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Saint Nikon (secular name Nikolai Mitrofanovich Belyaev), the last Optina elder, was born on September 26, 1888, in Moscow to a large, close-knit, and pious family of Moscow merchants, the Belyaevs. Kolya grew up a cheerful, playful child, very inventive in his childhood games and amusements.
At the age of five, a momentous event befell him: he became so gravely ill that doctors were certain he would die soon. But his mother began to pray selflessly, fervently, and sincerely, and her son recovered very quickly, literally coming back to life. Later, the Optina elder Barsanuphius especially emphasized the significance of this incident, implying Nikolai's clear destined for monastic life.
Another memorable event occurred in the Belyaev family: one day, Father John of Kronstadt visited their home . He held a prayer service, blessed the young mother, and presented her with a photograph of himself, signed and dated: "1888, the year of birth of my son Nikolai."
Kolya Belyaev and his siblings were well-educated: their parents strove not only to teach their children science and music, but also to instill good qualities in their souls. The children often attended church with their parents, and at home they prayed together morning and evening, often reading the Gospel and the Lives of the Saints aloud.
Over the years, Nikolai's conscious desire for a spiritual life grew stronger. Of course, there were some hesitations: in his youth, as he later recalled, he had experienced all the inclinations typical of his age and the spiritual atmosphere of the time. At one point, he was captivated by the ideas of socialism; like most, he adhered to the formal fulfillment of Christian duties. But despite the nihilistic mood that gripped much of Russian society at the end of the 19th century, Nikolai increasingly questioned the meaning of life, feeling a kind of inner emptiness. He wrote in his diary: "I remember that I often felt dissatisfaction, emptiness, even in the games I loved. I didn't know where to go after school, what to choose, what branch of science, or, consequently, what path in life to take. I liked nothing so much that I could devote myself to what I had chosen."
Already a student in the Physics and Mathematics Department at Moscow University, he began skipping lectures and instead attending church services at Kazan Cathedral. He'd come to the university briefly, then return to church; then he'd return home, stopping in the chapel to pray on the way. The elder recalled that he didn't pray at all at home during this time, but " he never left the church , no matter what."
This uncertainty ended in February 1907, when Nikolai told his mother of his desire to enter a monastery. She blessed her son, and he came to Optina, where he was lovingly received by the Venerable Elder Barsanuphius, and from their very first conversations, they felt a spiritual kinship.
Nikolai was then nineteen years old. For about a year, he eagerly and cheerfully performed all his obediences, including those involving heavy physical labor, previously unfamiliar to him. With the same joy that shone on his face, he shoveled snow, carried firewood to the kitchen, washed dishes, swept the floor; he worked in the garden: hauling manure, digging, and planting. Pampered and raised in near-luxury, unaccustomed to physical labor, Nikolai was burdened by nothing—his bright soul knew neither despondency, discontent, nor grumbling. Having passed the preliminary test, a year later Ivan was admitted to the brotherhood as a novice.
He was released from all his previous obediences and became Elder Barsanuphius's clerk, helping him with his correspondence. Father Barsanuphius, seeing Nikolai not only as a spiritual son but also as a successor, spent long conversations with him, sharing his spiritual and life experiences.
Twenty-year-old Nikolai gratefully accepted and absorbed the elder's teachings, so much so that for many in the monastery, he was an example of true obedience and spiritual peace. According to those who knew him then, he was incomprehensibly both serious and thoughtful, yet joyful; his entire appearance expressed unbroken joy.
In 1915, Nikolai took monastic vows and received the name Nikon, and in 1917 he was ordained a hieromonk.
That same year, after the October Revolution, persecution of the Church began, and Optina Monastery was about to be closed. Remembering Elder Barsanuphius's words to him: "Remain here a monk for the rest of your life," Father Nikon resisted the authorities as best he could, doing everything possible to preserve the monastery. His diary contains the following entry: "I will die, but I will not leave." Optina was in difficult times; the authorities were pressuring him, but services in the churches continued. Optina's closure lasted a long time...
In 1922, the monastery came under the control of the OGPU, and most of the monks were expelled. A year later, when Optina was finally closed, Father Nikon continued to serve and hear confessions at Optina's Kazan Cathedral—and remained within the ruined monastery for another year, providing spiritual guidance to the community, which consisted of sisters from the Shamordino Monastery, which had also been closed by that time. At the same time, the Optina elder, Nektarios, was arrested, and he blessed his spiritual children to join Father Nikon, who began attracting crowds.
Thus, Father Nikon, who was only 35 years old, became the last Optina elder—a spiritual support for many of the Church's faithful, who were especially in need of strengthening during those terrible years. Spiritual children from neighboring towns and villages came to him, as did pilgrims from all over Russia, and this continued for several years.
In 1927, Elder Nikon was arrested and spent three years in a prison camp in Kem. The illnesses and agonizing conditions he endured only strengthened his fortitude and his incomprehensible joy in God's love, his faith in that love. At the end of his prison term, already suffering from severe tuberculosis, he wrote to his spiritual children: "My joy knows no bounds..." This wondrous joy, characteristic of holy people, undisturbed by anything external, is the joy of the Kingdom of Heaven, which, according to Christ's word, is within us (see Luke 17:20-21 ).
One monk, who saw Father Nikon both in the monastery and in exile, recalled about him: “He was always the same, wearing on his face something like spiritual joy.”
Many were surprised that, throughout all his suffering and persecution, Father Nikon never complained. His notes and letters to loved ones were written in a calm voice, without a hint of indignation. "I try to be prepared for anything," he wrote, "and I firmly believe that everything is in God's hands."
After the camp, Father Nikon was exiled to the Arkhangelsk region. He rented a lodging at a considerable rent from a landlady with a very difficult personality. She mercilessly forced her ailing tenant to perform heavy housework, giving him no rest or rest. Nearly collapsing from weakness, Father Nikon unquestioningly complied with her every demand, despite his constant fever and severe leg pain. He was malnourished, his health deteriorated, and his landlady dismissed his illnesses as pretense.
One day, Father Nikon was so overworked that he couldn't get up to continue his housework. Then his tuberculosis became obvious to his landlady, and she began throwing him out, throwing all his belongings out into the street.
The Optina monk Peter, who came to visit Father Nikon, saw this and asked:
- What does it mean?
“And that means,” Father Nikon answered with his characteristic calm and even some humor, “fly out wherever you want.”
And the monk took Father Nikon to the neighboring village.
There, Father Nikon was soon found by his spiritual daughter, Nun Irina, later Schema-Nun Seraphima. By then, Father Nikon had fallen ill and taken to his bed, but even in this state, he read the Holy Scriptures and wrote letters.
Nun Irina brightened the dying priest's final days with her care. On July 8, 1931, Father Nikon received Holy Communion, listened to the canon for the departure of the soul, and died peacefully. An extraordinary, bright smile remained imprinted on his face.
The memory of St. Nikon of Optina is celebrated on the day of his death – July 8 (new style).
Source: https://azbyka.ru/otechnik/Nikon_Optinskij/radosti-moej-net-predela/#0_1