Ostrog monastery
Ostrog Monastery, the most important Orthodox Christian pilgrimage site in Montenegro, is located near the village of Bogetici, approximately 25 miles northwest of the capital city of Podgorica. The monastery is situated on an almost vertical cliff, high up the large rock of Ostroska Greda.
The monastery was founded by, and is dedicated to, Saint Basil (1610 – 1671). The monastery has two small churches, an upper and a lower. The Upper Church, built in a cave, was constructed and decorated with wall paintings in 1665, and is dedicated to the Holy Cross. The Lower Church dates from the 18th century and is dedicated to the Presentation of the Virgin Mary (Vavedenje of the Holy Mary). St. Basil’s body, which is believed to have miraculous healing powers, is enshrined in a reliquary kept in the Lower Church. Each year more than a hundred thousand pilgrims from around the world visit the monastery.
The there are two major pilgrimage festivals at Ostrog, one celebrating the Presentation of the Blessed Virgin Mary, the other commemorating the death of St. Basil.