"Prayer
is not an old woman's idle amusement. Properly understood and applied,
it is the most potent instrument of action." - Ghandi
When
one is praying, it's not the words themselves that are doing anything,
nor is there an outside entity called "God" that answers those prayers.
Every great Enlightened teacher has told us that thoughts and
intentions (behind the words) create one's physical reality, so it is
one's OWN prayers that are creating that reality. It's one's own
intentions that is doing the work. Absolutely everything is karma, so
everything is self-created. Prayers being answered are not the doing of
some outside entity we call "God". "The kingdom of heaven/God is
within." God is not separate from you; God IS you, and you ARE God.
There is no "you" and "God", for they are One, not two. And since this
Oneness applies to every individual on the planet, everybody and
everything is actually One. All is One/God.
If you'd
like some Bible references to confirm this, here's a few that I'm aware
of:
"And we have known and believed the love that God hath to
us. God is love; and he that dwelleth in love dwelleth in God, and God
in him." - I John 4:16
"Beloved, let us love one another: for
love is of God; and every one that loveth is born of God, and knoweth
God." - I John 4:7
"If we love one another, God dwelleth in
us, and his love is perfected in us." - I John 4:12
"...the
Father is in me, and I in him." - St. John 11:38
"At that day
ye shall know that I am in my Father, and ye in me, and I in you." -
St. John 14:20
"So we being many, are one body in Christ, and
every one members one of another." - Romans 12:5
"And the
glory which thou gavest me I have given them; that they may be one,
even as we are one:" - St. John 18:22
"The kingdom of God
cometh not with observation: Neither shall they say, Lo here! or, lo
there! for, behold, the kingdom of God is within you." - Luke 17:20,21
If
"you" and "God" are One, then that's exactly why Hinduism, and other
advanced spiritual teachings, use the word "Self" instead of "God".
This is referred to as transcending duality/opposites/polarity. All is
One, which is Self.
Love/Awareness/Truth shines
forth automatically by itself when the mind is quiet, so every last
word that the mind thinks is really quite irrelevant. Since Love is
God, you could also say "God" shines forth automatically when the mind
is quiet. Which also means that "Silence" and "God" are One and the
same. So, prayer is the noisy mind talking to the Silent Mind, which is
God/Self. One is literally praying to Oneself. "We are that which we
pray to." - Jewel
Some people prefer to set
intentions into motion with thoughts, and some people go directly to
surrendering thoughts. This list of "Prayers for Enlightenment" is a
combination of the two. We're going to practice the intention that
leads to surrendering thoughts. It's the intention that is doing the
work, but from a higher persepective, those intentions are being
practiced because the Self/God/Truth is calling you back Home from
whence you came. That which you are seeking, is causing you to seek.
It's calling you to Itself.
If you're confused,
don't worry. The comedic paradox of it all will eventually be seen as
utter obviousness.
"Thou shalt love the Lord thy God
with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind."
Ask
God to correct your words or wording in your thoughts and prayers.
Ask
for better focus and concentration in your prayer and meditations.
Ask
for strength to overcome ALL wants of the mind and body.
Ask
for guidance in everyday life.
Ask for Him to be with you
every moment of your day.
Ask for your gifts and strengths to
bloom so you can share them.
Ask for His Love to be spread
through you to All.
Ask God to send His Love to all of
Creation.
Ask God to send His Love to certain individuals.
Ask
to be as pure and holy as He is.
Ask to be EXACTLY as He is.
Ask
for your true purpose to come about.
Ask to overcome your
emotions.
Ask God to use you as His Instrument in whatever
ways He sees fit.
Focus on sending Love to All, or to certain
individuals in your life who look like they need it.
"I am
yours for all eternity, my Lord."
Pick one or two
and practice focusing on them for maybe 10-20 minutes a day or so, or
even longer if you wish. Then just go on with the rest of your life as
normal, with absolutely no thought of what might come of them. Ask and
then let go.
As Dr. David Hawkins points out,
prayers are quite often disguised as demands, which are the ego's
emotional neediness and ignorance at work. Don't demand, just ask.
Don't try to force anything to happen. Force only creates conflict,
problems, and suffering. There is no power in force, and it won't
accomplish anything worthwhile.
All the great
teachings from the Enlightened have told us that God is Love, God is
All-Knowing, and God is All-Pervading. So if something such as "God"
does exist, wouldn't He/She/It know what's best for you and your life
in this very moment while taking ALL of your current life circumstances
into consideration? Well, there's only one way to find out for sure;
let go and let God/Silence/Love take over every single aspect of your
life. For me, personal experience has verified this practice to be
profoundly powerful, to say the least. These prayers took this ego to
the brink of Enlightenment, but the ego feared it's final moment of
cessation and death, and so it still temporarily remains. Heed these
words and don't make the same mistake. Let the I die, for that is the
ultimate goal in this physical world.
Articles
> Prayers for Enlightenment
