Evening prayers before bed
In the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. Amen.
Beginning prayer
Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, prayers
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, Spirit of truth, Who exists everywhere and fills the whole world, Source of blessings and Giver of life, come and dwell in us, and cleanse us from all filth, and save, O Good One, our souls.
Trisagion
Holy God, Holy Mighty, Holy Immortal, have mercy on us. (Bow)
Holy God, Holy Mighty, Holy Immortal, have mercy on us. (Bow)
Holy God, Holy Mighty, Holy Immortal, have mercy on us. (Bow)
Glory to the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, now and always, and forever and ever. 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. (Thrice)
Glory to the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, now and always, and forever and ever. Amen.
Lord's Prayer
Our Father who art in Heaven! Hallowed be Thy name; Thy kingdom come; Thy will be done both in heaven and on earth.
Give us this day our daily bread; and forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors; and lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil.
Tropari
Have mercy on us, Lord, have mercy on us! Finding no justification for ourselves, we, sinners, offer this prayer to You as to the Lord: “Have mercy on us!”
Glory to the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit.
God! Have mercy on us, we trust in You. Do not be very angry with us and do not remember our iniquities: but turn Your gaze on us even now, since You are merciful.
And deliver us from our enemies: after all, You are our God and we are Your people, we are all the creations of Your hands and we call on Your name.
And now and always and forever and ever. Amen.
Open to us, blessed Mother of God, the door to God’s mercy, so that we, who trust in You, do not perish, but through You we get rid of troubles: after all, You are the salvation of the Christian race.
Lord have mercy. (12 times)
Prayer 1, St. Macarius the Great to God the Father
Eternal God and King of all creation, who has made me worthy to live until this hour, forgive me the sins that I committed on this day in deed, word and thought; and cleanse, Lord, my humble soul from all carnal and spiritual impurity.
And grant me, Lord, to spend this night in peace, so that, rising from sleep, all the days of my life I will do what is pleasing to Your most holy name and defeat the enemies who attack me - carnal and incorporeal.
And deliver me, Lord, from the vain thoughts and vicious desires that defile me.
For Yours is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, now and always, and to the ages of ages. Amen.
Prayer 2, Saint Antiochus to our Lord Jesus Christ
Almighty, Word of the Father, Jesus Christ!
Being yourself perfect, according to Your great mercy, never leave me, Your servant, but always remain in me.
Jesus, good Shepherd of Your sheep, do not give me over to the work of the serpent and do not leave me to the will of Satan, for there is in me the seed of destruction.
You, Lord God, whom everyone worships, the Holy King, Jesus Christ, protect me during sleep with unfading Light, Your Holy Spirit, with which You sanctified Your disciples.
Grant, O Lord, to me, Thy unworthy servant, Thy salvation on my bed: enlighten my mind with the light of understanding of Thy Holy Gospel, my soul with love for Thy Cross, my heart with the purity of Thy word, my body with Thy suffering, alien to passion, my thought Maintain your humility.
And raise me up at the proper time to glorify You.
For Thou art supremely glorified together with Thy Eternal Father and the Most Holy Spirit forever. Amen.
Prayer 3, Rev. Ephraim the Syrian to the Holy Spirit
Lord, Heavenly King, Comforter, Spirit of truth, have mercy and have mercy on me, Your sinful servant, and forgive me, unworthy, and forgive all the sins that I have sinned before You today as a man and, moreover, not as a man, but even worse livestock
Forgive my sins, voluntary and involuntary, known and unknown: those committed out of immaturity and evil skill, out of temper and carelessness.
If I have sworn by Your name, or blasphemed Him in my thoughts; or whom he reproached; or slandered someone in my anger, or saddened someone, or about what I was angry; either he lied, or slept untimely, or a beggar came to me, and I rejected him;
or saddened my brother, or stirred up quarrels, or condemned someone; or became arrogant, or became proud, or became angry; or when standing in prayer, his mind strove for evil worldly thoughts, or had insidious thoughts; either he overate himself, or got drunk, or laughed madly;
or thought evil; or, seeing imaginary beauty, bowed your heart to what is outside of You; or said something obscene; or laughed at my brother’s sin, while my sins are countless; or did not care about prayer, or did something else evil that I did not remember: I did all this and even more than that.
