After the Six Psalms, the deacon pronounces the Great Litany.

Then a short hymn with verses is sung loudly and joyfully about the appearance of Jesus Christ in the world to people: "God the Lord has appeared to us, blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord!", i.e. God is the Lord, and He has appeared to us, and is worthy of glorification He who goes to the glory of the Lord.

After this, the troparion is sung, i.e. a hymn in honor of the feast or the saint being celebrated, and the kathismas are read, i.e. individual parts of the Psalter, consisting of several consecutive psalms. The reading of the kathismas, as well as the reading of the Six Psalms, calls us to reflect on our miserable sinful state and to place all our hope in God's mercy and help. Kathisma means sitting, since it is possible to sit during the reading of kathismas.

At the end of the kathisma, the deacon pronounces the Little Litany, and then the polyeleos is performed. Polyeleos is a Greek word and means: "much mercy" or "much illumination".

The polyeleos is the most solemn part of the Vigil and expresses the glorification of God's mercy, revealed to us in the coming of the Son of God to earth and His accomplishment of the work of our salvation from the power of the devil and death.

The polyeleos begins with the solemn singing of praise verses:

Praise the name of the Lord, praise the servants of the Lord. Alleluia!

Blessed be the Lord of Zion, who lives in Jerusalem. Alleluia!

Confess to the Lord that He is good, that His mercy endures for ever. Alleluia! i.e., glorify the Lord, because He is good, because His mercy (to men) is forever and ever.

Confess to the God of heaven, for His mercy endures for ever. Alleluia!

During the singing of these verses in the church, all the lamps are lit, the royal doors are opened, and the priest, preceded by a deacon with a candle, comes out of the altar and performs censing throughout the church, as a sign of reverence for God and His saints.

After the singing of these verses, special Sunday troparia are sung on Sundays; i.e., joyful songs in honor of the Resurrection of Christ, which tell how the angels appeared to the myrrh-bearers who came to the tomb of the Savior and announced to them the resurrection of Jesus Christ.

On other great feasts, instead of the Sunday troparia, a magnification is sung before the icon of the feast, i.e. a short verse of praise in honor of the feast or saint.

After the Sunday troparia, or after the magnification, the deacon pronounces the Little Litany, then the Prokeimenon, and the priest reads the Gospel.