Why do we have a prayer room?

[Guest guest]

Most Hindu homes have a prayer room or altar. A lamp is lit and the Lord

worshipped each day. Other spiritual practices like " japa " (repetition of the

Lord's name), meditation, " paaraayana " (reading of the scriptures), prayers,

devotional singing etc. is also done here. Special worship is done on auspicious

occasions like birthdays, anniversaries, festivals and the like. Each member of

the family - young or old - communes with and worships the Divine here.

 

The Lord is the owner of the entire creation. He is therefore the true owner of

the house we live in too. The prayer room is the master room of the house. This

notion rids us of false pride and possessiveness.

 

The ideal attitude to take is to regard the Lord as the true owner of our homes

and ourselves as the caretakers of His home. But if this rather difficult, we

could at least think of Him as a very welcome guest. Just as we would house an

important guest in the best comfort, so, too we felicitate the Lord's presence

in our homes by having a prayer room or altar, which is, at all times, kept

clean and well decorated.

 

Also the Lord is all pervading. To remind us that He resides in our home with

us, we have prayer rooms. Without the grace of the Lord, no task can be

successfully or easily accomplished. We invoke His grace by communing with Him

in the prayer room each day and on special occasions.

 

Each room in a house is dedicated to a specific function like bedroom for

resting and sleeping, the drawing room to receive guests, the kitchen for

cooking etc. the furniture, décor and the atmosphere of each room are made

conductive to the purpose it serves. So too for the purpose of meditation,

worship and prayer, we should have a conductive atmosphere - hence the need for

a prayer room.

 

Sacred thoughts and sound vibrations pervade the place and influence the minds

of those who spend time there. Spiritual thoughts and vibrations accumulated

through regular meditation, worship and chanting done there pervade the prayer

room. Even when we are tired or agitated, by just sitting in the prayer room for

a while, we feel calm, rejuvenated and spiritually uplifted.