I. Agat'angeghos


Information on dayeakut'iwn in fourth century Armenia is found in a fifth century compilation, Agat'angheghos' History, which describes in epic style Armenia's conversion to Christianity. According to Agat'angeghos, it was thanks to dayeaks that the lives of the future king Trdat (Armenia's first Christian king, ruled ca. 303­330) and the future Gregory the Illuminator or Grigor Lusavorich were saved. Both Grigor and Trdat were rescued in their infancies from extermination attempts directed against their clans. Agat'angeghos narrates how the shah of Iran plotted the murder of Trdat's father, King Xosrov, in the late third century. The shah sent to Armenia an Iranian noble named Anak the Parthian who vowed to endear himself to King Xosrov and then to kill him at an opportune moment. When that moment presented itself some months later, Anak assassinated Xosrov. But, with his dying breath, Xosrov

ordered that [Anak's] clan be exterminated. Then (the Armenians) began to destroy and kill them, not even sparing the children who did not yet know their right from their left. They also put the women to the sword. Only two infant sons of [Anak] the Parthian were saved by someone who rescued them by means of their dayeaks. They took [the babies] and fled, taking one to Iranian territory, and the other to Greek [Byzantine] territory (6).

The son of Anak who was spirited away to the city of Caesarea was baptized Grigor and given a Christian education. As for the future king Trdat, the shah of Iran searched for this heir of his old adversary:

But someone saved and rescued from destruction one of the sons of [the slain] king Xosrov of Armenia, an infant named Trdat. His dayeaks took hlm and fled to the court of the emperor in Greek territory (7).

By a twist of epic fate, both Trdat and Grigor grew up in the same geographlcal area. According to Agat'angeghos, when Grigor's dayeaks informed him of his true parentage, Grigor sought out Trdat wishing to enter his service, to expiate for his father's crime (8). Grigor concealed his past and his religion from Trdat for some time. But eventually Trdat learned that Gngor's father was the regicide Anak. It was then that the imprisonment of Grigor began (9).

Who were the dayeaks mentioned in Agat'angeghos? Later Armenian tradition has supplied probably fictitious names for Grigor's dayeaks (10). As for the saviors of baby Trdat, the dayeaks may have been Mamikoneans, a family with which the royal Arsacids of Armenia subsequently had dayeak relations. Trdat's personal guardian may have been the sparapet (commander­in­chief) Artawazd Mamikonean (11).

In Agat'angeghos, the institution of dayeakut'iwn, though seldom mentioned, has a crucial importance. Not only do dayeaks prevent the annihilation of the royal clan and the Parthian clan of Anak/Grigor, but they educate both of their wards to recognize their responsibilities--atonement for Grigor, vengeance for Trdat.

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Footnotes 6-11

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