The seven-shot icon of the Most Holy Theotokos softens evil hearts. Icon of the Mother of God “Softening Evil Hearts” (“Seven Arrow”)

“Softening Evil Hearts”... There is so much hope in the name of this icon - the hope that one day truth will triumph on earth, that people will become kind and merciful, and will begin to love each other. And how difficult it is in our bitter world, and sometimes only the sight of someone else’s suffering can soften our own evil heart...

In prayer practice, no distinction is made between the “Softening Evil Hearts” and “Seven Arrow” icons, since they belong to the same iconographic type. Believers ask before the image for reconciliation between the warring parties and deliverance from hardness of heart.
Differences exist in the painting of the image and the acquisition of icons.

The image “Softening Evil Hearts” apparently comes from Southwestern Rus', but, unfortunately, there has never been any historical information about it; it is not even known where and when the icon appeared. The Most Pure “Softening of Evil Hearts” is written with swords stuck into Her heart - three on the right and left, one on the bottom. The number “seven” in the Holy Scriptures usually means the completeness, redundancy of something, and in this case, the fullness and vastness of the grief, sadness and “heart disease” that the Mother of God experienced during Her earthly life. Sometimes the Eternal Child is also written on the lap of the Most Pure Virgin.
The celebration of this image takes place on February 15 and on All Saints Sunday (the first Sunday after Trinity).

Another miraculous image, the icon, is also very close to the “Softening of Evil Hearts” Mother of God"Seven-shot" The only difference between them is that on the “Semistrelnaya” swords are written differently - three with right side The Most Pure One and four on the left, and her celebration takes place on August 13 according to the old style (August 26).

“Semistrelnaya” is of North Russian origin: it was located in the St. John the Theologian Church on the banks of the Toshni River, which flows into the river of the same name not far from Vologda. A peasant from Kadnikovsky district suffered from lameness for many years, and no one could help him. But then one day, in a subtle dream, a certain voice commanded him to find the image of the Most Pure Mother in the bell tower of the Theological Church, where the old icons were kept, and to pray before it for healing. The peasant asked several times to be allowed into the bell tower, but they did not believe his words. Only the third time they allowed him to climb the bell tower. It turned out that the icon, covered with rubbish and dirt, served as a step on a staircase, and the bell ringers walked on it as if on a simple board. Horrified by the involuntary blasphemy, the clergy washed the icon and served a prayer service in front of it, after which the peasant received healing. Many more years passed, generations changed, this miracle was already forgotten, but in 1830, the Vologda province, like most of European Russia, suffered a terrible cholera epidemic. During it, the shrines from Toshni were transferred to Vologda and placed in the “cold” (summer) church of Dmitry Prilutsky on Navoloka - in the Vologda Zarechye, to the right of the main city bridge. Then the Christ-loving residents of Vologda turned to the “Semistrelnaya” and, together with other shrines, surrounded it with a solemn ceremony. procession around the city. Cholera retreated as suddenly as it had come. According to legend, this image was more than five hundred years old, however, the features of the painting and the fact that it was painted on canvas pasted onto a board indicate its much later origin - apparently, this copy was made in the 18th century from the original image that has not reached us. In memory of the miraculous deliverance of Vologda from cholera, the townspeople ordered and placed in the Demetrius Church a list with the “Seven Shot”, from which miracles also began to occur over time. Worship here stopped in 1930 and resumed on July 13, 2001, but there was no shrine left in the temple.
Here's a very interesting story. During the Great Patriotic War in the south of the Voronezh region, in an area known as Belogorye (from the chalk cliffs on the right bank of the Don near the city of Pavlovsk), there were Italian mountain rifle units who fought on the side of the Nazis. In the second half of December 1942, soldiers from the platoon of Lieutenant Giuseppe Perego found the icon “Softening Evil Hearts” in a house destroyed by bombing, which they gave to their military priest, chaplain Father Policarpo from Valdagna. According to local residents, this icon came from the cave Resurrection Belogorsk monastery near Pavlovsk. The Italians called her “Madonna del Don” (“Madonna of the Don”; this image should not be confused with Our Lady of the Don). In the Alpine Corps, everyone soon learned about this holy find and began to come to the icon to pray for their salvation. Many later were firmly convinced that they survived those terrible battles only thanks to the help of the Mother of God - Madonna del Don. After the Ostrogozh-Rossoshan offensive Soviet troops in January 1943, the remnants of the defeated Italian corps left our country. Many veterans of the Alpine Corps recalled the amazing mercy that Russian women who lived in villages on their way to Italy showed them. Most of the Italians were frostbitten and had no food. And if it weren’t for the kindness and help of the Russian population, they would all have died. Veterans still remember Russian word“potatoes”, because this was the only food in Russian villages of that time.
Chaplain Policarpo brought the “Madonna of the Don” to Italy, in Mestre (mainland Venice), where a chapel was built especially for her. Veterans, relatives and friends of both the participants in those events and all Italian soldiers who died in that terrible war still gather at this icon in September.
I want to talk a little about such a miracle as myrrh streaming. Until the 20th century, the streaming of myrrh or tearing of icons was a rare, exceptional phenomenon. Mass signs began to be observed in Russia in the 20th century. The number of reports of miracles from icons in Russia at the end of the 20th century - beginning of XXI century broke all records. The reasons for this phenomenon are not known for certain. In past centuries, the facts of myrrh-streaming were considered an omen of some important events. When a person sees such a miracle, he strengthens his faith, which means he begins to change for the better and do more good.
Here is a story that happened in our time. In the fall of 1997, simultaneously with the martyrdom of Joseph Muñoz Cortes (he was brutally killed), the custodian of the miraculous, myrrh-streaming Iveron-Montreal icon, the icon itself disappeared. Where she is is still not known. The new myrrh-streaming icon was revealed just a few months later, in the spring of 1998, to the Muscovite Margarita. And the icon “Softening Evil Hearts” was pacified. The small image, like many tens of thousands like it, was printed at the Sofrino enterprise and bought in a church shop by ordinary Muscovites. But unknown to us God's destinies It was this image that was chosen to reveal a wondrous miracle - the icon came to life. This icon began to be taken to numerous parishes and monasteries, to various cities and countries.

