Life in Varnhem Abbey

Back to the history of Varnhem

Many different roles in the abbey

Within the Cistercian Order, to which Varnhem Abbey belonged, the life of the monks was meticulously organised. In the Cistercian monasteries, the members have been divided into two groups: choir monks and lay brothers.

Lay brothers

Lay brothers were responsible for the manual labour: cultivation, animal husbandry, construction, and crafts.

Choir monks

The ordained choir monks were responsible for the religious rites, the administration and clerical work of the monasteries, the management of the monastery, and the spiritual work.

The choir monks also sometimes participated in manual labour, but had to remain relatively close to the church. They had to partake in the regular gatherings, the canonical hours, which took place seven times distributed over the hours of the day. For these, people were called with the ring a bell, and they had to drop everything to hurry to the church.

The abbot

The abbot was elected through democratic majority voting within each monastery.

The abbots from all the monasteries within the Cistercian Order gathered once a year in Citeaux for a so-called General Chapter, to decide on important matters within the order and when a new general abbot was to be elected. The General Abbot was the highest leader of the Cistercians, and abbot of Citeaux.

Ora et labora - prayer and work

The monasteries, of course, had a deeper purpose. An "inner life" characterised by solitude and prayer.

To us modern people, this may seem peculiar, as something of an escape from the surrounding reality. But the organisation of monastic life gave the monks the opportunity to focus on the mission that was the monastery's main purpose: prayer, worship, in-depth study of the scriptures and so on, in order to develop further knowledge.

The daily rhythm with the regular canonical hours, meals, readings, and work in silence provided the monks with an environment for deepened learning and experience. It helped the monks to fulfil the Rule of Saint Benedict, which prescribes that the waking hours of the day should be divided between three tasks:

• Opus Dei – the service
• Lectio Divina – the spiritual reading
• Opus Manuum – practical work in its various forms. This was part of what the monks promised in their monastic vows.

Ora et labora is not unique to the Cistercians but fundamentally comes from the Rule of Saint Benedict and applies throughout the entire monastic tradition. But the Cistercians, who became an independent monastic order in 1119, wanted to tighten the adherence to the rule because many monasteries had become wealthy and powerful organisations that followed the directives increasingly poorly.

The word Cister in Cistercian comes from the Latin name for Citeaux, the first monastery founded within the order.

Self-sufficiency

The monasteries were to be self-sufficient according to the Rule of Saint Benedict, which required arable land. The diet was mainly vegetarian, with some additions of fish, eggs, and certain dairy products. This meant that extensive and biologically well-developed cultivation schemes were developed.

Part of the cultivation were also spices and herbs, many of which were also used for medicinal purposes. Many of the plants that are now present here, and which we take for granted, were first brought here by the monks.

Even though cereal cultivation existed earlier, the monks introduced new farming methods and new ways to handle and refine foodstuffs. Mills for grinding grain on a larger scale were something that the monasteries introduced and could offer to the local population. The mills required constant access to water, and the monks were skilled at managing this. The monastery had an ingenious water system, see the link in the right column.

Medical knowledge

The monks also had knowledge in several medical fields. In Varnhem, a fine example of this has been found: an upper arm bone has been discovered that was orthopaedically treated through an operation where the broken bone was repaired with the help of a copper plate. As can be seen, the patient survived the procedure and the injury healed.

Medicinal plants, surgery, and orthopaedics, together with well-developed hygiene, provided the monasteries with a good opportunity to help the needy and sick among the surrounding population. This was also considered to be a truly Christian deed, well rooted in the foundations of the monastic movement.

The abbey ruins - where the monks lived

The abbey was built following the same successful concept as all Cistercian monasteries. Acces to water was crucial for the monastery's survival.

On the abbey grounds, there were buildings for many different purposes. In the ruins, you will find information signs that you can follow, to help you get an idea of which rooms in the abbey were used for what.

When the monks came to our part of Europe, they also brought entirely new knowledge about stonemasonry. The knowledge had its roots in architecture but was now taken to new heights and greater efficiency through the development of the monastic movement. The art of building also spread to other parts of the surrounding community through skilled lay brothers who participated in the construction of other large buildings in the area, such as churches and fortifications.

An ingenious water system

Varnhem was a perfect place for the monks to establish monastery operations. An important factor was the availability of water. Here was a wetland, a number of streams, and abundant springs from the mountain.

Monasteries required access to running water, partly for the various purposes of the kitchen but also because the water had a ritual and symbolic function.

The technique of constructing cisterns, dams, canals, wells, taps, etc., was well developed within the Cistercian Order, as was the knowledge of water and sewage technology, piping systems, and water pressure. Through the movement's international network, this expertise was available to all monasteries, even in the more remote Scandinavia.

The monks created a lake from the wetland south of the monastery area by damming it and adding more water through a 300-metre-long canal along the mountain.

Fresh water from sources above the monastery was supplied through pipelines to the lavatory and kitchen. Pieces of these lead pipes can be seen in the abbey museum.

A channel for removing latrine and wastewater ran through the entire monastery and emptied into a stream west of the monastery area.

Find your way around the ruin

Close to the abbey church, there are information signs that you can follow to see which rooms were used for what. The new excavations conducted by the University of Gothenburg have uncovered more buildings and are new pieces of the puzzle regarding how the abbey in Varnhem was constructed and functioned.