Canon of the Theotokos, in Tone I—

Exapostilarion: Spec. Mel.: “Hearken, ye women…”—

Irmos: Let us all chant a hymn of victory unto God, Who hath wrought marvelous wonders with His upraised arm and saved Israel, for He is glorious.

Katavasia: Christ is born, give ye glory! Christ cometh from heaven, meet ye Him! Christ is on earth, be ye exalted! O all the earth, sing ye unto the Lord, and chant with gladness, O ye people, for He hath been glorified!

Kontakion, in Tone III: Spec. Mel.: “Today the Virgin…”—

Sessional hymn, in Tone VIII: Spec. Mel.: “Of the Wisdom…”—

On the Praises, 6 stichera: 2 stichera idiomela, in Tone I—

Theotokion: The most wicked serpent, instilling in me the desire to make myself equal with the Creator, took me captive; but through thee, O most pure one, I have been restored and truly deified, for thou gavest birth to Him Who hath deified me, O Mother of God.

O pure one who gavest birth to the Abyss of wisdom, by thy grace send down upon me a wellspring which poureth forth drops of wisdom, that I may hymn the abyss of thy grace.

Glory…: Another exapostilarion—

Irmos: Overwhelming power once laid low the whole army of Pharaoh in the deep, and the incarnate Word hath destroyed pernicious sin. All-glorious is the Lord, for gloriously hath He been glorified.

Katavasia: To Christ, the Son Who was begotten of the Father incorruptibly before the ages, and in latter times without seed became incarnate of the Virgin, let us cry aloud: O Lord, Who liftest up our horn, holy art Thou!

Glory…: Another sessional hymn, in the same tone & melody—

Lifting thine eyes unwaveringly toward the heights of understanding, and gazing mystically into the abyss of wisdom, O father, thou hast enriched the world with thy teachings. Pray thou ever to Christ in our behalf, O holy hierarch Nicholas.

Theotokion: Without seed didst thou conceive the Word Who is One of the Trinity, O most immaculate one, and thou gavest birth to Him in the flesh, remaining a virgin after birthgiving, as thou wast before. Ever entreat Him in our behalf, in that He is thy Son and God.

I hymn thee, O most hymned one, whom the ranks of angels hymn as the one who gave birth to the all-hymned God, Whom all creation doth hymn, for He hath been glorified.

Irmos: Christ is born, give ye glory! Christ cometh from heaven, meet ye Him! Christ is on earth, be ye exalted! O all the earth, sing ye unto the Lord, and chant with gladness, ye people, for He hath been glorified!

Katavasia: Rod out of the stem of Jesse, and Branch of his roots, O Christ, Thou didst spring forth from the Virgin; from the mountain overshadowed and densely wooded hast Thou come, incarnate of her that kneweth not man, O Thou praised and immaterial God. Glory to Thy power, O Lord!

O man of God, faithful favorite, performer of His mysteries, man of divine desires, animate pillar and inspired image: the Church of Myra, marvelling, received thee as a divine treasure, an advocate for our souls.

Theotokion: Quell thou the turmoil of my soul, O all-pure one, and guide thou my life, O most holy one who gavest birth to God, in Whom my heart hath been established.

Canon I of the hierarch, the acrostic whereof is: “I chant divine hymnody unto thee, O Nicholas”, the composition of Theophanes, in Tone II—

Irmos: Let my heart be made steadfast in Thy will, O Christ God, Who didst establish the second heaven above the waters and didst found the earth upon the waters, O Almighty One.

Katavasia: As God of peace and Father of mercies, Thou didst send Thine Angel of great counsel, granting us peace. Therefore, guided to the light of the knowledge of God, and, waking at dawn out of the night, we glorify Thee, O Thou Who lovest mankind!

And 4 stichera, in the same tone: Spec. Mel.: “Joy of the ranks of heaven…”—

Theotokion: O Theotokos, thou givest thy servants hope of salvation. Stand forth in thy speedy supplications to preserve and help us amid wants and perils, for thou art the boast of us, the faithful, O Ever-virgin.

Standing, crowned, before the throne of Christ with the angelic armies, O all-wise Nicholas, grant me the enlightenment which illumineth the darkness of my soul, that, rejoicing, I may praise thy memory, O most blessed one.