Have mercy on me, my Creator and Lord, Thy careless and unworthy servant, and leave me, and forgive my sins, and forgive me, for You are Good and Humane-loving.
So that I may lie down in peace, sleep and calm down, prodigal, sinful and unhappy, and so that I may bow and sing and glorify Your venerable name, with the Father and His Only Begotten Son, now, and always, and unto the ages of ages. Amen.
Prayer 4
Lord our God, everything in which I have sinned this day in word, deed and thought, You, as the Merciful and Humane One, forgive me.
Give me a peaceful and restful sleep. Send me Your Guardian Angel, who would cover and protect me from all evil.
For You are the guardian of our souls and bodies, and we send up glory to You, the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit, now, and always, and unto the ages of ages. Amen.
Prayer 5, St. John Chrysostom
(24 prayers, according to the number of hours of the day and night)
1. Lord, do not deprive me of Your heavenly blessings. 2. Lord, deliver me from eternal torment. 3. Lord, whether I have sinned in mind or thought, in word or deed, forgive me. 4. Lord, deliver me from all ignorance, oblivion, cowardice, and petrified insensibility. 5. Lord, deliver me from every temptation. 6. Lord, enlighten my heart, which is darkened by evil desires. 7. Lord, as a man I have sinned, but You, as a generous God, have mercy on me, seeing the weakness of my soul. 8. Lord, send Your grace to help me, that I may glorify Your holy name. 9. Lord Jesus Christ, write me, Your servant, in the Book of Life and grant me a good end. 10. Lord, my God, although I have not done anything good before You, grant me, by Your grace, to begin good deeds. 11. Lord, sprinkle the dew of Your grace on my heart. 12. Lord of Heaven and earth, remember me, Thy sinful servant, foul and unclean, in Thy Kingdom. Amen.
1. Lord, accept me in repentance. 2. Lord, don't leave me. 3. Lord, protect me from every misfortune. 4. Lord, give me a good thought. 5. Lord, give me tears, and the memory of death, and heartfelt contrition for sins. 6. Lord, give me the thought to confess my sins. 7. Lord, give me humility, chastity and obedience. 8. Lord, give me patience, generosity and meekness. 9. Lord, plant in me the root of goodness - the fear of You in my heart. 10. Lord, deign me to love You with all my soul and thoughts and to fulfill Your will in everything. 11. Lord, protect me from evil people, and demons, and passions, and from every inappropriate deed. 12. Lord, You know what you are doing and what You desire - Your will be done even on me, a sinner, for You are blessed forever. Amen.
Prayer to the Blessed Virgin Mary
Merciful King, merciful Mother, most pure and blessed Mother of God Mary!
Pour the mercy of Your Son and our God onto my passionate soul, and guide me with Your prayers to good deeds, so that I can live the rest of my life without sin and with Your help, the Virgin Mary, the only pure and blessed one, enter heaven.
Prayer to the Holy Guardian Angel
Angel of Christ, my holy guardian and patron of my soul and body!
Forgive me everything that I have sinned today, and deliver me from every insidious plan of the enemy coming against me, so that I do not anger my God with any sin.
But pray for me, a sinful and unworthy servant, to present me worthy of the goodness and mercy of the Most Holy Trinity and the Mother of my Lord Jesus Christ and all the saints. Amen.
Kontakion to the Mother of God
Having been delivered from troubles, we, Your unworthy servants, Mother of God, sing a victorious and grateful song to You, the Supreme Military Leader.
You, as having invincible power, free us from all troubles, so that we cry to You: Rejoice, Bride, not involved in marriage!
Glorious Eternal Virgin, Mother of Christ God, bring our prayer to Thy Son and our God, may He save our souls through Thy prayers.
I place all my hope in You, Mother of God, keep me under Your protection.
Enlighten my eyes, O Christ God, so that I do not fall asleep in the sleep of death, so that my enemy does not say: I have defeated him.
Be the Protector of my soul, O God, for I walk among many snares.
Deliver me from them and save me, O God, for You are a Lover of Mankind.
