Our father
among the saints Basil the
Blessed Fool-for-Christ and Wonderworker of Moscow, was born in December 1468 on the portico
of the Elokhov church in honor of the Vladimir Icon of the Most Holy
Theotokos in Vologda, which is just outside of Moscow.
He is also known as Vasily, Vasily Blazhenny,
Basil Fool-for-Christ, or Basil of Moscow.
His parents were
common folk and sent their son for training in the cobbler's (shoemaker's)
craft. Basil lived in Moscow at the time of
Tsar Ivan the Terrible.
In his youth, Basil labored as a
water-bearer in the salt- works.
Later, he moved to Rostov, where he took on the
podvig of foolishness. He wore chains formed into heavy iron crosses, and on
his head he wore a large iron cap, and thus acquired the name "John of the
Large Cap."
During the
time of Basil's apprenticeship, the master happened to witness a certain
remarkable occurrence, which showed him that his student was no ordinary
man. A certain merchant had brought grain to Moscow on a barge and then went
to order boots, specifying that they be made in a particular way, since he
would not pick them up for a year. Blessed Basil uttered weeping: "I wish
you would leave them as they are, since you will not wear them out." To the
perplexed questioning of the master the apprentice explained that the man
making the order would not wear the boots, but rather would soon be dead.
After several days the prediction came true.
At age 16 the
saint arrived in Moscow and began the difficult exploit of foolishness. In
the burning summer heat and in the winter's harsh frost, he walked about
barefoot through the streets of Moscow. His actions were strange: here he
would upset a stand with kalachi, and there he would spill a jug with kvas.
Angry merchants throttled the blessed one, but he endured the beatings with
joy and he thanked God for them. Then it was discovered, that the kalachi
were poorly cooked, the kvas was badly prepared. The reputation of Blessed
Basil quickly grew: in him they perceived a fool, a man of God, a denouncer
of wrong.
A certain merchant
was intent to build a stone church on Pokrovna in Moscow, but three times
its arches collapsed. The merchant turned for advice to the saint, and he
pointed him toward Kiev: "Find there John the Cripple, he will advise you
how to construct the church." Having journeyed to Kiev, the merchant sought
out John, who sat a poor hut and rocked an empty cradle. "Whom do you rock?"
asked the merchant. "I weep for my beloved mother, long indigent for my
birth and upbringing." Only then did the merchant remember his own mother,
whom he had thrown out of the house, and it became clear to him, why he was
not able to build the church. Having returned to Moscow, he brought his
mother home, begged her forgiveness and built the church.
In Moscow, he walked barefoot and
virtually naked even in the most bitter of frosts.
Preaching mercy, the blessed one helped those who were ashamed to ask for
alms, but who were more in need of help than others. There was an instance
where he gave away a rich imperial present to a foreign merchant who was
left without anything at all. Although the man had eaten nothing for three
days, he was not able to beg for food, since he wore fine clothing.
Harshly did the
saint condemn those who gave alms for selfish reasons, not from compassion
for the poor and destitute, but hoping for an easy way to attract the
blessings of God upon their affairs. Once, the saint saw a devil in the
guise of a beggar. He sat at the gates of the All-Pure Virgin's church, and
to everyone who gave alms, he rendered speedy help in their affairs. The
blessed saint exposed the wicked trick and drove away the devil.
For the salvation
of his neighbor, Blessed Basil also visited the taverns, where he tried to
see a grain of goodness, even in people very much gone to ruin, and to
strengthen and encourage them by kindness. Many observed that when the saint
passed by a house in which they made merry and drank, he with tears clutched
the corners of that house. They inquired of the fool what this meant, and he
answered: "Angels stand in sorrow at the house and are distressed by the
sins of the people, but I with tears entreat them to pray to the Lord for
the conversion of sinners."
Purified by great
deeds and by the prayer of his soul, the saint was also given the gift of
foreseeing the future. He prophesied for Russia
great sorrows, a time of troubles, the Polish invasion, and stated that "…in
Moscow there will be many demons, visible and invisible…"
In 1547 he predicted the great conflagration of Moscow; by prayer he
extinguished a fire at Novgorod; and once he reproached Tsar Ivan the
Terrible, because during the time of divine services he was preoccupied with
thoughts of building a palace on the Vorobiev hills.
Blessed Basil died
on August 2, 1557. St. Makarios, Metropolitan of Moscow with an assemblage
of clergy served the saint's funeral. His body was buried at the Trinity
church, in the cemetery, where in 1554, the Protection cathedral was being
built in memory of the conquest of Kazan. His Holiness Patriarch Job
proclaimed the glorification of Blessed Basil at a Council on August 2,
1588.
In an early icon,
St. Basil is portrayed as old, with white hair curling at the ears, and a
short, curly white beard. He is completely naked, and holds a handkerchief
in his hand. The veneration of Blessed Basil was always so strong that the
Trinity temple and the attached Protection church were renamed for St. Basil
the Blessed [the famous Saint Basil's Cathedral in Moscow].
The chains of the
saint are preserved at the Moscow Spiritual Academy.
