What is kontakion ikos troparion akathist. Correct reading of prayers and akathists to saints

Arriving for the first time Orthodox church, many people ask the question: what are troparia? The word "troparion" translated from Greek means "mode, melody, tone." It, like many others, entered the church life of the Russian people. By and large, it can be identified with a hymn, that is, with a short chant, which contains the whole main meaning of the Christian holiday.

Or, if a holiday is dedicated to a saint, then the troparion concentrates the main events in the life of the righteous person, saint or martyr. Often in the chants there are appeals to the saint, his exploits are revealed, and so on. Let us take a closer look at what troparion, kontakion, canon and other names are in Church Slavonic.

Easter troparia

The troparion often complements the kontakion. Kontakion is like its continuation, which reveals this topic even deeper. For example, if in the festive Easter troparion it is sung about the resurrection of Christ, “Christ is risen from the dead, trampling down death by death and giving life to those who are in the tombs!” said “Rejoice!”, to the apostles “grant peace, grant resurrection to the fallen!”

Church-goers probably heard something like the following exclamation at the evening service: “Voice one. Lord, I have called to You, hear me.” Then the singers begin to perform melodic tunes, which are called stichera. And according to the rules, Vespers ends again with a troparion or a troparion voice, of which there are only eight.

Differences between troparia and other hymns

What are troparia, how to distinguish troparary voices from sticherny, irmos? When they first come to the choir, the singers do not understand the meaning of these chants. In fact, the troparia are the highest of all church works. They can only be rivaled by the prokeme, which are performed before the reading of the Apostle and the Gospel.

Therefore, troparia, together with kontakia, take pride of place among other chants. The troparia opens and ends Matins and Vespers.

The meaning of the word “troparion” can also be interpreted as “victorious sign”, “trophy”. That is, they glorify the victory, for example, of Jesus Christ over death for all of us, the victory of the martyr over paganism, the saint over the passions, and so on.

For the first time, troparal voices began to be sung in Egypt and Asia Minor. This happened in the 4th and 5th centuries AD. The canons appeared much later - in the 8th century.

Oddly enough, the question of what a troparion is has not yet been settled. The meaning of this word among the ancient Hellenes was explained as “harmony, singing.” All their tunes - Mixolydicean, Lydicean and others - were called troparions.

In the Church Slavonic charter, the word “troparion” is often used with other words-additions, for example, troparion of dismissal. In fact, they are actually the main hymns with which Matins and Vespers end.

Troparion of the canon

The troparia of the canon are hymns that are sung during the service of the canon. That is, this is the number of stichera that are sung along with small choruses.

If the charter of the liturgical book indicates that “I cried out to the Lord” in such and such a voice, this means that the stichera on “I cried to the Lord” should be sung in a certain voice. In church singing you can also find such names as sedalny, ipakoi, luminary. All these chants are close both in meaning and melody to the troparia. Therefore, they are often combined into one word.

It is necessary to know which syllable is stressed in the word “troparion”. This is the second and the letter A. Since the word was borrowed, it is not surprising that many place emphasis on the letter O. But for those who have been attending church for a long time, keep all its foundations and strive for perfection, it is unacceptable to make mistakes in it.

Varieties of troparia

Let's look at what troparia there are and to whom they are dedicated. It happens that in the service book or calendar there is short word: “Theotokos.” What does it mean? These are stichera, sedalny or troparia Mother of God, dedicated to her feat and service.

If the word “Resurrection” is there, it means that all the chants after this word are dedicated to the Resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ.

The word “Theotokos of the Cross” is sorrow Holy Mother of God about the death on the cross of her son, Jesus Christ.

“Resurrection of the Cross” - hymns praising the Lord’s suffering on the cross and his resurrection. Such chants are performed after the Resurrection Canon and they are placed in the Octoechos - a special book where all the canons and troparia dedicated to the Resurrection are collected.

The word "Martyr" refers to chants dedicated to martyrs. They can be found both in the Octoechos and in the Triodion and Menaion. To quickly find them, the word “Martyr” is placed before the stichera.

When are troparia for the dead sung?

