EDITOR'S NOTE: Saint Arsenios used to use the Psalms for blessings, especially when there was no prescribed blessing for a particular occasion. Here in Part One is the correspondence between the psalms and different occasions. The original Greek list can be found in -O Geron Paisios- by the Hieromonk Christodoulos, Agion Oros, 1994. In Part Two, we have provided a (rather poor) index; perhaps someone else would care to fashion a better.
Apart from all religious considerations, this "Book of Needs" is a fascinating portrait of village life in Anatolia at the beginning of the Twentieth Century: whether it reflects more the "longue duree" of Byzantine history or the particular difficulties of St. Arsenios' time we do not feel well enough informed even to speculate. There is certainly no idealization of rural conditions here: particularly noteworthy is the extreme concern for alleviating psychological as well as physical pain, and the mention of what we would nowadays call "post-traumatic stress disorder".
To us, at least, the exact reasoning behind the saint's choice of a particular psalm for a given need is not always obvious; perhaps this is by design, to encourage close reflection on the words. Orthodoxy is not magic, and a document like this one is not an endorsement of "peasant superstition"; it is rather a channel through which the Love of God can enter into every aspect of human society.
PART ONE: A LIST OF PSALMS FOR USE AS BLESSINGS, ARRANGED BY ORDER IN THE PSALTER:
[IMPORTANT NOTE: The FIRST number is the number of the psalm in the Greek Septuagint Bible. The SECOND number is the number of the psalm found in the Masoretic text and in most English language Bibles, such as the King James!]
1 (1) When a tree or a vine is planted, so that it may bring forth fruit.
2 (2) So that God illumines those who go to meetings and councils.
3 (3) So that badness goes away from people, so that they do not torment
unjustly their fellows.
4 (4) So that God heals the sensitive people who fell ill from depression
because of the behaviour of
hard-hearted people.
5 (5) So that God heals the wounded eyes that were bitten by a bad person.
6 (6) So that God frees the person who has been under a spell.
7 (7) For those who got damaged from fear, from the terrors and the
intimidations of bad people.
8 (8) For those who are hurt by demons or by perverse people.
9 (9 & 10) So that the demons stop tormenting you in sleep or with fancies
during the day.
10 (11) For hard-hearted couples that argue and divorce (when the
hard-hearted man or woman
torments their sensitive wife or husband).
11 (12) For mentally ill people who have badness and harm others.
12 (13) For those who suffer from their liver.
13 (14) For a terrible demon, continually three times a day for three
days.
14 (15) So that robbers or thieves change their mind and return having
done
no harm, and having
repented.
15 (16) So that the key is found when it is lost.
16 (17) For a grave and unjust accusation, three times a day for three
days.
17 (18) When there is an earthquake or other natural disaster, or
devastating rain with lightning.
18 (19) So that women give birth successfully.
19 (20) For the couples who for medical reasons cannot have children, so
that God heals them and
that they do not divorce.
20 (21) So that God softens the hearts of the rich and they give alms to
the
poor.
21 (22) So that God contains the fire, so that no big harm happens.
22 (23) So that God makes milder the very rebellious children that bring
sorrow to their parents.
23 (24) So that the door opens when the key is lost.
24 (25) For people who temptation troubles a lot and so brings continual
problems into their lives,
making them lose their peace and complain.
25 (26) When somebody asks something good from God so that He gives it
without the person
getting harmed.
26 (27) So that God protects the peasants from the enemy army, so that
they
do not harm the
people or their fields.
27 (28) So that God heals those who suffer from illnesses of nervous or
mental origin.
28 (29) For those that the sea makes sick and who are afraid of the rough
sea.
29 (30) For those that are in danger far away, in the territory of
barbarous
and unbelieving people,
so that God guards them and illumines the people there to become peaceful
and to come to know
God.
30 (31) So that God gives enough grain and fruit when the weather is not
good for agriculture.
31 (32) So that the travelers find their way when they are lost and
suffering from it.
32 (33) So that God reveals the truth to those who were unjustly
imprisoned,
and so that they are
set free.
