“Freedom is the Highest Blessing” – Shahamir Shahamirian, “Snare of Glory”

“The nation needs to be its own king and control its country. People must stay free in the way meant by God. God has given Adam authority over nature but not over intelligent beings. Thereby, no one can rule people except for God. People are born equal.

Since the human is gifted with intelligence, he mustn’t obey another human as even animals don’t tolerate lordship. If an intelligent being obeys a tyrant just because the latter has the opportunity for dooming him to death, then such a death can be inflicted even by an insignificant scorpion, by a rotten snake, and therefore, any venomous animal can be his lord.

If people want to stay free, rule over their country, freely make use of their property, and receive honors in accordance with their deeds, then no one and nothing other than the law can be their overlord.

In nature itself reigns a unique kind of order: everything including living beings and seasons are complying with a specific pattern. The same specified and constant laws need to be reigning in the human society. Indestructible laws need to restrain the human nature in order to prevent it from committing evil deeds.

People must obey only the laws that they set themselves in accordance with their nature for the benefit of everyone. No one should control them in ways not specified by the laws. Every official figure must be the servant of his country and the servant of the Armenian nation.

In all their actions, they must go by the law and mustn’t have the right to even pluck a single hair from someone’s head, unless it is in accordance with the court’s verdict. The law needs to ensure everyone’s private and material safety, everyone needs to be free in his actions and be sure that he is the master of his property and that no one can take away even the smallest of things from him.

If those are the advantages of the order based on law, then a question arises: why do autocrats and despots reign everywhere? That’s isn’t completely true, however. Such countries where the law is of paramount importance have existed in the past and do exist now. In the past, such a state was the Roman Republic. Now, there are a number of European nations whose kings follow the opinion of their parliaments and senates. First of all, the British are such a nation.

The lamentable and pitiful state of the Armenian nation urges one to hurriedly search for the means of its salvation. After all, the cure needs to be used before death rather than after. Fortunately, the Armenian nation hasn’t yet reached a hopeless condition and can still have hope for rescue.

The necessary cure has been found and needs to be applied as soon as possible. Indestructible laws will make the Armenians happy, free them from slavery, and will encourage them for good deeds and motivate them to do their public duties.

The Armenians have the same human nature as other, happy nations. God was especially gracious towards them, giving them the wealthy land of Ararat. It is only necessary for them to exit that state of stupor. Children need to be taught literacy so they are able to read useful books. Apart from that, the sons need to be taught the art of war.

Freedom is the highest blessing. The desire of the Americans headed by the ‘wise Washington’ to free themselves from the British rule is quite natural, ‘as there is nothing sweeter than freedom for the human on the earth’.”

“Snare of Glory”, Armenian writer and philosopher Shahamir Shahamirian, 1773