How to Talk to God

Prayer for Talking to God

For 20+ years now, my mother, Shobha Mehta, has been running a monthly spiritual get-together which is focused on helping children develop into compassionate, wise and positive human beings.  A part of the studies is also for them to learn about the various aspects of Divinity and how to integrate God into their heart, mind and life.  In recent times, she has handed over the reigns to the next generation, and they have been marvelously continuing this great tradition that she started.  A special thanks to Harsh Mendiratta for continuing this most precious ritual.

This monthly “hawan” (prayers) has also evolved over time, and now the the children learn yoga, pranayama (breathing exercises) and meditation in addition to prayers and life lessons.  All in all, they are learning how to live life at their highest potential.  Of course the progress has also led to the creation of a wonderful website, which has lots on great free information on mantras and hawan, and you can visit that site here www.hawan.net.

Recently, the prayer group passed around the following mantra, called the Pranayama Mantra, which is a prayer to talk to God with.  It is a a beautiful prayer and a wonderful way to acknowledge the magnificence of God and include him into your life, so I thought it would be nice to share it with you all as well.

I will ask my mother to recite this prayer for us in the near future, as she is a Sanskrit scholar, and create a free downloadable MP3, so you can hear how to correctly pronounce this mantra.  This mantra will also become part of our Free Online Mantra MP3 Download collection.  In that collection you will find many more excellent prayers, hymns and mantras for your spiritual practice. 

Below you will find the details of the pranayama mantra, its meaning and also how to practice it as well. 

Meaning of Pranayama Mantra:

How to Practice This Prayer:

Here are step by step instructions of how practice this wonderful prayer.

• Sit up on a chair or sit with your legs crossed.  Keep you back straight.
• Place your fingers in Gyan Mudra and place your wrists gently on your knees with your palms facing slightly up, or have your fingers interlaced and rest your hands gently in your lap.
• Now as you inhale mentally say the sound “OM”  and as you exhale complete the phrase.  So for example, you say “OM” as you inhale and then “Bhuh” as you exhale, “OM” on the next inhale, and “Bhuvah” on the exhale, and continue in that way.
• When you reach the end of the mantra, you start over again and continue for the duration of the time.

How Long to do This Prayer For:

• This is a prayer you can do for as long as you like, I don’t think God minds how much you talk to him :-).  You can start with 3 minutes and build up your time from there.

Benefits of Prayer to Talk to God:

• Excellent for sparking a devotional and loving attitude towards Divinity and all living beings.
• Good for moving towards egolessness and non-duality.
• Clams the mind and bestows peace and tranquility.
• Builds mental focus and concentration.
• Integrates the divine forces into you heart and life.

Practice Tips for Pranayama Prayer:

• A good way to prepare the mind for this prayer is to precede it with Anuloma Viloma pranayama.  This breathing technique is excellent to do prior to any meditative or spiritual practice, as it settles the mind down and soothes your entire nervous system.  Do 5 rounds and then begin the prayer as described above.
• If you are more comfortable with using the English words instead, that too is fine.  Do it the way that is most meaningful to you and that you vibe with the best.
• For students in the Yoga Teacher’s Training or Meditation Teacher’s Training courses, this is a great prayer with which to end your class with as well.  It will help the students leave your class filled with love and peace.

Keeping God in mind at all times is the best way to get His help with you life and projects.  You can read more about this topic in the following post: Zen Teachings on God and How to Get His Help.