The house of an Orthodox believer is a kind of small church, in this place a prayer song must necessarily sound. Praises and petitions are made in front of the images of icons, because they are a means of communication between a person and the Almighty Lord or His faithful and eternal servants. However, Orthodox believers must remember: the appeal refers to the individual, and not to the canvas on which she is depicted.
The device of the iconostasis in the house
The arrangement of icons in the home iconostasis can be arbitrary, but there are some rules in the Christian tradition.
In the past, a shelf was built in each family, where holy images were exhibited. These divine canvases were in the brightest and most eye-catching place. The shelf for icons was installed in the far corner of the house, in the East. This place was the most illuminated, since the two walls that formed it were with windows into which a lot of sunlight passed.
home iconostasis
The icon is a sacred image, which is separated from everyday realities and never mixed with everyday life, but is intended solely for dialogue with the Lord. It is a window from the infinite world, as well as divine revelations in the tones and lines of the icon painter's brush.
It is naive to assume that a large number of holy images makes the life of an Orthodox believer more pious than it really is.
About icons:
An unsystematized collection of icons, various reproductions, church calendars is similar to ordinary collecting, where prayer completely disappears as an end in itself. Here there is a complete distortion of the term "house", which is a continuation of the monastery.
Modern location of the iconostasis
For the family, this relic is a unifying prayer factor that arises after the forgiveness of all worldly insults and the achievement of mutual understanding.
- Today's realities of life say that the church allows you to arrange home iconostasis in a free place. However, orthodox rules recommend placing it on the east side. The concept of "east" has an important feature for Orthodoxy. It is written about him in the Book of Genesis, in Bartholomew and Matthew.
- If there are doors in the east of the apartment, it is allowed to use other parts of the world.
- When choosing a place for a family altar, you need to avoid the proximity of holy images with any household appliances, which is considered a futile product of modernization and does not contribute to spiritualization. It is necessary to avoid the close proximity of icons and decorative decoration, as well as with books of a non-religious nature.
- For an Orthodox family, the presence in the home iconostasis of the images of the Savior Christ and the Virgin Mary is obligatory. The image of the Messiah should always remain central, and all others will be smaller in size. The main icons (Trinity, Christ and the Virgin) are located above the rest, but it is allowed to place the Crucifix above them.
How to arrange the icons in the apartment
- Decoration for the family iconostasis - fresh flowers. Large icons installed side by side should be framed with towels according to the ancient Christian tradition. It is forbidden to place non-canonical paintings or their reproductions side by side.
- The home iconostasis should be crowned with a cross, and a lampada should be lit for the time of prayerful praise. On holidays, according to the church calendar, the flame of candles can burn for a whole day.
Holy images for the goddess
The home iconostasis must contain two holy images.
The image of the Son of God, testifying to the incarnation of God and the salvation of the human race. For prayer, a belt canvas is often chosen, on which the Almighty blesses the world with his right right hand, and holds the Divine Scripture in his left hand. The Lord appears in these images as the Arbiter of every fate, the merciful Father, who gives the Truth, to which the eyes of Orthodox followers are directed. In this regard, the icons of the Son of God always occupy the main place on the shelves of the home iconostasis.
The face of the Virgin, who is a perfect person and revered above the Seraphim and Cherubim. More often used images called "Tenderness" or "Hodegetria".
- The author of the first type, lists of which are extremely common in the Orthodox world, is traditionally considered the Apostle Luke. In “Tenderness” there is a magnificent contact of Christ in infancy and Mother of God, which symbolizes the union of the earthly and the heavenly, the Creator and the best of His creations. The image expresses the infinite love of the Creator for the human race, when God gave the Son as an atonement for sinfulness. The most common and famous icons of the “Tenderness” type include: Vladimirskaya, “It is worthy to eat”, “Search for the dead”, etc.
- "Hodegetria" ("Guide") - the second common type of face of the Virgin Mary. The image demonstrates the true path to God. On the icon, this is evidenced by a specific gesture of the right hand of the Mother of God, pointing to the Christ Child. The most famous faces of "Hodegetria" are: Blachernae, Iverskaya, Tikhvinskaya, Kazanskaya, etc.
Read about the Mother of God icons for the iconostasis:
In the Orthodox tradition, the image of Nicholas the Pleasant is extremely popular. He has always occupied an important place on the shelves of the iconostasis of every Christian. Saint Nicholas is revered as an eternal servant of God, endowed with special grace.
An Orthodox Christian can place in the goddess the images of the famous prophet Elijah, the great martyr George the Victorious, Panteleimon, the holy evangelist John the Baptist.
Advice! The choice is always individual, and the best assistant in business is the priest. For advice, turn to him or another monk.
Iconostasis in the house
Special placement instructions
At home, it is allowed to follow only the basic rules of placement.
- It is necessary to observe symmetry and systematics, to think over the compositional structure, which will help to avoid feelings of internal dissatisfaction, the desire to change something. Incorrect arrangement distracts from the prayer service, the essence of which is concentration on petition and praise.
- An Orthodox person is obliged to remember the principle of the church hierarchy: locally venerated icons cannot be placed above the main ones (Christ the Savior, the Virgin Mary and the Holy Trinity).
- The image of the Messiah must be placed on the right side of the upcoming believer, and the canvas with the face of the Virgin Mary on the left. When choosing an iconostasis, one should be guided by the uniformity of the artistic performance of the shrines. The church does not recommend allowing diversity in styles.
- Orthodox people should take holiness very seriously, since it is one of the properties of God himself. This quality is reflected in heavenly saints and material objects. Hence it follows: the veneration of the holy governors and iconography belongs to the same religious order.
- The degree of churching of the family is judged by the reverence that members show to the faces of Christ and the Virgin. Ancestral icons have always been colossally revered. A newly baptized baby was brought to the shrine, and the priest read prayers praising God. In ancient times, through the icon, parents blessed their children for successful studies, travel to distant lands, and service to society. Before the wedding or after the death of a person, believers also turned to the faces of saints for help.
