Monastery life

The moment a worldly person decides to put on an angelic image and change his usual clothes to a monastic robe, his life turns into a path along which, step by step, he tries to get closer to God. And in order for this path of monastic life to be the most successful, the holy fathers developed an excellent “program” for everyday spiritual life - the charter. The communal rule that prevails today in the monasteries of Russia, Greece and on Mount Athos comes from the studite tradition. This tradition was brought to Athos by St. Athanasius of Athos (961), who later became abbot of the Great Lavra. The rules of the Athonite community harmoniously combine hesychasm, prayer and obedience. That is why the reviving Nikolaev Malitsky Monastery, when choosing a monastic charter, chose the Athos tradition.

LIFE

For Malitsa monks it is quite simple. In a communal (cinenial) monastery, everything is common, including meals. There are separate, so-called “decent” tables in the refectory if you need to receive guests and honor them with your presence.

The monastery monk has a room - a cell with a bed, pillow and mattress, a water jug ​​with a cup, two wardrobes for clothes and books, icons, a table, a reading lamp and a chair. Judging by the size of the cell (3.5 x 1.90 meters), one can imagine how many things will fit there. Monks who are studying can ask for a CD player or cassette recorder in their cell. If a radio receiver is built into the tape recorder, it is broken out. In general, if a monk needs even such a small thing as toothpaste, he turns to the abbot of the monastery. Without a blessing, a monk literally will not bring even a needle into his cell. Moreover, most monks inspect their cells every few months in order to find items that can be gotten rid of. Every thing eats up time. The more things you have, the more time they take away from the main goal of life.

The monk's clothing - a sign of repentance and humility - consists of a cassock, leather belt, trousers and skufia. Expensive, silk or colored fabrics are not blessed - wool and suit fabric are used. At services, monks are required to wear a Greek cassock and klobuk (kamilavka with markings). Linen can consist of two or three shirts and trousers. Shoes and jackets can be workable and clean. Any clothing in excess of the above is considered excess.
The monks do not earn their own means of living, at their own request, since they are fully supported by the monastery, and they receive everything they need from batteries to medicines with the blessing of the abbot. Of course, the reviving monastery accepts donations from different persons and organizations. Due to the lack of trade and developed economy, the monastery does not have constant material income. There is also no bookstore, so apart from candles in the temple, “experienced” pilgrims will not be able to purchase anything.

What all monks have in common is a cell, but in it they are “tenants,” or guests for the time allotted by the Lord for repentance. Life on earth is temporary: there is no need to worry about conveniences. A cell for monks is a coffin where one should think about death. Monks in general look at life, the body and the world as if they were looking at a coffin: life is bitter and short on earth, but infinitely sweet in heaven.

CELL RULE.

Each monk has his own appearance, spiritual world and internal routine, so the confessor has a special approach to each monk. At the same time, the life of the monastery is still subject to strict regulations and flows strictly according to the schedule. Long before dawn, no later than an hour before the start of the morning service, at a quarter to five, the monks wake up to fulfill their cell rule. For the great, the service begins an hour earlier. Personal monastic rule is performed primarily using the rosary. The monks always have them with them. Bundle by knot they repeat the most important ascetic prayer: “Lord Jesus Christ, have mercy on me.” The monks read the night prayer or canon every night, and every night they ask the Lord God for help in the fight against human passions and worldly thoughts.

The holy fathers call night prayer an “arena,” since every night battles with dark forces are fought in cells through prayer. And the faster the monk approaches God, acquiring virtues, the stronger the attack from the side dark forces. Personal prayer and teaching is one’s own feat in the cell.

The cell rule is performed standing, with the sign of the cross and small bows from the waist at each prayer. For schema monks it consists of 12 rosaries (centurions) with small bows and one with great bows, for robed monks it consists of 6 rosaries (centurions) with small bows and 60 great bows, and for new monks and novices of 3 rosaries with small bows and 33 great bows. Prostrations are left only on Sundays throughout the year, and on Holy Week.

WORSHIP

Divine services have always been and continue to be the center of all monastic life.

The liturgical charter that the modern Malitsky monastery adheres to was compiled by the ancient holy fathers - the Holy Mountainers. According to its rules, it is more suitable for a desert-hermit life. At the present time, due to special living conditions, this charter is not observed as strictly as before. But the modern rule, developed by life, is also not easy. It can be said with certainty that in Russia there are hardly a dozen monasteries that follow such a charter. Church services are, of course, daily. IN total Divine services take the monks about seven hours a day, taking into account the monastic cell rule.

The main places of worship in the Malitsky monastery are the large Church of the Intercession, which plays the role of a catholicon (καθολικὸν - the cathedral church of the monastery), and the “old temple” paraklis (παρεκκλήσ) - a small-sized house church in honor of St. Nicholas the Wonderworker, located in the southern wing of the fraternal corps. Usually, daily services of the daily circle are performed in the old (house) church, and in the new one - Pokrovsky, much larger in size - they are served on major holidays and Sundays throughout the year.

The midnight office begins at a quarter to six. This part of the service is always performed in the dark, and only the glare from the burning lamps illuminates the walls of the temple. In a side corner illuminated by a lamp, one of the monastic readers reads the sequence of the Midnight Office. The atmosphere is peaceful, prayerful: in the muted light of lamps illuminating the golden backgrounds on the icons, black-clad figures of monks and novices silently appear, traditionally crossing themselves and bowing towards the altar and both choirs; They take the morning blessing from the abbot and disperse to the stasidiums.
On weekdays, the entire service is read and sung “quickly”; instead of longer Byzantine chants, “everyday” is used.

After the midnight service, if it is read in the Church of the Intercession, the priest opens the curtain of the Royal Doors of the vestibule and everyone goes into main temple, where matins and hours will be performed.

Along the walls of the entire temple, monks and lay people are located in stasidiums. Thanks to this distribution, the temple accommodates a large number of people, without creating fuss and noise.

