The only monastery in the Strandzha Mountain, “Holy Life-giving Spring”

It is situated at a distance of 64 kilometres from Burgas. From the centre of the village of Golyamo Bukovo, amidst a loose beech and oak grove a road winds up to Osman Bair. It leads to the holy cloister. People come in flocks here every day. Healing water springs from the church altar.

Father Evtimiy welcomes the guests. He takes them by a narrow path to a height, where a half-ruined stone structure stands. The two-story building was erected stone by stone at the end of the 19th century. Monks used to live here until about 50 years ago.

The history of the monastery is far more ancient. Legend has it that Gregorios Sinaites in the 13th c. started from Mount Sinai and arrived in Istanbul. From there he took a ship to Sozopol. He entered the upland coast. He found the healing spring that he had dreamt of before leaving for Strandzha from Sinai and founded the monastery there. He wrote a letter to Ivan-Alexander, Bulgaria’s Tsar at that time, asking for support. After a brief correspondence, Theodosius of Tarnovo arrived with a letter from the capital city. He left his office of a state official in the administration of the Bulgarian ruler and lived with the monks of the “Holy Life-giving Spring”.

Several times did the holy men send appeals to the Bulgarian rulers to defend the monastery against robbers’ attacks and preserve it from the invasion of the Ottoman armies. The Osman army conquered Strandzha. During the rule of Islam over our lands the monastery was destroyed.

According to a local legend, one night in the late 19th century Kosta Yanov from Golyamo Bukovo dreamt of the Holy Mother of God. The Virgin asked him to find a mysterious place called Golemiya zmiilak (a place with many snakes) at the foot of Osman Bair. Three times did the Mother of God appear, but Kosta Yanov would not do her bidding. He got ill, he had ulcers on his legs and then he dreamt of the Holy Virgin again. She told him to go to the little spring near the village, to wash his wounds there and after they heal, to find the old monastery that used to exist on that place. Kosta tried to make his fellow-villagers go with him to that mysterious place. At first nobody believe him. But the pains got very bad and he wouldn’t stop talking about his dreams, and finally his friends agreed to go and seek the place.

They found a spring where Kosta’s dream told them. The man poured some water on his wounds and they started healing. Hearing the news about his recovery, more people from the village went there. They cleared out the snakes and found proof of the holiness of the place an iron cross, a brass incense-burner, a marble plate Holy Throne.