In the Murmansk church, the baby, whom his mother placed next to the icon, suddenly said loudly and clearly: “She is crying!” And everything fell into place. Truly, “through the mouth of a baby the truth speaks,” for it became clear what we are witnessing, why this miracle was given to us, what exactly the image of the Queen of Heaven pours out to us in the form of this crystal clear and fragrant world.
These are the tears of the Mother of God. She cries for us. About the hardness of our hearts.

About the world retreating from Her Son - Christ our God.
The miraculous image reacts differently to the place where it resides, and not every land is equally pleasing to the Queen of Heaven. Before the explosions in Moscow, the face of the Mother of God on the icon “Softening Evil Hearts” changed. Black circles appeared under the eyes. The apartment began to smell of incense. This smell did not disappear until the explosions stopped. Time has passed. The day came on which the arms and neck of the Most Pure Mother of God were ulcerated with tiny wounds, and a red sore appeared on her left shoulder. On this day, the Kursk submarine sank. On November 21, the day of the Archangel Michael, bloody smudges appeared that could be collected for cotton wool along with the world. Since then, the icon has been streaming myrrh and bleeding incessantly.
Since then, if the Russian military touches the icon, the icon sensitively responds to this meeting and bleeds blood... I remember how, after a religious procession with the icon, the marines of the Sevastopol brigade, carrying the icon, looked in surprise at their white ceremonial gloves, which had turned completely red from the expired bloody world. To store this shrine, a precious ark was made, and a church was built in the village of Bachurino near Moscow. Today the arrival of this icon is awaited all over the world. She has already visited many dioceses of Russia and has been abroad many times - to Belarus, the Czech Republic, the USA, Australia, Ukraine, Mount Athos, Germany...

On December 8, 2011, the myrrh-streaming icon arrived on Italian soil. When the myrrh-streaming icon visited Italy, a meeting of two icons took place. The icon “Don Madonna” from the Russian Belogorsk Monastery is now decorated with a rich silver frame, on which rosettes with scenes of those events of 1943 are minted. On both sides there are icons glass bowls, in which Don water and land from the Don are stored. And numerous unquenchable lamps burn.
At parting, all those gathered were anointed with the expiring chrism. Before this, the Catholic Dominican monks, who had been standing somewhat at a distance and watching what was happening from the side, could not stand it and also came under the anointing.

