The king thus had a grudge against the
lad Gnel, frequently persecuted him, and was plotting treachery
[against him] for a long time. Around the Nawasard [festival]
time [Apa znawasartac' zhamanakok'n. Nawasard was the first
month of the ancient Armenian calendar, August] king Arshak planned
to summon the lad Gnel and to kill him. So he sent Vardan, brother
of the sparapet, nahapet of the azg of the
Mamikonean tohm [Apa arhak'er zVardan zeghbayr sparapetin
znahapet azgin mamikonean tohmin] to try to summon [Gnel]
with a great oath, treacherously, so that the plot would not be
revealed and that [Gnel] would not flee and stay alive. Rather
[Arshak hoped] that [Gnel] would be led to the place of [his]
death deceived and charmed. The king's banak was at Shahapivan
in the natural camping place of the Arsacids, below Siwnik' and
above the arena [Ew er banak t'agaworin i Shahapivani i bun
banaki tegsn Arshakuneac'n i nerk'oy Siwneac'n ew i veray asparisac'n.
Malxasyanc', following Acharhyan, translates Siwneac' as
"walled hunting ground", and asparisac'n as "concourse
for horse-racing" (Erevan, 1968) p. 169]. King Arshak sent
Vardan the great nahapet who came and found the lad Gnel
in a nearby place,[121] that is, in the village called Arhawiwtoc'.
With a great vow and much deception [Vardan] convinced the lad
Gnel, his wife and court to go to the royal banak [Mecaw
uxtiw ew bazum patranok' zpataneakn Gnel handerj iwrov knawn ew
drambn hawanec'uc'aner ert'al hasanel i banakn ark'uni], saying
that the king was summoning him for some great exaltation: "King
Arshak does not want to pass the feast of Nawasard without you.
He is well-disposed and kindly toward you, for despite the words
of the slanderers, he had found no evil in you. He has become
convinced that it was wrong for him to hate you; rather, that
you are deserving of affection from him".
Gnel travelled with great speed the
entire night through with all of his organization, to reach the
royal banak. For at daybreak of the next morning, Sunday,
began the feast day in honor of the great John [the Baptist] which
had been designated by Gregory and Trdat in the awan of
Bagawan. To that commemoration [came] lay people who had assembled,
many bishops from different districts, and the great archbishop
sent [g126] his co-adjutor Xad in his place, as well as his arch-deacon
bishop, named Murik [Apa yayn yishatak ashxarhabnakk' mardkan
or zhoghovealn ein, ew bazum episkoposk' or yayloc' gawarhac'.
Ew apa mec episkoposapetn Nerses p'oxanak iwr ygheac' ziwr at'orakic'n
zXad, ew ziwr ark'idiakonn episkoposin orum anun Murik kocher...],
to go and do what had to be done there. He himself remained in
the royal [122] banak to perform the communion there. That
evening the great nighttime service was conducted there in the
banak by the kat'oghikos.
Now at daybreak Gnel's battalion [hasaner
vashtn Gneloy i banakn ark'uni] reached the royal banak,
and when he entered, the king was informed of his arrival. An
order was issused from the court that he be held outside, taken
and killed. While [Gnel], mounted on his horse, was coming into
the banak, as he approached the royal concourse, many attendants
came forth from the court--armed swordsmen, spearmen, sabre-bearers,
axemen, armed with bayonets, and infantrymen bearing shields [bazum
spasawork' varhealk' suserawork' nizakawork' vaghrawork' sakrawork'
sunawork' ew sparakirk' hetewak'...]. They approached the
lad Gnel, seized him and threw him from his horse, tied back his
arms, and took him to the place of execution [i teghi karhap'eloyn].
Now his wife had come in her husband's battalion in the palanquin
[Ew k'anzi kin nora keeal er end nma zhanuaw, i nmin i norin
vashtu er end arhn iwrum]. When she saw that they had seized
and bound him, she quickly rushed to the people in the camp-chapel
when morning prayers were being offered to God by the people of
the banak and where the great [123] archbishop Nerses was.