A quarter of an hour before the start Divine Liturgy a monk, dressed in a robe, walks around the monastery and with blows on a portable wooden beater (τάλαντον) calls workers and pilgrims to the temple one step at a time. Then he immediately hits the iron beater (rivet), after which, if there is a holiday, there is a short ringing in the bell tower.

The liturgy on ordinary days lasts about an hour. The moments of the liturgy considered the most important - the initial exclamation “Blessed is the kingdom”, the great entrance, the epiclesis, the exclamation “Holy to the Holies”, the time of Communion (from the exclamation “With the fear of God” to the exclamation “Always, now and ever...”) - are marked by the fact that that at this time everyone comes out of the stasidia and bows deeply.

The frequency of confession in the Malitsky monastery is not stipulated by a single rule and is determined by the spiritual need of each monk. Confession is usually performed in one of the chapels of the cathedral or in the cell of the confessor. The confessor in the monastery is the abbot. All brethren receive Holy Communion at least once a week (usually on Tuesday and Saturday or Sunday; monks and clergy receive communion every day.

At the end of the liturgy, if there is a celebration of a saint, a dish with kolyvo is placed in front of the proskynitarium (lectern for the icon), the troparion and kontakion to the saint are sung, the serving hieromonk censes kolyvo and reads a prayer for his blessing; the same thing happens on days of remembrance of the dead (with the singing of funeral troparions instead of the festive one). At the end of the liturgy, the antidoron is distributed to the faithful.

Services in the monastery are performed in limited quantities. Basically this is baptism and funeral service. The frequency of confession of the brothers is determined by their desire. The abbot blesses them to come to him at least once a week, not necessarily for confession - just for a conversation. While the abbot is outside the walls of the monastery, all services are performed by the second monastery priest.

Immediately after the completion of the Divine Liturgy, usually around 9.30 am, tea follows.

OBEDIENCE

After tea, the monks retire for a while to rest, after which they go to their daily obediences, that is, to work. All monks, including the abbot, go to obedience, since common work is fundamental in every cenobitic monastery. And no matter how difficult or unpleasant obedience may be, the monk accepts it as sent by God, like the Cross, the bearing of which is the path to salvation.

In the Malitsky monastery, various obediences are performed: secretary, sacristan, librarian, ecclesiarch, sextons, singers, readers, bell ringers, icon painters, in the kitchen - cooks and refectories, carpenters, builders, cleaners, gardener, beekeeper, gasman, driver, tour guide, etc. d. In addition, fathers should be involved in general works(panginyah), such as watering and harvesting crops, cleaning the territory, preparing for the patronal feast, etc. The monastery has several farmsteads, where brothers and parishioners also work. The pious laity provide great assistance to the monastery; they work selflessly for the Glory of God, helping the brethren in almost all obediences. Often it is necessary to attract electricians, plumbers and other specialists from the “world”.

The word obedience ("diaconima") in Greek comes from the verb "diakono", which means: "service of love." An offering of love also means remaining in prayer and in the memory of God.

Therefore, during obediences, the brethren say the Jesus Prayer. Be sure to pray out loud so as not to be distracted and not talk to each other. Those who are engaged in mental work, for example, office workers or guides working with pilgrims, do not pray out loud.

Any obedience has an established order. If circumstances permit, they perform it for a year or two, then give another. Sometimes they leave it for another year. The person performing it must address all questions to his leader (the chief of obedience) or, if necessary, directly to the abbot. This achieves a lot: it does not allow the imagination to rush around and offer solutions, clears the mind of complex and simple thoughts, focuses attention on prayer, teaches one to seek advice and cut off one’s will. To question is to be saved. If there is obedience, there will be humility - the basis of obedience itself.

In konoviya, monastic duties are performed responsibly. Where at least a few people live, there are already a lot of worries. There is no less work to ensure the life of a monastery than in any human society. And only unquestioning obedience and precise diligence can provide a monk with well-being and peace of mind.

For perfect obedience and cutting off thoughts and will, from the first day of life in the Malitsky monastery, monks are required to learn to do any work accurately and consistently. The rules, briefly formulated by Fr. Joachim from the monastery of St. Anna: talk like a monk, look like a monk, eat like a monk, sleep like a monk, think like a monk, pray like a monk, perform obedience like a monk - the fathers try to observe always and everywhere.

MEAL

There is a meal at exactly one o'clock in the afternoon. 5 minutes before it starts, all the inhabitants are notified by rhythmic knocking on an iron beater. The refectory in the monastery is located next to the Intercession Church, inside on the eastern side, there is the abbot’s table; along the walls there are tables for monks and pilgrims; A pulpit with a book stand in the form of a golden eagle for the reader is attached to the western wall, significantly higher than the floor. While eating, the teachings of St. fathers or lives of saints.

The meal depends on the day of the week and preparation for the Communion of the Holy Mysteries. The monks themselves eat little, since food is secondary to them. On Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays - simple, lean food. During fasting one can only plant food, there is not even olive oil on the tables. Eating fish on a fast day is no small sin. The inhabitants eat food twice a day, never consuming meat or wine. On ordinary days, there is soup, potatoes or pasta, rice, salad, vegetables and fruits on the tables. To drink - herbal tea, dried fruit compote and water. On holidays and Sundays, salted or baked fish, eggs and cocoa can be served.

At the meal after short prayer the brethren eat in silence for no more than 15 minutes. At this time, the Lives of Saints or spiritual teachings are read. Sometimes in front of the abbot’s table you can see a monk performing a punishment for an offense - bowing. During the meal, the abbot rings the bell three times: after the 1st blow, it is allowed to drink, after the 2nd, the reader stops reading, descends from the pulpit and accepts the blessing from the abbot, and the meal (if it is a Sunday) brings the abbot ukrukha (leftover bread) for blessing. , after the 3rd blow, the eating stops, everyone stands up, then prayers of thanks are read. Several prayers are added before the prayers of thanksgiving. petitions pronounced alternately by the abbot and the reader. After the meal, the abbot stands on the right side of the exit with a raised blessing hand; the cook, reader and meal attendant freeze in a bow opposite the abbot (according to left side from the exit), asking forgiveness from the brethren for possible errors in his ministry. Thus, everyone leaving the refectory “falls” under the blessing of the Father Superior. After the meal, the fathers again disperse according to obedience.

