Words that soothe...

I have often wondered how people pray. I don’t mean the rituals but the prayer itself. When one stands in a temple/ church/ mosque/ gurudwara, do you chant something, do you talk to god as a person, do you recite verses?

So before I ask you, let me talk about myself. Perhaps as an offshoot of my upbringing (and my mom’s undying efforts), when I close my eyes and join my hands, automatically the verses that come to my lips are those of the ‘Mool Mantra’ that start with ‘Ek Onkaar’. The Mool Mantra is supposed to be the first composition that Guru Nanak wrote when he gained enlightenment. I have also often wondered the meaning of what I chant and here is a part of what I have understood….

Ek Onkaar Sat Naam Karta Purakh Nir Bhao Nir Vair Akaal Murat Ajuni Saibhan Gur Parsad Jap Aaj Sach Jugaad Sach Aij

Ek Onkaar – There is but one god. He manifests Himself ceaselessly throughout His Creation in diverse forms

Sat Naam – His name is truth/ he is the ultimate truth

Karta Purakh – He is the creator

Nir Bhao – Fearless

Nir Vair – Without any hate

Aakaal Murat - God is a Being beyond time: An Eternal, Indestructible Entity

Ajooni – Never been born / doesn’t have a physical form

Saibhan - God is self-creating, existing alone without external support; God is self-begotten and has no origin

Each of these meanings are so simple and yet so pure. Which is what most religions were when they were created. What we see today in the garb of various religions is not how they were made. All religions, without an exceptions (except perhaps Budhism) have been hijacked by a group of people at some point of time in history who declared themselves the ‘keepers’ or ‘protectors’ of the religion and what we have today is not a shadow of the truth. But let me not digress, this post is not about religion but about praying for peace of mind.

So what about you? When you pray (if you do), do you talk to god? Do you recite something? If yes then what? Tell me….