- If an iconostasis is placed in the house, quarrels, disgusting behavior, scandals on various topics are unacceptable. However, an excessively reverent attitude towards sacred things should not be transformed into idolatry. It must be remembered: icons are a divine image, but not the very personality of the Lord or His vicars.
- The canvas, which has come into a state of complete disrepair and unrepairable, cannot be thrown away, it must be treated with due respect and respect as to an ancient tablet. Previously, if the paint on the icon was erased, it was allowed along the river. Today, such a rarity is taken to the church, where it is burned in the temple oven.
- If the damage to the face occurred due to careless storage, one should confess, since the Church considers such irresponsibility a sin.
Do-it-yourself iconostasis
The arrangement of icons in the home iconostasis today is done as the believer wants.
However, there are certain rules that are better to follow in order to improve the quality of communication with the Lord and His vicars.
Before arranging, you should study the planned recommendations for installation in the apartment, and then choose the desired angle. Today, furniture stores offer a large number of iconostases in their assortment. It is possible to make it to order, where all the features and preferences will be taken into account.
- For self-manufacturing suitable for all materials.
- The first step is to make drawings of the locker.
- You should remember about the distance between the shelves of the iconostasis, because they can ignite from burning candles.
- Images of saints are placed at eye level, which facilitates communication.
- Under the shelves it is allowed to put a table where lamps and candles, holy water and Scriptures will be located.
Video on how to place the iconostasis in the house
Quantity and quality are different categories. It is naive to believe that the more Sacred images in the house Orthodox Christian the more pious his life. An unsystematized collection of icons, reproductions, wall church calendars that occupies a significant part of the living space can often have a completely opposite effect on a person’s spiritual life. The main thing is that a prayer is offered before the icons.
Firstly, thoughtless collecting can turn into empty collecting, where there is no question of the prayer purpose of the icon.
Secondly (and this is the main thing), in this case there is a distortion of the concept of a house as a dwelling, as the material basis of an Orthodox family.
My house will be called a house of prayer (Matthew 21:13)- this is about the temple, which was created for prayer and the performance of the Sacraments.
The house is a continuation of the temple, no more; home is first and foremost a family hearth; a prayer will sound in the house, but the prayer is private; there is a Church in the house, but the Church is small, domestic, family. The principle of hierarchy (that is, the subordination of the lower to the higher), reflecting Heavenly harmony and order, is also present in earthly life. Therefore, it is unacceptable to mix ontologically different concepts of the temple and the house.
However, the icons in the house must be mandatory. In sufficient quantities, but within reasonable limits.
In the past, in every Orthodox family, both peasant and urban, in the most prominent place of the dwelling, there was always a shelf with icons or a whole home iconostasis. The place where the icons were placed was called the “front corner”, “red corner”, “holy corner”, “deity”, “kiot” or “kivot”.
For an Orthodox Christian, an icon is not only an image of the Lord Jesus Christ, the Mother of God, saints and events from Sacred and Church history. An icon is a sacred image, that is, separated from the realities of everyday life, not mixing with everyday life and intended only for communion with God. Therefore, the main purpose of the icon is prayer. The icon is a window from the heavenly world to our world - the world of the valley; it is a revelation of God in lines and colors.
Thus, an icon is not just a family heirloom passed down from generation to generation, but a shrine; a shrine that unites all family members during joint prayer, for joint prayer is possible only when mutual insults are forgiven each other and complete unity of the people standing in front of the icon is achieved.
Of course, at the present time, when the TV has taken the place of the icon in the house - a kind of window into the colorful world of human passions, the traditions of joint prayer at home, the meaning of the family icon, and the awareness of one's family as a small Church have been largely lost.
Therefore, an Orthodox Christian living in a modern city apartment often has questions:
What icons should be in the house?
How to place them correctly?
Is it possible to use reproductions from icons?
What to do with old icons that have fallen into disrepair?
Some of these questions should only be answered unequivocally, while answering others, you can do without any strict recommendations.
G where to place the icons?
In a free and accessible place.
The conciseness of such an answer is caused not by the absence of canonical requirements, but by the realities of life.
Of course, it is desirable to place icons on the eastern wall of the room, because the east as a theological concept has a special meaning in Orthodoxy.
And the Lord God planted a paradise in Eden in the east, and placed there the man whom he had created (Gen. 2:8). 
Look, Jerusalem, to the east, and look at the joy that comes to you from God (Bar. 4:36).
... for as lightning comes from the east and is visible even to the west, so will be the coming of the Son of Man (Matthew 24:27).
But what to do if the house is oriented so that there are windows or doors in the east: In this case, you can use the southern, northern or western walls of the dwelling.
The main thing is that there should be enough free space in front of the icons so that the worshipers would not feel crowded when praying together. And for books needed during prayer, it is convenient to use a folding portable lectern.
When choosing a place for a home iconostasis, it is necessary to avoid the close proximity of icons to a TV, tape recorder and other household appliances. Technical devices belong to our time, they are momentary, their purpose does not correspond to the purpose of sacred images, and, if possible, they should not be connected together.
True, there may be exceptions. For example, in the editorial departments of Orthodox publishing houses, the neighborhood of an icon and a computer is quite acceptable. And if the author or employee works at home, then the icon placed near the computer serves as confirmation that this technique is used to spread the Good News, that this human-made tool serves as a conductor of God's will.
Icons should not be mixed with decorative objects of a secular nature: figurines, panels made of various materials, etc.
It is inappropriate to place an icon on a bookshelf next to books whose content either has nothing to do with Orthodox truths, or is even contrary to the Christian preaching of love and mercy. 
Icons should be placed in a separate place from other items. Icons look extremely inappropriate in bookcases where books of a secular nature are stored, on shelves next to cosmetics, photographs of loved ones, toys, figurines, or simply are some kind of interior decoration. You can not place posters of pop performers, politicians, athletes and other idols of the current century next to the icons. It should not be among the icons and art paintings, even if they are written on biblical subjects.