Prayer of Saint Ioannikios
My hope is the Father, my refuge is the Son, my protection is the Holy Spirit. Holy Trinity, glory to Thee!
End of prayers
It is truly worthy to glorify You as the Mother of God, always Blessed and Immaculate, and the Mother of our God.
We magnify You as the true Mother of God, who painlessly gave birth to God the Word, worthy of greater honor than the Cherubim, and incomparably more glorious than the Seraphim.
Glory to the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, now and always, and forever and ever. Amen.
Lord have mercy. (Thrice)
Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, prayers for the sake of Your Most Pure Mother, our reverend and God-bearing fathers and all the saints, have mercy on us. Amen.
Prayer 2, Saint Antiochus, to our Lord Jesus Christ
To the Almighty, the Word of the Father, who is perfect himself, Jesus Christ, for the sake of Thy mercy, never leave me, Thy servant, but always rest in me.
Jesus, good Shepherd of Your sheep, do not betray me to the sedition of the serpent, and do not leave me to the desires of Satan, for the seed of aphids is in me.
Thou, O Lord God worshiped, the Holy King, Jesus Christ, preserve me as I sleep with an unflickering light, by Thy Holy Spirit, with whom Thou hast sanctified Thy disciples.
Grant, O Lord, to me, Thy unworthy servant, Thy salvation on my bed: enlighten my mind with the light of reason of Thy Holy Gospel, my soul with the love of Thy Cross, my heart with the purity of Thy word, my body with Thy passionless passion, preserve my thought with Thy humility, and uplift I am in time like Your praise.
For Thou art glorified with Thy Beginningless Father and with the Most Holy Spirit forever. Amen.
Prayers said in private, separate from the evening rule
Prayer 1
Relax, let go, forgive, O God, our sins, voluntary and involuntary, committed in word and deed, consciously and unconsciously, day and night, in mind and in thought - forgive us all, as the Merciful and Humane One.
Forgive those who hate and offend us, O Lord, Lover of Mankind!
To those who do good, do good.
To our brothers and relatives, graciously fulfill their requests in what leads to salvation, and grant eternal life.
Visit the weak and give them healing.
Help those at sea.
Companion to travelers.
Help Orthodox Christians in their struggle.
Grant remission of sins to those who serve us and those who take pity on us.
Have mercy on those who have entrusted us, the unworthy, to pray for them, according to Your great mercy.
Remember, Lord, our fathers and brothers who have fallen before and rest them where the light of Your Face shines.
Remember, Lord, our brothers who are in captivity, and deliver them from all misfortune.
Remember, Lord, those who bear the fruits of their labors and adorn Your holy churches.
Give them, at their request, that which leads to salvation and eternal life.
Remember, Lord, us, Your humble, sinful and unworthy servants, and enlighten our minds so that we know You, and guide us on the path of following Your commandments, through the prayers of our most pure Lady, the Eternal Virgin Mary, and all Your saints, for You are blessed forever and ever. Amen.
Everyday confession of sins, pronounced in private, especially I confess to You, my Lord God and Creator, in the One Holy Trinity, glorified and worshiped, Father and Son and Holy Spirit,
all my sins that I have committed in all the days of my life, and at every hour, and at the present time, in deed, word, thought, sight, hearing, smell, taste, touch and all my feelings, mental and physical, with which You God He has angered my Creator and offended my neighbor.
Sinned: (hereinafter a list of individual sins).
Regretting them, I stand before You guilty and want to repent.
Only, Lord my God, help me, I humbly pray to You with tears.
By Your mercy, forgive the sins I have committed and free me from them, for You are Good and Lover of Mankind.
When you go to bed, mark yourself with a cross and say the prayer to the Honest Cross:
May God rise again, and may His enemies be scattered, and may all who hate Him flee from His Face.
As the smoke disappears, so let them disappear.
Just as wax melts from fire, so let the demons perish at the sight of those who love God and make the sign of the cross and say with joy:
“Rejoice, venerable and life-giving Cross of the Lord, driving away demons by the power of our Lord Jesus Christ crucified on you, who descended into hell and destroyed the power of the devil and gave us you, His venerable Cross, to drive away every enemy.”
