Why should one pray to the objects in daily use?

Contents

• 1. Some prayers which are useful to awaken spiritual emotion
  • 1.1 Prayers related to day-to-day life
  • 1.2 Prayers regarding service or activities
• 2. Spiritual emotion (bhav) and distressing energies

1. Some prayers which are useful to awaken spiritual emotion

1.1 Prayers related to day-to-day life

Along with prayers to the Guru and God, the prayers given below will prove useful for making spiritual progress.

A. Prayer to the deity of worship to improve the repetition (chanting) of The Lord’s Name: O deity, please remind me to repeat (chant) The Lord’s Name so as to facilitate my spiritual progress. May the Name I repeat (chant) reach Your holy feet. May I be able to experience the immense, sweet Bliss in Your Name. May my mind remain engrossed in the Bliss of Your Name.

B. Prayer to the Guru for making spiritual progress: May I learn something new about spiritual practice from every incident and from each and everyone. Please teach me to perform every task as spiritual practice.

C. Prayer to the deity of worship to protect from distressing energies: May distressing energies not derive benefit from the repetition (chanting) of The Lord’s Name and spiritual practice that I do. Please eliminate the distressing energies which pose obstacles in my spiritual practice and in the Guru’s mission. Also create a permanent protective armour around me.

D. Prayers to various deities according to the mission: A few examples of these are given below. When praying to every deity, one should ask for intellect and energy to be able to perform a task along with repetition (chanting) of The Lord’s Name, as per the expectations of the Guru.

• Lord Ganapati: O Lord Ganesh, You are the endower of intellect and destroyer of obstacles. Please create an armour around me with Your noose and eliminate the obstacles in my service unto the Absolute Truth (satseva).

• Deity Sarasvati: O Sarasvati, You are the deity of knowledge. Guide me appropriately to render service unto the Guru.

• Deity of the premise (vastudevata): O deity of this premise, You have given me shelter in this premise. It is here that I have been endowed with the opportunity to undertake spiritual practice. Please protect me from all evil when practising Spirituality.

• Deity of the place (sthanadevata): O deity of this place, I am undertaking spiritual practice with Your grace, sheltered by this place which is in Your control. Please protect this place from malevolent energies and create an atmosphere conducive for my spiritual practice.

  An account of what a seeker experienced in this context is given further.

  Assurance by the deity of the place to a seeker, after she offered Her prayers to protect all the seekers: The ‘Panchamukhi Hanumatkavach’ sacrificial fire (yadnya) was scheduled on 16^th April 2003, at the Dhamse ashram (hermitage) in Goa. Before preparing the holy sacrament (prasad) for the sacrificial fire, I prayed unto the deity of the place, ‘May all the seekers repeat (chant) The Lord’s Name when preparing the holy sacrament and may the activity they are doing occur as service unto God.’ In response the deity told me, ‘You remain relaxed. I am taking care of everything’. - Miss Vanita Mandrekar, Dhamse ashram, Goa

• Annapurnamata (the provider of food): Give me strength and inspiration to undertake spiritual practice after partaking of the food with which I have been provided with Your grace. I pray unto You to make me partake of this food amidst repetition (chanting) of The Lord’s Name and with spiritual emotion for the Guru.

  A spiritual experience in this context is as follows -

  A prayer unto deity Annapurna eliminating the irritation of eyes occuring with the odour of onions: On 30^th April 2003, as the staring in the eye therapy was being done on seekers, the smell of onions from the kitchen where preparations were on for frying onion bhajis began to cause irritation in the eyes of the seekers receiving the therapy. I could not decipher whether this burning was induced by distressing energies or was a physical phenomenon. Switching on the fan worsened the problem. So I prayed unto deity Annapurna. Within a few seconds, the odour vanished and we were able to resume the therapy. - Mrs. Mangala Pandurang Marathe, Subtle section, Goa

• Deity of water (jaladevata): May the raja and tama components reduce and the sattva component within me grow after drinking this water which I have obtained with Your grace.

