⭐ Travel Guide for Island Crete ⛵, Greece❗

The arrival of Saint John the Hermit in Crete of the Early Christian Times was the beginning of a great ascetic tradition that continues to the present day. Hundreds of hermits secluded in the most remote parts of the island, forming ascetic communities that later evolved to thriving monasteries. Hundreds of countryside monasteries, most of which don't operate today, are dispersed throughout the island.

A special sample of hermitage is the Monastery Katholiko at Akrotiri Cape in the caves of which hermits lived their monastic life away, from worldly pleasures. Equally important were the religious sites of the secluded peninsulas Gramvousa and Rodopos, where several small monasteries developed.

The greatest hermitage of all was the naturally isolated, and impassable range of Asterousia in southern Heraklion. Hundreds of caves from Saint Nikitas to Cape Lithino still host hermits. Relations between them were so limited that in Agiofarago and Martsalo they gathered only once a year, in cave Goumenospilio and counted how many of them survived each year.

In eastern Crete, the north province of Mirabello is the largest field of asceticism with dozens of small monastic establishments. Here hermits built small monasteries, where they usually lived alone.

Show Map

Panagia Church at Lambini

1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 Rating 4.00 (2 Votes)

The church of Panagia Lambini is a tetrastyle cruciform church (11th-12th century) with a dome and a very impressive bell tower. The imposing church functioned as a Diocese of Lambi, while in 1950 the locals identified on a frescoe of the Virgin Mary the surname Lambini (shining).

Panagia church of Two Rocks

1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 Rating 4.00 (3 Votes)

Outside the village of Fres, inside a ravine at the really beautiful position Koukou we meet the temple Virgin Mary (Panagia) of Two Rocks. Once a rock detached from the mountain and rolled down the slope. Atop of the rock, the church of Panagia was built. Adjacent there is another rock, both forming an impressive scenery.

Black Panagia at Vamos

1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 Rating 2.29 (7 Votes)

The huge platan trees around it hide its presence. Behind the chapel there is a small dark cave, where the tradition wants a shepherd to have found the icon of Panagia and then decided to build the church. The blackened ceil of the cave inspired the name of the church, which locals call Mavri Panagia (i.e. Black Virgin Mary).

The Dragon of Saint Anthony at Kalamitsi

1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 Rating 3.29 (7 Votes)

The village Kalamitsi of Apokoronas province consists of two separate settlements, Kalamitsi Alexandrou and Kalamitsi Amigdali. The settlements host two churches dedicted to St. Anthony. One of these, near Kalamitsi Alexandrou, hides a small not well known treasure. Saint Anthony, like most churches and chapels in Crete dedicated to St Anthony, is cavernous and has been built in a rock shelter on the edge of a slope.

Church of Saint George at Sklavopoula

1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 Rating 4.00 (2 Votes)

The church of St. George at Sklavopoula bears frescoes of two phases. The oldest (sanctuary and a part of the north wall) dates back from 1290, while the second phase (the rest of the north wall and west wall) dates back from the 14th century.

Monastery of Saint George at Xera Xyla

1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 Rating 2.50 (2 Votes)

The monastery of Xera Xyla is located in the province of Mirabello, near the village Kourounes. The central temple is dedicated to Saint George and today is uninhabited. The complex consists of the domed church of St. George, surrounded by several fortress-like cells and a two-storey building.

Saints Eftyhiani monastery

1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 Rating 3.67 (3 Votes)

The Monastery of the Saints Eftychiani was located at hill Raxos and was dedicated to the local Saints Eftychianos, Eftychios and Kassiani. Near the ruins of the first temple, a new was inaugurated in 2009. In 2011 the monastery restarted its operation as a nunnery.

Varsamonero Monastery in Vorizia

1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 Rating 5.00 (1 Vote)

The deserted monastery of Varsamonero is located about 53km southwest of Heraklion, on the southern slopes of Psiloritis Range. It was built in a panoramic area near Vorizia village, overlooking the plain of Messara.

Asceticism

Also read: