Jesus Prayer 1000 times - joy, peace and grace for the soul! Valaam Monastery Choir

Main sections of the Prayer Book

Morning prayers (without interpretation)

• The Publican's Prayer (Luke 18:13)
• Initial prayer
• Prayer to the Holy Spirit
• Trisagion
• Prayer to the Most Holy Trinity
• Lord's Prayer
• Troparia Trinity
• Prayer to the Most Holy Trinity
• Psalm 50
• Symbol of faith
• Prayer 1, St. Macarius the Great
• Prayer 2, of the same saint
• Prayer 3, of the same saint
• Prayer 4, of the same saint
• Prayer 5, St. Basil the Great
• Prayer 6, of the same saint
• Prayer 7, to the Most Holy Theotokos
• Prayer 8, to our Lord Jesus Christ
• Prayer 9, to the Guardian Angel
• Prayer 10, to the Most Holy Theotokos
• Prayerful invocation of the saint whose name you bear
• Hymn to the Most Holy Theotokos
• Troparion to the Cross and prayer for the Fatherland
• Prayer for the living
• Prayer for the departed
• About the living
• About the departed
• End of prayers

• See also: Morning prayers with interpretation
• Section: Praying by the hour

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Rising from sleep, before doing anything else, stand reverently, presenting yourself before the All-Seeing God, and, making the sign of the cross, say:

In the name of the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit, Amen.

Then wait a little until all your feelings come to silence and your thoughts leave everything earthly, and then say the following prayers, without haste and with heartfelt attention:

The Publican's Prayer (Luke 18:13)

God, be merciful to me, a sinner. (Bow)

Initial prayer

Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, prayers for the sake of Your Most Pure Mother and all the saints, have mercy on us. Amen.

Glory to Thee, our God, glory to Thee.

Prayer to the Holy Spirit

Heavenly King, Comforter, Soul of truth, Who is everywhere and fulfills everything, Treasure of good things and Giver of life, come and dwell in us, and cleanse us from all filth, and save, O Good One, souls ours.

Trisagion

Holy God, Holy Mighty, Holy Immortal, have mercy on us. (Read three times, with the sign of the cross and bow from the waist.)

Glory to the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, now and ever and unto ages of ages. Amen.

Prayer to the Most Holy Trinity

Most Holy Trinity, have mercy on us; Lord, cleanse our sins; Master, forgive our iniquities; Holy One, visit and heal our infirmities, for Thy name's sake.

Lord have mercy. (Three times).

Glory to the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, now and ever and unto ages of ages. Amen.

Lord's Prayer

Our Father, who art in heaven! Hallowed be Thy name, Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done, as it is in heaven and on earth. Give us this day our daily bread; and forgive us our debts, just as we forgive our debtors; and do not lead us into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one.

Troparia Trinity

Rising from sleep, we fall down to Thee, the Blesser, and cry out the angelic song to Thee, the Stronger: Holy, Holy, Holy art thou, O God, through the Mother of God have mercy on us.

Glory to the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit.

From bed and sleep you raised me up, Lord, enlighten my mind and heart, and open my lips, even as you sing to thee, Holy Trinity: Holy, Holy, Holy art thou, O God, have mercy on us through the Mother of God.

And now and ever and unto ages of ages. Amen.

Suddenly the Judge will come, and every deed will be exposed, but with fear we call at midnight: Holy, Holy, Holy are you, God, have mercy on us through the Mother of God.

Lord have mercy. (12 times)

Prayer to the Most Holy Trinity

Having risen from sleep, I thank Thee, Holy Trinity, for for the sake of Thy goodness and long-suffering you were not angry with me, lazy and sinful, and you destroyed me with my iniquities. mi; but you loved mankind as a rule, and in the despair of a man who lay, you raised me up to exercise and glorify your power. And now enlighten my mental eyes, open my mouth, to learn Your words, and to understand Your commandments, and to do Your will, and to sing to You in confession of my heart, and to sing praises Thy all-holy name, the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, now and ever and unto ages centuries. Amen.

