A psalm or psalms is a form of Christian and Jewish lyric poetry, presented in the form of prayer. Like any other part of the religious cult, the psalms are regulated, and therefore they learn to sing from the first days of their stay in a theological seminary.
Instruction manual
1
Psalms are collected in a psalter. It is a biblical book of the Old Testament, which includes 150 psalms in which various life tests are sung. Psalms are performed during the Jewish liturgy, in Christian services, including in Protestant churches, they are found even in professional music and in oral folklore. Psalms in Christian worship are sung by the choir, rarely a small vocal ensemble in the church. Such songs are performed acapelo. In Christianity, the singing of psalms is regulated, in each psalter the correctness of its performance is indicated, in other words its formulaic melody. However, there are general rules of execution that must be known and followed.
2
Psalms must be performed in the Old Russian language, correctly and clearly pronouncing the words. You need to sing while standing, sitting or on your knees. Silence is obligatory in the hall where the religious text is performed.
3
When reading psalms, it is advisable for women to cover their heads with a scarf, and their clothes should be modest, cover the body, hiding their elbows and legs. If men are involved in singing, they stand only behind women. The psalter itself has four reading rules:
- daily circle
- kafism, - individual reading and life.
4
Reading the daily circle. Each psalm is designed for a specific time of day, which are the basis of the daily cycle. It is believed that the psalms are related to the history of the creation of the world, the time of day, the salvation of the world, or are related to the life path of Jesus Christ, therefore, in the morning, sing the morning psalms in chant, at lunchtime - the creation psalms, in the evening - laudatory, as well as those that talk about the sacrifice of the son of god.
5
Poetic kathisma. The Psalm is divided into 20 kathisma (sections). When performed in a row, several psalms are read, between which additional prayers are performed. The whole Psalter is designed for a week, since each kathisma has its own day of the week.
6
Studying individual psalms is an individual rule. You can choose certain psalms for yourself, but before you sing them and after that you should read special prayers. Also, some psalms can be memorized, used as the basis for their prayers. In a difficult life situation, such psalms will help to find the right path and strengthen the spirit.
7
Reading the scripture of life or knowing it from our own experience is considered the most effective way of reading, since often people who have not read the sacred books lead a more righteous life than preachers.
note
Unlike Orthodox ritual chants, Jewish liturgies are accompanied by psalms, which are performed in the form of songs of a hymnistic character. They are extremely solemn and have exclusively laudatory content.
Useful advice
The priests say that before reading the psalms, you need to familiarize yourself with the history of the time when the psalms were written. This will help you better understand the meaning of these songs. You can read the Bible or other spiritual books. It is also important to understand the reason for writing the psalm in order to discover the secret meaning and to understand the whole necessity of its fulfillment.
