” - “fog, cloud” (in which, according to the ancients, “the gods descend to earth”).

From this we can understand that what is initially meant is the content of the halo.

In ancient times, Iranian-speaking peoples developed a ritual of thanking God for the mercy bestowed. In the life process of this ritual, such a phenomenon as a supernatural halo of fire and light was formed - “khvarna”, a term translated as “glory”, this halo was associated only with a hierarchically high person - the king. The etymology of the Indo-European root reg, which underlies many names of kings, speaks of it in the meaning of “light”.

Let us remember the appeal to the prince during the times of Kievan Rus: “One brother, one bright light, you, Igor! “They called out to the brothers and squad: “My bright lights, why have you dimmed?” ; and the expression “Your Grace,” addressed to high-ranking persons, existed until the significant year 1917.

In the Old Testament we repeatedly encounter the image of the glory of God (kabod). And when Moses came down from Sinai with the tablets, “his face began to shine with rays because God spoke to him” (Ex. 34:29).

The Indo-Iranian synonym “gold = sun = fire” is also fixed in the ancient culture of Greece. And not only in Greece, but also in the cultures of the lands associated with it. Halos have been known here since the Hellenistic era.

Already the ancients understood that the face is a manifested “portrait” of the soul. The head is the highest - even literally, purely physically and hierarchically - part of the body. This, in our opinion, is the reason for placing the solar disk, and then the halo behind or around the head.

The fact that the pagans knew the halo is, of course, nothing surprising. The temple of church culture was built from the best materials that were available at that time. On the “crests of the advanced waves of Truth” (Fr. Pavel Florensky), knowledge about halos came to the pagans.

The churching of this knowledge was a completely logical act. This explains the appearance of the halo in Christian art (from the 4th century in images of Christ, from the 5th century in images of the apostles, and then saints). On the contrary, if there were no halo as a hierarchically significant and weighty symbol, and hence transformed into a measure and a module of composition, this art would inevitably lose its harmony and depth.

In ancient times, halos in Rus' were called “circles”; since the 19th century. - crowns. There was both logic and error in this. But first, about the word: st.-slav. crown (Greek stefanos; significant: the name of the very first Christian martyr is Stefan!), so, crown comes from Russian. veins“wreath”, familiar to the Slavs since pre-Christian times.

It is no coincidence, apparently, that the “crown” is known in Russian as a decorative headdress, as a wooden or leather hoop decorating a woman’s hairstyle, as one row of logs in a log house...

From the Gospel we know about the crown of thorns, worn by Jesus Christ (hence the expression and concept of “receiving the crown of martyrdom”). Here the crown is not just an instrument of torture, but an ambiguous symbol and a practical matter that received further life in Christianity. Crowns are also “a necessary accessory to the sacrament of Marriage, which is why the marriage itself is called a wedding.”

It is possible that the image of floral patterns in halos is, on the one hand, a tribute to the memory of marriage crowns, which in the ancient Church were made from tree branches and flowers, and on the other hand, a genetic memory of ritual pre-Christian wreaths, reinterpreted in a Christian way, although the latter is less likely .

The early Christians loved flowers, as Minucius Felix spoke about in Octavia. But there was a church-going attitude towards the “gifts of flora”. Flower crowns merged in their minds with martyr crowns.

“The spiritual symbolic meaning of crowns in the sacrament of Marriage,” according to the explanation of St. John Chrysostom, - is a sign of the victory won by chastity<...>. Another meaning is indicated by the very sequence of the wedding in the words: “Lord our God, crown me with glory and honor.” Note: "glory and honor", that is, the presence of the theme of glory in the crowns is evident. This is partly how the Greeks understood the halo.

It's time to understand the terms. The word “crown”, understood as “halo”, indicates its application from the outside (crown - wreath - headdress - hoop, etc.). Which looks extremely inaccurate in the internal connections between the halo and the image. L.A. also points to this. Uspensky: “The point is not to place a crown over the head of a saint, as in Catholic images, where this crown is a kind of crown of light, that is, applied from the outside, but to point out the radiance of his face.” However, we cannot agree with Leonid Aleksandrovich on two points:

1) if the task was only to “indicate the radiance” of the face, then in this case a halo is not needed - it would be enough to depict the radiance like golden, sun-like rays, as Catholics often did;

2) we are generally against the use of the term “crown” in relation to the art of Orthodoxy, because we believe that it came into use due to its external resemblance to the indicated crown-objects, and does not express the essence contained in this concept; this term most accurately refers to the Western Christian culture that followed the 11th century, or at least to the period of Eastern Christian culture when it was influenced by the Western one.

In the logical chain leading into the semantic depth of the halo, as we said, another symbol is discovered - “cloud”. In the Orthodox worldview, it means the mystery of the Divine presence. The cloud reveals God and at the same time covers Him. Note that the etymology of the word “cloud” is cer.-slav. cloud - is connected in some sources with the word “shell” and follows from “about-wolf” from “dragging, dragging”, in others - with the lost “envelop”, from where the Old Slav. “cloud” – “surround, dress.”

There are several types of halo in Orthodox painting. Most often - and most often in the most outstanding monuments, especially monumental art - with a dark outline of its golden part. This outline could be different, but mostly in the form of one thick line or two thin, parallel ones;

sometimes they are just a count. In both cases, a narrow strip was drawn - a light outline - from the outer edge of the halo, approximately the width of a dark white one, but often the same color as the inner part of the halo. This iconography is the most common, and it seems to us the most correct in paracanonical terms. That's what its content says. Let's first pay attention to the dark outline. Since its presence in the overwhelming majority of monuments is obligatory, the conclusion suggests itself about a certain restrictive function of the outline: it is something like a “frame” for the light coming from the saint. We are talking here, of course, about spiritual light - about Light, which, according to Dionysius the Areopagite, “comes from goodness and is an image of goodness.”

