Prayer Rule of the Reverend. Is it possible to shorten the morning and evening prayer rule
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A special collection of prayers is read by those preparing for Communion of the Holy Mysteries of Christ, and is called the "Rule for Holy Communion."
These prayers were composed by the holy fathers who lived in the Holy Spirit; they are God-inspired, living words coming from the depths of the believing heart, and reading them helps us learn how to pray correctly.
St. Theophan the Recluse explains:
“And one must learn to pray, one must acquire the habit of prayerful turns of thought and movements of feelings, from other people's prayers, just as one learns foreign languages from printed conversations.
My idea is that the novice must first be taught to pray properly with ready-made prayers, so that they learn for themselves thoughts and feelings and words of prayer. For to God the word must be turned to God.
The rule of prayer is a safe fence of prayer.”
"In our prayer books are the prayers of the holy fathers - Ephraim the Syrian, Macarius of Egypt, Basil the Great, John Chrysostom and other great prayer books. Being filled with the spirit of prayer, they set forth what was inspired by this spirit in a word and passed it on to us. In their prayers, a great power of prayer moves, and whoever penetrates into them with all his attention and zeal, by virtue of the law of interaction, will certainly taste the power of prayer, as his mood approaches the content of prayer.
St. Ignatius (Bryanchaninov) writes:
“The soul, beginning the path of God, is immersed in deep ignorance of everything divine and spiritual, even if it is rich in the wisdom of this world. Because of this ignorance, she does not know how and how much she should pray. To help the infant soul, the Holy Church has established rules of prayer. A prayer rule is a collection of several prayers composed by God-inspired holy fathers, adapted to a certain circumstance and time. The purpose of the rule is to deliver to the soul the amount of prayerful thoughts and feelings that it lacks, moreover, thoughts and feelings that are correct, holy, as if pleasing to God. The grace-filled prayers of the holy fathers are filled with such thoughts and feelings.”
"The rule! What an exact name, borrowed from the very action produced on a person by prayers called the rule! The prayer rule directs the soul correctly and holily, teaches it to worship God in Spirit and itself, could not follow the path of prayer correctly, because of its damage and clouding by sin, it would be continually deviated to the sides, often into an abyss: now into absent-mindedness, now into daydreaming, now into various empty and deceptive phantoms of high prayerful states composed by its vanity and self-love. The prayer rules keep the worshiper in a saving disposition of humility and repentance, teaching him unceasing self-condemnation, nourishing him with compunction, strengthening him with hope in the all-good and all-merciful God, amusing with the peace of Christ, love for God and neighbor.
In morning prayers we thank God for the past night and ask His grace-filled help for the coming day.
St. Theophan the Recluse writes about the purpose of morning prayers:
“The Lord arranges everything; it is necessary to accept from Him a blessing for deeds, the necessary admonition and the necessary reinforcement. And hurry early, while nothing prevents you, alone, ascend to the Lord with your mind and heart, and confess your needs, your intentions to Him and ask for His help. Having tuned in with prayer and contemplation from the first minutes of the day, you will then spend the whole day in reverence and fear of God, with collected thoughts. Hence - prudence, degree and harmony in business and mutual relations. This is the reward for the work you force yourself to do in your morning solitude. This is also for everyday people, therefore, a measure of prudence, and not something alien to their goals.
“As regards inner prayer, there is one rule: to pray without ceasing.
What does it mean to pray without ceasing? Be constantly in a prayerful mood. A prayerful mood is a thought about God and a feeling for God together. ... Feeling for God is the fear of God, love for God, a zealous desire to please everyone to Him alone, with the same desire to avoid everything that is objectionable to Him, and most importantly - surrendering oneself to His holy will unquestioningly and accepting everything that happens, as from His hand directly. ... It's about these two - about the thought and feeling for God - that you need to have all the care. ... Morning prayers are appointed for that, in order to hoist these two things in the mind and heart ... And then go out with them to your work and to doing. If you raise this in your soul in the morning, then you have prayed properly…”
Rev. John of the Ladder:
There is a demon among the evil spirits, called the preliminary, which immediately upon awakening appears to tempt us and defiles our first thoughts. Dedicate the beginning of your day to the Lord, for to whom you give them first, they will be. One most skillful worker said to me this noteworthy word: “At the beginning of the morning,” he said, “I will foresee all the course of my day.”
“Morning prayers,” writes St. Ignatius (Bryanchaninov)- so they breathe vivacity, freshness of the morning: he who sees the light of the sensual sun and the light of the earthly day learns to desire the sight of a higher, spiritual Light and an endless day, produced by the Sun of truth - Christ.
A brief restful sleep during the night is an image of a long sleep in the darkness of the grave. And they remember our prayers for sleep in the future, our transmigration to eternity, they survey all our activities during the day, they teach us to bring confession to God of our sins and repentance for them.
Hegumen Varsonofy (Verevkin) writes about the meaning of morning and evening prayers:
“There are rules that are obligatory for everyone: morning and evening, consisting of appropriate prayers.
Morning prayers, or rule, are of great importance to a Christian. Thanks to them, he has the opportunity to tune in spiritually for the coming day.
The ascetics of the "Philokalia" Saints Callistus and Ignatius, Saint Nil and Saint Simeon, Archbishop of Thessalonica, call morning prayers "first thought, sacrificed to God." According to St. Nilus, those who always create morning prayers reach the point that their prayers become effective and heard at every turn to God. “He makes his prayer heard, who always brings his first thought, like a ripe fruit, to God,” he says, and he calls these prayers the main thing of a Christian.
