Rule of Pachomius and Pachomian Monasteries

Pachomius had an incalculable impact on the future of monasticism. Not only did he found many monasteries in Upper and Lower Egypt, but he also wrote the basic rules that monasteries would follow, which later became known as the Rule of Pachomius or the Pachomian Rules. These rules were compiled over a period of time and provided detailed order and structure for the Pachomian monasteries. Eventually the Rules were translated into Latin to be applied to other monastic societies that were forming around the world.

This diagram was drawn as an interpretation of the Pachomian Rules as listed in the book Christianity in Late Antiquity by Bart D Ehrman and Andrew S. Jacobs, 2004.  The translation used in this book is from Pachomian Koinonia, Volume 2: Pachomian Chronicles and Rules, translated by Armand Veilleux, (Kalamazoo, MI:  Cistercian Publishing, 1981).

This map reconstructs how a Pachomian monastery may have been arranged, based on the rule listed above, but not on any archaeological evidence. The rule does not refer to the specific lay-out of the monastery, so the exact positions are speculative.

pachomian monastery map

references to these positions in the Pachomian rule

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