Athos
Athos

The sense of sight on the Holy Mount

Author(s): Aleksander, Wojciech Mikołajczak, Rafał Dymczyk
Subject(s): Anthropology, Social Sciences, Language and Literature Studies, Theology and Religion
Published by: Wydawnictwo Naukowe Uniwersytetu Adama Mickiewicza
Keywords: Holy Mount Athos; Orthodox; Hesychasm; Philokalia; sense of sight; Actor Theory Network
Summary/Abstract: The inquiries presented in this monograph cover the entirety of the religious and cultural heritage created by the Orthodox monastic communities that have existed for a thousand years on the Holy Mount Athos in Greece. The research shows the scope and the way of using the sense of sight as a creator and at the same time a receptor of material and spiritual reality, which is manifested in the local liturgy, architecture, art and literature, as well as in mysticism, prayer and the way of everyday life of monks. The scale of the involvement of the sight in the creation and interpretation of Athos reality is determined by two existential factors – on the one hand, the usability of natural creations and works of human hands, and on the other hand, the influence of things on human consciousness in the physical and metaphysical dimension of being. As a result of the visual integration of these two processes, the objects used on the Holy Mount in sacred and secular activities gain their own agency, which manifests itself in their practical and symbolic functions. Due to the fact that these functions are performed in relations with their contractors, things, thus, become props with the help of which people express and interpret their faith and knowledge, experienced emotions, as well as their own attitude towards the world and fellow human beings. Using the sight in this process takes places in several ranges of vision: (1) mystical insight, (2) perception of light, (3) perception of shapes, (4) vision of colors, (5) motion detection.

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