Saint Theodore the Studite writes about the importance of organizing prayers, pointing to them as one of the means for reaching the measure of Christ's age. “Whoever wants to achieve this,” he says, “must spend every day in zealous doing what is due and, having risen from sleep, hasten to prayer.”
Just as important are the morning prayers, so are the evening prayers. They are especially important because, preceding sleep, they set a person’s thoughts in a certain direction, preventing him from being idle, these prayers protect him from thoughts harmful to the human soul… The Monk Abba Philemon points out a remedy against “vain dreams” during sleep. “Do not be lazy and do not be cowardly,” he says, “but before you fall asleep, pray many in your heart and resist the thoughts and attempts of the devil to lead you according to his will, may God accept you.”
Rev. Ephraim Sirin teaches daily repentance during the fulfillment of the rule:
“... and you, beloved, every day, both in the evening and in the morning, think carefully ... And in the evening, entering the temple of your heart, think over everything and ask yourself: “Have I not angered God with something? Did he say an idle word? Was he careless? Have you upset my brother? Did he slander anyone? And when I sang psalms with my lips, then didn’t my mind dream of something worldly? Was my carnal desire revived in me, and was it not with pleasure that I pursued it? Have I not succumbed to earthly concerns?” If you have suffered damage from this, then try to gain what you have lost; sigh, cry, so as not to fall into the same again. And in the morning, take care of yourself again and ask: “How was this night? Did I make any profit in the night from my purchase? Was my mind awake with my body? Have tears flowed from my eyes? Was I not weighed down with sleep while kneeling? Did not evil thoughts come into my mind, and did I not deal with them with pleasantness? If you were defeated by this, then try to heal, put a guard to your heart, so as not to suffer damage again. If you are so careful, you will keep your purchase intact, and in this way you will become pleasing to your Lord and benefit yourself.
Be attentive to yourself so that you never fall into laziness, because the predominance of laziness is the beginning of destruction.
How to make a prayer rule
Before reading the rule, Christians usually light lamps in front of the icons, women cover their heads as a sign of humility and reverence.
The Holy Fathers say that it is better to know prayers by heart, then it is easier to unite the mind and heart in prayer, and those who read prayers according to the Prayer Book constantly memorize them quickly and easily. St. Theophan the Recluse also advises reading the translation of prayers into Russian in order to correctly understand their meaning, what we ask God for in prayer.
“Enter into your cell, and having shut your doors, pray to your Father, who is in secret: and your Father, who sees in secret, will reward you with truth” (Matthew 6:6).
Before you start praying, you need to set yourself up for the most important thing that happens in our life: to talk with God.
St. Theophan the Recluse:
"... when starting to pray, in the morning or in the evening, stand a little, or sit, or walk around, and take the trouble at this time to sober up the thought, diverting it from all earthly affairs and objects. Then think about Who is the One to whom you will turn in prayer , and who are you, now having to start this prayerful appeal to Him, - and correspondingly arouse in your soul the mood of self-abasing and reverent fear imbued with standing before God in your heart. This is the whole preparation - to stand reverently before God,- small, but significant. Here is the beginning of prayer; a good start is half the battle.
Having thus established yourself internally, then stand in front of the icon and, having bowed a little, begin the usual prayer... Read slowly, delve into every word and bring the thought of every word to the heart, accompanying it with bows. This is the whole point of reading a prayer that is pleasing and fruitful to God. Delve into every word and bring the thought of the word to the heart, otherwise: understand what you read, and feel what you understand. No other rules are required. These two - understand and feel - performed properly, adorn any prayer with full dignity and communicate to it all fruitful action.
Prot. Alexey Uminsky writes about this:
“When a person rises to pray, he must prepare himself for it inwardly. Prayer should be preceded by a state of inner silence, the idea that the main thing in your life will now begin - a conversation with God.
“When we open the prayer book, there are amazing, correct and simple words: “Before you start to pray, stay a little, be silent, make sure that all your spiritual feelings calm down, reconcile, and then only from silence say:“ God, be merciful me a sinner, "- imagining oneself now standing before God. "It is not God who needs to be imagined, because no one has seen God and it is never possible to imagine Him - this is an erroneous and dangerous phenomenon, when a person, in order to set himself up for prayer, begins to imagine You can only present yourself before God, and this is what you need to do - to appear before the Invisible and Living God, in whose presence you are, and from this depth begin to say something.
St. Ignatius (Bryanchaninov) advises:
“Before starting the evening rule, it is especially useful to make a feasible number of bows: from them the body will get a little tired and warm, and a feeling of pious sadness will be communicated to the heart; diligent and attentive reading of the rule will be prepared for both.
“When making the rule and prostrations, one should not rush in any way; should make both rules and bows with possible slowness and attention. It is better to read less prayers and bow less, but with attention, rather than a lot without attention.
St. Theophan the Recluse also instructs:
“... it is necessary that both church and home prayers be performed with attention and from the heart.”
“Never hurriedly pronounce prayers, and slowly, with thoughts and feelings that are expressed in read prayers. Before the beginning of prayer, always prepare a little, collecting thoughts and trying with your attention to stand before the Lord, Whom you are about to pray. The main disposition of prayer is to be repentant, for we all sin a lot... The spirit is contrite, God will not despise a contrite and humble heart... On every rule, pray for your sins, in which you sin...
What should one strive to achieve through prayer? So that the heart is warmed by love for God and the feeling for God does not depart ... We must raise the faith that God sees and hears everything, and knows all our secrets.
St. Theophan the Recluse advises to “cultivate a prayerful spirit” in this way:
“Every prayer should come from the heart, and any other prayer is not a prayer.”
