Let prayer be fire: admire, re-light, relate, regain.

Victor Hugo once observed that certain thoughts are prayers. There are certain moments when, whatever be the attitude of the body, the soul is on its knees. Today, gentle reader, your blogger turned another year older. Today, I'm praying. Not asking, merely expressing a longing of the soul. Making candid demands of The One Above that I usually don't, when I pray. 

The following lines are from M. M. Kaye's "Far Pavilions". This is a prayer uttered by Ash as he looks at Door Khaima, the mountain peaks at a distance which give him solace and hope and heart's ease: 

"Oh Lord, forgive these sins that are due to my human limitations. 

Thou art everywhere, but I worship Thee here;  

Thou art without form, but I worship Thee in this form; 

Thou needest no praise, yet I offer Thee these prayers and salutations. 

Lord, forgive my sins that are due to my human limitations."

For Asha to have a safe journey free of worries. 

For Phil to recover her health completely. 


For Hannah, success in her interview.

For Prabha, heart's ease. 

For A, a visa. 

For Ranjani, the time to do the things she wants to. 

For Varsha to have intelligent and sensible people around her.

For Naheed, also a visa. 

For Rani, peace and good health. 

For Varun, success in all he does. 

For H, resolution and closure. 

For Chinu and Gunjan, success and peace.

For all my family and my friends whom I haven't named here: contentment, good health, joy and abundance. 

Prayer is the world in tune, A spirit-voice, and vocal joys, whose echo is Heaven's bliss.

Of all duties, prayer certainly is the sweetest and most easy. A prayer sent from the heart's deep core is a sally of the soul into the unfound infinite. Prayer may be inaudible speech, bit it is necessarily a candid dialogue with that higher entity, it is an attempt to represent yourself, in order to go to the roots of action.

I love to give thanks in solitude. For me, it is wordless, and mainly takes the form of thanksgiving. Thanksgiving gives my prayer wings and it goes where it must go. My prayer knows much more about it than I do. I say my prayer without giving the Almighty reasons why he should grant this, or that; he knows best what is good for us.

Prayer is not necessarily sitting before an idol, or telling beads, or reciting shlokas... To pray is to pay attention to something or someone other than myself. Whenever I concentrate my attention something so that I completely forget my own ego and desires, I am praying.

Prayer

Great God, I ask for no meaner pelf

Than that I may not disappoint myself,

That in my action I may soar as high

As I can now discern with this clear eye.

And next in value, which thy kindness lends,

That I may greatly disappoint my friends,

Howe'er they think or hope that it may be,

They may not dream how thou'st distinguished me.

That my weak hand may equal my firm faith

And my life practice what my tongue saith

That my low conduct may not show

Nor my relenting lines

That I thy purpose did not know

Or overrated thy designs.

Henry David Thoreau

I say a little prayer for you....

DutchCookie, you're in my thoughts.... Be safe. Be healthy. Both of you.

Daman, may you get what you want.

I say a little prayer for you

Anil, Smita, Rishi and Richa.

Melanie and Dan.

I say a little prayer for you

Wendy
&
Brian,
for peace and consolation.

Christina: for your fieldwork, for your run.

I say a little prayer for you

Sanchia: for peace.

Tulip: for your home issue to be resolved very very soon.

I say a little prayer for you

Rani & Mo: for good health & speedy recovery.

Hannah: for good health.

Ozzie. Because.

Vin.