One of the
hidden gems surrounding Lake Sevan, the largest lake in the Caucasus, is a 9th
century monastic complex consisting of a church, chapel, and gavit that sits
atop a high rocky hill overlooking the water. A small and humble monastery, it has a certain
charm to it due to the beautiful surroundings.
The big church,
named St. Stepanos was built in the 9th century and is in the form
of quatrefoil cruciform. The chapel was
added in the 10th century and the gavit was built some time in the
12th century.
According to legend, Hayravank
Monastery also has a history connected to its name. As Armenians were fighting
against the infamous Turkic ruler Timur, who was conquering Armenia at that
time, he approached the monastery and left nothing on his way but corpses and
ruins. The priest serving at the monastery could not take the scene and threw
himself off the cliff into Lake Sevan. He did not die. Instead, he ran on the
surface of the water.
Timur was shocked by the scene and as
a respect to such a divine act, he promised to make only one wish of the priest
come true. The priest asked Timur to let the people of the village enter the
church and he wouldn’t touch the people that the space inside the church could
take. The church was very small, so Timur agreed, being sure that the priest
won’t be able to save too many people.
So people started to enter the church.
After some time there was nothing left outside. Timur got angry thinking that
the priest was cheating. He rushed into the church and saw it completely empty.
He also noticed how the priest transformed the last person into a dove, who
flew from the church window. The priest’s name was Hovhan, and the church was
named Hovhanavank, later becoming Hayravank (“Hayr” meaning “Father”).
Interestingly, the legend was written
by His Holiness Ghazar A Jahkeci. According to him, the priest transformed his
people into doves with the help of a relic of Christ’s cross, which was later
moved to Sevanavank Monastery just a few kilometers away.
The first thing
you notice when approaching Hayravank Monastery is the vintage khackars (cross
stones) as you start ascending the stairs.
There is also a little cemetery next to the monastery. The 360 degree view from that height is
amazing and calming. Make sure you bring
your wide lens camera to capture the enormity of the scene. I visited in autumn and the weather was
perfect and sunny.
Walk around
Hayravank Monastery and pay attention to the old Armenian language and crosses
carved into the stone. It’s amazing to
be around a structure this old. As you
enter from the northern entrance you immediately see the light coming down
through the dome top reflecting light off the pillars. Just ahead you see a small entrance to the
chapel located in the south section and to the right is entrance to the
gavit. The monastery is very small and
cozy and its not the most impressive piece of vintage Armenian architecture but
its charming because of the location and outstanding scenery.
At the bottom of
the stairs is a nice little picnic area too if you want to rest up and near the
water if you want to take a dip and cool off.
Happy
traveling.