“... the main thing is, with any spiritual need, turn to the Savior. Restore the faith that He is near and hears ... "
“... always try to pray from the heart; for the heart, this is the law: "God will not despise a contrite and humble heart." The correctness of your prayer is violated by thoughts. Have you noticed?! Now try to fix it. The first step to this is - when you start praying, arouse in yourself: the fear of God and reverence; then become attention in the heart, and from there cry out to the Lord.
And third-party thoughts will climb; as you can see, drive away. They will climb again, drive again ... And that's all. Do not allow your tongue to read a prayer, and your thoughts not to know where they staggered ... always drive them away and pray.
You need to work hard and pray to the Lord to help you cope with your thoughts. Do you have a collection of fatherly lessons on prayer? Read and understand, apply to yourself. Work unceasingly on this... and God, seeing your work, will give you what you are looking for... Work diligently, but do not think yourself to succeed in anything without God's special help.
Call on her more often."
“Fulfilling your rule, keep in mind not only to subtract everything that is necessary, but to arouse and strengthen the movement of prayer in your soul; in order to achieve this, the first thing is never to read in a hurry, but read as if in a chant ... close to that. In ancient times, all prayers read were taken from the psalms. But nowhere do I find the word: read, and sing everywhere ... Second. Delve into every word and not only reproduce the thought of what you read in your mind, but also arouse a corresponding feeling. Third. In order to strike the urge for hasty reading, do not subtract this and that, but stand on the reading prayer for a quarter of an hour, half an hour, an hour ... how long you usually stand ... and then do not worry about how many prayers you read - but how the time has come, if no desire to stand further, stop reading ... Fourth. Having put this on the clock, however, do not look, but stand like that in order to stand endlessly: the thought will not run ahead ... Fifth. In order to help the movement of prayerful feelings, in your free time, reread and rethink all the prayers that are included in your rule - and re-feel them, so that when you begin to read them on the rule, you will know in advance what feeling should be aroused in your heart. Sixth. Never read prayers without interruption ... but always interrupt them with your own prayer with bows, whether in the middle of the prayers you have to do this, or at the end. As soon as something falls into your heart, immediately stop reading and bow down... This is the last rule - the most necessary and most necessary for cultivating the spirit of prayer... drop it ... until the very end of the allotted time.
“On the rule of prayer, one must exert oneself. ... You just need to bother yourself, at least in moderation. And then a small benefit will lead to a big one, and everything can be ruined. When you become a rule, and the head is distracted, so that you can’t manage it, you need to force it to order ... until the mind gathers itself. When he is in line, then start bowing. He who bows with a distracted head is a reed shaken by the wind.
St. John Chrysostom teaches the art of prayer:
“It is always necessary to remember that we need not only to just pray, but to pray in such a way that we will be heard.”
Prot. Alexy Uminsky:
“Prayer, as a gift from God, is given only to those who make efforts. In Holy Scripture there are such words: giving prayer to those who pray (see: 1 Sam. 2, 9). Only when you use effort in prayer, only then is prayer given to you. But if you don't do that, don't force yourself to pray, don't make any effort, and expect it to be born on its own without real shedding of sweat and blood, you'll never get prayer. This is not a gift that is given randomly and suddenly, due to some circumstance.
Rule Reasoning
The prayer rule for a person is established by his spiritual father, it is up to him to change it - to reduce or increase it. Once established, a rule should become the law of life, and every violation should be considered as an exceptional case.
There is a complete prayer rule, designed for monks and spiritually experienced laity, which is printed in the Orthodox Prayer Book. However, for those who are just starting to get used to prayer, it is difficult to immediately begin to read it all in its entirety. Usually confessors advise to start with several prayers, and then, every 7-10 days, add one prayer to the rule, so that the ability to read the entire rule is developed gradually and naturally.
St. Ignatius (Bryanchaninov) writes about how important it is to correctly establish the scope of the prayer rule:
“The holy fathers, praising the rule of prayer and confessing its necessity, instruct to have it moderate, commensurate with the forces, with the state of spiritual prosperity and with the circumstances in which a person is placed by the Providence of God. The essence of the fulfillment of the rule of prayer lies in the fact that it is fulfilled with attention. From attention our spirit comes to humility: from humility repentance is born. In order to be able to make a rule slowly, the rule must be moderate. The Holy Fathers, while highly praising the moderate rule, advise to fulfill it recklessly.
Choose for yourself a rule corresponding to the forces. What the Lord said about the Sabbath, that it is for a man, and not a man for her (Mark 2:27), can and should be attributed to all the ascetics of the pious, and between them to the rule of prayer. A prayer rule for a person, and not a person for a rule: it should help a person to achieve spiritual success, and not serve as an unbearable burden, crushing bodily strength and embarrassing the soul. Moreover, it should not serve as a pretext for proud and pernicious conceit, pernicious condemnation and humiliation of one's neighbors.
Having chosen for yourself a prayer rule commensurate with your strength and spiritual need, try to fulfill it carefully and unreservedly: this is necessary to maintain the moral strength of your soul, just as it is necessary to maintain bodily strength daily at certain hours of sufficient consumption of healthy food.
A prudently chosen rule of prayer, according to the forces and the nature of life, serves as a great help for the one striving for his salvation.
Rev. Matoj:
"I prefer," said some great father, "not a lasting rule, but constantly executed, to a lasting one, but soon abandoned."
Prot. Alexy Uminsky:
“In order for a rule to become not an obstacle, but a real mover of a person to God, it is necessary that it be in proportion to his spiritual strength, correspond to his spiritual age and state of mind. Many people, not wanting to burden themselves, consciously choose prayer rules that are too light, which because of this become formal and do not bear fruit. But sometimes a great rule, chosen out of unreasonable jealousy, also becomes a shackle, plunging into despondency and preventing one from growing spiritually.