There is an erroneous opinion that spouses should not hang icons in the bedroom, and if they are, then on 
at night it is necessary to cover them with a curtain. It's a delusion. First, no curtain can hide from God. Secondly, marital intimacy in marriage is not a sin. Therefore, you can safely place icons in the bedroom. Moreover, many of our compatriots do not always have the opportunity to place icons in a separate room designed for this.
Of course, the icon should be in the dining room or, if the family is having dinner in the kitchen, then there, so that you can pray before eating and thank the Lord after the meal. Icons can be in every room, there is nothing wrong and reprehensible in this.
… give the Lord the glory of His name. Take the gift, go before Him, worship the Lord in the splendor of His holiness (1 Chr. 16:29)- this is what the Holy Scripture says about the proper attitude to the shrine dedicated to the Lord.
Icon decoration
Home iconostasis can be decorated with fresh flowers, and large, separately hanging icons are often, according to tradition, framed with towels. This tradition dates back to antiquity and has a theological justification.
According to Tradition, the lifetime image of the Savior arose miraculously to help a suffering person: Christ, having washed his face, wiped himself with a clean handkerchief (brus) on which His Face was displayed, and sent this handkerchief to the leprous-stricken king of Asia Minor Avgar in the city of Edessa. The healed ruler and his subjects converted to Christianity, and the Image Not Made by Hands was nailed to a “rotting board” and placed over the city gates.
The day when the Church remembers the transfer in 944 from Edessa to Constantinople of the Image of the Savior Not Made by Hands (August 29, according to the new style), was popularly called “canvas” or “linen Savior”, and in some places this holiday was consecrated by homespun linens and towels. These towels were decorated with rich embroidery and were intended specifically for the goddess. Also, the icons were framed with towels, which the owners of the house used during prayers for the blessing of water and weddings. So, for example, after the blessing of water prayer, when the priest abundantly sprinkled the worshipers with holy water, people wiped their faces with special towels, which were then placed in a red corner.
After the celebration of the Entry of the Lord to Jerusalem, near the icons, willow branches consecrated in the church were placed, which, according to tradition, are kept until the next Palm Sunday. On the Day of the Holy Trinity, or Pentecost, it is customary to decorate dwellings and icons with birch branches, which symbolize the flourishing Church, bearing the grace-filled power of the Holy Spirit.
There should not be between the icons of paintings or reproductions of paintings. A painting, even if it has a religious content, such as Alexander Ivanov's Appearance of Christ to the People or Raphael's Sistine Madonna, is not a canonical icon.
Sometimes among the icons in the red corner you can find photographs or reproductions of photographs of priests, elders, people of a righteous, God-pleasing life. Is this allowed? If you strictly follow the canonical requirements, then, of course, no. Do not confuse icon-painting images of saints and photographic portraits.
The icon announces to us about the saint in his glorified, transfigured state, while 
a photograph, even of a person subsequently glorified as a saint, shows a specific moment of his earthly life, a separate stage of ascent to the mountainous heights of the spirit.
Such photographs, of course, are needed in the house, but they should be placed away from the icons.
Previously, along with prayer icons - sacred images, in houses, especially peasants, there were also pious images: lithographs of temples, views of the Holy Land, as well as popular prints, which in a naive, but vivid and figurative form, told about serious subjects.
"A collection of prayers for every need with gifts"
You can become the owner of this unique creation, who will open the door to happiness for you.
About church calendars and reproductions
At present, various church wall calendars with reproductions of icons have appeared. They should be treated as a convenient form of printed matter for an Orthodox Christian, since such calendars contain the necessary instructions regarding holidays and fasting days.
But the reproduction itself, at the end of the year, can be pasted on a solid base, consecrated in the church according to the order of blessing the icon and placed in the home iconostasis.
Regarding reproductions of icons and color photographs from them, it can be said that sometimes it is more reasonable to have a good reproduction than an icon painted, but of poor quality.
The attitude of an icon painter to his work must be extremely demanding. Just as a priest does not have the right to celebrate the liturgy without proper preparation, so the icon painter must approach his service with full responsibility. Unfortunately, both in the past and now, one can often find vulgar fakes that have nothing to do with the icon. Therefore, if the image does not evoke a feeling of inner reverence and a sense of contact with the shrine, if it is doubtful in terms of theological content and unprofessional in terms of execution technique, then it is better to refrain from such an acquisition.
And reproductions of canonical icons, pasted on a solid base and consecrated in the church, will take 
worthy place in the home iconostasis.
What to do with old calendars with icons?
Is it possible to cut out an icon from the calendar and put it next to others? The answer is unequivocal: yes.
But first you need to stick such an icon on a solid base and consecrate it in the temple according to the order of consecrating icons. And with old calendars, from which it is impossible to cut out an icon, it is necessary to do the same as with dilapidated icons that cannot be restored, i.e. burn.
What icons to have at home?
Be sure to have the icon of the Savior and the icon of the Mother of God. Images of the Lord Jesus Christ, as evidence of the Incarnation and the Salvation of the human race, and the Mother of God, as the most perfect of earthly people, worthy of complete deification and revered as the most honest Cherubim and the most glorious Seraphim without comparison, are necessary for the house where Orthodox Christians live.
From the images of the Savior for home prayer, a half-length image of the Lord Almighty is usually chosen. From the iconography of the Mother of God, icons of the type “Tenderness” and “Hodegetria” are most often chosen.
Of course, if the holidays for the family are the days of honoring any icons of the Savior or the Mother of God, for example, the Image Not Made by Hands of the Lord Jesus Christ or the Icon of the Mother of God "The Sign", then it is good to have these icons in the house, as well as images of saints, named after family members.
For those who have the opportunity to place more icons in the house, you can supplement your iconostasis with images of revered local saints and, of course, the great saints of the Russian land.
