ganaTleba

An icon is a mystery, cognized in pray and spiritual vision (ArchimandriteRaphael), hagiographic literature requires the same. An icon is a special field of art, itsunique idiom, which is formed with pray of the entire Orthodox Church, on the basis ofmystical experience. Hagiographic literature is in an open dialogue with its readers byintroducing a divine light. As a painting of icons is a system of unique symbols, ashagiography is the “language” of the church. An icon painter must penetrate the worldof a soul and speak about it in the language of a soul. Hagiography also tells us about asoul. As an icon is not a portrait reflection of a spiritual world, as hagiography does notrepresent photography of a saint’s spiritual life. Hagiography is a saint’s life in a realand symbol image. And at the same time, hagiographic literature is not a fixation of thespirit of faxing, reflecting the mood. It, as well as an icon, tells us the saint’s conditionand, therefore, hagiographic writing does not need to create a mood of readers, but tobring him/her in praying condition.175