Rosary beads and their meaning. rosary made of natural stone. Orthodox rosary. How to use Orthodox rosary

Many religious denominations use rosaries in their tradition of rituals and processions. Among them are Buddhism, Hinduism and Islam. In Christianity, beads of this kind are also considered an obligatory attribute. The topic of this article is rosary beads: how to use, how to select and store.

Within the boundaries of the Russian language Orthodox world rosary beads have their own purpose and interpretation. These are special beads on a cord that are used to count the number of bows and prayers said. According to some sources, in the Russian tradition, St. Basil the Great first began to use rosaries. Other sources say that this item was introduced into use by Saint Pachomius the Great.

A truly Orthodox person needs a thing of this kind. Often during constant prayer you can get lost during the countdown. The Mother of God herself blessed the use of rosaries, calling them the main weapon against the attempts of the evil spirit to interfere with the believer.

You need to be able to distinguish between secular rosaries, which are simply used for decoration, and truly Orthodox ones. There are two types of traditional rosaries: woolen (letovki) and wooden. The first are round wool beads strung on a thread of the same material. Wooden rosaries are liner beads made of wood and strung on a thread. Each is completed with an Orthodox cross and tassel.

If the beads are made of stone, glass or plastic, they are rarely blessed by the priest for use. It is believed that the best material will be natural: wool, leather or noble wood.

Usually there are 30 or 100 beads in a rosary. But it can be less or more, the main thing is that their number is a multiple of 12 or 10. If there are inscriptions on the grains, then these beads are Muslim. Some Orthodox rosaries, made of leather or wool, contain a small scroll with the Jesus Prayer written inside.

Why are Orthodox rosaries needed and how to handle them?

There is no strict rule for praying on the rosary. Everyone chooses the method that seems convenient to them. Most often, confessors, when blessing, advise starting with the Jesus Prayer, which must be said 150 times a day, or with the rule of the Virgin Mary. The rosary is also used to read the prayer “Lord, have mercy.” This can be 1, 3, 12, 40 or 50 times.

Before you start pronouncing the sacred words, you need to say: “Lord bless.” When saying a prayer, the rosary is held in the left hand. After reading each prayer, one grain is transferred, and then right hand are being baptized.

Functions of the rosary:

1. They help while reading the Jesus Prayer or the Theotokos Rule.
2. Strengthens attention and sobriety during the recitation of sacred texts.
3. Gives peace and concentration.
4. They do not allow you to fall asleep during prayer.

There is such a concept - “prayed rosary”. In the old days it was believed that if they were used by a true believer, they could become a talisman. For example, to protect from attacks by wild animals, on the road and difficult situation. Rosary beads belonging to holy people helped heal illnesses. An example of this was the case from the biography of Elder Porfiry Kavsokalivit.

Modern rosary beads and their uses

Since their appearance, rosaries have quietly “migrated” from religious paraphernalia to the parachurch and even criminal world. At a certain period, they began to be used as an attribute of wealth and inclusion in a thieves' conglomerate. Even such a concept as “prisoner’s rosary” appeared, which has nothing to do with Orthodoxy.

Esotericists and representatives of oriental medicine note that sorting grains or beads calms the nerves, puts them in a peaceful mood and even normalizes breathing. However, this has nothing to do with Orthodox Christianity.

Now Orthodox rosaries are allowed to be used only by monks or high clergy. For Old Believers, rosary beads are an integral attribute of any believer. Russian Orthodox Church considers it undesirable to wear rosaries as decoration or to pray with them without the blessing of a spiritual mentor.

It is customary to keep this religious attribute, not show it to strangers, and even pass it on from generation to generation. Having learned what Orthodox rosaries are and how to use them correctly so as not to sin and harm your soul, you can...

India is considered to be the ancestor of modern rosaries. Even in ancient times, believers who could not count helped themselves different ways: they moved nuts or pebbles from one pile to another, tied knots on ropes and leather belts, strung shells, seeds, bones or sticks on laces.