Here is a short story about what happened from Abbot Mitrofan, who accompanied the icon through the lands of Italy: “Every time, approaching a new city, a new church, where crowds of people were tensely waiting for the icon, we witnessed the icon’s response to people’s aspirations. As soon as we got out of the car and began to move towards people, myrrh appeared on the entire surface of the icon case.
It must be said that the icon case itself is never opened during trips - this is the condition of the keeper of the icon, dictated by concern for the safety of the image. Let me remind you that a miraculous icon is only a paper image, extremely saturated with the world. And the cavity in the frame under the icon, into which the myrrh flows, is emptied only in calm, homely conditions. It is then that numerous bottles are filled with the purest fragrant liquid in anticipation of new temples and meetings.
But these restrictions, as we wrote earlier, do not matter for an amazing substance of unearthly origin. As we have seen, the laws of gravity, for example, have no power here - myrrh flows just as easily up the icon case. It easily increases in quantity, and just as unexpectedly it can disappear from the bottle. But the reasons for this “non-blessing” will certainly soon become obvious. At the same time, a small glass vial of ointment (the size of a “perfume sampler”) is easily enough to anoint many hundreds of those who wish and is still enough for all those who are late.”

Finally, I want to say that sometimes there is such an image, which depicts the image of “Softening Evil Hearts”, but on the icon itself it is written “Seven Shots”. Don't let this confuse you.

Prayer before the icon performed by the sisters of the Minsk St. Elisabeth Monastery.

All of us on life path various difficulties await. However, you can cope with them with the help of prayer. She can reason with a person, give him strength and desire to fight. The main thing is sincere faith in the power of the religious text and observance of the basic church canons. The topic of our article today is a prayer to the icon “Softening Evil Hearts.”

The meaning and power of the image

The image of the “Softening Evil Hearts” icon is quite interesting. Here, first of all, the Virgin Mary is represented, pierced with seven swords. This figure was not chosen by chance, since from the very beginning of Christianity it has denoted the completeness of everything that exists in the world. At the same time, the face of the Mother of God is an opportunity for a person to feel all the suffering that the Queen of Heaven went through. However, this is not the only meaning contained in the seven-arrow icon. It is believed that in this case seven denotes the main human sins. This image as if telling people that no atrocities will remain hidden from the Mother of God.

Some Christians hang this icon on the wall opposite front door Houses. However, before doing this, do not forget to thoroughly wash the place where you are going to hang it. Moreover, the prayer will need to be read for the first time before the image appears on the wall.

Read the prayer book with good intentions and bright thoughts. In this case, you will receive a powerful amulet for your family against people who are angry with you and envious people. Be sure to hang such an icon in front of the front door so that the Virgin Mary sees everyone who enters your house. This way you will protect your loved ones from the negative energy that comes from ill-wishers.

It is very important to buy a candle in the church and light it in front of the icon every time you are going to recite this sacred text.

Video “The miraculous image of the “Softening of Evil Hearts” of the Mother of God”

From the video you will learn the meaning of the “Softening Evil Hearts” icon, and in what cases you need to turn to the holy face.

Prayer text

O long-suffering Mother of God, Higher than all the daughters of the earth, in Your purity and in the multitude of sufferings You have brought to the earth, accept our much-painful sighs and keep us under the shelter of Your mercy. Do You know of no other refuge and warm intercession, but, since You have the boldness to be born of You, help and save us with Your prayers, so that we may without stumbling reach the Kingdom of Heaven, where with all the saints we will sing praises to the One God in the Trinity, now and ever, and forever and ever. Amen.

Among the numerous icons, one of the most necessary in every home is the “Softening Evil Hearts” icon. By praying in front of this image, you protect yourself from your own anger and irritability, which are not the best human qualities. In addition, in prayer before the icon they ask for a family truce or that there is no hostility between neighbors, as well as for peace between entire states. In our culture, the image of the Mother of God, whose chest is pierced by arrows, is one of the most emotional and expressive in icon painting. It gives you the opportunity to feel mercy and compassion.