"Repentant" is special kind chants, where the main theme is confession of one’s sins before God.

They are also called “touching” in another way. You can find them in Oktoiche at services on Monday and Tuesday. During Great Lent, three penitential troparions are celebrated, the only ones of their kind.

“Dead” and “deceased” are chants that contain prayers for the repose of the deceased. The funeral service and the Octoechos Saturday service contain the text of these prayers.

Immaculate

“Troparia for the Immaculates” are hymns that recall how the myrrh-bearing women came to the tomb of the Lord and where they saw an angel and heard from him the happy news of his resurrection from the tomb. They are performed at Matins during the polyeleos.

The word "Immaculate" came to Church Slavonic language from kathisma 17, which opens with psalm 118. “Blessed are the blameless on the way...” - this is what is sung in the psalm, and from this name the word “blameless” is strengthened. During the polyeleos, these troparia begin with the words “Blessed are you, Lord” and consist of six parts, each of which is separated by a chorus and exclamations: “Glory to the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit” and “And now and ever and unto ages of ages. Amen".

On holidays, instead of the “Immaculate Ones,” the troparia “Magnificence” are sung before the icon. They are also performed when funeral services are held for bishops or priests who have earned the love of the people, their parish, and who have become martyrs.

One of the most famous troparions, which has become so widely famous that it has been translated into all languages, is the work “Quiet Light,” which is sung at the All-Night Vigil.

What is the difference between kontakion and ikos?

Hieromonk Job (Gumerov) answers:

The word kontakion (Greek κόντάκιον) was first used to describe bundles of parchment with records of church chants; then - a short church song containing praise to the Lord God, the Mother of God or a saint. Sometimes the kontakion conveys the main content church holiday. Its name is associated with an event in the life of Saint Roman the Sweet Singer. He was from Syria and served as a deacon in Beirut. Under Emperor Anastasia I (491-518), he arrived in Constantinople, where over time he began to serve as a psalm-reader in cathedral Hagia Sophia. At first he didn't stand out at all. The lack of success upset him greatly. He fervently prayed to the Most Holy Theotokos. Once, after such a prayer, he saw in a dream the Most Holy Theotokos, who handed him a scroll and ordered him to swallow it. Waking up and feeling inspired, he sang his famous kontakion for the feast of the Nativity of Christ: “Today a virgin gives birth to the Most Essential, and the earth brings a den to the Unapproachable; Angels and shepherds praise, while wolves travel with a star; For our sake, the Child of Mlado, the Eternal God, was born.”

Ikos (Greek) oikos- house) conveys the content of the kontakion in more detail. Kontakion outlines the theme, and ikos develops it. Ikos, unlike kontakion, contains a special refrain (refrain) and khayretisms (from the Greek rejoice) - greetings “Rejoice”, praising the one to whom the akathist is dedicated.

Ancient kontakia are multi-stanza (about 20-30 stanzas) poems. The stanzas were united by a single refrain and a single metrical addition based on isosyllabism. The first stanza was an introduction, the last was a generalization of an edifying nature. The canonarch read the verses, the people sang the refrain. Since the 8th century, kontakion as a genre has been replaced by canon. The number of stanzas in the kontakion is reduced.

Kontakia are also called smaller stanzas (in contrast to ikos) of the akathist.

The regulation on the singing of troparions and kontakions is contained in the Typikon (chapter 52, as well as chapters 23, 4, 5, 12, 13, 15).

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See what “Kondak” is in other dictionaries:

- (new Greek, from kantakion, from kontos short). A short church song containing praise I. to Christ, the Mother of God, the Saint or the content of the holiday. Dictionary foreign words, included in the Russian language. Chudinov A.N., 1910. KONDAC... ... Dictionary of foreign words of the Russian language

Modern encyclopedia

- (from the Greek kontakion) 1) a genre of early Byzantine church poetry and music, a type of hymn poem on a religious subject. It is characterized by dialogical dramatization of the narrative, strophic division, the presence of a refrain and an acrostic, syllabic... ... Big Encyclopedic Dictionary

