ვარდი ნაწვიმარ სილაში

In the symbolic lyrical masterpiece of the greatest Georgian poet of the 20th century – Galaktion Tabidze “Azure-land or Rose in Sand” the penetrating theme of the poem (way of my life) is characterized by a series of metaphorical comparisons, including the image-enigma rose in rain-soaked sand. Ave Maria, Virgin immaculate! As, after rain, a rose in sand, Life’s path is a mirage I battle at, The faraway sky’s far azure-land. The first stanza at the end of the text is invariably repeated – a frame of circular composition is created, in the space of which the drama of the spiritual life of the lyrical character is played, real or imagined scenes of the drama. Thus, the repetitive, refraining stanza is first an exposition: the lyrical character’s self-presentation before the Blessed Virgin, and in the finale – a messenger of a return to the original situation after conflicting vicissitudes. From the time of writing (1916) to the present day, the enigmatic image of the rose in sand has been understood by scholars in two ways: 1. in the context of reality – like a flower fallen on a dusty road, which is expected to be trampled down by a crowd and 2. an illogical-oxymonoric trope created by means of artistic conditionality – growing of a rose in sand, a kind of indication to the inner, spiritual disharmony of the character. What both interpretations have in common is that the image-symbols (rose in sand, dream, azure land), which are used to explain the object of comparison (way of my life), are considered to be contradictory images and in the context of fundamental romantic paradigm it is understood as the manifestation of the idea of the contrast of existence. The carried out structural-semantic analysis of the text, according to which the image-enigma rose in rain-soaked sand, as one of the elements of the series of artistic comparisons, is not in contrast relation with other elements (dream, azure-land), but is similar to them, is their synonymous image. Therefore, the secret content of the enigmatic image should be found not within the framework of the classical romantic antithesis, but in a conceptual space where the synonymy of the symbols have convincing explanation. The poem, which includes the analytical image-enigma, is traditionally considered in relation to the evangelical myth, insofar as it has a confession form and is dedicated to the Virgin Mary - Sunny Mary. It has remained unnoticed by scholars to date that the realies of the text, the lyrica