Bring her the knot you cannot untie
So many of us are bound — by a wound, a confusion, a crisis with no way out, a knot in the heart or in the family that we have no power to loosen. The novena to Our Lady, Undoer of Knots places that very thing into the hands of the Mother to whom God entrusted the undoing of knots. According to the chief exorcist of Milan, it is one of the novenas the demons hate most. Choose one seemingly impossible intention, entrust it to her completely — and pray.
“Never was it known that anyone who fled to her protection was left unaided.”
Prayer to Our Lady, Undoer of Knots
Don’t rush it. Read each line as if you were speaking to your Mother face to face. When you reach the pause, name the one knot you are bringing her today.
- Virgin Mary, Mother of fair love, Mother who never refuses to come to the aid of a child in need, Mother whose hands never cease to serve your beloved children — because they are moved by the divine love and immense mercy that exist in your heart — cast your compassionate eyes upon me and see the snarl of knots that exist in my life.
- You know very well how desperate I am, my pain, and how I am bound by these knots.
- Mary, Mother to whom God entrusted the undoing of the knots in the lives of His children, I entrust into your hands the ribbon of my life. No one — not even the evil one himself — can take it away from your precious care. In your hands there is no knot that cannot be undone.
- Powerful Mother, by your grace and intercessory power with your Son and my Liberator, Jesus, take into your hands today this knot…
- Pause — name your intention
Name your request, and rest in it for a moment.
- I beg you to undo it, for the glory of God, once and for all. You are my hope.
- O my Lady, you are the only consolation God gives me, the fortification of my feeble strength, the enrichment of my destitution, and, with Christ, the freedom from my chains.
- Hear my plea. Keep me, guide me, protect me, O safe refuge.
- Mary, Undoer of Knots, pray for me.
Close, if you wish, with three Hail Marys — and the prayer to St. Michael the Archangel if the knot you carry has a diabolical root.
How to pray the novena
There is no single right way — everyone is different. Ask Our Lady to convict your heart of what she wants of you. If God asks something of you, He supplies the grace to finish it. Here are the ways, from the simplest to the most powerful.
The core prayer alone
Simply pray the core prayer to Our Lady, Undoer of Knots, once a day for nine days. If you don't have the time or the strength for more, this is enough to begin. Start here.
The core prayer inside the Rosary
Pray a full Rosary, and after the third decade insert the core prayer, then finish your last two decades. Praying the Rosary gives Our Lady permission to act in your life — so she doesn't only undo knots, she also destroys plots.
The 54-day Rosary Novena
RecommendedPray the Rosary with the core prayer every day for 54 days — that is the nine-day novena prayed six times over. When the intention is big, you match the request with your interior effort. Many receive their answer on day 27, on day 54, or on some quiet day in between.
The dates that frame the novena
Feast days are days of abundant grace. The 54 days fall, by providence, between two feasts made for this prayer — and run straight through St. Michael’s Lent. You can begin any day you like, but these are the dates to pray it as a community.
- August 6Feast of the Transfiguration
Begin here. As Christ showed the apostles a glimpse of His glory, we ask for a glimpse of the truth — of our purpose, and our place in His plan.
- Aug 15 – Sept 29St. Michael's Lent
The novena runs straight through this ancient season of penance, when the Church calls on St. Michael to push back the activity of the evil one. Consider adding the St. Michael prayer at the end of your Rosary.
- September 28Feast of Our Lady, Undoer of Knots
Day 54 lands exactly on her feast — divine providence. The new Eve undoes the knot of sin that the first Eve tied. Many graces are poured out on this day.
Not every prayer is answered the way we hope — but prayer is always fruitful, and she never fails. The Virgin Mary does not lose against the evil one. Graces will flow if you simply do the prayers.
Gregorian chant to untie the knots
Let the chant carry the prayer when words are hard to find. Keep your hands on the beads, your heart on the one knot you are bringing her, and let the ancient melody pray with you.