Holy Assumption Cave Monastery in Bakhchisarai (Crimea)

We crave spiritual thirst

In the gloomy desert I dragged myself

And the six-winged seraph

At the crossroads appeared to me.

A. S. Pushkin

At the very entrance to the Church of the Assumption of the Mother of God, Seraphim patiently awaits us. Skillfully carved from the rock, this guardian of the Divine mystery appeared here in the most wonderful way. A carved column was supposed to be in its place, but at the most critical moment the hand of the master suddenly stopped uncertainly, and accidentally falling off rocky pieces opened his face to the bewildered gaze of the angel. The artist only had to slightly bring the mysterious image that appeared to him.

Each temple has its own angel, but not always and not everywhere it can be seen in reality. From the very moment of the birth of the holy cave of the Assumption of the Mother of God, her richest and in many ways tragic, twelve centuries of history, was accompanied by unknown secrets and mysteries. Seraphim - these angels of love, light and fire, occupying the highest position in the hierarchy of ranks close to God - symbolize this sacred closeness.

The Holy Assumption Cave Monastery is conveniently located 2 kilometers from the city of Bakhchisarai, in the rock of the St. Mary's Gorge (Maryam Dare), where fragments of Tatar buildings of the 16th century are still preserved.

Located in the heart of the gorge, among the most picturesque, created by nature beauties of the Crimean land, surrounded by powerful and high cliffs, this snow-white, man-made miracle does not dissonant with the surrounding mountain landscape.

The road to the monastery runs along the beam of the Maria Gorge, where mountain blocks are cautiously hanging on the right hand and the steepness of the cliff on the left.Higher on the road, in smooth, worked-out rocks, are located the monk caves cut down by the weary hands.

Then, unexpectedly, like from a fairy tale, a white dome of the Assumption Church of the monastery appears in height, to which a spacious, magnificent staircase rises. A journey back into time begins here, where, crouching under the canopy of centuries-old trees, you can carefully examine the wall with many images of world-famous temples and monasteries.

The decoration of the temple is striking in its asceticism - there are no painted ceilings, tiled walls and rich mosaics in it. Nothing will distract the pilgrims' attention from the main shrine of the Lavra - the miraculous icon of the Mother of God “Three Hands”.

In the main cave temple carved in the mountain, the light, made of stone, iconostasis separates the altar. The floor is covered with a simple mosaic ornament reminiscent of Chersonese creations. To the right of the entrance along the wall is a small colonnade. To the left, from the windows, the unobtrusive rays of the southern sun penetrate into the room.

Among the columns, in the wall on the right, there is a small cave where a revered list of the image of the Bakhchisarai Mother of God is kept. The icon itself, which became the reason for the construction of the monastery, was transferred during the resettlement of Christians from the Crimea (XVIII century). For a long time, until 1918, it was stored in the Assumption Church near Mariupol, and then its trace is lost.

Behind the laurel fence, there are several temples, monks' cells, a belfry and outbuildings. Some rooms for tourists are open.

A little lower than the temple of the Assumption is a miniature temple of Mark carved into the rocks. Artfully decorated with wood, it looks very cozy. Everyday services are held here, and Sundays and holidays are held in the main temple.

On the main monastery square, in honor of the icon of the Mother of God, there is the "Life-giving Spring", and a chapel built above it in the form of a fountain. Initially, the image of the "Life-Giving Source" existed in the lists without its image. Later, the violet was included in the composition, and then images of a reservoir and a fountain appeared on the icon.

The appearance of the mosaic icon of the Mother of God “Life-giving Source” is associated with the miraculous healing by the Mother of God of the blind, which occurred in the 5th century at a source near Constantinople. The warrior Lev Markell, who later became the emperor (455–473), who witnessed this miraculous healing, erected a temple of the same name (the “Life-Giving Spring”) at the source.

Since 1993, a monastery was opened in the monastery. The Church of the Assumption of the Virgin was restored. Separate internal buildings of the monastery are still under reconstruction.