Origin of the icon

The icon “Softening Evil Hearts” is completely shrouded in mystery, so its exact origin is today unknown. According to one assumption, it came from the Southwestern part of Rus', and according to another, from the West, since this image is also revered in Catholicism. Besides of this name, the image also has something else - “Simeon’s prophecy.” According to the narration of the Evangelist Luke, the revered elder Simeon the God-Receiver was visited by the Holy Spirit, who predicted that he would not be able to leave this world until he saw the Messiah. When they brought Jesus to the temple on the fortieth birthday, Simeon also hurried there. Taking the Baby in his arms, he uttered the words that we now know as the prayer that sounds at every Vespers. It is in these words that he indicates that the soul of the Most Pure One will be pierced by suffering and pain, the fullness of which is symbolized by the number seven.

meaning of the image

This one shows one. She is pierced by seven swords, symbolizing the fullness of heart disease and sorrow experienced by the Blessed Virgin Mary on earth. These seven swords convey the prophecy of Simeon, since given number in Holy Scripture characterizes the completeness of something. There is also another icon that has a similar meaning - “Seven Arrows”. Many do not recognize the differences between these images, but they exist, albeit minor ones. So, on the icon described in the article, three swords pierce the Virgin Mary on the right, three on the left, and one on the bottom. As for the “Seven Shot” icon, it depicts Mother of God, which is pierced by three swords on the left and four on the right. In prayer practice, no distinction is made between these icons, since they have the same iconographic type.

The icon “Softening Evil Hearts” also has another interpretation regarding the seven swords, according to which they convey the fullness of the sorrow of the Mother of God, but not because of the torment of the Son crucified on the cross, but because of our sins. symbolizes the number of the main sinful passions of a person, reflected by pain in her chest. But She is ready to ask Her Son for everyone who asks Her holy intercession.

Revered lists of icons

The miraculous icon “Softening Evil Hearts” is located in the temple of the same name, which rises in the small village of Bachurino in the Moscow region. Until recently, this image was private property Moscow Vorobyov family. In 1998, the Vorobievs took their icon to the Intercession Convent, as they wanted to add it to the relics of the Blessed Elder. Immediately after this, the icon began to stream myrrh. Pilgrims began to come to this family from all over. They could not receive so many people at home, so the icon “Softening Evil Hearts” was given to the temple. A similar image is also found in the one-shift church in the village of Kamenka. There is also a myrrh-streaming copy of this icon in Venice.

In the Orthodox tradition, there are many different iconographic images of the Mother of God. Most of them are little known, being purely local shrines. However, there are also examples marked by general church veneration. Among them, the image called the Seven-Shot stands out for its unusualness. This icon, as well as the prayers offered in front of it, will be discussed in this article.

Meaning of the image

Seven-shot also has another name - “Softening Evil Hearts.” Less commonly, it is also called Simeon’s prophecy. At its core, it is an illustration of the event of the Feast of the Presentation, that is, the Feast of the Meeting of the Lord, described in the Gospel. When Jesus Christ was still just a baby, his mother, that is, the Mother of God, brought him for the first time to the Jerusalem Temple. There they were met by a righteous man named Simeon. According to legend, this man was one of the translators of the Holy Scriptures into Greek, which took place in Egypt three hundred years before the birth of the Savior. When Simeon was translating the book, he doubted whether it was written correctly that a virgin would conceive and give birth to a son. After hesitating, he finally decided that this was a mistake and wrote the word “woman” in the translation. At that very moment, an angel appeared before him, who told him that the original prophecy about the virgin conception was true, and in order to dispel his doubts, he would be given the opportunity to see this wonderful baby. And so Simeon waited for three hundred years for this meeting (candlemas - in Slavic) at the temple. And finally, he waited. When Mary handed the baby into his arms, a prophetic spirit descended on him, and he prophesied about the newborn Jesus, noting that “a weapon will pierce the soul” of his mother too. This weapon, that is, the suffering of the Mother of God, is symbolically depicted on the “Seven Shot” icon in the form of seven swords piercing her heart. There are exactly seven swords depicted, since in the biblical tradition this number means completeness and completeness.

This legend is, without a doubt, apocryphal in relation to the original Christian tradition. But this does not detract from its moral significance, which gave birth to a second, more practical interpretation. Since Mary is revered in Orthodoxy as the heavenly queen and spiritual mother of all Christians, the weapon that pierces her is not only grief from the torment Jesus Christ accepted on the cross, but also human sins, for the sake of which he endured this crucifixion. Seven swords in this context mean seven with which the loving and grieving heart of the Mother of God is pierced.

