Saint Basilisa embroidered with beads

Icon of the Holy Martyr Basilissa of Nicomedia (Memorial Day established Orthodox Church September 3/16) - patroness of women named Vasilisa - helps in gaining strength in faith. Icon of St. Basilisa of Nicomedia It helps in almost all cases of life when serious prayer support is required for the person praying. If Vasilisa’s name is borne by one of your relatives or you, this martyr, a young witness of Christ, will become your heavenly patroness.

The martyr Vasilisa of Nicomedia is an amazing example of the fact that martyrdom as a testimony to God was granted not only to adults, but also to children, because at the time of her feat, Vasilisa was only 9 years old. The example of young Vasilisa, who went through impossible torture and remained unharmed, is evidence of God’s love for those who are ready to neglect their temporary physical life in order to gain eternal life. The very example of the holy martyr, the awareness of his greatness, is already protection from delusions and doubts. We are not required such exploits, and perhaps it is precisely this lack of testing that allows the spirit of a believer, as they say, to become discouraged. Then the prayer to the first martyrs becomes a saving defense against this lukewarm state, which will become even more sincere if we know the history of their feat.

During the reign of the Roman Emperor Diocletian, a huge amount of blood was shed. In a month there were more than 17 thousand killed for faith in Christ and twenty thousand burned in the church on the day of the Nativity of Christ. Long time believers were killed. Saint Vasilisa was one of the martyrs who suffered.
At the age of 9, she was brought to trial before the hegemon, that is, the ruler of Nicomedia, Alexander, and Vasilisa confessed Christ very boldly for her age. All those present were surprised by the free conversation with the hegemon. The ruler tried, with the help of affection and various promises, to persuade her to worship his gods. But Vasilisa was adamant. Then the hegemon began to hit her in the face, for which she thanked the Lord God. They took off her clothes and began to beat her with rods, and this time she thanked God. The emperor became angry at such words and ordered Vasilisa to be beaten even harder. When the body of the martyr Vasilisa looked like a complete ulcer, she cried out: “God, I thank you for all this!”
Ruler Alexander gave the order to build a fire and throw tin, resin, oil, sulfur into it and hang Vasilisa upside down, in the hope that the martyr would quickly give up the ghost after such stench and smoke. But Vasilisa, even during such torment, was as if in the coolness of heaven, while constantly chanting and thanking the Lord God. The emperor, seeing Vasilisa's disdain for torture, ordered the martyr to be thrown into a lit oven. Entering the oven, the holy martyr Vasilisa for a long time was there without any harm. Those present looked at this miracle in bewilderment. Vasilisa was taken out of the oven and two angry lions were released, which were supposed to eat Vasilisa, but even here she remained unharmed. Emperor Alexander was shocked by what was happening and exclaimed: “These are the fates of God!” He fell at Vasilisa’s feet and began to ask her for mercy and forgiveness. He asked the martyr to pray to her God so that he would not destroy him, for he now believes in the Lord God. Vasilisa, having glorified the true God, took Emperor Alexander to Bishop Anthony so that he could teach and explain the true faith.
Alexander was baptized and repented of his previous wickedness and inflicting cruel torment on all Christians. He asked Saint Vasilisa to ask the Lord God for forgiveness. Thanks to the prayers of the holy martyr Vasilisa, ruler Alexander soon reposed and was buried with Christian honors, not far from the city. Feeling thirsty, Vasilisa stood on a stone and prayed to the Lord God, and water flowed from the stone. Having quenched her thirst, she moved away from this place, and after praying, she gave her spirit to God. Bishop Anthony buried the Great Martyr near the stone where the water flowed.

Prayers before the icon of the Holy Martyr Basilissa of Nicomedia

Troparion to the Martyr, tone 4

Your Lamb, Jesus, Vasilisa calls with a great voice: I love You, my Bridegroom, and, seeking You, I suffer, and I am crucified, and I am buried in Your Baptism, and I suffer for Your sake, for I reign in You, and I die for You, and I live with You, but as an immaculate sacrifice, accept me, sacrificed to You with love. Through prayers, as the Merciful, save our souls.

Kontakion to the Martyr, Tone 2

Your all-honorable temple, as if you have found spiritual healing, all the faithful cry out loudly to you, the great martyr Vasilisa, pray to Christ God unceasingly for all of us.

Glorification of the martyr

We magnify you, passion-bearer of Christ Vasilisa, and honor your honest suffering, which you endured for Christ.

Prayerful invocation of the saint whose name you bear:

Pray to God for me, holy servant of God [name of the river], as I diligently resort to you, a quick helper and prayer book for my soul.