VESPERS

An hour before the start of Vespers, after monastic labors, rest is allowed. This helps the brethren to have the strength to pray at the evening service. Twice, in half an hour and a quarter to a quarter, the sound of a wooden beat again calls all the inhabitants to the temple. Vespers, preceded by the reading of the 9th hour, begins at 5 pm. It lasts about an hour and ends with a daily funeral litany, performed in the narthex. The evening meal follows immediately after the service.

Dinner often consists of the same dishes and in the same quantities as at lunch, only cold. Only sick people are allowed to take food out of the refectory. Infirm brothers from among the laity living in the monastery and bearing a certain obedience are allowed to drink tea with a piece of bread in the evening. You can sometimes drink tea in your cell and during obedience, but you must definitely take a blessing for this. In general, blessings are taken for any action, even the most insignificant.

After dinner, the brethren immediately go to the temple to celebrate Compline. On it, a prayer canon is sung to the Mother of God in front of the Vatopedi icon “Consolation and Consolation”, and then the abbot anoints everyone with oil from the lamp burning in front of the holy image. Also during Compline, an akathist to the Mother of God is read daily. This Svyatogorsk feature is never omitted, since Mother of God is the guardian not only of Her earthly destiny - Holy Mount Athos, but also the Mother of all monks in general. Compline ends with prayers for the coming sleep. At the end of the service, to the Byzantine singing of the Theotokos troparion “To the beauty of your virginity...”, all the monks venerate the icons and take a blessing from the abbot for the coming night.

After Compline (at 19.15) there is a short period of time, about an hour, when there is an opportunity to talk with each other. But then conversations with anyone, including pilgrims, are not blessed, so as not to fall into idleness and condemnation. Talking a lot is harmful; it negatively affects monastic work. Monks have no special need to communicate with each other: if a monk is attentive to himself, observes the monastic rules and does not hide his thoughts from his confessor, grace consoles him and he has no great need to speak. Evening silence should prepare your mind for night prayer.

After Compline, monks are also strictly forbidden to enter the cells of pilgrims without a blessing. Radio and television are prohibited in the monastery. No one leaves the monastery without a blessing.

HYGIENE

The ancient founders of monasticism were indifferent to the body for the sake of saving the soul. Thus, the father of monasticism, St. Anthony the Great (251-326) ate bread and salt, lived in caves, without observing hygiene. Previously, monks in Svyatogorsk monasteries were forbidden and considered a sin to wash their hair, comb their hair or beard, or go to the bathhouse. Very strict ascetics did not wash their faces, washing only with their own tears. Nowadays, the rules regarding personal hygiene have relaxed. Monks are allowed to bathe, and treatment with medication is mandatory. There is a monastery doctor who often comes to the monastery and regularly examines each monk and worker. If serious symptoms are detected, hospitalization is carried out in a regional hospital. Health is God’s gift, and the monastery takes it very seriously.

Some rules have remained unchanged: do not expose your body unless absolutely necessary, even your arms while working. Among monks, seeing a person, for example in shorts, with bare legs (not to mention women) is considered great indecency.

DREAM

Monks sleep in clothes: in cassocks, loosening the belt, in thin cloth skufs and socks, so as to always be ready for prayer, obedience and Last Judgment. Sleep occupies exactly the same place in monastic life as eating: monks sleep as much as necessary in order not to lose their sanity and be able to fulfill their obediences. Usually it is 5-6 hours. It should be noted that the dormitory regulations are specially written in such a way that meal times are never combined with rest and sleep times. This is very important point from an ascetic point of view.

The pilgrims living in the monastery gradually accustom themselves to a strict routine. They also have to get out of bed long before dawn for church services, and in order to understand and experience the whole essence of monastic reality, this really needs to be done.

The day is divided into approximately 3 eight hours, reserved for prayer, work and rest. Ancient Greek The verse describes the daily work of a monk this way: (Γράφε, μελέτα, ψάλλε - στέναζε, προσεύχου, σιώπα) “Write, study, sing, sigh, pray, be silent.”

High stone walls, a smoldering splinter in a tiny cell, a Bible on a hard bed - this is how the imagination paints pictures of monastic life. The courtyard of the St. Michael the Archangel Monastery, located in the Leninsky district of Novosibirsk, convinces us that these ideas are morally outdated. A Sib.fm correspondent found out how modern monks live.

It all started with the fact that in 1997, a male monastic community settled in the village of Kozikha, Novosibirsk region. The village council allocated premises for the brethren: a brick garage, which was built on the site of a village temple, destroyed back in the godless thirties. The temple was restored - now it is the Archangel Michael Monastery. Now the monastery has seven farmsteads. One of them, the parish in the name of St. Equal-to-the-Apostles Prince Vladimir, is located in Novosibirsk, the only one of the seven monastery farmsteads located within the city limits.

The parish was formed around the construction of the large Holy Trinity Cathedral. Construction began in 1997, and the monks themselves have been working on it all these years - the only professionals working here are the architect and the foreman. However, the construction is almost complete, the first floor is already open to parishioners, although the walls are still being painted.

“There are sponsors, sometimes there are no,” complains the rector of the monastery, Father Theodosius. - To cover the floor on the second floor, you need 100 thousand rubles, to buy tiles - another million. Although, if I say so, the temple is not poor. In fact, he is the main source of income for our monastery.

Father Theodosius says that 20 monks and three novices now live in the courtyard at the Holy Trinity Cathedral. A novice is one who has just embarked on the path of monasticism; priests and ministers will test his faith and will for at least three years before they perform the tonsure ritual. The ritual includes three main vows - celibacy, non-covetousness and obedience. It is easier to give up your personal life, name and property than to give up your own will - only a few are capable of giving all of themselves into the hands of the church and the abbot. The new name of the tonsured person means that in heaven the saint of the same name will ask for his salvation before God.