  Spiritual experiences about the deity of water are given below -

  1. Receiving a suggestion from within to pray unto the deity of water before a bath: On 29^th October 2002, before I started bathing a thought crossed my mind, ‘Just as we bathe physically to remove the grime on our bodies, if we bathe spiritually the raja-tama components within us will be replaced by the sattva component. For this process to occur smoothly, it is important to pray to the deity of water.’ - Mr. Rajesh Sadanand Gavkar, Phonda ashram, Goa

  2. In 2002, when the consecration of the deity of water, that is worship of the deity of the well was being done in the Dhamse ashram, the following was experienced

  A. A vision of the deity of the well during Her ritualistic worship (puja) and experiencing coolness: The ritual of waving lit lamps (arti) amidst singing of hymns was performed after the ritualistic worship of the deity of the well. As we sang the hymns, Mrs. Mangala Marathe offered prayers at the holy feet of the Guru. After the ritual, I actually saw the deity of the water coming out of the well and also felt something cool emanating from the wash basin. - Mr. Shekhar Topkar, Kolhapur

  B. A vision of the deity of water during Her worship and flow of cool breeze: The well at the Dhamse ashram was being worshipped in 2002. I did not know exactly at what time it was scheduled. As I meditated in the meditation room, all of a sudden around 12.30 p.m. there was an inner urge to go to the well. Since this thought persisted, finally I went to the well and discovered that indeed the worship of the deity of the well had begun. Since I reached late, I stood right behind and could not see the ritualistic worship being performed. Yet when the ritual of waving lit lamps (arti) amidst singing of hymns began, I saw the deity of the well emerging from the well and standing in front of the platter used for waving the lit lamps. Though in reality, being too far behind I could not see the platter of the arti, yet I saw it during the ritual. Later I confirmed that the platter was exactly where I had seen it subtly. I was standing beside a black stone cabinet used for storing vessels, situated next to the well. Despite the torrid summer heat, I perceived a whiff of cool breeze emerging from the well. This was experienced by many other seekers too. - Dr. (Mrs.) Nandini Durgesh Samant, Phonda ashram, Goa

• Deity of the earth (bhumidevata): It is with Your support that I can survive and undertake spiritual practice. Just as You protect all beings by accepting their qualities and defects, so also may I become expansive.

• Deity of fire (agnidevata): O deity, destroy all my personality defects and useless thoughts just as You incinerate everything which comes in contact with You.

• Village deity (gramadevata) and deity of the territory (kshetrapaldevata): O deities, protect me from distressing energies and all calamities and make the atmosphere conducive for my spiritual practice.

E. Prayers to various objects with which one is constantly associated: The God principle exists in all animate and inanimate creation. For rapid awakening of spiritual emotion for God, it is important to harbour awareness about the God principle continuously. It is beneficial to live life with this emotion. One needs to harbour the spiritual emotion that the divine principle exists in all creation. By praying to objects used in day-to-day life, this spiritual emotion develops faster. Here, the objects generally used by an average seeker at some point during the day have been discussed. The prayers made unto them will help one to frame prayers for other objects as well.

• Chair / mat: O chair, you do not belong to me rather, you are my Guru’s seat. May I develop an encompassing nature with which you incorporate everyone ignoring their qualities and defects.

• Watch: It is with your grace that I can plan my day’s schedule. You always remind me of the present. May all the service I render occur as per the schedule.

• Pen, pencil, eraser, notebook, writing pad, diary, etc.: I am able to study Spirituality because of you. Just as you sacrifice yourselves for the sake of others, may I too be able to sacrifice myself in the service of the Guru and impart spiritual knowledge to other seekers

• Foodstuff used in the kitchen: All of you offer yourselves in the preparation of nourishing meals for others after consumption of which they are able to undertake spiritual practice. I pray, I too may be able to render service unto the Guru such that it will be conducive to the spiritual practice of others.

• Vehicles: I pray to you to endow me with benevolent intellect to enhance my spiritual practice with the precious time and energy I have saved by using you.

1.2 Prayers regarding service or activities

Some people working under the guidance of a religious organisation participate in the activities of the Sanstha as service. Seekers who participate in the activities of the Sanstha should pray, taking into consideration the spiritual emotion that they should harbour when rendering that service. If this is done then it will certainly assist in the generation of spiritual emotion. When rendering service, the general prayer to be recited unto the Guru or God is as given below -

• General prayer: ‘O Guru / God, it is with Your grace that I have obtained the opportunity to render this service. May I be able to render service amidst repetition (chanting) of The Lord’s Name by offering my body, mind, intellect and ego unto You. If distressing energies pose any obstacles in this service then may they be overcome by the grace of God.

