# Supplication > Mediated Wiki article. Canonical URL: https://mediated.wiki/source/Supplication > Markdown URL: https://mediated.wiki/source/Supplication.md > Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Supplication > Source revision: 1327673450 > License: Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/) {{Short description|Form of prayer}} {{more citations needed|date=December 2021}} [[File:The Supplication.jpg|right|thumb|250 px|''The Supplication'' by [Théodore Jacques Ralli](/source/Th%C3%A9odore_Ralli), 1905-1909]] '''Supplication''' (also known as '''petitioning''') is a form of [prayer](/source/prayer), wherein one party humbly or earnestly asks another party to provide something, either for the party who is doing the supplicating (e.g., "Please spare my life.") or on behalf of someone else. ==In Classical Greek religion== Supplication is a theme of earliest antiquity, embodied in the ''[Iliad](/source/Iliad)'' as the prayers of [Chryses](/source/Chryses) for the return of [his daughter](/source/Chryseis), and of [Priam](/source/Priam) for the dead body of his son, [Hector](/source/Hector). Richard Martin notes repeated references to supplicants throughout the poem, including warriors begging to be spared by the Greeks on the battlefield.{{cite book|last=Martin|first=Richard|title=The Iliad of Homer|year=2011|publisher=The University of Chicago Press|location=Chicago|isbn=978-0-226-47049-8|page=50}} ==In ancient Rome== [[File:M. Aemilius Scaurus and Pub. Plautius Hypsaeus, denarius, 58 BC, RRC 422-1b.jpg|thumb|[Denarius](/source/Denarius) minted by [M. Aemilius Scaurus](/source/Marcus_Aemilius_Scaurus_(praetor_56_BC)) in 58 BC, showing the supplication of a figure labeled ''[Rex Aretas](/source/Aretas_III)'' with Jupiter driving a [quadriga](/source/quadriga) on the reverseF. S. Naiden, "Supplication on Roman Coins," ''American Journal of Numismatics'' 15 (2003) 43.]] In ancient Rome, formal supplication as a request, whether to a private individual or following surrender or military defeat, had four formal steps: 1. Approach: the suppliant approaches the ''supplicandus'', the person from whom the request is sought. During the [Republican era](/source/Roman_Republic), this approach was not made at an altar and was not considered a prayer ''([prex](/source/Glossary_of_ancient_Roman_religion))'' in the technical religious sense. 2. Identification: the suppliant performs conventional gestures or words in order to identify himself. 3. Request: the suppliant states what his request is and may present an argument for why he should receive it. 4. Rejection or acceptance: The supplicandus may reject the request. If he accepts it, he makes a pledge to fulfill it. The pledge to fulfill the request is the part of the process considered sacred and witnessed by deities including [Fides](/source/Fides_(deity)) and [Jupiter](/source/Jupiter_(mythology)).Naiden, "Supplication on Roman Coins," 43. In Latin, the word ''submissio'' more commonly expresses this act than ''[supplicatio](/source/supplicatio)'', which was a form of public prayer procession.Naiden, "Supplication on Roman Coins," 43, note 5. In the [Imperial era](/source/Roman_Empire), however, a petition to the [emperor](/source/Roman_emperor) for judicial review was called a ''supplicatio,'' with the term later used for a request that the emperor review a legal judgment that otherwise would not have been subject to [appeal](/source/appeal).Adolf Berger, ''Encyclopedic Dictionary of Roman Law'' (American Philosophical Society, 1953, republished 1991), p. 726. ==In Christianity== In [Christianity](/source/Christianity), the prayer of supplication for health by and on behalf of the sick is referenced in early [Christian](/source/Christianity) writings in the [New Testament](/source/New_Testament), especially [http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=James+5%3A13-16&version=NIV James 5:13-16]. One example of supplication is the [Western Christian](/source/Western_Christianity) ritual of [novena](/source/novena) (from ''novem'', the Latin word for "nine") wherein one repeatedly asks for the same favor over a period of nine days.