The rule is not a frozen form, during the course of life it must necessarily change both qualitatively and externally.
Hegumen Pakhomiy (Bruskov):
“The rule of a layman may include quite a variety of prayers and rites. These can be various canons, akathists, reading of the Holy Scriptures or the Psalter, bows, the Jesus Prayer. In addition, the rule should include a brief or more detailed commemoration of the health and repose of loved ones. In monastic practice, there is a custom to include in the rule the reading of patristic literature. But before you add something to your prayer rule, you need to think carefully, consult with the priest, evaluate your strengths. After all, the rule is read regardless of mood, fatigue, other heart movements. And if a person has promised something to God, it must be fulfilled. The Holy Fathers say: let the rule be small, but constant. At the same time, you need to pray with all your heart.”
If a person is sick or very tired, then the evening rule can be performed not immediately before going to bed, but shortly before that. And before going to bed, you should read the last part of the rule, starting with the prayer of St. John of Damascus " Vladyka Lover of mankind, will this coffin be for me..." and following it to the end.
Reducing the rule
In addition to the complete prayer rule that is mandatory for Christians, there is also. Lay people sometimes have situations when there is little time and energy left for prayer, and in this case it is better to read a short rule with attention and reverence than hastily and superficially, without a prayerful mood - the whole rule. The Holy Fathers teach to treat their prayer rule with reason, on the one hand, not giving concessions to their passions, laziness, self-pity and others that can destroy a correct spiritual dispensation, and on the other hand, to learn to shorten or even slightly change the rule without temptation and embarrassment. when there is a real need for it.
Reverend Nikon of Optina:
“No matter how busy a person is even with the most soul-saving deeds, even for obedience, he must still have a constant cell (or home) prayer rule that is possible for him in his usual position. Breaking a rule is already seen as a weakness. A blessed violation of the rule is when a person, for reasons beyond his control, leaves the usual order for some urgent need or unexpected obedience. Need for the sake of changing the law happens (Compare: Heb. 7, 12).
St. Ignatius (Bryanchaninov):
“Regarding the rule, know that it is for you, and you are not for it, but for the Lord. Therefore, have freedom of reasoning.”
St. Theophan the Recluse:
“When things do not allow you to complete the rule of prayer, then do it in an abridged way. And you should never rush. God is everywhere. Say thanks to Him in the morning and ask for a blessing in your own words, a few bows and enough! Never turn to God in any way. And always with great reverence. He does not need our obeisances, nor our long-winded prayers... A cry from the heart is short and strong, that's what is profitable! Take care of this and direct everything here. … The rule must be in your free will. Don't be his slave."
“Pull, as brought and used to. If sometimes you can’t reach something (from the rule) due to senile infirmity, scold yourself a little, complain to the Lord and calm down. If again - do the same, and so always. ... As for the rule, I think about this this way: no matter who chooses a rule for himself, everything is good - as long as he keeps his soul in reverence before God.
“When I wrote to you not to shorten the time of prayer, I wrote because, as I thought, you began to be lazy in praying. This is the main thing to avoid. Illness means the weakening or suppression of spiritual movements: which is very deplorable. But as I see that your zeal for the matter of prayer is alive, I think that you should leave the time and the rule of prayer to your arbitrariness, arrange both, as you find the best and most convenient for yourself. Keep only one thing urgent, so that when you stand in prayer, prayer comes from the heart and with feelings for God, laudatory, grateful and pleading with hope, and so that no extraneous matter is mixed in with this.
“We must use months ... and show constancy and patience in this work. - But here I will add - do not knit yourself. If you bind with anything, hold on to it: for by this the fruitfulness of such sowing is determined.
“Bless, Lord, and continue to pray according to your rule. But never bind yourself to a rule and think that there is anything of value in having such a rule or always making it. The whole price is in the heart before God falling down. ... and do it with consciousness and feeling, and not somehow. In case you need to be able to shorten the rule. You never know accidents in family life?.. You can, for example, in the morning and in the evening, when there is no time, to read only the morning prayers and for the coming sleep. You can even not read all of them, but several. You can read nothing at all, but make a few bows, but with true heartfelt prayer. The rule must be handled with complete freedom. Be the mistress of the rule, not a slave. A servant only of God, obliged to devote all the minutes of her life to please Him.
“You have a home prayer rule for the whole family. This holy cause should not be changed or cancelled. But then you can keep a special one - only a rule for yourself ... if you like.
Prot. Alexy Uminsky advises:
“A person can increase or decrease the rule depending on the circumstances of life, for example, when traveling or sick. The holy righteous John of Kronstadt writes in his diary that sometimes, when a person is sick, he cannot pray, and there is no need to. On this occasion, one should not lose heart, but pray as best one can, or occupy oneself with other activities, such as reading, there is no sin in this.
Why do we need a prayer rule?
Rev. Isaac Sirin:“Not for the abandonment of the psalms will God condemn us on the day of His judgment, not for the abandonment of prayer, but for the subsequent abandonment of them, the entry of demons into us. The demons, when they find a place, will enter and shut the doors of our eyes: then they will fulfill with us, their tools, violently and uncleanly, with the most cruel vengeance, everything forbidden by God. And because of the abandonment of the small (rule), for which the intercession of Christ is worthy, we become subject (to demons), as it is written by some wise ones: "He who disobeys his will to God, will submit to his rival." These (rules), which seem small to you, will become walls for you against those who try to captivate us. The fulfillment of these (rules) inside the cell was wisely established by the founders of the church charter, by revelation from above, for the preservation of our stomach.
