Most of us go through various forms of devotion in some form or another regularly. Almost all of us who are devoted tell some prayer or the other. More often than not, at least in my case, these prayers were chanted mechanically without a real appreciation of what the prayer stood for. Many a times, some of us who claim to have learnt a bit of Sanskrit get the ego kick that we understand a prayer. However many of these prayers have a deeper meaning than what we can translate.
I am listing below some of my favorite prayers
1. An attitude of gratitude
One of the critical important paths on the spiritual quest is the Bhakti route. This is not the traditional way wherein we go to a temple, roll around the sanctum sanctorum or sing bhajans. Bhakti is an attitude of gratitude for what we are today. It is an acknowledgement of the role several people have played in bringing us to our current glory. It is a way to control over ego. A control over ego is the first step in achieving divinity. The prayer below covers this aspect of the spiritual journey.
Guru Brahma Gurur Vishnu Guru Devo Maheshwaraha
Guru Saakshat Para Brahma Tasmai Sree Gurave Namaha
Meaning: Guru is verily the representative of Brahma,
Vishnu and Shiva. He creates, sustains knowledge and destroys the weeds of
ignorance. I salute such a Guru.
Whatever we are today is because of a teacher. The teacher is not only the person in a classroom who taught us ABC. Obviously our teacher started off with the great prakriti who taught us the most natural act of crying as babies to get attention. Our parents are teachers who taught us to take the first step and eat the first morsel of food on our own. The list goes on and includes everything in nature from which we learn so much every day. Hence my first verse goes in humble obeisance to that multitude of teachers who made me what I am today.
2. A move to immortality and supreme bliss
Asato maa sadgamaya Tamaso maa jyotirgamaya
Mṛityor maa amṛitan gamaya Om shaanti shaanti shaanti
Meaning: “From the unreal, lead us to the Real; from darkness, lead us unto Light; from death, lead us to Immortality. Om peace, peace, peace.”
This is a fabulous prayer taking us to the roots of spirituality. This world is an illusion created by the power of Maya. The only reality is the supreme consciousness or Brahman. So the first two lines pray that we be freed from the unreal feeling of duality and consequent pain in this illusory world to the supreme peace of the only reality, which is Brahman. Since the only reality is Brahman and there is nothing else at all, there is nothing like life and death to an individual. This prayer gives us the phenomenal ability to realize that we are all immortal and do not need to fear the dark forebodings of death and mortality.
3. An appeal for liberation from bondage
OM Tryambakam Yajamahe Sugandhim Pushtivardhanam
Urvarukamiva Bandhanam Mrityor Mukshiya Mamritat
Meaning: We worship the three-eyed Lord (Siva) who is full of sweet fragrance and nourishes human beings. May he liberate me from bondage, even as the cucumber is severed from the vine. This is the Maha Mrityunjaya Mantra.
4. A total sense of surrender
Kayena vacha manasendriyenva Buddhayatmnava prakreetiswabhavat
Karomi yadhyat sakalam parasmai Narayanayeti samarpayami
Meaning: Whatever I do with my mind, body, speech or with other senses of my body, Or with my intellect or with my innate natural tendencies, I offer everything to the Lord!