![]() ![]() I have heard say that they are foolish old fellows, who understand nothing, and never speak a word, any more than the fish in the sea.’ … if I might venture to say so to your Grace, the old men are not worth your pains. Immediately, the Bishop asks the ship’s captain to take him forthwith to the island so that he may meet the three illiterate hermits in person but his request is received with little enthusiasm: The oldest one only said: “Have mercy upon us,” and smiled.’ He frowned, and muttered something as if he were angry but the oldest one took his hand and smiled, and then the tall one was quiet. I asked the tallest whether they had lived there long. ![]() One of them would just give a glance, and the others would understand him. ‘For the most part they did everything in silence and spoke but little even to one another. ‘And did they speak to you?’ asked the Bishop. Photograph: WikiArtHis curiosity piqued, the Bishop wants to know how they converse with each other and of what matters they discuss: He is stern, with over-hanging eyebrows and he wears nothing but a mat tied round his waist.’ The third is tall, and has a beard as white as snow and reaching to his knees. Before I had time to help him, he turned my boat over as if it were only a pail. His beard is broad, and of a yellowish grey colour. The second is taller, but he also is very old. He is so old that the white of his beard is taking a greenish tinge, but he is always smiling, and his face is as bright as an angel’s from heaven. He wears a priest’s cassock and is very old he must be more than a hundred, I should say. ‘One is a small man and his back is bent. ‘And what are they like?’ asked the Bishop. Frustrated, he presses the fisherman further: ![]() Photograph: Wikimedia CommonsTolstoy very cleverly sets the scene for his tale: the simple peasant folk on board have no trouble viewing the island in the distance, albeit tiny and many miles yonder, and yet the Bishop is utterly incapable of seeing it for himself. The Bishop looked carefully, but his unaccustomed eyes could make out nothing but the water shimmering in the sun. Do you see that little cloud? Below it and a bit to the left, there is just a faint streak. ‘There, in the distance, if you will please look along my hand. ‘That is the island where the hermits live for the salvation of their souls.’ ‘Why, that little island you can just see over there,’ answered the man, pointing to a spot ahead and a little to the right. ‘What hermits?’ asked the Bishop, going to the side of the vessel and seating himself on a box. Upon overhearing a fisherman recount the tale of three hermits living on a small island, who once helped him repair his broken sailing boat, the curious Bishop makes further enquiries: Mikhail Nesterov, Portrait of Leo Tolstoy.ĭrawing on Russian folklore and the theology of the Holy Trinity, we are introduced to a Bishop sailing on a ship between Archangel and the Solovetsky Monastery, accompanied by a number of fellow pilgrims. More specifically, after reading Arthur Schopenhauer’s The World as Will and Representation, which advocates, amongst other things, that ascetic renunciation is the only true path to godliness, Tolstoy became fascinated with creating stories around the theme of holy poverty, The Three Hermits being the pinnacle of his quest. The Russian novelist was a deeply spiritual man and saw it as his duty to write didactic literature in order to educate and illuminate his readers with a moralistic attitude to life. As one of the greatest purveyors of the short story, Tolstoy was able to encapsulate completely his loathing of organized religion, in particular the Russian Orthodox Church for its sanctioning of social oppression, whilst presenting his own divine vision for the salvation of humankind. THE THREE HERMITS by Leo Tolstoy (9th September 1828–20th November 1910) is one of those rare, perfectly formed tales conveyed in a simple, charming narrative, which manages to reveal the very profoundest of truths. Be not therefore like unto them: for your Father knoweth what things ye have need of, before ye ask Him.” “And in praying use not vain repetitions, as the Gentiles do: for they think that they shall be heard for their much speaking. Photograph: WikiArt How individual belief triumphs over religious dogma Mikhail Nesterov, Hermit Fathers and Immaculate Women.
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