In the mountains of the Troodos Massif, on the border of two villages - Platres and Prodromos - there is an amazing monastery, which is called one of the most beautiful in Cyprus. This shrine has long been famous for the miracles that occur in it.
The name of the monastery
The expanded name of the shrine is the Monastery of Our Lady of Trooditiss. The name of the Mother of God in this case comes from the geographical name of the mountain, which means “three ways”. These roads connected the three main cities of Cyprus with the mountain range. At first, the name of the icon, which was the main shrine of the monastery, was “Troodiotissa,” and later it was reduced to its usual form today.
Establishment of Spiritual Conventions in Cyprus
Most of the spiritual cloisters of Cyprus were founded as a kind of shelter for icons, which were famous for their miraculous abilities. The period of the emergence of monasteries dates from the time of iconoclasm and hostility to religious relics. In the VIII century, many of the religious shrines were secretly taken to Byzantium, where old customs were more revered. In a similar way, Maheras and the Temple of Our Lady of Arakos arose. A similar story happened with the advent of the Trooditissa monastery in Cyprus.
History preceding the emergence of the Trooditissa Monastery
According to ancient legend, one of the Byzantine monks brought the icon of the same name to Cyprus. Arriving on the island, the priest settled in the oldest monastery of St. Nicholas, which is located near Limassol. Later, the Blessed Virgin herself showed him the way to the Troodos mountains, appearing in the form of a deity. Heading for this divine sign, the monk reached the legendary cave, in which he settled. This place was located east of the modern shrine. The cave became the shelter of the monk until the end of his days. After a short period of time after the death of the monk, the Mother of God again showed her will. Local residents took this as a sign that a temple should be erected at the site of the unusual phenomenon. Today it is the monastery of Trooditissa (Cyprus). That's how it came to life.
The history of the construction of the monastery
The shepherd from the empty village of Afames today saw the magical glow of the Mother of God every night. In order to quench his curiosity, he went to look for the clue that lurked in the cave. A shepherd brought a radiant icon to his village. Local residents were struck by its beauty and decided that this shrine should be in the monastery. The construction of the temple was also accompanied by miracles. For example, jugs with water collected in a nearby river flowing broke at night. Thanks to these signs, people realized that this was the wrong place to build a monastery. One fine day, at the place where the monastery stands today, a jug of water miraculously appeared. The inhabitants of the village took this sign as a sign of the Mother of God. After some time, a life-giving spring began to flow from the place where the vessel was found. Such an amazing story has the monastery of Trooditissa. Since the construction of the monastery, Troodos has been visited by a huge number of pilgrims.
Historical facts
It is no secret that the holy place appeared long ago, but there are practically no references to it until the beginning of the 18th century. Only a few abbot names have survived to our times, as well as facts about the arson of the temple by the Turks. The miraculous icon was saved miraculously. Thanks to the description of the monastery by Grigorovich-Barsky, a detailed portrait of the shrine remains in history. According to him, it was "not a very large and impoverished monastery, which is located in a beautiful picturesque area." Nearby were three inexhaustible sources of clean water. In the summer, it was truly a paradise in which birds sang.
Shrines
Trooditissa Monastery is famous for relics such as the icon of Our Lady of the Trooditissa and its belt. It should be noted that this miraculous belt in modern times was brought to many monasteries and churches in Russian cities. Thanks to these shrines, many couples diagnosed with infertility who believe in miracles can have children. The main component of the fulfillment of desires is sincerity and faith. In order to achieve success in the desired, it is necessary to perform some holy rite. They put a belt on a woman who wants to have children and begin to read divine prayers for the birth of a child and his health. This miraculous ritual is free. There is an opinion that it is he who always helps even in hopeless and neglected cases. Such miracles are famous for Trooditissa (monastery). The reviews of numerous pilgrims also confirm this. After many years of infertility, someone gave birth to healthy children, and someone brought their sick children here, and they immediately recovered.