The first type is sensual. Created light, light of physical energies, measurable and characterizable.

The second is the intellectual, inherent in man, spiritual, also created light. This is the light of judgments and ideas, the light of imagination and fantasies. The light of poets and artists, scientists and philosophers. The semi-pagan world usually admires spiritual light. This light can be intense and bright, leading a person into a state of intellectual ecstasy. But spiritual light belongs to the earth. Spiritual realms are inaccessible to him.

The third type of light is uncreated, Divine, the revelation of Divine Beauty on earth and the manifestation of eternity in time. This light shone in the deserts of Egypt and Palestine, in the caves of Gareji and Betlemi (ancient Georgian monasteries), it is embodied in the words of the Holy Scriptures, in church liturgy and Orthodox icons.”

Areopagite certainly means this third a type of light, the radiance of which imparts good to all rational beings in a measure corresponding to their perceptive abilities, “and then increases it, expelling ignorance and delusion from the soul. This light exceeds all intelligent beings located above the world, it is “the first light and the superlight.”

In Western Christian painting, especially the Renaissance, such a restrictive outline is actually a halo, or, as we said, more precisely, a “crown”, “crown”. And the halo itself is no longer a symbol, but only a sign of holiness. There is a clear solution here. Look at Lorenzo Lotto’s painting “The Betrothal of St. Catherine and Saints Jerome, Anthony the Abbot, George, Sebastian, Nicholas of Barria,” and you will see instead of halos just golden hoops with reflections of external physical light. And this is not at all about Lorenzo Lotto. We find the same “hoops” in Giovanni Bellini in his “Altar of San Giobbe”, and in Lorenzo Costa in his “St. Sebastian”, and by Raphael in “The Holy Family” (1506), and by Leonardo da Vinci in “The Benois Madonna”, and by many, many other masters. And this issue is not limited only to Italians; a similar solution to the halo is found, for example, in the Dutchman Rogier Van Der Weyden (“Lamentation of Christ”) and the Frenchman Georges de Latour (“St. Sebastian”). Here the essence of the matter is not in the national, but in the Catholic interpretation.

The halo in the Orthodox icon, while remaining a symbol of holiness, is also a form that reveals the Divine nature of superlight. “Glory to You, who showed us the light!” - exclaims the priest in the last part of Matins. A saint in Christianity acts as a direct witness to the truth, understood precisely as light. But here the meaning of the halo, of course, is not limited to what has been said. The light outline from the outer edge of the halo is a kind of opposition to the dark one: if the latter is the Hidden shell, performing a hiding function (it is apophatic theology), then the first is the key, the REVELATION, the opportunity for the praying person to see the Light while still on earth; in this case it plays the role of a revealing function (cataphatic theology). Hence the white color of the outline, that is, symbolically consubstantial with gold, but different in substance.

But that doesn’t say everything. Clarifications needed. Gold itself does not emit light, but only reflects it from a real source; so the light of a saint by nature does not belong to him personally, but to God, and shines in the saints, like the sun in gold; “The righteous will shine like the sun,” according to the word of the Gospel (Matthew 13:43), “for they will become by grace what God is by nature,” writes V.N. Lossky, that is, we are talking about a given good, a gift - “good + dati” - and not about some kind of “self-flash”, “spontaneous combustion” of light in a person. The feat of holiness is a voluntary renunciation of selfhood, a struggle with it. When Rev. Seraphim of Sarov shone with this light of grace before N.A. Motovilov, what did he pray for the day before? - "God! Make him worthy to see clearly and physically with his eyes the descent of Your Spirit, with which You honor Your servants when You deign to appear in the light of Your magnificent glory!”

The symbolic meaning of the transcendence of superlight comes into opposition, on the one hand, to the real sparkling light of the golden halo, on the other, to its pictorial solution as a material plane. Pay attention to the paintings of the Assumption Cathedral in Vladimir, made by Rev. Andrey Rublev, and especially on the composition “The Last Judgment”. The halo here is a powerful material means in constructing space; The halos freely overlap the faces and figures, and, in turn, are also overlapped by the spread hands of the Angels. In the mosaic of the Church of St. Demetrius in Thessaloniki, drapes hang on the halos of the ktitors.

The halo and mandorla, however, are mysteriously transcendental details in the icon. This is, perhaps, such a riddle and secret, the solution of which was supposed to be found only at the supersensible level, when a person acquires the ability to see the world of “re-existence”. Here all the schemes of narrow rationalism burst like soap bubbles. “It is true that the meaning proposed in a cultural symbol is transparent and universally valid, namely to the extent that it is “ meaning“, that is, something within itself that is transparent and universally significant, but it is equally true that it is also “mysterious,” namely, to the extent that it is objectively given - given - enigmatic to our consciousness from the outside by authorities independent of the latter. This hidden-in-itself clarity is the essence of the symbol.”

But if the halo is a riddle, mystery, unknown, then we again encounter an antinomian construction: opposition to the very semantic side of the subject, that is, the mystery-unknown is balanced by the known appearance of the saint.

Hence the halo is not only Light, but also the depicted essence, that is, a phenomenon both visual and conceptual. And on a conceptual level, it rivals the visual in importance. If, as we have seen, in Western Christian art the crown is not even a conventional, but an agreed sign of holiness, then the halo in Eastern Christian art is the very graphic expression of the essence of what is depicted. This, apparently, explains that the construction of the icon began precisely from the place where the halo was chosen on the plane of the icon. And “the halo of the main figure was placed at the vertex of an equilateral triangle with a side equal to the width of the icon.”

