ADMONITION TO YOUNG MONKS IN OLD RUSSIAN LITERATURE

The article examines a short work titled “Admonition to Young Monks” which is part of a cycle of works on monasticism attributed to Basil the Great. It is found in various miscellanies and Nomocanons. The research is based on manuscript copies from the14th–16th centuries, the earliest of them being from the State Historical Museum, Chudov Collection, Nos. 4, 20, and 218, dating back to the 14th century. Based on thematic similarity with the works of Kirill of Turov, Metropolitan Philaret considered Kirill the author of the Admonition. This hypothesis is shared by the authors of the Dictionary of Old Russian Language of the 11th–14th centuries. The article analyses the textual and linguistic features of this work, noting its colloquial and everyday vocabulary. Based on the study of the language and style of the Admonition, the conclusion is made that it is an original Old Russian text and that Kirill of Turov was not its author. We divide the manuscripts into groups related to the circulation of the text in different monasteries (Iosifo-Volokolamsky, Solovetsky, and possibly Pskov-Pechersky). Our text-critical analysis of the Admonition has revealed a long manuscript tradition, attesting to the popularity of this work in Old Russian literature. The text of the Testament is published based on the manuscript SHM, Chudov Collection No. 4, 14th century, with variant readings from 12 manuscripts of the 14th–16th centuries.