The StudenicaTypikonwas written emulating the KaryesTypikon, later being the model for the ŽičaTypikonand all other monasteries on Serbian territories far and wide. By writing the StudenicaTypikonSaint Savadid not intend on proscribing merely an external system of regulations on the organization of the life in a monastery,yet he conveyed the living monastic tradition and experience of Mount Athos and other spiritual centres of the East, especially the ones in Constantinople, Palestine (Holy Lavra of Saint Sava’s),as well as Mount Sinai.
By the StudenicaTypikonthe first Serbian hospital was founded in Studenica, following Byzantine monastery example. The Typikon refers back to the details of the organization of the hospital, which contains information on the layout of beds for patients, work of the staff, house rules, the method of drugs preparation, treatment of mass disease, etc. The Studenica Hospital had four rooms and twelve beds, and the sick were released after the treatment (healing) with a discharge note. In addition to the instructions pertaining to the work of hospitals, Saint Sava also imposed a ban on quackery.
Studenica is determined by this constitution as independent of the ecclesiastical and secular authorities, but is entrusted to the one who rules the Serbian state “to have him as a vindicator to those who would want to violate any monastery right”.
On the occasion of the eight-century anniversary of the Autocephaly of the Serbian Orthodox Church, with the blessing of Episcope of Žiča, dr. Justin Stefanović, the Studenica Monastery published a trilingual edition of the StudenicaTypikon by Saint Sava, which with all its features has international significance representing a major and important publishing endeavour.
On 539 pages (the total number of pages in the book) there is a new translation of the StudenicaTypikon from Serbo-Slavonic to Serbian, done by prof. Maja Anđelković, PhD, followed by the translation into English (JasminaTeodorović, PhD) and Russian (Svetlana Luganska) – an absolute innovation in the printing of such complex and capital works of a nation. In addition to the translation, the Introductory Study of the StudenicaTypikonbySaint Sava (author: M. Anđelković), the Index of biblical, liturgical and Church Fathers’ quotations and cross-references, and the Phototypical edition of the StudenicaTypikon were also published.
The translation was done so that, in relation to all previous editions, it is the closest to the original Serbo-Slavonic text, and thereforebrings about the thought and language of Saint Sava, in the best possible sense. For this very reason, this edition certainly becomes prerequisite for all novel theological and philological studies.
As the greatest innovation – the original order of the parts of the Typikonwas finally established, hence, in it the Life of St. Simeonwas placed first as the First Letter. This innovation, supported by arguments in the introductory study, is considered to be of invaluable significance, because only by the right ordering of the parts of theTypikon, and by placing the ktetor hagiography where it belongs by nature and designation, can we fully understand not only church and legal regulations that the latter parts the Typikon contain, but also the true meaning of the eschatological vision that Saint Sava borrowed from Theodore theStudite and inserted it into the final section of the Life. Simultaneously, the Life of St. Simeon, considered to be the beginning of the Serbian literature, can finally be regarded as an integral part of the StudenicaTypikon, and not as a completely independent entity, as was mistakenly misinterpreted before.
Along with the translation one can find the explanations of the less familiar expressions, as well as the text footnotes in which all the segments taken from the Bible, liturgical and Church Fathers’ texts are identified. Furthermore, the footnotes containcertain cross-references in the ChilandarTypikon, as well as in the EvergetisTypikonserving as Saint Sava’s modelfor writing both the Studenica and ChilandarTypikons. These characteristics likewise represent an important innovation, which will help enhance novel theological investigations to a considerable extent, especially the ones pertaining to Saint Sava’s theology.
All the noted cross-referencing, citationsand paraphrases of certain textsthat Saint Sava used in the StudenicaTypikon, prof. Anđelkovićsystematized in the Index of biblical, liturgical and Church Fathers’s quotations and cross-references – and it is precisely the Index that displays, in a simple and systematic way, the entire richness of the sources Saint Sava relied oncreating one of the most significant pieces of Serbian literature and church and legal writings. This represents one more novelty introduced by the Studenica’s edition.
The phototypical edition of the StudenicaTypikon is likewise noteworthy,representing the final section of the book, deserving a special mention in the history of StudenicaTypikon publication – for the first time the phototype was printed in full colour and resolution, and for the first time as well we can acknowledge what Averkiev’s notation looked like authentically.
Attention should be drawn to all the relevant datarelated to the StudenicaTypikon, and the reader is provided with the history of its creationand importancein the introductory studyThe StudenicaTypikon by Saint Sava, written fairly concisely and clearly, in which the author refers to the principles of translation, and, among everything else, emphasizes the significance of the book and the written word, monastery libraries, as well as the importance of investigating and presenting Serbian cultural heritage.
Based on the aforementioned features, we can conclude that the new Studenica’s trilingual edition of Saint Sava’s StudenicaTypikon is atypical in many aspects – ambitious and great scientific, translatingand publishing endeavourof singular international significance, already being indispensable in various fields of research, bringing all the beauty of Saint Sava’s narration, confirming anew the significance of Saint Sava for the Serbian Orthodox Church and the culture of the Serbian people, having been their saint and their enlightener forevermore.