In the traditions of Russian Orthodoxy, a special reverence for St. Nicholas the Wonderworker, whose icons are found in almost every Orthodox family, has become stronger. It should be noted that, along with the icons of the Savior and the Mother of God, the image of Nicholas the Wonderworker has always occupied a central place in the home of an Orthodox Christian. Among the people, St. Nicholas is revered as a saint endowed with special grace. This is largely due to the fact that, according to the church charter, every Thursday of the week, along with the holy apostles, the church offers prayers to St. Nicholas, Archbishop of the World of Lycia, the miracle worker.
Among the images of the holy prophets of God, Elijah can be distinguished, among the apostles - 
supreme leaders Peter and Paul.
Of the images of martyrs for the faith of Christ, the icons of the holy great martyr George the Victorious, as well as the holy great martyr and healer Panteleimon, are most often found.
For the completeness and completeness of the home iconostasis, it is desirable to have images of the holy Evangelists, St. John the Baptist, the archangels Gabriel and Michael, and icons of holidays.
The choice of icons for the home is always individual. And the best assistant here is the priest - the confessor of the family, and it is to him, or any other clergyman, that you should turn for advice.
How to place the icons, in what order?
Are there strict statutory requirements for this?
In church, yes. For a home deity, one can limit oneself to only some basic rules.
For example, if icons are hung haphazardly, unsymmetrically, without a thoughtful composition, then this causes a constant feeling of dissatisfaction with their placement, a desire to change everything, which very often distracts from prayer. It is also necessary to remember the principle of hierarchy: do not place, for example, the icon of a locally venerated saint over the icon of the Holy Trinity, the Savior, the Mother of God, the apostles. The icon of the Savior should be to the right of the one who is coming, and the Mother of God to the left (as in the classical iconostasis).
When choosing icons, make sure that they are uniform in artistic manner, try not to allow a variety of styles.
What to do if the family has a particularly revered, inherited icon, but it is not written quite canonically or has some loss of paint layer?
If the flaws in the image do not have serious distortions of the image of the Lord, the Mother of God or a saint, such an icon can be made the center of a home iconostasis or, if space permits, placed on a lectern under the goddess, because such an image is a shrine for all family members.
How to properly treat an icon
One of the indicators of the level spiritual development The Orthodox Christian is served by his attitude towards the shrine. The veneration of the family icon has always been special. After baptism, the baby was brought to the icon and the priest or the owner of the house read prayers. With the icon, parents blessed their children for study, for a long trip, for public service. Giving consent to the wedding, the parents also blessed the newlyweds with an icon. And the departure of a person from life took place under the images. The well-known expression “dispersed, even endure the saints” is evidence of a conscientious attitude towards icons. Before the images of saints, quarrels, misbehavior or domestic scandals are unacceptable.
But the careful and reverent attitude towards the icon of an Orthodox Christian should not develop into unacceptable forms of worship. It is necessary to cultivate the correct veneration of sacred images from an early age. It is always necessary to remember that an icon is an image, sacred, but still only an image. And one should not confuse such concepts as the image - the image itself, and the prototype - the one who is depicted.
It is desirable to crown the home iconostasis with a cross; crosses are also placed on the doorposts. The cross is a sacred thing for an Orthodox Christian. This is a symbol of the salvation of all mankind from eternal death. The 73rd Canon of the Council of Trullo, held in 691, testifies to the importance of venerating the images of the holy cross: “Since the life-giving cross has shown us salvation, every care must be taken to pay due respect to that by which we are saved from the ancient fall ... ”
During prayer in front of the icons, it is good to light the lamp, and on holidays and 
Sunday let it burn and during the day.
In multi-room city apartments, the iconostasis for common family prayer is usually placed in the largest of the rooms, while in others it is necessary to place at least one icon.
If an Orthodox family has a meal in the kitchen, then an icon is needed there for prayer before and after the meal. It is most reasonable to place an icon of the Savior in the kitchen, since the thanksgiving prayer after the meal is addressed to Him: “We thank You, Christ, our God…”.
What to do if the icon has become unusable and cannot be restored?
Such an icon, even if it is not consecrated, should in no case be simply thrown away: a shrine, even if it has lost its original appearance, must always be treated with reverence.
Previously, the old icons were handled in the following way: until a certain state, the old icon was kept in a shrine behind other icons, and if the colors from the icon were completely erased from time to time, then it was allowed to flow along the river.
In our time, of course, this is not worth doing; the dilapidated icon must be taken to the church, where it will be burned in the church oven. If this is not possible, then you should burn the icon yourself, and bury the ashes in a place that will not be defiled: for example, in a cemetery or under a tree in a garden.
Following Orthodox traditions Slavs, many decorate their living space with icons. This reflects the desire of believers to show respect for the church and become closer to religion. Since ancient times, the icons in the house were located on the iconostasis, which is called the goddess or the red corner. Now the icons are hung directly on the wall or mounted on a shelf that plays the role of an iconostasis. The desire to equip a sacred place in a special way leads to the decision to make a shelf for icons on your own.
Design Options
Orthodox canons suggest placing icons on the eastern wall. Alternatively, the place of the iconostasis is arranged in a corner directed to the east. Depending on the selected area, the shelf can be straight or angular. small size corner shelves require the arrangement of a multi-tiered structure. The shelf can be equipped with a back wall. Often it is decorated with carvings depicting birds, vegetation or the outlines of the holy apostles. The traditions of Orthodoxy do not provide for the placement of items that are not related to religion next to church paraphernalia. Having decided on the shape of the shelf, they proceed to the preparation of material and tools.
Materials and accessories
Traditionally, shelves for icons are made of wood materials, it can be natural wood or derivatives (chipboard, MDF, LDF). By taking care of the availability of all materials, components and tools in advance, you will avoid unplanned downtime. Based on the chosen design of the shelf for icons, you should have at hand:
- A board of any breed with a thickness of 1.5-3.0 cm.
- Small pieces of chipboard, MDF or LDF.
- Adhesive suitable for joining wood.
- Sandpaper.
- Lacquer and various paints (silver, gold and black)
- Cutter and jigsaw.
- Drill and lathe.
- Wood saw.
- Pencil and ruler.
- Hinges, dowels, brackets.
