I think this illustrates a fundamental misunderstanding of the nature of prayer and praise. Prayer and praise are not for flattery
or begging for a favor!



Praise is a self-effacing act of acknowledging one's own insignificance
in the world compared to the vastness of the Universe.

Prayer is meditation pure and simple. Not begging for candy.
One prays to elevate their own consciousness not to ask for a
goodie from God. It is about introspection and learning to be
better yourself through contemplation and meditation. There is
no need for any direct intercession from God.

Those who pray to God for a raise have a rather shallow concept
of the practice...

lol i had to laugh there... so i take it god has nothing better to do than listen to everyones crying and whining about how bad their life is. i guess the low pressure system that rolls by is gods doing
by the same token, it was gods doing that made katrina nearly wipe out New Orleans? i guess god doesn't like muslims either...is that why he sent that flood that killed 1500 of them in pakistan? i already know you have the answer to this, bible thumpers always do.

The purity of your wisdom deepens every day
The knowledge that you share with us, is like a heavenly bouquet
I'd like to take this moment to thank you for all you say
for every time you make a post, you brighten up my day

Slowhand, a Bible thumper?

Well,... maybe in an extremely abstract sense I spose.

no, sorry i posted that on the wrong post.

Well I am quite flattered. I like the way you think as well!



The prostration image is hilarious. Please - don't get up.



I want to clarify that I agree with Shasta - that prayers are
answered - the way I look at it, the effect of sincere prayer
as meditation produces a calming acknowledgement of the world
and our respective places in it.

The positive effects of praise and prayer have been demonstrated
I believe. It is healthy to recognize one's own insignificance
and accept it. Humbling yes but in a very empowering and liberating
way. I recommend it!

Because such inspiration benefits everyone.

it is interesting that there are exactly as many religions in the world as there are religious people.....no two religious people believe the exact same thing, they all pick and choose what they want to believe, ignoring some doctrines and beliefs, grasping on to others..... and all of it is "true".. in their minds, imaginary... a delusion. Just because we, mankind, do not have all of the answers, religious people would rather grasp onto an answer, than to accept that there is a great deal we do not understand...

Mankind will need to let go of these primitive delusions before we can truly advance.

prayer is simply ... self hypnosis, the power of positive thinking... nothing more or less.

Think about it, by praying, you will cause the forward motion of the universe to change, you will alter time-space relationships... what a naive and selfish concept... prayer :(

With all due respect I think you're jumping to some extreme conclusions about a lot of religions, especially when you say things like, "and all of it is 'true'.. in their minds"

A lot of religions don't claim to know any absolute truths. For example the very basis of Eastern Mysticism is precisely that - A recognition that life is indeed a mystery.

That's the whole basis of mysticism.

You say:


But what's to "break free from" with respect to mysticism?

The idea that the don't know what's going on?

That's already innate in the spirituality. It's a faith-based thing.

What's the alternative? To place our faith in a purely atheistic existence? That's equally as 'faith-based' as anything else.

Mysticism is simply a recognition that life is indeed a mystery, and that until we have reason to believe we can actually know something then why not at least take a positive stance on the outlook of the possibilities?

What's wrong with that?

It's just a positive philosophy is all.

And one that is completely compatible with all know experiential knowledge that we have to date. It doesn't conflict with any known truths, so there's no reason to discard it as a possibility.

Now, when it comes to the Zeus-like personified religions like the Bible that claim to be the word of a jealous judgmental Godhead, that's a whole other story. When we get into that realm I'm with you all the way. There simply isn't any sane reason to cling to those kinds of mythologies anymore. I will agree with you on that point.

But when it comes to a mystical approach to spirituality I see absolutely no reason why an atheistic approach should be preferred.

Agnostic sure. But isn't mysticism already a form of 'agnosticism'? It's basically saying that life is a mystery and that we can't know it's true nature (i.e. agnosticism). Being without knowledge.

1 : to express a favorable judgment of : commend
2 : to glorify (a god or saint) especially by the attribution of perfections



Why do I praise God?
I praise God because I believe in his glory, his perfect love, and respect his authority and it is all favorable to me

Should I praise God?

I obviously believe I should.

Whatever you think - scientific, philosophical, atheistic, experiential - you only believe in you own mind. It is your
delusion.

Everyone needs to come to an understanding of their place in
the world. It will be their religion. Rather than seeing only
the individuality - I am amazed at the universality of human
religious expressions. The commonality of all the religions.
Most of the people in the world follow one of only a very few
major religions all of which are very compatible in their core
beliefs.

Religious people do not believe that their prayer alters the
universe but brings them closer to harmony with it.

It is not naive to see how small we are in this world. It is
grand and true. It is naive to think that there is nothing more
that what you individually experience. How small is that?

Because I could... lol