Prayer:

The true potential of the human soul is known only to God its Creator. The Sacred Scriptures have emphasized this indescribable, immeasurable, and unknowable nature of each and every human soul by applying a comparison the essence of which can be understood by the most primitive, undeveloped, and limited intellect.

It is written that if all the Manifestations and prophets of God that have ever existed, that exist in the present, and will exist in the future, were to combine Their spiritual knowledge and understanding that they would be powerless to grasp the essence and nature of a single human soul so great is its potential and so vast is the range of its qualities and attributes. The human soul was created by God and only God is aware of its final form and destiny.

The soul, however, is not a physical product of nature regardless of whether it inhabits a physical form through which it is enabled to progress and express itself in a physical world. The human soul is indestructible, imperishable, and infinite in its existence and when the human body finally gives way to the irresistible laws of nature and its constituent parts disassemble and return to the dust from whence they were born then does the soul depart this world and take up residence in a new sphere of existence and continue its spiritual journey wherein those inherent qualities by which it is in the ‘Image and Likeness’ of its Creator will exert their innate urge to become manifest and will continue, throughout the infinite worlds of God, to advance toward that inevitable destiny for which they were created. This physical world is but one of an infinite number of worlds of God and the degree to which its inherent attributes and abilities manifest themselves will be in direct proportion to the degree of effort and sacrifice expended by the soul to this end. The human soul, not the human body, is the embodiment of God’s attributes and, let their be no mistake, the bond and union of the soul and body is by design and only the death of the body can release the soul from its journey through this world which, we have been told, is the only world in which we can exhibit choice to the extent that we can voluntarily and deliberately choose between good or evil, right or wrong, kindness or cruelty for in the next world and all worlds thereafter the progress and direction of the soul will not be afforded this blessing but will be imposed upon it and from which it will be unable to digress.

The soul will enter the next world in the state and condition in which it left this world and will either rejoice over its elevated position or bemoan the plight of its station the status of which was earned according to its actions and/or inactions in this world. Retribution and karma are unavoidable and, universal laws of creation that impose their equity and justice upon the soul throughout the worlds of God, will be either to the distress or joy of the soul which will be acutely aware that it has fashioned its own abode in the next world and every world thereafter either through its neglect or obedience to those laws and principles revealed to humankind through its divinely inspired Prophets.

The essence of every single human soul is so charged with potential that not even the soul itself, no matter how divinely inspired, can foresee it in its final state of development and fulfillment. The soul may be likened to a locked door that requires a key to unlock it and reveal the treasures that lie hidden behind it and which, when opened, reveals several other locked doors each of which requires a separate key to unlock and reveal its hidden treasures behind which lie further treasures and several more doors increasing exponentially to infinity the extent of which is incalculable. The first door that begins this process exists in the physical world and the key that unlocks its treasures is prayer.

The worlds of God do not admit of error, and imperfection exists only in the mind of the interpreter who can only see it at that level of evolution in whatever stage through which it is passing. Only God can see both the beginning and end simultaneously for it is only God Who is able to embrace and surround both time and matter which are elements which He alone has fashioned and which are characteristics that exist only in a physical world. The soul although abiding temporarily in a physical abode must, perforce, cultivate those qualities inherent within it in this world by which it will be enabled to progress and develop in the next world and prayer is the medium and key that unlocks the door to these treasures of the soul.

Prayer and its counterpart meditation are inseparable attributes that enable it to commune with God. Prayer has been described as ‘Talking with God’ and meditation has been described as ‘Listening for His answer’. Each is a separate key that unlocks different treasures but, though separate, must be exercised together and in their proper order. To employ one to the exclusion of the other is simply to handicap the soul in its conversation with God and to limit its receptivity to His wisdom and response. The more passionately the soul communes with its Creator in the form of prayer and the more uncluttered, naked, and freely exposed it presents itself in the form of meditation, the more like unto a hollow reed it will become through which the Voice of God can commune and inspire it.

Prayer and meditation are weapons of the soul by which it wages a battle against the temptations and corrupt inclinations of the world of nature from which it will eventually escape but during which, in its brief sojourn, the soul is held captive and subjected to the incessant demands of its animalistic and predatory urges. Urges which, if unchecked, lead the soul into the depraved abyss of behaviour that causes the inmates of heaven to weep oceans of tears and to wring their hands in agony and despair over such a spiritual waste. Prayer and meditation are the guardians of the soul that guide its steps, inspire its spirit, bring joy to its heart, illuminate its mind, and raise it to breathless heights that no other earthly organism can either achieve or imagine.

Prayer is of two kinds, that is to say, there is the prayer conceived in the mind of the human soul supplicating to its Creator for His assistance and then there is the prayer that emanate from God through the medium of the Holy Spirit that is conveyed by way of those Holy Souls specially chosen by God to carry His message to His creatures and which carry a special power and force in each letter of each word of each phrase in each tablet. They are imbued with a supernatural force that can neither be described nor detected by the senses but the effect of which is as certain and irresistible as the physical forces of gravity and motion. Prayers revealed by the Founders of Religions and which are inspired of God exert an influence upon the heart and mind that can raise it to unimagined heights and elevate it to a level of ecstasy that cause the very atoms around it to dance in delight. Although not always immediately apparent, the force and influence of prayers revealed by God’s Prophets will exert its beneficial effect upon any and all souls that repeat them with a sincere heart unsullied by the desire for personal advantage. Both types of prayer are acceptable at the threshold of God but it is self-evident which holds greater potential for the most positive results.

To journey through life without being clothed in the armor of prayer and meditation is foolhardy, fraught with danger, and an exercise in futility which the soul will ultimately be forced to concede and thereafter will bemoan its plight and reap the harvest of its neglect. In order to maintain its spiritual health the soul is obligated to engage in prayer and meditation on a regular and ongoing basis throughout its odyssey in the world of nature and without which is destined to fall victim to the tireless and unsleeping snares of ever-present immoral and unethical temptations that lead the soul astray and into the darkened world of depravity and corruption. The soul must either pray or be prey and in this physical existence the soul has been granted the right to choose which path it will pursue.