Origin of the image

No one knows where this icon came from. According to a pious legend, she was discovered by a peasant from Vologda, who was seriously ill with lameness and partial paralysis. No doctors could cure him. Once in a dream he was given instructions to climb the bell tower of the local Church of St. John the Evangelist and take an icon from there. Of course, the clergy of the cathedral did not take this revelation seriously and twice refused the old man’s request, knowing full well that there were no icons there. But the peasant was persistent, and in the end he was allowed to climb the belfry to see for himself the meaninglessness of his own words. However, as soon as he reached the top, he recognized an icon in one of the boards, which served as a step on the stairs. The image was immediately taken down, cleaned, and a prayer service was served. Then the first Seven Shot was pronounced, as a result of which the peasant was completely healed. Since then, miracles began to occur from the icon. And this, in turn, led to the spread of fame about the miraculous image. They started making lists from it that now exist huge amount in several varieties. Unfortunately, the original image disappeared after the repressions of the 1930s and has not yet been found.

What do they pray for in front of the Seven-Arrow Icon of the Mother of God?

As before any icon, the prayer to the Mother of God Seven Arrows can be dedicated to any occasion. However, the specificity of the image has formed a special sphere of needs, mainly in which they turn to Mary in front of this icon. First of all, these are requests for peace and to overcome anger, hatred and vindictiveness on the part of someone. In fact, that’s why she was nicknamed “The Softener of Evil Hearts.” Offended people, stern bosses, strict parents and teachers - in all these cases a prayer can be addressed to the Seven Arrow Icon. How to pray to the Mother of God does not really matter. Examples of prayers will be given below, but in general you can address Mary in your own words, as long as they are sincere. What is important is not the beauty of prayer, but the ardent believing heart. If this condition is met, then without a doubt the prayer to the Seven Arrows icon will be heard. When to pray, how, how much - it doesn’t matter.

Text of the prayer before the Seven Arrow Icon

As an example, we will nevertheless cite several generally accepted texts that believers read in churches during public services and in their homes. The main prayer of the Mother of God Seven Arrows in Russian translation sounds like this:

“Oh, much-suffered Mother of God, surpassing all the daughters of the earth in her purity and her sufferings that you endured on earth! Accept our sorrowful prayers and keep us under the protection of your mercy. Because we have no other refuge and such an ardent intercessor as you - We don’t know. You have boldness in your prayers to the one you have born, so help and save us with your prayers, so that we can freely reach the heavenly kingdom and there, with all the saints, sing the praises of the one Trinity - God, now and ever and unto ages of ages! "

This is the usual prayer of the Mother of God of the Seven Arrows. The Queen of the Christian faith is represented in it as an intercessor, which she is, according to the ideas of Orthodox Christians. There are also shorter prayers dedicated to this image. They have a special liturgical purpose and are called troparion and kontakion.

Troparion, tone 5

Soften our evil hearts, Mother of God, and destroy the attacks of those who hate us, and deliver our souls from oppression, looking at your holy image. By your compassion and mercy towards us we are brought to tenderness and we kiss your wounds, but we are afraid of our arrows that torment you. Do not let us, good mother, perish in our hardness of heart from the cruelty of our neighbors, since you are truly a softener of evil hearts.

Kontakion, tone 2

By your grace, mistress, soften evil hearts, send down benefactors, protecting them from all evil, who fervently pray to you for good before your holy icons.

The kontakion, troparion and official prayer of the Mother of God Seven Arrows reflect her main idea - overcoming evil in the hearts. However, this icon also serves as a symbol of heartfelt sorrow, so any suffering of the soul can be poured out in front of this image. For example, this could be a request for help in creating a happy personal life.

Prayer for loneliness

O Lady and Lady Mother of God, pour out your great mercy on me, giving me the strength to get rid of the heavy burden of loneliness of the soul. Free me from every evil curse, from the influence of unclean spirits, from the evil brought upon my life. Amen!

The Icon of the Mother of God “Softening Evil Hearts” is also called “Simeon’s Prophecy.” It symbolically depicts the prophecy of Saint Simeon the God-Receiver, pronounced by him in the Jerusalem temple on the day of the Presentation of the Lord: And Simeon blessed them and said to Mary, His Mother: Behold, this one lies for the fall and for the uprising of many in Israel and for the subject of controversy - and to You The weapon itself will pierce the soul, so that the thoughts of many hearts will be revealed.

“Softening Evil Hearts” is written with swords stuck into Her heart - three on the right and left, one on the bottom. The number “seven” in the Holy Scriptures usually means the completeness, redundancy of something, and in this case, the fullness and vastness of the grief, sadness and “heart disease” that the Mother of God experienced during Her earthly life. Sometimes the Eternal Child is also written on the lap of the Most Pure Virgin.