Come, let us worship the King our God. (Bow)

Come, let us worship and fall down before Christ, our King God. (Bow)

Come, let us bow and fall down to Christ Himself, the King and our God. (Bow)

Psalm 50

Have mercy on me, O God, according to Your great mercy, and according to the multitude of Your compassions, cleanse my iniquity. Above all, wash me from my iniquity, and cleanse me from my sin; for I know my iniquity, and I will take away my sin before me. I have sinned against You alone and have done evil before You, so that You may be justified in Your words and triumph over Your judgment. Behold, I was conceived in iniquity, and my mother gave birth to me in sins. Behold, you have loved the truth; You have shown me Your unknown and secret wisdom. Sprinkle me with hyssop, and I will be clean; Wash me, and I will be whiter than snow. There is joy and gladness in my ears; the bones of the humble will rejoice. Turn away Your face from my sins and cleanse all my iniquities. Create a pure heart in me, O God, and renew a right spirit in my womb. Do not cast me away from Your presence and do not take Your Holy Spirit from me. Give me the joy of Your salvation and strengthen me with the Lord’s Spirit. I will teach the wicked your way, and wickedness will turn to you. Deliver me from bloodshed, O God, God of my salvation; my tongue will rejoice in Your righteousness. Lord, open my mouth, and my mouth will declare Your praise. As if you had desired sacrifices, you would have given them: you do not favor burnt offerings. The sacrifice to God is a broken spirit; God will not despise a contrite and humble heart. Bless Zion, O Lord, with Your favor, and may the walls of Jerusalem be built. Then take pleasure in the sacrifice of righteousness, the offering and the burnt offering; then they will place your calf on the altar.

Symbol of faith

I believe in one God, the Father, Almighty, Creator of heaven and earth, visible to all and invisible. And in one Lord Jesus Christ, the Son of God, the only begotten, who was born of the Father before all ages; Light from Light, true God from true God, begotten, uncreated, consubstantial with the Father, to whom all things were. For our sake, man and our salvation, who came down from heaven and became incarnate from the Holy Spirit and the Virgin Mary and became human. Crucified for us under Pontius Pilate, and suffered and was buried. And he rose again on the third day according to the Scriptures. And ascended into heaven, and sits at the right hand of the Father. And the one who is to come will judge with glory the living and the dead, His Kingdom will have no end. And in the Holy Spirit, the Lord, the Life-Giving One, who proceeds from the Father, who is with the Father and the Son, we are worshiped and glorified, who spoke the prophets. Into one Holy, Catholic and Apostolic Church. I confess one baptism for the remission of sins. I hope for the resurrection of the dead and the life of the next century. Amen.

Prayer 1, Saint Macarius the Great (†390–391)

God, cleanse me, a sinner, for I have done no more good before You; but deliver me from the evil one, and let Your will be done in me, that I may open my unworthy mouth without condemnation and praise Your holy name, the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, now and ever and to the ages centuries. Amen.

Prayer 2, of the same saint

Having risen from sleep, I bring the midnight hymn to Ti, O Savior, and falling down crying to Ti: do not let me fall asleep in a sinful death, but have mercy on me, crucify with your will and hasten to raise me, who lies in laziness, and save I stand in prayer and in nightly sleep Rise upon me a sinless day, O Christ God, and save me.

Prayer 3, of the same saint

To You, Lord, the Lover of Mankind, I come running from sleep, and I strive for Your works with Your mercy, and I pray to You: help me at all times, in all things, and deliver me from all worldly evils these things and the devil's haste, and save me, and bring us into Your eternal Kingdom. For You are my Creator and the Provider and Giver of all good, in You is all my hope, and I send glory to You, now and ever and unto the ages of ages. Amen.

Prayer 4, of the same saint

Lord, by Your many goodness and Your great bounties You have given me, Your servant, the passing time of this night to pass without misfortune from all evil that is contrary to me; You Yourself, Master of all Creators, grant me with Your true light and an enlightened heart to do Your will, now and ever and unto the ages of ages. Amen.

Prayer 5, St. Basil the Great (†379)

Lord Almighty, God of hosts and all flesh, living in the highest and looking down on the humble, searching the hearts and wombs and innermost parts of men, the forerunner, the Beginningless and Ever-Everlasting Light, with Him - there is no change, or change, overshadowing; Himself, Immortal King, accept our prayers, even at this time, for the multitude of Your generosity boldly, from the profane we create to You, and forgive us our sins, even in deed, and in word, and in thought, in knowledge, or in ignorance, we have sinned; and cleanse us from all filthiness of the flesh and spirit. And grant us with a cheerful heart and sober thoughts to pass through the whole night of this present life, awaiting the coming of the bright and revealed day of Your Only Begotten Son, Lord and God and our Savior Jesus Christ, the Judge of all will come with glory, to give to each according to his deed; let us not fall and become lazy, but be alert and raised up for the work of what is to come, prepare for joy and the Divine palace of His glory in the depths, where those who celebrate the unceasing voice, and unspeakable sweetness in vain those who show Your face unspeakable kindness. For You are the true Light, you enlighten and sanctify all things, and all creation sings to You forever and ever. Amen.