In other words, the halo (and also the mandorla) was accepted by the icon painter as the main compositional element. Its radius served as a measure of the height of the human figure. Moreover, the size of the halo was even associated with the size of the temple: the radius of the apostolic halos from the “Last Judgment” in the Demetrievsky Cathedral and “The Savior in Power”, which is in the Assumption Cathedral (both in Vladimir), are equal to 1/100 of the length of the cathedral along the central axis.

The halo is built in three parts, like the temple as a whole: light outline - dark outline - inner part = vestibule - ship - altar.

The thought naturally suggests itself that the isographers give the halo a universal meaning. Placing a smaller space within a larger one can probably be considered a rather traditional and typical technique used in the practice of church art.

Such an understanding of the corolla in Catholicism is simply unthinkable, although the Byzantine influence here lasted for a very long time. And Cimabue, and to a sufficient extent Giotto, Taddes Gaddi, even Simone Martini and Pietro Lorenzetti, and especially Duccio, do not yet have any aureole; They depict, however, not a Byzantine one, but a halo, and, moreover, for a long time, it did not know the angle. However, due to the evolution of views, a purely material and straightforward understanding of it appeared. From here, with the turn of the head of the person depicted, the halo also turned, turning from a circle into an ellipse. And when the perspective is emancipated and becomes a generally accepted means of expression, the transformation of the halo into a crown begins. At first it is a translucent disk, but clear at the edges, and then it turns into a corolla hoop, with a tendency towards a decrease in its thickness. And as a completion, the “crown” of this process is the image of saints and without a crown at all.

If the halo, when viewed from the back, was nevertheless transferred to the background and placed as if in front of the face, then the halo turned into a kind of kokoshnik, and the image turned out to be unconvincing; It is probably no coincidence that Giotto himself no longer resorted to such a technique.

Both the hoop and the “disc” often leave the place behind- and are placed above head. The reasons for this movement of the aureole, one must think, lie in the fact that the fascination with the foreshortening of the human figure led to the display of the saint’s head from the occipital and parietal parts. This made the use of the halo impossible. Judge for yourself: in the first case, he would simply cover his head, and then instead of a head he would get a circle (Giotto’s option is a dead end, since it does not solve anything); in the second case - when viewed from above - the halo would turn into only a line and turn out to be practically invisible. Thus, it became a plastically inconvenient detail, and in a pictorial sense it came into insoluble conflict with the naturalized image. And was replaced with a whisk. But the lack of a canon and the internal reasons of Catholicism, in the end, made it possible to exclude the whisk from use. The erosion of the ontological foundations of church art opened the way to its secularization. Which is exactly what happened. And the fastest among Catholics.

Let's return to the Byzantine halo. In Orthodoxy, at least until modern times, the halo knows no angle at all. This is the law. There are simply no examples to the contrary here. Why?! The fact is that the circle of the halo was understood by the icon painter as a designation of eternity, and, let us emphasize, in the mind of the artist a very stable identity “circle = eternity” arises. And the ancient term “circle” convincingly confirms this. Any angle of the halo will no longer be an ideal circle and, therefore, the named identity is destroyed.

Note that a round halo is also a sign of the absence of time, but, having changed in shape, it can also be a sign indicating time. The latter is confirmed by the existence of a quadrangular halo. We see it on the mosaics of the Church of St. Demetrius in Thessaloniki (VII century): “St. Demetrius with Bishop John and Eparch Leonty” and “St. Demetrius with an unknown deacon.” According to L.A. Uspensky, it meant that the person was depicted during his lifetime. And there is, of course, a backstory here. Even the ancient author Varro spoke about the sculptures of Polykleitos as “square” (guadrata). And he was not being ironic. To the ancient Greek this sounded like praise. The expression “square man” appears repeatedly in Aristotle. In his treatise “Rhetoric” he notes: “It is a metaphor to call a good (agathos) person quadrangular.” In Plato’s “Protator” we read: “Indeed, it is difficult to make a person good, perfect in every way". A.F. Losev translates this Platonic term “perfect” as “quadrangular in arms, legs and mind.” In the Christian consciousness, the number “4” is firmly perceived as a symbol of the material world: the world has four cardinal directions, four seasons, it consists of four elements. Therefore, the square is given an exclusively earthly meaning.

According to a tradition inherited from Ancient Greece, the element of earth is symbolized by a cube, and the element of fire by a ball. On a plane, a cube and a ball are depicted in projection as a square and a circle. Hence, halos are often represented in high relief in the form of a golden sphere around the head (see the Pskov icon “Archangel Gabriel” from the State Russian Museum). And even more often in the icons of modern times, dressed in luxurious “robes,” halos were made into spheres.

It turns out an interesting chain: Au (Latin Aurum - gold) - aureolus (halo) - aura - halo. Apparently, the halo was sometimes perceived as a kind of aura, if all occult accessories were excluded from it.

So, we come to the conclusion that the quadrangular halo in Byzantine iconography testified, first of all, to man’s earthly existence.

But the symbolism of this halo is also not limited to just one meaning. Otherwise the symbol would turn into a sign.

This halo was depicted with a dark outline drawn in the upper part in the form of a horizontal stripe. Here she plays a slightly different role. Firstly, the horizontal line cuts off the square formed around the head in the halo; the square here is also a kind of synonym for the circle, as its first phase, if, according to one of the mathematical definitions, a circle is considered a polygon with an infinite number of equal sides. Secondly, the part remaining above the square (here it seems to serve as a light outline) is the formation of a vertical rectangle, that is, a figure directed upward. And the delimited area is the first step in this ascent that has begun. It is no coincidence that the icon itself has a canonical rectangular format. It is also no coincidence that the veil behind the ktitors hangs over the halos only in a delimited part: in other words, the veil as a sign of the guardianship and approval of the ktitors comes into contact precisely with the stage of a person’s spiritual ascent - “seek the things that are above, where Christ sits on the right hand of God” (Col. 3 : 1). But the principle of artistic opposition also dictates the material solution: the drapery (cover) hangs on a specific plane (halo). A rectangular halo in Orthodox art is extremely rare. This is obviously due to the fact that it was not very often that people were depicted in temples during their lifetime. And if the ktitors were depicted, it is difficult to imagine them demanding a halo, even a rectangular one; and hence its iconography had little theological support, which determined the smaller information capacity compared to the round halo.

