Hanānā

Content sourced from Wikipedia, licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0.

Hanānā

Hanānā, also called khnana, is sacred dust taken from the burial site of a Christian saint or martyr. In Classical Syriac, hanānā means pity or compassion. The dust has long been believed to have healing or blessing powers and is used in various Christian rituals.

East Syriac use
In East Syriac Christian practice (from Nestorian origins and in related churches), hanānā is made by mixing dust from a saint’s tomb with water, oil, and dust from the tomb of Thomas the Apostle. It is used to help sick people in a ceremony called the mercy of St. Thomas. The mixture can also be drunk by a newly married couple along with water and wine before the Mystery of Crowning, as a blessing and sign of their unity, in a way that is similar to the Eucharist.

Elsewhere
Historical sources describe similar beliefs about dust from saints’ graves granting healing. Gregory of Tours spoke of dust from martyrs and from the Basilica of St. Martin that could heal the faithful. Ethiopian Christians sometimes used dust from a local saint (instead of Thomas’s dust). In the Catholic Church, relic dust is categorized in different ways, such as ex exuviis (dust from a body after death) or de pulvere corporis (dust from the body itself), and other types connected to early coffins or burial remains.

See also
- Aër
- Holy Qurbono
- Insufflation
- Veneration of the dead
- Sthathicon