Prayer 6, of the same saint

We bless you, O highest God and Lord of mercy, who always does with us great and unexplored, glorious and terrible, the number of which is innumerable, giving us sleep for the repose of our weakness, and weakening of labor in laborious flesh. We thank Thee, for Thou didst not destroy us with our iniquities, but Thou didst love mankind as usual, and in the hopelessness of us, Thou didst raise thee to glorify Thy power. Moreover, we pray for Your immeasurable goodness, enlighten our thoughts, clear our minds, and lift our minds from the heavy sleep of laziness: open our lips, and let me fulfill Your praise, so that we can unshakably sing and confess to You, in all, and from all to the glorified God, To the Beginningless Father, with Your Only Begotten Son, and Your All-Holy and Good and Life-Giving Spirit, now and ever and unto the ages of ages. Amen.

Prayer 7, to the Most Holy Theotokos

I sing of Your grace, O Lady, I pray to You, my mind is filled with grace. Teach me to walk the right way, along the path of Christ’s commandments. Strengthen your vigil for the song, driving away despondency and sleep. Bound by the captives of the Falls, allow them through Your prayers, Bride of God. Preserve me by night and by day, delivering me from the fighting enemy. She who gave birth to God, the life-giver, was killed by my passions and revived. Even the One who gave birth to the non-evening Light, enlighten my blind soul. O wondrous Lady of the Palace, create for me the house of the Divine Spirit. You who gave birth to a doctor, heal my soul of many years of passion. Worried by the storm of life, guide me towards the path of repentance. Deliver me from eternal fire, and from evil worms, and from Tartarus. May the demon not show me joy, even though I am guilty of many sins. Create me again, having promised to be insensible, Most Immaculate, without sin. Show me the strangeness of all kinds of torment, and implore everyone to the Lord. Heavenly God grant me joy, with all the saints. Most Holy Virgin, hear the voice of Your unneeded servant. Give me tears, Most Pure One, that cleanse my soul of filth. I bring lamentations from my heart to You unceasingly, be diligent, Lady. Accept my prayer service and offer it to the gracious God. Greatest Angel, created me above the merging of the world. Light-bringing heavenly Sena, direct spiritual grace in me. I lift up my hands and lips to praise, defiled with filth, O All-Immaculate One. Deliver me from the dirty tricks that are choking me, diligently beseeching Christ; To him is due honor and worship, now and ever and unto ages of ages. Amen.

Prayer 8, to our Lord Jesus Christ

My most merciful and all-merciful God, Lord Jesus Christ, for the sake of love you came down and became incarnate, so that you might save everyone. And again, Savior, save me by grace, I pray to You; Even if you save me from works, there is no grace and no gift, but more than debt. Hey, abundant in generosity and unspeakable in mercy! Believe in Me, O my Christ, you will live and will not see death forever. Even if faith, even in You, saves the desperate, behold, I believe, save me, for You are my God and Creator. Let faith instead of works be imputed to me, O my God, for you will not find works to justify me. But may my faith prevail instead of all, may it answer, may it justify me, may it show me to be a partaker of Your eternal glory. May Satan not snatch me away and boast, O Word, that he has torn me away from Your hand and fence; But either I want to save me, or I don’t want to, O Christ my Savior, foretell that I will soon perish: For you are my God from my mother’s womb. Grant me, Lord, now to love Thee, as I sometimes loved that very sin; and to work again for you without laziness is as boring as you worked before to the flattering Satan. Most of all, I will serve You, my Lord and God Jesus Christ, all the days of my life, now and forever and to the ages of ages. Amen.

Prayer 9, to the Guardian Angel

Holy Angel, standing before my damned soul and my passionate life, do not forsake me, a sinner, and depart from me for my intemperance. Do not give room to the crafty demon to possess me through the violence of this mortal body; strengthen my poor and thin hand and guide me on the path of salvation. To her, holy Angel of God, guardian and patron of my accursed soul and body, forgive me everything that I have offended you with in so many ways all the days of my life, and if I sinned in this past night, cover me in the present this day, and keep me from every temptation of the enemy May I not anger God in any sin, and pray for me to the Lord, that He may strengthen me in His passion, and show me worthy as a servant of His goodness. Amen.

