Prayer or Escape

Before I even begin, please note this topic can be triggering to some people. I have mentioned some religions as an example/experience but this doesn’t mean I am trying to prove anyone of them superior. Have an open mind and you might come across something that helps you. An interesting topic I came about while I was talking to an Atheist friend was of course the existence of God and it eventually led to discussing, the power of prayer. Here’s the benefit of having exchange with people from different backgrounds, belief systems – you are intrigued to analyse your own thoughts and belief pattern. I won’t lie, I did look up for the literal definition of prayer, it said “a solemn request for help or expression of thanks addressed to God or another deity. But is a prayer just reduced to this definition? Perhaps yes, when I talk to people from different ethnicities, different cultural backgrounds here in Europe (thanks to the expat life and the challenges of socialising) I stumbled upon some interesting thoughts and ideas about God, Religion and Spirituality and how it was so similar but different at the same time in the East and the West. It was common amongst a majority of people to say, they don’t believe in God. When I asked what was their understanding of God, they said, they don’t go to the church though they have been baptised. They did participate in the religious festivities but got irritated around these dates and called them to be commercialised. Attending such events forcefully, sometimes so that they don’t hurt their parents, but also at the same time passing on a subconscious belief to the next generation that “you might not believe in certain things or find happiness in doing them, but you ought to, if you are a good child or if you don’t want to disrupt the peace in the family.” Other expats and some locals said the same about their religious backgrounds though not necessarily being from a particular said Religion. It was not uncommon for some of these people to use phrases like “Thank God” or “Bless you” which spoke volumes about their upbringing. This to me indicated that they did grow up perhaps in an environment where religion was not excluded from their daily lives. A lot of assumptions can grow through these incidences where some words are just used casually but we are not here to judge anyone’s ideas or faith nor is it anyone’s job to analyse others’ lives. I honestly take pride in being more spiritual than religious personally. Because where I come from I have sometimes seen more blood baths in the name of Religion than Peace. I am not here to convince anyone about the existence of God or to prove any religion to be true, neither to challenge their beliefs about the same subject. It just arose a matter of concern through my perspective because, the first thought that came to my mind was, what do these people do when life throws difficulties and challenges at them? For me praying gives me a sense of security, a feeling of trust that my problems are not being overlooked. A sense of knowing that I am taken care of. I would like to clarify though, during this process, I don’t necessarily address a God/deity but this is my personal way of praying. What we are actually looking for is the strength and the patience to make it through during this process. Sometimes this could even mean surrendering and letting go of your troubles for something higher to take care of it. Interestingly enough, this Atheist friend replied, “In case of challenges, I rely completely on myself and don’t bow in front of anything external, because it is my challenge and I need to find the solution.” So, basically, he makes through these difficulties without believing in God or something external, but he does turn inward for guidance and help and he does make it through. Then I asked him another question, “So when you turn inwards for finding a solution, do you believe you will find the solution?” and he said, “Yes, I know I always find the solutions to my problems.” I had found the missing piece right there! He had a strong self- concept (I wish to make another post on this) and he was basically using the power of his subconscious mind. The same reason applies to how placebo works. We are blessed with infinite intelligence within us. The God we are mostly looking outside can be found within, so do the answers to our worries and difficulties. I can talk about this for hours and hours (irrespective of your faith/belief in God). Miracles happen, problems are solved, solutions are found either way. The only point I wanted to make through this post is, we are all connected and drawn towards the same intelligence, some call it God, some call it Spirit, some call it Self-reliance and some call it the Subconscious mind. All I am asking is never to turn away from this. Also, next time you get triggered about your Religion/ belief system, just know, we are all talking about the same thing, just using different words. Prayers have given me hope in the darkest of my days. And as many times as I have heard, “Hope is the last thing to die” I beg to differ, because for me I died every time I had no hope! “Ask and you shall receive. Search and you will find it. Knock and the door will be opened to you.”

Love,

Anu.