The purpose of the prayer rule is that the desire to pray in a person does not fade, so that prayer is always present in him, in any form, even when it is not expressed in words, but, according to the word St. Theophan the Recluse, is “in an unceasing prayerful mood. A prayerful mood is a thought about God and a feeling for God together,” which is the essence of unceasing prayer commanded to us by the word of God.
St. Theophan the Recluse instructs:
“It is necessary to have a rule of prayer for the sake of our weakness, so that, on the one hand, laziness does not give way, and on the other, jealousy is kept in its measure.”
Rev. Abba Isaiah:
“Do not leave the rule of prayer, so as not to fall into the hands of your enemies.
Follow your prayer rule carefully. Beware! don't let yourself neglect it. From the careful execution of the rule, the soul is enlightened and strengthened.
Rev. John of the Ladder:
There is a demon among the evil spirits, called the preliminary, which immediately upon awakening appears to tempt us and defiles our first thoughts. Dedicate the beginning of your day to the Lord, for to whom you give them first, they will be. One most skillful worker said to me this noteworthy word: “At the beginning of the morning,” he said, “I will foresee all the course of my day.”
Saint Ignatius (Bryanchaninov) says that as long as a person does not have a prayer rule, it is impossible for him to build his spiritual life. It is a special way of building your inner man. It can be said that the construction of the temple of God within oneself begins with the rule of prayer. He's writing:
“Rule! What an exact name, borrowed from the very action produced on a person by prayers, called the rule! The rule of prayer guides the soul correctly and holily, teaches it to worship God in Spirit and Truth (John 4:23), while the soul, being left to itself, could not follow the right path of prayer. Because of its damage and darkening by sin, it would incessantly turn aside, often into an abyss: now into absent-mindedness, now into daydreaming, now into various empty and deceptive phantoms of high prayerful states composed by its vanity and self-love.
The prayer rules keep the one praying in a saving disposition of humility and repentance, teaching him unceasing self-condemnation, nourishing him with tenderness, strengthening him with hope in the all-good and all-merciful God, amusing with the peace of Christ, love for God and neighbor ... They clean and decorate the house of the soul with wonderful thoughts and feelings, so many pleasing to the Lord."
“The prayer rules keep the prayer in a saving disposition of humility and repentance, teaching him unceasing self-condemnation, nourishing him with compunction, strengthening him with hope in the All-Good and All-Merciful God.
It is necessary to learn the right prayer in order to succeed in it and through it to work out your salvation.
The fruits of true prayer: a bright peace of the soul, combined with a quiet, silent joy, alien to daydreaming, conceit and heated impulses and movements; love for one's neighbors, which does not separate the good from the bad for love... but intercedes for all before God as for itself."
Reverend Nikon of Optina speaks of the usefulness of the rule:
Not only a monk, but also a layman who is coming to monasticism and therefore has become close, as it were, kindred in spirit to monasticism, will see from experience how expensive it is to fulfill a prayer rule at home.
Rev. Nile of Sinai:
The mother of all virtues is prayer: it can not only purify and nourish, but also enlighten and is able to make those who sincerely pray like the sun.
St. John Chrysostom:
"Prayer is the foundation of all good and contributes to the attainment of salvation and eternal life.
Into a soul that is not familiar with prayer and petition, nothing that promotes piety can enter.
Prayer is a sacred messenger; it gladdens the heart, calms the soul, excites the fear of punishment and the desire for the Kingdom of Heaven; teaches humility, brings knowledge of sin."
Saint Gregory of Nyssa:
The fruits of sincere prayer are simplicity, love, humility, patience, gentleness, and the like. All this, even before eternal fruit, bears fruit here in the life of the diligent. Such are the fruits that adorn prayer; if they do not exist, then her labor is in vain.
Prot. Alexy Uminsky writes about the grace of the Orthodox prayer rule:
“The rule of prayer is a science, a constant exercise, a school of spiritual life, that which teaches us to pray, and that which eventually becomes prayer.
We have the blessed opportunity to speak in the words that Basil the Great spoke to God. …
Prayer is known by its fruits. If for some time we pray, and prayer does not bear fruit, we need to think about how we relate to prayer. …
Prayer builds the whole human life. Because in the Kingdom of Heaven there is nothing but prayer, which fills life and unites everything and everything.
For those who reject following the holy fathers in prayer, Saint Ignatius Brianchaninov rather harshly wrote that a person should not pray on his own. He warns about the dangers of such a prayer: “Do not dare to pronounce to God the many-verb and eloquent prayers that you have composed, no matter how strong and touching they may seem to you. They are the product of a fallen mind and, being a defiled sacrifice, cannot be accepted on the spiritual altar of God. And you, admiring the graceful expressions of the prayers composed by you and recognizing the refined action of vanity and voluptuousness as a consolation of conscience and even grace, will be carried away far from prayer at the very time when it will seem to you that you are praying and have already reached a certain degree of pleasing God.