The choice of the image of a sword in the icon is not accidental, since in human understanding it is associated with the shedding of blood.

There is another interpretation of the image of seven swords piercing the chest of the Blessed Virgin Mary. The seven arrows on the icon represent the fullness of the sorrow of the Mother of God. But She suffers now not because she sees the torment of her Son crucified on the cross; the soul of the Most Pure One is pierced by the sharp arrows of our sins. These are the seven main sinful passions of man. Every offense, every action that is provoked by an evil feeling, an unkind thought, turns those very arrows, or in other images - swords, in the chest of our very first Intercessor before God, causing pain to the loving heart of the Mother. And She, as we remember, is still ready to pray to the Son for each of us who resorts to Her holy intercession.

The image “Softening Evil Hearts” apparently comes from Southwestern Rus', but, unfortunately, there is no historical information about it; it is not even known where and when the image appeared.

This image is celebrated on All Saints Sunday (1st Sunday after Trinity).

Icon of the Mother of God “Seven Arrows”

Another miraculous image is also very close to “Softening Evil Hearts” - Icon of the Mother of God “Seven Arrows”. The only difference between them is that on the “Seven Shot” the swords are written differently - three on the right side of the Most Pure One and four on the left, and celebrations are performed for her August 13, old style.

According to legend, “Seven Strelnaya” is more than 500 years old, however, the features of the painting and the fact that it was painted on canvas pasted onto a board indicate a later origin - apparently, this list was made in the 18th century from an original that has not reached us.

The miraculous icon of the Mother of God “Seven Arrows” of North Russian origin. Before the revolution, she stayed in the St. John the Theological Church on the banks of the Toshni River, not far from Vologda. The legend about this icon is similar to many similar stories about miraculous images of the Mother of God revealed in visions.

A certain peasant of Kadnikovsky district suffered from lameness for many years and already despaired of the possibility of healing. One day, in a subtle dream, a Divine voice commanded him to find the image of the Most Holy Theotokos in the bell tower of the Theological Church, where the old icons were kept, and to pray with faith before it for the healing of his illness. Arriving at the temple, the peasant was not immediately able to fulfill what was indicated to him in the vision. Only after the peasant’s third request did the clergy, who did not believe his words, allow him to climb the bell tower. It turned out that the icon, covered with rubbish and dirt, seemed simple board served as a step in the staircase along which the bell ringers climbed. Horrified by this involuntary blasphemy, the clergy washed the image and served a prayer service in front of it, after which the peasant received complete healing.

In 1830, when most of European Russia, including the Vologda province, suffered a terrible cholera epidemic, the residents of Vologda surrounded the “Seven Arrow” icon with a solemn religious procession around the city. After which the cholera retreated as suddenly as it had come.

After 1917, the miraculous image disappeared from the Church of St. John the Theologian, and in 1930 services stopped there. In July 2001, the parish of the Church of St. John the Evangelist regained life, but the shrine has not yet returned to the temple.

In front of the icon of the Most Holy Theotokos “Seven Arrows”, or “Softening of Evil Hearts”, they pray in case of enmity or persecution, for the pacification of those at war, and also in the embitterment of the heart - for the gift of patience.

Icon of the Mother of God “Zhizdrinskaya Passionate”

There is also another image of the Mother of God, which has its own special history, which directly bears the name “And a weapon will pierce your very soul” (aka “Zhizdrinskaya Passionate”). In this icon, the Most Holy Theotokos is depicted in a position of prayer; With one hand She supports the Child lying at Her feet, and with the other she covers Her chest from seven swords aimed at it.

The miraculous "Sofrin" icon

Among the miraculous lists of the “Softening Evil Hearts” icon, the myrrh-streaming icon, revealed in Russia at the end of the 20th century, currently enjoys special veneration. This icon, produced by printing at the Russian enterprise Orthodox Church"Sofrino" was purchased in an ordinary church shop.

On May 3, 1998, its owner Margarita Vorobyova noticed that myrrh was flowing down the surface of the icon. The story of myrrh-streaming and bleeding is simply amazing. In 1999, before the bombings of houses in Moscow, the face of the Mother of God on the Icon changed, dark circles appeared under the eyes, and the apartment began to smell of incense. On August 12, 2000, the day of the sinking of the Kursk submarine, tiny bleeding wounds appeared on the Icon of the Mother of God. Since then, the image has been myrrh-streaming and bleeding constantly. It flows myrrh so abundantly that people collect it in liters. And it bleeds on the eve of tragic events, while the examination showed that the blood is human, of the first group...

