The Hindu : Three stages of prayer

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Friday, Jun 20, 2003

Miscellaneous

Miscellaneous - Religion

Three stages of prayer

CHENNAI JUNE 20. According to a mystic, prayer has three stages — verbal, mental and merging with the Lord's will. In the first stage, a devotee sings the glory of God, chants His praise and pours out his anguish in sweet, melodious hymns. The second stage develops when the mind becomes calm, the outgoing senses have been perfectly restrained by sustained practice and when it cannot be easily affected by evil influences. The prayer then becomes mental.

In the third stage when the mind is fixed on the Divine, it loses its outward attractions and becomes quite serene, devoid of desires and cravings. Then the prayer turns automatic, natural and habitual. This is the highest stage. The devotee has only one experience — his oneness with God.

The nature of fruits of prayer depends upon the inner feelings of the devotee, his temperament, faith, objectives, requirements and his sincerity, said Swami Sundarananda in his lecture on the efficacy of the Divine Names as expounded by Swami Sivananda. Essentially prayer should be selfless. It should indeed be turned towards a request to God to ensure the well being of the entire humanity, for peace and one's own spiritual evolution. The Vedic plea clearly states: "Lead us from the unreal to the Real, from darkness to Light and from mortality to Immortality." The effect of prayer is as real as the force of gravity and its efficacy is ineffable and its potency not comprehended.

Faith in God is the first step towards enjoying God vision. It provides moral strength and is the gateway to the Kingdom of God. Namadeva, as a boy, took his father's place in offering worship and firmly believed that God will definitely partake the food placed before the idol of Lord Krishna. When the deity did not eat it, he wept and the Lord yielded to the boy's plea. Such is the power of prayer.

In the Mahabharata Bhishma says that even a bend of the head to the Lord is equal in merit to the performances of many horse sacrifices. It would be a gross mistake to consider devotion (with deep faith) as a state of emotionalism. It is actually disciplining and training of the mind. A person who has reached the ultimate in Bhakthi will be fearless, free from desires and anger and will be in possession of all virtues enumerated by the Lord Himself in the Gita.

Printer friendly page
Send this article to Friends by E-Mail

Miscellaneous

Stories in this Section

All in the game

Cartoon

The Hindu Crossword 7704

Solution to puzzle 7703

Three stages of prayer

dated June 20, 1953: Nehru Featured by Newsweek

dated June 20, 1953: Jinarajadasa Dead

National Weather

Who's Bachelor No. 1?

No workouts for her

Are they just friends?

Relationship on the rocks

Moves up the Forbes list