Prayer 10, to the Most Holy Theotokos

My Most Holy Lady Theotokos, through Your saints and all-powerful prayers, take away from me, Your humble and accursed servant, despondency, oblivion, foolishness, negligence, and all that is filthy, bow ugly and blasphemous thoughts from my damned heart and from my darkened mind; and extinguish the flame of my passions, for I am poor and damned. And deliver me from many and cruel memories and enterprises, and free me from all evil actions. For blessed art thou from all generations, and glorified is thy most honorable name unto the ages of ages. Amen.

Prayerful invocation of the saint whose name you bear

Pray to God for me, holy servant of God (name), as I diligently resort to you, a quick helper and a prayer book for my soul.

Hymn to the Most Holy Theotokos

Virgin Mary, Rejoice, O Blessed Mary, the Lord is with You; Blessed are You among women and blessed is the fruit of Your womb, for You have given birth to the Savior of our souls.

Troparion to the Cross and prayer for the Fatherland

Save, Lord, Your people, and bless Your heritage, granting victories to Orthodox Christians against the enemy, and preserving Your life through Your Cross.

Prayer for the living

Save, Lord, and have mercy on my spiritual father (name), my parents (names), relatives (names), leaders, mentors, benefactors (names) and all Orthodox Christians.

Prayer for the departed

Rest in peace, Lord, the souls of your departed servants: my parents, relatives, benefactors (names), and all Orthodox Christians, and forgive them all sins, voluntary and involuntary, and grant them the Kingdom of Heaven.

If you can, read this memorial instead of short prayers for the living and the dead:

About the living

Remember, Lord Jesus Christ, our God, your mercy and generosity from all eternity, for whose sake you became human, and crucifixion and death, for the salvation of those who believe in you, you endured you deigned; and rose from the dead, you ascended into heaven and sit at the right hand of God the Father, and listen to the humble prayers of those who call upon You with all their hearts: incline Your ear, and hear the humble prayer of me e, Thy unnecessary servant, into the stench of the spiritual fragrance, brought to Thee for all Thy people . And first of all, remember Your Holy, Catholic and Apostolic Church, which You have provided with Your honest Blood, and established, and strengthened, and expanded, multiplied, died, and invincible hell preserve the new gates forever; Calm the tearing apart of the Churches, quench the pagan vacillations, and quickly destroy and eradicate the heresies of rebellion, and turn them into nothingness by the power of Your Holy Spirit. (Bow)

Save, Lord, and have mercy on our God-protected country, its authorities and army, so that we may live a quiet and silent life in all piety and purity. (Bow)

Save, Lord, and have mercy on the Great Lord and Father of our Holy Patriarch (name), Reverend Metropolitans, Orthodox Archbishops and Bishops, Priests and Deacons, and all the Church clergy , you have appointed me to shepherd your verbal flock, and through their prayers have mercy and save me sinner. (Bow)

Save, Lord, and have mercy on my spiritual father (his name), and with his holy prayers forgive my sins. (Bow)

Save, Lord, and have mercy on my parents (their names), brothers and sisters, and my relatives in the flesh, and all the neighbors of my family, and others, and grant them Your peaceful and premium goodness. (Bow)

Save, Lord, and have mercy, according to the multitude of Your bounties, all the sacred monks, monks and nuns, and all those living in virginity and reverence and fasting in monasteries, in deserts, in caves, mountains, pillars , closed the clefts of stones, the islands of the sea, and in every place of Thy dominion those who live faithfully, and piously serve Thee, and pray to Thee: ease their burdens, and comfort their sorrow, and give them strength and strength to strive for You, and through their prayers give Grant me forgiveness of sins. (Bow)

Save, Lord, and have mercy on the old and the young, the poor and the orphans and widows, and those who are in sickness and sorrow, troubles and sorrows, conditions and captivity, dungeons and imprisonments, today in persecution, for the sake of the Orthodox faith, from the tongue of the godless, from the apostate and from the heretics, Thy present servants, and remember, visit, strengthen, comfort, and soon by Thy power will weaken, freedom and deliverance to them. (Bow)

Save, Lord, and have mercy on those who do good to us, who are merciful and nourishing to us, who gave us alms, and who commanded us unworthy to pray for them, and who give us peace, and show Thy mercy to them, the gift I am everything to them, even for the salvation of the petition, and the perception of eternal blessings . (Bow)

