There are many revered images of the Blessed Virgin Mary, famous for miracles. Among them, the icon of the Quick Listener, especially beloved by many, is among them. Prayer in front of the icon heals eye diseases, and most of all, the Queen of Heaven helps you find your way in life, that is, gives spiritual insight.
How to distinguish the "Quick Hearer" from other icons?
On the icon the Mother of God is depicted waist-deep. She holds the Child with her left hand, and points to Him with her right hand. On some lists, the Virgin Mary without a Child. Sometimes on the head of the Mother of God there is a crown, and the clothes are purple.
The miracle of finding the icon
The story of finding the icon is very remarkable. This happened in 1664. On Holy Mount Athos, in Greece, there is an Orthodox male monastery called Dohiar. The place is quiet and secluded. There are no passions or noisy incidents. The brethren in silence, fasting and prayer, lead a righteous life, serving the Lord Jesus Christ and His Most Pure Mother from morning to morning.
One of the pious monks, Neil, was made obedient to the refectory. With darknesshaving finished his work, he passed under the arch, on which was placed the image of the Most Holy Theotokos, painted for the monastery back in the 10th or 11th century. In order not to stumble, Neil always took a torch with him and lit the way to his cell with it. He, passing by the icon, stopped, offered prayers to the Most Holy Theotokos, thanked the Queen of Heaven for the past day, asked for blessings for the coming day, repented for his voluntary and involuntary sins.
On one of these evenings, he heard that someone asked him not to smoke with burning oil in front of the icon. Neil ignored the request, deciding that this was a game of his imagination or the machinations of the evil one, who did not want him to pray in this place. The next time, when he again appeared before the icon with his smoking torch, he again heard the same words. Neil thought that it was the monk brothers who decided to play a trick on him and staged such a performance. Neil did not react to the frivolous actions of the brethren and began to bow even harder, when he suddenly realized that he had lost his sight. At that moment, the unfortunate monk was terrified. He realized that, loving and honoring the Blessed Virgin Mary, he was so absorbed in Orthodox rituals that he no longer felt the presence of Jesus Christ in his soul. He gave himself so completely to the daily rules and duties that there was no place left for the spirit in his life and soul. Frightened by God's wrath, sincerely lamenting that he forgot about the spirit during the rituals and lost contact with the Lord, he, repenting of the sin of negligence for the soul, told the inhabitants of the monastery about everything. The brethren began to earnestly pray for Nile, and in a very short time his visionrecovered.
The icon in front of which the miracle happened was painted in the 10th or 11th century. The incident became known far beyond the walls of the monastery, and pilgrims began to flock to him from all over the world. The speedy fulfillment of the prayer request of the monks of the Athos monastery is another wonderful gift from the Lord to all who resort to Him. The prayer of the Mother of God "Quick Hearer" never goes unanswered.
First Lists
Since women are not allowed to enter the Dohiari monastery, the monks made a list from this image. This list also became known as the Mother of God "Quick to Hear". The first icon remained above the entrance to the refectory, and the miraculous list is sometimes taken out of the walls of the monastery and carried around it in procession.
In Jerusalem, in the Savior-Ascension Orthodox Convent, there is a miraculous Olivet list of the blessed Dochiar icon.
Quick Hearer in Russia
In 1878, a copy of the miraculous icon was brought from Athos to Murom. This image became famous for numerous miracles. Men pray before him for good luck in military affairs before going to serve in the army. The girls are asking for a happy marriage. It is believed that the prayer to the "Quick Hearer" for marriage is always fulfilled. The Mother of God not only helps to find a spouse soon, but also gives happiness in family life.
In the same year, a revered list of icons was delivered to St. Petersburg. Prayers to the Most Holy Theotokos can be offered at the Holy Trinity Alexander Nevsky Lavra. "The quick listener" is the mainthe shrine of the complex and the patroness of the entire city. On this icon, the Mother of God is depicted without the Child.
In Moscow, there is also a place where you can bow to this icon - on the Khodynka field there is a temple built and consecrated in honor of the icon of the Quick Listener. There are temples dedicated to this image in Petrozavodsk, in Arkhangelsk, in Alapaevsk, in the city of Pechora (Komi Republic), in Chelyabinsk, in the village of Bolshie Doropeevichi, Brest Region.
