Karoulia

History and present days

The Portes Cape or Diaporti owes its name to the narrow sea passage between the Cape and the rocky islet, on the top of which there rises a huge iron cross. The change of scenery after the cape is spectacular. The verdant slopes of the Skete are now a thing of the past, replaced by arid, steep slopes with steep vertical cliffs, which show strong signs of precipitation and erosion from the sea and winds. The wild landscape is awe-inspiring. It is the Desert of Mount Athos.

The name refers to the dry area and to the struggles of the ascetics who quietly pray there, in conditions that resemble to those of the first pilgrims in the desert of Nitria and Syria.

The rule of Athonite contrasts and contradictions is confirmed here too: the area is one of the most densely populated in Athos. A series of ascetic spots, completely isolated or in loose settlements, runs along the edge of the Athonite peninsula. Their layout brings to mind fortification lines such as the Metaxas Line with its Rupel forts: there is a strong sense that the ascetics form the first line of defense of Mount Athos, the trenches of the invisible war waged by the monks against the temptations of the desert. It is, after all, the peninsula's inner sanctuary, the natural frontier. From here, the sea leads to the outside world. It is interesting to note that at the other end, on the land frontier, the fortified line is replaced by a wide uninhabited area, without cells and ascetics. The concentration of these spiritual strongholds at the southern end may have something to do with the liquid element, where, according to the teaching of the Orthodox Church, various demons are infested and must be driven out by the power of prayer and the sign of the Cross (this is the meaning of the holy baptism and the consecration of the waters in the monastery bottles). The ascetics are not evenly distributed. Their greatest concentration is at the southwestern edge. High up, on the edge that connects the Athos cone with Mount Carmel (altitude 895 m), which ends at Cape Nymphaeum (Cape Pinnes), there are Saint Basil and Kerasia. The many cells of Kerasia are due to the existence of water, which gushes abundantly from the “Cold Water” spring, the second highest spring on Athos after the Bousdoumi of the Monastery of Simonopetra. Lower down on the slope of Mount Carmel there are Karoulia and Katounakia.

Hermitage Guide

Karoulia extends immediately after Diaporti. The ascetics are located in caves and in cavities formed by the steep cliffs descending vertically to the sea. The monks have access by narrow paths dug into the rock, while chains can often be seen offering some safety in the most dangerous parts. These ascetic points date back to the 17th century and their construction was particularly arduous, as the materials had to be transported from the coast with ropes and pulleys. These pulleys (trohalies or karoulia in Greek), according to one version, gave the area its name, although many believe that the place name 'Karouli' comes from 'karauli' (observatory), since the site controls all ship traffic in the North Aegean.

If the plans of Stasikratis had been realized and the figure of Alexander the Great had been carved on Athos, this area would have been the site of the right shin and the foot of the commander. The thighs would run through the area between Mount Carmel and Mount Athos, where the torso and head would have been carved.

“The engineer Stasikratis thought to turn into a statue of Alexander the 2,000-meter-high pyramid of Athos and create in that way a populous state. However, the Rock of Prayer was not meant to showcase man's natural abilities. On it there had been wrecked earlier part the fleet of the arrogant monarch of Asia. The ephemerally powerful man could do no more than cut off the outcrop of the eternal worship. However, it was all in vain, for in time the canal was again refilled. As a treasure trove of human failures and shipwrecks, Athos preserves another image of life. As it is felt by the children who are protected by the angels.” Nikos Gabriel Pentzikis, 1967.

Karoulia was originally the place of Little Saint Anne’s Skete. In 1877 the dominant Monastery of Great Lavra seized the area and granted it for rent to Russian monks, whose number gradually increased. The place functioned as an informal skete. The church of Saint George's Kalyve then served as a sanctuary. There are 16 surviving ascetic spots, of which 10 are inhabited. At the beginning of the 20th century, 30 hermits lived in Karoulia. Today 3 monks live there. Karoulia is divided into Inside Karouli and Outside Karouli.

At the Outside Karouli the hermitage of Father Simon the Serb can be seen on the left. Higher up there is the hermitage of Father Charitonos, whose service in the Special Forces certainly has helped him in the place he chose to live his monastic life. Higher still there is a building with a large dome: it is the hermitage where the monk Nikon, a Russian nobleman and former officer of the Tsarist army, has lived as a monk. He was an enlightened personality and a charismatic elder, thanks to whom many foreigners, mainly English people, came closer to Orthodoxy. At his urging, the Englishman R.H. Palmer began translating the Philokalia into English, in collaboration with the Archimandrite, at that time, Callisto Ware. Higher above, a group of huts crowning Karoulia can be seen on the steep slope. There is the place called Katunakia. Among the 22 hermitages of the region, where there are currently living 31 monks, the most famous are those of Danilaei and Skourtaei. High on the top, the building with the arched openings is the hermitage of Clement. To the left of it, there is the hermitage of Saint Ephraim. Here monk Ephraim, better known as Father Ephraim Katounakiotis (†1998), a holy figure of modern Athonite monasticism, lived in peace.