• Specific prayer: The prayer has to be altered according to the task to be done, e.g. when delivering a discourse the lines ‘May my repetition (chanting) occur simultaneously’ should be omitted because one cannot repeat (chant) The Lord’s Name when speaking. At the same time, when conducting a satsang (spiritual meeting) or when propagating Spirituality, one needs to pray thus, ‘Please endow all seekers with the opportunity, energy and intellect to participate in this mission.’ Some examples cited below will illustrate the specific prayer to be recited before performing a particular task so that the service is rendered with more spiritual emotion.

A. Spread of Spirituality and conducting satsangs (spiritual meetings)

1. Spiritual emotion (bhav)

• Propagation of Spirituality and satsang are the two most powerful tools to impress the message of reinstatement of Righteousness (Dharma) and holy company (satsang) upon seekers and society.

• Propagation of Spirituality and satsang are an opportunity endowed to me by the Guru to study Spirituality, to undertake spiritual practice for the sake of society, so also to repay the debt unto society.

• Propagation of Spirituality is an excellent medium to practise devotion for The Lord in the form of singing His praises (kirtan) which is a type of the nine-fold devotion (navavidhabhakti).

• Participation in the Guru’s mission of social upliftment, protecting the society and propagation of Righteoussness (Dharma) are akin to the squirrel helping in Lord Ramachandra’s task of building the bridge to Lanka.

• Satsang (spiritual meeting) is the centre of exchange of divine consciousness (chaitanya). I have to enhance my spiritual practice to a great extent so that divine consciousness develops within me and also helps the other seekers attending the satsang. I should also make efforts to create awareness among seekers attending satsang so that they undertake spiritual practice to generate divine consciousness within them.

• I have to create seekers who will propagate Righteousness and play an active role in the mission of my Guru, sacrificing everything for it.

2. Prayer: I am Your messenger. May I constantly obtain an opportunity to serve Your collective form existing as society.

3. Prayers to tools which assist in spiritual practice

• Apron and cap: I am able to render service towards the Absolute Truth without any obstacles because of you who serves as an armour and helmet respectively for me. May I too develop the potential to protect others and may the divine consciousness within me grow.

• Book stand for exhibition of holy texts: You stand still for several hours devoid of boredom and help in delivering the Guru’s message to the people. May I be inspired by you to spread every message of the Guru to the society and to sacrifice my entire self to the Guru.

• Cloth banners: You serve the Guru by delivering my Guru’s thoughts to all, with divine consciousness. May I too develop the same divine consciousness as you.

• Chalk and blackboard: May I be able to strive like you to impart knowledge to others. May all seekers grasp well, all that is written on the blackboard.

• Chair, mat, watch and pen, pencil, eraser, notebook, pad, diary, etc.

B. Moral education classes for children: You have entrusted me with the responsibility of impressing the importance of spiritual practice in children, making them capable of augmenting the Guru’s mission and laying foundation of the Divine kingdom. Get this service done from me appropriately.

C. Workshops on Spirituality: Getting other seekers to study Spirituality is my spiritual practice for the sake of society. Prepare me appropriately for the workshop so that the knowldege of both grows and spiritual evolution of both occurs.

D. Satsangs (spiritual meetings) of repetition (chanting) of The Lord’s Name: If the service that I render to draw society towards spiritual practice and experience the sweet nectar of repeating (chanting) The Lord’s Name occurs with spiritual emotion, then it will generate spiritual emotion among the people. May all seekers repeat (chant) The Lord’s Name with spiritual emotion and remain active in spiritual practice.

E. Self-defence training courses

Prayer: By giving me physical training, you have enhanced my prowess and skill to fight on the physical plane in the mission of reinstatement of Righteousness. I am going to offer this to The Lord through the medium of training camps. Give me the strength to make all the seekers in the training active.

Prayer to some tools which assist this service:

• Arms used in self-defence training: I will be unable to indulge in a physical combat without your assistance. May I too develop the prowess to fight just as you.

• Apron and cap: Refer apron and cap

F. Exhibition of holy texts and periodicals: Holy texts and periodicals are the most important media for imparting knowledge to and for repayment of debts unto society. Both these media create social awareness about the setup of an ideal Divine kingdom in a state and also provoke society to undertake spiritual practice. Get service done from me such that through these media, Your message will reach the masses.

