A gift from above is not always a gift from fate. Sometimes it turns into fate, a curse. And yet, those who happened to be the keepers of the gift were not afraid to give their lives for it. For them it was happiness - after all, this is how they approached their cherished dream … The Holy Grail - the cup of prosperity - brought only death to its keepers. Why, then, did they consider it an honor not only to take care of her, but also to just be around? And they were ready to lay down their heads for her: after all, the hope shone before them to be saved into eternal life.
Where does this conviction come from? Faith alone, however ardent, is not enough for a person. The Grail itself told them about this: after all, the chalice endowed with the gift of foresight anyone who touched it …
Treasure keepers
According to some sources, the Grail is the goblet from which Jesus and his disciples drank during the Last Supper; according to others, the cup in which Joseph of Arimathea collected the blood of Jesus nailed to the cross. Still others believe that we are talking about the same vessel: the blood of Christ flowed into the cup from which He drank at his last meal …
The Holy Grail appeared to the world in distant Palestine. She appeared to disappear and return from oblivion after centuries already in Europe - as a myth, as a legend, as a symbol. Why did the bowl end up here?
There is a legend that Mary Magdalene fled from the Holy Land from the persecution of the Romans: in this way she saved herself and saved the Holy Grail from desecration. Fate brought her to the coast of France, in the vicinity of Marseille. There Mary Magdalene preached the teachings of Christ, and there she was buried, and her relics are still venerated in these places. Until the end of her days, Mary remained the keeper of the cup. Who, after her death, should be entrusted with this high mission? Who is that Christian, whose pure soul and selfless faith are worthy of such a high reward and such a heavy cross as the fate of the keeper of the shrine? And how to look for the next guardian when the earthly path of the "heir" of Mary Magdalene ends?
Mary's followers and students studied many manuscripts and court chronicles of Brittany, France, Ireland and many other countries. And, finally, they figured out where a people could live if they were pure enough and sufficiently inclined to a detached life to accept the mission of the eternal keepers of the cup. They found what they were looking for in the south of France, in the Duchy of Anjou. Ultimately, the honor of keeping the Grail was entrusted to the Mazadan family. And for many centuries, members of this clan passed on the shrine from generation to generation.
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And so it happened: the Grail gathered around itself outstanding people - thinkers and philosophers, religious mystics and ascetics, united in a religious community. They took a fresh look at the dogmas of the Catholic Church that had developed by that time. In addition, due to the proximity to the sacred cup, many secret knowledge was revealed to them. Therefore, one of their postulates was belief in a new incarnation, in a new life after suffering death. They called themselves the ancient Greek word "katharos", which meant "pure."
Christianity, professed by the Cathars, the knowledge and ideas that the keepers of the cup carried to the world, over the years more and more differed from traditional religious dogmas. And the official church, sensing a serious rival, declared them apostates. It turns out that the Cathars are the first heretics in medieval history. By the way, the word "heretic" is the Greek word "cathar", which is pretty distorted by the French pronunciation.
Clash of two faiths
The XII century was the heyday of the Cathars. Peace and quiet reigned in the Duchy of Anjou, literature and art flourished. The inhabitants of the seaside towns became famous as successful and courageous merchants; Provencal chivalry was distinguished by valor and refinement of manners, and wandering poets glorified the Beautiful Lady … Meanwhile, the Catholic Inquisition was raging in Europe, the Pope's servants hunted witches and traded in indulgences, and the clergy corrupted by the government indulged in all kinds of vices.
The power of the ruling church began to burst at the seams: the Catholic rulers lost their monopoly on religion, ceased to be the greatest collective feudal lord - the tight-fisted French bourgeois preferred the Cathar church: after all, they did not demand impressive donations and did not build magnificent temples.
There is nothing surprising in the fact that by the end of the 12th century the Grail keepers could well afford to compete with the Catholics - not only in terms of popularity among the people, but also in terms of church organization. They even had their own bishops. And the most distinguished lords openly expressed their sympathy for the heretics.
Reward for asceticism
Why did the notorious Cathars attract people so much? Naturally, not only unselfishness, although this is a lot. The Qatari teaching must have comforted sinners a lot: those who did not manage to get to heaven at the end of their earthly life will have the opportunity to be born again. And in this new incarnation, he will gain an understanding of spiritual truths that will lead a person into the arms of God. The Qatari faith is comforting, in contrast to the categorical Christianity, which did not give hope for revival, sent either to heaven or hell. In addition, the religious duties of the heretical flock were almost minimal, and the cult itself was very simple. Is it any wonder that Cathars have become so popular? Companions and common people called them Perfect. They - both men and women - traveled the roads of France preaching their teachings.
The poison of heresy
The popularity of the Qatari faith increasingly worried the official church. In 1178, the ruler of Toulouse, Count Raymond V, a passionate champion of Catholicism, wrote to the Pope in fear: “Heresy has penetrated everywhere, it sowed discord in all families, dividing husband and wife, son and father, daughter-in-law and mother-in-law. The priests themselves succumbed to the infection, the churches are empty and destroyed.
As for me, I am doing everything possible to stop this scourge, but I feel that my strength is not enough to complete this task. The most distinguished people of my land have succumbed to vice. The crowd followed their example, and now I dare not and cannot suppress evil."
Raymond du Fogue, a representative of one of the most aristocratic families of the city., Who later became the bishop of Toulouse, recalled: "… this city and almost the entire region were then so completely and regrettably poisoned by the poison of heresy that it seemed that the Church of Christ had to abandon these places and the Catholic faith will perish, strangled by thorny bushes and thorns of vicious teachings."
