Jain Spirit 2003 10 No 16

Author(s): Jain Spirit UK
Publisher: UK Young Jains

Page 36

LIFESTYLE
THE AMAZING POTENTIAL OF
PRAYER
M.K. Pandey explains why praying is not pointless
IT HAS BEEN SAID THAT PRAYERS GO ABOVE AND smelled, tasted and touched. Faith, like reality, is beyond
down. Prayers link us with cosmicw ords because it is an inner, intuitive and unshakable belief. consciousness and operate at a very high level, far away from Faith does not take refuge in the mind because the mind is the limited domain of petty gains and mundane considerations. If fluid and manipulative. Faith lives in the kingdom of the there is a force of piousness, purity and sublimity in our prayer, heart where natural and honest longings, feelings and divine blessings will enrich our life in manifold ways. In our age desires regenerate and uplift us to the higher planes of of crass materialism, even blessings from near and dear have thinking. Having no faith leads to our mental bankruptcy. become rare because they hardly flow from the heart.
Prayer reinforces our faith and trust in ourselves so that we People try to create an outwardly perfect life but its true can see it through reflections in others. quality is based on the inward alignment of harmony between The air of the surroundings and the fragrance of the our thoughts and actions. Prayer gives us the ability to flowers cannot be seen; they can only be experienced. experience spiritual dimensions that supply us the energy,
Similar is the condition of faith. Hope is a wish, a longing passion and insights to redirect and transform our lives from for something. Faith adds surety to the expectation of hope. within. Thoughts create a sense of division within us and Unshakeable faith, either in all pervading cosmic divinity or around our world. That is why we pursue different paths to in the divine existence within us, creates a will-power to do reach our goals. If we change from within the power of our anything. The feasibility of any task depends on the change will have ripple effects on our surroundings. With magnitude and intensity of faith within us. That is why prayerful heart, we may change our surroundings with love, reasoning cannot fathom the depth of faith. Prayer driven tolerance and compassion. If we do not believe in the concept by the energy-field of faith leads us to the harmonious of individual prayer, vibrations of collective prayers can create assembly of body, mind and spirit. It aligns us with life's space for it within us.
sublime purposes, aims and ideals. Since this is a Vedic seers nurtured the view that the most sacred sound of smokeless flame of spiritual realisation, it always burns the universe, 'Om' resonates within the space of the sixth with a purpose of lofty heights. chakra, located mid-brow, between the eyes, in the area known Prayer charges us from within. It is an inward quest for as the third eye'. The essence of thought, word and sound is inspiration. It is the illumination of man in his continual 'Om', says the Chandogya Upanishad. 'Om' represents pure search for meanings. Prayer broadens our vision and binds consciousness. We may harness our inner power of intuition our faith in the underlying concept of humanity and through the recitation of prayers from the sacred Vedic mantras. rationality. Prayer is a sacred house of devotion, love, The practitioner evokes tremendous power within, compassion and sacrifice. It is the antithesis of rivalry, strengthening the breath force, energising the mind, focussing hatred, greed, anger and self-centred possession. It mirrors the single-point attention and immunising the body through the our prejudices, parochial thinking and mental blocks intonation of the sounds.
through the process of introspection and inward-looking Prayers through the sacred mantras generate healing outlook. sounds that have a far deeper effect than their audibility. Just Prayer is powerful because it tunes our awareness with as the earth moves in harmony with the vibrations of celestial divine consciousness. Every one of us is endowed with a music, we too can become aware of the rhythms and move in divine spark. Inside every one of us is a person who harmony with all. In fact, we give voice to our inner sound with embodies the spirit of a teacher, a pathfinder, a guru; all healing chants. Prayer is an unconditional and emotional these are the tools and mediums of divine reflection. This surrender to God. It is the devout breathing of our faith, moral teacher sitting within us reminds us about our bad or without which we cannot bring a turning point into our life. good deeds. Prayer gives us strength to feel the pulse of our Faith fuels the energy-field of the prayer. Faith is not an inner voice and if we are not willing to experience its call empirical formula which can be verified and tested in any due to delusion-afflicted intelligence, we distance ourselves scientific laboratory. It is not material that can be seen, heard from the twilight zone of prayer.
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Jain Spirit September - November 2003