bells and smells (and silence)
Most people will be familiar with prayer being the singing of hymns or the recital of psalms during a church service of whatever denomination. There is nothing wrong with this and, traditionally, this has probably come from people being together whether as a local community or within a monastic setting. It makes sense, in these situations to be in union with each other 'singing from the same hymn sheet' as the saying goes.
What about the hermit or solitary though. Should we sing or regularly pray aloud? If we look back to a time when hermits and solitaries were more common, we find this quote by Barsanuphius, a 6th Century Egyptian monk who was living in Gaza.
"The hours and psalmody are customs of the Church and are widely established to reconcile all men (in prayer) as well as to unite the many in communities. Those who live in sketes (the solitaries) do not read the hours or psalmodise, but occupy themselves in solitude by working with their hands, reading and meditation and from time to time, stand up and pray"
From this then, we can see that traditionally, the solitary does not spend much, if any,time in vocal prayer but in silence. The above quote is from a hard to find book called 'Paths in solitude' by Eve Baker and the 'practical section is well worth reading especially if you can find it. A little later, the author goes on to say
"The solitary is one who is called to a life of prayer. This does not mean spending long periods on one's knees (an uncomfortable position anyway). The prayer of a solitary is a constant orientation towards God"
This is what is meant when we are told to 'pray unceasingly'. It doesn't mean to 'babble' aloud or even under our breath the whole time, but to orientate our lives to God, bringing everything before him and putting God at the centre of our lives.
bells and smells
the hermit
sits
in silence
Saint Barsanuphius the Great