Saint Theophan the Recluse

How to Learn to Pray

Name: How to Learn to Pray
Author: Saint Theophan the Recluse

Modern translation

19th c. · Treatises & Other · English translation, 2026

Read in English

Introduction
1. What is Prayer
2. Prayer is the Center of Christian Life
3. Prayer as the Measure of Our Spiritual Being
4. Prayer as Fruit and Attractor of the Spirit
5. Prayer as a Spiritual Barometer
6. Labor in Prayer
7. On Reading Sacred Books
8. On Reading the Gospel
9. On the Same
10. How to Read the Divine Books
11. On the Same (11)
12. How to Read the Psalms
13. On Reading and Memorizing the Psalter
14. On Memorizing Psalms
15. On Reading Canons
16. Read for Edification
17. What to Read About Prayer
18. On Church Services
19. On the Importance of Going to Church
20. Frequent the Temple of God
21. Come to Church as Often as You Can
22. On the Importance of Church Services
23. How to Conduct Yourself at Church Services
24. If We Do Not Hear or Understand the Church Service
25. If We Cannot Attend Church Services
26. What Hinders Progress in Prayer
27. On Idle Speech
28. To Progress in Prayer One Must Adorn the Heart With Virtues
29. Beware of Turning Toward Righteousness
30. One Must Establish in Oneself the Thought of One's Own Sinfulness
31. Do Not Measure Yourself
32. One Must Write Down One's Thoughts
33. One Must Hide One's Spiritual Labors
34. On the Same (34)
35. What is Chief in Prayer
36. Remember That the Lord is Near
37. Infancy in Prayer
38. The Power is Not in the Form
39. On the Habit of Walking Before God
40. Remember God
41. Standing in the Heart With Attention Before the Lord
42. Above All, Care for Prayer-filled Feelings
43. How to Keep Your Thoughts and Feelings Turned Toward God
44. On the Importance of Attention to God
45. The Path to a Prayerful State
46. How to Rise to God in Thoughts
47. Become Accustomed to Walking in the Presence of God
48. Acquire the Unceasing Habit of Standing Before the Lord
49. The Labor of Remembering God
50. The Chief Thing in Prayer—feeling Toward God
51. On the Inner Fire
52. On the Burning of the Heart Toward the Lord
53. On Reverence and the Fear of God
54. Never Approach God Carelessly
55. The Test of All Prayer
56. What Should Be Sought Through Prayer
57. The Chief Thing in Prayer is the Arising of Reverent Feelings
58. On Prayer With Feeling
59. One Must Develop Prayer of the Heart
60. How to Teach the Soul to Turn Often to God
61. Meditation on God or the Jesus Prayer
62. On the Labor of Prayer
63. Force Yourself to Pray
64. When Prayer Does Not Go Well
65. Pray More Frequently and More Earnestly
66. Constrain Yourself by Force to Stand Before God
67. On Mercilessness to Oneself and Complete Surrender to God
68. Strive to Form a Wound in Your Heart
69. You Must Pray for a Long Time
70. If You Are Tired Toward Evening
71. How to Learn to Pray
72. You Must Pester the Lord
73. Unceasing Prayer—a Gift of Grace
74. A Pure Conscience and Labor Are Needed
75. On Prostrations, Attention, and Church Services
76. Prayer Never Goes to Waste
77. The Chief Thing—do Not Be Lazy and Always Pray From the Heart
78. On Attention
79. For Success in Prayer You Must Attend to Yourself
80. On the Same Subject
81. Always Strive to Pray Well
82. The Mind Must Be Kept in the Heart
83. You Must Return Your Attention
84. Keep Your Attention on the Words of the Prayer
85. The Purpose of Short Prayers
86. On Prostrations and Distraction
87. Never Read Prayers Hastily
88. Recite Your Prayers Slowly
89. Make it a Law Not to Hurry
90. You Must Come Down With Your Attention Into the Heart
91. On the Fruits of Prayer
92. How to Pray Amidst Many Tasks
93. Establish Yourself in Attention Before God in the Morning
94. On Unceasing Prayer in Spirit
95. You Must Always Maintain Prayer
96. Prayer Through Deeds
97. On Prayer Without Words
98. Do Not Part With Prayer Amidst All Your Tasks
99. Do Not Be Weighed Down by Worldly Cares
100. How to Establish Home Prayer
101. When Weary From Conversation
102. How to Perform Your Prayer Rule
103. The First Way of Ascent in the Heart to God
104. On Prayer for Beginners
105. Beginners Should Pray From the Prayer Book