{{cite web|url=http://saintbernardchurch.org/Faith-Formation/Adult-Faith/Devotions|title=What is a novena?|language=en|access-date=13 April 2016|quote=Though the novena is primarily a devotion used by members of the Catholic Church, it is also practiced by some Orthodox, Anglican, and Lutheran Christians.|publisher=Catholic Community of St. Matthew & St. Bernard Church}} This ritual began in [Spain](/source/Spain) during the [Middle Ages](/source/Middle_Ages) when a nine-day period of hymns and prayers led up to a [Christmas](/source/Christmas) feast, a period which ended with gift giving. A contemporary Christian example of supplication is the practice of the [Daily Prayer for Peace](/source/Daily_Prayer_for_Peace) by the [Community of Christ](/source/Community_of_Christ) where a member prays for peace each day at a specified time. Philippians 4:6 says, "Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God." == In Hinduism == In [Hinduism](/source/Hinduism), ''prārthanā'' is the [Sanskrit](/source/Sanskrit) term that denotes the practice of supplication to a deity.{{Cite book |last=Walker |first=Benjamin |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=8J2RDwAAQBAJ&pg=PT636 |title=Hindu World: An Encyclopedic Survey of Hinduism. In Two Volumes. Volume II M-Z |date=2019-04-09 |publisher=Routledge |isbn=978-0-429-62419-3 |pages=636 |language=en}} It one of the various preparatory rites performed before ''[pūjā](/source/Puja_(Hinduism))'' (ritualistic worship of a deity), performed for the purpose of the purification of the devotee. ==In Islam== In [Islam](/source/Islam), the [Arabic](/source/Arabic_language) word ''[duʻā](/source/Du'a)'' (plural ''daʿwat'' or ''ʾadʿiyah'') is used to refer to supplications. ''Adʻiya'' may be made in any language, although there are many traditional Islamic supplications in Arabic, [Persian](/source/Persian_language) and [Turkish](/source/Turkish_language). In Islam, ''duʻā'' tends to mean supplication. The supplications ([Duaas](/source/Duaas)) of Islamic prophets are given in the Quran. There are a number of supplications mentioned in Islam in the [Quran](/source/Quran) and Sunnah that can be recited for various purposes for the blessings and the rewards of [God](/source/God_in_Islam). Supplications can range in nature for everyday tasks like sleeping, eating, drinking water and can be more specific in nature like supplications for knowledge or supplications for health and more. The Quran is the most authentic source of supplications and 30 such supplications that are mentioned in the Quran are most commonly recited by [Muslims](/source/Muslims). ==In Sikhism== The word Ardâs ( ਅਰਦਾਸ ) is derived from the Persian word 'Arazdashat', meaning a request, a supplication, a prayer, a petition or an address to a superior authority. It is a Sikh prayer that is done before performing or after undertaking any significant task; after reciting the daily Banis (prayers); or after completion of a service like the Paath, kirtan (hymn-singing) program or any other religious program. In Sikhism, these prayers are also said before and after eating. The prayer is a plea to God to support and help the devotee with whatever he or she is about to undertake or has done. ==References== {{Reflist}} ==External links== {{Wiktionary}} * [http://duas-world.com/ Supplication] Prayers and Supplications from the Quran and the Sunnah * [http://www.al-islam.org/sahifa-al-kamilah-sajjadiyya-imam-zain-ul-abideen/1-praise-god In Praise of God] Supplications by the great-grandson of Muhammad ([Ali ibn Husayn Zayn al-Abidin](/source/Ali_ibn_Husayn_Zayn_al-Abidin)) * Prayer types in Judaism, Christianity and Islam: [https://advertadam.blogspot.com/2011/03/do-you-pray-like-your-fathers.html Do You Pray Like Your Fathers?] Category:Prayer Category:Religious terminology --- Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Supplication](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Supplication) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Supplication?action=history)). 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