Seven Lakes

The Seven Lakes make up one of the most beautiful and well-known sites in the Rila Mountains. These are seven alpine lakes, situated at altitudes ranging from 2,100 to 2,500 meters, connected by streams and meadows. It is an area of stunning natural beauty, above the tree line, offering many hiking opportunities—but some people come here for spiritual reasons.

According to Peter Dunov, the founder of the White Brotherhood in Bulgaria at the beginning of the 20th century, these are seven eyes of the planet—seven energy centers. This is a place that was once a site of pilgrimage in ancient times, when an advanced and unknown civilization (similar to Atlantis) existed, before the current historical cycle. In those days, all people spoke a common language, and Dunov discovered the original names of the lakes in that ancient tongue, names that hint at the inner essence of each lake.

Back then, there was a profound connection between humans and the energies of nature—and through them, to the universe. The area of the Seven Lakes served as a kind of temple where people came to undergo initiation and communicate with higher forces (as it continued to be in later periods as well). In the rocks surrounding the lakes—some of them towering cliffs—and in the water itself, high energies were embedded that are still activated during special times of the year.

One of those times is mid-August, when a meteor shower reaches Earth. During this period, the spiritual school of the White Brotherhood takes place in the area of the Seven Lakes. Members of the Brotherhood stay in a camp near the second lake for three weeks, living in simple conditions and braving the harsh elements of nature—rain, cold, steep paths. They learn to cope, and also to explore the possibility of maintaining a supportive and harmonious human society. Dunov noted that under favorable conditions, people tend to quarrel quickly, whereas under difficult conditions, they tend to come together and help one another.

The entire area is believed to be filled with unseen beings—angels and energies—and this is a time of cleansing, purification, and connection.

Dunov recommended visiting the lakes in order of their elevation, from bottom to top, and claimed that if this is done with holiness and awareness, a person can undergo a process of enlightenment consisting of seven stages, corresponding to the seven chakras of the human energy system.

The Seven Lakes are reached by cable car, which departs from a station about twenty minutes from the town of Sapareva Banya. It is worth stopping in this town, where the only geyser in the Balkans is located. Around the geyser, there is a public park and hot water pools open to visitors