Now the woman reached the archbishop [ew and Nerses mec episkoposapetn:
Isk kinn haseal arh ark'episkoposapetn] and screamed loudly
the bad news to him about the unjust loss of her husband. She
cried: " Hurry and come, they are still murdering my husband
without his committing any crime or misdeed". Now [Nerses]
interrupted the the service and rushed to the royal tent and passed
through the door to the king. When the king saw the great chief
priest, knowing that he had come to intercede for [Gnel'sj life,
pulled his sable over his head and proceded to grunt with his
face covered, as though asleep [yaynzham t'agaworn ziwr samoyrsn
zglxovn aceal, i p'oyt' knjann mteal, ziwr dems eresac'n cacker.
K'noy patcharh egheal],so that he would not have to hear [Nerses']
words. [g127]
The blessed Nerses shook the king and
spoke, saying: "King, remember your Lord Who out of love
for us descended from His natural heights and became the brother
of us, the unworthy servants. This was done for no other reason
than to be the vardapet of love, so that we spare each
other, looking to the divine vardapet and love each other
in piety, and so that we dare not harm each other. Now if you
do not spare your brother, co-servant, comrade and harazat,
the Lord Who willingly became our brother, will not spare you
[i k'o eghbayr ew i carhayakic'n ew yenkerakic'n ew i harazatn
och' xnayesc'es]. [124] For He said this to us: 'He who hears
you, hears me; he who accepts you, accepts me; but he who dishonors
you, dishonors me'. Heed Christ Who now is speaking with you through
us, so that you not be ruined, fall from your kingdom, and wander
about merely living, without anyone to help you. Now heed Christ
and save yourself. Do not shed the blood of your harazat
brother and kill a righteous [man] in merciless injustice".
But the king, having become fossilized,
did not listen. He did not uncover his face of the shirts [Isk
t'agaworn salac'eal, och' inch' lser. Zeressn vtawatok'n cackeal
och' banayr] and did not want to respond. Rather, he remained
covered and wrapped up in one side of his chair [ayl enkoghmneal
pateal cackeal kayr i gahoysn], and did not even want to move.
While [Nerses] was saying these words of entreaty to the king,
the chief executioner Erazmak [gayr artak'ust dahchapetn Erazmak,
mtaner i xorann ark'uni] entered the royal tent and began
to relate: "I have fulfilled all the royal commands. I took
Gnel as far as the Siwsi wall, killed him, and buried him there".
[125] Then the blessed Nerses began
to speak, saying: "Just as the basilisk-snake shut its ears
so as not to hear the voice of the skilled sorcerer, and not to
take the medicine from the wise dispenser of medicine [Ardarew
isk ibrew oji k'arbi, zi xnu zakanjs iwr zi mi luic'e na zjayn
t'ovch'I chartari, ew mi arhc'e zdegh i deghatue imastnoy],
so you have shut your ears and blocked your hearing so as not
to hear the beneficial words of [g128] divine wisdom; rather,
with the behavior of beasts, you have begun to devour human flesh.
So what was said about the beasts will be visited upon you: 'God
will crush their teeth in their mouths and smash the lions' claws'.
Because you went against the command of Christ your Lord, you
will become as dishonored as spilled water, and will weaken when
He strings the bow. And the destruction which the prophet spoke
of will be visited upon you. The azg of the Arsacids will
drink the last cup; will drink, become drunk, be destroyed, and
never more be restored. When the Lord comes the threat of eternal
fire will be visited upon you, you will fall into the darkness
and never again see the sun of the glory of the Son of God. You,
Arshak, because you committed the act of Cain, will receive the
curse of Cain. Alive, you will fall from your kingdom, will be
tormented more than your father Tiran was, and will end your life
with a bitter death, in great suffering".
