Written by: Catechist Branislav Ilić
From the Sunday of the Publican and the Pharisee, the liturgical book Triodion comes into use. In many monasteries on Mount Athos, there exists a venerable tradition wherein the ecclesiarch (a monk responsible for the care of the church during and outside of services) places a small table before the principal icon of Christ at the beginning of Vespers and lays the Triodion upon it. After the Kathisma is read, the Canonarch approaches the table where the Triodion rests, makes a deep prostration, venerates the icon of Christ, and, after another prostration, takes the Triodion to the right choir, where the service continues as usual. Following Vespers, the brethren exchange the customary greeting: Blessed is the Triodion. This Athonite liturgical practice, among other things, testifies to the Triodion being one of the most beloved liturgical books.
The Triodion (Τριώδιον) is fundamentally a hymnological book that, in addition to the preparatory weeks, contains the services for the six weeks of the Holy and Great Lent, as well as the services of the Great (Passion) Week, concluding with Vespers of Holy Saturday and the first part of the Paschal Vigil. Following the model of the Menaia, Old Testament readings from the Paroimienik (lectionary) were incorporated into the Triodion for each day, along with Synaxaria for every Sunday and other significant days of this sacred period, written by Nikephoros Kallistos Xanthopoulos. Some editions also include the Apostolos and Gospels for this period.
The name Triodion is derived from its most distinctive element—the tripesnii (τριόδια), or three-ode canons (four odes on Saturdays), composed by the Studite hymnographers Theodore and Joseph. These tripesnii were also present in the services of the Pentecostarion period, which is why the entire movable liturgical cycle up to Pentecost was initially referred to as Triodion, as was the book containing these services, which was divided into the Lenten Triodion (Penitential Triodion) and the Floral Triodion (Joyful Triodion). Over time, the latter Triodion came to be referred to as the Pentecostarion (Πεντηκοστάριον), as the use of tripesnii during this period ceased.
The moment that marks the transition from the use of one book to another is midnight on Holy Saturday, with the Matins of Pascha being the first service in the Pentecostarion. This division into two separate volumes, made for practical reasons, should not lead us to overlook the essential unity between the Lord’s Crucifixion and His Resurrection, which together constitute one indivisible act. Just as the Crucifixion and the Resurrection form a single, unified event, so too the three holy days (triduum sanctum)—Great Friday, Great Saturday, and Paschal Sunday—constitute a singular liturgical rite. The division of the Lenten Triodion and Pentecostarion into two books was not customary before the 11th century, as early manuscripts contain both sections within a single volume.
The Triodion preserves the oldest system of reading the odes of the canon, in which three odes were read at Matins instead of the usual nine, ensuring that all nine odes were read once per week, following a pattern similar to that of the Psalter. It also contains ancient hymns and liturgical customs that have otherwise been lost in other parts of the liturgical year. Within it, one can discern multiple layers of liturgical development, including both the ancient Jerusalemite tradition and the later Constantinopolitan tradition, as well as clear Studite interventions (from the monks of the Studion Monastery). Although many church hymnographers contributed to its formation and expansion, the hymnography of the Triodion was especially influenced by the selection of Gospel readings, primarily based on the choices originally made in Jerusalem.
A highlight of the Triodion is the Great Canon chanted at Matins on the Thursday of the fifth week of Lent, with one troparion for each verse of each ode, including thirty-one stichera at Vespers. This marks the longest service in the entire liturgical year.
A fundamental characteristic of the hymnography of the Triodion is its pronounced focus on the theme of repentance. Virtually no liturgical service during this multi-week period is devoid of a distinctive aroma of contrition and repentance. The weekdays of the Lenten period, from Monday to Friday, guide us in our fasting by directing our attention to our own spiritual failures and the need for correction. Particularly significant are the tripesnii, short poetic compositions used in Matins, consisting of three odes, each with several strophes—this feature is what gave the Triodion its name. Through numerous troparia and stichera found in the Triodion, church hymnographers sing about themes related to fasting, repentance, and other aspects of the ecclesial experience.
During the Triodion period, Saturdays are dedicated to prayers for the departed. The Church reminds us that fasting, as a time of self-correction in accordance with the fundamental Christian commandments of love for God and neighbor, also calls us to one of the most essential Christian endeavors—prayer and almsgiving for the departed. As throughout the rest of the year, Sundays during the Great Fast remain dedicated to the celebration of Christ’s Resurrection. The hymns of the Triodion sung on the Sundays of Lent serve as poetic expositions of the scriptural passages read on those days, or they commemorate particular saints and events celebrated during those weeks.
From this brief overview of the Triodion‘s contents, we see that the liturgical rhythm of the Church is directed toward a structured program of theological education and practical spiritual formation, based on the authentic ecclesial experience of the Fathers, developed over centuries. The hymnography of the Triodion is primarily penitential in character, yet within it shines the joy of Pascha. Thus, in a sticheron chanted on the first Monday of the Great Fast, the hymnographer calls us with these words:
“Let us brightly begin the all-honorable abstinence, which shines forth with the rays of the holy commandments of Christ our God— with the light of love, the brilliance of prayer, the cleansing of purity, and the steadfastness of courage—so that in radiance we may behold the holy and three-day Resurrection, which illumines the world with incorruption.”
As previously emphasized, the hymns of the Triodion are inseparable from the scriptural readings, serving as their liturgical and theological interpretation. It is no coincidence, therefore, that the hymnography of the Triodion is deeply inspired by biblical examples. One such sticheron exhorts us to virtuous living by recalling the exhortations of the Apostle Paul:
“Now is the acceptable time, now is the day of salvation! Let us offer unto God the gifts of virtue, and having cast off the works of darkness, let us clothe ourselves, brethren, in the armor of light, as Paul proclaims.”
As we stand in the preparatory weeks of the Great Fast, let us embrace the Triodion and its divinely inspired hymnography. This sacred liturgical book is not merely a book of fasting, as many liturgists rightly call it, but also a precious guide for traversing the spiritual desert of Great Lent that lies ahead. Together with the Church hymnographer, let us lift our voices and sing with our souls:
“Let us begin the season of fasting, preparing ourselves for the spiritual struggles ahead. Let us cleanse both soul and body. Let us abstain not only from food but from all sinful passions, delighting instead in the virtues of the Spirit. That by growing in them with love, we may all be deemed worthy, in spiritual joy, to behold the most honorable Passion of Christ our God and His holy Resurrection.”