33 (34) For those on the edge of death, when they are tormented by demons.
Or, for the enemy
army when it brings danger and enters the borders with ominous intentions.
34 (35) So that God frees the good people from the traps of the bad
people,
who take advantage
of the people of God.
35 (36) So that animosity disappears completely after arguments and
misunderstandings.
36 (37) For people badly wounded by criminals.
37 (38) When the jaws have pain coming from rotten teeth.
38 (39) So that the people who are abandoned and depressed find work, so
that they stop being in
sorrow.
39 (40) So that the love between employer and employee comes back when
there
has been
exchange of heavy words.
40 (41) So that women give birth with success when the child comes
prematurely into the world.
41 (42) For young people when they get ill from falling in love, and one
person gets wounded and is
in sorrow.
42 (43) So that the people get free from the prisons of an enemy nation.
43 (44) So that God reveals the truth to couples when there has been a
misunderstanding, so that
they come into mutual peace and love again.
44 (45) For those who suffer from heart or kidneys.
45 (46) For the young people that the enemy because of envy prevents from
making a family (i.e.
from getting married).
46 (47) So that the employee or the employer find peace, when the employee
leaves offended by
the employer, and so that the employee finds work.
47 (48) When gangs of criminals go robbing and grave disasters are
happening: to be continually
read for 40 days.
48 (49) For those who do a dangerous job.
49 (50) So that the people who are far from God repent and return to God
and
are saved.
50 (51) When, because of our sins and in order to correct us, comes the
punishment of God
(epidemics of illness and deaths for people or animals).
51 (52) So that the hard-hearted masters repent and become compassionate
and
do not torment
the people.
52 (53) So that God blesses the nets and they get filled with fish.
53 (54) So that God illumines the rich people that have bought slaves so
that they free them.
54 (55) So that the name of a family that had been unjustly accused is
restored.
55 (56) For sensitive people, whose souls have been wounded by their
fellows.
56 (57) For those people who suffer headaches coming from big sorrow.
57 (58) So that things come in a helping way for those who work with good
intention, so that God
prevents every perverse action of demons or crooked people.
58 (59) For those that cannot speak, that God gives them the ability to
speak.
59 (60) So that God reveals the truth when a whole group of people is
unjustly accused.
60 (61) For those that have trouble in their work either because of
laziness
or because of fear.
61 (62) So that God relieves from troubles the person who is weak, so that
he is not dominated by
the urge to complain.
62 (63) So that fields and trees bring forth fruit when the water is
limited.
63 (64) When a person is bitten by a dog or wolf that had rabies. (He was
also for giving them
blessed water to drink).
64 (65) So that merchants prosper, so that they do not speak too much and
take advantage of
simple people.
65 (66) So that the evil one does not bring obstacles in the homes and
cause
families to be in
sorrow.
66 (67) So that the places where hens are raised are blessed.
67 (68) So that the women whose pregnancies fail manage to endure and
become
healthy.
68 (69) When there is severe rain and the rivers overflow, taking with
them
people and houses.
69 (70) For sensitive people that get sad from little things and come to
despair, that God gives them
strength.
70 (71) For deserted people who become uninteresting to others [lit.
"boring"] because of the
devil's envy and come to despair, that they may find mercy and healing
from
God.
71 (72) So that God blesses the gatherings of the new agricultural
production that the peasants bring
home.
72 (73) So that the criminals repent.
73 (74) So that God protects the peasants that work in their fields when
the
enemy have
surrounded the village.
74 (75) So that the barbarous employer becomes peaceful and does not
torment
his fellow human
beings, the empoloyees.
75 (76) For a mother who is scared during her giving birth, so that God
gives her braveness and
protects her.
76 (77) When there is no mutual understanding between parents and
children,
that God illumines
them, so that the children listen to the parents and the parents show
love.
77 (78) So that God illumines those who lend so that they do not press
their
fellows for their debt,
and so that they are compassionate.
78 (79) So that God protects the villages from the robbing and stealing of
the enemy army.
79 (80) So that God cures a person whose face gets swollen and all his
head
is in pain.
