Saydnaya “Icon of the Orient“

In her book “Saydnaya: History and Antiquities“Rama Elias Kiriaki Gives Saydnaya the title of “Icon of the Orient“. A title Saydnaya deserves with honor because it beholds many churches, convents, and temples, a unique assortment that qualified it to become a supreme religious tourist complex. The Saydnaya Convent or Convent of the Lady, located at the highest point in the town, comes second in importance after Jerusalem. When it witnessed the emergence of Christianity, Saydnaya was known as Danaba, a name it continued to bear until it reached its golden age when the Byzantine emperors embraced the new faith. Danaba, then, became a great religious center and sustained that position until the start of the eighteenth century.During that period it began to be known as Saydnaya, which means Home of Our Lady (Mary the Virgin) or home of therapy. The Greeks occupied Danaba at the end of the fourth century B.C and ruled it for more than four hundred years. Later, despite the hegemony of the Roman Empire over the Arab land, Greek culture, language and concepts of life continued to prevail. No other place in the Levant has so numerous churches and monasteries as Saydnaya has.

Unfortunately nobody knows the exact history of these religious centers, the most important of which is the Convent of the Lady, the Shaghoura, the monasteries of the Revelation, the Sherobim, Mar Taqla, and the churches of Saint Peter, St. John, St. Ajasophia, St. Saba, St. Christopher, St. Demetrius, St. Andraous, St. Simeon and many others. The Saydnaya Convent enjoys a wide reputation all over the world. Thousands of pilgrims visit it to have the bless. This convent is fifteen hundred years old. It was known as the Citadel because it was built at the top of a rocky plateau that looks at Saydnaya. Some people say that, originally, it was a citadel but nobody knows when the convent acquired its name. The convent has a library that has hundreds of manuscripts. Some of them say that the convent was built in the year547A.D. Historical sources state that Saydnaya was inhabited since the modern stone age,that is more than five thousand years ago. Evidence to that are the caves in the Sherobim and Mar taqla and other monasteries. The most famous of these caves is the Idol‘s Grotto. These caves were used as hiding places and safe havens by early Christians persecuted by the Roman soldiers After Syria won independence in 1946 Saydnaya witnessed a movement of urban development. The municipality issued an organizational plan for the town.

New roads were constructed. Municipal, administrative and health care services improved. Generally the infra structure was modernized Saydnaya, since old times, has a clear fresh water drawn from a well called the “Source Well“. Aqueducts since the Roman era were used to bring water to the town.In the thirties of the past century three water cisterns were built to distribute water in all the quarters and alleys of the town. Later, a new water pipe net was built to draw water from the Bisan Source, 22 km from Saydnaya. Due to the shortage of water in Saydnaya, people depended on rain fall to plant vine and fig trees,two trees that need less water than others. Historian Yaqout al- Hamwi described Saydnaya: “a town near Damascus known for its vineyards. Saydnayans believe that after the Biblical Flood, Noah planted the first vine tree in their town“. Due to the abundance of vine trees Saydnaya produces molasses, resin and wine. Every family used to make its annual needs of molasses and wine either domestically or in collective presses. Presently, after the recession of agriculture in the town, new careers and professions began to appear.Public transportation became a main activity in Saydnaya because it serves tourism well and helps local residents to communicate with the capital and with neighboring towns. Religious tourism flourished in Saydnaya. As a result many new restaurants were opened to serve the flocks of daily visitors. Most of these restaurants were built at the main square and at the entrance of the town. Aside from the hotel of Ras al Amoud, hotels are still few. Tourists, especially pilgrims, prefer to spend the nights in the convents where they are well pampered by the nuns, a habit still being observed since old times. The dry air, healthy and pollution free atmosphere of Saydnaya encouraged the establishment of hospitals and clinics that offer services to the sick and healthy people alike. Another factor that promoted tourism in the town.

 Recently the “Syrian Universe Society“built two observatories in Mar Taqla and Sherobim convents. Saydnaya has about 250 hundred clear starry nights in the year, a privilege that encourages amateur astronomers to visit Saydnaya to spend long hours gazing into the unknown. “The Shaghoura“The Shaghoura is an Icon placed in a small dark room in the Convent of the Lady. The room is lit with candles and oil lanterns. In the Eastern wall there is a small deep window with a silver lattice decorated with gold and silver chains and crosses; gifts to the icon known to be offered by visitors since old times. In the window there is the Icon of Mary the Virgin. People say it is one of four icons drawn by St. Luke in Jerusalem. Later it was brought to the Convent by a Christian pilgrim. In Syriac,the language of Jesus Christ, the icon is called Shaghoura or Shahoura, which means water erupting from a deep source.Beside the Shaghoura, there is a wealth of other icons that belong to the fifth, sixth and seventh centuries A.D.

Haifaa Mafalani