Siluan ( sr-cyr, Силуан; 14th century) was a Serbian Orthodox monk and poet who lived and worked in the

Hilandar The Hilandar Monastery (, , , ) is one of the twenty Eastern Orthodox monasteries in Mount Athos in Greece and the only Serbian Orthodox monastery there. It was founded in 1198 by two Serbs from the Grand Principality of Serbia, Stefan Neman ...

monastery at

Mount Athos Mount Athos (; ) is a mountain on the Athos peninsula in northeastern Greece directly on the Aegean Sea. It is an important center of Eastern Orthodoxy, Eastern Orthodox monasticism. The mountain and most of the Athos peninsula are governed ...

in the 14th century. Very little is known about him. The mystical tradition of prayer known as

hesychasm Hesychasm () is a contemplative monastic tradition in the Eastern Christian traditions of the Eastern Orthodox Church and Eastern Catholic Churches in which stillness (''hēsychia'') is sought through uninterrupted Jesus prayer. While rooted in ...

left a strong imprint in

Serbian medieval literature Medieval Serbian literature or Old Serbian literature () refers to the literature written in medieval forms of Serbian language, up to the end of the 15th century, with its traditions extending into the early modern period. During the Middle Age ...

and

art Art is a diverse range of cultural activity centered around ''works'' utilizing creative or imaginative talents, which are expected to evoke a worthwhile experience, generally through an expression of emotional power, conceptual ideas, tec ...

, which is evident already in the works of

Domentijan Domentijan ( sr-Cyrl, Доментијан; c. 1210 - after 1264), also known as Domentijan the Hilandarian (Доментијан Хиландарац), was a major figure in medieval Serbian literature and philosophy.Mateja Matejić and Dragan M ...

and

Teodosije the Hilandarian Teodosije the Hilandarian or Theodosije of Hilandar (; 1246–1328) was a Serbian Orthodox clergyman and one of the most important Serbian writers in the Middle Ages; the Serbian Academy of Sciences and Arts named him one of the 100 most prominent ...

, but most prominently in the writings of archbishop Danilo II, patriarch Jefrem, monk Isaija and Siluan. Siluan is the author of hymns to

Saint Sava Saint Sava (, ; Old Church Slavonic: ; Glagolitic: ; ; 1169 or 1174 – 14 January 1235/6), known as the Enlightener or the Illuminator, was a Serbs, Serbian prince and Eastern Orthodox Church, Orthodox monk, abbot of Studenica Monastery, Studeni ...

and St. Simeon (

Stefan Nemanja Stefan Nemanja (Serbian Cyrillic alphabet, Serbian Cyrillic: , ; – 13 February 1199) was the Grand Prince (Grand Župan#Serbia, Veliki Župan) of the Grand Principality of Serbia, Serbian Grand Principality (also known as Raška (region), Raš ...

). History knows of two Serbian monks called Siluan active on Athos, living two centuries apart, but researchers have been inclined to credit the 14th century Siluan with the authorship of ''Verses for St. Simeon'' and ''Verses for Sava''. The analyses of the two Old Serbian verbal ornaments, attributed to the 14th-century Siluan, appear in the work of

Roman Jakobson Roman Osipovich Jakobson (, ; 18 July 1982) was a Russian linguist and literary theorist. A pioneer of structural linguistics, Jakobson was one of the most celebrated and influential linguists of the twentieth century. With Nikolai Trubetzk ...

; Siluan is presented as one of the most enlightened poets of his time, with an amazing ability to condense meditative philosophy into few words. His hymn to Saint Sava was printed in

Venice Venice ( ; ; , formerly ) is a city in northeastern Italy and the capital of the Veneto Regions of Italy, region. It is built on a group of 118 islands that are separated by expanses of open water and by canals; portions of the city are li ...

Hymn to St. Sava

See also

References

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