80 (81) So that God takes care of the poor who are in need and sorrow and
are depressed
because of poverty.
81 (82) So that people buy the products of the peasants, so that the
peasants are not sad and
depressed.
82 (83) So that God prevents the bad people who want to do murders.
83 (84) So that God preserves all that is kept in the house, and the
animals, and the products of the
producers.
84 (85) So that God heals those who were wounded by robbers and moreover
got
psychologically
damaged from terror.
85 (86) So that God saves the world when plague comes and people die.
86 (87) So that God extends the lives of those members of the family that
are still urgently needed
by the rest of the family.
87 (88) So that God protects all those who have no protector and are
suffering from hard-hearted
fellows.
88 (89) So that God gives strength to those who easily fall sick and are
physically weak, so that
they can work without getting tired and depressed.
89 (90) So that God brings rain when there is a drought, or that the wells
bring forth water again if
they have stopped doing so.
90 (91) So that the devil disappears when he appears in front of a person
and brings him terror.
91 (92) So that God gives prudence to people so that they progress
spiritually.
92 (93) So that God protects the ship when it is in great danger at sea.
(He
was also for throwing
blessed water at the four corners of the ship).
93 (94) So that God illumines the disorderly people who cause problems to
the nation and bring
commotion to the people, causing trouble by disorder and divisions.
94 (95) So that no spells cause couples to start finding reasons for
arguments and fights.
95 (96) So that God gives to the deaf people the ability to hear.
96 (97) So that spells go away from people.
97 (98) So that God gives comfort for those who are in sorrow so that they
stop being depressed.
98 (99) So that God blesses and gives grace to those young people who want
to leave everything
and follow God. [I do not know how succesful is my translation here. To my
Greek ear the exact
phrase that is used would make me think of people who follow the monastic
life but I am not sure.
--Trans.]
99 (100) So that God blesses and makes real the desires of the people that
are in accordance with
His will.
100 (101) So that God gives graces and talents to the good and simple
people.
101 (102) So that God blesses the people who hold offices of power so that
they help the people
with kindness and understanding.
102 (103) So that the monthly flow of blood comes to a woman when it is
delayed.
103 (104) So that God blesses the possessions of the people that they are
not sad and depressed,
but glorify God.
104 (105) So that people repent and confess their sins.
105 (106) So that God gives illumination to people so that they do not
move
away from the way to
salvation.
106 (107) So that God gives the woman who could not give birth the ability
to do so.
107 (108) So that God humbles the enemies, so that they change their bad
intentions.
108 (109) So that God cures the epileptics. Or, so that God has mercy on
those who accuse
unjustly and they repent.
109 (110) So that the younger have respect for the older.
110 (111) So that the unjust judges repent and judge justly the people of
God.
111 (112) So that God protects the soldiers when they go to war.
112 (113) So that God gives blessings to the poor widow, so that she pays
her debts and is saved
from going to prison.
113 (114 & 115) So that God cures the mentally retarded children.
114 (116:1-9) So that God gives blessings and comfort to the sad poor
little
children, so that they
are not looked down upon by the children of the rich and consequently feel
depressed.
115 (116:10-19) So that God cures the horrible passion of lying.
116 (117) So that families keep unity and love and glorify God.
117 (118) So that God humbles the barbarians when they surround the
village
and bring fear, and
that He reverses their bad intentions.
118 (119) So that God shatters the barbarians and humbles their action
when
they slay innocent
women and children.
119 (120) So that God gives patience and forbearance to those people who
have to live together
with crooked and unjust people.
120 (121) So that God protects the slaves from the hands of the enemy so
that they are not
mutilated before they are set free.
121 (122) So that God cures those who suffer from the "evil eye".
122 (123) So that God gives eyesight to the blind and cures the eyes that
are in pain.
123 (124) So that God protects people from snakes, so that they do not
bite.
124 (125) So that God protects the fields of the just people from the bad
people.
125 (126) So that God cures the people who suffer from continual
headaches.
126 (127) So that God brings peace to a family when there are arguments.