Where the icon of the Theotokos Axion Esti is located today
The miraculous icon of the Theotokos Axion Esti is one of the most renowned icons of Mount Athos. Today, it is kept in the holy synthronon of the Protaton in Karyes and performs countless miracles.
The icon of the Theotokos Axion Esti is of the Eleousa or Glykofilousa type and serves as the «common protecting icon» of all the monasteries of Mount Athos. Within the frame of the icon, the seals of the 20 Monasteries of Mount Athos can be discerned.
What the icon of the Virgin Mary Axion Esti depicts
The renowned icon of the Theotokos Axion Estin follows the strict standards of Byzantine art and is adorned with a silver-gold cover and Byzantine decoration. It depicts the Virgin Mary holding the child Jesus Christ with her right hand. Jesus Christ holds a manuscript scroll in his right hand with the inscription «The Spirit of the Lord is upon Me... » while his left hand is beneath the veil (maphorion) of the Ever-Virgin Mary.
Find here: Icons of the Theotokos Axion Estin.
Τhe story of an unknown monk with the Icon of the Virgin Mary
According to ecclesiastical tradition, at the end of the 10th century, the icon of the Theotokos Axion Estin was initially located near the site of Adein, under the Russian Skete of Saint Andrew.
One day, an elder monk who resided there, departed with his attendant from the cell to visit the Protaton, intending to participate in a vigil.
The miracle associated with the Theotokos Axion Estin
During the attendant's stay at the cell, an unknown monk knocked on the door, asking for hospitality. The novice welcomed him and offered him lodging.
They began together to chant «Most honorable than the Cherubim…,» the ancient hymn of Kosmas the Poet, which was sung then as it is today, along with the Theotokian verses of the Ninth Ode («My soul magnifies the Lord…»).
However, the guest monk began the hymn differently, adding at the beginning of the hymn the previously unknown preamble «It is Truly meet…».
The elder monk’s novice, listening with admiration to the prelude, asked to have it written down so that he could chant it too. However, unable to find paper and ink, the unknown monk engraved the preamble with his finger onto a stone tablet. It is said that the stone softened like wax.
Upon completing the preamble, the unknown monk declared that from then on it should be chanted by all Orthodox Christians. After this incident, he disappeared.
The revelation for the unknown monk
When the elder monk returned from the vigil, the novice showed him the engraved stone and chanted the hymn as he had heard it. Upon hearing it for the first time and seeing the inscription, the elder recognized that it was a miraculous event.
Without delay, he transferred the stone to the elder monks of the nearby monastery. The conclusion was that the unknown monk was the Archangel Gabriel. He had descended from heaven to reveal the hymn in honor of the Most Holy Theotokos.
Why the icon of the Theotokos is called ‘Axion Esti’
Subsequently, the engraved stone was sent to Nicholas Chrysoverges, the Patriarch of Constantinople, who granted approval for the incorporation of the hymn into the liturgical life of the Church.
The icon of the Theotokos Axion Esti received its name from this miraculous event involving the engraved stone, because the Archangel Gabriel chanted the troparion to Theotokos «It is truly meet...» in front of the icon.
When is the feast of the Theotokos Axion Esti
The icon of the Theotokos Axion Esti was transferred to the Protaton, where an annual celebration was established to commemorate the miracle and honor the Virgin Mary. The Synaxis of the Theotokos Axion Esti is celebrated every year on June 11th.
Find here: Hand Painted Byzantine Icon with Theotokos Axion Esti.
