The late Vahe Oshagan, one of the most prolific Armenian writers of our twentieth 
century, sent a letter to Vatche Kaloustian, Esq., dated April 27, 2000.  In his letter, he 
explains: "This letter comes to you with a serious proposal.  I know for certain that you 
are a devoted and dedicated individual who strives to further the cultural interests of our 
Armenian nation.


"What I am suggesting to you is to translate an Armenian booklet of 64 small pages into 
English or write a serious study in English on this same booklet.


"This booklet is a review of a manuscript called, ‘Snares of Glory' which in Armenian 
runs as ‘Vorokayt Parats,' written in 1773 and treats the topic of The Principles of a 
Constitutional Democracy.  It was written in Madras India by Hagop Shahamirian and the 
ideas predate by 14 years the American Constitution and the Bill of Rights . . ."


The book review, in question, was written by Raphael Hambartsumian, a fellow 
intellectual who brought it to Vahe Oshagan's attention while he was visiting him in 
Yerevan, Armenia.


On his return from Armenia to America, Vahe Oshagan presented the booklet to an 
Armenian publication, but they refused to publish it.  Time being what it is and realizing 
that his health was failing, Oshagan sent the aforementioned dated letter to his lawyer 
friend, Vatche Kaloustian, with the hope of getting an English translation or a review in 
English for the purpose of bringing this historic review to the attention of all Western 
intellectuals.


Vatche Kaloustian, in turn, brought Raphael Hambartsumian's Armenian review to the 
attention of our Shap-odd Ahr-duv-uh Nagh-uh-jush-ee Engair-ot-yoon (an informal 
cross-section of Armenian males who meet on the first Saturday of each month for 
breakfast while discussing varying matters, some important, some unimportant, some 
Armenian, some non-Armenian, but even more important and regardless of how 
controversial, with the understanding that we come as friends and we leave as friends).


After Vatche explained the subject matter in Raphael Hambartsumian's review and how 
closely Hagop Shahamirian's "Snares of Glory" paralleled the U.S. Constitution we live 
under, and even more remarkable, how Shahamirian's democratic logic preceded our U.S. 
Constitution by 14 years, it was decided by our SANE group to follow Vahe Oshagan's 
request and to get the review translated into English and thereafter to publish it and have 
it distributed to organizations, institutions, and intellectuals, both Armenian and 
non-Armenian throughout our Diaspora.


Aris Sevag did a masterful translation of Raphael Hambartsumian's review into English 
making the similarities between Shahamirian's Constitution and our U.S. Constitution 
even more startling.  So much so that it seemed to be more of a miracle than a 
coincidence -- the miracle being that the similarities in democratic logic between an 
Armenian man of good will living in Madras India, a world if not an eternity away, could 
be so miraculously parallel in spirit and logic with the men of good will who authored 
very similar democratic laws that govern us here in our United States of America today.  
And much more than that, with the many western nations who later followed the United 
States by constituting democracies of their own.


Of course, Armenia was not independent when Hagop Shahamirian wrote his "Snares of 
Glory" and Hambartsumian pointed this out in his review wherein he states: "Although 
the Constitution was written for use in an independent Armenia, the Armenian Church 
has employed its principles in the Armenian communities of various colonies.  I am 
referring to the body of regulations titled, "Tract Called Target" which was published 
under the authorship of Shahamir  Shahamirian in 1783 for the Armenian community in 
Madras India."


It should be noted at this point that Hagop Shahamirian who wrote "Snares of Glory" died 
in 1774 at the age of twenty-eight--further noting that the manuscript, "Tract Called 
Target," written for the governance of the Armenian Church in Madras India, nine years 
after Hagop Shahamirian's death, was written by his father.


The "Snares of Glory" articles presented here in Hambartsumian's review are only sixteen 
articles out of five-hundred-and-fourteen.   It is the fervent hope of SANE that this little 
sampler will generate more in depth studies of the entire Hagop Shahamirian manuscript 
which, in turn, will eventually bring about a complete translation into every existing 
language throughout our world.


As for Vahe Oshagan, by initiating the Armenian to English translation and publishing of 
the historic Hambartsumian review, may very well turn out to be one of the most 
important things he did during his illustrious life.


Joseph Vosbikian