It is the LIVING Mother of God who greets people who come to bow to Her in different ways, healing some, helping others, others cannot even approach the Seven-Shot Icon... for example, in the courtyard of the Optina Hermitage, in Yasenevo, where the image is often seen on Sundays , one woman was noticed, she always asks men to let her venerate the Icon by force. All those possessed break out with superhuman strength, and they themselves cannot approach the shrine. But each time the resistance weakens.

Moreover, the Mother of God chooses her own path... repeatedly they simply could not take Her to her destination, as they say “they got lost in three pines” and forgot the way to where they had been many times before... “the Icon does not go”...

Hundreds of believers come to pray before this image, asking to soften the hearts of enemies, to ease the suffering of relatives and friends, and receive consolation. It is impossible to remember all the amazing testimonies and miracles performed by the Icon of the Mother of God and not to list the names of all the sick who were healed and those who asked who received peace.

To store it in the village of Bachurino near Moscow was built chapel(Address: Moscow region, Leninsky district, village of Bachurino. Directions: 3 km from the Moscow Ring Road along the Kaluga highway until the turn to the agricultural Kommunarka (after the Mostransgaz building)). For more than 15 years, the keeper of the icon has been Margarita’s husband, Sergei.

Temple-chapel in honor of the Icon of the Mother of God (Softener of Evil Hearts), village of Bachurino

The myrrh-streaming icon visited many dioceses in Russia, and also visited abroad several times - in Belarus, Ukraine and Germany. Many people who worshiped this image of the Queen of Heaven with love and reverence testified to cases of healing and the feeling of special spiritual joy that they felt from touching the shrine. On January 27-29, 2009, the myrrh-streaming icon of the Most Holy Theotokos “Softening Evil Hearts” was in the Cathedral of Christ the Savior in Moscow on Local Council Russian Orthodox Church. In the presence of this shrine, as well as the miraculous Theodore Icon of the Mother of God, the election and enthronement of the new Primate of the Russian Orthodox Church took place - His Holiness Patriarch Moscow and All Rus' Kirill. As eyewitnesses testify, after the election of the 16th Patriarch of Moscow and All Rus' Kirill, the icon of the Mother of God “Softening Evil Hearts,” located on the analogue in the Cathedral of Christ the Savior, flowed abundantly with myrrh.

Now the world-famous icon, almost without interruption, is on pilgrimages around the world from the USA to Australia, from Mount Athos to Far East. And wherever this icon appears, extraordinary events and miracles occur: the icon generously pours out its healing myrrh, other icons begin to flow myrrh, people are healed of incurable diseases, and an endless miracle of softening evil hearts occurs.

In the Murmansk church, the baby, whom his mother placed next to the icon, suddenly said loudly and clearly: “She is crying!” And everything fell into place. Truly, “through the mouth of a baby the truth speaks,” for it became clear what we are witnessing, why this miracle was given to us, what exactly the image of the Queen of Heaven pours out to us in the form of this crystal clear and fragrant world. These are the tears of the Mother of God. She cries for us. About the hardness of our hearts. About the world retreating from Her Son - Christ our God.

Prayer
O Many-sorrowful Mother of God, who surpassed all the daughters of the earth in Her purity and in the multitude of sufferings You brought to the earth! Accept our much-painful sighing and keep us under the roof of Your mercy, for refuge and warm intercession are not known to You, but, as we have boldness towards the One who was born of You, help and save us with Your prayers, so that we may unfalteringly reach the Kingdom of Heaven, where with all the saints we will sing praises to the One God in the Trinity, always, now, and ever, and unto ages of ages. Amen.

Troparion, tone 5
Soften our evil hearts, Mother of God, / and extinguish the misfortunes of those who hate us, / and resolve every tightness of our soul, / looking at Your holy image, / We are touched by Your compassion and mercy for us, / and we kiss Your wounds, / Our arrows, You tormenting, we are horrified. / Do not let us, Mother of the Compassionate, / perish in our hardness of heart and from the hardness of our neighbors, // For you are truly the softener of evil hearts.

Kontakion, tone 2
By Thy grace, O Lady, / soften the hearts of evildoers, / send down benefactors, keeping them from all evil, / to those who earnestly pray to Thee // before Thy honorable icons.