Schema monks wear a pointed cap - kukol and a special sling on the shoulders, back and chest - analav

IN Orthodox Church, basically, they are tonsured immediately “into a cassock.” This means that the novice receives the monastic robe along with taking his vows. There is one more tonsure - schema. This is complete renunciation of the world, the strictest vows and round-the-clock prayers for the salvation of one’s soul. The schema-monks change their name once again, which gives them an additional holy supporter in heaven.

The monastery says that on the eve of the elections, politicians stopped thinking about churches and making large donations, as was the case in the last decade

The day at the monastery begins at 6 am. In half an hour - morning prayers, service and light breakfast. They do not yet have their own refectory, so novices and monks eat in the gymnasium cafeteria. Then - obedience. This is what they call compulsory labor in the monastery. There is no subsistence farming in the city parish, so some do laundry, some clean, some mow the lawns. But the main work here is still construction, although Lately“outside” workers also appeared on the site, in other words, guest workers. The monk, whose obedience is to look after hired construction workers, most of whom are Muslims, is not at all embarrassed by the difference in faith. At five o'clock in the evening there are services, dinner, and from nine to eleven - free time.

Cleanliness and order reign in the cells of the residential building. The rooms have four beds, bedside tables and alarm clocks, books, CDs and, of course, icons. There is one large bathroom with showers for the entire building. The life of a monk here is limited to the cathedral, a residential building and an administrative building, similar to a modern office, in which the combination of office equipment and icons no longer hurts the eyes.

During construction, the monks lived and prayed in the former building of the House of Public Services. Now there is an Orthodox gymnasium in the name of the Holy Equal-to-the-Apostles Prince Vladimir. In 2011, the gymnasium enrolled a second class, now there are 25 students. Girls in knitted berets and boys in formal suits, in addition to basic school disciplines, study choral singing and the basics of Orthodox culture.

On the other side of the concrete fence with barbed wire live men who have taken another vow of obedience - the oath. Neighborhood with military unit to the benefit of the monks: soldiers sometimes help with the housework, the clergy, in turn, carry out church holidays and service in the garrison.

Requirements are a type of obedience, prayers and rituals of priests at the request of parishioners in church or at home. Usually people ask for communion, funeral services and consecration of homes

− They come to the monastery different people, - says the abbot. - Some are just from the army, others have been retired for a long time, but they come on their own. However, not all reasons for starting monastic life are correct - if a person was brought by a tragedy or a search for new sensations, we, of course, accept them, talk, let them live, but no more. Of course, we try not to take in completely homeless people - we send them to social hotels. There are only two correct reasons for starting monastic life - great love to God and the desire to atone for sins. Unfortunately, people often leave us. It's a tragedy, but we don't hold anyone back.

The modern way of monastic life, of course, differs from that described in ancient books. The temple requires heating; due to the Siberian climate, a different diet is required.

Not everyone can now endure the feat and live without light and warmth, says Father Theodosius. - One saint saw three winged people flying across the river from worldly life to the Garden of Eden - the first confidently flew, the second had a more difficult time, and the third almost fell. The one who flew over most confidently was a monk from the ancient past. The one who hesitated lived later than the first. And the one who flew the worst is the image of the monks of the last times, who will not have feats, but will still go to heaven for their humility.

Who are monks? The word "monk" in Russian comes from Greek word"mono" - one. Religious ascetics often led a secluded life and became monks. The life of a monk is very different from the life of the world ordinary person. The monk spends the whole day in prayer and has no personal property or family. Monks living in monasteries eat together, fast together, pray, and work together.

People often learned about solitary monks and began to gravitate toward “ God's people" This is how certain communities were formed, on the basis of which they arose. People have always been drawn to holy places. So quite often, not far from monasteries, whole ones appeared.

In the process of development, monasteries developed their own rules - norms of behavior and lifestyle. The set of rules for monks was similar to the rules that existed in the monasteries of Byzantium. To become a monk, a layman underwent obedience.

Obedience is a period of time during which a layman aspiring to become a monk unquestioningly fulfilled all the requests and instructions of the brothers living in the monastery. A novice (a layman who wants to become a monk) tested his spiritual and physical strength. If he managed to overcome all the difficulties, then the layman will be able to painlessly say goodbye to the previous way of worldly life.

The rite of initiation of a layman into a monk begins with tonsure. Taking tonsure is a symbolic rite. A layman who wishes to become a monk has a cross cut on his head. Then the layman changes clothes. Instead of a secular shirt, he puts on a monastic dress - a cassock.

A person who has just been tonsured as a monk receives a new name as a sign of a complete break with his former world. Next, the monk can accept a major or minor schema. The schema obliges people to adhere to certain standards of behavior.

Some monks become monks - stylites. The monks, stylites, could stand on a dais for a long time and read prayers. Others decided to leave the walls and began a solitary life. The home for such a hermit monk was a small hut or dugout called a monastery.

How is a monk's day spent? Let's try to tell you in more detail. The monastic morning begins at midnight. Bells ring, signaling that a new day has begun. The monks gather in the temple and it begins church service. At the end of the service, the abbot gives a lecture. When the abbot of the monastery finishes his speech, the monks disperse to their cells. No, monks don't go to bed. Each monk is required to make a certain number of bows before the images and read a certain number of prayers.

At five in the morning the bell rings again within the monastery walls. He again calls the brethren to prayer to the temple. After the service, the monks go to breakfast. They eat modestly: they eat bread, drink tea or kvass. Now, before lunch, the monks again go to their cells, performing various obediences.

After lunch, another couple of hours of work. And again to the church service. Evening service it usually takes an hour and a half. At the end, the monks go to dinner. After dinner there is another service. The monk's day is coming to an end. You can go to bed at 7 o'clock.

Not all monks do only prayers and bows. There is a part that does work. Some sweat in workshops, and others in the fields, growing bread.