The icon of the Holy Martyr Vasilisa of Nicomedia (Memory Day established by the Orthodox Church on September 3/16) - the patroness of women named Vasilisa - helps in gaining strength in faith. Icon of St. Basilisa of Nicomedia It helps in almost all cases of life when serious prayer support is required for the person praying.

If Vasilisa’s name is borne by one of your relatives or you, this martyr, a young witness of Christ, will become your heavenly patroness.

The martyr Vasilisa of Nicomedia is an amazing example of the fact that martyrdom as a testimony to God was granted not only to adults, but also to children, because at the time of her feat, Vasilisa was only 9 years old. The example of young Vasilisa, who went through impossible torture and remained unharmed, is evidence of God’s love for those who are ready to neglect their temporary physical life in order to gain eternal life. The very example of the holy martyr, the awareness of his greatness, is already protection from delusions and doubts. Such feats are not required of us, and perhaps it is precisely this lack of testing that allows the spirit of a believer, as they say, to become discouraged. Then the prayer to the first martyrs becomes a saving defense against this lukewarm state, which will become even more sincere if we know the history of their feat.

At the age of 9, she was brought to trial before the hegemon, that is, the ruler of Nicomedia, Alexander, and Vasilisa confessed Christ very boldly for her age. All those present were surprised by the free conversation with the hegemon. The ruler tried, with the help of affection and various promises, to persuade her to worship his gods. But Vasilisa was adamant. Then the hegemon began to hit her in the face, for which she thanked the Lord God. They took off her clothes and began to beat her with rods, and this time she thanked God. The emperor became angry at such words and ordered Vasilisa to be beaten even harder. When the body of the martyr Vasilisa looked like a complete ulcer, she cried out: “God, I thank you for all this!”

Ruler Alexander gave the order to build a fire and throw tin, resin, oil, sulfur into it and hang Vasilisa upside down, in the hope that the martyr would quickly give up the ghost after such stench and smoke. But Vasilisa, even during such torment, was as if in the coolness of heaven, while constantly chanting and thanking the Lord God. The emperor, seeing Vasilisa's disdain for torture, ordered the martyr to be thrown into a lit oven. Having entered the oven, the holy martyr Vasilisa remained there for a long time without any harm. Those present looked at this miracle in bewilderment. Vasilisa was taken out of the oven and two angry lions were released, which were supposed to eat Vasilisa, but even here she remained unharmed. Emperor Alexander was shocked by what was happening and exclaimed: “These are the fates of God!” He fell at Vasilisa’s feet and began to ask her for mercy and forgiveness. He asked the martyr to pray to her God so that he would not destroy him, for he now believes in the Lord God. Vasilisa, having glorified the true God, took Emperor Alexander to Bishop Anthony so that he could teach and explain the true faith.

Alexander was baptized and repented of his previous wickedness and inflicting cruel torment on all Christians. He asked Saint Vasilisa to ask the Lord God for forgiveness. Thanks to the prayers of the holy martyr Vasilisa, ruler Alexander soon reposed and was buried with Christian honors, not far from the city. Feeling thirsty, Vasilisa stood on a stone and prayed to the Lord God, and water flowed from the stone. Having quenched her thirst, she moved away from this place, and after praying, she gave her spirit to God. Bishop Anthony buried the Great Martyr near the stone where the water flowed.

Prayers before the icon of the Holy Martyr Basilissa of Nicomedia:

Troparion to the Martyr, tone 4

Your Lamb, Jesus, Vasilisa calls with a great voice: I love You, my Bridegroom, and, seeking You, I suffer, and I am crucified, and I am buried in Your Baptism, and I suffer for Your sake, for I reign in You, and I die for You, and I live with You, but as an immaculate sacrifice, accept me, sacrificed to You with love. Through prayers, as the Merciful, save our souls.

Kontakion to the Martyr, Tone 2

Your all-honorable temple, as if you have found spiritual healing, all the faithful cry out loudly to you, the great martyr Vasilisa, pray to Christ God unceasingly for all of us.

Glorification of the martyr

We magnify you, passion-bearer of Christ Vasilisa, and honor your honest suffering, which you endured for Christ.

Prayerful invocation of the saint whose name you bear:

Pray to God for me, holy servant of God [name], as I diligently resort to you, a quick helper and prayer book for my soul.

