Text Box: Received on 11 May 2002 IS IT NECESSARY TO PRAY TO THE LORD? Many would like to know why we should pray, when the Lord knows all our needs. If we are to be given only after asking, then it seems possible that we might not be given something owing to our lack of knowledge or comprehension. It is also possible that we might ask for something, which would be to our disadvantage. The Lord knows our needs, advise us to pray with this in mind. “Your Lord knoweth what things you have need of, before ye ask Him.” Prayers for selfish gain and for spiritual progress are very different. As compared to spiritual prayer, the other prayer is of no consequence. To confess our sins in prayer and to think that they are thereby washed away or removed is a mistake. Thus kind of mistake keeps us away from true spirituality. Our sins will only be forgiven when the Lord forgives them. Actually, such prayers may become the cause of evil. A man may offer such prayers and then keep on committing sins without hesitation. And all the while he goes on praying under the false impression that his sins will be forgiven as a result of his prayers. The Master comes to persuade men to give up sin and to unite them with the Lord. Our duty is to act in accordance with his wishes and to give up all evil deeds, which are worldly. Love for the Lord and the Master reforms us, and makes us follow the path of the Lord. Man may forgive, but it is the all-pervading power of the Master, which ultimately reforms a sinner. Prayers cannot make any change in the current of mercy. It is what it is. But prayers can bring us into harmony with this current. It is not necessary to beg for our needs. This often becomes an obstruction. Of course, by praying in humility and faith, we can take more advantage of that current of mercy. But he does not stand in need of vocal prayers, for He knows our hidden feelings. The Lord is love. Is it proper for us to ask Him to be more loving? Is it necessary to pray to Him for more mercy when He is already giving us more than we deserve? By not voicing our feelings, we come nearer to His presence and grace. He is eternal. He is the same in the beginning, the present and the end. The Lord is the embodiment of truth. Truth emanates from Him continually without His being reminded of it. How can man with his limited intellect advise Him? The current of His mercy is flowing everywhere. It is taking care of us itself. It knows what is for our good. It is present everywhere. It perceives our feelings and hears us. Where then is the necessity to pray before Him? “Wherever I look, I see You dwelling there .To whom should I pray? The Lord hears all.” It is our duty to be in harmony with Him and thus derive the utmost benefit. It is very necessary that we should meditate on Him in our heart, so that His reflection may shine within us. The soul is a particle and an image of Him and shares His wonderful qualities. To learn to understand the Lord is a continuous process and to succeed in it, we should surrender all our thoughts, powers and desires at His feet. Are we thankful to the Lord for all the gifts and mercies shown to us? If we are sincerely thankful , we become deserving of more grace even without asking for it. Prayer cannot change the principle of Truth, nor can it enable one to understand it. It is through the attraction of inner love and yearning and obeying the directions of the Master that we led to the truth. The purpose of prayer is to lead us to act according to the wishes of the Lord. We are weak and feeble. We wish to reach the Lord with the aid of the mercy and strength of the Master. Even though we may fall at every step, that power helps us. If you take one step to take refuge in the Master (Lord), the Master (Lord) meets you on the way by taking hundreds of steps. If you remember the Lord just once, the Lord remembers you again and again. Even, if your devotion is a small as a fragment of a cowry shell, the Lord showers all benefits on you. The Lord is all Merciful, His Praise is beyond understanding: I bow again and again to the One and incomprehensible Master.