Chotki are used for an ancient form of prayer known as the Jesus Prayer. This prayer comes to us from the Eastern Orthodox Church and is a wonderful vehicle for bringing people into contemplative prayer.
Chotki is the Greek term given to Jesus beads. Chotki can have as many as 150 beads and as few as 10 beads or almost any number in between. I personally like Chotki that have 33 beads. It is easy to pray the Jesus prayer 100 times, which is the most common form of the prayer, by going around the Chotki 3 times and then adding one more prayer. I also like it because the 33 beads symbolize the 33 years that Jesus was on this earth. There are many forms of the Jesus Prayer, but the most common form is a quote form is to repeat the simple phrase "Lord Jesus Christ, have mercy on me a sinner."
Traditionally, Chotki are strung and I have stayed with tradition by stringing this Chotki. However, I was unhappy with the way my Chotki looked when I constructed it in the usual manner, so I decided to break with tradition and insert a center similar to the centers found in a rosary. I am pleased with this design. I hope you will be too.
This particular Chotki is comprised of black Crucifix Beads from Czechoslovakia. Accenting these beads are handmade bronze beads from Bali. The Center and Crucifid are hand cast bronze. Please visit my shop, Laude Arts and Gifts, to see more information on this Chotki and to view my handcrafted rosaries and jewelry. Thank you for taking the time to look.
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