Is there Perfection? Those who claim that it does not exist will think once again about this when visiting the Kaona Monastery, near Vladimirci, in Western Serbia.
Monastery buildings, churches, lake, auxiliary buildings, tourist facilities, perfectly maintained grass, all of which are ideally integrated into the untouched natural environment of the beautiful West of Serbia – nobody, no one can remain indifferent to this.
When a man sees this beauty, he wants to simply sit down, just sit there and enjoy it, in deep peace with himself and in this place where he can spent hours, days, weeks, years…
According to the legend, the monastery was built by the sister of the legendary hero of Serbia, Miloš Obilić. His sisters escorted him to Kosovo Battle, against the Turks. When they came to a place known as Ravne livade, Milos was thirsty, and his sister Ikonija went to grab some water him from a nearby well.
Having given him a jug of water, Ikonia said to his brother, “O my brother, what good horses I saw, if I only had a saddle for it!” She, of course, did not talk about the horse and saddle, but about a right place that would fit the church.
Milos allegedly then replied to his sister to “make a saddle”, that is, to build a monastery right there, and promised to help her finish it when he comes back from Kosovo.
In Kosovo, according to the legend, Milos Obilic killed a Turkish sultan Murat, and on that occasion he lost his life, so he could not return to his sisters and complete the monastery with them.
This is said by the legend, and according to some historical sources, the monastery is the endowment of one of Nemanjić kings, while the first church was built here in the second half of the 11th century, before Nemanjić dynasty and Miloš Obilić.
After nearly six centuries of slavery under the Turks, which the monastery of Kaona endured intact, the brotherhood of the monks joined the struggle for liberation and, during the First Serbian Uprising, it was turned into a hospital, and the monks also took part in the battles. In the main church in the monastery there is even a weapon used to fight the Turks.
During the Great War (1914-1918), the monastery was badly damaged and the bells were stolen, while during the Second World War it was in a bad state. During the communist government (1945-1990), the monastery was fundamentally and seriously restored, and it has today’s appearance.
The main church of the monastery Kaona, the Church of the Holy Archangel Michael, was built on the foundations of the old church, which was built in 1892, and later demolished, and belongs to the Byzantine style.
The monastery is among the people and among the believers perhaps the most famous of the relics kept in it – the miraculous relics of St. Petka, one of the most respected saints among the Serbs.
In the monastery, otherwise, there is a pool in the form of a cross, in which baptism is still performed according to the ancient tradition, when the person baptized is completely immersed in the water. The water from this monastery has a constant temperature of 11 degrees Celsius and is considered medicinal.
Otherwise, the monastery’s surroundings have not always been so beautiful: for this heavenly beauty, the fraternity is responsable, for they turned the surrounding streams into lakes.
This article is a part of the project “Seven miracles of Vladimirci”, supported by the Vladimirci Municipality. Positions of the supported media project do not necessarily reflect statements of the organ supporting the project.
(Come to Serbia)