106. Without a Prayer Rule, Prayer is Not Complete
107. Preparation for Prayer
108. The Actual Performance of Prayer
109. Reading From a Book Greatly Scatters Attention
110. Read Less From Prayer Books
111. When to Perform the Evening Rule
112. What to Do in the Intervals Between Sleep
113. Do Not Count the End of Prayer as the End of Prayer
114. What to Do After Prayer
115. Can the Prayer Rule Be Shortened?
116. When it is Impossible to Read All the Rule
117. If We Cannot Sustain the Rule Due to Weakness
118. Never Bind Yourself to the Rule
119. The Rule Can Be Changed by Whoever Established It
120. On Bows
121. Prayer From the Heart Must Accompany the Bows
122. On Prostrations and Fear of God
123. How Many Prostrations to Do
124. On Prostrations
125. On Prostrations and the Quantity of Prayers
126. How to Transition to Praying in Your Own Words
127. Every Rule is Good
128. On Prayer From a Book
129. The Rule Can Be Changed
130. On the Prayer Rule and Prostrations
131. Don't Be a Slave to the Rule
132. The Rule Should Be Handled Freely
133. Externals in the Rules Can Be Changed
134. How to Compose Your Own Rule
135. Beginning to Pray in Your Own Words
136. Example of a Prayer Rule
137. How to Compose Your Own Rule (137)
138. How to Compose Your Prayer to the Lord
139. Another Example of a Prayer Rule
140. On Brief Prayers Instead of Reading From a Prayer Book
141. On the Prayers of Saint John Chrysostom
142. On Brief Prayers
143. On the Same Subject (143)
144. On the Same Subject (144)
145. On the Same Subject (145)
146. On the Same Subject (146)
147. On the Same Subject (147)
148. On the Same Subject (148)
149. On the Same Subject (149)
150. On the Same Subject (150)
151. On Spiritual Indolence and Coldness Toward Prayer
152. Counsel for the Case of Coldness and Lack of Feeling
153. Why Coldness Toward Prayer Happens
154. You Must Kindle Zeal
155. Do Not Withdraw Your Attention From the Lord
156. You Must Restore Inner Fervor
157. When Distracted
158. When Prayer Grows Cold
159. On Sluggishness in Prayer
160. Counsels on the Jesus Prayer
161. Beginners Have No Need for a Jesus Prayer Rule
162. Endeavor to Acquire the Habit of Brief Prayer
163. The Jesus Prayer—flower and Fruit
164. The Vestibule to Prayer
165. The Straight Path in Prayer
166. The Jesus Prayer is Mighty Through the Name of the Lord
167. The Essence of the Jesus Prayer is in Meditation on God
168. The Essence of Prayer-work
169. The Goal of Prayer – to Warm the Heart With Love for God
170. On Zealous Prayer
171. Stand With Attention in Your Heart
172. The Words of Prayer – Not the Main Thing, but an Instrument
173. The Power of Prayer Lies Not at All in Words
174. On the Same Topic
175. A Good End – From God's Grace
176. How to Fulfill the Prayer Lesson
177. How to Learn the Jesus Prayer
178. The Jesus Prayer in Full and in Parts
179. On the Number of Prayers
180. On the Number of Bows
181. On Impulses Toward Prayer
182. Should You Pray the Jesus Prayer in the Church?
183. On the Prayer Rope
184. On the Impulse Toward Solitude and Silence
185. One Must Cast Out All Images
186. God Cannot Be Represented in Images
187. One Must Pray Without Images
188. In Prayer One Must Not Construct Images
189. Drive Away All Images
190. What Images You Must Fear
191. On Spiritual Delusion
192. On Bodily Weakness From Prayer
193. On Heaviness Appearing in the Head
194. On Irritability
195. On Physical Sensations During Prayer
196. On Artificial Methods of Prayer
197. On External Methods of Prayer
198. On Mechanical Methods of Performing Prayer
199. On Methods in Prayer and the Gift of Grace
200. On the Artistic Form of Practicing Prayer
201. On External Methods of Performing the Jesus Prayer
202. Prayer is Salvation; Artistry is Harm
203. The Danger is Not the Jesus Prayer, but the Artistry
204. On the Quirks of Practitioners of the Jesus Prayer
205. On the Same (205)
206. On Spiritual Warmth and Physical Warmth
207. Degrees of Prayer
208. More on the Degrees of Prayer
209. The Jesus Prayer, Spoken, Noetic, and Prayer of the Heart
210. The Jesus Prayer, Noetic Prayer, and Noetic Practice
Persons
Illustration Credits

Contents