One of the most vivid memories from my early childhood dates back to the spring of 1963.
Hundreds — maybe even thousands — of people had gathered in Yerevan’s Theater Square. They weren’t drawn there by money, career ambitions, the desire for fame, or even entertainment. They came to support and admire Tigran Petrosyan, who was then in Moscow, competing with Mikhail Botvinnik for the world chess championship.
(And, by the way, he won.)
The people came because they believed.
Because they were Armenians.
Twenty-five years later, in the same square, dozens — perhaps hundreds of thousands — gathered once again. It’s possible that among them were a few who had personal ambitions or political calculations about the future (assuming that was even possible at the time).
But once again, as someone who witnessed it firsthand, I can say this with certainty: the overwhelming majority were not motivated by self-interest.
Read also
Were all of these people “idealists”?
Henry Kissinger, one of the key architects of the modern geopolitical order, once said:
“The world is not a place where morality reigns. It is a platform where interests collide.”
And he was right.
But even so, we can add this: interests themselves are often shaped, clarified — even crystallized — through the work and sacrifices of idealists.
Idealists are the ones with faith, vision, perspective, and dreams.
We still don’t fully understand what Ruben Vardanyan was trying to do — or what he is doing now.
Even today, the Armenian government’s propaganda machine continues to spin narratives about him, attributing hidden motives and long-term personal calculations to his actions.
Even many fair-minded, impartial observers admit: “His behavior wasn’t rational.”
And yes — from a short-term, pragmatic point of view, it wasn’t.
But in the long term?
If his goal was to awaken a sense of national responsibility in all of us, then in my view, that kind of “idealism” carries a deep, intrinsic value — one that goes far beyond cold calculation.
From a prison cell in Baku, Vardanyan writes:
“People in the world are not distinguished by skin color, gender, nationality, or religion. Not even by good or evil — because both exist in all of us. People are truly distinguished by one thing: faith. Those who believe in the existence of God, and those who do not.”
Holy Week is the perfect time to reflect on such things.
Aram ABRAHAMYAN
