Edgar Cayce on Prayer
The Edgar Cayce readings contain a wealth of
information on the importance of both prayer and meditation.
From Cayce's perspective prayer is talking to God and meditation
is listening. Essentially, prayer can be understood as the means
by which we are able to attune ourselves to our spiritual source.
In the language of the Cayce readings:
Prayer is the concerted effort of the physical consciousness to become attuned to the consciousness of the Creator, either collectively or individually. Edgar Cayce reading #281-13
From
Cayce's perspective, the power of our prayers is affected by the
attitudes we hold - both about ourselves and others. The depth
of our attunement to our spiritual source is also influenced by
these same attitudes. With this in mind, a frequently occurring
theme in the readings is that individuals must live as they pray.
In other words, our daily thoughts, actions and beliefs must strive
for the same level of attunement that we seek in prayer.
Ultimately,
our every thought has the same impact as a prayer. The longer
a thought is held in mind, the more power is possesses. Because
"mind is the builder," we are actually contributing
to “helping” or "harming" every individual
that we hold in mind, whether it be in our thoughts or in our
prayers.
Because prayer seeks to attune us to our spiritual source, it also helps to foster our relationship with the Divine. Types of prayer include: praying for oneself, direct prayer for others — if they have asked, and surrounding prayer for those about whom we are concerned — if they have not asked specifically for our prayer help.
Cayce believed that the energy of prayer was sent by thought — almost like a beam of white light being sent out to the individual(s) for whom we are praying. It is not that prayer is “telling God what to do,” rather prayer is a spiritual energy that surrounds an individual and attempts to provide that individual with an energy that they can draw upon for their own healing and comfort.
Since prayer is talking to God, there are a variety of ways to pray, just as you might have different ways of communicating with a close friend. Different types of prayers include prayers of thanksgiving, prayers for healing, prayers for forgiveness, prayers for attunement, and prayers for the deceased.
The A.R.E. Prayer Services department compiles a monthly International Prayer List, both for individuals who want to be prayed for as well as for individuals who would like to serve as volunteer pray-ers.