G. Campaigns, processions of repeating (chanting) The Lord’s Name and rallies for spread of Spirituality: Unrighteousness in society, anarchy, inactivity, denigration of deities, malpractices in religious rituals / festivals, etc. are all obstacles in the task of reinstatement of the Divine kingdom. When Lord Shrikrushna lifted the Govardhan mountain with His little finger, the cowherds and their wives offered assistance by holding their sticks for support. We too are participating in Your mission of reinstatement of Righteousness in the some way, so give us Your blessings.

H. Getting advertisements for the Guru’s mission and collecting offerings: The advertisements and donations that I collect for the Guru’s mission is akin to the alms (bhiksha) that disciples collected from people for their Gurus in ancient times. I shall use these alms for the sake of propagation of Righteousness (Dharma). You have endowed me with this opportunity so that I can offer my ego and spread Spirituality in society. Bless me so that I am able to render this service appropriately.

I. Accounts section: I pray, the donations given by society towards the cause of reinstatement of Righteousness be properly and accurately assessed through this service.

J. Book section

Spiritual emotion

• Holy texts are divine tools created through the medium of the Guru. Assisting in the task of publication of holy texts amounts to helping in the mission of propagating Righteousness.

• The blessings of H.H. Bhaktaraj Maharaj will retain the divine consciousness (chaitanya) in these holy texts for thousands of years. Hence may this service occur to perfection.

Prayer: The more enriched with divine consciousness these holy texts are, the more will society benefit from them for thousands of years. Since You are using me as a medium to get these holy texts done, may my spiritual practice too be such that I develop maximum divine consciousness.

K. Art section

Spiritual emotion

• This section includes painting, sculpture, music and creation of sattvik alphabets as paths of spiritual practice to attain Self-realisation.

• When rendering service, if the deity of that form of art is worshipped then the qualities of that deity can be imbibed into oneself.

• Creation of sattvik (sattva predominant) pictures of deities, idols, etc. is an important task in the mission of reinstatement of Righteousness.

Prayer: I have been endowed with this invaluable opportunity to render service in the subtle section which is beyond the intellect, only because of Your grace. May I develop the ability to acquire knowledge from the subtle dimension to render this service.

L. Prayers about some common articles useful in various services or activities

• Telephone, fax machine and email: It is because of service rendered by you that servitors of the Guru are able to communicate with each other. It is because of you that they get the right guidance and their spiritual practice grows. May I too be able to serve God constantly like you.

• Computer, printer, U.P.S. and generator: It is because of your team work that the Guru’s thoughts can be printed. Thus all of you assist in the mission of the Guru. May spiritual practice create an impression on my mind likewise and make me an ideal seeker as soon as possible.

• Calculator: Just as you save my time which is equivalent to wealth, so also make me plan my service unto the Absolute Truth such that I devote maximum time to spiritual practice.

M. Section of tending to animals: This cowshed is my Guru’s ashram (hermitage) and all these animals are my Guru’s servitors. I pray, you to get all of us to render appropriate service unto you. Let all these animals be protected with Your grace alone.

N. Subtle section

• Prayer unto the Guru: I would never be able to combat distressing energies without Your grace. Make me aware of all my personality defects where distressing energies can attack and also bestow me with benevolent intellect to improve these defects. May my fearlessness and dedication unto the Guru grow constantly through this form of service.

• Prayer unto deities: I pray unto You as advised by my Guru so that You protect seekers. Please protect us from distressing energies which pose obstacles in the spiritual practice of seekers and in the mission of the Guru. Also create a protective armour around us. Endow me with vital energy (pranshakti) so that I increase my participation in this crusade against distressing energies. Also endow subtle energies who wish to undertake spiritual practice with benevolent intellect to do so.

2. Spiritual emotion (bhav) and distressing energies

Based on the tenet that ‘God exists where there is spiritual emotion’, distressing energies cannot trouble the mind and intellect of an individual in a state of spiritual emotion. A seeker is unable to remain in a state of spiritual emotion continuously. Only saints with a spiritual level beyond 90% can remain in a perpetual state of spiritual emotion. The average seeker repeats (chants) The Lord’s Name continuously, repeats (chants) it aloud and repeats (chants) it in a group and also uses holy ash (vibhuti) and cow’s urine (gomutra) to combat distressing energies. The remedies to be employed to overcome distressing energies are given in concise form in a separate volume on ‘Measures to remove distressing energies’ by the Sanatan Sanstha.

Reference:

‘Spiritual Practice For Awakening Spiritual Emotion’, published by Sanatan Sanstha.