Rabbi REUVEN BULKA is head of Congregation Machzikei Hadas in Ottawa and host of Sunday night with Rabbi Bulka on 580 CFRA.
What is the best move in chess? There is no universal best move, but there is a “best move” in each particular circumstance. And there is a best, or most appropriate prayer, in each specific situation.
So, for example, when a person falls ill, the appropriate prayer is the one that entreats God for the full recovery of the person. If a person is suffering financially, praying that such person finds a job is the appropriate prayer. And this is a fitting prayer whether it is someone else praying for the sick or the jobless, or whether it is the sick or jobless praying for themselves.
Prayer is many things, including exalting God and meditating on God, but also including prayer as request. Each request has its proper time and place.
But prayer is not always personal request. Prayer can involve communal request, or global request. That too has its time and place, namely always.
In that regard, it is safe to say that the most important prayer within Judaism(pic on right) is the Amidah. Amidah refers to being in a standing position, since the prayer to which it refers is said in a standing posture.
The amidah is a series of 18-plus blessings, ranging the full gamut from personal to communal to global request, preceded by the acknowledgment of God’s power and majesty. The amidah is recited three times daily, and is the anchor of public and private prescribed prayer. Its final punctuation mark is the request for peace. But there are also requests for wisdom, pardon, good health and adequate sustenance.
So important is this prayer that in the morning and afternoon prayer service, the amidah is repeated out loud for the benefit of those who are not conversant in Hebrew.
If this most important prayer is full of requests, what does this reveal? That requesting from God is the ultimate compliment we can pay to God, that God is the source of all our blessing.
Rev. GEOFFREY KERSLAKE is a priest of the Roman Catholic archdiocese(pic on left) of Ottawa.
All Christians have a special devotion to the “Our Father” prayer that Jesus taught his disciples.
It is often described as the model for all prayers because not only does it succinctly contain everything we might wish to say to God, it also teaches us that we can relate to God as a loving Father rather than a stern judge or an impersonal deity.
Catholic Christians(pic on right) have another prayer that is at the centre of our faith life — the Mass (or the celebration of the sacrament of the Eucharist). In the sacrament of the Holy Eucharist we experience the source and the summit of our lives as believers. The Eucharist is an encounter with Christ in the species of the consecrated bread and wine, which contain in a way perceptible to the eyes of faith that which is imperceptible to the merely physical senses. When we do what Christ commanded at the Last Supper, “Do this in memory of me,” we encounter the real presence of the body, blood, soul and divinity of Jesus Christ (cf. Luke 22:19).
St. John Chrysostom, one of the great early saints of the Church, once remarked concerning the desire to see Christ: “How many of you say: I should like to see His face, His garments, His shoes. You do see Him, you touch Him, you eat Him. He gives Himself to you, not only that you may see Him, but also to be your food and nourishment.”
For Catholic Christians, the Mass is an intimate encounter with Jesus Christ and this encounter transforms us to love God more deeply and to be of true service to our neighbor. For us, the Eucharist is the most special prayer of our faith.
KEVIN SMITH is on the board of directors for the Centre for Inquiry(pic on left), Canada’s premier venue for humanists, skeptics and freethinkers.
Prayer and faith are not comfortable, well-worn words in the non-believers’ lexicon. We find prayers to be a bad return on their investments; they are usually unspoken monologue, addressed to an invisible care giver, without measurable success — unless you have faith.
I have always questioned why the gods would heal Billy, the bully down the street, but leave adorable Johnny to die of the same illness. Why would your god care more than you if the Sens beat the Leafs? Why, in God’s name, did he not let the murder plot against Hitler succeed? I watch in amused horror at the new televangelists(pic on right) who want you to pray — not for good health, but to get blessedly, filthy, stinkin’ rich! You’ve gotta have faith.
A study was done in 2006 on 1,800 heart patients throughout the United States. Different denominations prayed for their speedy recovery. Yahweh, Allah and Zeus were not listening as the results showed that there was no reduction in the patients’ death rate. In fact, those who knew they were being prayed for had a slightly higher rate of complications — perhaps these were the humanists.
 |
 |
 |
I prefer yoga for the mind — meditation. It sparks up the same calming brain waves as prayer — without the supernatural additive. My questions are never ignored as the answers come from within.
For those who doubt my case, I present one simple test. If you had a serious illness and could do only one thing, would you rather pray for good health or seek medical treatment? In which do you place more faith?