Irmos: The desert, the barren Church of the nations, blossomed like a lily at Thine advent, O Lord; and therein hath my heart been established.

Katavasia: The sea monster thrust forth, like a babe from the womb, Jonah whom it had swallowed; and the Word, Who dwelt within the Virgin and took flesh of her, came forth, preserving her incorrupt. For, being Himself not subject to corruption, he preserved her that gave Him birth unharmed.

Soaring above the flowers of the Church, like a fledgling of the angelic nest of the Most High, O thrice-blessed Nicholas, thou ever criest out to God in behalf of us who find ourselves amid violent misfortunes and temptations, and thou deliverest us by thy supplications.

Now & ever…: Theotokion—

The Lord Who glorifieth all who glorify Him hath given thee to the faithful as a refuge delivering from perils those who have recourse to thy protection, who call upon thee with faith and love, O Nicholas.

Irmos: To Christ God, the Son Who was begotten of the Father without corruption before time began, and in latter times without seed became incarnate of the Virgin, let us cry aloud: O Lord Who liftest up our horn, holy art Thou!

Katavasia: The children raised together in piety, scorning the impious decree, feared not the threat of the fire; but, standing in the midst of the flame, they sang: O God of our fathers, blessed art Thou!

Thou didst make the beauty of thy priestly vesture yet more splendid through active virtues, O God-bearing father; wherefore, as a hierarch thou dost accomplish wondrous things for us, delivering us from evils, O sacred minister of glorious miracles.

Theotokion: Incarnate, the Master of creation came upon thee, saving me wholly, in that He is compassionate. Wherefore, we, the faithful, glorify thee as Theotokos.

Canon II of the hierarch, the acrostic whereof, excluding the triadica and theotokia, is the [Greek] alphabet, in Tone I—

Irmos: Foreseeing in the Spirit the incarnation of the Word, O Prophet Habbakuk, thou didst announce, crying out: When the years draw nigh, Thou shalt be acknowledged; when the season cometh, Thou shalt be shown forth! Glory to Thy power, O Lord!

Katavasia: The dew-bearing furnace presented an image of a supernatural wonder, for it consumed not the young men whom it had received, as the fire of the Godhead consumed not the Virgin’s womb, wherein it had entered. Wherefore, chanting, let us sing: Let all creation bless the Lord, and exalt Him supremely for all ages!

Passing through the beauties of the invisible ones, thou didst comprehend the awesome glory of the saints, O holy one; wherefore, O most sacred father, thou revealest to us in heavenly words the visions of those who live eternally.

Theotokion: Thou alone art truly more honorable than those on earth and those in heaven, O Theotokos, for thou didst conceive in thy womb the Creator of all, clothed in material flesh, giving birth to Him without seed. O what a new sight!

Though my tongue and lips are at a loss, O Nicholas, I have come to bring this meager praise and entreaty to thy godly excellence; but, as thou art a bestower of riches, render God the Savior merciful to me.

Irmos: Thou didst come forth from the Virgin, neither a mediator nor an angel, but Thyself incarnate, O Lord, and hast saved me, the whole man; wherefore, I cry to thee: Glory to Thy power, O Lord!

Katavasia: A strange and most glorious mystery do I behold: the cave is heaven; the Virgin, the throne of the cherubim; the manger, the place wherein lay Christ God Whom naught can contain, Whom praising, we magnify!

Thou didst stand before the pious emperor in a dream, and didst deliver the prisoners from death, O father. Pray thou unceasingly, that, by thy supplications, we also, who praise thee well, may be delivered from temptations, misfortunes and pain.

Theotokion: That Thou mightest seek out Thine image, which had been buried by the passions, O Savior, hiding from the heavenly hosts, Thou didst appear, incarnate of the Virgin, to those who cry to Thee: We know none other God than Thee!

As a heavenly man thou wast shown to be angelic upon the earth, a ready defender of widows, an avenger of the oppressed, and a helper amid misfortunes for all who are sorrowful, O father Nicholas.

Irmos: A rod from the root of Jesse and blossom therefrom, O Christ, Thou didst spring forth from the Virgin; from the mountain overshadowed and densely wooded hast Thou come, incarnate of her who knew not man, O Thou praised and immaterial God. Glory to Thy power, O Lord!