The monks are representatives of the “black clergy”. Many restrictions are imposed on people who have taken monastic vows. Most of their life is spent inside the monastery walls. You can see a monk in anyone acting.

What makes Russian women become nuns?

Today, on a wave of patriotism, we are becoming more and more pious - at least outwardly. What do we have with female monasticism - our attitude towards it and its attitude towards us? Who becomes nuns and why? Does God have a probationary period, otherwise the desire will go away? And is it possible to return to the world if it has passed?

Under the USSR Dictionary interpreted monasticism as a form of passive protest against inhuman living conditions, which originated under the autocracy, as a gesture of despair and disbelief in the possibility of changing these conditions. Back then, when you heard the word “nun,” you only thought of an elderly granny who had never gotten rid of the prejudices of the past. Today, those who go to the monastery look completely different.

For example, romantic young ladies, “bookish” girls who got their ideas about monasteries from novels and films. Muscovite Larisa Garina in 2006 observed obedience in the Spanish monastery of the Discalced Carmelites (one of the strictest, with a vow of silence), prepared to take the vow and assured that only love for God brought her to these walls. “It’s hard for a week without sex,” Larisa assured, “but for the rest of your life it’s normal!” Today Larisa is happy, married, mother of two children. Youth is just youth to experiment.

A significant contingent are girls with problems who initially end up in the monastery only for a while. 25-year-old Alina 7 years ago, at 18, became addicted to drugs. “My parents sent me to a monastery for 9 months,” she recalls. — This is a special monastery, there were 15 novices like me. It was hard - getting up before dawn for matins, praying all day and poking around in the garden, sleeping rough... Some tried to escape, went to the field to find some grass in order to “kill themselves” with something. After some time, the body apparently cleanses itself. And a little later, enlightenment comes. I remember this state well: how the scales fall from my eyes! I completely came to my senses, reconsidered my life, and my parents took me away.”

— A monastery is also a kind of rehabilitation center for “lost” people: drinkers, homeless people,” Father Pavel, confessor of the Mother of God of Albazinsky St. Nicholas Convent, confirms Alina’s words. — The lost live and work in the monastery and try to start a normal life.

Among those who went to monasteries, many famous people. For example, the younger sister of actress Maria Shukshina Olga, daughter of Lydia and Vasily Shukshin. At first, Olga followed in the footsteps of her parents and starred in several films, but soon realized that she was uncomfortable in this environment. The young woman found the meaning of life in God, lived at an Orthodox monastery in the Ivanovo region, where her sick son was raised for some time. Olga carried out “obedience” - in addition to prayers, she baked bread and helped with the monastery’s household chores.

In 1993, actress Ekaterina Vasilyeva left the stage and entered a monastery. In 1996, the actress returned to the world and to the cinema and explained the reason for her departure: “I lied, drank, divorced my husbands, had abortions...” Vasilyeva’s husband, playwright Mikhail Roshchin, after her divorce with whom she left the world, assured that the monastery cured his ex-wife of alcohol addiction: “In every clinic she was treated, nothing helped. But she met the priest Father Vladimir - and he helped her recover. I think she sincerely became a believer, otherwise nothing would have happened.”

In 2008, People's Artist of Russia Lyubov Strizhenova (mother of Alexander Strizhenova) exchanged secular life for monastic life, waiting for her grandchildren to grow up. Strizhenova went to the Alatyr Monastery in Chuvashia.

The famous actress Irina Muravyova does not hide her desire to hide in the monastery: “What most often brings you to the temple? Illness, suffering, mental anguish... So grief and aching emptiness inside brought me to God.” But the actress’s confessor does not yet allow her to leave the stage.

I go to the courtyard of the Novospassky Monastery in the near Moscow region, known for accepting novices and also providing shelter for female victims domestic violence. Moreover, the monastery itself is for men.

I tell the priest that I came to consult about my 20-year-old niece Lisa - they say she wants to go to the monastery and will not listen to any persuasion.

Father, Father Vladimir, reassures:

- You bring her. We won’t take it, but we’ll definitely talk. There must have been unrequited love. Age has its place... She can’t go to a monastery! You cannot come to God out of grief and despair - whether it is unrequited love or something else. People come to the monastery only out of conscious love for God. Just ask Mother Georgia, she came to the sisterhood 15 years ago, although everything was fine with her - both work and home were full.

The sister, and now mother, named in the monastery in honor of St. George, was called differently in the world. Despite her black clothes and lack of makeup, she looks about 38-40 years old.

“I came at 45,” my mother smiles slyly, “and now I’m 61.”

Either an enlightened look gives such an effect, or a relaxed, kind face... I wonder what brought her to God?

- Do you have a goal in life? - Mother answers the question with a question. - And what is she like?

“Well, live happily, love children and loved ones, bring benefit to society...” I’m trying to formulate.

Mother Georgiy nods her head: “Okay, but why?”

And no matter how hard I try to find an explanation for my seemingly noble goals, I always come to a dead end: really, why? It turns out that my goals seem to be not lofty, but vain. Small troubles - all so that you can live comfortably, so that neither conscience nor poverty disturbs you.

“Until you realize the purpose of your earthly life, there is nothing to do in the monastery,” summarizes Mother Georgia, and Father Vladimir smiles approvingly. “I came when suddenly one fine morning I realized why I was living.” And I woke up with a clear understanding of where to go. She didn’t even come to the monastery; they brought the legs themselves. I left everything without a second thought.

- And have you really never regretted it?

“This is a state when you clearly see your path,” mother smiles. “There is no room for doubts or regrets.” Bring your Liza, we’ll talk to her, tell her that she doesn’t need to give up the bustle of the world - it’s too early. Going to a monastery just because of troubles in your personal life is not good! Yes, and from the young flesh there will still be temptations; she will have no time for prayer. But we definitely need to talk: otherwise, if she’s stubborn, some kind of sect can lure her.

- Don’t you hire young people at all? But who are these women?— I point to a group of women in black robes working on a plot of land. Some of them seem young.