Rev. RAY INNEN PARCHELO is a novice Tendai priest and founder of the Red Maple Sangha, the first lay Buddhist community in Eastern Ontario.
Perfect Wisdom, (or The Smaller Prajnaparamita Sutra). This abbreviated version of its longer cousin is recited in Buddhist practice daily, in either Japanese or English, by lay and clergy around the world.
It dates back to the period just after the death of the historical Buddha and provides a succinct summary of some of the key elements of Buddhist faith. Its opening phrase “Form is emptiness, emptiness is form” reminds us that everything in our manifest universe, all that arises, is, without exception, transient and without an essence or permanence. It lists all the possible claims to permanence, right down to “conception, discrimination and awareness”, and, in relentless, sweeping strokes, asserts these too are empty of permanence. In its concluding phrases it reminds us that reciting philosophy is not enough. It says we must go “beyond deluded thoughts and ... live the heart of perfect wisdom.” In living is the Way. For those curious, there are several dozen translations available online.
Within the East Asian schools of Buddhism, (including my own Tendai tradition) another sutra is chanted as frequently as the Heart, the Lotus Sutra (The Saddharma Pundarika). Making no attempts at historicity or scientific inquiry, the Lotus Sutra relies on parable and mytho-poetic narrative to unfold some profound Buddhist teachings. We enter an apparently fanciful universe to learn about how the Buddhas unfold the Way. We are told that the Truth comes to us in many ways, like fabulous and welcoming cities on a long journey, each in keeping with our capacities and predispositions; that each of us is already the complete presentation of the Truth, but like the man with a precious jewel sewn into his clothing, we are unaware or that each of us will discover this truth in our own time as we learn to act in accord with it. No other text has influenced literature, art and religious life like the Lotus Sutra. A new translation, designed for the general English-speaking public, has just been released by Gene Reeves.
ABDUL RASHID is a member of the Ottawa Muslim community, the Christian Muslim Dialogue and the Capital Region Interfaith Council.
Employing both body and soul, the daily prayer is the most important act of worship for a Muslim. Both its form and content are prescribed and must be followed. Its prerequisites are purity of body, apparel, place and intention and proper time.
The Islamic approach consists of two steps in respect of things that are to pervade our entire life. First, it gives us an overall general directive, and then, to instil its importance, Islam prescribes certain obligatory practices on particular occasions. Thus, the Holy Koran instructs us to “remember God with unceasing remembrance” (33:41). To reach this goal, regular daily prayer “is enjoined on believers at stated times” (4:103).
When the time for one of the five prayers comes, a Muslim stands humbly facing towards the Holy Mosque (ka’bah) in Mecca and we establish a direct spiritual relationship with our Creator. We praise God Almighty, declare our servitude to Him, seek His guidance and, at the same time, remind ourselves of that guidance by reciting the first chapter and other verses of the Holy Koran.
We bow to our Creator and glorify Him. This demonstration of our position in relation to our Creator provides a certain degree of satisfaction. Therefore, saying that God has heard His praise, we straighten ourselves. But realizing the inadequacy of the expression of our humbleness, we fall on our knees and prostrate, touching our forehead to the ground and reciting His praises. As we raise our heads, we realize the significance and honor of getting so close to Him and we prostrate a second time. At the end, we sit in peace, praise God, and send His blessings to Prophets Muhammad and Abraham and to all the righteous.
The daily prayer is a frequent reminder to us of our accountability to our Creator for all our actions. Rendered with sincerity, the daily prayer is the best means to turn us into God-fearing and moral human beings. Above all, it strengthens our relationship with God and brings us closer to Him.
JACK MCLEAN is a Baha’i scholar, teacher, essayist and poet published in the fields of spirituality, Baha’i theology and poetry.
No hierarchy of prayers exists in the Bahá’í Faith. The many prayers that emanate from the pens of the Báb (1819-1844) and Bahá’u’lláh (1817-1892), the two founders of this world religion, are considered to be sacred scripture, that is, divine revelation. Consequently, we cannot point to one prayer only that expresses a plenum of spiritual power or authority.
However, Bahá’u’lláh stated that certain prayers that he revealed were endowed with “a special potency and significance.” Among these would have to be included the daily obligatory prayer — the believer may choose one of three — the Long Healing Prayer and a special prayer called the “Tablet of Ahmad”, revealed in honour of Ahmad of Yazd, who was one of the Persian companions who accompanied Bahá’u’lláh during the Baghdad phase of his exile (1853-1863).
