At the age of twenty Shio became a disciple of the monk Ioane, later called Ioane of Zedazeni, followed him to Kartli and lived with him on Zedazeni in 543–47. In 547 Shio left Zedazeni and "sought out a certain deep ravine, comfortless and waterless... and found, on the north side of that great river which is the Mtkvari, a very small cave, just sufficient to shelter his body..." After some time a monastic community formed around the cave, growing to some 200 brethren, and a church became necessary: "the holy Shio struck the first spade, and they built the church of John the Baptist