Glory…, in Tone V—

Theotokion: O pure one, who alone settest salvation and hope before all men and savest them, help us now who cry aloud to thee and ever call upon thee amid grievous circumstances; for we have none other intercessor than thee, after God.

All who are under the sun tell forth the abyss of the wonders of thy virtues, O thrice blessed Nicholas: the poor call thee their intercessor, the orphans and widows their nurturer, the blind their guide, and all men their champion.

Irmos: Shine forth thy radiant and everlasting light upon us who rise early unto the judgments of Thy commandments, O Master Christ our God, Who lovest mankind.

Rejoicing, let us sound the trumpet of festal hymns, let us leap up and join chorus on this the God-bearing father’s prayerful celebration. Let kings and princes come together, and let them hymn him who by his dread appearance in a dream prevailed upon the emperor to release the three warriors who were unjustly imprisoned. O ye teachers and pastors of the good Shepherd, assembling, let us praise the pastor who showed forth love like His. And lauding the great hierarch, the physician of the infirm, the deliverer of those in misfortune, the helper of sinners, the treasure of the poor, the consoler of the sorrowful, the companion of those who travel, the helmsman of those at sea, who fervently anticipateth the needs of all in every place, let us say thus: O all-holy Nicholas, come forth and deliver us from these present tribulations, and save thy flock by thy supplications!

Theotokion: In thee, O Ever-virgin Mother, have I placed my hope of salvation, and thee do I set forth as the steadfast and unshakable intercessor for my life.

Triadicon: I honor the uncreated Trinity—the Father, the Son and the Spirit—the simple Being, the Godhead, the indivisible Essence, which existeth naturally in three Hypostases, distinguished as to Person and Hypostasis.

Irmos: O Christ my Savior, enlightenment of those who lie in darkness and salvation of the despairing: rising early unto Thee, O King of the world, may I be enlightened by Thy radiance, for I know none other God than Thee.

Now & ever…, the composition of Germanus the Patriarch, in the same tone—

Theotokion: Wholly incarnate within thy womb, O all-pure one, Christ God was born without seed; for, unable to endure the sight of the work of His hands tormented by the deceiver, He came in the guise of a servant to deliver the human race.

I hymn the Theotokos as the abode of the King, more pure than the heavens, the truly fragrant garden of paradise emitting the sweet odor of grace, the hope of Christians.

Irmos: As God of peace and Father of compassion, Thou didst send Thine Angel of Great Counsel, Who granteth us peace. Therefore, guided to the light of knowledge divine, and waking at dawn out of the night, we glorify Thee, Who lovest mankind.

Let us sound the trumpet of hymns; for, bowing down from on high, the Virgin Mother, the Queen of all, crowneth with blessings those who hymn her. Let kings and princes come together, and let them clap their hands in hymns before the Queen who gave birth to the King Who, in His love for mankind, hath been well-pleased to loose those held fast by death from of old. Ye pastors and teachers, assembling, let us praise the all-pure Mother of the good Shepherd. And with divinely voiced hymns praising the golden lampstand, the Light-bearing cloud, the animate ark more spacious than the heavens, the fiery throne of the Master, the golden jar which held the Manna, the portal of the Word which is shut, the refuge of all Christians, let us say thus: O palace of the Word, vouchsafe the kingdom of heaven unto us, the lowly; for nought is impossible to thy mediation!

Theotokion: Ask Christ, thy Son and God, O Virgin Theotokos, for those sold under grievous transgressions and the deceptions of the serpent, that they may be delivered by His precious Blood who chant: Blessed art Thou, O God of our fathers!

At the word of the archangel thou gavest birth to the Word Who by His word hath brought all nature, rational and irrational, into being, and Who delivereth men from irrationality, O most blessed one.

Irmos: Emulating the Prophet Jonah, I cry out: O Good One, free me from corruption! O Savior of the world, save me who cry out: Glory to Thee!

Theotokion: As thou art more exalted than all other creatures, O Theotokos, entreat thy Son and God, that those who truly honor and glorify thee may be delivered from torments, crying: O God of our fathers, blessed art Thou!