Decoration methods
Depending on the complexity of the elements of decorating the shelf for icons, they can be made by hand or purchased at finished version. Having experience in wood processing allows you to make candlesticks, balusters and carved slats on your own. It is advisable to decorate the crowning shelf for icons with carvings, a crucifix or an image of church domes. Craftsmen or woodworking companies that offer their products in a wide range will help save the situation in the absence of the necessary skills. You can also find the missing parts for the shelf for icons in the church shop.
wood carving
If desired, complex patterns and bas-reliefs can be cut with your own hands. The design of the crucifix is preceded by the selection of a suitable image.
Advice ! For carving, soft wood is selected: birch, spruce, pine, aspen or juniper. The thickness of the board is 15 mm.
Of the tools for making a shelf for icons, you will need a set of cutters. The carving process consists of the following steps:
- Using a paper sketch and transfer paper, the outlines and contours of the convex elements are transferred to a solid board.
- The crucifix, intended for a shelf with icons, is cut using an electric jigsaw.
- Concave elements are formed with incisors. The carving is carried out in layers, carefully processing the internal corners with a thin cutter.
- When the crucifix for the shelf for the icons is ready, the product is sanded with a fine abrasive mesh.
When performing bas-reliefs for a shelf in segments, their connection to each other is carried out on the back side using an MDF sheet. The procedure includes the following steps:
- Separate elements are applied to the panel, and the general outlines are outlined.
- The resulting contour is cut along the edge with a margin of 5 mm.
- Bas-relief segments for a shelf with icons are glued to an MDF sheet.
- The remains of the panel are carefully cut with a jigsaw or cutter.
- The ends of the decorative element are polished sandpaper.
The manufacture of balusters for a shelf with icons involves work on lathe. Finished parts are also subjected to grinding.
Simulation process
If it is not possible to decorate a shelf for icons with woodcarving on your own, and you cannot find finished parts, you can resort to imitation of carved elements. The effect can be achieved by the procedure of burning out the ornament, followed by the enamel opening of individual fragments of the image on the shelf for icons. This will require:
- Copy the outline of the picture onto the surface of the upper part of the shelf for icons.
- The outlines of the image are outlined with a burning tool.
Attention! The ornament on the shelf for icons should have an identical shade in all treated areas.
- After applying the contour, the selected areas are covered with enamel using an artistic brush, the diameter of which is 1 mm. It is important not to paint over the contours of the image with paint.
- The prepared decorative element is varnished.
Parts manufacturing
Mainly icon stand includes the following parts:
- side panels;
- shelves;
- racks;
- sides.
Their dimensions depend on the chosen shape and location.
Single tier straight shelving
After careful study of the drawing, they proceed directly to the manufacture of shelves for icons.
Advice ! The distance between the shelves is determined based on the size of the icons available in the house, and may be a little more.
For wooden structure necessary:
- Transfer the dimensions of the sketch to chipboard or MDF, and then cut out the templates. It is not recommended to use plywood for templates due to the need for further processing after sawing.
- The blanks are applied to the board, it is preferable to choose a material with a thickness of 15 mm, each part for the shelf is formed with an electric jigsaw.
- The edges of the sawn elements are processed with a cutter and polished with abrasive paper.
- The assembly of the shelf for the icons is started after sawing and grinding all the parts.
- In conclusion, the product is varnished.
Corner shelves
We will consider the manufacture of a corner shelf for icons using the example of using fiberboard as the main material. So:
- Dimensions are transferred to the fiberboard sheet with a pencil and a ruler right triangle. They can be arbitrary, we recommend choosing the 280/280/380 option.
- The drawn figure is cut out with a jigsaw.
- The edges of the shelf need to be sanded, especially carefully sand the end of the wide side.
- For further finishing of the future shelf for icons, you will need a sheet of veneer. It is better to purchase a product treated with glue and covered with a film. Lack of recommended protection will require additional purchase of hot melt adhesive.
- A triangle of similar dimensions (280/280/380) is applied to the veneer sheet. The figure is cut out with a sharp knife.
- Removing from the veneer triangle protective film, stick it on the chipboard part with a hot iron.
- Similarly, process the end of the wide side of the shelf under the icons with veneer thermal tape. The virtuosity of the jigsaw allows you to decorate the edge of the shelf not with a standard thermal tape, but decorate it with a patterned veneer frill.
- On the sides a triangular shelf for icons with the help of self-tapping screws is fixed in two loops.
- Finally, the product is attached to the corner of the room.
Nuances of fastening
The shelf for icons is fastened with dowels. Initially, the hinges are installed on the product, then the entire structure is applied to the wall and the holes are marked. After that, recesses are prepared with a drill and dowels are screwed in. Then brackets or brackets are hung. There are two ways to avoid excessive pollution when drilling holes for a shelf for icons. If there are assistants, it is enough to use a vacuum cleaner, substituting a pipe with a drill to the place of work, and all the garbage will disappear in the depths of the vacuum cleaner. Working with a shelf for icons alone forces you to use another trick. Of the four landscape sheets(according to the number of holes to be prepared), cone-shaped figures (simply bags) are twisted. Then, using adhesive tape, they are attached under the points marked for drilling. Such a simple device will prevent excessive clogging of the floor during the fastening of the shelf for the icons.
Important ! The shelf is fixed high enough, approximately at a distance of 50-80 cm from the ceiling, as Orthodox canons icons should be at or above the eyes of a person and rise above the rest of the decor.
What else should be considered when installing a shelf for icons:
- the absence in the immediate vicinity of paintings or other decorative elements;
- the use of candlesticks obliges to take care of fire safety measures: there should not be combustible and flammable materials (curtains, paper, etc.) nearby.
Location of icons
Sticking to tradition Orthodox Church, it is desirable to equip the design for images with three shelves. In such a product, the main row, called Deisis, is distinguished. Compliance with the canons provides for the location of the holy faces on the shelf in a certain sequence:
- On the top row(Deisis) in the center is the icon of Jesus, on the left is the image Holy Mother of God, and on the right - John the Baptist. If there is free space, the image of the Archangel Michael is additionally placed on the left on the shelf, and Gabriel on the right.