On the other side of the valley, you can see unusual outbuildings, similar to large Ukrainian huts, with typical roofs for them. However, these are not roofs, but protruding rocks, to which inventive monks attached only walls, having received convenient utility rooms. They contain various animals and vegetables for food.

Now, in addition to the two restored cave temples, a considerable number of ground buildings have been erected: among them are fraternal buildings, a pilgrimage hotel, and workshops. New ones are actively being built in the valley and old buildings are being restored.

At the exit from the monastery there is a road further uphill to Chufut-Kale.

Almost nothing is known about the erection time, the founders and creators of the Holy Assumption Monastery. In this regard, there are various versions, confirmed only by legends and ancient beliefs. With confidence we can only say that this Orthodox monastery is the oldest of the Crimean monasteries. The proposed versions about the origin of the monastery have a wide temporal spread - from the VIII to XIII century.

The appearance of the monastery is attributed by a number of experts to the period between the 11th and 15th centuries. However, it is possible that the monks appeared in the gorge of Mary in the VIII century, during the period of their exile by the iconoclasts.

It is likely that initially the monks cut down the temple building from the rocks, and the monastery itself developed a little later.

Since the 17th century, the monastery has been the residence of the Metropolitan Gotfsky (Patriarchate of Constantinople). They led in a spiritual way the Greeks and representatives of other nationalities who had once adopted Orthodoxy.

At the end of the war with the Turks in 1774, Prince A. A. Prozorovsky arrived on the peninsula with troops. He informs the sovereign that not far from Bakhchisarai there is an ancient Greek church, carved into the mountain, and its higher clergy intends to build a new temple. But, despite the fact that the local throne was headed by a pro-Russian khan, instead of updating the monastery, its desolation takes place.

The process of the revival of the monastery is associated with the name of St. Innocent, who occupied the Kherson pulpit in 1948. In 1850 the grand opening of the temple takes place, and Archimandrite Polycarp becomes its rector. The opening was attended by the supreme clergy and many Crimean pilgrims, including the Tatars, who enthusiastically accepted this event.

In the XX century, the monastery of Anastasia the Solvers was built in the vicinity of the temple. Built on the site of an old house church, it is located 8 km from the monastery.

The Soviet government did not favor believers, and in 1921 the monastery was closed, and a colony for the disabled was organized in its premises. Since 1929 the monastery gradually faded. Since 1970, it was a neuropsychiatric institution.

The active revival of the monastery began in 1991, with the light hand of the Archbishop of Simferopol Lazarus. In 1993, when the man’s monastery was opened, four monastery churches, cell buildings, the abbot house, the bell tower were reconstructed, the water source and the main staircase were restored. Today, in terms of the number of employees, the monastery is the largest in the Crimea.

Arriving at the monastery, pilgrims and tourists are imbued with the elevated spiritual atmosphere of the monastery on the way to it. The high ancient staircase and the special architecture of the monastery, its proximity to pristine nature and something mysterious - all this forms unusual, enduring impressions.

In addition to rock and rock art, the architectural features of the monastery emphasize the following buildings.

• Bell tower. A single-tier, built in the form of a figured portico, on a very high base, neat columns of the Tuscan order are clearly visible. All this sparkles with a gilded roof in the form of a beautiful tent. An especially revered icon of the Mother of God rises above the main temple, located in a hollow with a twisted image.
• Fountain, closer to the foot of the stairs, inspired by an angel sculpture. To the left of the fountain is a cozy house of the abbot of the monastery, built in the 19th century.
• Observation deck, located in front of the main entrance to the temple, offers a wonderful view of the gorge and the ancient ruins of the Greek town.
• Utility rooms cloisters with cliffs hanging on them like roofs.

The cave rooms of the monastery have wonderful acoustic qualities. On the site in front of the cave church, the voices of visitors are noisy, but it’s worth taking a couple of steps to the north and this noise disappears almost completely. So limestone with its porous structure intensively absorbs noise.Knowing this, the builders of the temple increased the size of the premises of the church of Saints Constantine and Helena, whose walls reflected the sound.

