Praying Effectively—
Supplication, Meditation, Appreciation, Application

Susan Kramer

Text and Photography copyright © 1998-2009
Santa Barbara, California USA
Amsterdam, The Netherlands
Published by Creations in Consciousness
sitemap

1.Supplication—asking for guidance by using our own words or set prayers.

2.Meditation—being still in body, which is conducive to the settling of the turbulent waters of issues in the mind—confusion falling away so that the voice of our conscience can be heard.

3.Appreciation—caring, thankful, and loving thoughts, which in turn energize our body.

4.Application—putting the inner guidance of our conscience into action.
 
 

1. Supplication

Supplication is asking for our prayer to be answered. The set prayers from religious traditions can set us in the frame of mind that something outside our ordinary daily thinking and experience can intercede in our lives.

We can ask for events to turn a certain way when we want a specific outcome, or we can ask for the best (though perhaps unknown to us in the moment) outcome to happen in our lives or in others' lives in general. Both ways we are intentionally putting forth our energy.

This is an example of a prayer asking for the 'best' outcome:

Whether or not we use a set group of words in our supplication, we need to spend the moments following our supplication for meditation and reflection. Deep meditation and reflection—our quiet time—allow answers to filter into our waking mind, ready for action.
 

2. Meditation and Reflection

Meditation is the medication for healing ignorance of our eternal Self. We know about our sensory organs; we know about our emotions; we know about our thinking mind; but until we still our body, emotions, and thinking mind, we do not have conscious contact with our Self—which is part of the main eternal core of Self. The joyful effects experienced from the inner stillness of meditation eventually flow outwardly into daily life. Joy invigorates us with plenty of lively energy for caring and sharing; in joy we feel happy and fulfilled.

Going within—reflecting—brings forth clarified reality. When we perceive past and ongoing events clearly, we see where we are heading. Living each moment with caringness and in our highest consciousness of good allows happiness in our present and future.

We aid ourselves in fulfilling our human potential by maintaining and nurturing a stable secure base. When we are out of balance the results of our actions are, also. To produce results for the highest good we need to consistently live from our highest consciousness. By living a balance of work, play, and contemplation we stay centered.

3. Appreciation

Appreciation uplifts both the giver and receiver …

No matter what our age, we are students of life till we learn how to appreciate and preserve harmony in our life. To maintain control in our lives we must harmonize for the best resolve in each situation, regardless of temptation for personal gratification. We become masters of our destiny when we consistently act on what is best for all concerned.

The teachings of yoga, combined with appreciation for life, provide time-honored cleansing methods, spiritual practices, and guides to virtuous living, removing our layers of self-deception. Some are: bodily purification—clean diet and hatha yoga postures; positive attitudes; productive work; prayer—supplication, meditation, appreciation, application; substituting better for bad habits; living for the best resolve in each moment.

Our eternal Self is experienced by diving deeply through the narrow gateway into our own Heart. The permanent joy that is the hallmark of our permanent Self comes into reality for us when we sit very still—immobile—while emanating lovingness for our Creator, creation, loved ones, everyone.

Our foremost goal is to develop the quality of lovingness—which we achieve through nurturing and caring actions. The choice for acting on love faces us repeatedly till we become conscious that we are actually beings of love. By applying the attitude of caringness, we come to experience harmony and contentment fully in our life.

4. Application—the Gift of Ourselves

And lastly, when we add the gift of ourselves in the application of our prayer life, we bring much happiness to ourselves. Also, the gift of ourselves does not expect a return. With this attitude we allow our caring heart to open and hold gifts beyond measure: contentment, peacefulness and lovingness—received right in the moment we are being caring. It is practical to be caring and giving—we are not wasting time thinking about what someone owes us. There is no downside after giving when we do not expect a return; we retain our natural harmony and peace. Giving freely when the opportunity arises allows energy to flow easily through our actions. And then, when we experience a true need, our harmonious pattern of living will draw just what we need to us, from within us—this happens because when we are feeling relaxed, logical thoughts come up in our mind to best resolve the situation.

Links

further reading:
Radiant Yoga for Teens and Adults
http://www.susankramer.com/RadiantYoga.html
Radiant Yoga for Children
http://www.susankramer.com/Yoga.html
The Energy of Love
http://www.susankramer.com/love.html
Growing in Consciousness
http://www.susankramer.com/consciousness.html