Note: Supplement to Machiavelli's "The Prince" and Arpiar's "The Red Offering" (See link below).
Vahe H. Apelian
“Red Offering” was a must read for the students of my generation attending Armenian schools in Lebanon.
*****
“ – When are you returning Der Hayr, asked Hayrabed Effendi
- Truthfully speaking, I do not know for sure. A new patriarch will be elected soon. I hope that the His Holiness Srpazan will allow me to return. My absence has been way too long. The villagers are waiting for my return. There is a lot to do.
- Did you hear how your village fared? Were there lots of misfortunes that befell upon them too?
- From that standpoint, thankfully Effendi, I heard that our village fared well.
- Really? That is some miracle.
- Effendi, it is not just a mere miracle.
- What is it then?
- Our boys were thoughtful and had bought and kept a few guns. They also had learned marksmanship. When the marauding crowd attacked the village, the boys retaliated, and the attackers ran fleeing for their lives. The boys pursued them and also came to the aid of other villages as well, salvaging them from attacks. What can I say Effendi? If every town and every village had prepared itself, nothing would have happened to them.
Upon hearing the information, the Effendi became pensive and stayed silent. He was realizing that the popular wisdom was in having guns and in being trained to use them. Curiosity got better hold of him and quizzed Der Houssig more. The effendi remained wondering how was it that the inhabitants of an obscure far away village had foreseen the coming.
The priest let Effendi Hayrabed know of the preparations they had over the years distancing himself and attributing everything to the group of the young men in the village.
- H~ey, hey — said the effendi - we thought we are Armenian too, as if we had an important role to play in the nation The people, on their own, knew much better what prudence called for.
After experiencing the maltreatment and the humiliation, the effendi had become a nervous wreck. He desperately needed someone to confide to him his bitter heart. He felt an unabated urge to confess. He poured all that was tormenting his soul to the priest. Der Houssig realized the broken soul of the affluent man. He did not want to see the man enfeebled more. On the contrary, he attempted to restore his soul, to salvage him from his despondency, to invigorate him. Hayrabed Effendi was a force who had to be freed from his state of despondency. Der Houssig had such thoughts from the moment he met his old nemesis once again, consequently he attempted to counter his desperation.
- Effendi – said Der Houssig – do not say such things. All Armenians who love their nation and desire the best for it, do not necessarily think alike. Who can predict the future in all certainty? Especially nowadays, our nation is in a such state that where what is deemed to be to its favor in one place, could be detrimental in some other place. Things that may be the cause of the demise in one place, could be salvation in another place. True, that our village did not experience any disaster thanks to the guns the people had, but I heard that here, nothing happened in Ortakiugh.
- Yes, thank God, here in Ortakiugh no one’s nose bled – in a visible humility replied Hayrabed Effendi – the guardian of the Ortakiugh.
- But Ortakiugh also did not resort to guns – continued Der Houssig, but the district was salvaged thanks to your directives driven by cautionary farsightedness. You see, in one place political conduct can be helpful and in other places the conduct of guns. The Armenians should attend to their safety according to the needs of their circumstances.
The more Hayrabed Effendi listened to Der Houssig the more he liked him. He realized that the Armenian villager from the interior of the country possessed not only a strong character, but also was a very intelligent man and very considerate. Der Houssig’s words lightened the heavy load from his soul. He thought for himself if the nation had priests like Der Houssig, the nation would not be in want of others. At that very moment, he made a vow that he will invest all his efforts to prepare priests like Der Houssig. This vow uplifted his soul. He felt a renewed person. His life had a higher calling now. What is past, has passed. It was time to look for the future. All his thoughts were crystalizing in him thanks to the words he was hearing from Der Houssig.
It was getting dark. Hayrabed Effendi stood up to take his leave.
- Der Hayr- he said – we may not meet again for a long time. God be with you on your way home. Should your village need anything, please send word to me through the patriarchate and I will attend to them.
- May God have us not in want of anything, Effendi.
Hayrabed Effendi took a step towards Der Houssig to kiss his hands, as he grabbed Der Houssig’s hand, he took a small purse full of gold coins from his pocket and wanted to place in Der Houssig’s palm. Der Houssig retreated.
- I beg you Effendi, do not feel obliged. I am not in need of anything. There are many who are in more needs that I.
- No, Der Hayr - said Hayrabed Effendi – this is not for you. And with a solemn voice whispered:
- It is for the people to buy gun powder, guns. Prudence is in the guns. “Those who do not take the sword, die by the sword.”
Der Houssig accepted the gift and looked at the Effendi’s face with a smile.
The eyes of the two met each other. In them burnt the thousand years’ hatred of the poor and the wealthy Armenians towards their enemy. "
*****
Arpiar Arpiarian was gunned down in Cairo in 1908. That was the third assassination attempt and the fatal. It is claimed that he wrote the book "Red Offering" between 1901 and 1902.The book was then written 120 years ago. What is noteworthy is that Hayrbed Effendi’s change of heart and making amends for his onetime opposition to Der Houssig by donating to him gold coins as his “Red Offering” towards purchasing guns, has dominated the narrative of the book through those past 120 years. Der Houssig's message, "You see, in one place political conduct can be helpful and in other places the conduct of guns. The Armenians should attend to their safety according to the needs of their circumstances" was ignored. Both protectorates, one resorting to guns, Der Houssig's village; and the other resorting to diplomacy, Hayrabed Effendi's district Ortakiugh, had fared well.
The attached is the cover of the book we read. For generations that cover very much embodied the message of the book, that the salvation is only with guns, as the popular Armenian saying goes. And in that narrative, the gun advocate Der Houssig’s message for softer policy as well, depending on the local needs, was completely ignored. Surely there is no denying that strength is the guarantor of security but that strength comes not only with military hardware but also in astute political leadership.
The broader interpretation of the message of the book, I believe, would have served the students and those who read the book much better.
Note: Machiavelli's "The Prince" and Arpiar's "Red Offering" (No.1):
http://vhapelian.blogspot.com/2021/12/machiavellis-prince-and-arpiars-red.html
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