- Festive icons are placed on the middle shelf. These are images of the most significant holidays of Christians, ideally there should be 12 of them.
- The lower shelf of the iconostasis is filled with the favorite holy faces of the residents of the house, it is customary to call it local.
The corner design of the shelf is preferable to a straight one, as it corresponds to the traditions of Orthodoxy to place images in the “red corner”.
Surely there is no such house in which there would be no icons, candles, willow branches. Where and how to store it all? Is their storage location appropriate for its intended purpose? Is it not forgotten, is it not abandoned after being brought from the church? Not every family has a home iconostasis, including because many simply do not know how to make it. Perhaps our information will be useful to you.
Red corner in the apartment - tradition and modernity
In the old days, even in the most modest peasant hut, one could see a reverently equipped corner with icons. The red (“beautiful”) corner in the house was located diagonally from front door. This was done so that those who entered the room immediately saw the image, could cross themselves and bow. This corner in the house has always been given a special place: they kept it especially clean, put flowers, candles, decorated the icons as best they could. Closer to the red corner, the most dear guests were seated at the table.
Despite the fact that centuries have passed, the “content” of the red corner in the house has not changed: images are still hung or placed here. Sometimes, according to an old tradition, they are decorated with the so-called icons (gods) - narrow long towels. The red corner in an apartment or house is also a place to store candles or any consecrated oil that should be kept near the icons. Concerning Epiphany water, then where to keep it - it depends on the owner, maybe not near the iconostasis. The main thing is to take a sip on an empty stomach in the morning after prayer to strengthen spiritual and physical strength. Important element- a lamp for the home iconostasis, which is lit during prayer, as well as on Sundays, on the eve of the holidays and on the holidays themselves. Here they keep Easter eggs, consecrated willow (it is placed above or behind the icon, it is changed on Palm Sunday, the old one is burned). The fundamental point is that all the elements that make up the home iconostasis must be consecrated in the church. In this regard, it is worth mentioning another nuance. It happens that people “in company” with images put photographs of famous priests, righteous people, elders, monks. From the point of view of church canons, this is wrong, since a photograph is an imprint of the earthly life of a particular person. Of course, these pictures have the right to exist in the house of a believer, but not together with the icons.
How to decorate a home iconostasis? To give this place a special aesthetic, flowers (preferably live), willow branches are placed here. You can decorate the red corner in the house with beautiful indoor plants, but not with cacti and other "thorns".
Where to arrange a home iconostasis
In the interior of the temple, the iconostasis is the central part. Thanks to him, sparkling with gold and colors, a special atmosphere of elation is created in the temple. Its purpose is to separate the altar from the rest of the temple.
We know that the church is facing the altar to the east. Accordingly, when a believer comes to church, his face is also turned to the east. And in the arrangement of the home iconostasis, one must also adhere to this principle. If it is impossible to choose a corner that “looks” exactly to the east, let it be at least as close to it as possible. True, in practice this condition is difficult to meet exactly, so it is desirable, but not strictly required.
As a rule, icons are allocated a place in the big room. In any case, it is important that there is enough free space in front of the images for several people praying at the same time. It is bad when a home iconostasis is adjacent to a TV, computer, and other signs of civilization. It is desirable that it be a fairly autonomous corner.
How to make an iconostasis at home
Once upon a time, tradition attributed to storing images in a special locker - an icon case. They are still being made today, so you can buy a home iconostasis, for example, a corner one. But this is not always convenient, because you can only rely on the standard version, which does not take into account the peculiarities of the “set” of images of a particular family. In this case, you can order a home iconostasis, for example, a carved one - then all the nuances will be taken into account. Those who want their wall or floor icon case to resemble a traditional church one and at the same time are ready to make it with their own hands often look for drawings of a home iconostasis. But, speaking of by and large, there is no particular need for this. For the manufacture of an iconostasis for the home, any materials and designs can be used, although in most cases we are talking about wood products. In this matter, you can build on your own skills and taste, as well as on the number, size and other parameters of the icons available in the house.
The iconostasis for the house can be one horizontal or be made in two or three tiers. All images can be placed in general on one solid board or on different shelves, single-tier or multi-tier. Shelves for a home iconostasis can be the most common - furniture, books, one- or two-, three-tier. But there is a nuance associated with candles and lamps: they can heat up part of the shelf, make it turn black or even catch fire. Therefore, thinking over the design of the iconostasis, you need to remember about fire safety.
It is believed that the icons are still better to put on something than to hang on the wall. As for the height of the red corner, it should be approximately at eye level or slightly higher. If the icons hang or stand on a shelf, then it is convenient to put a table below. On it you can place, again, images, put books, store holy water, etc.
Icons for home red corner
Much more important than the "form" of the home iconostasis is its "content". Here, the tradition can no longer be circumvented, although in this case there is nothing complicated. By and large, the iconostasis can consist of only two icons - the Savior and the Mother of God, and these two images must be in any home. Of the numerous images of the Savior, as a rule, preference is given to half-length images, and from the icons depicting the Virgin, to the images of the Hodegetria and Tenderness varieties, which, in turn, are represented by a number of varieties - the believer himself chooses the icons he likes for the home iconostasis .
If there is a desire and an opportunity to place more than two icons, then one cannot do without images of the Holy Trinity and famous saints. From time immemorial, a special place in their cohort belongs to Nicholas the Wonderworker. There may be a place here for images of other saints - the names of which family members are named or simply especially revered by them. In order for the iconostasis of the house to be complete and complete, you can place there the image of St. John the Baptist, the archangels Michael and Gabriel, the supreme apostles Peter and Paul, the prophet Elijah. You can also put or hang icons various holidays. It is very good to have the icon of the Burning Bush, which sends down help from fires.
The starting point for a home iconostasis can be a holy image that is passed down from generation to generation, even if it has somewhat lost its appearance or does not fully comply with strict canons. It can also be placed / placed on a table under the shrine.
