Righteous Martha Mother of St. Symeon Stylites

Righteous Martha was the mother of St. Symeon Stylites the Elder (c. 388–459), the Syrian ascetic who pioneered the practice of standing in prayer atop a pillar for decades. She is venerated in the Eastern Orthodox Church as a righteous woman in her own right, commemorated on September 1 and July 4. Details of her biography are preserved primarily in the hagiographical accounts of her famous son.

According to the tradition surrounding Symeon's life, Martha was a woman of sincere piety from Syria. When her son established his pillar-dwelling near Aleppo in northern Syria, Martha followed him there and embraced a life of monastic stillness in the area surrounding his pillar. When Symeon maintained his strict ascetical separation and would not allow her beyond the enclosure—telling her that if they were worthy they would see one another in the life to come—she accepted this willingly and continued her vigil of prayer and silence nearby until her death. The tradition records that Symeon, on learning of her death, requested that her coffin be brought to him so that he could offer his prayers and farewell at her body. She is commemorated alongside Symeon as part of the witness of early Syrian asceticism.