Prayer - What Is It ? (Part 1)

            Prayer is the highest form of communication  with the Lord , and can be offered in simple words or as an elaborate ritual . The  modes of prayer may differ from person to person , but the attitude is fundamental to all . Prayer helps nurture one’s special relationship to the Lord – the relationship of the created to the creator – by invoking the devotee in the person . Unlike the other relative roles one plays , the role of a devotee is non-demanding since the Lord seeks nothing from us . When one’s relationship to the Lord becomes primary in life , other relationships becomes secondary and , thus , less problematic .

             Prayer has its purpose in helping one achieve an object of desire , be it mental clarity  or a given end . Ultimately , prayer helps one gain the maturity to be a qualified recipient of spiritual knowledge . This knowledge teaches us our identity with the Lord and helps us discover freedom and happiness , the nature of oneself . In the creation of any object , two types of causes are necessary . One is an intelligent cause (nimitta-karana) which has the knowledge and the skill to create the object , and the second is the material cause(upadana-karana) from which the object is created . The two causes may rest with one being or may be separate from each other . For example , the dreamer is both the intelligent and the material cause of the dream-creation, while the watchmaker is only the intelligent cause of the watch , the material being different from than the watchmaker .

               When one looks at the world , one sees intelligence and order in the creation . The sun stays in its position , the planets do not go out of the orbit ;  the laws of physics do not take a vacation . Every organism has its place , every cell has its meaningful function . Nothing is without purpose . This being so , there must be an intelligent and a material cause for this creation .

                Now , do these two causes rest in one being or are they separate from each other ? If one says that the material cause exists apart from the Lord , then the question would arise as to who  created that separate material . If it were created by another Lord , then from what did he or she make the material ? One would end up in infinite regression looking for the first material . And , where would the separate material exist before the creation of space ? Time and space are themselves part of this creation . Therefore , the material cause cannot exist apart from the intelligent cause of the creation . In fact , the creation does not exist apart from the Lord . What exists is the Lord alone .

               With this understanding , if one asks where the Lord exists in the creation , the answer is that the Lord exists everywhere . What is the Lord’s form ? It is all forms , since nothing exists separate from the Lord . If all forms are the Lord’s form , then how does one worship the Lord ? One can worship the Lord by invoking him in any given form .Innumerable laws govern the creation . The Lord , seen from a given law or function , becomes the presiding deity of that law or function . For instance , the lord seen from the function of creation is Brahma ,  the presiding deity of creation . Similarly , from the standpoint of preservation and destruction , the Lord is the presiding deities Vishnu and Siva , respectively . The presiding deity for the function of sight is Surya , the sun and so on . The presiding deities may be male or female principles , since the creation is equally composed of both aspects . Thus , prayer to any deity is prayer to the Lord alone .

...to be continued