Ivan of Rila

Most of the historical knowledge that we have about Ivan is from the Bulgarian medieval Chronicles from the 13th century. From this Chronicles, we know that there are earlier texts, but nothing from the original versions is preserved. Pieces of the 13th-century Chronicles are still preserved in the library of the Monastery.

Ivan was born in a very devoted Christian family in the year around 875 in a village very close to Sredets, the medieval name of Sofia. His family was poor. They raised Ivan in the most fundamental Christian values, such as fear of god and dedication of his existence to him. When his parents died he decided to move away from society and become a hermit. Seeking solace and a closer connection to God, he retreated into the solitude of the Rila Mountains, living a life of asceticism. His humble abode was a cave, away from the trappings of society, where he devoted himself to prayer, fasting, and communion with nature.

Despite his intention to live in solitude, Saint Ivan’s reputation as a man of profound spirituality and miraculous powers spread far and wide. People from all walks of life began to seek him out, drawn by stories of his healing abilities and wisdom. Kings and commoners alike sought his counsel, but Saint Ivan remained humble, never straying from his ascetic practices. The legend says that Ivan once refused the expensive gifts sent by King Peter the First. Ivan died in 946. Luckily for him, he didn’t see what happened to Bulgaria in the next decades after the invasion of the Kyiv Rus Slavs and Vikings in 969 and the following Byzantine conquest war that continued between 972 and 1018 with the fall of the Bulgarian state.