[126] When the great chief priest Nerses
had said all of this to the king, he left him and did not return
to that banak. They had taken Gnel the lad close to the
royal Siwsn and executed him on the hill of the mountain named
Lsin, close to the wall of the enclosed hunting ground, opposite
the bun camping ground across from the myrtle-grove [where]
the fountains [and] the royal benches were [gnayin mot i Siwsn
ark'uni, ew anden karhap'ein i sarak lerinn, orum teghwoyn Lsin
anuaneal e, mot yormacs argeloc'ac'n orsoyn erioc'n, enddem murtastanin
aghberac'n bazmoc'ac'n ark'uni, yandiman banakategh bnin:].
Then the king issued an order for everyone
in the banak great and small, that all of them without
exception should go and mournfully lament the killing of Gnel
the great Arsacid sepuh [ayl amenayn ok' arh hasarak
ert'ic'en dic'en ashxar kococ', ew lac'c'en zGnel mec sepuhn arshakuni
zspanealn:]. The king himself went to weep and sat there crying
for the nephew whom he himself had killed. He went and sat near
the corpse weeping and commanded that a great mourning be held
near the body [ew tayr hraman koc mec ew ashxar dnel shurj
zspanelov diakambn:]. P'aranjem, the wife of the slain man,
tore her clothes [g129] and with her hair disheveled and her breasts
bared, sobbed in the lamentation, screaming, piteously crying
and making everyone weep [zhanderjsn patarheal, zgess arjakeal,
merkatit i mej ashxaranin kocer. jayn arkanelov chch'er, yoghbs
artasuac' yaghioghorm guzhi arh hasarak zamenesean lac'uc'aner].
Now king Arshak, weeping, saw the wife of the slain, lusted [127]
and kept his eye on her, to make her his wife.
Now Tirit' who had plotted that vengeful
treachery against his harazat had done this because of
[Gnel's] wife with whom he was greatly in love. He had gotten
the king to accomplish the treacherous murder. Now when the mourning
had become more intense Tirit' was unable to control his lust.
He sent a messenger to the wife of the dead man, saying: "Do
not mourn so much, for I am a better man than he was. I loved
you and therefore betrayed him to death, so that I could take
you in marriage". Tirit' sent such a message while the mourners
were fanatically weeping around the corpse [Ard minch' derh
koc molut'ean zdiakambn jaylein]. [P'aranjem] raised a protest,
pulling out her hair and screaming as she mourned: "Listen
everyone, the death of my husband occurred because of me. For
the one who had an eye on me had my husband killed".
When this important circumstance had
been openly revealed to everyone, [P'aranjem] became the head
of the professional mourners, and all the professional mourners
began to sing the circumstance: Tirit''s lust, how he placed his
eye on her, the vengeance, the plot of murder, the killing [ew
i jaynarkunk'n amenayn eghew na mayr oghboc'n, ew jaynarkunk'n
amenayn i jayn oghboc'n sksan nuagel zirsn trp'anac'n Tirit'ay...].
They moaned and [128] quavered tenderly over the slain man [jayniwk'n
mrmnjoc'n i veray spaneloyn i mej kocoyn barbarhein geghgegheal
xandaghatut'eamb:]. As they were singing the circumstances
were exposed. When king Arshak heard this, he realized what had
happened, investigated, and was stunned, finally grasping the
situation. Then he began to speak, striking his hands together
and greatly regretting what he had done, saying: "Because
Tirit' was seized with undeserving love for Gnel's wife, he plotted
this evil, a grudge, and the senseless and [g130] unjust death.
And he involved us in the shedding of innocent blood through his
abomination. He had his brother destroyed,and made us inherit unbelievable evils
and curses which will not pass" .
