Vasil’s story is simple, lively and imaginative, alien, as we chazaki are, to lyricism. He only once cites the text of the prophet, which at that time was not on the lips of spiritual persons, as opposition to revenge; paganism, always in agreement with the natural instincts of man, patronized this feeling, elevate it to a virtue; The teachers of the new faith insisted that God is an avenger, and it is best to place vengeance on Him, according to the words of the prophet: “He will give vengeance to the enemy and to those who hate him.” This is the saying Basil cites after he mentioned Vasilko’s execution of those advisers of David who gave him the idea to blind Vasilko: “Behold, do not create the second torment (Vasilko) so that God the avenger would beat him, as the prophet said,” etc. The author amazes you with his impartiality, and, at the same time, stands at the moral heights of a practical Christian. He never once pronounces judgment on the villainous act of Svyatopolv and David, which another narrator of his time would not hesitate to do, but the judgment is in the hands of the reader, before whom sedition and perjury are so clearly and thoroughly outlined. He is somewhat stricter towards Vasilko alone, but only because he demands more from him, as from an innocent victim. But in his mind, it was not appropriate for such a sufferer to take revenge. Nevertheless, the personalities of the princes in Vasil’s story are unusually fully outlined from the moral side. Vasiyko appears in an attractive light. Explaining to the author his military intentions, which gave reason to fear him, he speaks openly about his noble intentions and at the same time condemns himself for arrogance, for trusting in these plans: “But behold, I will tell you: in truth, as God has brought upon me for my exaltation, as if news has come to infuse me with Berendnch and Pechenesi to Tortsn, and said in his mind: Berendnch and Pechenea and Thordn will also be with me, I said to my brother Volodarev and Davydov: let me be your young squad, and you yourself will drink and have fun. And I thought:
[fragment illegible in the scan of the first edition]
I will enter the village of Lyadskaya for the winter - I will take revenge on the Russian land. And therefore, I want to ask Svyatopolv and Volodymer to take over Polovts, so that I may gain glory for myself, and I will lay down my head for the Russian land. - And behold, I swear by God and his coming, for I did not think of any harm to my brothers in any way, but for my ascension, God and humble me deposed me.
By repeating Vasilko’s words, the author apparently sympathizes with him here, and when talking about his suffering. But nowhere does he express his praise for him. In the entire legend, sympathy is expressed only for Vladimir Monomakh.
Was Vasil an eyewitness to the blinding? Of course he wasn't. And if he witnessed the blinding, then he also witnessed the capture of the prince and accompanied him to Zdvizhenye, and saw the priest washing the prince’s bloody shirt. But it’s not visible from anywhere. From all this, he knows what Vasilko could tell him. There was no way he could have witnessed all this. Vasilko was caught without his people, and he was not his man. Go to your father-in-law, and not to your master, David tells him, sending him to Vasilko, with whom he became close at the Vakeev yard in Vladimir and first learned about Vasilko’s plans. Neither Svyatopolk nor David could send him with the executioners; he was not one of the people like the Dazzling Dream. So where did he get all these details?
By persuading Vasilko to place vengeance on God, he could calm the prince’s vengeful soul with a promise to describe the atrocity so that what had happened would be known to all the brother princes and all Russian people. For this purpose, Vasilko could tell him all his impressions since they were sent to the Vydubitsky monastery to invite him to Svyatopolk for his name day.
No one except the sufferer himself could convey with such accuracy all the circumstances of the event. The blind man remembered the moment when Torchin sharpened the knife in his eyes, and how they pressed him with boards before the terrible torture. Calling for righteous judgment, Vasilko tried to recognize all the people of the Svyatopolkovs during the journey: even before he became blind, he traveled ten miles with them and could find out that Torchin’s name was Berendi: he could have known the rest of the Svyatopolkovs’ men before.
REPRESENTATION ABOUT ROSTISLAVA'S CORNFLOWERS CH®.