This convenient device has become widespread in almost all religious movements, and Orthodoxy is no exception.

Why do Orthodox Christians need rosary beads?

The main function of the rosary is to count a certain number of prayers that a Christian says. You need to offer prayer sincerely, with a pure heart, without being distracted by extraneous noises and actions. Rosary beads are great for helping you focus on sacred words without being distracted by counting prayers already said.

Another function is a reminder that the believer must constantly create a prayer shield, cleansing his soul and asking for mercy and forgiveness from God. Many Christians forget to pray during the day, saying prayer only in the morning or evening. If you carry a rosary with you on your wrist, it will remind you to offer prayer during the day.

Why else might they be useful?

The rosary helps to relax and calm down, focusing only on prayer, clearing the mind of worldly thoughts and worries. By fingering smooth beads with your fingertips, you can relieve headaches, get rid of anger and aggression, and learn patience and repentance.

Rosaries in the Orthodox religion - types

The Orthodox Church gives permission to use the rosary, which we are accustomed to seeing most often. They are a thread with beads, the ends of which are closed in a circle. At the junction of the two ends of the thread there is a cross topped with a tassel. In ancient times they used different types rosary beads, including “ladders”, which Old Believers prayed. Such rosaries were knitted from rope; instead of beads, loops were tied into which twisted sheets of paper with written prayers were inserted. Believers saw such rosaries as a “stairway to heaven.” Nowadays, such an accessory is considered obsolete and is not used by Orthodox Christians.

Rosary beads for Orthodox Christians are made from different natural materials, Christians do not strive for luxury, so most often they use wood to make them. The color and size of the beads does not matter, the main thing is that the rosary sits comfortably in the hand and the rules for the number of grains are followed.

Christian rosaries have a number of beads that is a multiple of 10, or similar to the number of Jesus’ earthly years. For the laity, rosaries are usually made from 10, 30, or, for those who have dedicated themselves to serving the Lord, the number of grains can be up to 1000 units. The rosary is worn on the wrist, around the neck, or in a special fabric bag.

Each ten beads are separated by a small cross or a bead of a different size. The place where the thread joins into a circle is topped with a large cross with a tassel. Constantly using rosary beads, they absorb the mood and energy of their owner, so this accessory is considered personal. The exception is the ritual of transferring or donating rosaries from teacher to student, as well as from father to son.

Rosary beads in Orthodoxy - how to use them correctly

It is important that the rosary lies comfortably in the hand and is not too heavy. Only complete consonance of this accessory with the owner will allow the person offering the prayer to completely relax and renounce the outside world.

You can read any prayers using the rosary, the main thing is that they come from the heart and are sincere. For daily appeals to God, it is recommended to read the prayer to Jesus: “Lord Jesus Christ, have mercy on me, a sinner.” After reading 10 times, your fingers will feel the jumper on which you can read the prayer to the Mother of God: “ Holy Mother of God, pray to God for us."

The church appears before us in the splendor of its architecture and religious accessories. One of these items is Orthodox rosary. They were noted in Rus' in the 4th century, they were called a rope, and looked like a cord closed in a circle with knots tied on it. The number of knots (beads) was equal to significant number- 33, 50, 103. Rosaries were used by monks during long prayers to concentrate attention and count bows.

Orthodox rosary made of stone, photo:

Over time, several types of rosary appeared:

• miniature pectorals (worn on the finger),
• carpals,
• traditional for carrying in the hand;
• long bead necklace.

The Church traditionally associates rosaries with monasticism, with the exception of the Old Believers, for whom they are permissible for everyone. By virtue of great influence church life on ordinary people the object has passed into worldly life, and today the attribute can be seen in the car, on the wrist, on the neck in the form of jewelry.

