People who have only recently joined faith in God often have questions related to the design of their home iconostasis. In accordance with the centuries-old Orthodox tradition, in every house, be it a peasant hut or a boyar's mansion, icons were located in the corner, which was called red, and the presence of icons seemed to fill the house with a feeling of goodness and spiritual purity. Now this tradition is gradually being restored, which is of great importance, but new converts have many questions. Let's try to answer the most common questions about home iconostasis.
In what corner are icons placed in the room?
According to Orthodox tradition, this should be the south-eastern corner of the room, but if the room is too small, then you can place the icons in a free corner or against the wall. The main thing is that there are no secular objects next to them (paintings, posters, posters, calendars, etc.).
So, we found out where the icons should be in the house. Just stand, because according to tradition they are placed in an icon case or on a special shelf covered with an embroidered towel or lace napkins. The shelf is often decorated with artificial or fresh flowers, a bouquet of herbs is placed on Trinity, blessed eggs are placed on Easter, a vessel with holy water is placed, etc.
During prayer, candles are lit in front of the icons, so you should take care of fire safety
It is best to hang or place a lamp and light it during prayer, as well as on Sundays and church holidays.
It is probably unnecessary to remind you that the home iconostasis must be kept impeccably clean, and the dust from the icons is not wiped off with a cloth, but brushed off with a feather.
The bigger, the better?
Often on pilgrimage trips to monasteries and churches in Siberia and Russia, I noticed that when I was in a holy place, looking at the images, I did not want to part with them. You feel peace in your soul, hope appears, and you experience an unusual feeling of God’s mercy. And you want to take with you a piece of where you’ve been. And not only. Each icon is connected with the history of a given monastery, temple. There is a desire to buy at least some from the Orthodox stall.
Saint Ignatius Brianchaninov:
“Holy icons were accepted by the Holy Church to excite pious memories and sensations, and not at all to excite reverie. Standing before the icon of the Savior, stand as if before the Lord Jesus Christ Himself, omnipresent in Divinity and present with His icon in the place where it is located. Standing before the icon of the Mother of God, stand as if before the Most Holy Virgin Herself...”
But we forget that we imperceptibly create problems for ourselves and our loved ones who live next to us in the same house, in the same apartment, and sometimes have a negative opinion of ourselves by moving away from our loved ones.
We start placing icons first in the bedroom, then gradually move to other rooms, hang icons above doors, place them on windows without asking the opinions of loved ones or consulting them.
It turns out that we took into account only our desires and aspirations. Being carried away by buying icons, we forget the main thing: do not interfere, do not harm, do not impose. Everything is good in moderation.
The husband began to express his grievances. He said: “It’s already like being in church.” It turned out that I unwittingly began to impose my lifestyle on my husband and got into his space. He doesn’t go to church and doesn’t like to talk about this topic. The priest of our Church of Xenia of St. Petersburg, Priest John, gave advice regarding the current situation: “Think first of all about others. Don't try to change everything. Don't interfere."
Saint Theophan the Recluse:
“Icons do not contain miraculous power, but the Lord is pleased to show a miracle from them or in their presence: either to arouse faith demonstrated by someone, or for both. Then the high honoring of these icons will follow naturally, both because the Lord was pleased to show His mercy through this icon, and because they hope that they themselves will be honored with the same mercy before this icon...”
Having heard the priest’s advice, I put things in order: I reduced the number of icons in the house so that they would not catch the eye of my husband and my loved ones too often. When I was collecting my favorite icons in boxes, my husband asked only one question: “Where?” I answered: “To church.” After all, there are people who do not have the opportunity to buy even a small icon for themselves. And at home I calmly talked to my husband and asked for forgiveness. And gradually the situation changed for the better. Understanding has come.
The cleric of the Church of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary, Archpriest Alexander Nemchinov, spoke about this well: “An Orthodox Christian should understand better than others that the desire to hoard without a specific goal is a passion. And if this passion extends to sacred objects, in particular to icons, then there is already some blasphemy in this. Although, in most cases, this is most likely not passion, but some kind of inertia.”
What icons traditionally make up the iconostasis?
The home iconostasis must have icons of the Savior, the Holy Trinity and the Mother of God. It also matters in what order the icons are arranged in the iconostasis: the above icons should be on the top shelf, and the rest, which you can choose at your discretion, are located below.
It is desirable that the home iconostasis contain icons of saints whose names are borne by family members, and you need to know the history of these saints. Often they choose icons of saints that help maintain peace and harmony in the family and overcome life’s hardships (Nicholas the Wonderworker, Matrona of Moscow, Panteleimon the Healer, etc.). There should be no foreign objects in the home iconostasis, including photographs of relatives.
Basic rules for placing icons
According to church traditions, believers should pray facing the east. Therefore, it is recommended to place icons on the eastern side of the apartment. If you have such an opportunity, place the iconostasis in the east.
However, in many cases in the east, modern buildings have doors or windows and, accordingly, then it will not be possible to place the image there. But how to properly hang icons in an apartment in this case? Choose any other wall, because it is impossible to change the location of the building in modern conditions.
