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Heirmos
The model stanza of each ode in a liturgical canon — establishing the melody and connecting the ode to its biblical canticle.
The heirmos (from 'to link') is the model stanza that opens each ode of a liturgical canon and establishes the melody for all the troparia of that ode. The heirmos is based on a biblical canticle and expresses the theological connection between the Old Testament type and the feast being celebrated. It links the biblical canticle to the theological elaboration that follows.