Agafia on the eve of Christmas

Опубликовано: 22 Декабрь 2021
на канале: ТВ МИРЭА
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From 11 to 12 December, a group of students and employees of RTU MIREA again visited the famous taiga hermit Agafya Lykova. Her health this fall underwent severe trials: in the fall, Agafya Karpovna suffered an illness, which gave complications to her left hand, which means that attention was especially needed.

Since 2011, RTU MIREA volunteers have been coming to the upper reaches of the Bolshoy Abakan River every year on the eve of the coming winter to provide assistance to the last representative of the Lykov family of the Old Believers. This year they built a new house for Agafya Karpovna, where the assistant to the taiga hermit, Deacon George, lives. Agafya Karpovna herself, who is alien to the material side of life, continues to live in her former prayerful hut. In September, a fire broke out there, but the dwelling miraculously survived, and workers who arrived from Altai were able to repair it. They sheathed the hut with planks on both sides, replaced and insulated the ceiling, so that it became warm in winter. Due to age and illness, Agafya Karpovna is already hard to carry firewood, besides, she tries to save them, so she heats the hut during the day only for cooking. Although the stock of firewood prepared in summer by RTU MIREA volunteers should be enough for the rest of the winter.

Now the hermit follows the rules of the Christmas fast: she bakes bread, prepares porridge, makes decoctions from fruits brought to her by volunteers. Life of Agafya Lykova includes daily hard work: she carries heavy firewood, prepares food, feeds dogs, goats, chickens and cats. Livestock this autumn and winter does not yield milk, the chickens have stopped laying eggs, but Agafya Karpovna does not lose heart, maintaining a kind smile and a bright mood.

RTU MIREA students decided to visit Agafya Karpovna and gave her a video with greetings and congratulations from the mainland: from the Metropolitanate of the Russian Orthodox Old Believers Church, from Father Vladimir from Orenburg. She thanked our students and personally the rector S.A. Kuja and Vice-Rector for Academy of Arts I.A. Tarasov for the fact that they provide an opportunity for our volunteers to visit her every year. Agafya Karpovna congratulated everyone on the coming Christmas and invited the students to visit for the next year.