Mount Athos — The Holy Mountain
Twenty monasteries, a thousand years, and a clock set to sunset.
Mount Athos is a self-governing monastic republic on the easternmost peninsula of Halkidiki in northern Greece, and the spiritual centre of Orthodox monasticism. Twenty ruling monasteries, with their sketes and hermitages, keep an unbroken liturgical life that dates from the tenth century.
The twenty monasteries
The ruling monasteries are ranked in a fixed hierarchy headed by the Great Lavra, founded by St Athanasios the Athonite in 963. Seventeen are Greek; Hilandar is Serbian, Zograf Bulgarian, and St Panteleimon Russian. The administrative capital is Karyes, where the Holy Community sits.
Time, calendar and the daily round
- Athos keeps the Julian (Old) Calendar for all fixed feasts.
- Most monasteries keep Byzantine time, resetting the clock to 00:00 at sunset.
- Services begin in the small hours; a vigil on a feast can last ten hours or more.
- Meals are twice a day at most, with fasting throughout the year and no meat ever served.
The avaton
The Holy Mountain is dedicated to the Theotokos as her 'garden', and the avaton — a prohibition dating to at least the eleventh century — bars women from the peninsula. It is recognised in Greek law and in the accession terms of Greece to the European Community.
Visiting as a pilgrim
- Only male pilgrims may visit, and numbers are capped daily — around 100 Orthodox and 10 non-Orthodox.
- A permit called the diamonitirion is issued by the Pilgrims' Bureau in Thessaloniki and must be arranged in advance.
- Access is by ferry from Ouranoupoli to Dafni or the eastern coast.
- Accommodation is offered by the monasteries; a stay is usually one night per monastery.
Frequently asked
- Can women visit Mount Athos?
- No. The avaton restricts entry to men; it has been in force for around a thousand years and is recognised in Greek law.
- How many monasteries are on Mount Athos?
- Twenty ruling monasteries, plus twelve sketes and many kellia and hermitages.
- What calendar does Mount Athos follow?
- The Julian (Old) Calendar, thirteen days behind the civil calendar for fixed feasts.