Everything about The Akathist totally explained
The
Akathist Hymn (Ἀκάθιστος ᾽Υμνός,
unseated hymn) is an
Eastern Orthodox Christian hymn dedicated to a
saint,
holy event, or one of the persons of the
Holy Trinity. The akathist
par excellence is that written in the 6th century to the
Theotokos. In its use as part of the Salutations to the Theotokos service (used in the Byzantine tradition during
Great Lent), it's often known by its Greek or Arabic names,
Χαιρετισμοὶ/Chairetismoi and
Madayeh, respectively.
The writing of akathists (occasionally spelled
acathist) continues today as part of the general composition of an
akolouthia, especially in the Slavic tradition, although not all are widely known nor translated beyond the original language. Isaac E. Lambertsen has done a large amount of translation work, including many different akathists. Most of the newer akathists are pastiche, that is, a generic form imitating the original 6th century akathist into which a particular saint's name is inserted.
Origin
Franciscus Junius wrongly interpreted Acathistus as one who neither sits nor rests, but journeys with child; as for instance when the
Blessed Virgin was brought by
Joseph to
Bethlehem.
Gretser [Commentariusin
Codin.
Curop. (
Bonn,
1839), 321] easily refutes the interpretation by citing from the Lesson in the
Triodion. The origin of the feast is assigned by the Lesson to the year
626, when
Constantinople, in the reign of
Heraclius, was attacked by the
Persians and
Scythians but saved through the intervention of the Most Holy
Theotokos (Mother of God). A sudden hurricane dispersed the fleet of the enemy, casting the vessels on the shore near the great church of the
Theotokos at
Blachernae, a quarter of Constantinople near the
Golden Horn. The people spent the whole night, says the Lesson, thanking her for the unexpected deliverance. "From that time, therefore, the
Church, in memory of so great and so divine a miracle, desired this day to be a feast in honour of the Mother of God . . . and called it Acathistus" (Lesson). This origin is disputed by
Sophocles (
Greek Lexicon of the
Roman and
Byzantine Periods, s. v.) on the ground that the hymn couldn't have been composed in one day, while on the other hand its twenty-four oikoi contain no allusion to such an event and therefore could scarcely have been originally composed to commemorate it. Perhaps the kontakion, which might seem to be allusive, was originally composed for the celebration on the night of the victory. However the feast may have originated, the Lesson commemorates two other victories, under
Leo III the Isaurian, and
Constantine Pogonatus, similarly ascribed to the intervention of the Deipara.
No certain ascription of its authorship can be made. It has been attributed to
Patriarch Sergius I of Constantinople, whose pious activities the Lesson commemorates in great detail.
Quercius (
P.
G.,
XCII, 1333 sqq.) assigns it to
George Pisida, deacon, archivist, and sacristan of
Hagia Sophia whose poems find an echo both in style and in theme in the Akathist; the elegance, antithetic and balanced style, the vividness of the narrative, the flowers of poetic imagery being all very suggestive of his work. His position as sacristan would naturally suggest such a tribute to the
Theotokos, as the hymn only gives more elaborately the sentiments condensed into two epigrams of Pisida found in her church at
Blachernae. Quercius also argues that words, phrases, and sentences of the hymn are to be found in the poetry of Pisida.
Leclercq (in
Cabrol,
Dict. d'archéol. chrét. et de liturgie, s.v. "Acathistus") finds nothing absolutely demonstrative in such a comparison and offers a suggestion which may possibly help to a solution of the problem.
Structure
When an akathist is chanted by itself, the
Usual beginning, a series of prayers which include the
Trisagion ('thrice-holy') is often said as a prelude to the akathist hymn. The akathis may also be included as a part of another service, such as
Matins or a
Molieben.
The hymn itself is divided into thirteen parts, each of which is comprised of a
kontakion and an
ikos (Greek: οικος, 'house', possibly derived from
Syriac terminology). The kontakion usually ends with the exclamation: 'Alleluia!', which is repeated by a
choir in full settings, or
chanted by the
reader in simple settings. Within the latter part of the ikos comes an anaphoric entreaty, such as 'Come!' or 'Rejoice!' The thirteenth kontakion (which, unlike the preceding twelve, doesn't have a corresponding ikos) is usually followed by the repetition of the first ikos and kontakion. After the thirteen kontakia and ikoi, additional prayers are added, such as a
troparion and another kontakion.
Akathist to the Theotokos
When the word
akathist is used alone, it most commonly refers to the original hymn by this name, the 6th century Akathist to the
Theotokos, attributed to St.
Romanos the Melodist. It is said the Theotokos appeared to him, gave him a scroll and commanded him to eat it. And here a miracle was performed: Romanus received a beautiful, melodic voice and, simultaneously, the gift of poesy. This hymn is often split into four parts and sung at the "Salutations to the Theotokos" service on the first four Friday evenings in
Great Lent; the entire Akathist is then sung on the fifth Friday evening. Traditionally it's included in the
Orthros of the fifth Saturday of
Great Lent. In
monasteries of
Athonite tradition, the whole Akathist is usually inserted nightly at
Compline.
The four sections into which the Akathist is divided correspond to the themes of the
Annunciation,
Nativity,
Christ, and the
Theotokos herself.
The hymn itself forms an alphabetical acrostic—that is, each
oikos begins with a letter of the Greek alphabet, in order—and it consists of twelve long and twelve short oikoi. Each of the long oikoi include a seven-line stanza followed by six couplets, employing rhyme, assonance, and alliteration, beginning with the word
Chaire (translated as either "Hail!" or "Rejoice!") and ending with the refrain, "Hail, Bride without bridegroom!" (also translated as "Rejoice, thou Bride unwedded!") In the short oikoi, the seven-line stanza is followed by the refrain, "
Alleluia!"
The Salutations to the Theotokos service, often known by its Greek name, the
Χαιρετισμοὶ/Chairetismoi (from the
Χαιρε/Chaire! so often used in the hymn), consists of
Compline with the Akathist hymn inserted. It is known in Arabic as the
Madayeh.
Icons
There are also several
icons of the Theotokos which are known by the title of "Akathist":
Hilandar
The Icon of the Theotokos "Of the Akathist" is on the
iconostasis of
Hilandar Monastery on
Mount Athos. In
1837 a fire occurred at this monastery, and the monks were chanting the Akathist Hymn in front of this icon. Though the fire caused great destruction around it the icon itself remained untouched by the flames.
The
feast day of the Icon of the Theotokos "Akathist-Hilandar" is celebrated on
January 12 (for those churches which follow the
Julian Calendar January 12 falls on
January 25 of the modern
Gregorian Calendar).
Zographou
A similar icon is venerated in the Monastery of
Zographou, also on Mount Athos. The feast day of the Icon of the Theotokos "Akathist-Zographou" is celebrated on October 10 (October 23).
Further Information
Get more info on 'Akathist'.
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