Now let's focus on color symbolism. The color of the round and rectangular halos was made different: if the first, as a rule, was gold or a color simulating gold, then the second was white. In terms of semantic meanings, this looks specifically conscious: unchanged eternal gold - and - sterile, luminous whiteness, akin to the Divine Tabor light. That is, the spiritual closeness was preserved, but the difference in their reality existence.

There are examples of red, blue, green, blue-green, white, orange-red, orange halos.

In each case, the icon painter resorted to interpretation based on the symbolism of these colors themselves.

Particular attention should be paid to the black halo. A Novgorod icon painter of the 14th century, who worked in the Church of Fyodor Stratilates on the Stream, depicts Judas with him in the wall painting “Eucharist”. Because, on the one hand, Judas is still a disciple of Christ, who has not finally committed his betrayal (hence the halo), on the other hand, the “prince of this world” has already entered Judas, and instead of the former grace, the darkness of hell now reigns. For ancient Russian painting, this is an unusual approach, both in the solution of the “Eucharist” composition itself, and in the interpretation of the halo.

The halo of Christ himself remained unanalyzed. A lot, perhaps everything basic, that was said earlier regarding the golden halo is applicable here. The only difference is that we must remember Christ as the source of Light and Life. But let’s add two more questions: 1) what does the cross on the halo mean? and 2) what does the inscription on the halo cross mean? For it is only these two features that, in fact, distinguish the iconography of Christ’s halo from the halos of saints.

To answer the first question, we should look at what place the cross generally occupies in Christianity. The Cross was given a universal meaning, and the Cross was and is understood as the light of the “Face of the Lord.” It was the connection of the light of Christ with the Cross that dictated the unfocused attention to the color of the cross: in the overwhelming majority of icons it was made the same as a halo, that is, the light substances of the cross and the halo were exactly the same, while the universal meaning of the Cross was reflected in the inscription, which was applied directly to the cross: UN – Existent, Syy; which was overgrown with a considerable number of legends and myths.

Very often in Russian icons the letter “t” is placed above the letter omega.

She was the confirmation of the mentioned myths. Father Pavel Florensky observed that “rural priests, and behind them peasants, sometimes explain to children, students of parochial schools, the cruciform crown of the Savior<...>as an abbreviation: He is Our Father<…>, where from is, obviously, already a real abbreviation of the word Father.”

The custom of applying the inscription actually arose simultaneously with the appearance of the halo, but it was applied not on the halo itself, but nearby. Responding to the heresy of Arius, who preached about the creatureliness of Christ, for which he was condemned by the First Ecumenical Council in 325, the Church did not limit itself to developing the Creed; it was decided to write the letters alpha and omega on the sides of the image of the Savior, reminiscent of the words from the Apocalypse: “I am alpha and omega, the beginning and the end, the first and the last” (22:13). Which should be understood as an indication of the Divinity of Jesus Christ. Much later, the letters alpha and omega were replaced by the word UN, which began to be written directly in the halo. But the meaning did not change from this, since both the letters and the word served the same purpose - to indicate the consubstantiality of the Son with the Father.

Finally, it remains to figure out why the image of each crossbar was accompanied by one at the top and two at the bottom, and not one, say, on both sides. I.K. Yazykova believes, for example, that these “nine lines” mean “9 angelic ranks, the glory of God.” Perhaps Irina Konstantinovna is right. In our opinion, the point here is as follows. Firstly, these “nine lines” are precisely a cross. Moreover, it is designed to emphasize the idea of ​​a center, the core of which is the very image of the Lord, and the “ruler” is nothing more than the direction of movement: from the center - from the inside to the outside. Secondly, the two lines below indicate the thickness of the cross, the Cross as a completely material form that has a real history-truth behind it. And at the same time, this is again the opposition material in form cross spiritual essence cross and halo. There was no special rule prescribing which side to show the thickness on the vertical part of the cross. Usually it corresponded to the angle in which the head of Christ was depicted. And the use of such a technique served not to emphasize the angle, but to rhyme it.

The trapezoidal thickening of the ends of the cross, behind the dark outline, but often inside the halo, is the essence of the this-worldly penetration of the Cross, which pre-existed the world and time itself, or rather, the “scattering” of the glory of the Cross into the universe, expressed graphically.

We will not dwell on the iconography of the halo of hosts in the “Fatherland” icon: the Seventh Ecumenical Council explained the impossibility of depicting the First Hypostasis of the Holy Trinity by Her non-incarnation: only the Son was revealed and visible in the flesh; The Great Moscow Council (1666-1667) generally banned the image of God the Father. This means that the said iconography is ecclesiastically illegal.

But there are also halos of triangular, hexagonal, octagonal shapes... They are also not canonical, since they accompany those symbolic images that are prohibited or contradict the decisions of the Fifth-Sixth Ecumenical Council. This means that they are not included in the range of issues we are considering.

Now let's summarize what has been said. As a symbolic form, the halo has its pedigree both in the Old Testament culture (at the level of ideas) and in the ancient cultures of non-Christian peoples. But, once in Christian conditions, it is filled with new content and becomes the main detail (of course, after the image of the saint himself) in the icon. His status is asocial. If among the Indo-Iranian tribes the prototype of the halo - a fiery halo - is associated exclusively with the royal name, then in Christianity the halo-bearer is not a king, but a great ascetic, prayer book, martyr, regardless of his social status. Some administrative attempts were doomed: holiness is not introduced by decree, it is discovered.