O blessed Nicholas, as thou art the true disciple of the Master, thou savest those who have recourse to thee from grievous misfortunes and bitter death.

Irmos: Whirled about in the abyss of sin, I call upon the unfathomable abyss of Thy loving-kindness: Lead me up from corruption, O God!

Theotokion: My mind now faileth, having fallen into the abyss of impiety, for I am beset on every side by divers evils; yet do thou heal me, O Virgin, clothing me in the light of dispassion.

Cleanse thy servants, granting them remission of sins, in that Thou art good, through the mediations before Thee of Nicholas, Thy favorite, O greatly Merciful One.

Irmos: The sea monster thrust forth, like a babe from the womb, Jonah whom it had swallowed; and the Word, Who dwelt within the Virgin and took flesh of her, issued forth, preserving her incorrupt. He kept her who gave Him birth unharmed, for He Himself was not subject to corruption.

Theotokion: Of old on Mount Saint, the bush prefigured a strange mystery, O pure Maiden, burning without being consumed, depicting the mystery of thy birthgiving; for the fire of the Godhead which dwelt within thee preserved thee unharmed. Him do we magnify for all ages.

Having acquired in thy heart tablets inscribed with many virtues by the immortal and all-pure finger of Christ God, O Nicholas, sweetness greater than that of honey or the honey-comb poureth forth from thy lips.

Irmos: The furnace was bedewed, O Savior, and the children, dancing, chanted: O God of our fathers, blessed art Thou!

Theotokion: O pure Mother of God, thou gavest birth to the Wisdom, Power and hypostatic Word of the Father, Who built the temple of His body with thine all-pure blood, and joined Himself inseparably to it by unification.

Grace all-gloriously showed forth miracles in thee, O Nicholas, for thy pure life, truly more lustrous than gold, illumineth benighted souls with the radiance of the divine Spirit.

Irmos: When the golden image was worshipped on the plain of Dura, Thy three youths spurned the ungodly command, and, cast into the midst of the fire, bedewed, they sang: Blessed art Thou, O God of our fathers!

Theotokion: All grief hath been abolished by thy birthgiving, and the Lord hath taken away lamentation, weeping, and each tear from the face of every mortal, O pure Theotokos who knewest not wedlock. In thee do we also fulfill our debt.

Thou livest even after death, manifestly appearing in dreams, and thou didst all-gloriously deliver the young men from death, crying aloud to the emperor: “Do no harm to these men, who have been slandered by vainglorious jealousy!”

Irmos: The children raised together in piety, disdaining the ungodly command, feared not the threat of the fire, but, standing in the midst of the flame, they chanted: O God of our fathers, blessed art Thou!

Now & ever…: Theotokion—

Triadicon: Be merciful, O most Holy Trinity our God, unto me who have defiled my life with immeasurable transgressions, O Father, Son and living Spirit, Who preservest me wholly and ever unwounded by sorrow.

Irmos: Him of Whom the angels and all the hosts of heaven stand in awe as their Creator and Lord, hymn, ye priests; glorify, ye children; bless, ye people, and exalt Him supremely for all ages!

Having ascended to the summit of the virtues and been illumined by the divine splendors of miracles therefrom, O father, thou wast truly shown to be an all-radiant pastor for the world, and an invincible intercessor for us amid perils. Wherefore, having all-gloriously vanquished the enemy, thou didst drive falsehood away and didst save men from sin. O Nicholas, entreat Christ God, that He grant remission of sins unto those who with love honor thy holy memory.

Irmos: God, Who descended into the fiery furnace for the Hebrew children and transformed the flame into dew, hymn ye as Lord, O ye works, and exalt Him supremely for all ages!

The Abyss of mercy hath shown thee to be a river pouring forth healings in abundance and an inexhaustible wellspring of miracles, O Nicholas; for those who are bitterly afflicted with grievous ailments and cruelly tormented by the vexations of life truly find the curative healing of all suffering in thy fervent defense. Wherefore, we cry aloud to thee: Entreat Christ God, that He grant remission of transgressions unto those who with love celebrate thy holy memory.