“There are those who are waiting for tonsure,” explains the priest, “but they have been here as novices for a long time, they have already tested their love for the Lord.” In general, the abbot usually does not give a blessing to a woman until she is 30 years old. There are those who are simply obedient; they can always leave. And there are those who ran away from their monster husband, they live over there, some with children,” the priest points to a separate log house. We will shelter everyone, but in order to somehow live, we must work in the monastery economy.

—Are there those who are not accepted as nuns on principle?

“The contraindications are about the same as for driving,” the priest smiles, pointing his finger at his car. - Epilepsy, mental disorders and drunkenness.

But why can one be drawn to a monastery by such happiness, if grief and disappointment are not allowed? My conversations with those who were just going to the monastery or visited, but returned to the world, show that such thoughts do not come from a good life.

Muscovite Elena had a terrible accident adult daughter. While they were fighting for her life in intensive care, she vowed that she would go to a monastery if the girl survived. But the daughter could not be saved. A year after the tragedy, Elena admits that sometimes it seems to her that her daughter died in order to save her from monasticism. Because Elena is glad that she did not have to fulfill her promise and give up worldly life. Now the orphaned mother reproaches herself for not having formulated her thought differently then: let her daughter survive - and we will live together life to the fullest and enjoy it.

32-year-old Saratov resident Elena admits that a year ago she wanted to go to a monastery; depression was caused by serious complications after the operation. Today Lena is happy that they found good people who managed to dissuade her:

“My confessor, as well as my family, friends and psychologists kept me from taking this step. I found a good father, he listened to me and said: you have a family - this is the most important thing! And he advised me to contact an Orthodox psychologist. Today I understand that my desire to go to a monastery was only an attempt to escape from reality and had nothing to do with the true desire to come to God.

“The desire of girls to enter a monastery is most often an attempt at self-realization in this way,” confirms Ellada Pakalenko, a psychologist with a rare “Orthodox” specialization. She is one of the few specialists who works specifically with “monasticism” - those who want to leave worldly life, but have doubts. They come to Hellas themselves, sometimes they are brought by relatives who are unable to dissuade their loved ones from such a step on their own. It was Pakalenko who helped Lena from Saratov escape the monastery cell. Hellas knows what she’s talking about: she herself went to the Donetsk monastery as a novice at the age of 20.

Hellas Pakalenko. Photo: from personal archive

“In general, general flight to monasteries is always accompanied by an economic crisis, genocide and overpopulation,” says Hellas. — If we look at history, we see that mass exoduses of the laity always occur against the background and as a consequence of a sick society. And the mass exodus of women is a sure sign of pressure on them. This happens when women stop coping with the task assigned to them and want to throw off the burden of responsibility by trusting in God. And from time immemorial, girls have been raised with very high demands: she must be a wife, a mother, a beauty, and educated, and be able to feed her children. And boys grow up irresponsible, feeling that they themselves are happiness and a gift for any woman.

An Orthodox psychologist is sure that going to a monastery replaces unrealized love for a woman:

— As practice shows, girls who go to the monastery are not from church-going families at all, but emotionally closed ones, with low self-esteem and weak sexuality, believing that only within the monastery walls they will be “understood.” They don’t understand that this is not a solution, and certainly not good for God. A monastery is also not the best place to pacify the flesh: girls with normal sexuality who try to suppress it in this way will have a hard time in a monastery. In the sense that they will not find the peace they are looking for there.

Pakalenko says that she visited many monasteries, talked with novices and nuns, and can say exactly what brings yesterday’s carefree girls to their cells. These are poor relationships with parents, especially with the mother, low self-esteem and perfectionism.

— In one monastery I saw such nuns that Hollywood is resting! - Hellas recalls. — Tall, slender girls with model appearance. It turned out, indeed, that they were yesterday’s models, kept women of rich people. And they have such a challenge in their eyes and in their speeches: “I feel better here!” For young people, a monastery is always an escape from problems, from failures. An attempt to “change coordinates” in one’s own life so that they are treated differently. This is not bad, but this is not about true faith, but about the fact that these girls have no other tools to change their lives - not to be discouraged, to work, to study, to love. This is about weakness and lack of will to live, and not at all about love for God. Good confessors dissuade such people. But all sorts of sects, on the contrary, search and lure. Sects always need fresh blood from the disappointed, desperate, and morally unstable. And they always lure precisely because they promise being chosen: “We are special, we are different, we are higher.”

Hellas talks about his own journey into the monastery walls. It was in her native Donetsk, she was 20, she was a stately and beautiful girl, she enjoyed increased attention from men, for which she was constantly reproached in her strict family. At some point, she wanted a pause—inner silence—to get to know herself. And she ran away to the monastery. 20 years have passed since then, and Hellas assures that there is a way back from the monastery. Although it is certainly not easy.

“I know what it’s like to live in a monastery as a novice, and then understand that it’s not yours, and leave there and return to these walls only as a specialist - a “dissuade” from the monastery. Now I’m 40, I teach people to believe in God and keep his commandments, and not to isolate themselves from the outside world simply because they don’t have the strength to get what they want, to resist violence, evil, pain.

Hellas recalls that at the monastery, in addition to novices and nuns, there were simply women with children who had nowhere to go. All the inhabitants of the monastery walls had their own stories, but no one was taken to monastic vows right away. It was necessary to stay in the monastery for at least six months and, if the desire persisted, to ask for the blessing of the abbess. Mostly these were simple women, without special requests or education.

An expert on Orthodox ethics and psychology, Natalya Lyaskovskaya, admits that after the onset of the crisis, there were more women who wanted to retire from the world. And he identifies 5 main types of “candidate nuns.”

Natalya Lyaskovskaya. Photo: from personal archive

1. Today, students of monasteries most often become nuns. In Russia there are many shelters where orphan girls, those who have lost their parents, and children from disadvantaged families find protection, care and care. These girls are growing up convents under the care of sisters in Christ, who not only care about the physical health of their pupils, but also the mental health - they treat the children with the love that they were deprived of. At the end high school they can leave the walls of the monastery and find their place in society, which is not difficult with acquired skills. However, often girls remain in their native monastery for the rest of their lives, take monastic vows and, in turn, work in shelters, nursing homes, hospitals (for obedience), in schools - and at the monasteries there are music, art, and pottery workshops. and other schools, not only general education and parish schools. These girls cannot imagine life without a monastery, outside of monasticism.