KONDAK, kondak, husband. (Greek kontakion) (church). A short church hymn. Dictionary Ushakova. D.N. Ushakov. 1935 1940 … Ushakov's Explanatory Dictionary

Male, church a short song in praise of the Savior, the Mother of God or a saint. Dahl's Explanatory Dictionary. IN AND. Dahl. 1863 1866 … Dahl's Explanatory Dictionary

Noun, number of synonyms: 1 chants (42) ASIS Dictionary of Synonyms. V.N. Trishin. 2013… Synonym dictionary

- (kondakia, kontakia) the actual parchment sheet or scroll, written on both sides. Subsequently, the word K. began to denote special group church hymns, the peculiarity of which is that in the rites in honor of one or another... ... Encyclopedia of Brockhaus and Efron

- (Greek lit. wooden roller on which a scroll is wound, metaphorically the scroll itself) a genre of early Byzantine hymnography that arose in the 5th–6th centuries. and in the 8th century. ousted from worship by the canon. Title "K." appears only in the 9th century; before… … Encyclopedia of Cultural Studies

Kontakion- (from the Greek kontakion), a genre of early Byzantine church poetry and music, a type of hymn poem on a religious subject. After its heyday in the 6th century. was supplanted in the 8th and 9th centuries. a new genre of hymnography canon. In later worship, certain... Illustrated Encyclopedic Dictionary

Kontakion- (Greek “a stick around which a parchment scroll was wound”) a genre of church Byzantine hymnography. The founder is St. Roman the Sweet Singer (Melod) (1st half of the 6th century), unsurpassed author of most kontakia. Ancient kontakia -... Orthodoxy. Dictionary-reference book

Books

• Akathist to the Most Holy Theotokos in honor of the Pochaev Icon. Cants of the Holy Dormition Pochaev Lavra (2CD), . To You, O Most Holy Mother, I dare to raise my voice, washing my face with tears: “Hear me in this sorrowful hour.” The fraternal choir of the Holy Dormition Pochaev Lavra under the direction of the protodeacon...

Akathist- (translated from Greek - “non-seated singing”) - a prayer consisting of the 1st kontakion, which is sung, and 12 kontakia and ikos (equally divided), which are read. Thus, the akathists consist of 25 separate chants - 13 kontakia and 12 ikos. Of these, the 1st kontakion and all ikos end with the exclamation “Rejoice”..., and the 12th kontakion with the chorus “Alleluia”. The origin of the word “akathist” indicates that the designated chants are performed by those praying while standing.

Kontakion- (translated from Greek - “house”) - a short song in praise of a saint or holiday.

Ikos- (translated from Greek - house) - church chant containing the glorification of a saint or celebrated event. Ikos together with kontakia make up the akathist. Ikos and kontakion are similar in content and identical in presentation. The difference between them is that kontakion is shorter, and ikos is more extensive: kontakion is a theme, and ikos is its development. Therefore, the ikos is always read after the kontakion, and never read alone. According to Mark of Ephesus, ikos (from Greek “house”) got their name because they were sung in those houses where the saint spent his nights in prayer. Roman Sladkopevets, the first compiler of ikos.

Canon- the combination of many sacred chants (irmos and troparia) into one harmonious composition (it acquired its current form in the 8th century, thanks to John of Damascus, the compiler of several canons for Sunday church services). The canon usually consists of 9 parts-songs, each containing 1 irmos and several troparia. Presenting either prosaic or poetic form, each canon in its content expresses the essence of the event being celebrated and its internal meaning. Canons can be complete (of 9 songs) and incomplete - consisting of one, two, three, four songs. In this case, the canon is written as follows: two songs, three songs, four songs.

Troparion- a short song in which the deeds of God or His saints are glorified. This word in a broad sense means any church chant, even if it has a different, different name. In the closest sense, a troparion is a chant composed in honor of a holiday or saint.

