Approach 1: God is a being with infinite strength, and His grace can lead us to success in this life. For this reason, we pray to him for things like strength, peace, and material success.

Approach 2: God is not some outside being, but rather, We are God — that strength, peace, and success all comes from within us. For this reason, we pray to be able to find this source of inner strength so that we can spread strength, peace and success to others.

My ideal has always been to be so grounded in my spirituality that I no longer prayed for myself (the first approach) but rather that I prayed as a way of reminding myself of my inherent divinity. In other words, I want to have such inner strength/peace/happiness that I don’t need to ask any outside entity to supply me with it. Then, prayer will be a way for me stay charged and strong, so that I can constantly give without asking for anything in return. In that way, achieving that second approach to prayer is my goal.

Given that, I thought I would share the following poem with you – a close friend sent it to me, and it struck me as a beautiful way of expressing this goal. The poem was written by the venerated Saint Francis of Assisi, a Catholic friar and preacher — its similarity to the sentiments echoed in Hindu philosophy are striking!

“Prayer of St. Francis”

Lord, make me an instrument of your peace.
Where there is hatred, let me sow love.
Where there is injury, pardon.
Where there is doubt, faith.
Where there is despair, hope.
Where there is darkness, light.
Where there is sadness, joy.

O Divine Master,
grant that I may not so much seek to be consoled, as to console;
to be understood, as to understand;
to be loved, as to love.
For it is in giving that we receive.
It is in pardoning that we are pardoned,
and it is in dying that we are born to Eternal Life.
Amen.

How do you approach religion? Do you think the sentiments expressed in this poem can actually lead to inner peace and happiness, or is it just meaningless self-sacrifice? What is the point of prayer?

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One idea that comes to mind regarding prayer in college is the image of a student nervous about his or her exam scores, making deals with God such as promising to change his behaviour in exchange for good grades on the exams. I hate to admit that I, too, was guilty of doing that at times. However, as time went on, I grew to realise that my relationship with God was meant for more than just a business deal. Today, I view my relationship with God to be very similar to my relationship with one of my best friends- God is someone that will always be there for me during my good times and my bad times, will always understand my troubles and will even be able to give me the strength to overcome such obstacles in life.

I understand that it sounds rather odd to consider a God or any ‘higher power’ as one of my equals, but for some reason, putting God on a pedestal as the ‘Almighty’ doesn’t feel right. This is not to say that those that believe otherwise are wrong – these are merely my thoughts and opinions. I feel that because of this newfound friendship with God, praying doesn’t really feel like a chore any more, but rather, a conversation with a close friend.

Now that I look back, I can see that a lot of my thoughts have definitely changed from a year ago.

What are your thoughts on the idea of having a friendship with God?

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“A man can pray in his own room, but he will never pray there as he prays in Church… where the singing of many voices rises united towards God, where all have but one thought and one voice in the unity of love”

While these particular words were uttered in the context of a debate within the Orthodox faith, a similar sentiment can be extended to many religions, and I wanted to consider this statement in a Hindu context.

There are two aspects to Joseph’s quote: the communal synergy, and the sanctity of the mandir or prayer space itself.  The mere presence of fellow worshipers can be inspiring, with everyone united in prayer.  But sometimes I feel that prayer is best done alone, free from social distractions.  To what extent is each of these factors important?  I guess the answer depends on how much one values the cultural and spiritual aspects of religious practice.  What have your personal experiences been in this regard?  Do you feel that prayer is best done at a temple, or in a quiet, secluded area?

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The first article, “Why Pray, and Do You Need a Special Space for Prayer?” by Dr. Kumar Nochur, is adapted from a speech Dr. Nochur delivered at the consecration of Harvard Dharma’s own prayer space in October 2006. To give some background, the co-presidents of Dharma during the 2005-06 academic year, Shyam Tanguturi and Vijay Yanamadala, worked closely with Professor Benedict Gross, then dean of Harvard College, to obtain a designated prayer space for Hindu students on campus. Pujas had taken place in various areas, from dining halls to library conference rooms, but the Dharma community thought that an area set aside specifically for prayer was necessary.

But why should we have a space set aside specifically for prayer? The communal aspect was one factor: places of worship play a vital role in bringing communities together through social events, service activities, and discussion groups. In his article, Dr. Nochur also points to the unique atmosphere we create by performing rituals in a designated prayer space:

These iconic forms — pictures, moortis or vigrahas, yantras, mandalas, rangoli colorings, etc. — are all aids for our meditation and worship. Even without sanctification, they serve us well if they remind us of the inner truths and powers of the divinities they represent and symbolize. Their value to us is greatly enhanced, however, through the special processes of consecration that Hinduism provides… After initial consecration, the sanctity of a deity or a sacred place such as a temple, grows in a number of ways. The fervor and sincerity of the devotees itself adds to the vibrational power of the deities and the temple… The blowing of conches, the smell of camphor and incense, the ringing of bells, the singing of bhajans, the sight, smell and smoke of Vedic fire altars — all these elements of Hindu worship have symbolic as well as physical meaning.

In addition to the ritualistic and symbolic, however, I see the scientific. Because we often treat holy places as removed from everyday life, a space specifically designated for prayer can provide us with a relatively closed environment that functions like a laboratory of the soul, a sort of spiritual Skinner box in which we can try to determine why we do things the way we do. Through the spiritual thought experiments we perform in a holy space, we might attempt to answer some of our deepest questions, such as determining a moral code to guide our actions. The fact that we often become hyper-aware of our thoughts in a holy space only magnifies the investigative power of these thought experiments and increases the likelihood that we will act on their results in that space. Note how people are almost certainly far less likely to gossip or swear in a temple: if they do happen to swear, chances are they will catch themselves and apologize.

However disciplined we might be in a holy space, the benefits are small if we cannot also discipline ourselves outside that space. But how are we to do this? The Bible offers an interesting possibility. The dimensions of the Holy of Holies are mentioned in three places in the Bible. In Exodus 25-26, the Holy of Holies was part of the Tabernacle, “a moving worship center that traveled wherever the children of Israel were sent by God”, and most likely measured 20 x 20 x 20 cubits. In 1 Kings 6-8, the Holy of Holies is part of the (First) Temple, which (obviously) measures larger than 20 x 20 x 20 cubits. In Revelations 21-22, with the Temple destroyed, the Holy of Holies is in the New Jerusalem, which measures 12,000 x 12,000 x 12,000 stadia. The point is that the space occupied by the Holy of Holies increases over time. While I am hardly a Biblical scholar, I think one possible interpretation is that we are meant to slowly expand our “prayer spaces”, or those spaces in which we are hyper-aware of our actions and their consequences. We might start with a “traditional” prayer area, but through practice and conviction, we gradually expand that area until it covers our entire world.

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I thought about the days during my high school years when I prayed every day and wondered about the effect prayers had on me. It’s not as if my life has drastically changed from then to the present, when I don’t pray as much.

Why did I pray to begin with? What was so special about prayer that kept me praying throughout high school?

Prayer seemed to be a way through which I could have my personal conversation with God. Singing bhajans and hymns in a prayer room was one way I could show my bhakti towards God. Simply being in the prayer room gave me comfort.

I realized that as a college student, it would be in my best interest to have a small area in my dorm room where I can pray — even if it’s just for five minutes.

What do you feel about praying in the college environment?

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