HOW TO READ THE MORNING AND EVENING PRAYERS CORRECTLY The prayer rule is the daily morning and evening prayers performed by Christians. Their texts can be found in the prayer book. The rule can be general - obligatory for all or individual, selected for the believer by the confessor, taking into account his spiritual state, strength and employment. Consists of morning and evening prayers, which are performed daily. This vital rhythm is necessary, because otherwise the soul easily falls out of the life of prayer, as if waking up only from time to time. In prayer, as in any big and difficult task, "inspiration", "mood" and improvisation alone are not enough. Reading prayers connects a person with their creators: psalmists and ascetics. This helps to find a spiritual mood akin to their burning heart. In praying in other people's words, our example is the Lord Jesus Christ Himself. His prayer exclamations during the sufferings on the Cross are lines from psalms (Ps. 21:2; 30:6). There are three main prayer rules: 1) a complete prayer rule, designed for spiritually experienced laity, which is published in the "Orthodox Prayer Book"; 2) a short prayer rule; in the morning: “King of Heaven”, Trisagion, “Our Father”, “Virgin Mother of God”, “Rising from sleep”, “God have mercy on me”, “I believe”, “God, cleanse”, “To You, Master”, “Holy Angela”, “Most Holy Lady”, invocation of the saints, prayer for the living and the dead; in the evening: “King of Heaven”, Trisagion, “Our Father”, “Have mercy on us, Lord”, “Eternal God”, “Good King”, “Angel of Christ”, from “Choose Governor” to “It is worthy to eat”; 3) a short prayer rule of St. Seraphim of Sarov: three times “Our Father”, three times “Virgin Mother of God” and once “I believe” - for those days and circumstances when a person is extremely tired or very limited in time. It is undesirable to completely omit the prayer rule. Even if the prayer rule is read without due attention, the words of the prayers, penetrating into the soul, have their cleansing effect. The main prayers should be known by heart (with regular reading, they are gradually remembered by a person even with a very poor memory), so that they penetrate deeper into the heart and so that they can be repeated in any circumstances. It is advisable to study the text of the translation of prayers from Church Slavonic into Russian in order to understand the meaning of each word and not pronounce a single word meaninglessly or without accurate understanding. It is very important that the person approaching prayer banish resentment, irritation, and bitterness from the heart. Without efforts aimed at serving people, at fighting sin, at establishing control over the body and the spiritual sphere, prayer cannot become the inner core of life. In the conditions of modern life, given the workload and accelerated pace, it is not easy for the laity to set aside a certain time for prayer. The enemy of morning prayer is haste, and evening prayer is fatigue. Morning prayers are best read before the start of any business (and before breakfast). In extreme cases, they are pronounced on the way from home. Late in the evening it is often difficult to concentrate due to fatigue, so it can be recommended to read the evening prayer rule in free minutes before dinner or even earlier. During prayer, it is recommended to retire, light a lamp or a candle and stand in front of the icon. Depending on the nature of intra-family relationships, one can recommend reading the prayer rule together, with the whole family, or for each family member separately. Common prayer is recommended before eating food, on solemn days, before a festive meal, and on other similar occasions. Family prayer is a kind of church, public prayer (the family is a kind of “home church”) and therefore does not replace individual prayer, but only complements it. Before the beginning of prayer, one should make the sign of the cross and make several bows, half-length or earthly, and try to tune in to an inner conversation with God. The difficulty of prayer is often a sign of its true effectiveness. Prayer for other people is an integral part of prayer. Standing before God does not alienate a person from his neighbors, but binds him to them with even closer ties. We should not be limited only to prayer for those close and dear to us. Praying for those who have caused us grief brings peace to the soul, affects these people and makes our prayer sacrificial. It is good to end the prayer with thanksgiving to God for the gift of fellowship and contrition for one's inattention. Getting down to business, you must first think about what you have to say, do, see during the day and ask God for blessings and strength to follow His will. In the midst of a busy day, you need to say a short prayer (see the Jesus Prayer), which will help you find the Lord in everyday affairs. Morning and evening rules are only necessary spiritual hygiene. We are commanded to pray without ceasing (see the Jesus Prayer). The holy fathers said: if you churn milk, you will get butter, and in prayer, it turns from quantity into quality. God bless you!
In everything that concerns prayer and a pious life, the Lord Jesus Christ, the apostles and saints can serve as an example for us. It is written in the Gospel that Christ prayed in solitude for several hours and even during the whole night. The Apostle Paul urged to pray without ceasing, that is, all the time. Is there a limit to the length of the prayer?
You can turn to God in prayer almost everywhere:
- in the temple
- where they eat
- at work
- and even on the way
At home, they read home prayers (morning, evening, before or after eating food). With the blessing of the priest, morning prayers can be read on the way to work. In the office, you can pray before the start and at the end of the working day.
During worship services in the temple, believers together perform a public (otherwise - church) prayer.
To pray alone in the temple, you need to come outside of worship, purchase and light candles. It is not necessary to light them: the ministers will light them before the start of the service. Then you need to venerate the icon of the day or holiday - it lies on a lectern (a special inclined table) in the middle of the temple - as well as to the shrines that may be in the temple: revered icons, relics of saints. After that, you can find a place to read to yourself (in a whisper) any prayer that you know by heart, or pray in your own words.
How many times a day should the Orthodox pray?
Prayer is a time dedicated to God. This time should be every day.
- in the morning,
- in the evening,
- before meals and after
- before and after the completion of any business (for example, work or study)
- in order to first ask God for blessings, and in the end to thank Him.
In addition, it is important in the temple to perform church prayer and acceptance. If necessary, in case of special needs or life circumstances, you can turn to private prayer (at home in front of the icons or in the church between services) to the saints or heavenly forces so that they intercede for the one who is praying before the Lord.
Time for reading Orthodox prayers in church and at home
In ancient monasteries, nine long services were performed per day, and between them the monks alone read psalms or recited. Night was considered a particularly fertile time for solitary prayer.
Modern lay people perform at home in the morning, in the evening, upon returning home -. If a person is weak or has little time, then instead of the morning and evening rules, he can read St. Seraphim of Sarov during the day.
It is advisable to discuss the duration of morning and evening prayers with the priest, with whom the parishioner confesses constantly.
On Saturday evening and on the eve of church holidays, you should attend the all-night vigil in the church, and on Sunday mornings and on holidays - the Liturgy.
