Life
Saint Simeon the Myrrh-streamer, in the world Stefan Nemanja — Grand Župan of Raška, founder of the Nemanjić dynasty, creator of the independent Serbian medieval state, and monk of the Holy Mountain of Athos — is one of the greatest figures in Serbian history and one of the pillars of Serbian sainthood. His life encompasses both earthly greatness and spiritual transformation, both statesman’s wisdom and monastic humility.
Stefan Nemanja was born around 1113, most likely near Ribnica (present-day Podgorica), where his father Zavida held certain positions in the Zeta region. He grew up in a turbulent time: the Nemanjić family suffered exile and reorientation, and young Stefan received baptism in the Latin rite at birth (because he was born in exile), but was rebaptized in the Orthodox faith in Raška. This double beginning — Latin and Orthodox — left no mark on his mature convictions: Nemanja became one of the most ardent champions of Orthodoxy in the Serbian lands.
Around 1166 he became Grand Župan of Raška and began unifying the fragmented Serbian principalities into a single state entity. In this he was not always peaceful: he fought Byzantine domination, allied himself sometimes with the Hungarians and other powers, but ultimately managed to create a stable, consolidated Serbian principality. He built the monastery of the Theotokos of Studenica (the Blachernae Theotokos), the most important Serbian medieval monastery, and many churches and monasteries throughout his lands — Đurđevi Stupovi, Sopoćani, and others. He fought energetically against the Bogomil heresy, which had spread strongly in the Serbian lands.
In 1196, at a great assembly in Studenica, Stefan Nemanja abdicated in favor of his middle son Stefan (the First-Crowned) and withdrew to the monastery, where he was tonsured with the name Simeon. Shortly afterward, at the invitation of his youngest son Rastko — who had already become the monk Sava on Athos — Simeon came to the Holy Mountain and settled in the monastery of Vatopedi. Father and son together renewed the ruined monastery of Hilandar and established it as the enduring Serbian Athonite monastery.
On Athos, Simeon lived as a genuine monk and hermit, radically transforming from a powerful ruler into a humble monk. He spent his days in prayer, fasting, and the practice of the Jesus Prayer. He reposed on February 13, 1199, in the arms of his son Sava. His body was buried at Hilandar, but in 1207 his relics were translated to Serbia — to Studenica — where they began to exude myrrh. This extraordinary event confirmed the holiness of the founder, and the Church soon glorified him as a saint with the epithet “Myrrh-streamer.” The fragrant myrrh exuding from his tomb became a source of healing for the sick and an emblem of his spiritual presence.
The veneration of Saint Simeon is inseparable from Serbian national and ecclesiastical identity: as the founder of the dynasty, the state, and the Church’s autocephaly (which his son Sava obtained in 1219), he is the spiritual and national progenitor of the Serbian people in the fullest sense of the word.
Tropar (Tone 8)
Let thy Hilandar celebrate today, and all the Serbian land is filled with rejoicing; for behold, the divinely-resplendent Simeon shineth as the sun, who like a vine of Athos bringing forth noble branches: the God-bearing Sava and other sons; through whose prayers, O Christ God, save our souls.
Kontakion (Tone 8)
As a fruitful vine thou hast appeared in the Church of Christ, the glorious and divinely-wise Simeon, the truly great hierarch; thou hast watered those who thirst for life with the most pure streams flowing from thy holy relics; wherefore we all cry to thee: do not cease to pray for us to Christ our God.
About the Feast
The feast of Saint Simeon Nemanja — Simeondan — is celebrated on February 26 by the New Calendar, corresponding to February 13 by the Old (Julian) calendar. It falls in the deepest winter, but despite the cold this day carries special warmth: it is the remembrance of the founder, the progenitor, the spiritual father of the Serbian people.
Simeondan is one of the most significant dates of the Church year for the Serbian people, even when it is not widely observed as a patron feast in individual families. In monasteries, especially Studenica and Hilandar (though on Athos it is kept slightly differently), the feast is marked with great solemnity. The Serbian Patriarch serves the feast Liturgy, and the translation of the relics of Saint Simeon from Athos to Studenica is commemorated. The relics of Saint Simeon rest in Studenica to this day.
For families who celebrate Simeondan as a patron feast, the feast table in February is somewhat limited compared to summer feasts: there are no fresh summer vegetables or fruits, so the table is built on what has been preserved and stored — preserved vegetables, smoked meat, dried fruits, flour-based pastries, nuts, and wine. Nevertheless the feast is no less festive: the slava bread stands in the center, the koljivo is prepared with care, candles are lit, and the priest blesses the home. Simeondan is often associated with the memory of the deceased ancestors, since it falls in the pre-Lenten period when the Church especially commemorates the departed at the Saturdays of Souls.