Get the order right

Very often, we do not get the order right which is why we fail to succeed. This is true in all areas of life, especially our own selves. We need to know our inner self is our driver and give complete control to it. This is the way to move forward in all areas of life.

My late grandmother would always begin cooking only after praying to God as she firmly believed that her prayers would make all her meals tasty. She was a wonderful cook but always attributed her talent to divine grace. As I grew up with her, I also emulate her till today and never begin cooking or doing anything new without praying.  This practice definitely makes me feel much more confident of succeeding and hence, I definitely recommend this  to all. 

On another note, my erstwhile maid who had a disabled, paraplegic child prayed for her and with her each day and never stopped encouraging her to all that could. A school nearby saw her attempting to sing and she then started singing regularly with the guidance of a music teacher. As she had overcome her challenges, she became a star singer in our colony and was even covered in the local media.

We can see that both ordinary and people with challenges can only become better and stronger with prayer and a focus on our inner selves which is why we should surely give it the prime importance and first priority in our lives.

Prayer and mental health

Faith and mental health are deeply intertwined.  In an era where even the World Health Organisation says we need to give more attention to our mental health, I feel we should include prayer also in our daily routine as this does make us stronger and more resilient. This is why people of all regions included prayers in their lives.  This was always done to bring people together and also make them stronger individuals. A child would be taught a prayer before he or she learnt the alphabet. That was the pattern in all communities to ensure a child always walked on the right path. People knew that direction is very important in everyone’s life and therefore, set a child on the right path before he/she learnt anything else. With this direction, everything else one learns is a bonus that adds value to one’s life for the connection to the divine has already been set. 

Families and communities

There are too many arguments and very little connection in today’s world. It's important we set this right. This can be done only by us as our inner self is ours alone. Whether proven or not, we know we have been created by a higher power so we do need to be thankful to a higher power.With too much focus on science alone, are we throwing away the baby with the backwater ? This is perhaps the reason for disjointed communities and even families. It is often said that a family that prayers together, stays together. It is one place where everyone has a common objective which is why conflicts, if any, would either be resolved or forgotten at prayer time.

This is certainly not taking place in an era where prayer is often not even mentioned in families and communities. It's time we get the order right.

By Jamuna Rangachari