According to Greek
mythology, in the struggle between the Giants and the Olympians, the leader
of the former was Athos and of the latter, Poseidon. Athos cast a massive
rock at Poseidon from Thrace, but it missed him and fell into the sea,
forming the pyramid-shaped mountain bearing his name. According to another
myth, the ancient god Apollon fell in love with Daphne, the daughter of
the king of Arcadia.
In order to keep her virginity,
she took refuge in the main port of Mt. Athos, thus giving her name to
it. From the latter myth it can be seen that since ancient times this area
was associated with the struggle against the flesh.
Ancient geographers mention
six towns in the peninsula: Dion, Thyssos, Cleonae, Acrothooi, Charadrous
and Olophyxos. During historical times it is mentioned for the first time
in connection with the Persian expedition against Greece under the command
of Mardonius in 493 B.C. Sailing around the peninsula, the Persian fleet
met with bad weather and suffered a terrible disaster. The attempted invasion
was thus called off. Ten years later Xerxes repeated the expedition, but
in order to avoid the risk of a new catastrophe he dug a canal at the narrow
neck of the peninsula.
In 368 B.C. the peninsula
and its six towns became part of the state of Phillipos of Macedonia. Some
years later his son Alexander the Great became king of Macedonia and joined
all of Greece under his rule. It is said that at that time an architect
named Dinocrates suggested to Alexander the Great that he could transform
the Mountain and all of the peninsula to a huge statue depicting Alexander
holding a populous city in his hand. The modest Greek leader answered that
he should leave the city in peace.
According to tradition, the Virgin Mary with John the Evangelist, on their way to visit Lazarus in Cyprus, encountered a stormy sea that forced them to temporarily seek refuge in the port which is now the Holy Monastery of Ivira. The Virgin Mary, admiring the wild beauty of the place, asked God to give her the mountain as a present. Then the voice of our Lord was heard saying: "Let this place be your lot, your garden and your paradise, as well as a salvation, a haven for those who seek salvation". Since then, Mount Athos is considered as "The Garden of the Virgin Mary".
The 4th century marks the
complete Christianisation of the peninsula. The beginning of Athonite
Monastic Life coincides with the arrival on Athos of two great personalities.
The first one is Petros of Athos, whose arrival can be placed at the end
of the 8th century, while the second is Euthymios the New who came to the
Mountain in about 860. In addition, some historians claim that monks from
Athos attended the synod organised on the occasion of the restoration of
the icons in 843. It is generally accepted that the founder of organised
monastic life was Athanasios the Athonite who in 963 established the coenobium
of Great Lavra, which was financed by the emperor Nikephoros Phokas. The
reputation of Athanasios attracted a large number of monks who came to
follow the ascetic life near their great mentor. By that period the monasteries
of Xeropotamou, Vatopediou, Hagiou Pavlou, Zographou, and the non Greek
Iveron had developed.
Later, at the beginning
of the 11th century appeared the monasteries of Esphigmenou, Xenophontos,
Docheiariou, Karakalou, Chelandariou, Stratoniketa, Philotheou and Panteleimonos.
Towards the end of the 11th century the monasteries of Kostamonitou and
Koutloumousiou were founded. The monk population reached the number of
7000 by 1050.