Psalm
A psalm is a sacred song, poem, prayer, or hymn used for worship, praise, lament, thanksgiving, confession, trust, petition, or spiritual reflection. Psalms are especially associated with the biblical Book of Psalms, but the word may also describe a sacred poem written in a similar spirit.

A psalm often includes direct address to God, praise, complaint, blessing, confession, remembrance, fear, rescue, gratitude, parallelism, repetition, and a movement between human need and divine presence. It may be sung, chanted, recited, prayed, or written as a poem.

To write a psalm, begin with a spiritual condition: praise, fear, trouble, wonder, gratitude, guilt, trust, anger, awe, or need. Speak toward God or the sacred. Use concrete images rather than only abstract devotion. A psalm may cry out, rejoice, question, plead, remember, or give thanks.

Psalm for the Mechanic

Bless the hands that loosen rust,
the lamp beneath the hood,
the wrench that turns what would not turn,
the engine waking good.

For I was stalled beside the road,
with rain inside my shoe;
then mercy wore a canvas coat
and knew just what to do.

“Psalm for the Mechanic” follows the psalmic mode by turning gratitude into sacred address. The poem praises ordinary rescue through the language of blessing and mercy, treating practical help as a sign of grace.

Psalm is a sacred poetic and musical form. A stricter psalm may use direct address to God, parallelism, prayer, praise, or lament. A looser WoPoLian psalm may praise sacred meaning found in ordinary help, labor, survival, or rescue.