Meaning, what they are needed for

The main task of the rosary lies in the semantics of the word. In ancient Russian “chti” - to count, to read - therefore, beads were created to count the prayers read. They are made from various materials and are always assembled in a circle, symbolizing the infinity of prayer actions. The junction of the cord is decorated with a tassel/cross. Photo:

Reading prayers is quite a stressful process. When a person begins to pray, after a few minutes it seems to him that a lot of time has passed and the temptation to stop reading is great. God's people To avoid self-deception, they came up with rosary beads that allow you to pray independently, efficiently.

Over time, rosaries began to be used not only by Christians. Prayer and parallel mechanical action saved me from overexertion, dizziness, and weakness. By sorting through knots, grains, and beads, it is easier for a monk to concentrate, and there is less chance of falling asleep.

How to use

Using the rosary is simple; each bead (knot, plate) is one prayer read. The rosary is based on knowledge of the human body: the nerve endings on the fingertips are directly connected to the brain area. Each time, moving to the next bead of the rosary, the worshiper receives a certain impulse, lift, and concentrates on the process.

How to use, video:

In Orthodoxy, a new novice wearing monastic clothing was given a rosary as a reminder of eternal prayer, about your chosen calling and ministry. The rosary helps not to forget about God throughout the day, especially for the laity. To use them in ordinary life it is necessary to enlist the blessing of the priest, learn to count correctly, and always remember that prayer takes place not in numbers, but in spiritual sincerity.

The versatility of the subject

Over time, the rosary ceased to be an attribute of only believers, and harmoniously moved into social life. In esoteric stores you can find rosaries:

• for meditation;
• amulets;
• witchcraft;
• semantic.

When purchasing an attractive accessory, you must remember that this is not a “magic” attribute, but a means that helps you concentrate attention and work for results.

The semantic rosary is elegant and multifaceted. Collected from certain stones, minerals, equipped by color, size, charged by the master to solve the problem, they help to find love, gain luck, health, and achieve spiritual harmony. What is important here is the attitude, the ability to focus on a task, to work with energy, with your desire. By purchasing themed beads, you help your soul to freely convey its aspirations to the Universe.

Important! With the help of a rosary, you can solve the problem yourself by directing your energy towards goodness. The attribute does not execute negative orders.

Rosaries are an integral attribute of many religious traditions. At a minimum, there are Buddhist, Hindu, and Muslim rosaries. Christians are also on the same level as them. The latter, in turn, are divided into several types, in accordance with confessional characteristics and device diagram. In this article we will look at the Orthodox rosary as an item that is most widespread within the Russian-speaking world.

Purpose of the rosary

The first thing that should be said is that general practice Every religion is prayer. It is customary to recite some texts many times in a row, which requires a certain counting system. This is precisely the role that special beads called rosaries perform: by turning them over in your hands, it is quite easy to track the number of prayers spoken. In fact, this is the only strictly religious purpose of this item. And Orthodox rosaries are no exception.

Sometimes, however, some of their types are used as religious decoration. For example, this often happens in Catholic parishes, where rosaries are hung on statues of saints, especially the Virgin Mary. In addition, in addition to its main function, special prayer beads are one of the attributes of monastic vestments.

Orthodox rosary: ​​classification

As for the rosary, inherent in the purely eastern Christian tradition, then on this moment there are two types of them. The first can be called primordially Orthodox, since it is the most ancient. This type of rosary is called lestovka. However, at present they are preserved mainly by the Old Believers, while in official Orthodoxy they play the role of an outdated relic.

The second type has a more familiar appearance, similar to beads strung on a thread in a certain sequence. These are the most popular Orthodox rosaries, which are used not only by believers, but also by lay people, for example, as a pendant on the mirror of their car. There is even a brand of wine that has such beads attached to its label as a design element.

Lestovki

Lestovki are, as already mentioned, the most ancient Orthodox rosary used in Russian Orthodox tradition. They come from the so-called vervitsa - a rope with knots, common in Byzantium and performing the same role of counting prayers.

