Night can be one of the terrors of childhood. People are often afraid of the dark because they don't know what is going on around them. There may be nothing harmful near but noises that in the day mean nothing, can sound terrifying in the dark. And so it was in the tradition of the Christian church that special prayers have been said for protection during the night hours, when we surrender consciousness to the mystery of sleep. The service of compline is the last service of the day in the traditional monastic daily cycle of prayer in which the participants ask for protection from all the dangers and perils of the night. St Patrick is attributed with the following song for use in the evening before bedtime and has been translated from the ancient Irish.
AN EVEN-SONG - PATRICK SANG THIS
May Thy holy angels, O Christ, son of living God,
Guard our sleep, our rest, our shining bed.
Let them reveal true visions to us in our sleep,
O high-prince of the universe, O great king of the mysteries!
May no demons, no ill, no calamity or terrifying dreams
Disturb our rest, our willing, prompt repose.
May our watch be holy, our work, our task,
Our sleep, our rest without let, without break.
From the book "Selections from Ancient Irish Poetry" translated by Kuno Meyer (1911)
Image courtesy of Photokanok at FreeDigitalPhotos.net
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