VASILISSA

Mts. Vasilissa of Nicomedia. († 309), mts. Nicomedia (memorial September 3).
During the reign of the Roman Emperor Diocletian, a huge amount of blood was shed. In a month there were more than 17 thousand killed for faith in Christ and twenty thousand burned in the church on the day of the Nativity of Christ. Believers were killed for a long time. Saint Vasilisa was one of the martyrs who suffered.
At the age of 9, she was brought to trial before the hegemon, that is, the ruler of Nicomedia, Alexander, and Vasilisa confessed Christ very boldly for her age. All those present were surprised by the free conversation with the hegemon. The ruler tried, with the help of affection and various promises, to persuade her to worship his gods. But Vasilisa was adamant. Then the hegemon began to hit her in the face, for which she thanked the Lord God. They took off her clothes and began to beat her with rods, and this time she thanked God. The emperor became angry at such words and ordered Vasilisa to be beaten even harder. When the body of the martyr Vasilisa looked like a complete ulcer, she cried out: “God, I thank you for all this!”
Ruler Alexander gave the order to build a fire and throw tin, resin, oil, sulfur into it and hang Vasilisa upside down, in the hope that the martyr would quickly give up the ghost after such stench and smoke. But Vasilisa, even during such torment, was as if in the coolness of heaven, while constantly chanting and thanking the Lord God. The emperor, seeing Vasilisa's disdain for torture, ordered the martyr to be thrown into a lit oven. Having entered the oven, the holy martyr Vasilisa remained there for a long time without any harm. Those present looked at this miracle in bewilderment. Vasilisa was taken out of the oven and two angry lions were released, which were supposed to eat Vasilisa, but even here she remained unharmed. Emperor Alexander was shocked by what was happening and exclaimed: “These are the fates of God!” He fell at Vasilisa’s feet and began to ask her for mercy and forgiveness. He asked the martyr to pray to her God so that he would not destroy him, for he now believes in the Lord God. Vasilisa, having glorified the true God, took Emperor Alexander to Bishop Anthony so that he could teach and explain the true faith.
Alexander was baptized and repented of his previous wickedness and inflicting cruel torment on all Christians. He asked Saint Vasilisa to ask the Lord God for forgiveness. Thanks to the prayers of the holy martyr Vasilisa, ruler Alexander soon reposed and was buried with Christian honors, not far from the city. Feeling thirsty, Vasilisa stood on a stone and prayed to the Lord God, and water flowed from the stone. Having quenched her thirst, she moved away from this place, and after praying, she gave her spirit to God. Bishop Anthony buried the Great Martyr near the stone where the water flowed.

Handwritten icon of Vasilisa of Egypt. On a two-color, olive-green background, the icon depicts a full-length figure of the Venerable Vasilisa of Egypt. The saint's gaze is fixed on the viewer. Vasilisa is dressed in liturgical vestments (monastic robes). IN right hand Saint Vasilisa holds a cross as a symbol of martyrdom and a reminder of the Savior’s suffering on the cross. In the left hand there is a closed scroll.
Correct, harmonious facial features personify the spiritual beauty of a celestial being. A stern facial expression, without excessive sensuality and emotionality, shows detachment from the world, concentration in serving the Lord. The face is painted with delicate ocher melts. The pinkish tones of the blush and lips contrast with the olive color of the sankir, which gives the face additional volume and expressiveness, softness and warmth.

Straight and wide folds of clothing set a certain rhythm and movement of the icon, expressing the complete orderliness of spiritual forces. Their strict geometric structure reveals the elasticity of spiritual energy. All elements of the icon are painted with thin, transparent melts, which give depth, softness, and unearthly airiness to the appearance of Saint Vasilisa.

The icon of Vasilisa of Egypt is made in the canonical style, in compliance with the centuries-old traditions of icon painting. When painting the icon, pure and natural natural palette colors: minerals, semiprecious stones, ocher, earths manually ground with chimes and mixed with yolk. Rich color palette natural pigments, made it possible to achieve moderate saturation and softness of colors characteristic of the Moscow school of writing.

Brief life of Vasilisa of Egypt

On January 21, the church commemorates the holy martyr Vasilisa and her husband Julian.
The saints were born in the Egyptian city of Antinous and came from noble and wealthy families. Their parents insisted that they become husband and wife. Since both Vasilisa and Julian were deeply religious people who decided to completely devote themselves to the Lord, after the wedding they took a vow not to enter into a close relationship with each other and to live like brother and sister. After their parents died, the couple distributed all their property to the poor, deciding to become monks and build monasteries. IN monastery Julian, there were up to ten thousand monks. And in the monastery founded by Vasilisa, about a thousand nuns found their place.

