Reading time: 10 minutes
In the Orthodox tradition, death is not a final separation. It is a transition — a sleep whose awakening is the resurrection. And it is precisely for this reason that the Orthodox Church has established, from the earliest centuries, regular days of prayer for the departed: not out of doubt about their fate, but out of love, faithfulness, and the certainty that our prayers reach those who have gone before us. These days are called the Psychosabbata — the Soul Saturdays. For English-speaking Orthodox Christians — in Greek, Serbian, Romanian, Russian, and Antiochian parishes across the UK, USA, Canada, and Australia — they are among the most tender and distinctive observances of the liturgical year.
What are the Psychosabbata?
The word Psychosabbata (ψυχοσάββατα) is a Greek compound of psyche (ψυχή — soul) and sabbaton (σάββατον — Saturday/Sabbath). It literally means "Soul Saturdays" — the days of the Orthodox liturgical calendar devoted to the solemn commemoration of all the departed.
As the Orthodox Church of Rotterdam explains: "In the book of the Octoechos, the well-known Paraklesis which is chanted almost constantly throughout the year, references to the departed are made only on Saturdays and NEVER on Sundays. That is why the Church has determined that the general and annual Memorials for the departed take place on Saturdays, hence they are called Psychosabbata (Soul Sabbaths)."
The Shrewsbury Orthodox Church puts it beautifully: "On the Saturday of Souls, Orthodox Christians commemorate those who have fallen asleep, beginning with Adam and Eve and ending with the most recently departed souls. With reverence, we ask God to forgive all their transgressions and grant them rest 'in a place of green pasture.' When we conduct the Liturgy and enter into the foretaste of the Kingdom of God, everyone and everything takes their rightful place. No one is forgotten. No one remains nameless. No one is left behind."
The Psychosabbata are not only for the recently bereaved. They offer all Orthodox faithful — whatever their state of grief — a regular liturgical occasion to pray for all their departed: parents, grandparents, friends, and even all Orthodox Christians who died without anyone praying for them. The commemoration extends to all who died "without confession, without communion, at sea, in deserts, in foreign lands" — a deeply moving formulation from the memorial litany.
Why Saturday?
The choice of Saturday for prayer for the departed is not arbitrary — it is profoundly Christological. Saturday is the day Christ rested in the tomb between his death on the Cross (Friday) and his Resurrection (Sunday). It is the day of the Great Sabbath — the day of silence and waiting.
For the Orthodox Church, praying for the departed on Saturday means commending them to this same rest of Christ in the tomb — awaiting the universal resurrection. Sunday, the day of the Resurrection, belongs to Paschal joy. This is why commemorations of the departed can never take place on Sunday in the Orthodox rite. This theological logic has been attested since the 4th century — the Council of Laodicea already reserved Saturday for prayer for the dead. The 12th-century Byzantine canonist Theodore Balsamon formalised it across all of Eastern Christianity.
The dates of the Psychosabbata in the Orthodox calendar
Greek tradition (2–3 Psychosabbata)
- Meatfare Saturday — the Saturday before Meatfare Sunday (Apokreo), the first Sunday of the Triodion. One of the two principal Psychosabbata in the Greek tradition.
- Pentecost Saturday (Rusalia Saturday) — the Saturday before Pentecost Sunday. Its name Rusalia derives from the ancient Roman Rosalia festival. It closes the Paschal cycle.
- Some Greek Orthodox parishes observe a third Soul Saturday on the first Saturday of Great Lent.
Slavic tradition (5–6 Psychosabbata)
Russian, Serbian, Bulgarian, and Romanian Orthodox churches generally observe more Soul Saturdays — including the three Saturdays of Great Lent (2nd, 3rd, and 4th weeks) and Pentecost Saturday. The Russian tradition also adds the Dimitrievskaya Subbota (the Saturday before 26 October, feast of St Demetrios) as a Soul Saturday dedicated to those who fell in war — a tradition established by Prince Dmitri Donskoi after the Battle of Kulikovo (1380).
Radonitsa
The Slavic tradition also knows Radonitsa — the Monday or Tuesday of the second week after Pascha. It is not a Psychosabbata in the strict sense (it does not fall on a Saturday), but it is a major commemorative day in Russian, Serbian, and Ukrainian tradition: families bring Paschal foods to the cemetery to "greet the departed with the joy of the Resurrection."
The liturgy of the Psychosabbata
The Divine Liturgy with memorial hymns
The Saturday Divine Liturgy is enriched with special hymns (idiomela) from the Octoechos and the Triodion, devoted to the commemoration of the departed.
The Panikhida (memorial service)
After the Divine Liturgy (or sometimes after Friday evening Vespers), the priest celebrates the Panikhida — the Orthodox memorial service. Parishioners have submitted lists of the names of their departed to the priest in advance. The priest reads them aloud. At each name, the assembly responds: "Grant him/her rest, O Lord" or sings "Memory Eternal" (Вечная память / Αἰωνία ἡ μνήμη). As Shrewsbury Orthodox Church describes: "the priest calls out the names of those who have fallen asleep. Everyone then chants together, 'Memory eternal.'"
The kolyva
Each family brings a dish of kolyva and places it before the icon of Christ with a lit candle. After the Panikhida, the priest blesses the kolyva. The faithful then share it in memory of their departed.
The cemetery visit
After the services, families visit the cemetery. A priest may conduct a Trisagion at the graveside. In some traditions, kolyva and wine are poured on the grave. As Shrewsbury notes: "After the service, the faithful distribute kollyva, and then family and friends visit the gravesite of their beloved who have fallen asleep."