Save, Lord, and have mercy on those sent to serve, those who travel, our fathers and brothers, and all Orthodox Christians. (Bow)

Save, Lord, and have mercy on those who have been tempted by my madness, and who have turned away from the path of salvation and led to evil and inappropriate deeds; By Your Divine Providence, return the packs to the path of salvation. (Bow)

Save, Lord, and have mercy on those who hate and offend me, and those who create misfortune for me, and do not leave them to perish for my sake, a sinner. (Bow)

Those who have departed from the Orthodox faith and are blinded by disastrous heresies, with the light of Your knowledge, enlighten and Thy Holy Apostles of the Catholic Church. (Bow)

About the departed

Remember, Lord, from this life the most holy patriarchs, the most holy metropolitans, archbishops and bishops of the Orthodox, who departed from this life, in the priesthood and in the clergy and monastics who did not serve You, and will rest in Your eternal villages with the saints. (Bow)

Remember, Lord, the souls of Your departed servants, my parents (their names), and all relatives according to the flesh; and forgive them all their sins, voluntary and involuntary, giving them the Kingdom and the communion of Your eternal good things and Your endless and blissful life of pleasure. (Bow)

Remember, Lord, and all in the hope of resurrection and eternal life, our departed fathers and brothers and sisters, and those who lie here and everywhere, Orthodox Christians, and with Thy saints, The light of Your countenance is present, O Lord, and have mercy on us, for You are Good and Lover of Humanity. Amen. (Bow)

Grant, Lord, forgiveness of sins to all those who have gone before in the faith and hope of the resurrection, our fathers, brothers and sisters, and create for them an eternal memory. (Thrice)

End of prayers

It is worthy that You are truly blessed, the Mother of God, the Ever-Blessed and Most Immaculate and the Mother of our God. We magnify Thee, the most honorable Cherub and the most glorious without comparison, the Seraphim, who gave birth to God the Word without corruption.

Glory to the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, now and ever and unto ages of ages. Amen.

Lord have mercy. (Thrice)

Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, for the prayers of Your Most Pure Mother, our holy and God-bearing fathers and all the saints, have mercy on us. Amen.

Notes and names of prayers separated from the main text are not read during prayer.

From Easter to the Ascension, instead of this prayer, the troparion is read: “Christ is risen from the dead, trampling death upon death, and giving life to those in the tombs.” (Three times) From Ascension to Trinity, we begin prayers with “Holy God...”, omitting all the preceding ones. This remark also applies to future bedtime prayers.

In prayer books and liturgical books they often write briefly “Glory”, “And now”, but it is necessary to read in full: “Glory to the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit”, “And now and ever and unto ages of ages.” Amen"

In the Church Slavonic language there is no sound ё, and therefore it is necessary to read “we call”, not “we call”, “thy”, and not “thy”, “mine”, and not “mine”, etc.

From Easter to Ascension, instead of this prayer, the chorus and irmos of the 9th song of the Easter canon are read: “An angel crying with the Most Grace: Pure Virgin, rejoice! And again I say: Rejoice! Your Son has risen three days from the grave and raised up the dead; people, have fun! Shine, shine, new Jerusalem, for the glory of the Lord has risen upon you. Rejoice now and be glad, O Zion. You, Pure One, rejoice, O Mother of God, about the rise of Your Nativity.” This remark also applies to evening prayers.

Archives of prayer book texts (Prayers, troparia, canons, akathists)

Audio

All files are located on Yandex Disk.

Here you can listen and download Morning prayers and prayers for the future, the rule for Holy Communion.

Listen to morning prayers

• Duration: 19 min. 40 sec. Read by Archbishop Pavel (Lebed), Hierodeacon Kirill (Borisevich)
• Duration: 21 min. 0 sec. Abbot Flavian (Matveev) reading
• Duration: 13 min. 57 sec. Hierodeacon (now Bishop of Pokrovsky and Nikolaevsky) Pachomius (Bruskov) reads
• Duration: 13 min. 53 sec. Read by a monk of the Holy Trinity Lavra of St. Sergius
• Morning prayers - translation into Russian
• Various prayers

Listen to evening prayers

• Duration: 21 min. 31 sec. Read by Schema-Archimandrite Eli, Hierodeacon
• Duration: 23 min. 7 sec. Hegumen Ambrose (Ermakov) reads
• Duration: 26 min. 52 sec. Abbot Flavian (Matveev) reading
• Duration: 19 min. 24 sec. Hierodeacon (now Bishop of Pokrovsky and Nikolaevsky) Pachomius (Bruskov) reads