Does the Mother of God hear all prayers?
Not in every city you can find a church consecrated in honor of this icon. However, according to the promise, every prayer to the icon of the “Quick Hearer” will be heard, uttered with faith and hope. Even if this happens in an ordinary apartment of a multi-storey building, and the face of Mary is depicted on a small square of cardboard.
What do they pray to the Theotokos "Quickly Hearing"?
In many worldly needs, the Quick Listener helps. Prayer before the image casts out demons, heals mental and physical illnesses. Her effective help is resorted to in a moment of danger from natural disasters and from the attack of enemies. It is believed that she can be addressed when delay can lead to great misfortune. Prayer to the icon "Quick Hearing One" protects against sudden disasters.
The blind turned to this image and received their sight, the lame received healing. Mothers received help when they asked the Virgin Mary to cure a sick child. Childless spouses became happy parents. The Prayer of the Mother of God "Quick Hearing" has great power.
How to pray?
When asking the Mother of God for help, there is no need to figure out how to achieve the desired goal. Read the canonical prayer, akathist before the image, light a candle. Think about your misfortune, repent that you were not in the temple for a long time, did not appear before God with heartfelt contrition about your sins. It is very important to shift your sadness onto the shoulders of the Great Mother, not to resist the will of God, not to build an exact scheme of how to achieve what you want. Think only about the ultimate goal and pray to the Virgin Mary to help you accept what you ask with gratitude and dignity. Sometimes people list their needs in a list. This is the vanity of thoughts. As a rule, there is only one problem behind numerous troubles, and it is difficult to see it yourself, even sometimes impossible. Trust the prayer written by the holy ascetics, think about its meaning. Its text is suitable for any occasion of life. Say first: “To the Mother of God, the parish of the being in trouble, and now let us fall to Her holy icon, calling with faith from the depths of the soul: soon hear our prayers. And then talk about why you came to bow to the Holy Face - for a request to forgive sins, guide you on the true path, protect you from enemies, there is peace of mind, a peaceful and prosperous life, overcoming diseases. These are the gifts that the Mother of God “Quickly Hearing” will soon bring to those who resort to Her intercession. Prayer to her should be meaningful and heartfelt.
Asking for healing fromsickness, think. How will you live, when you get what you want, what will you direct your strength to. It happens that a disease becomes for a person a kind of shield from many of the demands made by life and society. Be prepared for the fact that having gained he alth, you will receive new strength. What will you send them to? Do you really want to part with your illness or other trouble that you are asking for?
The story of the fishermen
There was such a case. A small fishing boat was caught in a strong storm. The wind tore the sails, broke the masts, the ship lost control and began to sink. The sailors in desperation began to pray for salvation. Suddenly, a large ship appeared in front of them. They shouted from the side to jump into the water and climb onto the boat lowered for them, but the fishermen refused. They did not want to lose gear and miss a rich catch. The ship has left. The storm did not subside, and the fishermen continued to call for help from the Mother of God. Another ship approached them, but they also rejected it. The fishermen were saved or not, is unknown. Probably, someone survived, since the story has come down to our days. Most likely, the barge sank, and the story was told by the one who did not expect the Mother of God Herself to appear on the ship, stop the hurricane and restore the breakdowns. The surviving navigator, in a moment of despair, did not think about the profit that can be obtained for full nets of fish. He trusted in the Blessed Virgin, completely trusting in Her Divine will.
Storm at sea is rarely sudden. Fishermen know that the best catch comes before a big storm - at this timefish gather in large schools in the place where the water is calmer. You need to catch the moment when the nets are full and, without waiting for the wind, return to the bay. It is better to leave a dangerous place with half-empty gear than to risk your life and the integrity of the ship. Probably greed killed most of the team. The sailors asked for an ambulance and received it from the miraculous image of the Quick Listener. The prayer of each of them was heard, but the Virgin Mary saved only those who did not bargain with Her, but trusted completely and without a second thought.
Celebration of the icon - November 22, new (November 9, old) style.
