Yeghishé

Ve siècle

Holding on to one's faith when told to give it another name.

Who was Yeghishé?

An Armenian priest and historian, he wrote the account of the war of 451 against the Persian empire, which wanted to impose the religion of fire, the Mazdaism of the Persians on Armenia. His book is not a chronicle of battles: it is a record of what people hold on to when they are asked to change God, with the letters exchanged, the refusals, the hesitations. Armenian tradition counts him among the translators, those who gave the Armenians their books in their own tongue.

In their own words

Death unknown is death; death known is immortality.

History of Vardan and the Armenian War, speech of Vardan Mamikonian; Classical Armenian « Մահ ոչ իմացեալ՝ մահ է, մահ իմացեալ՝ անմահութիւն է » (Mah oč' imac'eal, mah ē ; mah imac'eal, anmahut'iwn ē), translated by the Manna team