Internecine wars
And now the Pope decides to fight the apostates, especially since, having lost control of the region, he lost all income in the form of church fees. The reason for the beginning of the crusade against the Cathars was the death under unclear circumstances in 1208 of the papal legate Pierre Castelnau. “We command the entire population to arm themselves against the heretics … We will grant to all who take part in this campaign for the preservation of the law the same indulgence as the one received by those who visit St. Peter in Rome.
All who will support the heretics will be excommunicated, as will everyone who will render them the slightest help or who will share their shelter with them,”the Pope wrote in his decree on this matter.
In the winter of 1209, under the banner of the crusade, the warriors of Northern and Central France, fighting squads from German lands, and simply those who simply wanted to profit, stood up. Toulouse alone was attacked by 30,000 knights, not counting the townspeople, villans and clergy. At the head of this army was Simon de Montfort, hardened in battles with the "infidels", as well as the abbot of the mighty Sito monastery Arno-Amaprik, who is credited with the legendary parting words to stormtroopers: "Kill everyone, God recognizes his own!" They marched through the south of France with fire and sword, wiping villages and cities off the face of the earth. Toulouse held out the longest, but in the end she too laid down her arms.
It is here that it is appropriate to ask the question: was the Pope interested only in church fees and only heresy as such? After all, the reason for the crusade, as a rule, was the symbols of faith. In the case of the Cathars, this was the holy grail. For such a shrine, church commanders were ready to sweep more than one city from the face of the earth and destroy more than one thousand human lives.
There is a people's war
But the adherents of the Cathars went to death fearlessly. After all, they knew that not just a resurrection in paradise, but a new life on earth dear to their hearts awaited them.
Either flaring up, then subside again, the war continued for more than forty years - until 1243. The last stronghold of Cathar resistance was a very small fortress - Monsegur. Having settled in the castle, the Cathars rebuilt it according to their own needs: the citadel acquired a pentagonal shape. Since all other centers of their faith had already fallen under the onslaught of the crusaders, the Cathars had no choice but to move their main shrine to Montsegur.
It was a tough nut to crack - anyone who dared to storm the castle directly would be immediately smashed to smithereens. The only way for the conqueror is the steep eastern ridge with secret mountain paths known only to local old-timers. Apparently, a traitor was found among them, who showed the way to the conquerors. On the eve of Christmas 1243, the enemy was at the walls of the fortress. After holding out for several weeks, Montsegur nevertheless fell. On the last day of February 1243, the crusaders dragged two hundred Perfect On the steep slope that separated the castle of Montsegur from the field, which has since been called the Field of the Burnt, and they sent every one to the fire.
But the zealous Catholics failed to find the treasure! How the Cathars managed to take out their shrine is still unknown. There is a version that the four Perfect ones managed to escape, carrying away the Holy Grail.
At the crossroads of history
So why did the Cathars sacrifice themselves? Why, knowing in advance about their impending terrible death (recall that a person who touches the chalice acquires the gift of a seer), did they not prevent it?
In all the manuscripts that tell about the fate of the sacred cup, it is said that the Grail appeared on the eve of great events in the history of mankind: at the dawn of Christianity, at the beginning of the era of internecine wars for the faith, its appearance marked the heyday of the Renaissance, and after it the 17th century, the origins of our technocratic civilization … Was it not for this that many thousands of adherents of the "pure" faith laid down their heads?
Maybe today's interest in the Grail is not accidental? After all, the history of mankind stalls, driven into a dead end by its own grandiose achievements …
Who knows, maybe the next phenomenon of the Holy Grail promises a new round in the development of our civilization?
In 1956, scientists from the Arniezh Archaeological Society headed by Fernand Casta came to grips with Monsegur. At first, nails, clay products, utensils, fragments of weapons and other trifles were extracted from the excavations. This continued until August 1964, when in one of the drops, 80 meters from the fortress, researchers found the remains of a throwing machine and a pile of stones-shells. Clearing the blockage, archaeologists were amazed to see a drawing on the outer side of the wall, which turned out to be a plan of an underground passage going from the foot of the wall to the gorge. Still not fully believing in their happiness, the researchers set about searching for the underground passage itself. At times, it seemed that all this exhausting work was just a pursuit of a non-existent dream, but the scientists did not give up. The reward was not long in coming - they did find an underground labyrinth!But a terrible sight appeared to the gaze of the researchers: two skeletons clutching halberds in their hands. The defenders of the dungeon, apparently, were killed immediately: an arrowhead protruded in the eye socket of one, the shaft of a spear pierced through the chest of another.
So those killed in the dungeon were undoubtedly Perfect. We found out where two of the four mentioned in the Chronicles ended their earthly journey. But about the probable place of stay of two more people make legends and build versions. Presumably, the Perfect ones found help and support from brothers in spirit - the knights of the Order of the Temple. It was the Templars, according to legend, who became the new keepers of the Holy Grail … After all, it cannot be that the Cathars disappeared without a trace, depriving humanity of the opportunity to even look out of the corner of the eye at the Holy Grail, emitting a mysterious light and endowing with all-pervasive knowledge!
Legend also says that even Nostradamus was involved in the sacred goblet … Isn't it from this goblet of the Last Supper that the gift of clairvoyance came to a simple doctor? And isn't that why he prophesied by 2030 the era of Prosperity - the hour when the cup will again appear to the world and humanity will gain secret knowledge by touching the longed-for Grail ?!
V. Abso. “Interesting newspaper. Magic and mysticism №19 2009