Dikirion () and trikirion (τρικήριον or τρίκηρον) are

liturgical Liturgy is the customary public ritual of worship performed by a religious group. As a religious phenomenon, liturgy represents a communal response to and participation in the sacred through activities reflecting praise, thanksgiving, remembra ...

candlestick A candlestick is a device used to hold a candle in place. Candlesticks have a cup or a spike ("pricket") or both to keep the candle in place. Candlesticks are sometimes called "candleholders". Before the proliferation of electricity, candles wer ...

s, used by a

bishop A bishop is an ordained member of the clergy who is entrusted with a position of Episcopal polity, authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance and administration of di ...

of the

Eastern Orthodox Eastern Orthodoxy, otherwise known as Eastern Orthodox Christianity or Byzantine Christianity, is one of the three main Branches of Christianity, branches of Chalcedonian Christianity, alongside Catholic Church, Catholicism and Protestantism ...

and the

Eastern Catholic Churches The Eastern Catholic Churches or Oriental Catholic Churches, also known as the Eastern-Rite Catholic Churches, Eastern Rite Catholicism, or simply the Eastern Churches, are 23 Eastern Christian autonomous (''sui iuris'') particular churches of ...

to bless the

clergy Clergy are formal leaders within established religions. Their roles and functions vary in different religious traditions, but usually involve presiding over specific rituals and teaching their religion's doctrines and practices. Some of the ter ...

and

faithful Faithful may refer to: Film and television * ''Faithful'' (1910 film), an American comedy short directed by D. W. Griffith * ''Faithful'' (1936 film), a British musical drama directed by Paul L. Stein * ''Faithful'' (1996 film), an American cr ...

. The words mean "dual candle" and "triple candle", respectively, and may collectively be called by the

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plural form, "δικηροτρίκηρα", ''dikērotríkēra''. The candlesticks are often quite ornate. The bishop holds the trikirion in his right hand and the dikirion in his left, and makes the

Sign of the Cross Making the sign of the cross (), also known as blessing oneself or crossing oneself, is both a prayer and a ritual blessing made by members of some branches of Christianity. It is a very significant prayer because Christians are acknowledging ...

with both. Both the dikirion and the trikirion have flat bases, so that they may stand upright. Above this base is a vertical shaft terminating in candleholders. The dikirion holds two

candle A candle is an ignitable candle wick, wick embedded in wax, or another flammable solid substance such as tallow, that provides light, and in some cases, a Aroma compound, fragrance. A candle can also provide heat or a method of keeping time. ...

s, representing the dual nature of

Jesus Jesus (AD 30 or 33), also referred to as Jesus Christ, Jesus of Nazareth, and many Names and titles of Jesus in the New Testament, other names and titles, was a 1st-century Jewish preacher and religious leader. He is the Jesus in Chris ...

, and the trikirion holds three, representing the three persons of the

Holy Trinity The Trinity (, from 'threefold') is the Christian doctrine concerning the nature of God, which defines one God existing in three, , consubstantial divine persons: God the Father, God the Son (Jesus Christ) and God the Holy Spirit, three ...

. The candleholders are mounted at an angle so that candles placed in them cross each other. Sometimes in the Russian tradition, the candles are inserted into their holders, then softened then shaped in such a way that the separate candles meet and bend upwards to burn with a single flame. A particularly fancy variation on this has the candles merge in a double and triple spiral. In other traditions, the candles are tied together with large ribbons at the point of intersection. During a hierarchical

Divine Liturgy Divine Liturgy () or Holy Liturgy is the usual name used in most Eastern Christian rites for the Eucharistic service. The Eastern Catholic Churches, Eastern Lutheranism, Eastern Lutheran Churches and the Eastern Orthodox Church believe the Divi ...

, the dikirion and trikirion are kept respectively on the top left and right corners of the Holy Table (altar), or on stands placed next to these corners. When these are needed by the bishop, the candlesticks are brought to him by

subdeacon Subdeacon is a minor orders, minor order of ministry for men or women in various branches of Christianity. The subdeacon has a specific liturgical role and is placed below the deacon and above the acolyte in the order of precedence. Subdeacons in ...

s, who may also carry them during the Entrances. One of them may be carried by the

deacon A deacon is a member of the diaconate, an office in Christian churches that is generally associated with service of some kind, but which varies among theological and denominational traditions. Major Christian denominations, such as the Cathol ...

during the censing by the bishop or by one of the subdeacons during the censing by the deacon.

Paschal trikirion

There exists a special form of the trikirion used only at Pascha (Easter) - the Paschal trikirion ( Slavonic: Троица, ''Troitsa''). This Paschal form of the trikirion is carried by priests as well as bishops, and sometimes will have coloured candles in it (for instance, red, green and gold).

Theophany

Among the Ukrainian Eastern Christians (

Russian Orthodox The Russian Orthodox Church (ROC; ;), also officially known as the Moscow Patriarchate (), is an autocephaly, autocephalous Eastern Orthodox Church, Eastern Orthodox Christian church. It has 194 dioceses inside Russia. The Primate (bishop), p ...

, Ukrainian Orthodox and Ukrainian Catholic), it is common for the priest or bishop to use a large three-branch candle for the Great Blessing of Waters on the

Great Feast In the Eastern Orthodox Church, the feast of the death and Resurrection of Jesus, called Pascha (Easter), is the greatest of all holy days and as such it is called the "feast of feasts". Immediately below it in importance, there is a group of T ...

Theophany Theophany () is an encounter with a deity that manifests in an observable and tangible form.. It is often confused with other types of encounters with a deity, but these interactions are not considered theophanies unless the deity reveals itse ...

(Epiphany). {{commons category, Dikirion and trikirion

External links

Photo of Bishop blessing with Dikirion and Trikirion
Christian religious objects Candles Eastern Christian liturgical objects da:Helligtrekongerslys