Address: Russia, Nizhny Novgorod region, s. Vladimirskoe
Depth: about 34 m.
Coordinates: 56 ° 49'07.3 "N 45 ° 05'34.5" E
Content:
Short description
In 130 km from Nizhny Novgorod, on the outskirts of the village of Vladimirskoye, standing on the banks of the Lunda River, there is the mysterious Lake Svetloyar. Sometimes this lake is called a small Russian Atlantis.
Bird's eye view of Lake Svetloyar
A legend about the city of Kitezh is associated with Svetloyar, which has survived to this day in the literary processing of the Old Believers... The "Kitezh Chronicler" reports that Prince Yuri Vsevolodovich, wandering along the Volga on a ship, erected the city of Maly Kitezh (presumably the present Gorodets). Having passed the rivers Uzolu, Sandu and Kerzhenets, the prince came to Lake Svetloyar. Fascinated by the beauty of this place, Yuri ordered to build the city of Big Kitezh on the shores of the lake.
For three years of construction (1165 - 1168) a majestic city was erected from stone and many Orthodox churches were built in it. In 1239, the armies of the impious and godless Khan Batu moved to Russia. Soon the hordes of Tatar-Mongols captured Small Kitezh, and Prince Yuri with his retinue took refuge in the forests near Big Kitezh. One of Batu's captives, Grishka Kuterma, could not bear the torture, betrayed his compatriots and showed the enemies the way to the great city. Batu found Yuri's refuge and killed him.
Birch alley to the lake
And here the legend is closely intertwined with reality - in fact, the Grand Duke laid down his head in an unequal battle with the Mongols on the City River in 1238. According to legend, on the eve of Batu's attack, the patrol in Kitezh was carried by three heroes who warned the townspeople of the danger. Many people fell from the swords of enemies, and three heroes perished, blocking the path of the khan's army. And in the place where three warriors stood to death for their hail, the holy spring of Kibelek appeared, the water in which still beats.
On the shore of Lake Svetloyar
The inhabitants of Kitezh did not erect any fortifications and did not even try to defend themselves, they turned with fervent prayer to God to prevent foreigners from visiting them. God heeded the prayer, and when the hordes rushed into the attack, from the ground suddenly flooded high-water springs, which began to flood the city. The Mongols retreated in fear.
Like Atlantis, the city sank under water, only one lone dome of the cathedral could be seen above the lake surface, but it soon disappeared too. But Kitezh survived: in clear, calm weather from the depths of Svetloyar you can hear the lingering singing of people and the bell ringing, and in the clear waters of the lake you can see the domes of churches and monasteries.
The trail around the lake
Svetloyar - the sacred lake of ancient Russia
Even before the adoption of Christianity by Russia, the lake was considered sacred - rituals were arranged on its banks in honor of the Slavic sun god Yarila, from which the name came - Svetly Yar. Today Lake Svetloyar is a center of pilgrimage for both pagans and Orthodox. Every year on July 6, Christians from all over Russia come to Svetloyar and make a procession around the lake in honor of the feast of the Vladimir Icon of the Mother of God. In the evening, a pagan celebration begins here - on the night of July 6-7, people celebrate the day of Ivan Kupala.
Church of the Kazan Icon of the Mother of God on the shore of the lake
People kindle fires, throw wreaths on the water surface and go around the lake with candles in their hands. There is a belief that if you make a wish and walk around the lake 3 times, then your plan will definitely come true. During the Great Patriotic War, women made a pilgrimage around Lake Svetloyar, praying for the salvation of the lives of their sons and husbands who went to the front.
Hypotheses about the origin of Lake Svetloyar
The fact that the origin of Svetloyar has not been clarified until now adds to the mystery of the lake. The natural scientist V.V.Dokuchaev attributed it to lakes of karst origin. Geologist GI Blom, after drilling a well, concluded that Svetloyar is a typical glacial lake, which is a remnant of the ancient channel of the Lunda River.
Stone with a pile of the Virgin on Lake Svetloyar
It was also hypothesized that the basin of the reservoir was formed as a result of faults in the earth's crust and erosion of rocks. In 2009, Svyatoslav Engalychev, an employee of the St. Petersburg All-Russian Geological Research Institute, published the results of his research, confirming the version that the lake owes its origin to a meteorite that fell to the ground. In 1968, an expedition organized by Literaturnaya Gazeta detailed the complex topography of the Svetloyar bottom.
View of the lake Svetloyar
The central deep-sea bowl is framed by two underwater terraces. The expedition members proposed a hypothesis according to which the lake is very young in terms of geological time. So, the central basin was formed about 1200 years ago, and the immersion of the lower terrace under water took place about 8 centuries ago, which quite accurately corresponds to the time when the city of Kitezh sank, miraculously escaping from the Mongol-Tatars.