During they go to church more often to pray: in the first four days they try not to miss evening services- they serve Great Compline with the Canon of Andrew of Crete. You should also try to attend as many services as possible during the Holy Week preceding the Easter holiday. During Holy Week Liturgy is served daily, and believers strive to visit it in order to partake of the Holy Mysteries of Christ not only on Sunday, but also on a weekday.
Morning prayer time
Morning prayers are read at home, immediately upon awakening. Waking up, you need to stand in front of the icons and start reading prayers by heart or according to the prayer book.
Evening Prayer Time
Evening prayers are read at home at the end of the day or before bed. The evening rule is not recommended to be postponed until later, because the later, the stronger the fatigue and the more difficult it is to concentrate.
Just before going to bed, already lying in bed, they say: “In Your hands, Lord my God, I betray my spirit, You save me, You have mercy on me and grant me eternal life.”
Prayer all day long
The Orthodox Church does not set a strict time for prayers. We must strive to pray constantly. First of all, this means constantly remembering God and from time to time, if possible, turning to Him during the day with short prayers (for example, the Jesus Prayer “Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me a sinner” or a short thanksgiving prayer “Glory To Thee, our God, glory to Thee!”).
Continuous prayer
You can read short prayers continuously throughout the day, repeating the same prayer many times in a row and counting the number of repetitions with a rosary. This is usually how the Jesus Prayer is read. However, for such a prayer it is necessary to take the blessing of the priest, and the number of repetitions is strictly regulated.
There are many restrictions on continuous prayer, it cannot be read uncontrollably.
St. Ambrose of Optina ordered his spiritual children to read the Jesus Prayer only aloud, because reading to oneself can cause strong emotional sensations and lead to delusion. Charm means self-deception, up to mental insanity.
How long should a prayer be?
Durationprayers are not governed by rules.
- The most important thing is the focus on prayer, not its duration or number of prayers.
- You need to pray slowly, thinking about every word.
- The number of prayers should correspond to the time that we can devote to them.
The Lord said, “I want mercy, not sacrifice” (Mt. 9:13), therefore, with a lack of time or severe fatigue, it is permissible to shorten the prayer rule in order to read it with concentration.
So, prayer for an Orthodox Christian is a conversation, communion with God. Turning to the Lord in prayer is the need of the soul of a believer; it is not for nothing that the holy fathers called prayer the breath of the soul.
In fulfilling the daily rule of prayer, two things must be remembered.
First . That is why daily prayer is called rule, which is mandatory. Every Orthodox Christian prays in the morning and before bedtime; he prays and before eating, a after meal thanks God. Christians pray before starting any business(work, study, etc.) and upon completion. Before starting work, a prayer is read "To the King of Heaven ..." or special prayers for the beginning of any business. At the end of the case, the prayer to the Mother of God “It is worthy to eat” is usually read. All these prayers are contained in the Orthodox Prayer Book.
So in the prayer life there should be regularity and discipline. The daily prayer rule cannot be skipped and pray only when you want and there is a mood. A Christian is a warrior of Christ, in baptism he takes an oath of allegiance to the Lord. The life of every warrior, soldier is called service. It is built according to a special order and charter. And an Orthodox person also carries out his service, performing a prayer rule. This service to God takes place according to the statutes of the Church.
Second , which should be remembered when fulfilling the rule: you cannot turn daily prayer into a formal reading of the prescribed prayers. It happens that a priest in confession has to hear: “I began to read the morning prayers and only in the middle I realized that I was reading the evening rule.” So the reading was purely formal, mechanical. It does not produce spiritual fruit. So that the fulfillment of the rule does not turn into a formal proofreading, you need to read it slowly, better aloud or in an undertone, pondering the meaning of the prayer, standing reverently - after all, we stand before God Himself and talk with Him. If you are going to pray, you need to gather yourself, calm down, drive away all worldly thoughts and cares. If during the reading of prayers inattention and extraneous thoughts came and we stopped paying attention to what we read, we need to stop and start reading the prayer again, already with due attention.
It can be difficult for a new beginning Christian to immediately read a complete prayer rule. Then, with the blessing of his spiritual father or parish priest, he can choose from the Prayer Book at least a few morning and evening prayers. For example, three or four, and pray according to this abbreviated rule, gradually adding one prayer from the Prayer Book - as if ascending "from strength to strength."
Of course, it is not easy for a person taking the first steps in spiritual life to fulfill the complete rule. He still doesn't understand much. The Church Slavonic text is still difficult for him to understand. You should purchase a small dictionary of Church Slavonic words in order to better understand the meaning of the texts you read. Understanding and skill in prayer will definitely come with time if a person sincerely wants to understand what he has read and does not stand still in his prayer life.
In the morning prayers, Christians ask God for a blessing for the coming day and thank Him for the past night. Evening prayers prepare us for sleep, and are also a confession of the sins of the past day. In addition to the morning and evening rules, an Orthodox person throughout the day must keep the memory of God and mentally turn to Him. You can't do anything without me, says the Lord (Jn 15:5). Every business, even the simplest, must begin with at least a brief prayer for God's help in our labors.
Too many mothers of babies complain that they have no time at all for the daily rule. Indeed, when a child grows and needs to be taken care of day and night, it is very difficult to fulfill a complete prayer rule. Here we can advise you to constantly do inner prayer during the day and ask God for help in all your affairs and worries. This applies not only to the mother of small children, but also to any Orthodox Christian. Thus, our life will pass with constant remembrance of God and we will not forget Him in the vanity of the world.
Prayers are divided into pleading, penitential, grateful and glorifying. Of course, we must not only turn to the Lord with requests, but we must constantly thank Him for His countless benefits. And, most importantly, they should be able to see the gifts of God in their lives and appreciate them. It is necessary to make it a rule: at the end of the day, remember all the good things that were sent from God on the past day, and read thanksgiving prayers. They are in any complete Prayer Book.