Gusev N.V.. Some techniques for constructing composition in Old Russian painting of the 11th-17th centuries // Old Russian art. Artistic culture of Novgorod. M., 1968. P. 128.

See: Masaccio “Healing by Shadow”. 1426-1427 Brancacci Chapel, Church of Santa Maria del Carmine, Florence;

Mantegna: 1) “St. Sebastian". Kunsthistorisches Museum, Vienna; 2) “St. Euphemia.” Museum and National Gallery of Capodimonte, Naples.

By the way, the same “disk” instead of a halo appears in Russian icons of the 17th century (“Ilya the Prophet with the Life.” Second half of the 17th century. From the Yaroslavl Church of Elijah the Prophet).

For the sake of objectivity, let’s say that the “disc” seems to be present in the mosaic from the church of Santa Maria Maggiore (432-440 Rome). But this example only testifies to the search for the language of church art, and not to its norm.

See: Pordenone “St. Sebastian, St. Roch and St. Catherine". Church of San Giovanni Elemosinario, Venice.

Francesco Francia “Madonna and Child with Saints” .1500 Hermitage, St. Petersburg.

Roberti “Madonna and Child with Saints.” 1481 Brera Gallery, Milan.

Losev A.F.. Artistic canons as a problem of style // Questions of aesthetics. Issue 6, 1964. P. 364.

See: Kovaleva. V.M. Painting of the Church of Fyodor Stratilates in Novgorod. Based on materials from new discoveries of 1974-1976. // Old Russian art. Monumental painting of the XI-XVII centuries. M., 1980. P. 166.

Nimbus (halo) translated from Latin means “cloud”, “cloud” (nimbus) and is a brightly shining circle above the head. It can be different in shape: triangular, round, hexagonal. But a distinctive feature of images of Jesus Christ is a round (crossed) halo, into which a cross is inscribed.

Although its images are most often found in Christian or paintings where there are saints, the history of its origin goes back to ancient times. Drawn halos illuminating people's heads have been found for centuries in various cultures - ancient Greek, Byzantine, Muslim, Christian. In the East, a luminous halo around the forehead has always symbolized the reward for a righteous life and signified Enlightenment.

Halo over your head: origin story

There is not one, but several versions regarding how such a symbol of holiness as a halo appeared. According to some scientists, it was preceded by a Greek meniscus - a metal circle that was located around the heads of the statues in order to protect them from birds and bad weather. Other experts argue that the halo around the head arose as a consequence of the tradition according to which a shield was placed on the back of heroes.

The most reasonable interpretation is still considered to be the Greek one, based on mythology. According to ancient legends, they often appeared to people in human form. A clear, dazzling light emanated from them, relating to the luminous ether, the above-ground atmosphere, the habitat of the gods. It follows that glow is a sign of belonging to the gods. A little later, mere mortals who had the honor of becoming on the same level with heavenly representatives began to be awarded it. Over time, the divine glow was slightly reduced, and only a luminous halo above the head was applied to the images. Later, this symbol of holiness was borrowed from the Greeks by Christians, Egyptians, Romans and Buddhists.

Distinctive features

For Christians, a halo around the head is still a sign of the Mother of God, angels and saints. But on icons he can be depicted in different ways. For example, the halo above the face has a triangular shape or the appearance of a six-pointed star. The Holy Spirit can also be depicted as a dove with a triangular halo. As for the Savior Christ, they draw a glow for him, in which the cross is inscribed. Jesus may also have a halo, where instead of a cross there are three lines of light or a beam of rays emanating along a radius from the center of the disk.

The halo of the Virgin Mary is round in shape and decorated with twelve stars, a radiant crown or diadem. Angels, martyrs, apostles and saints are depicted with round gold halos around their heads. Patriarchs and prophets usually have a silver glow color.

There are certain differences between the images of halos in Orthodox and Catholic icon painting. In the Christian tradition, a divine halo is drawn around the entire head, and among Catholics, above it in the shape of a circle.

What do the halos above the saints' heads symbolize?

A halo, or considered a sign of a perfect person, is a confirmation of his special mental strength. Most often, attention is paid to the aura of superpersonality in the head area. This zone of light in a square or circle speaks of the emanations of the soul, the spiritual energy of saints or divine persons.

Initially, the luminous halo around the head was compared to the solar disk and was considered a manifestation of the power of the Sun, an attribute of its gods. In eastern iconography, solar deities were identified in this way. The halo above the head spoke of endowed power, power or spiritual strength. In secular iconography, such an attribute was the crown.

The luminous halo sometimes acted as an attribute of the Phoenix, which is a symbol of immortality. In some drawings, Satan also has a halo, for example, in Byzantine art. This made it clear that he was also endowed with power.

Color accompaniment and shape

The golden halo usually represented Christian art, among the Hindus it was red, among the ancient gods it was blue. In some cases, there was a rainbow one.

The round halo (halo) in Byzantine art was a distinctive sign of the dead, who during their lifetime were distinguished by high morality, and the mercy of heaven descended on them. For example, the Virgin Mary is always depicted with a round and often elaborately decorated halo around her head. For divine persons and saints, the halo is similar, but without ornaments.

A cross within a circle or a cruciform halo is a specific symbol that characterizes the Atonement and Crucifixion of Christ. But a halo in the form of an ellipse speaks of spiritual light.

A hexagonal or square halo indicates a saint among the living or an ordinary person, but, for example, a donor. Here the square is considered inferior and serves as a symbol of the earth, while the circle, in turn, is a sign of eternal existence, heaven. The square halo is also interpreted as follows: its three sides are the Trinity, and one is the whole, the head.