Irmos- (from the Greek “I bind”, “I unite”) - this is the name of the first troparion in a series of other troparions that make up one song of the canon. Irmos is the model according to which all other troparia of the same song are compiled, so that they all resemble Irmos in the number of sentences and words, the melody, and sometimes the content and very turns of speech, and therefore form one whole with it, for which Irmos serves as a connection. Knowing the melody of the Irmos, you can always correctly sing all the troparia that follow it; Therefore, the irmos is placed at the beginning of every song of the canon, so that other troparia that make up the song can be sung according to its example. In ancient times, the entire canon (i.e., both irmos and troparia) was sung; at present, this custom has been preserved only during the performance of the Easter canon; in all other canons, only irmos are sung, and troparia are read. The main thoughts and even expressions of the Irmos have been selected for the most part from Old Testament songs glorifying events that were prototypes of the events of the New Testament.

Explanations taken from the "Complete Church Slavonic Dictionary" and the "Complete Orthodox Theological Encyclopedic Dictionary"

Sacred church hymns sung during religious holidays, were composed long ago, during the time of the first Christians. Subsequently, their composition was enriched by the works of talented clergy, endowed with deep, sincere faith in the Lord and a poetic gift.

Introduction to Kontakia

Let's figure it out, kontakion - what is it? That's what they called it in Greece, more precisely in Byzantine Empire, solemn hymns dedicated to the Mother of God, the feast of the Nativity of Christ, and various saints. Church songs were, as a rule, of sublime, pathetic content and glorified the clergyman in question. So, what is kontakion? A song of praise with religious content. It was created by certain rules and had a strictly regulated form of execution. The first authors used the syllabic system of versification, achieving a clear rhythm in the poetic text to make it easier and more convenient to sing. The stanzas were supposed to contain teachings and instructions for the flock. They were pronounced from the pulpit by the priest. And the chorus (refrain) was sung by the choir of singers and the people present in the church.

From the history of the term

We learn about how the kontakion genre arose and what it is from an ancient Christian legend. Once upon a time in Constantinople (5th-6th centuries), a God-fearing, sincerely religious man named Roman served at the Church of Our Lady. He was a true righteous man, which earned him the respect and goodwill of the then Patriarch Euthymius. And although Roman had neither hearing nor a voice, the patriarch asked him to serve him in the choir during ceremonial services. Envious people tried to disgrace the humble pastor. However, he humbly prayed to the Lord and the Mother of God, and a miracle happened. The Holy Virgin appeared to Roman and endowed him with a delightful voice and the gift of poetry. Inspiration descended on the servant of God, and he composed the first kontakion. You will understand what this is by reading the well-known lines of the solemn hymn in honor of Christmas, which begins with these words: “Today a virgin gives birth to the Most Essential...” Translated into the languages ​​of all peoples who professed Christianity, the kontakion became a model of hymn-making. And Roman himself received the nickname of the Sweet Singer, and under this name he went down in history.

Kontakion today

Hymns composed in Orthodoxy according to the models of St. Romanus were of primary character until the 8th century. They were long, each with about 20-30 stanzas, separated by choruses. Performing them during services took a large number of time, which created some inconvenience. Therefore, from about the 8th century, the kontakion as a genre was replaced by the canon. However, this does not mean that hymns have ceased to be heard in cathedrals. They still did the same important function glorifying and honoring the holiday for which they were written. There was just some modification of the genre. The meaning of the word “kontakion” in modern worship is as follows: these are 2 stanzas of solemn chant, performed together with ikos after the canons. The same term is used to refer to stanzas of akathists. Nowadays they usually sing the full kontakion only during funeral services for clergy. In other cases, they are limited to its truncated, shortened forms.

good news

The Feast of the Annunciation is one of the most revered in Orthodoxy. It is noted Church services on this day they pass especially joyfully, elatedly, the parishioners in the churches have illuminated faces, and the kontakion of the Annunciation in honor of the Mother of God sounds from the choir with truly angelic voices. It is called “The Chosen Voivode...” and is distinguished by its touching beauty and tenderness before the Great Sacrament. The words of the kontakion are filled with jubilation and respect, sincere hope, in which people’s request to the Most Pure Mother is heard to intercede for us sinners. In addition to religious, works of this genre have important literary and artistic significance.