In the middle of 17th Century, in a village near the Kaluga Governorate on the feast day of Theophany, a pious peasant by the name of Thoedot Obukhov was caught in a blizzard while traveling. The horses lost all their strength and stopped near a deep ravine. Obukhov began to lose hope and decided to lie down waiting for the end to come. However, during what he thought were his last moments, he began to pray to the Mother of God for help and promised to make an icon “The Seeker of the Lost” for his parish. His prayer was answered. A men in a nearby village heard a voice saying “Take Him” and walked outside to find the freezing peasant. After Obukhov, recovered, he proceeded to keep his promise and since then the icon he made for the church has granted many healings and miracles.



