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The Day of the Kazan Icon of the Mother of God is celebrated by Orthodox Christians on Thursday, November 4. The icon is closely associated with the events of 1612, when the Russians drove the Poles out of Moscow, putting an end to the Time of Troubles, RIA Novosti reports.
The Kazan Icon is one of the most revered in Russia, two holidays are dedicated to it at once. The first is celebrated on July 21, it is timed to the day when the relic was discovered in Kazan in 1579. After a terrible fire that destroyed the city, the icon, untouched by the fire, was found on one of the ashes.
Another date is November 4. When Dmitry Pozharsky and Kuzma Minin organized an all-Russian volunteer army to fight the Poles out of Moscow, the Kazan residents brought a copy of the Kazan icon with them and handed it over to Dmitry Pozharsky. The legend has it that on the eve of the decisive battle, Russian soldiers spent the night in prayer in front of the icon, and the Mother of God patronized them in the liberation of Moscow.
After the events of 1612, a temple of the Kazan Icon was erected on Red Square. Believers honor the Kazan Mother of God as a protectress from various troubles.
Since 2005, Russians have been celebrating the Day of National Unity on November 4. The holiday has become a symbol of the unity of the people and their ability to unite in difficult times.
Russkiy Mir