Kolyva — a symbol of the resurrection
Kolyva (κόλυβα) is the Orthodox ritual dish par excellence for commemorations of the departed. It is made from boiled wheat berries mixed with raisins, almonds, walnuts, pomegranate seeds, honey, and spices, then decorated with powdered sugar in the shape of a cross.
Kolyva is not simply a mourning food — it is a theological symbol of the resurrection. Its scriptural foundation is Christ's own words in John 12:24: "Truly, truly, I say to you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies, it remains alone; but if it dies, it bears much fruit." The boiled wheat represents the body of the departed entrusted to the earth; the promised germination and fruit represent the resurrection. As Shrewsbury Orthodox Church states plainly: "Kollyva is an image of the Resurrection."
Each ingredient carries meaning: wheat = the body entrusted to the earth; raisins = the sweetness of eternal life; almonds = the bitterness of death; pomegranate seeds = fertility and new life; honey = the sweetness of Paradise; the powdered sugar cross = salvation through Christ's Cross. Traditionally, kolyva is prepared by the women of the family — evoking the Myrrh-bearing Women who carried spices to Christ's tomb.
Our guide to Orthodox funeral and memorial services covers all the commemorative practices in full detail.
National Orthodox traditions
Greek tradition
In Greece and Greek Orthodox parishes across the English-speaking world, the Psychosabbata are days of intense family devotion. Families prepare the kolyva the evening before — a careful, loving task considered an act of love for the departed. On the morning of the Psychosabbata, they attend the Divine Liturgy and Panikhida with their kolyva, then visit the cemetery. Greek City Times describes them as days when "participants often visit the graves of departed family members on Soul Saturdays to clean and decorate the burial sites."
Russian tradition
In Russia and Russian Orthodox parishes, the Soul Saturdays (Roditelskie Subboty — "Parents' Saturdays") are observed with particular intensity. Families submit names in writing days before the service. The cemetery visit follows immediately after the Panikhida — even in the depths of winter. The Radonitsa in spring is a particular celebration, with Paschal foods brought to the graveside.
Serbian tradition
In Serbian Orthodox communities (Zadušnice), the Soul Saturdays combine the Panikhida with a communal graveside gathering. The Serbian Orthodox Church also commemorates a Soul Saturday on 8 November (the Julian Calendar equivalent of 26 October, feast of St Demetrios) — connecting the memorial of the war dead to the warrior saint.
Romanian tradition
The Romanian Orthodox Church observes two principal Soul Saturdays under the name Moșii: Moșii de iarnă (Winter Soul Saturday, before Meatfare Sunday) and Moșii de vară (Summer Soul Saturday, before Pentecost). Romanian communities in the UK, USA, Canada, and Australia observe these days with the full traditional liturgy.
How to pray for your departed on the Psychosabbata
- Prepare a list of names — write the baptismal first names of all your departed Orthodox loved ones and submit them to the priest before the liturgy
- Attend the Divine Liturgy and Panikhida — physical presence at the church is the most important act
- Bring kolyva — preparing it yourself is an act of love; many parishes also prepare a communal dish
- Light a candle — before the icon of Christ or the Theotokos for your departed
- Visit the cemetery — after the services, lay flowers, light a candle at the grave, and recite the Trisagion
- Give alms — giving to a poor person or a charitable cause in the name of the departed is a recognised act of memorial in the Orthodox tradition
To support your home prayer on the Psychosabbata, our guide to the Orthodox prayer corner explains how to set up a space of prayer for the departed within your home.
FAQ — Frequently asked questions about the Psychosabbata
What are the Orthodox Psychosabbata?
The Psychosabbata are the Soul Saturdays of the Orthodox liturgical calendar — days devoted to the solemn commemoration of all the departed through the Divine Liturgy, the Panikhida, the kolyva, and cemetery visits. Saturday is chosen because it is the day Christ rested in the tomb, awaiting the Resurrection.
How many Psychosabbata are there each year?
It depends on the tradition followed. The Greek tradition observes 2–3 principal Soul Saturdays per year (Meatfare Saturday, Pentecost Saturday, and sometimes the first Saturday of Great Lent). Slavic, Russian, and Serbian traditions observe 5–6, including the three Saturdays of Great Lent and the November Dimitrievskaya Subbota.
What does kolyva mean?
Kolyva is the ritual boiled-wheat dish prepared for the Psychosabbata. It symbolises the resurrection according to Christ's words in John 12:24. Its ingredients — wheat, raisins, almonds, pomegranate, honey — are all symbolic of death, new life, and the sweetness of Paradise.
Can I pray for non-Orthodox departed on the Psychosabbata?
The name lists submitted to the priest for the Panikhida should contain only baptised Orthodox Christians. For non-Orthodox departed (Catholic, Protestant, or non-Christian), the Church recommends personal prayer — asking God to receive them according to His mercy — without including them in the official liturgical list.
What is the difference between the Psychosabbata and All Souls' Day?
The Western All Souls' Day (2 November) is a single annual commemoration. The Orthodox Psychosabbata are multiple days distributed throughout the liturgical year — always on a Saturday, always with the Divine Liturgy, Panikhida, and kolyva. Theologically, Orthodoxy prays for the departed without a defined Purgatory concept, trusting entirely in God's mercy and the universal resurrection.
What is the difference between the Psychosabbata and Radonitsa?
The Psychosabbata always fall on a Saturday and include special liturgical hymns for the departed. Radonitsa is a Slavic tradition falling on the Monday or Tuesday of the second week after Pascha — not a Psychosabbata strictly, but a Paschal memorial day: families bring Easter foods to the cemetery to "announce the Resurrection to the departed."