The word “lestovka” means “ladder” - it means a staircase to heaven, to God. This is no coincidence. Orthodox rosaries in the form of a ladder really look like a ladder, since they do not look like beads, but like a leather belt, along the entire length of which there are some kind of steps - wide loops called bobs. The location of the latter is based quite a complex system. The ends of the ladders are sewn together in a special way with triangles called paws. And inside the beans there is a thick paper roller. According to the rules, the words of prayers were written on these pieces of paper, but now this tradition is rarely maintained.

This type of rosary is also divided into several types. Thus, there are male, female and children's ladders. There are also everyday, funeral, wedding and holiday options.

As already mentioned, lestovki are Orthodox rosary beads that have lost their meaning today. Their photo is located below.

Structure of ladders

The structure of the ladders is quite difficult to remember right off the bat. This is aggravated by the fact that there are several types of them. Classic version is a circle of one hundred and nine beans. It starts with four paws sewn into a herringbone pattern. They symbolize the Trinity, and their number is the number of evangelists. Further along the ladder ribbon there are three bobbins, and after them there is an empty area. Following this are twelve more small steps, followed by one large one. Next - another thirty-eight small beans and again one large one. They are followed by another cycle of thirty-three stages of small elements plus one large one. Then there are seventeen small beans, again an empty area and finally three more beans.

How to use ladders

So, the lestovki are Orthodox rosaries. Almost no one knows how to use them. Although in fact it is quite simple if their structure, which is adapted to the needs of Old Believer worship, is well mastered. With their help, they determine when, how many and which ones to bow to, what prayers to say, and so on. In addition, quite a lot of private prayer rules are adjusted to the sequence of steps of the ladder, consisting mainly of short repeated appeals to Jesus Christ, the Mother of God, angels and saints.

Modern rosary

Rosary beads, which are widespread in modern Orthodoxy, represented in Russia mainly by the Moscow Patriarchate, in comparison with lestovki, are simpler and more concise. Their origin, however, is Western, that is, Catholic, and is associated, according to legend, with the name of St. Dominic. The latter, according to legend, was awarded a vision of the Mother of God, who handed him a rosary and ordered him to read prayers on it for the sake of the triumph of Catholicism over heretics.

Historical evidence suggests that the rosary - and this is what these rosaries are called - originated from the tradition of daily recitation of one hundred and fifty psalms, which illiterate peasants replaced with the prayers “Our Father” and “Hail Mary”. This practice also came to be called the rosary. By the 14th century, the rosary acquired the modern division into tens and in this form spread to Russia in the 19th century. This event is connected with the name of St. Seraphim of Sarov. The fact is that he, being a great admirer of the Virgin Mary, introduced in the communities under his care the practice of reading the rosary in its Orthodox form, which was called the Theotokos rule. The reading pattern remained the same, only the words of the Latin prayers were replaced by Church Slavonic equivalents.

Initially, from this innovation came new type staircase, called the Mother of God and adapted to the reading of the Mother of God rule. However, very soon they were replaced by traditional Western beads with a pendant in the form of a cross, known today as Orthodox rosaries.

Structure of the rosary

Because the this type The rosary is intended mainly for reading the Mother of God rule, which is a copy of the Catholic rosary, then their structure is similar to the Western prototype. They are a bunch of fifty small beads, separated every ten by one large one. These are the classic Orthodox rosary. The number of beads may be different, for example, one hundred or one hundred and fifty. A small cross is attached to the place where the ends of the thread are tied, which, according to Russian tradition, is often completed with a tassel.

There is another option that differs not in structure, but in the manufacturing method. The attribute is woven from one thread, where knots play the role of beads. Thus, they are more like a vervitsa - a Byzantine medieval rosary. Orthodox Christians often weave these with their own hands and then give them to each other. This is especially true for monks.