Even if the place allows, you should not focus on the number of icons. Let it be only the Savior and the Mother of God, but depicted in such a way that when looking at them, the soul was filled with reverence and asked for prayers. It is not at all the number of consecrated objects in the house that makes those who live here pious.
Arrangement of icons in the home iconostasis
In the Russian tradition, the iconostasis is represented by as many as five rows. It has its own hierarchy and nuances that are difficult to take into account for an insufficiently competent person. Therefore, in the philistine version, the goddess is equipped with the support of only a few rules. So, the scheme of the home iconostasis.
- It is very good if at the very top, above the icons, there is a cross (of course, Orthodox).
- The center of the red corner in the house is the Savior (for example, "The Savior Not Made by Hands" or "The Lord Almighty"). Above this icon it is appropriate to place only the image of the Holy Trinity or, as already mentioned, the crucifixion.
- To the right of the image of the Savior (and from the side of the person standing in front of him - to the left) they place the icon of the Mother of God. These are the main icons that should be in the center. On the sides of them or below, all other images can be placed.
- The principle of hierarchy must also be observed at home, for example, the image of a saint must not be hung or placed higher than the images of not only the Savior, the Mother of God and the Holy Trinity, but also the apostles.
- If there is a desire or need to arrange a home iconostasis in a “minimalist” style, then next to the image of Jesus Christ, you can place the image of John the Baptist on the left side (according to right side, we remind you, there will be an image of the Virgin). The place of John the Baptist can be taken by Nicholas the Wonderworker.
It is usually recommended to place icons in the home iconostasis in such a way that they are designed in a single style and manner of execution. In practice, this condition is quite difficult to fulfill, because icons enter the house in different ways. As soon as I saw some, I immediately wanted to buy, some were given as a gift ... All this is not without reason - this is the providence of God, and it is necessary to “attach” all of them in a worthy way. But in any case, you need to give this entire array a symmetrical, harmonious, thoughtful look. If involuntarily the gaze constantly clings to the imperfection of the composition, the praying person, experiencing aesthetic dissatisfaction, will be distracted from prayer.
The location of the remaining icons in the house
In addition to the red corner, icons can and even should be (at least one) in each living room. On the kitchen, for example, the image of the Savior would be very appropriate, since it is he who is addressed in prayer before and after eating. It is mandatory to hang an icon in children's room, and so that it can be seen from the bed. This may be, for example, the image of a guardian angel or an icon of a saint whose name the child bears. Once upon a time, in Russian homes, in children's rooms, an image of the Mother of God, illuminated by the soft light of a lamp, was always placed.
In search of an answer to the question of where icons should hang in the house, many are especially interested in the bedroom. There is a stereotype that bedroom you can’t hang icons: they say, under the all-seeing eye of the celestials, it’s a shame to engage in shameful deeds. Or some advise to cover the image at night. However, it must be remembered that marital intimacy present in marriage is not a sin, and you cannot hide from God by any curtain. Therefore, you can place icons in the bedroom without hesitation, especially since it is often not possible to build a red corner in another room. Moreover, the bedroom, as an intimate place, is well suited for prayer appeals to higher powers.
The icon of the Savior can be placed in hallway: every time you leave the house, you can turn to the Lord with a request for blessing and help. Above the entrance tradition prescribes to hang the image of the Intercession of the Most Holy Theotokos, but this place can be any other icon or Orthodox cross. By the way, a cross or small images can be placed above any door in a dwelling.
The location of the icons in the house can be anything, but placing them outside the red corner, you must also take care of a decent place. You can't put an image on bookshelf next to books if their content is extremely far from the principles of Christianity. There is no place for icons in close proximity to other "worldly" images like calendars and posters, panels with non-religious subjects.
In whatever place the icon is hung, you need to treat it correctly. You can arrange (buy, do it yourself) a luxurious home iconostasis, acquire beautiful, expensive, “stylish” icons and, having no faith in God's grace, turn it all into an interior item. Home red corner is not just a beautiful corner in the house. Just as we worked hard to create it, so we must work hard to make a place for God in our souls. Any icon is hung in order to pray in front of it and thanks to it, remember who we are and why in this world.
Modern Orthodox education is located in difficult situation transferring the traditional classical subject of teaching into the context of the new culture of the early 20th century. I think any school teacher, especially a Sunday school teacher, noted for himself at least once that the system of children's perception of the world has changed dramatically over last years. From books, films and stories of the older generation, we know how the children listened to the teacher in the classroom, how quiet the class was, how every word of the teacher was remembered. Today, our children are growing up in a new audiovisual culture and interactive space - the culture of listening is becoming a thing of the past.
It is good and joyful when parents manage to instill in their child a love for the book, for the written word, for being able to imagine in their fantasies what is written in the book.
However, this task is difficult for a teacher: is it possible to correct what has been inculcated for years in 40 minutes a week?
First of all, perhaps, this tendency to visual perception was reflected in teaching a foreign language - in the transition from the autodidactic method (reading and translating text) to the communicative one, where the lesson is based on conversation, games, songs, films.
Having some experience in communicative teaching of English to adults, one day I asked myself why we (and I, in the first place) think that children will be interested in our classes when for 40 minutes we do not tell something, albeit interesting. Why do we organize an adult's lesson in such a way that he does not get bored, but we expect a reverent 40-minute silence from a child?
How to make an iconostasis with your own hands?
Thus, the need to make Sunday school lessons interesting and creative became evident.
Iconostasis Orthodox church can be shown in a book, you can draw a diagram on the board. And we decided that the best way to learn the structure of the iconostasis is to make it yourself.
So, you will need:
1 sheet of drawing paper A3 (or 2 sheets A 4),
5 bookmarks for books with icons (2 icons of the Savior, 1 icon of the Blessed Virgin and icons of two revered saints),
color printer,
markers,
glue
scissors.
For the iconostasis, we chose icons from bookmarks for several reasons: they are not consecrated, therefore, they can be used in the process children's creativity, they are made of cardboard, so they can be easily glued to our iconostasis.