2. Second common reason, according to which already adult girls and women come to the monastery, is a great misfortune suffered in the world: the loss of a child, the death of loved ones, the betrayal of a husband, etc. They are accepted for obedience if for a long time a woman still wants to become a nun and the Mother Superior sees that she will become a nun, she is tonsured. But more often than not, such women gradually come to their senses, gain spiritual strength in the monastery and return to the world.

4. There is another category of women over whom our monasteries are increasingly taking guardianship. These are women who failed to integrate into the social model of society or for some reason were thrown to the margins of life: for example, they lost their homes due to the fault of black realtors, were expelled from home by children, drinkers, and are struggling with other addictions. They live in a monastery, feed there, work as best they can, but they rarely become nuns. It is necessary to go through a long spiritual path for the monastic spirit to kindle in such a person.

5. Sometimes there are exotic reasons: for example, I know one nun who went to the monastery (besides her sincere spiritual disposition towards the monastic way of life) because of the unique library that the monastery she chose had. In one of the Siberian monasteries there is a black girl, she came to Russia specifically to become a nun and “live in silence”: in her homeland she had to live in a black ghetto, where there was terrible noise day and night. The girl accepted holy baptism and it’s been four years since I took monastic vows as a nun.

Father Alexey Yandushev-Rumyantsev. Photo: from personal archive

And Father Alexey Yandushev-Rumyantsev, prefect for educational and scientific work the highest Catholic theological seminary in St. Petersburg, explained to me true female monasticism:

“The Church sees a special blessing in women’s choice of the monastic path - as always, when its children devote themselves to prayer and spiritual feat for the world and for all humanity, for this is love for one’s neighbor. Today, as in all previous eras, starting with early Middle Ages, among the people who devoted their entire lives to serving God and prayer, the majority were women. The experience of our life suggests that, being delicate and defenseless by nature, women are in fact often stronger and incomparably more selfless individuals than men. This also affects their life choices.”

Since it carries within itself renunciation of a sinful life, the seal of chosenness, eternal union with Christ and dedication to serving God.

Monasticism is the destiny of the strong in spirit and body. If a person is unhappy in worldly life, escaping to a monastery will only worsen his misfortunes.

It is possible to go to a monastery only by breaking ties with outside world, completely renounce everything earthly and devote your life to serving the Lord. Desire alone is not enough for this: the call and dictates of the heart make a person closer to monasticism. For this you need to work hard and prepare.

The path to the monastery begins with knowledge of the depth of spiritual life.

Took monastic vows

Entering a monastery for women

How can a woman go to a monastery? This is a decision that the woman herself makes, but not without help spiritual mentor and God's blessing.

We should not forget that they come to the monastery not to heal spiritual wounds received in the world from unhappy love, the death of loved ones, but to reunite with the Lord, with the cleansing of the soul from sins, with the understanding that all life now belongs to the service of Christ.

Everyone is welcome at the monastery, but as long as problems remain in worldly life, the walls of the monastery cannot save, but can only worsen the situation. When leaving for a monastery, there should be no attachments that hold you back in everyday life. If the readiness to devote oneself to serving the Lord is strong, then monastic life will benefit the nun; peace and tranquility will be found in daily work, prayers and the feeling that the Lord is always near.

If people behave irresponsibly in the world - they want to leave their wife, leave their children, then there is no confidence that monastic life will benefit such a lost soul.

Important! Responsibility is needed always and everywhere. You can't run away from yourself. You should not go to the monastery, but come to the monastery, go towards a new day, a new dawn, where the Lord is waiting for you.

Entering a monastery for men

How can a man go to a monastery? This decision is not easy. But the rules are the same, just like for women. Just in society men's shoulders there is more responsibility for family, work, children.

Therefore, when going to a monastery, but at the same time getting closer to God, you need to think about whether your loved ones will be left without the support and strong shoulder of a man.

There is no big difference between a man and a woman who wants to go to a monastery. Everyone has their own reason for leaving for the monastery. The only thing that unites future monks is imitation of the way of life of Christ.

Preparation for monastic life

Monk - translated from Greek means “lonely”, and in Rus' they were called monks - from the word “different”, “different”. Monastic life is not a disregard for the world, its colors and admiration for life, but it is a renunciation of harmful passions and sinfulness, from carnal pleasures and pleasures. Monasticism serves to restore the original purity and sinlessness that Adam and Eve were endowed with in paradise.

Yes, this is a difficult and difficult path, but the reward is great - imitation of the image of Christ, endless joy in God, the ability to accept with gratitude everything that the Lord sends. In addition, monks are the first prayer books about the sinful world. As long as their prayer sounds, the world continues. This is the main job of monks - to pray for the whole world.

While a man or woman lives in the world, but with all his soul feels that their place is in the monastery, they have time to prepare and make the right and final choice between worldly life and life in unity with God:

• First you need to be an Orthodox Christian;
• To visit the temple, but not formally, but to imbue your soul with the divine services and love them;
• Perform morning and evening prayer rules;
• Learn to observe physical and spiritual fasting;
• Honor Orthodox holidays;
• Read spiritual literature, the lives of saints, and be sure to get acquainted with books written by holy people that tell about monastic life and the history of monasticism;
• Find a spiritual mentor who will tell you about true monasticism, dispel myths about life in a monastery, and give a blessing for serving God;
• Make a pilgrimage to several monasteries, be a laborer, stay for obedience.

About Orthodox monasteries:

Who can enter a monastery

The impossibility of living without God leads a man or woman to the walls of the monastery. They do not run away from people, but go for salvation, for the inner need of repentance.

And yet there are obstacles to entering the monastery; not everyone can be blessed for monasticism.

