St. Patrick’s Breastplate: the prayer of Ireland's patron saint

This prayer of Ireland's patron saint has come down through the centuries and remains popular today and we think you'll agree it's more relevant than ever. 

St. Patrick's Breastplate is a Christian hymn whose original old Irish lyrics were traditionally attributed to Saint Patrick and his Irish ministry in the 5th century.

Protection on a journey

It is written in the style of a druidic incantation for protection on a journey. It is part of the Liber Hymnorum, a collection of hymns found in two manuscripts kept in Dublin.

The words were translated into English verse by Cecil Frances Alexander in 1889 and set to two traditional Irish tunes, "St. Patrick" and "Deirdre" the hymn, also known by its opening line "I bind unto myself today", is currently included in the Lutheran Service Book [Lutheran Church- Missouri Synod], English Hymnal, the Irish Church Hymnal and The Hymnal (1982) of the U.S. Episcopal Church.

Unique among hymns

It is often sung during the celebration of the Feast of Saint Patrick on or near March 17, as well as on Trinity Sunday. In many churches, it is unique among standard hymns because the variations in length and meter of verses mean that at least three different tunes must be used – different in the melody sung by the congregation.

The prayer is known as "Faeth Fiada" or the "Lorica of St. Patrick" (St. Patrick's Breast-Plate) was first edited by Petrie in his "History of Tara."

Here are the beautiful words of the St. Patrick’s Breastplate prayer:

I arise today
Through a mighty strength, the invocation of the Trinity,
Through belief in the Threeness,
Through confession of the Oneness
of the Creator of creation.
I arise today
Through the strength of Christ's birth with His baptism,
Through the strength of His crucifixion with His burial,
Through the strength of His resurrection with His ascension,
Through the strength of His descent for the judgment of doom.
I arise today
Through the strength of the love of cherubim,
In the obedience of angels,
In the service of archangels,
In the hope of resurrection to meet with reward,
In the prayers of patriarchs,
In the predictions of prophets,
In the preaching of apostles,
In the faith of confessors,
In the innocence of holy virgins,
In the deeds of righteous men.
I arise today, through
The strength of heaven,
The light of the sun,
The radiance of the moon,
The splendor of fire,
The speed of lightning,
The swiftness of wind,
The depth of the sea,
The stability of the earth,
The firmness of rock.
I arise today, through
God's strength to pilot me,
God's might to uphold me,
God's wisdom to guide me,
God's eye to look before me,
God's ear to hear me,
God's word to speak for me,
God's hand to guard me,
God's shield to protect me,
God's host to save me
From snares of devils,
From temptation of vices,
From everyone who shall wish me ill,
afar and near.
I summon today
All these powers between me and those evils,
Against every cruel and merciless power
that may oppose my body and soul,
Against incantations of false prophets,
Against black laws of pagandom,
Against false laws of heretics,
Against craft of idolatry,
Against spells of witches and smiths and wizards,
Against every knowledge that corrupts man's body and soul;
Christ to shield me today
Against poison, against burning,
Against drowning, against wounding,
So that there may come to me an abundance of reward.
Christ with me,
Christ before me,
Christ behind me,
Christ in me,
Christ beneath me,
Christ above me,
Christ on my right,
Christ on my left,
Christ when I lie down,
Christ when I sit down,
Christ when I arise,
Christ in the heart of every man who thinks of me,
Christ in the mouth of everyone who speaks of me,
Christ in every eye that sees me,
Christ in every ear that hears me.
I arise today
Through a mighty strength, the invocation of the Trinity,
Through belief in the Threeness,
Through confession of the Oneness
of the Creator of creation.

Below, listen to a rendition of St. Patrick's Breastplate, composed by Dr. John O'Keeffe (director of Sacred Music at St Patrick's College, Maynooth,) sung by the Seminarians of the National Seminary Ireland on March 17, 2020:

Do you have a favorite St. Patrick's Day hymn or prayer? Share in the comments!

* Originally published in May 2013. Updated in Marrch 2023.