Akathist and prayer to the “Passionate” Icon of the Mother of God
Ikos 1
The angels appeared to Thy Son and our God, held in Thy embrace, showing the instrument of the Cross, but we worship with fear the passion of Thy Son, and call Thy: Rejoice, O wonder of the Archangels; Rejoice, Servant of the Mysteries of God. Rejoice, for you have found the Holy Spirit upon You and the power of the Most High in the fall of You; Rejoice, for who was born of You is the Son of God. Rejoice, for Your ever-virgin seed has erased the head that nested in the serpent of the devil; Rejoice, for through You hell was grieved and death was slain. Rejoice, Unbrided Bride.
Kontakion 2
Seeing, O Most Immaculate One, that the Lord has come to earth for the sake of mercy, let him suffer for the sins of those who believe in Him and cry out to Him: Alleluia.
Ikos 2
Mind, Most Immaculate, the verb of Elder Simeon, But a weapon will pass into Your own heart, so that thoughts from many hearts may be opened, so with tenderness we call You: Rejoice, Most Serene Cherubim; Rejoice, thou who didst bear all the sorrows of Herod and the Jew. Rejoice, in Your most pure Nativity you bore doubt from Joseph; Rejoice, for you have brought and placed God in a wordless manger. Rejoice, for you and the Son and God have no place to bow your head; Rejoice, for through You man is God, that God may make Adam. Rejoice, for through You human nature has been exalted; Rejoice, Unbrided Bride.
Kontakion 3
We are strengthened by the power of grace from above, having endured all sorrow and distress, we graciously embraced His Son, and the Archangels cried out to Him: Alleluia.
Ikos 3
Having Your holy icon, called “Passionate”, like a fragrant thorn and like a valuable treasure, we humbly offer You veneration, calling: Rejoice, Patroness of the monastery of the Passionate; Rejoice, who deigned Thy holy icon to stand in this place. Rejoice, you who inspired the pious king to build a monastic monastery; Rejoice, indestructible wall of the faithful. Rejoice, Helper to nuns in salvation; Rejoice, immutable Prayer Book for the whole world. Rejoice, Unbrided Bride.
Kontakion 4
Confused by the storm of sin and weighed down by the sleep of negligence, we fall down before Thy holy icon, giving thanks for the merciful visit of Thy icon to this place, constantly singing the song to God: Alleluia.
Ikos 4
Having heard the Orthodox people of the city of Moscow, as if the pious Tsar commanded to bring the icon called “Passionate”, for this reason many people gathered with the Tsar, Patriarch Job and the entire Holy Council, joyfully crying out: Rejoice, our joy and salvation; Rejoice, Holy Trinity, God-voiced Turtle Dove. Rejoice, proclamation of the sufferings of Christ; Rejoice, thou who buried Thy Son in suffering. Rejoice, confirmation of the general resurrection; Rejoice, high Cedar of our immortality. Rejoice, Unbrided Bride.
Kontakion 5
The God-bearing star shows you the way with the Immaculate Child. Joseph and I fall down in thought on this path, singing to the begotten Lord and to You: Alleluia.
Ikos 5
You see, All-Immaculate, our contrition for sins, imams have no other help, no other intercession, only You have been given the grace to pray for us, for this reason we call with faith: Rejoice, through Your prayers freeing us from the flames of Gehenna; Rejoice, you who prayed for the whole world at the Cross of Christ. Rejoice, you who drive away the flames of passions from people; Rejoice, you who enlighten everyone with the light of your most pure soul. Rejoice, Thou who astonished the Angels with Thy purity; Rejoice, for the demons tremble at Your most pure name. Rejoice, Unbrided Bride.
Kontakion 6
Standing at the Cross of Your Son and our God, a fierce weapon pierced Your soul, when I crucified the Life-Giver on the place of execution, in the midst of two robbers, when the warriors stripped off His vestments and cast lots for His imitation. Then the intelligent host will poyahu: Alleluia.