1. The story of the iconostasis
The teacher on the blackboard depicts the design of the iconostasis. The explanation takes place as a dialogue with the students, summarized by the teacher's story.
What is the iconostasis for?
What is the name of the gate in the center of the iconostasis?
Why are they called Royal?
Why is the Cross placed at the base of the iconostasis?
Then follows a story about the rows of the iconostasis. To simplify the task and limit the amount of material, we decided to limit ourselves to only those ranks that are in the iconostasis of our temple: local, festive and deesis.
Local rank: On the Royal Doors, the Annunciation of the Most Holy Theotokos is depicted, sometimes icons of St. Basil the Great and John Chrysostom. To the right of the Royal Doors is the icon of the Savior, to the left - the Most Holy Theotokos. To the right of the icon of the Savior is placed the icon of the saint or holiday in whose honor the temple was consecrated. So, having come to the temple, even without knowing its name, we can always find out in whose honor it was consecrated. The story can be preceded by questions, ask the children to remember how the iconostasis is arranged in their church.
The following rows are festive and deesis. The Deesis is above the local rite, but we made the iconostasis according to the model of our temple, so at first we had a festive row. We printed icons for him on a printer. Before sticking a festive row, we carefully look at which holidays are depicted, what happened on each of the holidays.
Deesis rank. Deesis in Greek means prayer. The children themselves explain that this row is called “prayer”, because here the Mother of God and the saints praying for us are standing before the Throne of God.
After repeating the material in the next lesson, we get down to business.
1. A sheet of drawing paper is folded in half and a cut is made along the fold to the middle, and then a figured cut is the future Royal Doors.
2. We paste the icon of the Annunciation to the Most Holy Theotokos printed on the printer on the Royal Doors.
3. At the very bottom of the iconostasis there are images of Chestnago and life-giving cross Lord's. You can devote a separate lesson to this - learn how to draw the correct cross. Children draw four crosses with a red felt-tip pen.
4. Local row. We recall on which side of the Royal Doors the icon of the Savior and the Most Holy Theotokos is located, where the icon of the saint or holiday, whose name the temple bears, is located. Glue the horses in the correct order.
5. Festive series. The children are given a holiday series printed on a printer: we look again at the icons, remember which holiday is depicted on which icon and why this holiday is so important.
6. Deesis rank. A large icon of the Savior is glued in the center, icons of the Most Holy Theotokos, John the Baptist and angels are printed on the right and left. Let's remember the meaning of the word Deesis.
7. The iconostasis is ready. Children can draw any patterns on the remaining space. Drawing a pattern can be devoted to a separate lesson, in which children can be shown the technique of basic patterns, and then they can be performed on the iconostasis.
Now each student can tell parents in detail about the symbolism of the iconostasis.
Reference: The iconostasis separates from the main building of the temple, where the worshipers are, the altar, its most holy part, which symbolizes the Kingdom of Heaven, the realm of Divine existence, the constant presence of Divine grace.
This symbolic Heaven on earth must be separated from the whole temple, for God is completely different from His creation, God is predominantly holy, that is, unworldly, incapable of being in the fullness of His Being in the realm of earthly existence.
The sanctity of the altar is emphasized by its elevation above the main level of the temple and the enclosure of the shrine, which should not be dissolved in everyday life. The iconostasis protects the altar from the penetration of people unprepared for the sacred service.
The ICONOSTASIS not only separates the Divine world from the created world, it is also an image of the Heavenly Church headed by the Lord Jesus Christ. The iconostasis is turned with icons to the middle part of the temple, where the worshipers stand. Thus, during the divine service, the assembly of believers is, as it were, placed face to face with the assembly of celestials, mysteriously present in the images of the iconostasis.
In the center of the iconostasis are the Royal Doors located opposite the throne. They are called so because the King of Glory Himself, the Lord Jesus Christ, comes out through them in the Holy Gifts. To the left of the Royal Doors, in the northern part of the iconostasis, opposite the altar, are the northern doors for the exit of the clergy during worship; on the right, in the southern part of the iconostasis, the southern doors for the entrance of the clergy. A veil is hung from the inside of the Royal Doors, which is opened or closed at certain moments of worship. The opening of the veil depicts the revelation of the mystery of salvation to people. The opening of the Royal Doors means the opening of the Kingdom of Heaven to Christians.
Iconostases are different. Large iconostases in the Assumption and Archangel Cathedrals of the Moscow Kremlin, in the Assumption Cathedral of the Trinity-Sergius Lavra. In such cathedrals, as a rule, the iconostasis consists of five tiers, or five rows of icons. These tiers are connected into a single whole, which is the manifestation of the heavenly world.
The lower tier, or row, is called local, because it contains a local icon, that is, an icon of a holiday or a saint in whose honor the temple is built. In the middle of the local row are the Royal Doors. They are carved and painted. Icons of the four evangelists and the Annunciation of the Most Holy Theotokos are usually painted on the Royal Doors. Standing in front of the Royal Doors, we see to the right of them the icon of the Savior Jesus Christ, to the right - the local icon. Even more to the right, as a rule, is the southern door, on which the icon of the archangel is depicted. To the right of the southern door there may be other icons.
To the left of the Royal Doors, as a rule, is placed the icon of the Mother of God, to the left - other icons.
The second row from the bottom can be festive, it contains icons of the twelfth holidays.
The third row is the Deesis (see "Iconography"). To the right and left of the Deesis are icons of saints and archangels.
The fourth row is prophetic. It contains the icons of the prophets Old Testament- Isaiah, Jeremiah, Daniel, David, Solomon and others.
The fifth row is the forefather. The forefathers are the patriarchs of the Israeli people, such as Abraham, Jacob, Isaac, Noah.
The iconostasis has three doors, or three gates. The middle gate, the largest, is placed in the very middle of the iconostasis and is called the Royal Doors, because through them the Lord Jesus Christ Himself, the King of Glory, passes invisibly in the Holy Gifts.
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