Thanks to this, the altar turned out to be in the center of the volume resonator, and the sounds of prayers reached Chufut-Kale, where, falling into cave horns, reflected and reappeared in the monastery. Due to this effect, the praying Christians got the impression that with them the nearby rocks produce a prayer.

There are several beautiful legends about the appearance of the temple. So, a young shepherd, driving a herd past one of the caves, noticed a bright light in it. Inside the cave, he was surprised to find a candlelit icon floating in the air, an icon of the Blessed Virgin Mary. His admiration knew no bounds, especially since the episode took place on August 15 - on the Day of the Assumption of the Virgin. Taking the icon home, in the morning the shepherd discovered that it was not there.

But, following on a pasture, near the same cave he again saw the light and the icon. The shepherd took the image home again, but the story repeated itself. Having learned about this event, fellow villagers guessed that the Virgin Mary wanted a temple in her honor to be built on this site.

Holy Assumption Monastery was visited by crowned persons: Emperors Alexander I and II, Nicholas I. The miraculous events and phenomena taking place here have constantly attracted and attract here both Christians and simply curious people who believe in miracles.

The main shrines of the monastery.

• Icon of the Assumption of Our Lady in silver robe - donation from commandant Bakhchisaray Totovich. Believers receive from this gift the healing of mental and physical diseases. Evidence of this - a lot of pendants of gold and silver, as gifts for deliverance from unknown ailments.
• Duplicate of the icon of the Mother of God in a silver robe, with jewels. Donation of the wife of General Martynov in 1856
• Duplicate of the icon of the Mother of God of Kiev-Pechersk, in a gilded robe - a gift from Metropolitan Filaret on the occasion of the celebration of the opening of the monastery.
• Icon of the Savior with 84 fragments of the relics of saints - a gift from the Korsun Mother of God Monastery.
• Cross with the image of the crucifixion of Jesus Christ. Composition of three valuable species of wood. Gift of Old Athos in 1850
• Image of the Virgin and Child. Displayed on the rocks.

You can quickly and easily get to the monastery by bus number 2, which follows from the Bakhchisaray railway station to the Staroselye stop. Then you will have a little walk.

By personal transport it is better to go to the monastery from the ring road, which passes in front of Bakhchisarai (if you move from Simferopol). There is a noticeable pointer on the track showing the path to the travel destination. Further, bypassing the most beautiful cliffs, we reach Staroselye and, having parked in the parking lot, we advance to the monastery on foot.

We follow the ancient Takhtaly-Jami mosque, built in the XVIII century, where you can quench your thirst in the fountain located there, bearing in mind the upcoming rise to the monastery.

Mountain monasteries - a special historical space of the spiritual culture of Crimea. Some of them were founded by Byzantine masters back in the 8th – 9th centuries and did not interrupt their activities under the Tatar yoke. The same are the mountain structures of Kachi Kalona and the Bead Temple.

The Holy Assumption Monastery is a supporting bridgehead of Orthodoxy in the Crimean region. Excursions to this monastery are often combined with a visit to the Karaite mountain settlement of Chufut-Kale with its kenasses, mausoleums and grottoes, due to the proximity of tourism sites.

It is convenient to order such excursions as a part of tours on sites where you can familiarize yourself with the rules in advance, the corresponding preliminary familiarization with the service registers, prices and other nuances. Here you can find out prices for excursions in various directions and choose the suitable options.

To visit the Christian shrine, women must have a scarf on their heads and necessarily covered clothing. The entrance to the monastery is open at any time of the year, however, tourists can visit only a few rocky rooms.

There are several such complex excursions (with various display objects) from Bakhchisarai. Their cost varies from 500 to 1500 rubles.

About the Holy Assumption Cave Monastery in Bakhchisarai, see the next video.