Beginning of the path
It is not always easy to decide where to go on the weekend in winter and not simply go, but make the trip useful and maybe even a important and memorable event in life. The magnificent Mhar Monastery has for centuries towered over the Sula River attracting pilgrims and tourists from all over the world.
Driving by car from Kyiv towards Kharkiv, passing through small Ukrainian villages with houses on slopes and hills, you will see from afar the domes of the Mhar Monastery situated on a hill glittering with golden stars. It seems as though the monastery is nestled away from the mundane vanity in a place, where only those who indeed want to visit this historic point of interest and learn about its incredible history can find it.
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| PHÎÒÎ: pravoslavie.poltava.ua |
St. Athanasius
According to a legend, a cloister and the first hermits appeared on Mount Mhar some time in the 10-11th centuries. They dug caves and arranged cells on the slopes of the hill. The Mhar Monastery was founded by the prominent anti-Uniate figure Jesiah Kopynskiy in 1619 using the money of Princess Raina Vyshnevetska. Having earned a good education from the Ostrozhskiy princes, Kopynskiy became a monk in the Kyivo-Pecherska Lavra at a very young age. Having spent 15 years praying in the Antoniy caves, he became Father Superior of the Hustynskiy Monastery. Later he headed the Kyiv Epiphany Brotherhood and participated in establishing the famous Kyiv Mohyla Academy.
Raina Mohylyanka-Vyshnevetska, widow of the owner of huge feudal lands on both banks of the Dnipro River, issued a document to Kopynskiy to establish an Orthodox monastery in the Mhar forest, six kilometers from Lubny. Moreover, the legend mentioned by the great Ukrainian poet Taras Shevchenko in his story “Twins” says angels showed the place of construction of the Mhar Monastery to the female character of the story her in exchange eternal life in heaven.
Noteworthy, the name St. Athanasius, who was canonized in 1662, is closely linked with the Mhar Monastery. Despite his noble origin, the saint took the rugged path of Christian hermits: from lay brother in a monastery to the Tsargrad Patriarch.
He visited the Mhar Monastery in 1653. When he was greeted by the monastery’s father superior and brothers, the Holy Patriarch said to him: “My soul is willing to have my sinful body buried in this monastery”. A month later he died.
In his last will and testament he was buried according Greek custom in a sitting position. Such an unusual burial in the times of Kievan-Rus served as a reason to name the miracle-worker Athanasius the Sitting. Many years later the tomb with Athanasius’ body was opened. His remains are imperishable and today are preserved the Annunciation Cathedral in Kharkiv.
Pioneer camp converted into a monastery
Over a nearly four hundred year history, the walls of the monastery have survived many calamities. In 1736 a huge fire destroyed most of the structure, but the monastery was reconstructed. Empress Elizabeth donated funds that gave the possibility to build the main church and the building containing monks’ cells. In 1765, there was another fire, but the cathedral escaped destruction. Long years of persecution and suppression of the church did not spare the Mhar Monastery, the history of which has not been thoroughly studied seeing as the monastery’s archive disappeared during the war years.
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| Just as two centuries ago, the monks travel from the cathedral to the hermitage by horse-drawn cart PHÎÒÎ: l. uzvar |
After the revolution of 1917, a lot of valuables were confiscated: the coffin of St. Athanasius only weighed up to 10 poods (163.8 kg) of pure silver. The monks of the monastery placed the relics of the saint in a wooden coffin and later transported them to Kharkiv.
In 1919, ot the patronal festival of the Transfiguration of Jesus Christ, the Bolsheviks executed 17 Mhar monks together with Father Superior Amvrosiy. The newly canonized martyrs were buried behind the altar of the Church of Annunciation. During the war, the monastery’s bells were dismantled and melted down to make weapons. Today, the icon of St. Alexandra, the face of which is pierced with holes by bullets, is a reminder of those times. It could have been restored, but it was deliberately not done as a moral obligation to the descendants.
In the beginning of the 1930s, a Patronage for Children of Enemies of the State was set up on the territory of the Mhar Monastery. From 1937, there was a disciplinary battalion here and from 1946 – military warehouses. In 1985, it was turned into a pioneer summer camp. The current restoration of the monastery began only in 1993.
Forward to the past
Walking down the alley today where the monks placed snow-white benches for visitors, one understands that in the hustle and bustle of the working week there is a world for prayer, solitude and serenity. It is only the chiming of the church bells and the birds singing that discharge the dense and viscous air. The monks live peacefully and quietly as if they are unaware of the existence of modern-day cars, computers, politicians and wars. Time stands still in this place. Just as a hundred and 200 years ago, they pray, grow vegetables and fruits, care for domestic animals and the apiary, collect herbs, make kvas and bake bread and travel from the church to the hermitage on a horse-drawn cart.
The monastery dwellers give visitors undivided attention. Do not hesitate to ask them about everything that interests you. It is worth visiting the hermitage located several hundred meters away, where the Church of Annunciation and a huge pine tree have for many years silently stood opposite one other.
On the territory of the monastery there is a kiosk where you can buy kvas, bread, honey and tea in large packages with detailed instructions on how and why to consume a certain selection of herbs according to ancient recipes. The sweet cakes are also worth trying. Buy them as souvenirs for friends and relatives and they will remain for weeks thanks to the recipe handed down by generations of monks for centuries. If you are willing to stay at the Mhar Monastery for another day, ask the monks to give you shelter for the night. The next day a walk around the huge territory of the monastery and feeding the hawks and doves living in large cages will take you back to the future, but remember that the past of the Mhar Monastery is always ready to welcome you back and again share with you the wonders of this amazing place.
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| St. Athanasius, Lubny Miracle-worker PHÎÒÎ: wikipedia.org |
How to get there
• The Mhar Monastery is located several kilometers from Lubny in the Poltava oblast
• From the railway station in Kyiv on a route taxi towards Poltava. Ask the driver to stop on the highway near the monastery;
• take a train to Lubny and from take a taxi or Luka or Mhar buses from the station to the monastery;
• Order an excursion at a travel agency in Kyiv
Rules for visiting the monastery
Stepping over the threshold of the church, you must cross yourself. At the entrance, men take off their hats and women must enter the church with their head covered. The attire should not be provocative; women must wear long skirts or a dress. Whispering is allowed, but you are better off keeping silent.
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