Icon of Our Lady of the Trooditissa
According to a legend that has been passed down for centuries from generation to generation, the image of the Mother of God of the same name was created by one of the apostles. His name is Luke. The creations of the evangelist are considered over 600 icons. At the same time, various temples and churches disagree on the authenticity of these icons. In the XVII century, this holy icon was restored and almost rewritten. This time, its author was Solomon Fites, a famous legendary icon painter. Today, the life-giving image is in the lower row of the most beautiful iconostasis of the monastery, on the left side of the royal gate.
The legend of the holy icon
An interesting legend is inextricably linked with the most miraculous icon of the Trooditissa . An unknown at that time a man named John arrived in the highlands of Troodos with his wife. The purpose of their visit to these lands was the opportunity to pray at the local monastery for the gift of children. This couple vowed before the Lord that if the boy was born, he would be given to one of the monasteries in which he would become a monk. Sincere prayer that came from the heart was heard. Soon the woman found out that she was pregnant, and her joy knew no bounds. The couple had a son, whom they soon baptized in the same temple.
Time flew by, already elderly parents did not want to be separated from their only beloved son. They soon made an important decision. Parents wanted to buy their only son from the monks. For some time, a luxurious ransom was prepared, with which they all went to the monastery together. When a woman told the monks of the monastery that she had changed her original decision, a huge stone suddenly fell from the vault of the monastery and flew straight into the head of her son.
But at that moment the Virgin herself took pity on the boy and interceded for him in a miraculous way. The icon leaned slightly and took a heavy blow. And today you can use the naked eye to look at the back side of the image of a stuck stone in the icon. This case greatly impressed the boy, so he decided to nevertheless go to the monks, contrary to the decision of his mother.
Of great interest is the fact that a monk with Russian roots, very respectful of religion and worshiping the holy places of Cyprus, questioned the veracity of this legend. He says that the stone resembles a rock, which is simply skillfully glued to the icon. Natural fall of stone is impossible. The monastery is too low for a stone to fall so deeply into a wooden frame. Perhaps at first the stone got stuck, but then it fell out, after which it was again artificially attached to the tree.
Despite all these doubts, it is confirmed by the facts that sincere prayer, coming from a pure heart at this interesting stone, saves people from all kinds of diseases, and healing came especially quickly with toothache in babies. Parents often bring sick children here. Particularly strong in the place of the shrine is the maternal prayer, which works in miracles with faith in tandem. Since ancient times, many honor the tradition of baptizing the first-born in this miraculous monastery. The local population firmly believes that the Mother of God gives these children the strongest invisible protection.
Belt of the Virgin
Among the shrines in the temple, a belt is especially honored, which is mistakenly called the belt of the Virgin. This is actually not the case. In the XIX century, an elderly woman who could not have children regularly prayed before a miraculous icon. Once her prayers were answered. Having given birth to a child, a grateful woman gave the holy temple a belt that accompanied her throughout her pregnancy. Since those time immemorial, an unusual rite has appeared when a belt is tried on childless women. A prerequisite for every woman is that she should be married, but not civil, but church.
Today, rituals are also held that help childless women to further find the happiness of motherhood. There are over a hundred real cases when, for medical reasons, the infertile couples gave birth to healthy children after they visited this shrine with sincere faith.
How to get to the Trooditissa monastery? For tourists, the monastery is not always open. But believers and pilgrims can visit the holy monastery at any time.
Childless couples who want to receive the grace of the Virgin, without special obstacles, can get to the place where the Trooditissa (monastery) is located. How to get to the main shrine?
It is best to get by car along the Limassol - Troodos highway. Along the way there will be a sign that says: "Caledonia Trail." Having passed it, you need to move further to the Troodos massif. After two kilometers, there will be a fork with an indication of the location of the Trooditissa Monastery. There you will need to turn left. Then you should follow a narrow picturesque road, which in 1.5 km will intersect with the road leading to the monastery from the village of Platres. At the intersection, turn right and continue to the exit to the monastery. There are special signs along the highway, following which you can quickly reach the monastery.