In the third century, during the reign of the cruel Diocletian, the time of fierce torment came for Christians. The holy spouses were captured and imprisoned. They indulged in inhuman torture, but bravely endured all the torment. Vasilisa prayed to the Lord so that not one of her nuns would deviate from the Orthodox faith, fearing cruel torment. Of course, God heard the prayer of his worthy servant and within six months he took all the nuns to himself one after another, and finally their abbess, Vasilisa. Before her death, her sisters from another world came to Saint Vasilisa in a dream. They all appeared to her bright and joyful, like angels of God, and called on their spiritual mother to come to them as soon as possible.
The Julian Monastery was burned by the torturers. Before his death, he himself was able to convert Kelsius, the son of one of his tormentors, as well as his wife and several other pagans to Christianity.
Soon, the holy martyrs Vasilisa and Julian were beheaded by the sword.

The meaning of the icon of Vasilisa of Egypt

The meaning of the icon of Saint Vasilisa lies in the indestructible strength of spirit represented in the image of the saint. She personifies the power of faith, martyrdom, firm determination to defend Christian ideals, even at the cost own life. The image of Vasilisa of Egypt, her history life path, inspire us, encourage us to fervent prayer and pious deeds.
Truly wonderful is God in His saints! Dear believers, brothers and sisters! Do not doubt the help of Saint Vasilisa! Open your heart to her in sincere prayer and she will hear us, heal spiritual and physical infirmities, and help in the successful arrangement of earthly affairs.

Do not forget that in order for a miracle to happen, we ourselves must take care: regularly, with attention, read the prayer, do deeds of faith and love. And don’t forget to give thanks: to thank all the people sent to us by the grace of God to solve our life’s troubles, who shared our joy and sorrow. To thank the Saint, whose prayerful support our hearts yearned for, because how many people pray to her for help, and she heard and helped us too. And most importantly, thank the Lord for His boundless love for mankind. He gave the world His saints and every second helps us, people who hope for His great mercies.

Everything in the world happens according to the wise providence of God. Difficulties and sorrows, success and joys. Through earthly trials the Lord strengthens us. By helping each other, praying to the heavenly saints, we are more firmly united in the One Church of Christ. And we believe that St. Vasilisa will hear all our prayers and show us the boundless mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ. Thank God for everything!

Buy an icon of Vasilisa of Egypt

In the Radonezh icon painting workshop you can buy or order handwritten icon Vasilisa of Egypt. and we will help you choose a plot, a compositional solution for the icon, its optimal size and design, or we will write an icon according to your sample.

Free delivery within Moscow. If desired, the icon can be consecrated in the Holy Trinity Sergius Lavra.

The image of St. Vasilisa made by icon painters of the Radonezh workshop, like any icon self made, carries living warmth human hands And loving heart. Each icon painted with love is unique and inimitable.

Peace and goodness to you, dear brothers and sisters, and may the holy saint of God, Venerable Vasilisa of Egypt, accompany you throughout your entire life’s journey.

The Holy Martyr Vasilissa was a Christian girl who died at the age of 9. She lived in the 4th century in the city of Nicomedia (now Turkish Izmit) during the reign of Emperor Diocletian, one of the most cruel persecutors of Christians, and suffered for the faith of Christ. By order of the ruler of Nicomedia, Alexander, Vasilisa was subjected to brutal torture for the Christian religion, but endured them steadfastly, never renouncing Christ. They tried to burn her in a furnace, but she came out of the fire alive and unharmed. They threw her into a cage with tigers, but the animals did not touch the girl.

Shocked by such miracles, Alexander repented of his atrocities and also believed in Christ. Having lived quite a short time in true repentance and unceasing prayers, Alexander peacefully departed to God, and almost immediately after him Vasilisa died.

They pray to Saint Basilissa of Nicomedia to strengthen the Christian faith, especially among children. She is also the heavenly patroness and God's intercessor of all women who bear her name.

From the miracle he saw, Alexander was horrified and realized that Vasilisa professed faith in the true God. Then he threw himself at the girl’s feet, begging her to forgive him and to pray to God for him, so that he would forgive him for what he had done to her and others. Christian martyrs suffering.

So, thanks to the martyrdom of little Vasilisa, the cruel ruler converted to the Christian faith and believed in Christ.

Then Saint Vasilisa asked Bishop Antonin to enlighten Alexander and tell him everything about the true Christian faith, and then baptize him. The residents of the city, who professed Christianity, could not get enough of it when they saw the miraculous change that happened to Alexander.

Alexander himself, having lived his few remaining days in fervent prayer and true repentance, died quite soon and was buried with honors. Vasilisa died after Alexander, almost immediately after his burial. Having paid respects to the ruler, she left the city.

Walking along a forest road, she, tormented by thirst, began to pray to God, standing on a random stone. At that moment a miracle happened and a holy spring gushed right out of the stone. The girl, having quenched her thirst, moved a little away from this place and died quietly, peacefully. This all happened in 309.

Having learned about her death, Bishop Antonin came here and buried little Vasilisa next to the stone from which water flowed through her prayer to the Lord.