How to use a rosary

We found out that at present the rosary can be fully called nothing other than Orthodox rosary. How to use them in the Russian tradition is explained by the Rules of the Mother of God. According to him, the usual introductory prayers are read on the cross - “To the Heavenly King,” etc., followed by the “Symbol of Faith.” Next, on ten small beads, “Theotokos, Virgin” is pronounced, and on the large one, “Our Father.” This is how you should read the entire circle of the rosary. In this case, a cycle of one hundred and fifty prayers to the Mother of God is considered complete, which is why Orthodox rosaries can have a different number of dozens - from one to fifteen, and even more.

You can often hear the question: what are Orthodox rosaries, how to use them, what are they for, and who can and should use them? For some reason, beginners especially ask this question, apparently when a person suddenly begins to see the light and comes to Orthodoxy, he has such an active state - it seems that he can move mountains, and such fanaticism appears - I want everything, and more!

This is often bad, because a person takes on an impossible task and quickly gets burned out and disappointed. There must be moderation and gradualness in everything.

How the rosary came to be

The history of rosaries began in India, around the 2nd millennium BC. Beads or knots connected in a ring are designed to remind a person who has dedicated himself to constant prayer higher powers. The number of beads on a rosary often has a symbolic meaning specific to a particular religion. Beads can also be different colors, shapes and sizes, when compiled according to a specific prayer rule.

In Christianity, rosary beads appeared around the fourth century AD. The Western Church created rosaries according to its own prayer rule - the rosary. Catholic rosaries, also called the “wreath of faith” and “wreath of roses,” most often consist of fifty beads and are divided into five decades. Orthodox rosary can consist of different quantities beads and are used when reciting the Jesus Prayer.

Another question:

There are a lot of people at work, and you don’t want them to see the rosary in your hands, but how else can you read the Jesus Prayer?

Answer:

— There is a rosary with 10 beads, like a ring, you put it on your finger, and no one sees that you are praying with the rosary. How rosaries help: sometimes, without the rosary, the thought goes away, but when you pull the beads, the thought focuses on prayer.

Answered by Priest Alexey Roy

When a person touches the beads of a rosary during prayer, this gives a certain rhythm to prayer and the opportunity to concentrate on prayer within oneself, thereby constantly keeping one’s mind in communication with God during prayer. And there should be a priest’s blessing for this, which is given when a person already has some groundwork in his prayers. more than the usual morning and evening rule.

Discussion: 4 comments

Useful article. Rosary beads are one of the essential religious instruments, for example these - https://rezba-master.ru/chetki-bozhya-mat-s-molitvoj/ They help calm the mind and maintain attention during prayer.

Answer

Polina, maybe I didn’t understand you correctly, you wrote “reminds believers that he is a sinner…” that we believers are sinners then, I apologize for not understanding correctly.

Answer

Found it interesting information, it looks beautiful, it’s true, it’s not clear what to do with such rosaries?
“An interesting idea was developed by a Swedish Lutheran bishop. He suggested praying with a rosary consisting of eighteen beads and composed his own prayer rule, which he called “Pearls of Life.”

The first gold-colored bead symbolizes God, denotes His light in human life.
The second bead is colorless - there are six of these in the circle. This bead reminds of silence. A person becomes immersed in himself and is distracted from worldly concerns.
The third bead in the form of a pearl represents the person praying.
The fourth white bead reminds of Baptism. In Baptism, the believer changes his life and learns to live with God.
The fifth yellow bead symbolizes the desert. It reminds the believer of the daily temptations one must face and recalls the days of Jesus in the desert.
The sixth blue bead represents life and humility.
Next come two large beads that symbolize love. The first reminds us of God's love for man and the need to love God, and the second reminds us of the need to love other people.
The eighth bead means mystery. There are three such beads in a circle. Mystery is a necessary element of any religion. In secret, God reveals Himself to man.
The ninth bead is black and signifies darkness, sin and human mortality. Reminds me of the dark days of Jesus Christ's suffering. It reminds the believer that he is sinful and mortal.
The last white bead symbolizes the Risen Christ. It reminds us that death could not keep Jesus in the tomb, and by resurrecting He gave life and hope to all people on earth.”