In addition to the obligatory prayer rule, every Orthodox person can also take on a special rule. For example, read canons, akathists during the day. The peculiarity of the construction of the akathist is in the word “rejoice” repeated many times. Therefore, he is distinguished by a special joyful mood. In ancient times, the daily reading of the psalms occupied a special place in the spiritual life of a Christian.
Reading canons, akathists, psalms helps in mournful or difficult periods of life. For example, the prayer canon to the Theotokos (it is in the Prayer Book) reads in every sorrow of soul and circumstance, as its very name says. If a Christian wants to take on a special prayer rule (reading the canons or, for example, saying the Jesus Prayer: “Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me a sinner” with the rosary), he must take the blessing of his spiritual father or parish priest for this.
In addition to a constant prayer rule, a Christian should regularly read the Holy Scriptures of the New Testament.
You can hear the following opinion: why turn to God so often with your requests, prayers? The Lord already knows what we need. Like, you need to turn to God only in special cases, when it is really necessary.
Such an opinion is just an excuse for their own laziness. God is our Heavenly Father, and like any Father, He wants His children to communicate with Him, to turn to Him. Both God's grace and mercy towards us can never fail, no matter how much we turn to God.
This parable comes to mind:
In the house of rich people, they stopped praying before meals. One day a priest came to visit them. The table was exquisite, and the best dishes were served. We sat at the table. Everyone looked at the priest and thought that now he would pray before eating. But the priest said: "The owner must pray at the table, he is the first prayer book in the family."
There was an awkward silence: no one in this family prayed. The father cleared his throat and said: “You know, dear father, we don’t pray, because in prayer before meals, the same thing is always repeated. Why do the same thing every day, every year? No, we don't pray." The priest looked at everyone in surprise, but then the seven-year-old girl said: “Daddy, don’t I need to come to you every morning and say good morning?”
Prayer at home is not much different from prayer in the temple. The only exception is that it is allowed to commemorate all, without exception, people, regardless of their religious affiliation. In the temple, it is customary to pray for “our own” and only mentally, so as not to disturb others. At home, you can pray out loud, provided that this does not irritate relatives. You must be fully clothed for prayer. It is desirable for women to have a scarf on their heads and be in a dress or skirt.
Why pray at home?A conversation with the Lord can be conducted both in your own words and in ready-made “formulas” worked out long before us by many generations of believers. Classical prayers are contained in the "Prayer Book" ("Canon"). You can buy it in any shop of religious literature. “Prayer Books” can be short (containing a minimum of necessary prayers), complete (intended for priests) and ... ordinary (which have everything a true believer needs).
If you want to pray for real, pay attention to the fact that in your "Prayer Book" there are:
- morning and evening (for the coming sleep) prayers;
- daily (before the beginning and end of any business, before eating and after eating food, etc.);
- the canons on the days of the week and the "Canon of repentance to our Lord Jesus Christ";
- akathists (“To Our Sweetest Lord Jesus Christ”, “To the Most Holy Theotokos”, etc.);
- "Following to Holy Communion ..." and prayers read after it.
In addition to the "Prayer Book" for home prayer, you can purchase the "Psalter". In Orthodox practice, reading one hundred and fifty psalms must be done in a week. It is customary to read the Psalter twice in Lent. On "Glory..." there is a commemoration of the living and the dead. An Orthodox Christian can read the Psalter at the tomb of the deceased.
Reading the Psalter is a serious and responsible thing. Before you go to her, you should get permission from the priest.
Prayer rule
Each of us is at our own point on the long journey to the Lord. Each of us has his own temporary and physical opportunities for prayer. Accordingly, there is no single prayer rule for everyone. Each person should pray as much as he can. How much exactly? This must be determined by the priest.
Ideally, each of us should be sure to read morning and evening prayers. They are necessary to protect the soul during the day (morning) and night (evening) from evil forces and people. Those who start their working day very early or, on the contrary, finish it too late and do not have either the time or the strength to read the entire morning or evening rule, can limit themselves to basic prayers: for example, read “Our Father”, “Have mercy on me” in the morning. God..” (fiftieth psalm) and “Symbol of Faith”, in the evening – the prayer of St. John Chrysostom, “Let God rise again…” and “Everyday confession of sins”.
If you have free time and desire, you can read the relevant canons every day: for example, on Monday, pray to your Guardian Angel, Archangels and Angels, on Tuesday - to John the Baptist, on Wednesday - to the Most Holy Theotokos, etc. Reading the "Psalter" also depends on your capabilities, desire and time.
Prayer before and after meals is a must.
How to Pray Before Communion?
The answer to this question is usually contained in the Prayer Book. We will only remind you that all prayers performed before Communion are read at home, on the eve of the sacrament. On the eve of Communion, you need to attend the evening service, after which you can begin to pray with peace of mind. Before Communion, read:
- “Following to Holy Communion...”;
- three canons: the repentant, the Guardian Angel and the Most Holy Theotokos;
- one of the akathists;
- full evening prayers.
Home prayer is performed in front of the icons, standing, with the sign of the cross and bows from the waist. If desired, you can make prostrations or pray on your knees.
During prayer, it is advisable not to be distracted by extraneous matters - phone calls, a whistling kettle, pets flirting.
With severe fatigue and a great craving for prayer, it is allowed to pray sitting. The Psalter, with the exception of "Glory..." and the prayers that close the kathisma, is also read while seated.
Despite the fact that prayer requires a certain concentration and attention, it is useful to pray through force. Our brain may not perceive what is read, but the soul will definitely hear everything and receive its portion of divine grace.