Irmos: The dew-bearing furnace showed forth the image of a supernatural wonder; for it burned not the youths whom it had received, just as the fire of the Godhead burned not the Virgin, whose womb it entered. Wherefore, chanting, let us sing: Let all creation bless the Lord and exalt Him supremely for all ages!

All of us, the generations of men, bless thee as the Virgin who, alone among women, gavest birth without seed to God in the flesh; for the fire of the Godhead made His abode within thee, and thou didst nurture the Creator and Lord with milk as a babe. Wherefore, we, the race of angels and men, cry out to thee together: Entreat Christ God, that He grant remission of offenses unto those who with faith worship thine all-holy birthgiving.

Irmos: O ye faithful, let us magnify the Theotokos, the ever-flowing, life-receiving wellspring, the light-bearing lamp of grace, the animate temple, the all-pure tabernacle which is more spacious than heaven and earth.

Eve became the cause of death for mortals through the counsel of the serpent; but thou, O pure Virgin who at the angel’s word gavest birth to the Word, hast been shown to be the mediatress of immortality and life. Wherefore, we hymn thee as is meet.

Irmos: God the Lord, the Son of the unoriginate Father, hath revealed Himself to us incarnate of the Virgin, to enlighten those in darkness and to gather the dispersed. Wherefore, we magnify the all-hymned Theotokos.

Foreseeing thee in the Spirit as the mountain, the gate, the table, the holy ark, the lampstand, the throne of Life, the jar and couch, O pure one, the prophets revealed thee beforehand in indistinct images, the fulfillment of which we behold.

Irmos: A strange and most glorious mystery do I behold: the cave is heaven; the Virgin, the throne of the cherubim; the manger, the place wherein lay Christ God, Whom naught can contain, Whom praising, we magnify.

Having in purity drawn nigh to the rays of the Spirit, thou becamest a light-bearer, illumining the ends of the world, interceding for all, and saving all who have recourse to thee with faith.

As of old thou didst appear, delivering the young men from death, O venerable Nicholas, so now save me from every evil circumstance, from perils and misfortunes, O most blessed one.

Thou didst shine forth with the effulgence of the virtues, O most blessed one, as a most excellent emulator of thy Master; and, invoked, thou savest those who glorify thee with reverence and love.

At the mere invocation of thy name, those who call upon thee are truly delivered with all speed from all the counsels of the enemy, O sacred Nicholas. As of old thou didst deliver the soldiers, so also save us from every grievous circumstance.

Standing before the throne of God, cease thou never to make earnest supplication in behalf of all of us, thy faithful servants, O wise and wondrous Nicholas, that we may be delivered from everlasting fire, from the enemy, from the wicked tongue, and from affliction.

Thou dost everywhere pour forth healings upon those who have recourse to thee, and deliverest all from bondage. Wherefore, by thy supplications which are acceptable to God, transform our grief into joy, O all-radiant Nicholas, casting down the pridefulness of our enemies.

Triadicon: I honor and venerate the principality of the unoriginate Godhead—the Father, the Son, and the most Holy Spirit—which accomplisheth all things, is one, indivisible, ever distinguished in three characters and Persons: the single undivided Kingship.

O honored Mistress, thou didst contain God Almighty like the ark of holiness, like the holy throne of fire, like a sanctified palace.

O only all-pure one, among virgins thou hast been shown to be a Mother who knew not man, and among mothers a virgin; for thou didst ineffably give birth to God Who rewardeth nature.

Enlightened by a godly life, O thrice blessed one, standing forth thou didst deliver those condemned by an unjust sentence to death, who cried to Christ God: We know none other God than Thee!

Now beholding everlasting glory in the heavens, and delighting in the most splendid effulgence of ineffable and divine radiance, protect me by thine intercessions, O venerable and most honorable favorite of Christ.

The great metropolis of Myra, the province of Lycia, and all the parts of thy homeland, proclaim thy wonders and miracles, whereby thou deliverest all from pain and sorrow, O divinely blessed father Nicholas.

As the feeder of wisdom and father of orphans, the most excellent help of those in sorrow, the consolation of the grieving, the shepherd and guide of all the lost, O Nicholas, by thy supplications deliver us from misfortunes.

