A direct Line To The Infinite
Prayer For The Non-religious
When I was younger, I remember being totally put off by the idea of praying. The only approach I had come across was ‘The Lords Prayer’, which I think much of the UK were also brought up repeating in assemblies. For some, this may have resonated, but for me it felt totally manufactured. It didn’t come from the heart and I barely understood what was actually being said.
I think the idea of praying is still a strange concept for many people who don’t follow a particular religion. It’s often assumed that you must be aligned to one religion or another to be able to pray. Well, I’m here to tell you otherwise. As I said previously, at one stage in my life I found prayer a very unappealing practice, but now it has become a staple part of my daily spiritual discipline. I cannot even begin to express how much of a positive impact it can have on you.
I have studied many of the faiths, but do not follow any one in particular. Instead I go direct to the source, through prayer, meditation, mantra and other exercises. That source goes by many names; God, The Divine, The universe, The Infinite, etc - the names really don’t matter. It’s your faith that there is a greater force at work, of which we are all part of, and we can directly communicate with ‘it’ using prayer.
The stability, relief, strength and sense of purpose that come through the simple act of inwardly communicating is incredibly profound. But how do you do it?
There is no specific need to place your hands together or to go to a special place to do it (although equally, there is nothing wrong with doing those things either and I myself actually do tend to place my hands together). But in its simplest form, Just communicate in your mind to your chosen place/person/God etc. Let’s say that you believe in and want to direct your prayers to ‘The Universe’. Simply within your own mind start talking as if you were talking to a long lost friend/teacher. Offer everything, all of your positive experiences, all of your problems, pray for those who are struggling in one way or another, just be sure that it comes from a place of good intent. I have found great inner benefit from making the prayers much less about me and much more about others. The byproduct of this is that the universe is like a mirror, whatever we put out eventually works it’s way back to us anyway (not that this should be the reason for doing it of course).
The beauty of this well overlooked practice is that we can do it anytime and anyplace without restriction. If you’re having a great time, connect in your mind and thank your chosen God. If you’re struggling, again, connect in your mind and ask for the strength and power to overcome it. If you know someone who’s going through a hard time, pray for them to be relieved of there problems. When you see an ambulance drive past you, pray for the paramedics and the patient. As you can see, there is no limit to the amount you can serve humanity in the quiet of your own mind.
Not only does prayer have a big outer impact, but it starts to develop this closeness to particular place/thing that you believe in. In time this will transform you from the inside out. Every single word is heard. Prayer is nothing but another form of meditation, although meditation gives you the ability to pray with greater strength and concentration.
Blessings
Ben
Ps - If you’d like to see more of my work, I’ll share my latest YouTube video relating to our real purpose below.
I’m also on twitter as @bensmithreal and instagram as @alignmindbody