Dostoevsky's Father Zosima

[Daniel Rancour-Laferriere]

5 Aug 06

Dear Colleagues,
As you probably recall, the body of the recently deceased Father Zosima 
in _Brothers Karamazov_ unexpectedly produces an "odor of corruption."  
This is cause for scandal, and upsets Alyosha Karamazov, the good monk's 
protege.

My question is this: what are the sources for the idea that the body of 
a very holy monk will not decay?  Is this a folk belief in Russian or 
other Slavic cultures?  Does the belief come in from Byzantium, or from 
other non-Slavic cultures?

Regards to the list,

Daniel Rancour-Laferriere
Emeritus Professor of Russian
University of California, Davis

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