Cannot be a monk or nun:

• A family man;
• A man or woman raising small children;
• Wanting to hide from unhappy love, difficulties, failures;
• A person’s advanced age becomes an obstacle to monasticism, because in the monastery they work diligently and hard, and for this you need to be healthy. Yes, and it is difficult to change ingrained habits that will become an obstacle to monasticism.

If all this is absent and the intention to come to monasticism does not leave a person for a minute, of course, no one and nothing will prevent him from renouncing the world and entering a monastery.

Absolutely different people go to the monastery: those who have achieved success in the world, educated, smart, beautiful. They go because the soul thirsts for more.

Monasticism is open to everyone, but not everyone is fully ready for it. Monasticism is a life without sorrows, in the understanding that a person gets rid of worldly vanity and worries. But this life is much harder than life family man. The family cross is difficult, but after escaping from it to a monastery, disappointment awaits and relief does not come.

Advice! And yet, in order to step on the difficult path of monasticism, which belongs to a few, you need to think carefully and carefully, so as not to look back and regret what happened.

Took monastic vows

How to deal with parents

Many parents in ancient times in Rus' and other Orthodox countries welcomed their children’s desire to become monks. The youths were prepared from childhood to become monks. Such children were considered prayer books for the whole family.

But there were also deeply religious people who categorically opposed the service of their children in the monastic field. They wanted to see their children successful and prosperous in worldly life.

Children who independently decided to live in a monastery prepare their loved ones for such a serious choice. It is necessary to choose the right words and arguments that will be perceived correctly by parents and will not lead them into the sin of condemnation.

In turn, prudent parents will thoroughly study their child’s choice, delve into the essence and understanding of the whole issue, help and support loved one in such an important undertaking.

It’s just that the majority, due to ignorance of the essence of monasticism, perceive the desire of children to serve the Lord as something alien, unnatural. They begin to fall into despair and melancholy.

Parents are sad that there will be no grandchildren, that their son or daughter will not have all the usual worldly joys, which are considered to be the highest achievements for a person.

Advice! Monasticism is a worthy decision for a child, and parental support is an important component in the final confirmation of the correct choice of the future path in life.

On raising children in faith:

Time for reflection: laborer and novice

To choose a monastery in which a future monk will stay, they make more than one trip to holy places. When visiting one monastery, it is difficult to determine that a person’s heart will remain here to serve God.

After remaining in the monastery for several weeks, the man or woman is assigned the role of laborer.

During this period a person:

• prays a lot, confesses;
• works for the benefit of the monastery;
• gradually comprehends the basics of monastic life.

The worker lives at the monastery and eats here. At this stage, the monastery takes a closer look at him, and if the person remains faithful to his vocation of monasticism, they offer to remain in the monastery as a novice - a person preparing to be tonsured a monk and pass spiritual test at the monastery.

Important: obedience is a Christian virtue, a monastic vow, a test, the whole meaning of which comes down to the liberation of the soul, and not to slavery. The essence and importance of obedience must be understood and felt. Understand that everything is done for good, and not for torment. By performing obedience, they understand that the elder, who is responsible for the future monk, cares about the salvation of his soul.

In case of unbearable trials, when the spirit weakens, you can always turn to your elder and tell about the difficulties. And unceasing prayer to God is the first assistant in strengthening the spirit.

You can be a novice for many years. Whether a person is ready to become a monk is decided by the confessor. At the stage of obedience there is still time to think about the future life.

The bishop or abbot of the monastery performs the rite of monastic tonsure. After tonsure there is no turning back: moving away from passions, sorrows and embarrassment leads to an inextricable connection with God.

Important: do not rush, do not rush to accept monasticism. Impulsive impulses, inexperience, and ardor are falsely taken for a true calling to be a monk. And then a person begins to worry, despondency, melancholy, and run away from the monastery. The vows are made and no one can break them. And life turns into torture.

Therefore, the main instruction of the holy fathers is careful obedience and testing for a certain period of time, which will show the true intention to be called to monasticism.

Life in the monastery

In our 21st century, it has become possible for ordinary lay people to get closer and see the life of monks.

Pilgrimage trips to women's and monasteries. The pilgrimage lasts several days. The laity live at the monastery, in specially designated rooms for guests. Sometimes accommodation may be paid, but this is a symbolic price and the proceeds from it go to the maintenance of the monastery. Food is free, according to the monastery charter, that is, fast food.

But the laity do not live in the monastery as tourists, but become involved in the life of monks. They undergo obedience, work for the good of the monastery, pray and feel the grace of God with all their nature. They are very tired, but the fatigue is pleasant, grace-filled, which brings peace to the soul and a feeling of the closeness of God.

After such trips, many myths about the life of monks are dispelled:

1. There is strict discipline in the monastery, but it does not oppress the nuns and monks, but brings joy. They see the meaning of life in fasting, work and prayer.
2. Nobody forbids a monk to have books, listen to music, watch films, communicate with friends, travel, but everything should be for the good of the soul.
3. The cells are not dull, as they show in feature films, there is a wardrobe, a bed, a table, many icons - everything is very cozy.

After tonsure, three vows are taken: chastity, non-covetousness, obedience:

• Monastic chastity- this is celibacy, as a constituent element of aspiration towards God; the concept of chastity as abstinence from satisfying the lusts of the flesh also exists in the world, therefore the meaning of this vow in the context of monasticism is something else - the acquisition of God Himself;
• Monastic obedience- cutting off one’s will before everyone - elders, before every person, before Christ. Trust God infinitely and be submissive to Him in everything. Accept with gratitude everything as it is. Such a life takes on a special inner world, in direct contact with God and not overshadowed by any external circumstances;
• Non-covetousness means renunciation of everything earthly. Monastic life renounces earthly goods: a monk should not have an addiction to anything. By renouncing earthly riches, he gains lightness of spirit.

And only with the Lord, when communication with Him becomes above all else - the rest, in principle, is not necessary and unimportant.

Watch a video about how to enter a monastery