O venerable and life-giving Cross of the Lord!
Help me with the Holy Lady, the Virgin Mary, and with all the saints forever. Amen.
Or briefly:
Protect me, Lord, by the power of Your venerable and life-giving Cross, and save me from all evil.
When you go to bed and fall asleep, say:
Into Your hands, Lord Jesus Christ, my God, I commend my spirit.
Bless me, have mercy on me and grant me eternal life. Amen.
Before going to bed
The pilgrim says the words out loud or to himself at night, for the coming sleep.
“Into Your hands, Lord Jesus Christ, my God, I commend my spirit.
Bless me, have mercy on me and grant me eternal life. Amen".
End of prayers
The prayer praises the Mother of God, surpassing in her perfection people and angels. She miraculously gave birth to Jesus Christ from the Holy Spirit, who, taking human form, remained the Son of God.
“It is truly worthy to glorify You as the Mother of God, always Blessed and Immaculate, and the Mother of our God.
We magnify You as the true Mother of God, who gave birth without illness to God the Word, worthy of greater honor than the Cherubim, and incomparably more glorious than the Seraphim.
Glory to the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, now and always, and forever and ever. Amen.
Lord have mercy. (Thrice)
Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, prayers for the sake of Your Most Pure Mother, our reverend and God-bearing fathers and all the saints, have mercy on us. Amen".
Prayer for children, to the Lord Jesus Christ
Sweetest Jesus, God of my heart!
You gave me children according to the flesh, they are Yours according to the soul; You redeemed both my soul and theirs with Your priceless blood.
For the sake of Your Divine blood, I beg You, my Sweetest Savior: with Your grace, touch the hearts of my children (names) and my godchildren (names), protect them with Your Divine fear, keep them from bad inclinations and habits, direct them to the bright path of truth and goodness, decorate their life is all good and saving, arrange their fate as You yourself want, and save their souls, in the image of their destinies.
Prayer for children to the Blessed Virgin Mary
O Most Holy Lady Virgin Theotokos, save and preserve under Your shelter my children (names), all youths, young women and infants, baptized and nameless and carried in their mother’s womb.
Cover them with the robe of Your motherhood, keep them in the fear of God and in obedience to their parents, beg my Lord and Your Son to grant them what is useful for their salvation.
I entrust them to Your maternal supervision, for You are the Divine Protection of Your servants.
Prayer for children to the Guardian Angel
Holy Guardian Angel of my child (name), cover him with your protection from the arrows of the demon, from the eyes of the seducer, and keep his heart in angelic purity. Amen.
Tropari
- Have mercy on us, Lord, have mercy on us; Perplexed by any answer, we offer this prayer to You as the Master of sin: have mercy on us.
- Glory to the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit.
- Lord, have mercy on us, for we trust in You; Do not be angry with us, do not remember our iniquities, but look upon us now as if you are gracious, and deliver us from our enemies; For Thou art our God, and we are Thy people; all works are done by Thy hand, and we call upon Thy name.
- And now and ever and unto ages of ages. Amen.
- Open the doors of mercy to us, blessed Mother of God, who trust in You, so that we may not perish, but may we be delivered from troubles by You: for You are the salvation of the Christian race.
- Lord have mercy. (12 times)
When and how to read evening prayers
Evening prayers are read daily and cannot be postponed. They help to cope with the passions of the past day, humbly and repentantly accept the events and actions of others, and cleanse your soul of sinful thoughts and destructive feelings.
Beginning Christians only need to follow three steps in evening prayer:
- retire;
- cleanse your soul of anger, irritation and resentment of the past day, tune in to a conversation with God;
- cross yourself and read your prayer rule.
An evening prayer ritual is a way to get back on track. In no case should you treat it as a heavy holy burden and an opportunity to proudly elevate yourself above those around you. And, of course, this is not a reason to condemn loved ones who have not yet been churched.
Evening Prayer Tips for Beginners
It is important for beginning Christians to remember that man was not created for prayer, but prayer was created for man. Saint and theologian Theophan the Recluse shares advice with beginning Orthodox Christians.
- Avoid rushing. The prayers are read clearly and in a chant.