Now when the king had definitely confirmed
and authenticated the circunstances of the case, for a while he
was quiet and pretended to do nothing about it. But after the
slain man had been buried in the place where he was killed, and
after a goodly number of days had passed since the deed was committed,
Tirit' sent a message to the king. He said; " King, I want
you to order that I be allowed to marry Gnel's wife, P'aranjem".
As soon as the king heard this, he said: "Now I know for
sure that what I have heard is accurate. Gnel's death occurred
for his wife". Then [129] the king plotted to kill Tirit'
also, in return for Gnel's murder. When Tirit' learned about this,
he was seized with fear of the king, and fled at night. King Arshak
was informed of Tirit''s flight and ordered the azatagund
of the banak to pursue him, catch up with and kill him
on the spot. Many braves went after the fugitive Tirit', caught
up with him in the forests of the district of Basen, and killed
him there.
After this Arshak married P'aranjem,
the wife of the slain [Gnel]. But to the degree that king Arshak
loved the woman, the woman loathed king Arshak, saying: "Physically,
he is hairy, and his color is dark" [aselov t'e t'aw e
marmnov, ew t'ux e gunov]. When king Arshak saw that the woman
was not reconciled with him, he sent to the country of Byzantium
requesting that a woman by azg of the imperial tohm
be sent him as a wife. Her name was Oghompi [a; Olympia]. He loved
her madly and this stirred the envy of his first wife. P'aranjem
therefore had a grudge against Olympia and sought to kill her:
But then P'aranjem bore the king a son whom they named Pap. They
nourished him and he grew up. When he reached puberty and became
potent [Ew ibrew jrt'ap'eac' ew eghew huzhku], they gave
him as a hostage to the emperor's court in the country of Byzantium.
[130] However P'aranjem continued in
her great envy and grudge toward Olympia and sought to kill her
with drugs. But when she was unable to effect anything (since
[Olympia] was extremely careful, especially in matters of food
and drink, eating only the food offered by her own maids [bayc'
ziwroc' nazhshtac'n kerakurs arareal],and drinking only the
wine they provided), when [P'aranjem] could find no way of giving
her poison, she approached a certain presbyter of the royal court
[dran erec' omn ark'uni] who happened to be there at the
time. The impious P'aranjem involved this man whose name was Mrjiwnik,
from the Arshamunik' areas from the nahang of Taron district
[yArshamuneac' tegheac'n i nahangen Taron gawarhen]. He
committed an unworthy deed, never done before, an indelible, unforgettable
evil, deserving of eternal torments, a deed unexampled, unheard
of--mixing poison with the potion of Life, They mixed poison with
the Lord's holy and divine body, the bread of communion. And the
presbyter named Mrjiwnik administered this to queen Olympia in
the church, and killed her. For implementing the most evil wishes
of of the impious P'aranjem, this non-presbyter was granted the
village whence he came, a village narned Gomkunk' in the nahang
of the district of Taron [ew yanorenn P'arhanjemayn pargew
arheal ch'eric'un zgewghn usti isk ink'n er i nahangen Taron gawarhen,
orum anun Gomkunk' koch'in].
[131] Now the blessed kat'oghikos
Nerses did not see king Arshak again until the day of his ruination.
In place of Nerses they established a certain Ch'unak as the head
of the Christians who was one of the slaves from the court's slaves
[ew er struk i strkac' ark'uni:]. Then the king ordered
that all the bishops of the land of Armenia be summoned to ordain
Ch'unak into the kat'oghikosate of Armenia. But no one
consented to come. Only the bishops of Aghjnik' and Korduk' came
and ordained Ch'unak as kat'oghikos according to the king's
order. Ch'unak was a discreet man, never advising or reproaching,
but agreeing with whatever the king did. [g132]
In that period, the king of Iran, Shapuh,
summoned Arshak, king of Armenia and exalted him with much honor,
great glory, many treasures of gold and silver, and all the grandeur
of the kingdom [Translator's note: Sahpuhr II (310-379), Arshak
(350-367)]. [Arshak] was treated well by him, as a brother or
a son, and [Shapuh] gave him the second great tun in the
land of Atrpatakan [ew erkrordakan zmec tunn tayr nma yatrpatakan
ashxarhin]. During the period of merry-making, they sat together
on one and the same gah throne wearing clothing of the
same color with identical ornaments [ew i miasin i mium taxti
gahun i zham uraxut'eann bazmein, zmiagoyn zmianshan zhamahanderj
zardu]. [132] Each day the Iranian king prepared identically
adorned crowns for both of them. The two of them, like inseparable
harazat brothers gorged themselves during the merry-making
and were unspeakably happy together.
