This extremely beautiful hymn marks the beginning of the midnight psalmody. The english translation of the hymn is as follows:
Arise, O children of the Light, let us prase the Lord of Hosts.
That He may grant us the salvation of our souls.
The following passage is an excerpt from the book entitled, "The Spirituality of the Holy Psalmody," by Matthew Massoud:
"The following meditation on the hymn, Tentheno, was taken from a deacon from St. Mark’s Coptic Orthodox Church in Toronto, Canada.
I would like to meditate with you on one word in the hymn of Tentheno. In this long hymn, the word Tentheno, “Arise” is split up into three sections. Ten-the-no. “Ten” and “the” are short, and then there is a crescendo at “no,” where the hymn starts. As I was listening to it yesterday, I was thinking to myself of the spiritual significance to why the word “Tentheno”, in the long hymn, is split up into three sections. Our lives, like the hymn, should be split up into three sections as well. What are the three sections, you ask? David the Prophet says,
“We went through fire and through water; but You brought us out to rich fulfilment” (Ps. 66:12).
Water, fire, and rich fulfillment. If you ever notice, that is how the actual Psalmody is split up. The first part is Water. This signifies the First Canticle; the exodus of the Israelites, and crossing of the Red Sea as we read in the Second Canticle,
“To him which divided the Red sea into parts: for his mercy endures for ever: And made Israel to pass through the midst of it: for his mercy endures for ever: But overthrew Pharaoh and his host in the Red sea: for his mercy endures for ever” (Ps. 136: 13-15).
Fire: The Third Canticle, Aripsalin, and “Tenoueh Enthok - Azariah’s Prayer” which revolve around the story of the Three Youths in the fiery furnace; Rich Fulfillment: from the Commemoration of the Saints, till the end of the Psalmody, This is because we feel as we are indeed in heaven, in the presence of God, the Almighty, and His saints. What, then, is the significance of water, fire, and rich fulfillment?
Water is a symbol of “soft” tribulations. When a person is at the first stage of repentance, he believes that the devil is bombarding him with all his might, when in fact the devil is barely doing anything to him. H.H. Pope Shenouda says that the devil does not bother with beginners “in the road of repentance,” because they are too easy for him. He merely sends one of his weak assistants to “visit” the beginner every now and then, or simply allow the beginner to fall on his own. The devil likes a challenge so he goes after the strong people, not the beginners, who are of no interest to him. He allows them to fall on their own. In order to pass the “water” stage, the individual must struggle until he can swim his way to safety as Father Misael (serving in St. Mark’s Coptic Orthodox Church, Toronto) often tells me. In other words, the repentant individual must learn how to pray, and depend solely on God, never on himself. The repentant individual must learn how to use “the ways of salvation” that God has prepared for us. Only then will God, “our spiritual lifeguard,” toss to the individual the Cross as a life preserver to rescue the person.
The second stage is fire, which is a symbol of “strong” tribulations. When an individual is close to reaching, or has reached Christian perfection, the devil begins to use all of his “power” to ensnare the individual, because only at this stage are they a challenge to him. Examples of such are the three youths, who were thrown in the fiery furnace. The fire, or the mere thought of death did not scare them because they knew that God was watching over them.
After going through water and fire, God will reward the successful, by bringing them out to rich fulfillment, which is eternal rest in His heavenly kingdom; the region where sorrow and sadness do not exist.
As mentioned previously, in the long hymn of Tentheno, the word “Tentheno” is split up into 3 sections. Ten-the-no. “Ten” and “the” are short, and the stretch “or the actual hymn” begins at “no.” One could mirror this to our lives; tribulations, whether they are “soft” or “strong” are temporary, and short-lived, just as the one beat of “Ten” and the one beat of “the.” They do not last long, and their end comes quickly, whereas our “rich fulfillment,” like “no,” where the actual hymn starts, stretches out forever. As the hymn starts at “no,” our true rejoicing will commence once we reach the green pastures of heaven, where God, the true “rich fulfilment” abides. And there, we will praise Him endlessly, with the choirs of the heavenly."
For the full text of the book please visit:
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This hymn was chanted by The Heritage of the Coptic Orthodox Church Choir.
Glory be to God Forever +
Негізгі бет Tasbeha - The Beginning of the Midnight Psalmody - Ten Thinoo
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