Secrets of the Hagia Sophia – Healing Powers, Mysterious Mosaics and Holy Relics

The Hagia Sophia in Istanbul has a very long history. It has survived earthquakes, religious power struggles, and has been a church (basilica), a mosque and is now a museum. It is known as the Ayasofya in Turkish, and was dedicated to the Wisdom of God, the Logos. There were once two more churches that were regarded as “Churches of Divine Wisdom” but the Hagia Sophia is the last that remains.

The ancient monument is also called the Sancta Sophia, but this name is not associated with Saint Sophia as many mistakenly believe. Rather, its name makes reference to its association with “Divine Wisdom” because “Sophia” means wisdom in Greek.

From the time of its construction between 532 and 537 AD, on the orders of Byzantine Emperor Justinian I, through to 1453 AD, the Hagia Sophia served as a cathedral for the Eastern Orthodox Church. However, Constantinople, as Istanbul was once called, was conquered by the Ottoman Turks at this time, and the Hagia Sophia was converted into a mosque by order of Sultan Mehmed II.