Now it happened one day that Arshak,
king of Armenia, went walking in one of the Iranian king's stables.
The Iranian king's stable-master was seated inside the stable
[isk axorhapetn ark'ayin Parsic' nster i nerk's i tan aspastanin]
. When he saw the king, in no way did he exalt him properly or
show him honor, but rather, he dishonored him with insults, saying
in the Iranian language: "King of the Armenian goats, come
and sit on this bale of hay" [Ibrew tesaner zt'agawon,
och' inch' arh laws kaleal mecareac' zna, ew och' inch' shuk's
dner nma. ayl ew anargans ews dner t'shnamanac', aselov i parskeren
lezu t'e aycic' Hayoc' ark'ay, ek nist i xrjan xotoy i veray:].
When these words were heard by the sparapet general of
Greater Armenia whose name was Vasak of the Mamikonean tohm,
he became greatly irritated and angered. He drew the sword which
he had at his waist and beheaded the Iranian king's stable-master
right there in the stable. [g133] For he was unable to hear or
bear the insults to his king, many times regarding it better to
die than to hear evil insults hurled at his lord. He did such
a deed suddenly and fearlessly [even though] they were in the
land of Iran, in another's place, in another's concourse. Now
when the king of Iran heard about this, he expressed great thanks
to [133] general Vasak, marvelling at his brave-heartedness and
courageousness. And he greatly rewarded him, making him worthy
of much honor, as he praised his bravery and love for his master
[bazum shnorh uner zoravarin Vasakay, end k'ajasrtut'eann zarmac'eal
ew end bazum anerkiwghut'iwnn:]. As a result of that deed
[Shapuh] felt great affection for [Vasak], honored him in accordance
with his worth, and exalted him every day that there was reconciliation
and peace between them.
Now while the king of Armenia was with
the king of Iran and there was great affection and peace between
them, Shapuh, the king of Iran, nonetheless feared that perhaps
Arshak, king of Armenia, would violate that affection, might unite
with the Byzantine emperor, or somehow be pried away from him.
He did not believe that [Arshak] would preserve the intimate affection
he had for him or remain true to the oath of alliance with him.
Therefore he requested a vow from him and intensely pressured
him, saying: "Consent and vow to me according to your faith
that you will not be false to me". Under the severe pressure
and insistent force [Arshak] became harassed. They commanded that
priests from the church of the city of Ctesiphon (the leader of
whom was Mari) be summoned. They brought the blessed Gospel and
Shapuh, the king of Iran had Arshak, king of Armenia, swear on
the divine Gospel that [134] he would never again break his vow
to him, but keep his oath and preserve his treaty. Since the intermediary
in these matters was Vardan, the tanuter nahapet
of the Mamikonean tohm and the senior brother of Vasak
the sparapet, king Shapuh felt great affection for him
[Ew vasn zi patgamawor irac's aysoc'ik er tanutern nahapetn
mamikonean tohmin erec' eghbayr Vasakay sparapetin, orum anun
Vardan koch'er, mecapes ark'ay Shapuh yakn arheal sirer zna].
But his brother Vasak the general of Armenia was envious of his
senior brother Vardan. [g134] He wanted to create a disturbance
between Arshak king of Armenia [and the king of Iran] [Translator's
note: Apparently a page is missing which described Vasak's actions.