Being the grandson of a priest from Thebes, Father Ephraim (b. 1912) became a monk in Katounakia (1934). He was a faithful submissive all throughout his life. He was connected with the elder Joseph, as well as with many abbots of other monasteries, with great love and affection. His father also came close to him and became a monk during the last period of his life.

“For two months I sat near old Joseph and found grace. One night I was praying standing up in my cell. For a moment it was as if the wall in front of me opened, and I saw three figures approaching me. My soul felt like opening its arms and embracing the middle one. What I felt cannot be explained. My spiritual sense informed me that it was Jesus Christ accompanied by two angels. As soon as I recovered, I took my lantern and set out for Saint Basil [where Old Joseph was living]. On the way my soul was surrounded by demons. Fear and terror seized me. I arrived at last, agonized and breathless. I explained to him what had happened. The old man stood up, hugged me and said, delighted: ‘This, my child, is the first step. This is grace. From here on, another spiritual clothing, other horizons, other spiritual food, other prayer await you. It’s a state for which all monks are wishing for years and very few taste it. God has given it to you so quickly!’ Narrated by the old man, Elder Ephraim Katunakiotis, 2000.

“He [Archbishop Emilian] came, sat down in front of me in the room and took off his hard cap. He was dressed like a prince's son. ‘I am an abbot in Meteora,’ he said, ‘I would like to ask you about mental prayer.’ ‘In Meteora there are many people, old man. You should come to Mount Athos,’ I replied. As he left, I said, ‘Let me do a little prayer to see what kind of man he is.’ He, my child, is pure as a distinct fragrance.” Narrative of the old man, Elder Ephraim Katounakiotis, 2000.

A concrete pier serves both Karoulia and Katounakia. The construction is recent. The cobblestone road for the Danilaean retreat was built in 1936. It was then that mules first arrived at Karoulia, and a desperate ascetic cried out: ‘Horseshoe has come to Karouli. Mount Athos is gone!’ The cobbled path climbs the slope and reaches Kerasia, whose cells are located at the height of the path connecting Great Lavra with the Skete of Saint Anna. That’s where the path starts, passing by Alonakia, Stavros, the shelter of Theotokos and reaches the top of Athos. The climb to the top from the pier to the summit is the most difficult of all passages, but it has the unparalleled grace of covering the entire height of Athos, from point 0 to point 2,033m.

This staircase is the last stop of the ship on the west coast. If the weather permits, the ferry completes its route by reaching Kausokalivia.

Immediately after the gorge of Katounakia, a large sara, product of landslides and precipitation, reaches the sea. Sailing along the massif of Mount Carmel, we pass Cape Nymphaeus (Cape Pinnes), with the lighthouse on top of a rock that has almost been cut off.

At the top of Mount Carmel, the small temple of Prophet Elias can be seen. Further to the left on the slopes we can also see the huts of Saint Basil, which in the 18th century used to be a Skete.

The coast immediately after Cape Pinnes is called Alykes because of the salt that collects in the hollows of the rocks. We pass the cave of Fonias with the lighthouse and the next two caves, Karavi and Gourouni, and reach the stairs of Kerasia. Some of its 12 cells can be seen high up on the left, in the ravine that leads to the staircase. This is an ancient retreat area. The first cells in this place were assigned by bond from Great Lavra to ascetics in the 14th century.

The area of the stairs is called Kleftiko. The ruined and roofless two-storey building made of grey chipped stone is the old port-house of Kerasia. It seems to have been built at the end of the 19th century by Russians and used to be an arsana of the Cell of Saint George. The house with the tiles and the covered porch with arches above the port-house is not a cell. It was built in recent years as a retreat house by some university professors, friends of Mount Athos. It doesn't seem to be very often in use.

The rocky islet of Saint Christoforos can be seen further east. According to local tradition, it was connected, to the mainland by a narrow tongue of land, which was submerged after an earthquake along with the monastery of Saint Christopher that was located there. Divers say that there are ancient ruins on the seabed between the land and the islet. However, written sources do not mention the existence of a monastery. In the story of the life of Saint Niphon, who lived in the area during the 14th century, the islet is described as completely deserted. Today on the islet there is a recently built church with a concrete roof. There are also pre-Christian graves.