O, amazing island of Valaam
The visit to the monastery of Father
Ignaty Bryanchaninov in 1846

othing odd! The whole universe was walked around by their words (*) - that's what the Bible says about the adventures of the Apostles. Their works belong to the whole mankind and not only to a single man; their attention, their love were brought in not by education or civilian community, but by disaster of a fallen man whether he was a Scythian or a Barbarian, a Jew or Ellin (**). So why Saint Apostle Andrew couldn't come to our ancestors - Slavs or to our neighbors - Scandinavians? Why couldn't he visit the place sanctified for religion and leave true religious services and knowledge of God. Why should we hesitate that that God himself suggested the Apostle this high, holy decision and gave him power to realize it? Wilderness, little-known land, length, difficult travelling - they all couldn't be a reason strong enough to reject this legend. A little later the great troops walked these ways, so why can't the Apostle leading by God walk them too?

Here is a not dark, not doubtful but true historical legend. Monkhood on Valaam and the eastern christian religion prospered there far earlier and stronger than a traveler could imagine after a short visit. You should look more intently, give enough time, listen to the stories of the monks attentively in order to learn the information worth attention of modern culture, worth memory of educated progeny. The monkhood on Valaam developed so much that it moved to the other shore of the lake, where Serdobol stands now (***). Twelve sketes were on the that shore, founded by the monks and ruled by hegumen of Valaam. People who lived on the shores professed the eastern orthodox Christianity borrowed from the monastery; orthodox temples stood along the shore up to Keksholm. Karelians of that shore of Ladoga were orthodox, just like Karelians of the opposite shore, residents of the Olonets province.

In the beginning of the seventeenth century Pontus de La-Gardi, a Swedish military leader who caused so much evil to Russia, ravaged the cloister, burnt down the churches and the cells, killed the monks though some of them fled. The left shore of Finland was exposed to the same fate: orthodox temples were burnt, monks were killed or departured and Lutheranism was spread among the inhabitants. It is worth of remark that the settlements which kept orthodox belief are situated not on the very shore of Ladoga lake, not on the way of invaders, but deeper in Finland, behind mountains and swamps. Only behind the natural fences of the country they could find a place to hide from Protestants. Many Finns fled to Russia in order to keep their belief at that time. You can meet their orthodox descendants in Novgorod and Tver provinces.

When Providence punished Swedes with Peter the Great's weapon for they turned into foes when they came to Russia and thus broke the God's Law, then the Valaam monastery returned together with Karelia back to Russia. In 1717 monks of the Kirillo-Belozyorsky monastery came to the site of a fire of the former Valaam cloister; the temple was erected anew and cells appeared. During the reign of Elisaveta Petrovna the whole wooden building was burnt by a fire. The empress resumed the State maintenance of the monastery. Just like before the new building was a wooden one. I've seen this picture of the monastery and I liked it. In my opinion a wooden building suits the deserted Valaam cloister well. The monks' huts made out of wood comfort the look. They are convenient for monkhood: keep health from damp climate, strong winds, food and the spirit, torturing the flesh. If only there was a big stone temple in the monastery which would combine warm and cold churches in two storeys and which would protect the monastery from winds. The cells could have been wooden, standing at a distance from each other in case of fire, they would surround the church. What a wonderful position it would be! This location is perfect: keeping all the conveniences it shows that the inhabitants of these huts have the only purpose which is religious service.

* Col. III, 11.Psalter, XVIII, 5.

** The manuscript of the Valaam library sends us to the ancient manuscript "Opoved"

*** Sortavala town now.