The text resumes with the king speaking with Mari and the priests.]...
and flee. But Shapuh said: "If you made the vow sincerely,
how could he oppose it or flee. Rather, I know that you deceived
me through witchcraft. You liked the one who holds your faith,
you treacherously plotted with him, making him flee. You too want
the Arsacid lordship over you, and sought for this".
And king Shapuh vowed by the sun, water,
and fire, that he would not permit a single Christian man to live.
He ordered that they all be taken and killed. They took their
head, the presbyter Mari, and other priests and deacons (more
than seventy men) and killed them all together in one ditch. And
[Shapuh] ordered that the blessed Gospel on which king Arshak
had vowed should be bound with an iron [135] chain, sealed with
his ring, and kept carefully.
When the presbyter Mari and the seventy
others were killed, king Shapuh began a great persecution on members
of the Christian faith. He oppressed them with taxes, diverse
sorrows and blows. Then he issued an order throughout all the
places under his sway that : "Whoever under my authority
even bears the name of a Christian shall be removed and put to
the sword, so that there will be no one under my authority who
calls himself a Christian". [g135] So they destroyed myriads
upon rnyriads and thousands upon thousands, for such was the king's
order, that no Christian be located within his borders.
Now Vardan, the tanuter of the
Mamikonean tohm, came on a mission from the king of Iran
to king Arshak of Armenia, and presented him with the hrovartak.
And he told him about [Shapuh's] words of peace and reconciliation
and the confirmation by oaths. And he presented the message: "The
crime in what has occurred will be overlooked, but after this
stand firm in the vow and do not [136] transgress the oath you
swore according to you faith. Otherwise know that you have violated
your faith". Now king Arshak received and heard the message
with affection and believed what had been said. He peacefully
released the great nahapet to his tun so that he
might go and rest from the fatigue of the long journey. And [Vardan]
went.
When the nahapet Vardan had come
to Arshak his younger brother Vasak was not by the king. But subsequently
Vasak arrived and stirred the king up against his senior brother,
saying: "It was Vardan who betrayed you to the Iranian king
and wants to destroy you. If you do not hurry and kill him immediately,
you and the land of Armenia will be lost". Furthermore, [Arshak's]
wife also aroused the king with similar words and made him believe
as reliable general Vasak's words. For [P'aranjem] held a grudge
against Vardan since it was this Vardan who had treacherously,
fraudulently and with a great oath summoned her husband Gnel for
king Arshak to kill. Now since the woman had kept the grudge against
Vardan she even more provoked the king against him. [g136] Indeed,
a force was assembled against Vardan to go and kill him, and his
own brother Vasak went to do it.
[137] They went and found him in his
district of Tayk', in his secure fortress which was named Eraxani
[Translator's note: one ms. has Axani]. When [Vardan's people]
saw that it was Vasak's brigade, they neither feared, took precautions
or felt doubt. They reasoned that since it was the force of [Vardan's]
brother, he had come in peace. So [Vasak's troops] came and descended
to the door of the tent, since [Vardan] had pitched his tent in
the valley, at the foot of the fortress. Vasak's troops were all
secretly armed, wearing their [regular] clothing on top. While
[Vardan], naked was washing his head, many men with swords reached
him, and stabbed him as he was bent over to pour water over himself.
He did not even have time to arise, since they struck and killed
him from the side.
[Vardan's] wife was pregnant, and the
day of delivery had arrived. While she was seated on her chair
[i ver i berdin nster i gahoys iwrum] in the upper part
of the fortress, the terrible news came. When she heard the bad
news, she jumped from her chair and as she ran, the baby was born.
The child was named after its father, Vardan.
[138] Now when the blessed archbishop
Nerses had quit the royal banak, there was no one to reproach
the king or give him contrary counsel, and so [Arshak] went along
according to his evil wishes. He destroyed many of the naxarars,
extirpated many azgs, and confiscated many tuns
for the court [ew bazums i naxararac'n kotoreac', zbazums azgat
arareal anch'iteac', ew zbazmac' tuns hataner yark'unis].