Ikos 6
Having shone like a bright light at the Cross of Your Son, burning with motherly love, saying: “Even though you suffered on the Cross, yet I know You, before the Lucifer was born.” Seeing the Most Pure One, all creation cries out to Thee: Rejoice, as with soul and body you stand before the Cross of Your Creator; Rejoice, until the last hour of death, you were not separated from the Lord. Rejoice, for at the Cross you proclaimed: “The whole earth mourns the mountaineer, the Giver of Life is seen as if he were dead”; Rejoice, Giver of eternal joy to us. Rejoice, Unbrided Bride.
Kontakion 7
Help those who want to sing the passion of Your Son, O Lady, and do not reject those who pray before Your miraculous icon and sing from the depths of their souls the song: Alleluia.
Ikos 7
You showed new mercy to people, O Lady, with Your icon, when you honestly brought it to the city of Moscow, brought it to the gates of Tver, and, oh, a miracle! Your Holy Icon remains motionless in this place, where now is the abode of Your Most Pure Name. We joyfully cry out to Ti: Rejoice, our Intercessor and Refuge; Rejoice, all sorrows and sorrows are driven away. Rejoice, blessing to all the ends of the earth; Rejoice, Unbrided Bride.
Kontakion 8
The strange and glorious miracle of Thy rich mercy appears to us, the unworthy, and to all who flow with love to Thy miraculous icon and cry out: Alleluia.
Ikos 8
All generations bless Thee, Most Immaculate, seeing Thee suffering and praying during the Passion of Thy Son on the Cross and crying out to Him: “From Thy pierced rib, sweetest Son, flow immortality.” For this reason, we call You with tenderness: Rejoice, you who grant immortal life to Your servants; Rejoice, you who prepare heavenly abode for those who live piously. Rejoice, Intercessor of eternal joy for those who worship Thee; Rejoice, salvation and intercession of the nuns who constantly call upon Thee. Rejoice, covering the entire universe with Your grace; Rejoice, Unbrided Bride.
Kontakion 9
All who suffered at the Cross and cried out to the crucified Lord: “Thou camest unto passion by will, O Son, from passions didst absolve Adam, and thou art counted with the lawless who are of Adam, that thou shalt save man from iniquity, calling: Alleluia!”
Ikos 9
The prophets who have spoken many times will not be able to sing of Your suffering at the Cross. But you, O Most Pure One, with your hair tormenting your face and your chest beating, you cried out: “Son, receive My spirit and do not leave Me alone.” We, unworthy, call Ti with tender voices: Rejoice, helping the faithful at the hour of death; Rejoice, accompanying all Christians through fierce ordeals. Rejoice, freeing us from demonic restraint; Rejoice, Intercessor of Christians at the Last Judgment of God. Rejoice, Intercessor of all who wish to receive a Christian death; Rejoice, Unbrided Bride.
Kontakion 10
Asking for salvation for us, O Most Pure One, Thy hands have been stretched out, O the most gracious Savior, Thou hast proclaimed, Thy Passion inflicted on those who honor with Thy righteous thief, and saved, Mercy crying out to Thee: Alleluia.
Ikos 10
Thou art an invincible wall, a refuge for the world, a Treasure of mercy, accept the prayers of Thy servants who stand before Thy Holy Image and tenderly call upon Thy: Rejoice, joyful, ever-blessed Mother of God; Rejoice, known Refuge for sinners and the humble. Rejoice, O virgins and orphans, Intercessor; Rejoice, strong Helper to the people. Rejoice, great admonition from the Saint; Rejoice, Leader of reverent priests. Rejoice, Unbrided Bride.
Kontakion 11
Vouchsafe to offer tender singing and prayerful praise before Your miraculous icon, Most Holy Bride of God, and do not turn Your face away from those singing to You and God forever: Alleluia.
Ikos 11
Like a luminous sun, Your image has risen in our temple, Passionate Mother of God, sanctifying, preserving and saving from troubles all those who suffer and cry out with love: Rejoice, preserving with Your grace the abode of those who live monastically; Rejoice, strong Helper to those struggling with passions. Rejoice, O intercessor of the offended and oppressed; Rejoice, joy to the poor and needy. Rejoice, healing and strengthening of the sick; Rejoice, admonisher and teacher of the young. Rejoice, Unbrided Bride.
Kontakion 12
Send Thy grace to us, O Blessed One, who venerate Thy Holy Icon, and who worship Thy Son with the Most Honorable Passion and sing with faith: Alleluia.
