Culturally rich Orthodox monastery near the Bulgarian border - Rila Monastery 216
What and Why
The Rila monastery (Bulgarian: Рилски манастир, Rilski manastir) is one of the greatest monasteries built in Bulgaria (България, Bŭlgariya) or possibly in the Balkans, and is regarded as one of the most significant cultural, historical, and spiritual landmarks of the country. The Eastern Orthodox monastery is founded as early as the 10th century CE and is continuously rebuilt until the 19th century CE. The monastery's dedication to Orthodoxy has helped preserve the faith and its traditions through centuries of political turmoil and foreign domination, including rule by the Ottoman Empire (Ottoman Turkish: دولت عثمانيه, Devlet-i ʿOsmānīye).
Ever since its creation, the monastery has been supported and respected by the Bulgarian rulers, since its founding during Tsar Peter I's (Петър I, né Петър Крумов, Petir Krumov) reign. Large donations were made by almost every tsar of the Second Bulgarian Empire (Второ българско царство, Vtorо Bălgarskо Tsarstvo), making the monastery a cultural and spiritual icon of Bulgarian national faith that reached its apogee from the 12th to the 14th century CE.
Culturally, Rila Monastery has been a key centre of education and literacy. It was instrumental in preserving Bulgarian culture and language during periods of different foreign rule, especially under the Ottomans, when the monastery functioned as a bastion of Bulgarian identity. Monks at Rila Monastery engaged in the copying and preservation of manuscripts, which helped keep the Bulgarian language and literature alive. As a matter of fact, tThe monastery played a role in the Bulgarian National Revival (Българско Национално Възраждане, Balgarsko Natsionalno Vazrazhdane) in the 18th and 19th centuries CE, contributing to the awakening of national consciousness and the eventual liberation of Bulgaria from Ottoman rule.
Toponymy
While the monastery is named after its founder Saint John of Rila (Свети Йоан Рилски, Sveti Ioan Rilski), the monastery is located at the Rila (Рила) mountains, where the name comes from the Old Bulgarian verb 'рыти (ryti)' meaning 'to grub, or dig a hole in soil'.
See
Church (Църква)
The entire complex is built within a trapezoidal verandah citadel and the main temple is located right in the middle. The main church, with its classic but colourful Orthodox design, is built or reconstructed probably the latest, during the 19th century CE. The architecture definitely reminded me of the Mosque-Cathedral (Spanish: Mezquita-Catedral) in our blogged Cordova (Córdoba).
The most famous feature of the church is its extremely elegant and elaborate gold-plated wooden iconostasis, which is a typical feature in many big Eastern Orthodox churches. See our blog in Vladimir (Владимир).
The prominent porticos in the courtyard have Mamluk (Arabic: مملوك, Mamlūk) influence with the iconic striped painting and the domes, which became more popular in the Ottoman Empire after the conquest of Egypt during the 16th century CE. Below is the panoramic view of church complex, highly regarded as one of the foremost masterpieces of architecture during the Bulgarian National Revival.
The monastery is of course famous of its large number of very elaborate frescoes, all artworks of contemporary Bulgarian artists, which showcase the artistic achievements of the Bulgarian Renaissance period. Most of these frescoes are done during the mid-19th century CE and they literally wallpaper the entire complex.
Much of the subject matter is of apocalyptic last judgement images. Demons and gruesome death scenes are prominent. The frescoes are extremely detailed and each panel reveals some pretty bizarre interpretations of what the apocalypse would look like.
More artwork of saints and disciples.
Monastery (Mанастир)
The much revered monastery is clearly very noticeable with its prominent arched-verandah architecture. More importantly the monastery itself has served as the cradle and repository of the Bulgarian language and culture for the past few hundred years. All major manuscripts have been deposited in the Rila library. By the way there are some rooms for outside rental!
An important history to note of the monastery is that schools were founded in the Rila monastery during the Bulgarian National Revival. The monk Neophit of Rila (Неофит Рилски, Neophit Rilski, né Никола Бенин, Nikola Benin), who was a notable man of letters and an abbot of the monastery, was considered a father of the Bulgarian pedagody. He prepared teachers and clerics for the whole country.
Hrelja tower (Кула Хреля)
Hrelja (Хрельо, Hrelyo, né Хреља Охмућевић, Stefan Dragovol) was the feudal lord around the region and it was him who commissioned the relocation and reconstruction of Rila monastery in his own site. The Hrelja Tower became the start of the construction project and is now the oldest surviving building inside the complex, dated 1330s CE. Leaning onto the tower is the original tiny church which literally began everything of the complex.
Rafail's cross (Кръстът на Рафаил)
Rafail's cross (Кръстът на Рафаил, Kristit na Raphail) is a famous wooden crucifix housed inside the museum. The crucifix is a wooden cross made from a whole piece of wood (81 × 43 cm) and was whittled down by a monk named Rafail (Рафаил) using fine chisels and magnifying lenses to recreate an amazing 104 religious scenes and 650 miniature figures, all by hand. Work on this piece of art lasted for 12 years before it was completed in 1802 CE, when the monk lost his sight.
Buy and Do
Rose products (Розови продукти)
The souvenir to buy in Bulgaria is rose product, derived from the many rose farms in the country. The most popular products are the rose water, rose oil and hand creams, which are sold almost everywhere in Bulgaria, including Rila.
Eat and Drink
Banitsa (Баница)
There is a famous, and the reason is simply because that is the only eatery around, which draws a long queue. The bakery sells a cheese-based pastry called banitsa (баница) which is quite nice. The word means 'to fold'.
Travel Suggestions and Logistics
Rila is around 120 km south of Sofia (София) and there are daily buses serving the monastery from the capital. Rila is also 60 km east from the North Macedonia (Macedonian: Северна Македонија, Severna Makedonija) border which we continued our road journey. The monastery can easily spend a few hours for a good exploration. The monastery is also close to the Rila National Park (Национален парк „Рила“, Nacionalen park 'Rila') which is also a well-known national park in Europe.
UNESCO Inscription
Rila Monastery was founded in the 10th century by St John of Rila, a hermit canonized by the Orthodox Church. His ascetic dwelling and tomb became a holy site and were transformed into a monastic complex which played an important role in the spiritual and social life of medieval Bulgaria. Destroyed by fire at the beginning of the 19th century, the complex was rebuilt between 1834 and 1862. A characteristic example of the Bulgarian Renaissance (18th–19th centuries), the monument symbolizes the awareness of a Slavic cultural identity following centuries of occupation.
References
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Please share your thoughts and comments about the blog. If you need suggestions to build a travel itinerary, please let me know. More than willing to help. I would also like to build a bespoke-travel community around UNESCO WHS and ICH.
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