Thou hast passed over from earth to the immaterial mansions, where thou dost gaze upon the ineffable beauty of Christ, and hast been shown to be a converser with the angelic armies. Wherefore, joining chorus with the apostles and martyrs, earnestly pray for us to the Master of all, O father Nicholas.

Triadicon: I manifestly glorify the three independent Persons of the one, indivisible Godhead, equally unoriginate and equally enthroned, by Whom I have been brought out of oblivion into existence; and with the angels I cry: Holy, Holy, Holy art Thou, O Lord!

O help of the faithful and joyful gladness of the grieving, with spiritual joy enrich thy servants, who desire thine aid.

Let the noetic heaven, the all-pure temple, the holy ark, the most beautiful paradise of God, wherein the Tree of my life doth stand, be hymned!

The crown of victory hath fittingly been placed upon thy head, O Nicholas. As thou art a most excellent victor, save those who call upon thee.

Appearing, O blessed one, save me who am slain by transgressions and engulfed by the threefold billows of the passions, and lead me to the harbor of the will of God.

Thou hast been shown to be a new Abraham, O Nicholas, for, ever offering up the unbloody sacrifice, thou didst bring thy mind to thy Master as if it were thine only-begotten son; wherefore, thou wast blessed as a lover of strangers, O father, and becamest the divine and immaculate habitation of the Trinity.

Thou workest strange and awesome miracles, O Nicholas, interceding in thy speedy supplications for those in peril throughout the earth and far out upon the sea, showing thyself to the faithful as a physician of the sick, a feeder of the poor, and the namesake of victory over the enemy.

Foreseeing things yet to come with the eye of thy mind, thou didst fill all the ends of the earth with right doctrines, and, declaring to us that the Son is consubstantial with the Father, thou didst set at nought the savagery of Arius, O pillar of the Orthodox Faith, setting forth thine honored corrections.

Triadicon: I venerate and honor the indivisible Trinity, which is ever distinguished in three Persons, and united in essence and nature, as a single Principle: the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit, Who with might hath dominion over all and preserveth all things as He desireth.

In Myra thou wast shown to be a performer of the sacred mysteries, O holy one, for, fulfilling the Gospel of Christ, thou didst lay down thy life for thy people, O venerable one, and didst save the innocent from death. Wherefore, thou hast been sanctified as a great initiate of the grace of God.

Ikos: With songs let us now hymn the holy hierarch, the pastor and teacher of the people of Myra, that we may be enlightened by his prayers. For, lo! he hath been shown to be wholly pure, incorrupt of spirit, offering to Christ the immaculate and pure sacrifice which is right acceptable to God, as a hierarch pure in soul and body. Wherefore, as a true intercessor of the Church and champion thereof, he is a great initiate of the grace of God.

The Most High hath shown thee, O pure one, to be an animate heaven, a bridal-chamber surrounded with grace, a royal robe inwoven with gold, a garden of paradise.

Make steadfast the inconstancy of my mind, and by thy protection establish my turbulent thoughts upon an immovable rock, O Virgin Mother.

Into precipitous temptation have I fallen, and am grievously pierced; I have drawn nigh unto the gates of hell and am wounded by sorrows. Save me by thy supplications, O blessed one, and raise me up who chant: Blessed art Thou, O God of our fathers!

Illumined with the immaterial rays of the never-waning Light, rescue the afflicted who find themselves in the darkness of tribulations, and guide to the light of gladness those who chant: Blessed art Thou, O God of our fathers!

Having been shown to be a most excellent physician of all manner of grievous ailments, and having healed the infirmity of my soul, O father Nicholas, grant me goodly health, that I may cry: O God of our fathers, blessed art Thou!

Having of old delivered the warriors from death, O holy one, thou didst raise them up to hymn and glorify Christ with ardent faith; and they cried aloud: O God of our fathers, blessed art Thou!

Having mystically approached the cup of wisdom, O father Nicholas, from thy lips thou didst let fall rain-drops sweeter than honey or the honey-comb, commanding the people to cry aloud: O God of our fathers, blessed art Thou!

Triadicon: We hymn Thee, O Trinity, Thou thrice-effulgent consubstantial Unity—Father, Son and Holy Spirit. And having been baptized thereinto, we chant: O God of our fathers, blessed art Thou!

