Mount Athos is the traditional heart of Orthodox Byzantine monasticism, and has been the home of an unbroken monastic life since the ninth century. It remains, now in the twenty-first century, one of the centres of the Orthodox monastic tradition throughout the world. It has served as a home to the hesychastic tradition and locus of such great figures as St Gregory Palamas and countless others. Known as the 'Garden of the Mother of God', it remains a great home of pilgrimage and prayer.

We offer here a number of resources on the Holy Mountain, its history, and its present life.

The first section of a four-part history of the Holy Mountain, from its Pagan pre-history to its present life.

A selection of photographs from the Holy Mountain, with its life of prayer and pilgrimage.

The account of an anonymous pilgrim's first visit to the Holy Mountain, with reflections on its nature in relation to the world, the reality of spiritual struggle and silence, and themes of personal asceticism as encountered by pilgrims to this holy place.

This document briefly outlines the procedure for securing the proper documentation to visit the Holy Mountain.

A listing of the main monastery guest houses, together with telephone numbers at which the guest master can be reached in order to reserve a room when on pilgrimage.

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