Stylites and the Power of Will
An 1861 illustration of St. Simeon Stylite atop his pillar, gesturing to heavenly creatures up in the sky. The illustration is titled St. Simeon Stylites, and it was drawn by Frederick Hollyer.
In all my studies on the human need for verticality, I have yet to come across anything as extreme as the Byzantine stylites. I briefly discussed the stylites in the God versus Ego chapter of the Theory of Verticality, but here I’ll give a more detailed analysis of them.
A stylite is a Christian ascetic who chooses to live atop a pillar or column, in an attempt to achieve spiritual salvation. They do this by way of verticality, by climbing up and away from the surface in order to get closer to the sky, or in this case, God. The tradition can be traced back to Simeon Stylites the Elder, a Syrian who climbed a pillar in 423 AD and remained there until his death in 459 AD, 37 years later. Let that sink in; he spent 37 years living atop a column. This wasn’t the first time he performed extreme acts in the name of faith, however. By the time he climbed his pillar, he was already well-known for cutting himself off from the world in a hut for a year and a half, within which he went the whole of Christian Lent (40 days) without eating or drinking. As a result, religious pilgrims would seek him out for his wisdom, which ran contrary to his solitary nature.
In order to get away from the pilgrims, he discovered a pillar among some ruins in present-day Taladah, Syria, and he built a small platform at the summit. He ascended to his perch, and the rest is history. Over the years, he lived on multiple pillars, and each was taller than the last, ranging from 3m (10 ft), to 15m (50 ft) above the ground. Once up on the pillar, he would receive food and drink from children that lived in a nearby village. They would climb up to him and give him bread and water. What’s amazing is the sheer amount of time he spent atop his column. What would drive a human to attempt a feat such as this? He was no doubt acting on his faith, and he must’ve believed these acts would ensure his soul’s salvation, but still. The willpower required to live atop a pillar for so long is baffling.
A 1901 drawing by W.E.F Britten of St. Simeon Stylites, produced for Alfred Tennyson’s St. Simeon Stylites poem. The saint is shown atop his pillar, among the birds, with a dragon climbing up from below.
The act of ascending a pillar for spiritual enlightenment is rooted in verticality. In a sense, a stylite is moving closer to God by traveling upward toward the sky. This is dramatized in the first illustration in this post, showing a stylite gesturing up towards a heavenly figure up in the sky. The second illustration, shown above, further dramatizes the situation by depicting a dragon climbing up from below, representing Hell and the underground. This duality of heaven above and hell below is core to the verticality narrative, and the stylites are a perfect example of it.
There are many logistical questions to ponder about a stylite’s life choices. The main one is boredom. What does one think about all day, stuck up on a pillar in the desert, for years on end? The view is unchanging, and there’s no one to talk to or converse with. The stylite must’ve been a recluse, which would explain their solitary nature. What’s fascinating is that their minds can stay active with so little novel stimulus over time. Even if the sunsets and sunrises are amazing, they must lose their luster after a couple years, no? Saint Simeon lived up on his perch for roughly 13,500 days. It’s amazing he didn’t go mad. Another idea to ponder: each stylite must’ve believed what they were doing was working, otherwise they wouldn’t stick with it for decades on end. There must’ve been some sort of mental progression or unwavering belief that it was all worth it, otherwise they would’ve given up.
Stories of Saint Simeon’s acts made their way around the land, and over time his example attracted others to follow suit. The practice was concentrated in the Middle East and Mediterranean regions for a few decades, but over time it faded into obscurity. One modern example does exist, however. The Georgian monk Maxime Qavtaradze has been living atop the Katskhi pillar in Georgia since 1995, coming down only a couple times a week. His perch has housed stylites in centuries past, and he continues the tradition to this day.[1]
The stylites are a fascinating piece of human cultural history, made more intriguing by the fact that it still goes on today, even if it’s only a single example. There’s so much to ponder when thinking about the sheer amount of time spent in a single place, day after day, year after year, decade after decade. It’s amazing what the human mind can accomplish when the will exists to follow through with it.
[1]: Nolan, Steve. "Getting Closer to God: Meet the Monk Who Lives a Life of Virtual Solitude on Top of a 131ft Pillar and Has to Have Food Winched up to Him by His Followers." Daily Mail, September 5, 2013.