O Virgin, thou hast been shown to be an animate bridal-chamber and an inspired mantle of scarlet, the embroidered cloak of the King of all, and the purple robe, from whom the flesh of the Word and God-man shone forth.

Ineffably, incomprehensibly, thou didst conceive God the Creator, Who holdeth all creation in the palm of His hand, Who for our sake became a man like us, without forsaking that which He was.

As thou art good and compassionate, O blessed Nicholas, free those who are grievously stuck in the abyss of perils, granting them release from the evils which hold them, by thy supplications to Christ the Savior, O initiate of the sacred mysteries.

As thou art a mystogogue of things which pass understanding, the minister of things holy and celestial, and a faithful hierarch, O divinely wise one, ask our Savior for remission of transgressions, O thou who art manifest in sanctity.

The ranks of the patriarchs and apostles, the assemblies of the hieromartyrs, the company of prophets and the whole council of fasters bless thy godly life; and with them we also cry aloud: Let all creation bless the Lord and exalt Him supremely for all ages!

O Most High, O Word, Thou King of all, great in might! Through the supplications of the venerable pastor grant peace to the life of all Christians, aiding our Orthodox hierarchs in the struggle against heresy, that with him we may cry out to Christ: Let all creation bless the Lord and exalt Him supremely for all ages!

Illumined with light unapproachable, O father, thou shinest upon the souls of those in tribulation, dispelling all the gloomy darkness of perils, and enlightening our hearts with gladness. And illumined thereby from afar, we cry aloud: Let all creation bless the Lord and exalt Him supremely for all ages!

Triadicon: Following the truly divine teachings of the fathers, with faith we hymn the Trinity—the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit—the Life and Lives, the One and Three Lights. And with them we piously chant: Let all creation bless the Lord and exalt Him supremely for all ages!

A stream of thy grace do thou pour forth upon me who am consumed by the flame of afflictions and grievously waste away, O wellspring who pourest forth in abundance and gavest birth to the River of grace, which, when we drink thereof, we thirst no more.

O Mistress of all, save me who entreat thee as the beautiful chamber of the Bridegroom, the animate palace of the Master, the golden robe, the most comely habitation of Christ.

Enlightened by lamps of grace, O divinely wise one, thou didst manifestly become a lamp of piety: thou savest those in danger, deliverest those who are out upon the deep of the sea, and all-gloriously feedest the hungry, O most blessed one.

Dwelling now in the sweetness of paradise, and clearly beholding ineffable glory, thou lookest down from the circles of heaven upon those who hymn thee, delivering them from sufferings, O most blessed God-bearer.

O ye who love the feasts of the Church, let us all join chorus in spirit. Ye heavens, ye mountains and hills, ye choirs of virgins and of the Church, ye splendor of fasters: rejoice at the memorial of the most blessed one; and, assembling together thereon, let us magnify the Savior.

With hymns let all the ends of the earth chant unceasingly, manifestly adorning the head of Nicholas, the favorite of Christ God, with wreaths of praise. Through his supplications may we be delivered from sufferings and misfortunes.

O Nicholas, accept this meager effort as fitting hymnody, as Christ accepted the widow’s two mites. Disdain not one accursed with passions, for it is not out of pride that I have presumed, O thrice-blessed one.

Triadicon: The Trinity is united in consubstantial will, yet it is indivisibly distinguished as to Persons—the Father, the Son and the living Spirit—the one God in three Hypostases, ever preserving the might of Him, Whom we magnify.

Let us all praise Nicholas, the great archpastor, hierarch and prelate of Myra; for he saved many men who were unjustly condemned to execution, appearing to the emperor and to Ablavius in a dream, annulling the unjust verdict.

The Lord glorified thee greatly in miracles, both during thy life and after thine end, O hierarch Nicholas; for whenever anyone, out of love for the Faith, doth but call upon thy holy name, he is straightway heard, and findeth thee a fervent intercessor.

Having given birth to Christ, the hypostatic Wisdom, the transcendent Word, the Physician of all, O Virgin, heal thou the grievous and long-standing wounds of my soul, and slay thou the passionate thoughts of my heart.

Great Doxology. Troparion. Litanies. Dismissal. First Hour.