Uastyrdzhi
Coordinates: 43°2′N 44°16′E / 43.033°N 44.267°E
Uastyrdzhi (Ossetian: Уастырджи [ˈwastərd͡ʒi], also transliterated ‘Uastyrdži’, ‘Wastyrdzhi’, ‘Wastyrĝi’, ‘Wastırci’, ‘Wasterzhi’, ‘Wastyrji’; Digor Уасгерги [ˈwaskergi]) is the Ossetian God.
Allegedly conflated with a pagan deity of Scythian religion, Uastyrdzhi is frequently depicted as a cavalryman with a long beard, riding on a white horse. One of his cultic centers is a place called Hetag's Grove, a wood situated three kilometres outside of Alagir, near Suadag village.
The mother of the Narts, Shatana, is Uastyrdzhi's daughter.
According to legend, St. Hetag (also Khetag; Хетаг), the son of an Alanian king, converted back to Ossetian faith and had to flee from those who wanted to force him to turn back to Islam. As his pursuers were about to catch up with him, he prayed for help in an open field, and the forest descended from the mountain slopes to conceal him. Upon seeing this miracle, Hetag's enemies fled, and Hetag consecrated the grove to Uastyrdzhi. The grove is made up of ash and beech trees and covers just under 13 hectares. Holy trees are decorated with ribbons and pictures of Saint George and the dragon. A large wooden temple has been built nearby. Since the fall of the Soviet Union, the cult of Uastyrdzhi - and St. Hetag's Grove in particular - has enjoyed renewed popularity in Ossetia, and there have been several claims of visitations. The attitude of the local Russian Orthodox Church towards Uastyrdzhi is ambivalent.
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