Follow-up to Holy Communion

• Choir of the brethren of the Valaam Monastery under the direction of the regent, Hierodeacon Herman (Ryabtsev)
• Abbot Ambrose (Ermakov) reads the prayers. Moscow Sretensky Monastery

Rule for Holy Communion - listen - Hierodeacon Pachomius (Bruskov) reads the prayers

• Canons to the Sweetest Jesus, the Most Holy Theotokos, Guardian Angel
• Akathist to the Sweetest Jesus
• Following to Holy Communion
• Prayers of Thanksgiving for Holy Communion

Jesus Prayer 1000 times - joy, peace and grace for the soul! Valaam Monastery Choir

JESUS ​​PRAYER 1000 times - JOY, PEACE AND GRACE for the soul! Choir of the Valaam Monastery.

Hello:) Spiritual coach Elena Fateeva is with you.

“Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, a sinner,” is a seemingly simple prayer. But confessors urge their children to be very careful in using it. Under what conditions is it possible for the laity to use the Jesus Prayer? The story is told by Archpriest Georgy BREEV, confessor of the Moscow clergy, rector of the Church of the Nativity of the Virgin Mary in Krylatskoye, reviewer of the four-volume collection of ascetic literature “The Jesus Prayer. The experience of two thousand years."

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Extraordinary Power

The tradition of using words addressed to our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ in prayer begins in Gospel times, when people who met Christ turned to Him with their requests. The closest disciples of Christ, the apostles, saw and knew the effectiveness of such conversion. Thus, the first Christians began to invoke the Name of Christ in both church and private prayer, and this tradition has never been diminished.

The prayer, which we now call the Jesus Prayer, took shape in words familiar to us later, when especially zealous ascetics began to leave the world for the desert. Calling on the Name of God was a living need for them. The experience of these ancient fathers is captured in the books of the Philokalia.

There are different opinions about who and how can perform the Jesus Prayer. Some saints believed that it had extraordinary power to transform the human mind and heal the soul. Provided, of course, a reasonable and responsible attitude towards it. They advised the use of this prayer not only by hermits, but also by all Christians living in the world, even those just beginning their spiritual life.

It was believed that if this prayer, which belongs to the family of repentants, is performed with heartfelt attention and constantly, it will bring benefits and cleanse even people who are not very high spiritually from many sins. Other fathers, on the contrary, believed that not everyone can use this prayer. Especially if you take it into service and use it constantly.

Because just as a flame, flaring up, requires more and more fuel, so the constantly performed heartfelt prayer, gaining strength, requires from a person more and more complete dedication, more and more new steps, devoting himself entirely to prayer work, later called mental work. And you need to be especially prepared for it - fasting, abstinence from extraneous entertainment and strict fulfillment of the commandments of Christ are required. Without such a foundation, prayer can cause spiritual harm.

From the Philokalia we know that one of the highest stages of mental prayer is contemplation. This is a special state that the holy fathers spoke of as the threshold of the Kingdom of God. The soul is so elevated and purified from passions that, mysteriously united with Christ through prayer, it becomes capable of seeing Him. But for us this doing is too high.

We can only learn about these conditions from books. Ascetics close to us in time say that modern man, who has lost the integrity of life, can no longer lay claim to completing such stages of mental prayer. Therefore, when some people - especially neophytes - ardently take up invoking the Name of the Lord in the Jesus Prayer, they may be exposed to all sorts of dangers that they will not be ready to accept.

Soul food

Every believer wants to pray. Saint Gregory Palamas says: as many human souls are there in the world, there are so many levels and forms of prayer. Everyone brings their own inner experience, their own experiences into prayer. And everyone's experiences are different. One has a prayerful spirit since childhood, by nature, by the grace of God - he can pray right away. Another person needs to go through a long life path, and only in the middle of this path will he understand that he needs to pray. And he will begin to take small steps with difficulty, to comprehend the basics.

Prayer is food. If a person is alive, he needs food. Still, we reinforce ourselves with food more than once a day. It’s the same spiritually—the soul also needs food. But what is needed here is understanding, a living need to drink from living water, and not a formal side, not a habit, not a ritual. Living water is the word of God.