The triangular halo is a sign of the Holy Trinity, or Triune God. A halo, shaped like a triangle or rhombus, is depicted on icons of God the Father.

Polygonal halos have always been used to depict persons famous for their virtue, or other allegorical figures. The hexagonal halo spoke of great virtues or, again, emphasized the allegorical nature of the iconographic design. The double aspect of the deity was indicated by a double halo or rays.

How do halos differ among different religions?

It is very informative and interesting to find out what the halos above the heads of saints of different religious denominations mean. Buddha, for example, has a red halo and shows the dynamism of solar activity. In Hinduism, Shiva has a rim of flame, symbolizing the Cosmos. Among the Persians, a luminous halo spoke of the power of Ahura Mazda. In ancient and Asian art, the halo was a favorite means of conveying the greatness of kings, rulers and Roman emperors deified on cash coins. In Mithraism, the halo is an indicator of the light of the Sun, as well as Mithras as its god. Psychology gives the following designation to the halo around the head: this is the solar crown.

Halo in Christianity

It is believed that the halo came to Christianity from the iconography of Mithraism, which was initially ousted by it from the Roman Empire. It was borrowed from images of rulers and pagan sun gods. There is an opinion that the halo on the heads of saints first appeared in the Roman catacombs of Calixtus in the 2nd century. They crowned the head of Christ, then in the same way they identified the special divine status of Mary and the angels.

The date of the Second Coming is indicated on the halo of Christ

The icons of Christ always indicated the time - the date and place of His Second Coming, as well as His new Name.
The information was contained in the letters located in the halo of the Savior’s head, as well as in the abbreviated form of His name – I.C.X.C.

What is the object of study,
and what should be taken into account when assessing the discovered hidden meaning?

The object of the study is an inscription unique to the image of the face of Jesus Christ.
These are the letters - WON, located on the halo around the head of Christ, and the letters of the initials of Christ, located behind the halo on both sides of the head - I.C. and X.C..

The inscription is found in two versions - in Greek and in Church Slavonic.

In Greek writing, the order of the letters is as follows: O (omicron) W (omega) N (nu).
In Church Slavonic it’s different: W (from) O (he) N (our).
In modern reading in Russian, the inscription reads as UN.
One way or another, it is believed that these three letters mean the word Jehovah, one of the names of God.
Letters I.C. and X.C., meaning the initials of Jesus Christ, are usually unchanged and represent an abbreviation of the first and last letters of his name.

It turned out that the letters, in their first historical entry on the halo of Christ, in accordance with the rules of writing in the Church Slavonic language, meant numbers. This is evidenced by the “titlo” sign found on old icons, which was used to write numbers in letters, to abbreviate words, and since the 15th century - as a sacred system for writing words.
Over time, as a result of the loss of primary meaning, the title above the letters on Christ’s halo was no longer renewed and depicted, and the letters WON began to be read as UN, equating them with the word Jehovah, with reference to the iconographic tradition.
The realities are such that modern exegesis (interpretation of the Holy Scriptures) DOES NOT KNOW EXACTLY when the letters on the halo of Christ were introduced into the church tradition, and, therefore, their initial meaning.

Based on the instructions of the Holy Scripture, God has no accidents, everything happens according to His Will, from which it follows that what directly connects God with man, or what is associated with Him, is under strict control - His Word and the iconographic Face.
From here comes the opposite - that which does not lead to God is not sanctioned by Him as useful for Him and man, and would not have been allowed by Him in a natural way even before man with his mind imposed a ban on something. Thus, everything that exists in the world, actions or information, has a place to be, but what color it will take on - positive or negative - depends on the various qualities of a person.

When analyzing the Biblical text, from the position of the full application of the ancient Greek and Church Slavonic alphabets, i.e. using their alphanumeric correspondence, it turned out that the original meaning of the inscription on Christ’s halo reflected part of the sacred information of the text of the Holy Scriptures.

As can be seen from the picture, the numerical values ​​of the letters on Christ’s halo hid the date of His Second Coming, and the familiar name Jesus Christ contained an indication of the place of His Coming into the World - Russia.

Let's look at the Arrival Date first.

The sacred layer of the Sacred text does not just dryly indicate the date and place of the Coming of God to Earth - the main expected event for all believers. Scripture explains how this will happen and what stages of history will precede and accompany the immediate Coming of God. One of these stages is the discovery of the Word of God in the language of the people whose territory God has chosen for his next Visit. This event is a test for His “chosen” people - whether God should visit the place where His Word of God ahead is rejected by this people.

Therefore, when the revelation of the sacred, planned from above, took place - the true meaning of the Holy Scriptures about where and when the Coming of God into the world of people took place, in confirmation of this, events marking His Coming began to occur all over the world. The analysis of these events, in turn and in due time, led to the discovery of the same hidden information on the main shrine for all believers - the icon depicting the face of the Savior.

The figure taken as an example shows a modern list of the icon of Jesus Christ and two alphabets with alphanumeric correspondence - Church Slavonic (valid to this day) and modern Russian. The alphabets were chosen depending on the execution of the inscription on the halo and on the Russian language in which the Sacred Texts revealed their Secret.

As can be seen from the transcript, the letters depicted on the halo hid a specific date - August 11, 1999. This date, as a hidden indication of the Coming of God, can be found in the text of the Bible Scripture:

Matthew 1:18. The birth of Jesus Christ was like this...
Zechariah 8:11. And now.. I am not the same as in the old days..

Since the Nativity of God, His Resurrection and His Coming, in the symbolic language of Scripture, means the same thing, then the date - 8/11/1999, applies equally to all these events.

More information about the date of the Nativity of Christ can be found on the website in the article “The Coming of the New Year or the Christmas of NEW GOD?”