It is important not only the location of the wall relative to the cardinal points, but also its freedom and accessibility. Standing in front of the icons should be convenient for all family members, especially if the family practices joint prayer.
Location of icons on the iconostasis
Knowing what icons you need to have at home, you should also arrange them correctly. The placement of icons on the home iconostasis is strictly regulated: the icons of the Savior, the Mother of God and the Holy Trinity must be located above all other icons.
If all the icons are on the same surface (for example, on a bedside table), then the icon of the Savior is placed in the center, the Mother of God and the Holy Trinity are placed on the sides of it, and all the others are placed slightly away from these main icons.
Walked in, crossed himself, bowed to the owners
For a long time, icons were located in the “red” corner in such a way that the person who entered could immediately cross himself at the icon. Only after this the guest greeted the owners of the house. From this we can conclude that the icons were hung opposite the entrance to the house.
Modern apartment layouts rarely allow you to hang images opposite the entrance. However, there is a way out of this situation: the icons are placed in the eastern corner of the room. For the most convenient placement of images, a special icon shelf is purchased. The dimensions of the shelf depend on the number of images that will be placed on it.
Correct placement of icons in the house
The location of icons in the house may be different. You can arrange the main iconostasis in one room, and place some icons (for example, patron saints) in each room and even in the kitchen.
If it is not possible to arrange an iconostasis in the red corner, then you can select a separate table or bedside table, but there should not be any extraneous objects on them, that is, not related to prayers.
You can hang icons everywhere in the house. The only places where icons cannot be placed are the toilet and bathroom.
Is it possible to put an icon on an icon?
No, you need to place them separately.
Icons in the kitchen
These can be images of the Savior, the Mother of God or the Holy Trinity, to which prayer is offered before the meal, or other icons of your choice. It is better to place icons in the kitchen away from the stove so that they do not get dirty. You can hang them in the corner opposite the stove or put them in a kitchen cabinet behind glass.
How to position the iconostasis correctly?
The most important thing when choosing the place and location of this product is to make sure that, if necessary, 2 people can freely approach it. Other rules concern “neighborhood” with household objects. So, a prayer cross should be immediately placed next to the iconostasis or above it. But there should be no curtains or other flammable objects nearby, as fire from lamps or candles can spread to them. For the same reason, you should not install shelves for icons too close to the ceiling. It is enough to make sure that small children and pets cannot reach it, and that’s it.
What affects shelf life
The safety of ancient icons painted on a wooden base depends on the following factors:
- State of the icon . If it is damaged, restoration should be resorted to. With further storage, damage will increase .
- Temperature. It is advisable to be in the range of +17°C - +22°C.
- Humidity . Should be within 50-65%.
- Storage . Must be clean and dry, away from direct sunlight.
These factors are relevant for antique images, the paint and primer on which can very quickly crack if stored improperly. Modern products, especially those made of plastic, are much less demanding ; they just need to be kept in a dry, clean place.
Where should I place the icons?
Photo: Elitsy.ru
When arranging a home iconostasis, it is important to remember that the degree of piety in Orthodoxy is never determined by the number of icons. It is considered sacrilege to collect them as interior decoration or to collect them, even from an art historical point of view. You should always remember the main purpose of the holy image - prayer.
When deciding where to arrange a red corner, preference has long been given to a place that immediately catches the eye. Not only icons, but also other items related to Orthodox holidays were necessarily placed here. For example, on Forgiveness Sunday it could be a willow branch.
In the apartment, icons were supposed to be hung on the wall facing east. True, if this condition cannot be fulfilled, this is not considered too great a violation.
It is much more important to provide any person with free access to the iconostasis. The believer should not feel cramped conditions or physical discomfort that will distract him from prayer.
It is important to meet some conditions:
- there should be no household appliances or designer items near the holy images;
- there should be no books that contradict Christian teaching;
- You should not hang other images of saints nearby, for example, their photographic portraits.
The home iconostasis is decorated only with hand-embroidered towels. Only lamps, candles and blessed oils may be kept nearby on a permanent basis.
Where should you not hang icons?
Another burning question, the answer to which will be given in the material. Are there any restrictions on posting images? Yes, there are some. First of all, icons cannot be placed in closed bookcases. It is especially bad if holy images are placed next to romance novels, detective stories, books on esotericism, Feng Shui, and other occult literary works. If there is Orthodox literature in the closet, icons can be placed in it.
Often there are images standing on televisions (if there are old-style ones). This is typical disrespect for the Savior, the Mother of God and the saints. The TV shows a lot of programs and films of a rather sinful type. Again, movies with erotic scenes, TV series in which swear words are used, programs where the personal lives of famous people are “taken apart.” By and large, Orthodox people should not watch this, let alone put icons on TV.
The same applies to the computer desk and the wall above it. It is better to place the image in the eastern corner of the room along with the others and before sitting down at the computer to work, pray in front of the icons, ask for help in your work from the Lord and His Holy Saints.
One more thing, just in case. Placing icons in the bathroom and toilet is completely unacceptable. I think everyone understands why this is so.
As for finding images in the kitchen, the option is pretty good. The icon is placed above the table or in the eastern corner of the room, and the owners of the house pray before eating and ask for the blessing of the food.