When there is this thirst, then the correct structure of prayer begins. God himself builds it. Because it is said that without the action of grace we cannot pray; we cannot even turn to God “Abba Father,” according to the Apostle Paul, without the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit gives us prayer in our hearts - it asks us and turns us to God the Heavenly Father, to Christ.

People who love prayer even change their appearance, whether they are lay people or monastics. Of course, appearance is not a very convincing factor, but it is still usually clear from a person if he is a prayer book.

Prayer is the path that leads a person to God. And if a person stops halfway, he may lose what he has already acquired. Prayer cultivates high, subtle nobility. The soul becomes rational, retreats from gross passions, gains its sight, and strengthens in faith. The Holy Spirit works both in prayer and in Holy Scripture.

A person begins to see the wondrous harmony of the Divine Word and Scripture. Because prayer prepares a person’s heart as a vessel, which then contains all the gifts of the grace of the Holy Spirit. Without prayer it is impossible to achieve this. The good fruit of prayer is peace of heart, when the heart becomes pure. And with a pure heart a person will see God.

A person begins to see in himself the action of passions and the action of God’s grace, he begins to discern what comes to him from fallen spirits. Then, if a person really does not work in vain, he begins to see the essence of things. If a Christian walks the path of prayer with zeal and humility, spiritual fruits will accompany him.

Thoughtfully and carefully

I think that the laity can take up the Jesus Prayer. But you need to do this within your strength, a little and constantly. Saint Ignatius Brianchaninov and the last Optina elders taught that modern man should approach the Jesus Prayer very thoughtfully, very carefully and simply. Do not strive to immediately achieve some states - enlightenment of the soul, mind. You need to pray in simplicity of heart.

During my pastoral ministry, there have already been several cases when, on the recommendation of a young priest, people began to pray unceasingly and, as a result, came to an extremely distressing situation, to a mental disorder, to a state from which they themselves could no longer recover. There were even cases when people committed suicide only because they zealously took up this smart task for which they were not ready.

First, you need to gain experience in prayer in general and only then gradually move on to the Jesus Prayer. But setting high goals for yourself is extremely unwise. Even imitating the saints in prayer will be detrimental to us.

Back in the 4th century, Saint John Climacus warned that we need to read and be edified by the high spirit of the saints, but imitating them in prayer is the height of madness. Because a person should not have his own personal desire, but a prompting by the Spirit of God. Therefore, I always warn: if there is desire and zeal, then you first need to learn what prayer requires - attentiveness, concentration, restraint and prudence.

After all, we are not worthy of the words that we read in prayer. I am not worthy to even turn to God. Lord, how can I come before You now? And this anticipation is prayer. His dominion is in every place; bless the Lord my soul. The place of “His dominion” is where I pray.

How not to get fed up?

First you need to learn sincere, simple, pure prayer. Because many, starting to read the morning and evening rule, quickly get tired of it. They say that they are already tired of it, that they don’t feel anything. They ask permission to pray in their own words. Well, pray in your own words. But the word of prayer must be true, it must glorify.

One of the saints said that in prayer a person should unite with the word in the same way as the soul unites with the body. See how deep the image is. If this unity does not exist, then prayer becomes boring to us. She seems formal, cold, and words do not resonate with her. And all only because the person has not developed the right approach to prayer. I didn’t survive, I didn’t feel the prayer in myself.

Even if you once experienced some kind of prayer image, it is forgotten. And it is very easy to go into the mechanism, to perform one ritual side - pronounce, speak, read, but not pray.

Prayer requires interest, attention, thirst for prayer and truth. Prayer is a living need . On this given day, at this moment, I need to express myself in prayer, stand before God and say: “Lord, here I stand before you, my day passed in vanity, somewhere I lost my inner freedom, somewhere to unnecessary thoughts , I gave myself up to worries, I had troubles, and so on.”

As we are, that is how we should turn to God. Life itself teaches us prayer, God teaches us, the Church teaches us. These lessons should not be missed. Only then will we begin to truly understand what the Jesus Prayer is. “Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me a sinner” - this will already be a cry.

This is actually my entire nature, concentrated in the living Lord, this is the flow of my internal energies rushing out. Then, please, pray the Jesus Prayer, day and night. Then the Jesus Prayer will begin to work.

Temptations

When a person really comes to love prayer, when his spirit is kindled, then, according to the teachings of St. Ignatius Brianchaninov, the Jesus Prayer will begin to move from verbal form to heartfelt form. And heartfelt prayer, if offered with attention, will begin to capture the mental spheres of the soul.

