Do we really pray?

Art of saying Prayers.

Prayers are combination of some words and some emotions addressed to the almighty God. Words may be differ from religion to religion and from culture to culture but emotions remain same in the prayers. Emotions and uninterrupted mind are the main contents of a prayer. If emotions are not there and if uninterrupted mind will not be there that prayer would not generate any result.

Mind has so many characteristics and drifting is main one which is a real enemy of our prayers. As we start saying prayer our mind starts drifting. Drifting of mind is a kind of wave of mind where mind generate so many thought in response to a thought said within it. Neglecting and forgetting the words of prayer mind drifts on others words of any kind and in this way our mind take us away from our prayers and break our divine communication.

As communication without current is not possible and in the same manner prayer with interrupted mind is not possible. Drifting of mind break the current of our prayers. We need to train our mind for a better communication.  We need to silence the mind before we said a prayer.

I have experienced that when I have prayed without any interruption it gave me immediate peace with results. Prayer offered with uninterrupted mind immediately release peace and tranquility. Results may come sooner or later but peace of mind is guaranteed.

Did you remember the story “The Three Hermits” written by a Russian author Tolstoy. This story appeared in the short-story collection Twenty-Three Tales. The title of the story refers to its three central characters; unnamed simple monks living on a remote island where they were praying and meditating for the salvation of their souls.

A bishop when traveling in that area overhear a discussion about that remote island and those three unnamed monks. He also came to know about their prayer which was – "Three are ye, three are we, have mercy upon us.”

Subsequently, the bishop acknowledges that those monks have a little knowledge but are ignorant of the true meaning of the doctrine and how to pray properly. He wants tell them that he will teach them not a way of his own, but the way of praying as guided in our book of religion.

He arranged a small boat and traveled to that isolated Island to teach them exact method of prayer and exact words of praying. He want to teach them words of prayer as given in religious book. He reach there on the Island, meets the three hermits and taught them guided prayers the whole day.  After he was satisfied that they have properly memorized the prayer, the Bishop departs from the island leaving the hermits with a firm instruction to pray as he has taught them.

The bishop then returns to his boat and continues his voyage. While on board, the bishop notices that his boat is being followed. At first he thinks that there was a boat behind his boat but very soon he realizes that the three hermits are running across the surface of the water "as though it were dry land." On reaching near to him they inform him that they have forgotten the prayers and remember nothing of it. Please teach us those prayers again.

Astonished was the Bishop. Yes, The Bishop was astonished.

Very slowly very faithfully the bishop replied to the hermits “Pray your own prayers to God and also pray for us sinners.”." After this the hermits turn around and walked back to their island.

This story of Tolstoy tells us what actually important for a prayer. The devotion, the emotion and the intention. For those three hermits words of prayers were not important, their devotion to almighty, their emotions for almighty and their pure intention for all mighty was important.

There were only emotion and uninterrupted mind in prayers of those three unnamed monks.

This story tells us when you speak to the almighty speaks in your own words speak as you want to speak to, speak what your heart want to speak.

True prayers are beyond the words.