The Secret Code of the Holy Scriptures is structured in such a way that the information contained in Them is duplicated several times in the text of the Scripture itself, then in the texts of other “other-faith” Scriptures, and then, progressively, in various sources of the peoples of the world, as related to spiritual verbal monuments of history, and to secular areas of other knowledge, far from religion. This is a real information matrix, repeating the structure of the universe.
Therefore, when the Code of the Sacred Texts is discovered, and with the help of it all surrounding information and ongoing events begin to be read, then with each new example the doubt about the discovery of the Code decreases, because a systemic pattern is revealed, and vice versa - mistakes made in various areas of society become obvious, be it religion or politics.

How can you see the date of His Coming in the letters on Christ’s halo?

Since information about the Coming of God into the world of people was considered prophetic in its historical time, it was therefore designed to be read at the moment of the fulfillment of the prophecy, i.e. during the very Coming of God into the world, but ahead of the time of His immediate Appearance.

One of the indications of the language of the people with the help of which information about the Coming of God will be read, as indicated in the example of decoding, is the name itself - Jesus Christ, which turned out to be an anagram of the words RUSSIAN, or IS RUSSIA.

Further, already relying on the Russian alphabet, on its alphanumeric correspondence, and having for analysis examples of the connection between the Nativity of Christ and the number-date 118 from the Biblical text (Matt. 1:18, Zech. 8:11.) and other sources , a reading of the exact time of the Second Coming was revealed.

As can be seen from the example decoding, the Greek tradition of writing the letters on Christ’s halo - OWN, or their numerical value - 785, and the reverse reading - 587, only indicated a sign of the times that determines the Coming of God. On the contrary, the writing of the sequence of letters in the Russian tradition - WON, their bchz - 875, and the reverse reading - 578, gave an indication of the first persons of the state under whom the Coming was to take place, and through them on the exact date - 11.8.1999, as in writing in numbers and writing numbers in words. An additional combination of numbers, obtained from the correspondence of three letters WON (or OWN) - 875, gave an indication of the secular name of the first clergyman of Russia - the Patriarch of All Rus', also thereby determining and confirming the exact date of the Coming.

785 - Global crisis of the world economy - the time of the Coming of God to Earth
587 - this is a sign of the Coming of God to planet Earth
875 - The Coming of the Lord to Earth will take place during the time of Vladimir Putin, Dmitry Medvedev
578 - 1181999 – the Coming of God to planet Earth will take place
758 - the eleventh of August one thousand nine hundred and ninety-nine (08/11/1999)
875 - The Coming of the Lord to Earth will take place during Ridiger Alexei Mikhailovich

It should be noted the order in which correspondence to the letters WON is discovered will signify the time of the Coming of God. To do this, we took the following sequence of alphanumeric correspondence, as if the numbers were located on the halo instead of letters, and (!) without zeros, i.e. direct replacement – ​​875= WON – in the Russian writing tradition, according to the numbering of the Church Slavonic alphabet; and the phrases “signs of the times” have already been counted according to the modern Russian alphabet, according to its continuous numbering - from A-1 to Z-33.
This approach to deciphering is due to the indication (even within the content of the icon itself) precisely on the features of the Russian alphabet, on what it is on the date of the Advent - on August 11, 1999.

As mentioned above, the Code of the Holy Scriptures is designed in such a way that the information read with its help is necessarily duplicated several times, starting directly from the place where it was found. Using the example of the inscription on the halo of Christ, this duplication was hidden in the word-name of God - Jehovah. Through the alphanumeric correspondence of the Russian alphabet, it is equal - 88 - to the word Rus, which is consistent with the secret information hidden in the name of Christ that He is Russian.

88 – Existing
88 – Rus'

Also, near the place where the date of the Advent was indicated, which was read in the letters of the halo located around the head of Christ, a record duplicating this date was discovered. The reading code was in the same sequence: first, correspondence with Church Slavonic numbering, then reading through the bchz of the Russian alphabet.

The duplication of the Advent date was hidden in the letters A (alpha) and W (omega), which were placed on icons of Christ even before the halo was introduced into the tradition, and which are sometimes found in modern versions, in addition to the letters WON.

In the Greek alphabet, the letters A (alpha) and W (omega) have corresponding numerical values ​​of 1 (one) and 800 (eight hundred). If we write the numbers in words as “one + eight hundred”, then their total alphanumeric value - 189 - will be the same as the phrase “date of the Advent”. And if you count the number of words “alpha and omega”, then it will show this calendar date of the Advent, equal to 118, which is an abbreviated symbolic notation of 11.8.1999.

189 – one + eight hundred.
189 – date of the Coming.
118 – Alpha and Omega.

There are several places in the biblical text that explain what is hidden in the letters on Christ's halo, but this requires an explanation of another method of decoding, which is not the purpose of this article.

In conclusion, I would like to draw special attention to the equality of the words Advent and Apocalypse. Their direct relationship should be understood as follows: either people will understand and accept information about the Advent, with the corresponding consequences, or suffering on the independently chosen path of the Apocalypse will continue. Refusal to meet God on the date He appointed automatically turned on the destructive effect of the Apocalypse. There is only one way to stop Earthly troubles - agree to meet with God while He is on Earth. Refusal to meet will doom the planet's population to guaranteed death. Demands to accept God, as befits His status, come to Earth every day, through the indication of the date of the Coming - August 11, 1999, through the number of His Name - 118.

In fact, this information can be considered the last in a series of people’s preparation for God’s Coming. Everything else is just in words and eye to eye. And if there is no faith in what is shown from God, then there is no promise from Him. The authorship of this should be clear to everyone, for it can only be the only true one.
We Are Who We Are.
05.01.2010

The halo around the head of the saint is a very important detail in Orthodox iconography. Its significance is evidenced by the fact that traditionally, when painting an icon, they determine the space that the halo occupies. The further construction of the composition depends on this.