Only in this way can mental-heart prayer become accessible to modern Christians who have devoted themselves entirely to God. Priests, monks, pious laity, who are removed from everyday worries and sorrows, can take this Divine gift and perform mental-heart prayer for the benefit of the soul.

I recommend starting this way: step away from the usual bustle - from the radio, TV, and retire to a quiet place where you can tune in prayerfully. If over time you begin to seriously engage in the Jesus Prayer, you need to look for those people who have experienced this path and discuss all your conditions with them. A beginner needs an assistant. Because the activity of the spirit affects the soul, the mental state, and the nervous system.

It awakens many movements in the soul that perhaps were not there before. When a person constantly performs mental prayer, the innermost begins to awaken in him, which a person may not have encountered in his practice. There is such a law in the physical world - the more powerful and the larger some energy movement, the more surrounding spheres are involved in it. The same is true of the Jesus Prayer.

If you do it with some effort, with some tension, then it can awaken a lot from the sensory world and from the world of imagination, especially if we do not have a feeling of repentance. All the negativity that is still hidden will come into motion and can have a detrimental effect on a person’s state of mind.

You can determine whether a person is following the right path in his prayer work by his fruits. The fruit of incorrect prayer can be pride of mind. A person begins to do everything for show, tries to show everyone that he has been praying for a long time, that he knows how to say the Jesus Prayer. The Gospel says: if you want to offer a heartfelt prayer to God, “... go into your closet, and having shut your doors, pray to your Father who is in secret: and your Father, who sees in secret, will reward you in reality” (Matthew 6: 6) .

If a person does not enter his inner cage with humility, with deep faith, with a feeling of repentance, with attention, then this activity will result in him either into pharisaism or into proud self-affirmation. Often in such a situation, people begin to experience a nervous disorder, noticeable from the outside - nervous sudden movements, excitability, a desire to prove something, to argue. This also shows that the person is praying incorrectly.

One cannot enter into the spiritual world without reasoning. Each step must be verified by both the spirit of the Gospel and the spirit of the Lord’s commandments, the tradition and teaching of the Church, and the thoughts of the holy fathers. A person must have a clear state of mind so that he can see the right and wrong paths.

Self-propelled doing

In prayer there is a unification of all our abilities. Sometimes a person’s imagination is activated, and it seems to him that this is spiritual soaring. In fact, it may not be spiritual, but only dreamy. Confessors, practitioners of the Jesus Prayer, have always warned against this temptation.

I believe that in creating the Jesus Prayer, using rosaries is necessary and very important. When your fingers hold the rosary and you say the prayer verbally, it helps to direct all your strength to prayer and not get dissipated.

Heartfelt attention, verbal pronunciation of prayer, fingering the rosary - all this together helps to involve all the forces of the soul in prayer. Even when the thought is ready to move away, you feel that the bead does not give you. You hold it tightly, and through this feeling of the order of the prayer, it helps even your thoughts not to dissipate.

If, when reading, prayers merge into a verbal mass and you cease to understand it, such prayer must be stopped. As soon as confusion of thought, inattention, or some kind of apathy arises while reading the prayer - it’s like I don’t want to read, I can’t - that’s it, I need to stop right away. It is better to read fifty prayers and calm down than to read three hundred at the level of mechanical movement.

Sometimes you can recite the Jesus Prayer during a service. Those who practice prayer can reach this level - when you sleep, you wake up, and the prayer continues. You don’t even know whether it ended or whether it didn’t stop and continues on its own.

And when a person reaches such a state, he can even stand at the liturgy, listen carefully to the words of the liturgical prayers, and the words themselves sound in his heart: “Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me a sinner.” This is self-propelled prayer . One comes to it from an attentive, reverent invocation of the Name of God, when prayer captures all levels of the subconscious.

Praying is our duty. The Holy Fathers say that if you are given grace, it is easy to pray, you fly right on wings. If grace is taken away, it is difficult to pray. There may even be a spirit of resistance to prayer. Well, be patient. Say: “Lord, I am not worthy of prayer. I have angered Your Goodness.”

If the spirit of rebellion comes upon you strongly, humble yourself, and it will recede. Because deep prayer always causes temptations. It’s like if you put a candle, a strong wind can blow it out. This is how demons blow away prayer lights. But you need to ignite this fire in yourself again. Even though it’s small, it should always be warm in your soul. The lamp burns in the depths of the heart - and that’s enough.

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