In religions around the world, the cross is one of the symbols of faith, but there are quite a few types of crosses. The most common form is eight-pointed. It is believed that it was on such a cross that Jesus was crucified.
The eight-pointed cross consists of a vertical component and three crossbeams. The upper two are straight, and the lower one is oblique.
There is a version that says that the upper part of the crossbar of the Orthodox cross is facing north, and the lower part - to the south. By the way, this is exactly how the cross is installed today.
Even theologians can hardly explain why the lower crossbar of the cross is oblique. The answer to this question has not yet been found. There are many versions, each of which reflects a certain idea and is often supported by convincing arguments. But, unfortunately, there is no exact evidence of any version at the moment.
Versions based on biblical legends
The options for why the lower crossbar of the cross is oblique are varied. The everyday version explains this fact by the fact that Jesus stumbled on the foot, so it was skewed.
There is also an option that the upper part of the lower crossbar of the Orthodox cross points to the path to Paradise, and the lower to Hell.
Also, there is often a version that after the coming of Jesus Christ the balance of good and evil was disturbed on Earth, all previously sinful people began their journey to the light, and it is this disturbed balance that is shown by the skewed crossbar.
Household versions
Most plausible is the version that the lower crossbar is a symbolic image of such a special crossbar for the feet of a person who was crucified. Previously, this form of execution was common. The person was crucified, but in the complete absence of support, it is likely that under the weight of his own weight, the person simply fell from the cross, since under his weight, the arms and legs nailed to the cross were simply torn apart. It is precisely with the aim of maintaining a person in a hanging position, in order to prolong his torment, and such a stand was invented, which was symbolically reflected on the Orthodox eight-pointed cross. On average, as indicated in some sources, the time to death in this type of execution was approximately 24-30 hours.
There is also an option in the literature that the lower crossbar is only conventionally designated as oblique. In fact, this is only a schematic representation of a three-dimensional figure in a two-dimensional plane. But in fact, the surface of the crossbar was still flat.
In which version of the proposed to believe, it seems that everyone has to choose for themselves, because after so many years the truth is unlikely to be revealed to anyone.
