Selections from the Agni Yoga Series
Presented before the Agni Yoga Society, December 5, 2006
Prayer on the way to the Sacred and Hallowed Dwelling: O Lord of my spirit, forsake not the pilgrim! The Guru hastens not to shelter me from the storm that threatens. The pain will pierce the depths of my heart. And the veil of the whirlwind will hide the light of Thy Face. Yet with Thee I fear not my ignorance. The phantoms reveal not their faces. Lead me upon the path, O Thou Blessed One. Touch my eyes that I may see Thy Gates! The Call, 12.
A pure prayer ever ascends. The Call, 21.
Pure music helps the transmission of the current. We pray by sounds and by symbols of Beauty. The Call, 181.
It is difficult to pray when the mind is filled with worldly thoughts. Your will must guard the place of prayer. The Call, 202.
Be grateful to the Giver of all Treasures. He will hearken to your prayer even amidst the great clamor of the street. Fall not into despair. Knock upon the door. It is always unlocked. And the Master awaits you within His House. Do not eat from the table of the Lord, But hearken to His Words. The Call, 329.
Search not for evening at noon. When behind the plow, husbandman, utter not a prayer for repose. The Call, 346.
Father, henceforth I will shorten my psalms, And I will limit the length of my hymns. And podvig will be my prayer, And I will start it with silence. Brothers, in all thy beginnings, remember the time of silence. It is then that you are approached by the Messenger of the Teaching. The Call, (Book Of Prayer) 360.
On Our scales the striving of the spirit is weightier than aught else. The success in life is strengthened only by the electricity of the prayer of achievement. Illumination, I:VI:2.
You will ask how you should gather. I will tell you to gather in prayer. Better be silent, without the clatter of objects, without the raising of voices, because the wings of spirit grow in quiet. Illumination, I:IX:10.
It is good to be able to pray. Prayer, or spiritual communion, is the highest manifestation; but for this, mental refinement and spiritual strength are indispensable. Illumination, II:IX:12.
My Spirit knows how the power is being forged. I advise not to pray to Me but to invoke Me. And My Hand will not delay in manifesting Itself in the battle. Illumination, III:II:16.
Prayer is the realization of eternity. In prayer there is beauty, love, daring, courage, self-sacrifice, steadfastness, aspiration. But if in the prayer are included superstition, fear and doubt, then such an invocation is related to the times of fetishism. How then should one pray? One can spend hours in aspiration, but there may be a prayer of lightning speed. Then instantaneously, without words, man places himself in continuity with the whole chain into the Infinite. Resolving to unite with the Infinite, man inhales emanations of the ether, as it were, and without mechanical repetitions establishes the best circuit for the current. Thus, in silence, without wasting time, one can receive a stream of refreshment. Only developed spirituality can uplift the human consciousness in a single sigh. But We must repeat about prayer, because people will inquire about it. Needless are conjurations, needless are entreaties, needless is the dust of humbleness, needless are threats, for we alone transport ourselves into the far-off worlds, into the treasuries of possibilities and knowledge. We feel that they are predestined for us, and we approach them daringly. Thus understand the Covenant: Pray in no wise but in spirit. Illumination, III:IV:1.
Our Ray dispatches myriads of purified atoms, which enwrap the man if there is no astral whirlwind around him. This is the reason for the calmness of the spirit, as otherwise the remnants of Karma will obscure the object of the sending. The lower spirits rend the Ray like monkeys, tearing the precious fabric without any benefit to themselves, because the atoms of matter are useless for restless shells. This must be remembered while uniting the spirit in prayer with the Infinite. Illumination, III:IV:2.
They are wrong who consider the Community a house of prayer. New Era Community, 183.
It is not prayer but stern labor that is needed. This must be repeated, again and again. The dates have brought imminent possibilities. Agni Yoga, 249.
When we will train ourselves to sense the current of Infinity, then people, instead of praying, will command the elements. Instead of God working for us, we, through our own labor and psychic energy, will help ourselves. I advise that the Name of the Mother of the World be pronounced not as a symbol but as a power-giver. Infinity I, 9.
When your consciousness prompts you to the necessity of possessing the constant Image of the Lord, retire to a quiet place and direct your sight upon the chosen Image. But remember, one must decide irrevocably, because in case of treason the constant Image will be a constant reproach. After gazing intensely upon the Image, close your eyes and transmit it to the third eye. Exercising thus you will attain a vivid Image, and you will feel a special intensified tremor of the heart. Soon the Image of the Lord will remain inseparably with you. You can test yourself before the sun, and you will still see the Lord before you, sometimes without color, but afterward vividly and even in action. Your prayer will lose the need of words and only the tremor of the heart will suffuse your understanding. Hierarchy, 89.
I call attention to the saturation of the heart and the prayer of the heart for two reasons. Firstly, it leads to a blending with the Higher World; secondly, it does not require a special time and can be performed during any labor. One may easily become used to a special sensation within the heart without fearing any ill effect. The heart will not be overtired by the Lord, on the contrary, only surrounding thoughts can ill-affect the heart. Hierarchy, 132.
The heart filled to the brim with love will be active, valiant, and will expand to its capacity. Such a heart can pray without words and can bathe in bliss. A purple star of the highest tension will correspond to this fire. Hierarchy, 280.
Let us see how people understand Service to the Lord and Hierarchy. He who thinks of ascending only by prayer is far from Service ... Thus, We deplore it when We see reverence in words but not in action. Hierarchy, 295.
Not without reason do all Teachings prescribe prayers before sleep, in order to strengthen the beneficent link. Heart, 92.
A mantram and all prayers can sustain the outer rhythm and also serve as union with the Highest World. Many people fail to perceive either the outer or inner meaning of prayer. Heart, 402.
The savage in his prayers pleads primarily for mercy for himself, whereas the wise anchorites pray for beneficence for the world. Heart, 554.
A hermit who understood the language of animals noticed that a small green snake began to coil about him during his prayers. This continued for many days. Finally he asked the snake, What is the meaning of your strange behavior? The snake answered, Rishi, your concentration is strange if during your prayer you were aware of all my motions! The hermit thereupon replied, Cunning worm, do not judge by yourself. First occurs the earthly concentration, then the subtle and then the fiery when the heart contains the heavenly and earthly. Heart, 587.
One must not approach Fire with covetous aims. A simple prayer about perfectment opens the best Gates. Fiery World I, 243.
The lama says, One should pray each day, otherwise it is better not to pray at all. ... You know the value of constant rhythmic work. You know to what an extent such great exertion opens the Gates. Fiery World I, 379.
One could write a book about the sigh, and it would be shown to be very close to prayer. All the benevolent reflexes can be singled out in the same way. There is no reason to regard them as moral abstractions; it is better to accept them as foundations of health. Fiery World I, 521.
No one should scoff at prayer ... Man has no right to sneer at an offering to the Highest. Aum, 29.