== GOOD PRAYER & BAD PRAYER ==
Namaskar,
In AM, we are essentially taught not to pray to God, so no one asks Baba
for anything.
However, upon further reflection, we can say that there are two types of
prayer-- 'bad prayer' and 'good prayer'-- and it is the latter that
enables us to reach that divine stance, His lotus feet.
So as Ananda Margiis, we should clearly understand the difference
between bad prayer and good prayer, and utilise good prayer to progress
in our spiritual lives.
THE MAIN TEACHING: DO NOT PRAY TO GOD
Since first coming in contact with Ananda Marga, one of the main
teachings everyone receives is not to ask Baba for anything: I.e. Do not
pray to God. Each and every Ananda Margii understands this fact and in
our philosophical treatise-- Ananda Sutram-- Baba makes it quite clear.
3-11 Pra'rthana'rcana' ma'traeva bhramamu'lam.
"Purport: It is useless to pray to God for something for He is sure to
give what is necessary. Solicitation or importunity in the name of
worship is nothing but toadyism and flattery." (AS)
By this way, we can clearly know that we are not to ask Him for
anything. So we never ask Baba for wealth, or a new job, or a baby boy,
or more money, or a glamorous wife, or a new car, or for anything
mundane etc. This we do not do.
And this is one of the basic differences between the dharma of AM and
the various dogmatic religions and crude yoga gurus like Sai Baba etc.
We live by the tenet that He provides us with what is needed and
therefore we must not ask for anything-- period; whereas with those
cheap type of gurus like Sai Baba,the followers constantly ask for gold
watches, a Mercedes-Benz, a beach house in Bali, and all sorts of
mundane things etc.
So there is a vast difference: They ask and we don't.
WE MUST REQUEST SOMETHING FROM BABA
Even then, we should as Parama Purusa for something. We should pray to
Him for something. And what is that something? How is it that we should pray to Baba?
Baba says, "You yourself should say...'O Parama Purus'a, give me
para'bhakti.” Or you should say, “O Parama Purus'a, give me shuddha'
buddhi'." (SS-24)
Thus margiis we should pray to Baba or request His grace in ways that
bring us closer to Him. That is Baba's special and unique guideline.
We should request, 'O Parama Purusa, please be gracious; make my
meditation proper; please appear in my dhyana; You are mine, please
grant me devotion; please give me parabhakti so I may love You in sadhana'.
These are the sentient ways in which we should pray to Baba. And doing
so does not go against sutra 3-11 from Ananda Sutram. The two are not
contradictory. Because one is related with asking to be closer to Him
whereas the other is related with asking Him for one of His material
objects.
And sutra 3-11 indicates that we should not ask for something mundane
but it in no way forbids us for praying to Baba for more devotion to get
His closeness. The first is 'bad prayer' and the second is 'good prayer'.
Verily, this type of 'good prayer' must be done otherwise it will not be
possible to get Him.
WHY GOOD PRAYER IS SO IMPORTANT
Ultimately this type of sentient prayer or good prayer is not optional--
it needs to be done, it must be done. Because it fulfills a particular
need of our human psyche.
Because it is human psychology to ask favours from those whom we feel
close to. We may ask our close friend to help us out in a problem; or we
may ask our parents for help in some regard; or we may ask a close
neighbor to babysit our children for an afternoon; or we may ask so many
things from people. And this type of asking builds trust and makes
friendships flourish.
So requesting or asking creates a special intimacy or closeness in a
relation.
HOW CRUDE DISCIPLES GET BENEFITED
And verily those crude disciples who ask their god for a new house or a
marriage for their daughter etc, although they are doing wrong by asking
their god for such things, at the same time they are coming
sentimentally closer to Him-- since they are coming under His shelter by
confiding in Him. so their approach is mixed with the bad and the good.
WHY WE ANANDA MARGIIS SHOULD DO GOOD PRAYER
As Ananda Margiis we do not fall into the bad category, as we never ask
for mundane things from the Lord. Yet at the same time, we must ask
ourselves, 'How often do I ask Baba for help in sadhana, how often do I
ask Baba for devotion, how often do I ask to get Him'. These are also
important questions because they by making such requests of the Lord, we
automatically increase our closeness and intimacy with Him.
