The Jesus Prayer, Noetic Prayer, and Noetic Practice

You must pour your heart into every work, and it must be a God-fearing heart. For the heart to be in a state of God-fearing, it must constantly be overshadowed by remembrance of God. Remembrance of God will be the door through which the soul enters into active life. All labor now must be directed toward thinking of God without ceasing, or walking in God’s presence (Seek God, seek his face continually (Ps. 104:4)). This is where watchfulness and noetic prayer stand. God is everywhere: act so that your thought too may be everywhere with God.

How then can we do this? Thoughts swarm like gnats in their columns, and above the thoughts are the feelings of the heart. To attach the thought to the one thing, the elders had the custom of becoming accustomed to uninterrupted recitation of a short prayer; from habit and frequent repetition this prayer so stuck to the tongue that it repeated itself. Through this the thought became attached to the prayer, and through it to remembrance of God, ceaseless. After the habit was formed, prayer bound remembrance of God, and remembrance of God bound prayer; and they mutually supported one another. This is walking before God.

Various short prayers were used—one “God, be merciful to me,” another “God, come to my aid,” another “I am human and have sinned; you are God and merciful—have mercy on me.” But later everyone preferred one prayer—the Jesus Prayer: “Lord Jesus Christ, have mercy on me, a sinner!” They became accustomed to repeating it and with it keeping remembrance of God. You see now where the Jesus Prayer stands and what its significance is? By itself it is not noetic, but spoken, external, like all other written prayers, and is a means to noetic prayer, when someone, standing with it before the Lord, prays to Him. Likewise it is not noetic practice, but the same practice as church or home prayer-reading prayer-book style. Noetic prayer is when someone, having become established in attention in the heart, from there sends forth prayer to God. Noetic practice is when someone, standing in attention in the heart with remembrance of the Lord, keeps out every other thought trying to enter the heart.

Now I think you yourself will resolve many of your misunderstandings. By noetic prayer you mean the Jesus Prayer: “Lord Jesus Christ, have mercy on me.” But after the explanations given, you see that this is not noetic prayer, but spoken prayer, and you can practice it without fear, just as you learned any other prayer. Whether you sit or walk or do something else, repeat this prayer, and that’s all—you will become skilled in it, and it will repeat itself on your tongue by itself. No harm is foreseen in this.

Noetic prayer is when you, standing in the heart in attention, call out to the Lord, and ask Him, or repent, or give thanks, or glorify Him. In this action too there is no danger; such prayer serves as a guard to itself. For here the Lord is present, if you turn to Him with faith. In this very hour you can try this in deed.

Practice, practice, and not only when you sit alone in your cell, but everywhere: in church, at the table, and when you walk. Only take care that there is remembrance of the Lord here, and not merely words.

What the schema monk Basil said about setting aside singing for noetic prayer applies to recluses and to those people in whom noetic prayer has unfolded and become unceasing. They can do all things instead of church services and personal prayer rule. But here we are not speaking of repetition of the Jesus Prayer, but of unceasing prayer-like ascent of prayer-filled cries from the heart. I read how it is said of one elder that he could continue his prayer-reading only until the first “Glory” (from the Psalter), and then entered into heart prayer and prayed without words. The reading of the prayer then ceases of itself. Thus setting aside singing does not apply to us with you; we must maintain church services and fulfill what is appointed for personal prayer-reading.

When unceasing heart prayer is formed, then you will see how to proceed. You ask for a blessing for your inner work. God will bless! But clarify for yourself what the matter is here: become accustomed to practicing the Jesus Prayer so that it sticks to your tongue, but always with thought of the Lord. If while doing this you sigh to the Lord from the heart, this will be noetic prayer, not the words of the Jesus Prayer. If, having stood in attention in the heart before the Lord and practicing the Jesus Prayer, you keep out from the heart every other thought and feeling, this will be noetic practice.

(Letter 240. Vol. 2, pp. 55–58)