He extirpated the tohms of the Kamsarakans who were the
lords of districts, of Shirak and Arsharunik', and he made [their]
districts ostan [Bayc' ztohms kamsarakanac'n or ein
gawarhac' teark', Shirakay ew Arsharuneac', azgat arhner, ew zgawarhsn
uner yostan]. [g137]
However, the general of Armenia, the
sparapet Vasak concealed and saved a tiny child from that
azg, named Spandarat, who subsequently became the inheritor
of [their] land [Bayc' yazgen yaynmane mankik mi p'ok'rik,
anun Spandarat, t'aguc'eal aprec'uc'aner sparapetn zoravarn Hayoc'
Vasak, or yetoy liner zharhang ashxarhin]. King Arshak ordered
that a secure fortress be constructed for him in the district
of Arsharunik', a fortress named Artagers [yArsharaneac' gawarhin
shinel iwr berd mi amur]. And he laid in store victuals in
preparation for the district in the fortress, since that fortress
was extremely secure [Ew zgawarhn yutest i patrastut'iwn hambarac'
t'oghoyr berdin, vasn zi kari amur er berdn ayn].
Now previously when king Arshak had
fled from king Shapuh and dishonored him through his vow, Shapuh,
the king of Iran, tried no severity [in dealing] with him, for
there was still intense warfare between himself and the emperor
of Byzantium. As the war dragged on, king Arshak of Armenia conceitedly
waited to see which of them would call him to aid them in fighting.
He enthusiastically wanted to go to the aid of the emperor of
Byzantium, but [the Byzantines] did not call on, magnify or exalt
him.
But the Iranian king Shapuh sent messages
of peace to him, reminding him of his previous vow, saying: "Your
brother wants you to come and help him fight with your brigade.
I know that if you are on our side, we shall triumph". Now
when Arshak, the king of Armenia, heard this, with great joy he
wanted to go to aid and assist Shapuh, king of Iran. So he ordered
his sparapet Vasak to assemble a brigade, and prepare troops.
[Vasak] [g138] quickly implemented the king's orders. [He assembled]
400,000 well armed troops of select warriors full of manly heroism:
spearmen, swordsmen, powerful archers who did not miss their mark,
men with sabres and battle-axes who were fearless before champions,
[140] the entire cavalry wearing armor, with helmets, banners,
with notable multi-sounding trumpets [ch'orek'hariwr hazar
zor kurh varhealk', or entirk' ew paterazmoghk' ein li arut'eamb
aruestac' nahatakut'eann: Nizakawork', suserawork', agheghnawork'
anvrepk' korovik', vaghrawork', sakrawork', ork' och' gitein zerkewgh
zangiteloy yaranc' yaxoyanc'. hamak hecelazork' zrahawor patenazenk',
saghawartawork', droshawork', kazm nshanawork' bazmajayn p'ogharok'n].
King Arshak with a multitude of naxarars went through his principality, through Aghjnik' and came out into the Aruac'astan country, opposite the city of Mcbin, which was to be the battle site. Now when [the Armenians] arrived at the place and time designated for the battle between the two sides, they saw that the Byzantine troops had already arrived and encamped in a multitude as dense as the sand on the seashore, while the Iranian troops had not yet come. The troops of the king of Armenia arrived before the Iranians and waited in place. Now the Armenian troops grew restless with waiting and did not want to wait for or heed the Iranian troops, but rather wanted to attack the Byzantine king themselves and wage war without the Iranians. Every man of the Armenian troops, self-willed and unbridled moved forth. This was especially true of their general Vasak who, more than anyone was going back and forth unrestrained, unwilling to wait for the Iranians to come. Rather, he wanted them to wage the war themselves.
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