That is why 'good prayer' is a needed element in the life of any sadhaka.
By this way sadhana improves, we feel closer to Him, we come under His
shelter, our life becomes more charming and meaningful, and ultimately
one day we become one with Him.
That is why 'good prayer' is an integral aspect of the term yojanat, or
achieving unicity with Him.
Just doing the lessons of AM sadhana without requesting Him for
devotion, makes sadhana just a technical exercise that can easily become
dry and boring.
Whereas if we bring Baba into the picture, if day and night we are
asking Him for help and His blessing in sadhana, then the whole
experience becomes an intimate affair where we know He is always with us
and listening to our every request-- and, by His grace, He fulfills
those requests as well and our sadhana because a blissful event where we
get Him.
So that is how we become close-- and ultimately one-- with Him. That is
why good prayer is a healthy and needed ingredient in our sadhana
practice and devotional life.
BABA'S BLESSING
By Baba's grace He has shown us the exact way in which we should pray to
Him.
Baba says, "O Parama Purus'a, grant me devotion – that devotion which
will enable me to love you every moment in newer and still newer ways.
For you are endless and your expressions are also endless. If I learn
how to love You, I will be able to love You in endless ways. My life
will become effervescent with the sweet rhythms of the infinite. My life
will attain its highest fulfillment.” (NKS, Disc: 26)
Namaskar,
Chandramohan
Note: STORY OF BOATMAN'S WIFE & RA'MA
Here is one of the famous stories which Baba tells again and again in
order to show us that we should never ask anything mundane from the
Lord, only we should ask for Baba Himself.
Baba says, "To return to the original story. Vishvamitra was going to
Mithila with Ra'ma and Laks'man'a... When they reached the other bank of
the river they saw to their amazement that, at the touch of the holy
feet of Ra'ma, their boat had been transformed into gold. The astonished
boatman exclaimed, “Good heavens, what an amazing thing. He must be an
extraordinary person.” He ran home and narrated the astonishing incident
to his wife who immediately grabbed as many things as she could carry –
kitchen utensils and the like – and rushed to where Ra'ma was standing.
She placed all the objects at his feet to convert them into gold. To
carry all the wooden furniture to the boat, get it converted into gold
and then carry it all back again was a Herculean task. Things become a
lot heavier when they are converted into gold!"
"So, the boatman’s wife had aches all over her body and pains in her
back and hands, and soon the poor wife was no longer able to carry the
load. But under the spell of greed she wanted to acquire more and more
gold. People do their utmost to bind themselves with the worldly
bondages and often fall prey to this greed instinct. So even though her
back was badly aching she was unwilling to stop carrying the wooden
furniture to get it converted into gold. This is just like the condition
of gluttons at a feast who, even after eating so much that they are
completely full, still manage to stuff one or two more pieces of
rasagolla (Indian sweet) into their mouths. If ever such people get a
chance to eat at others expense, they are ready to eat for days
together. The boatman’s wife was suffering from a similar psychic
ailment. Even though she was no longer able to carry the load, she was
helplessly goaded on by greed.
"Then the boatman said to his wife, “Stop this folly! How much longer
will you be able to carry the load! You’ll get deeper and deeper into
difficulty. Your greed for gold will never end and you’ll probably die
under its weight. You’ll never be able to satisfy your greed so stop
this folly, stupid woman!” “Yes, may be I am stupid,” she replied, “but
now I am helpless. There’s nothing I can do about it.” The boatman
advised, “Instead of carrying all the loads of wood and gold, why don’t
you simply carry those two feet which have such extraordinary qualities
and at the touch of which everything gets converted into gold?” So she
went up to Ra'ma and said, “Well, you’ll just have to come along with
me.” At first, Ra'ma was unwilling to go, but due to her insistence, he
finally agreed and sat down in the boat. Then, strangely enough, the
boatman’s wife forgot her desire to get everything converted into gold
and became totally absorbed in the thought of those two feet. Having
attained the ultimate thing, why should she bother about the gold?" (AV-6)