Shoghi Effendi (1897-1957), the former head of the Bahá’í Faith, explained: “These daily obligatory prayers, together with a few other specific ones, such as the Healing Prayer, the Tablet of Ahmad, have been invested by Bahá’u’lláh with a special potency and significance, and should therefore be accepted as such and be recited by the believers with unquestioning faith and confidence, that through them they may enter into a much closer communion with God, and identify themselves more fully with His laws and precepts.”
Except for the Prayer for the Dead, during which the believers are required to stand, there are no congregational rituals for prayer reading in the Bahá’í community. Since there are no clerics in the Bahá’í Faith, any person may read the prayer while the others pray in silence. Any prescribed rituals for individual devotions have been reduced to a minimum.
One of the best-known and loved Bahá’í prayers is the following little prayer of the Báb, known as the “Remover of Difficulties.” It is said repeatedly in times of peril or distress, but it may also be used as a prayer of thanksgiving: “Is there any Remover of difficulties save God? Say: Praised be God! He is God! All are His servants, and all abide by His bidding!”
RADHIKA SEKAR has a PhD in Religious Studies and taught Hinduism at Carleton University for several years. She is a disciple of the Sri Ramakrishna Mission.
Hinduism consists of a multitude of traditions and sects who pray to God in numerous forms and in different ways and different languages. The one sound that emerges from this medley of worship is the clear and sonorous syllable Om (Aum), an intonation that, like music, transcends all barriers of culture and custom.
Consisting of three phonemes, a, u and m, the Omkara is the primordial sound from which the whole universe emerges. The Mandukya Upanishad, which begins “Harih Om Tat,” explains that “all that exists, past, present and future, and whatever else there is beyond the threefold division of time is, indeed Om” (trans. Nikhilananda 1975:223).
In the Bhagavad-Gita, Lord Krishna says that of all utterances He is the single Om (10-25), and explains that the syllable is the audio representation of the Brahman (Supreme). “With the syllable Om as the firm base, the wise attain the All-Highest” (PU.5.2-7). It moves through and contains all vowels possible in human speech and contains the seed for all other mantras and prayers. Thus it mystically embodies the essence of the universe and the singularity of the Supreme.
It is also called the Pranava mantra, which in Sanskrit means “humming.” Mystics say that the Om can be heard during meditation and sounds like an electrical transformer or swarm of bees. When repeated with the correct intonation it resonates throughout the body, and penetrating the center of one’s being immediately brings control, stability and focus to the mind for meditation or prayer.
Sri Ramakrishna Parmahamsa said: “By following the roar you can reach the ocean. By following the trail of Om you attain Brahman, of which the Word is the symbol.”
Considered the grandest and most sacred of all prayers, Om is uttered at the beginning and end of all Hindu prayers, chants and meditation.
BALPREET SINGH is legal counsel and acting executive director for the World Sikh Organization of Canada.
The word “prayer” is a bit imprecise in the Sikh context.
If we mean prayer to be the recital of scripture, then Sikhs perform seven daily prayers or Nitnem: five in the early morning, one in the evening and one before retiring at night. If we mean prayer to be a personal request or supplication, then Sikhs also perform the Ardaas twice daily, which is a personal prayer to God.
The first of the Sikh daily prayers, Japji Sahib, begins with an invocation known as the Mool Mantar, which was composed by the first Guru, Nanak. This is usually the first verse most Sikh children memorize and learn to recite. The Mool Mantar contains the Sikh theology in a nutshell: There is one God, whose name is Truth, the Creator, without fear, without enmity, timeless, without birth, self-illuminated and realized by the Grace of the Guru.
The personal prayer, or Ardaas, is a unique composition that is usually performed while standing with folded hands. The beginning of the Ardaas was composed by the tenth Guru, Gobind Singh, but the rest has been developed by generations of Sikhs over the centuries to reflect our collective history and experiences.
In the Ardaas, Sikhs first invoke and reflect on God and the Sikh Gurus. The subsequent verses of the Ardaas remember those Sikhs who throughout history have made sacrifices for the faith and have stood for justice and service of humanity. The Ardaas then requests God to bestow upon the seeker his remembrance and qualities of faith, humility and trust. At the conclusion of the Ardaas, the individual or congregation makes a personal request before God, the wording of which can change with each recital (depending on the particular occasion). The Ardaas concludes with the request to God to bestow his Grace upon all and to uplift all of humanity.