Born in Cañas, La Rioja, to a family of peasants, he worked as a shepherd before becoming a Benedictine monk at the Monasteries of San Millán de la Cogolla.
 He was ordained a priest and soon became master of novices and then prior, before being driven out with two of his fellow monks by King García Sánchez III of Navarre, for opposing his intention to annex the monastery's lands.

Under the protection of King Ferdinand I of León, in 1041 they found refuge in the town of Silos at the decaying Abbey of St. Sebastian, occupied by only six monks. (
After his death, both the monastery and the town were  renamed for him.)
Dominic was appointed as the abbot of the community and, inspired by the reforms of Cluny,  proceeded to rebuild the monastery, both spiritually and physically.
He built the cloisters in the Romanesque style, and established a scriptorium, turning the monastery into a center of book design, scholarship, and significant charity made possible through the proceeds of the gold and silver workshop.
Dominic became known for works of healing.
The monastery became one of the centers of the Mozarabic liturgy, and also preserved the Visigothic script of ancient Spain.

Wealthy patrons endowed the monastery, and Dominic raised funds to ransom Christians taken prisoner by the Moors.
 By the time of his death, on 20 December 1073, the monastery numbered forty monks.
Born in Cañas, La Rioja, to a family of peasants, he worked as a shepherd before becoming a Benedictine monk at the Monasteries of San Millán de la Cogolla.  He was ordained a priest and soon became master of novices and then prior, before being driven out with two of his fellow monks by King García Sánchez III of Navarre, for opposing his intention to annex the monastery's lands. 
Under the protection of King Ferdinand I of León, in 1041 they found refuge in the town of Silos at the decaying Abbey of St. Sebastian, occupied by only six monks. (After his death, both the monastery and the town were  renamed for him.) Dominic was appointed as the abbot of the community and, inspired by the reforms of Cluny,  proceeded to rebuild the monastery, both spiritually and physically. He built the cloisters in the Romanesque style, and established a scriptorium, turning the monastery into a center of book design, scholarship, and significant charity made possible through the proceeds of the gold and silver workshop. Dominic became known for works of healing. The monastery became one of the centers of the Mozarabic liturgy, and also preserved the Visigothic script of ancient Spain.
Wealthy patrons endowed the monastery, and Dominic raised funds to ransom Christians taken prisoner by the Moors.  By the time of his death, on 20 December 1073, the monastery numbered forty monks.
Dominic of Silos