The halo of the main figure should be at the apex of an equilateral triangle (symbol of the Holy Trinity), the sides of which coincide in size with the sides of the base (the symmetry of the icon is a symbol of the correctness and perfection of the depicted heavenly world).

Halo on the icon of the Virgin Mary

History of the halo

The image of a halo, as an attribute of a celestial being, is known in various religions, both in Buddhism and among many pagans, and appeared long before Christianity.

The word “nimbus” itself comes from the Latin “nimbus”, meaning “cloud”. The Greeks and Romans believed that the Olympian gods, when they descend to earth, appear before people in a radiant radiance, in a cloud of light. This was reflected in their images. Also in Ancient Rome, halos could be on portraits of emperors. After all, the ruler was also considered a god, and power was sacred.

Christians adopted the external forms of this tradition, but filled them with their own, completely new meaning.

Halo Theology

A halo is by no means just a radiance around the head of a saint. Like all details of the icon, it is a multi-valued sacred symbol. First of all, it is necessary to explain the meaning of light itself in the theology of icon painting.

About icons in Orthodoxy:

Uncreated Light

“...There was a certain man named John...he was not the Light, but was sent to testify about the Light. Now there was the True Light, enlightening and sanctifying every person coming into the world.” (John 1:6-8)

In fact, we can say that any icon is an icon of Christ. Even if He is not directly depicted, He is everywhere. All the gold on the icon: halos, shining highlights on the clothes and faces of the saints, the entire golden background is an image of all-pervading Divine grace, fully revealed in the Heavenly Kingdom. All light rays lead to the light source. And the holy man himself is also an image of Christ.

“...And there will be no night there, and they will have no need of a lamp or the light of the sun, for the Lord God illuminates them; and they will reign." (Rev. 22.5)

The halo on the icon is the most luminous area.

If a saint is depicted, then although the radiance emanates from him, we are talking about reflected light. That God sanctifies and transforms human nature. And only on the icons of the Savior do we see the Light Giver Himself.

Separately, it is necessary to explain the shape of the halo. Almost always (exceptions will be discussed below), it looks like a circle. This is the image of eternity. There is no time in the Kingdom of God.

Icon of the Tenderness of the Mother of God

So, light is a symbol of divine grace and, ultimately, of God Himself. If you look closely at the construction of the halo, you will notice that it is outlined by two lines, dark and white. This is no coincidence. There is nothing random in iconography at all. The dark border symbolizes the incomprehensibility and inaccessibility of the Divine. His separation from the created world, transcendence.

But then there is a light line, usually white. White in iconography is akin to gold. This is also light, but a little different. White is the light of Tabor, transformation. And the white stripe around the halo symbolizes the appearance of God in the created world. Light comes to those He created to transform them.
True, you cannot see these two lines on all icons. The canons of icon painting were often forgotten and violated.

Images of the Savior

In general, on the icons of Christ the halo looks the same as that of the saints, but has additional details. This cross is the main symbol of Christianity. The world was saved by the cross. The Lord came here to die on the cross. Through the suffering of the cross, He returns the fallen universe to Himself. Therefore, it is no coincidence that the cross on His halo has expanding ends. It seems to spread into eternity, covering the whole world.

In addition, three letters are always inscribed in the circle of the halo - “ό ώ ν”. The Greek word όών means "Who is." It is needed to emphasize that He who is depicted here as a man is also the Eternal God, the Cause of all existence. The halos on some (rather rare) icons of the Savior enclose an octagon inside. The two squares symbolize two worlds and differ in color.

Icon Jesus Christ

Red, in iconography, is a symbol of earth and martyrdom. In this case, the one that the Savior shed for our world. Blue is the color of the sky, the spiritual world of angels. An eight-pointed star formed by quadrangles is a symbol of the unity of two worlds. As an image of the power of Christ, His dominion over the visible and invisible, this star is depicted behind His head. But this is only the first semantic layer. The same star symbolizes the properties of God Himself.

The blue color in iconography, like black (“blue is like the thinnest darkness... Just as yellow always brings light with it, we can also say that blue always brings with it something dark” P. Florensky), may be an image of the incomprehensibility of God , Its unknowability and inaccessibility to us.

Red is the color of the king, a symbol of the omnipotence of Christ.

In addition, there are differences in the iconography of God the Father. But, since His images were prohibited by the church, and appeared only due to theological illiteracy, they need not be mentioned.

Halos other than a circle shape

In Byzantine icon painting, you can find images of square halos. They had their own semantic content. If the circle is eternity, then the square is the otherworldly, the world of the earth.

The saint with a quadrangular halo is depicted in his earthly life. And the color of such a halo is not gold, but white. That is, this is not yet given in full Divine grace, as in the heavenly world, but transforming, gradually revealing itself on earth.

Other traditions can be found among Catholics. On Catholic icons, the radiance often forms a kind of crown over the head of the saint. Light descends on him from above, from outside. Then, as in the Orthodox image, the grace of God sanctifies a person from the inside, permeates everything created.

Revered Orthodox icons:

An Orthodox icon is a shrine. It is needed so that the Prototype is revealed to the believer through the image. It is called “prayer in colors”, “a window to the Heavenly World”. Such tasks of icon painting as an art form required the creation of a special artistic language. It can be called symbolic realism. There is no naturalism here, because we are talking about a world that has already been completely transformed, but there are no abstract symbols or allegories.

After all, it is people, real earthly people, who must be transformed. Here matter is combined with Spirit, the visible with the invisible, the human with the Divine.

And the entire icon as a whole, and each of its parts: halos, clothes, objects, colors, lines, composition, through the symbol lead to the Source of being.