- Delve into every word spoken, comprehend it.
- Set aside time for evening prayer in advance (15 minutes, half an hour, an hour) - this will avoid hasty reading.
- The allocated time should be within your capabilities and not a burden.
- In your free time, re-read the prayers included in the prayer rule in order to understand and - most importantly - feel what is said in them.
- Prayers are not read continuously and monotonously - at the call of the heart, they can be alternated with bows and personal prayers.
For beginners, evening prayer for the coming sleep should be commensurate with spiritual growth and state of mind. This is not a formal action, but a daily frank conversation with Our Lord. It can change as the person praying progresses spiritually.
Prayer Rule - Law or Grace
Many novice Orthodox Christians are interested in the question: if prayer is a free appeal to the Creator, then why make it conform to the law.
In response to such an appeal, the Saratov abbot Pachomius clarifies that freedom and permissiveness should not be confused. The freedom of believers consists in the boldness of being before the throne of the Most High, which sinners and the unbaptized cannot afford. Permissiveness returns the believer to his former life, and it is then much more difficult to return to the grace of appeals to the Savior.
In the spiritual world there is no consensus regarding the duration and order of prayer before the Almighty. Some people remain in reverent worship for hours, while others cannot stand even half an hour.
Regular, constant spending time reading prayers will help you develop the habit of daily communication with the Creator, even if it’s 15 minutes in the evening.
Prayer Rule
First, you should purchase a “Prayer Book” and read it. Sometimes an Orthodox person understands that reading out of obligation turns into an empty habit; if this happens, then one can move on, as St. Theophan the Recluse did, to reading psalms and scriptures from the Bible.
The main thing is to be filled with worship of the Creator every day, to enter His presence, to feel His protection throughout the day. Evangelist Matthew wrote that to conquer the Kingdom of God you need to use force. (Matt. 11:12)
To help the beginning prayer book
There are three prayer lists for Orthodox believers.
- The complete prayer rule is designed for spiritually persistent believers, which include monks and clergy.
- The prayer rule for all laity consists of a list of prayers read in the morning and evening; a list of them can be found in the “Prayer Book”:
- in the morning: “Heavenly King”, Trisagion, “Our Father”, “Virgin Mother of God”, “Rising from sleep”, “Have mercy on me, O God”, “I Believe”, “God, cleanse”, “To You, Master”, “ Holy Angel”, “Most Holy Lady”, invocation of saints, prayer for the living and the dead;
- in the evening: “Heavenly King”, Trisagion, “Our Father”, “Have mercy on us, Lord”, “Eternal God”, “Good King”, “Angel of Christ”, from “The Chosen Governor” to “It is worthy to eat”.
Seraphim of Sarov proposed another short prayer rule for those laity who, for some reason, are limited in time or are in unpredictable circumstances.
Icon of Seraphim of Sarov
It consists of reading each prayer three times:
- "Our Father";
- “Virgin Mother of God, rejoice”;
- "I believe."
Particular attention should be paid to reading spiritual appeals to the Almighty Creator and Savior during the period of fasting, before receiving the Sacrament of Communion and in the hour of difficult life trials.
Advice! God's mercy accompanies those who began communicating with God in the morning, before breakfast, and ended by reading spiritual texts before dinner.
Moral preparation for worship
For a beginning Orthodox believer, it is advisable to purchase a “Prayer Book” in modern Russian, so that while reading what is written, delve into every word, filling it with strength and grace, and receive instruction and support.
This is the advice of Nicodemus the Holy Mountain, which points out the importance of understanding every word of the text being read. Over time, many texts are stored in memory and read by heart.
Before reading the Prayer Book, you should ask the Holy Spirit to show whether there are any remnants of resentment, bitterness or irritation in your heart. Mentally forgive all offenders and ask for forgiveness from those who were treated unfairly, this is how the Orthodox pray.
According to Tikhon of Zadonsk, all negativism should be abandoned, for, as Gregory of Nyssa wrote, the Creator is Kind, Righteous, Patient, Lover of Humanity, Kind-hearted, Merciful, the goal of the prayer rule is to be transformed into the image of the Creator, to acquire all the qualities for philanthropy.
