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The Little Prayer

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We often speak about growing in prayer, about developing our lives of prayer. But what does it mean to grow in prayer? How do we do it? This is, of course, an inexhaustible question. Every person's life of prayer is different, just as every person is different. Everyone grows in prayer differently, even though there are certain 'landmarks' along the way that are similar for everyone. The following is a little hymn about prayer. Some sources attribute it to St. Paisios of the Holy Mountain. The theme of this hymn is the Jesus Prayer, and how it descends from your mind into your heart when you pray it with humility and stillness. I have offered here my feeble attempts at a translation of this hymn, which I have not found elsewhere in English.     Η Ευχούλα - The Little Prayer Eίναι η έρημος πικρά μα θα γίνει και γλυκιά όταν λεω τη ευχη με ταπείνωση πολύ It is a bitter desert, but will become also sweet When I say the prayer with great humility. Θεέ μου δως μου αντοχή για να