In a green ravine, in a remote but beautiful landscape, lies a monastery different from the others. Different partly because of its location, and partly because of its history and the tradition that follows it.

The Monastery of the "Ascetic" is dedicated to the deposit of the Holy Belt of the Virgin and is located in the Peloponnese. The pictures speak for themselves and you can understand why this monastery stands out not only in the Peloponnese, but in all of Greece. In a green gorge, between two rocks there is this cave-like monastery, which is perhaps something unique in the whole world. The Peloponnese has many monasteries and this is one of the most impressive.

The Monastery of the Ascetic in the cave and the unknown story with the monk

The Monastery of the Ascetic has its own very interesting history. It was actually named after an ascetic monk who lived in the area. Tradition has it that the monk lived in what is known as the Gorge of Goumeros. At some point, a hunter and his entourage passed by the area. While hunting, he mistook him for a wild boar, shot him and mortally wounded him.

Later, when they left the place on foot, they are said to have found an icon of the Virgin holding an infant. So they decided to build the small monastery in the gap made by the two caves, which are connected in a strange way. There are even reports that the monk was buried there, inside the monastery.

If you are ever in Ilia and at the site of the Monastery of the Ascetic, you will notice that it is divided into two parts.

In the first part, you will see the sanctuary of the monastery as well as a kind of corridor balcony and a well. The lore also says that at the place where the ascetic monk's body fell dead, water gushed out.

That was the reason why they built the well. The second part of the monastery is basically what is left of the ruins of the Byzantine monastery, which dates back to about 1200 AD.

The monastery housed dozens of monks for many years, but it has been abandoned for more than 50 years.