Ikos 12
Singing incessantly before Your Holy Icon, we worship, magnify and kiss Your miraculous image with fear, joyfully calling out: Rejoice, our eternal joy; Rejoice, resurrection of our Treasure. Rejoice, freeing us from the pit of passions; Rejoice, recovery of the lost and those deprived of their minds. Rejoice, fulfilling the requests of the faithful; Rejoice, you grant forgiveness of sins to those who trust in You. Rejoice, Unbrided Bride.
Kontakion 13
Oh, All-Singing Mother, accept the prayer of Your unworthy servants, look at the people standing before Your miraculous icon and those who fervently worship the Most Pure Passion of Your Son, asking for deliverance from eternal torment, crying out to You: Alleluia.
Akathist to the Most Holy Theotokos as a literary and poetic masterpiece
The content of the Akathist to the Mother of God is divided into narrative (about the earthly life of the Virgin Mary) and dogmatic (about the mystery of the Incarnation and the salvation of people) parts. The akathist is filled with repeated repetitions of the word “Rejoice.” With such an exclamation, the Archangel Gabriel greeted the Virgin Mary, who had come to announce to Her that the Savior was to be born from Her:
“Rejoice, O Blessed One! The Lord is with You; Blessed are You among women" (Gospel of Luke, 1:28).
As a special genre of Byzantine literature, Akathist has an exceptional structure of its kind. Ikos are decorated with the same rhythmic pattern. Hayretisms form six pairs, where each line has a rhymed reflection in the other line. It should be noted that in most cases the rhyme was lost in translation from Greek.
Also, the Akathist to the Most Holy Theotokos is full of literary and poetic turns. Such as antitheses, that is, rhetorical oppositions. For example, “Rejoice, prolix miracle of the angels; Rejoice, much-lamentable defeat of demons.” Or parallel figures of speech (“Rejoice, honorable crown of pious kings; Rejoice, honorable praise of reverent priests”). Synonyms are common (“Rejoice, light-fruitful tree, from which the vernias feed; Rejoice, blessed-leaved tree, with which many are covered”).
In the Greek version, the Akathist is permeated with phonetic play on words, which cannot be adequately conveyed in translation. For example, consider the first pair of hairetisms in the first icos. In Slavic the text reads: “Rejoice, whose joy will shine forth; Rejoice, Her oath will disappear.” Russian transcription of the Greek version: “Khaire, di hes he hara eclampsei; Khaire, di he he ara ekleipsey.”
In the original, the Akathist to the Most Holy Theotokos is an alphabetical acrostic: the first words of the kontakia and ikos begin with the letters of the Greek alphabet, from “Alpha” (“Representative Angel…”) to “Omega” (“O all-sung Mother…”). For the Slavic translation, this can only be traced in the first ikos and the thirteenth kontakion.
Akathist to the Blessed Virgin Mary: meaning
In gratitude for the participation of the Ever-Virgin in the mystery of the Incarnation, the Church joyfully sings joyful hymns to Her. The Great Akathist is filled with songs of praise addressed to the Mother of God. However, the entire text recalls the mystery of human salvation, which is achieved by Christ.
Akathist to the Mother of God is a special type of prayer that can be read both in joyful moments of life and during times of spiritual need for the help and intercession of the Mother of God.
“We have there, in heaven, a kind and merciful Mother. Do not think that if the Mother of the Lord moved into heaven today, then She has left the world. No! Having once passed there, She has great power and helps us with greater power. She is now closer to the Throne of the Divine, She has gone there to always look after the needs of the poor, the prayers of widows, the poor, the prisoners, the persecuted, the suffering, the sick.
There She became the Mother, helping everyone in trouble, everyone who is oppressed and everyone who loves Her and calls for help with all their hearts. We have in heaven a most blessed Mother, a Mother of mercy and mercy, Who always prays for the entire Church of Christ and each child of the Church of Christ individually.
Blessed and thrice blessed are the Christians who keep the icon of the Most Holy Theotokos in their home and every day read the akathist, prayer service and other prayers of the Mother of God. There is no stronger Person in heaven or on earth, after the Holy Trinity, than the Mother of God, who can help us” (Archimandrite Cleopas Ilie, 1912-1998).
