vahruh nuhsdeer vohr vehruh kehzee dehgh dahn

Genuine humility is the hallmark of a great person. This proverb illustrates the premium attributed to the quality of humility, which was appreciated in Armenian social circles. It suggests that being humble is a necessary trait for progress in the Armenian social hierarchy.

One understanding of humility is “not seeking to be honored for one’s service.” This is emphasized by the Armenian proverb, “lahvoutoiun uhreh chouruh nehdeh, tzouguh cheemanah, ahstuhvadz geemahnah – Do a good deed, then throw into the waters, if the fish doesn’t know about it, God will.”

When a humble person performs a good deed without any personal motive than to help another, it attracts the attention of good people. Such unselfish acts of humble persons are appreciated and eventually rewarded with loving exchanges and kind reciprocation. For the humble person, there is no demand for recognition. Rather, one acts out of pure goodness for the welfare of others and with a happy sense of self-sacrifice. It is the nature of the person to do good without any craving for praise or personal vaunting.

The Armenian King Tigran the Great, who ruled from 96 BC to 55 BC, is an example of a great and powerful king who humbled himself to save his nation from ruin. Tigran the Great built up a powerful empire that stretched from the Caspian sea to the Mediterranean and up to the Black Sea. He conquered the ancient Seleucid Empire and most of the Parthian Empire. He was one of the most powerful kings of his time.

When King Tigran was 75 years old, a huge Roman army under the command of Pompey with the help of one of Tigran’s sons reached the gates of King Tigran’s capital city of Tigranagerd. At the same time, a Parthian army attacked Armenia from another direction. Tigran realized his country’s vulnerability.

Rather than think of his own safety or personal ambition, he courageously rode out of his besieged capital alone and unarmed toward the the Roman army. He came before Pompey and humbled himself.
Pompey was impressed by the bravery and humility of King Tigran the Great who had the title “the king of kings.” Pompey took the opportunity to negotiate a treaty. King Tigran offered the Roman general all his conquered territories outside of traditional Armenia and a large sum of tribute. In return, he asked the general to spare his kingdom and people from the ravages of war and plunder. Pompey was pleased at the settlement because he could return to Rome with immense gains of land and wealth without any losses. This is an example of the proverb “it is better to have an intelligent enemy than a foolish friend.”

King Tigran’s son became outraged that the Roman general did not take his father prisoner and make the him the new king of Armenia. Pompey forcibly took the son, who was married to the Parthian king’s daughter, back to Rome as a “guarded ambassador” of the Parthian kingdom which was allied with Rome.

King Tigran continued to rule Armenia which enjoyed great prosperity, safety and cultural development due to his wisdom. He was a brave and humble king who put the interests of his people above his own ambitions and self-interest.

The Bible describes this world and its many falsely proud rulers with all their vainglorious endeavors as “vanity of vanities, it is all vanity.” A king or prominent ruler usually has a large retinue of followers who flatter him profusely in order to cull favors. There was a king named Canute. He was a Viking king who extended his kingdom from Denmark and Norway to England. He was one of the greatest monarchs of medieval Europe. His political and military skills enabled him to consolidate a powerful kingdom.

There is a legend that King Canute the Great had learned that his flattering courtiers claimed he was “So great, he could command the tides of the sea to go back”. King Canute was a religious man who knew his limitations. He was not vain or foolish to believe his courtiers’ flattery. As a clever politician, he wanted to put an end to useless claims by his courtiers and at the same instruct his people about the worldly limitations of kings. He commanded that his throne be carried to the seashore. King Canute sat on his royal throne as the tide came in, commanding the waves to advance no further. When they didn’t, he made his point that, though the deeds of kings might appear ‘great’ in the minds of men, they were nothing in the face of God’s power. King Canute vividly demonstrated the vanity of earthly powers in the face of heavenly power.

There was once a great king in India who had immense wealth and power. On approaching death, he ordered that a special coffin be built for him with a hole on each side. He ordered his heirs, “When I die, I want my body put in this special coffin with two holes through which my bare hands should be shown. My subjects should see that I left this world with my hands empty even though I possess such immense wealth and power. As the Bible says, “Dust thou art and dust thou shalt become.”

There is an Armenian proverb that says,

dzahruh vohrkhan buhdough guh pehree
kuhloughuh avehli khohnahr guh bahee

However much fruit a tree gives, it humbles its head that much more.

The English scientist and philosopher, Sir Isaac Newton wrote in a memoir,

“I do not know what I may appear to the world, but to myself I seem to have been only like a boy playing on the sea-shore, and diverting myself in now and then finding a smoother pebble or a prettier shell than ordinary, whilst the great ocean of truth lay all undiscovered before me.”

In other words,
“All I have discovered is a few grains of sand in the vast ocean of knowledge.” It is more apparent to a truly great scientist and thinker to be humbled before the majesty and complexity of God’s creation.”