Prayer has been defined as an entreaty to a Higher Being. Most of us pray either when we need to accomplish something or when a cherished desire remains unfulfilled.
Our prayers carry well-thought out objectives. However, in its ideal form, a virtue like prayer exists for its own sake, beyond personal petitions and pleas. It is an empowering exercise across dogmas, theories and beliefs, a quest for both the strength within each of us and the immutable strengthoutside us.
This raises a question. If there is no certainty that our prayers will be answered, does the act of praying have a necessary place in life?
Pierre Curie, husband of Marie Curie, was stooping over a microscope in his laboratory. A student came in, and not noticing the microscope, thought he was praying. He was tip-toeing outside when Pierre called him back. ‘I thought you were praying, Sir,’ said the boy.
Pierre answered, ‘I was, my son. All science and study is a prayer; a prayer that God will reveal his secrets to us. He is revealing Himself, His plans and His truths.’
‘Prayer,’ said Mahatma Gandhi ‘is not asking, but longing of the soul. It is the daily admission of one’s weakness. It is better to have a heart without words than words without a heart.’
How relevant the observations of these great men are in the troubled times we live in! Prayer is everyone’s guide to a better life. It is the chance for self-appraisal so that we may gather the determination and strength for self-improvement.
Prayer is not for God, but for human beings, our own selves. In this sense, even the atheist who would rather build a hospital than a temple and do a good deed than sing a hymn is a person who prays.
Wherever you may be, prayer can transport you to a place of peace. Dr. Alexis Carrel, well-known surgeon and Nobel Prize-winner, says ‘The influence of prayer on the human mind and body is demonstrable as that of secreting glands.
Its results can be measured in terms of increased physical buoyancy, greater intellectual vigour, moral stamina and a deeper understanding of realities underlying human relationships.’