Secret Prayer and MeditationThis document focuses on the spiritual practice of prayer as an integral part of meditation. It explores the concept of entering a metaphorical ‘closet’ for private prayer, drawing from biblical texts, particularly Matthew 6:6-8. The material provides insights into the spiritual significance of silent, focused prayer, and the importance of seeking guidance from a higher power rather than dictating personal desires. The document emphasizes the meditative aspect of prayer and its role in spiritual growth and connection.
Entering into the closet in secret prayer as integral part of meditation
Matthew 6:6-8
But thou, when thou prayest, enter into thy closet, and when thou hast shut thy door, pray to thy Father which is in secret; and thy Father which seeth in secret shall reward thee openly. But when ye pray, use not vain repetitions, as the heathen do: for they think that they shall be heard for their much speaking. Be not ye therefore like unto them: for your Father knoweth what things ye have need of, before ye ask him.
S Here is that which is the directive of going within into that place of silence, that which is meditation. But also warning that ye should ask God what is best for self, not tell God what is best for self. For He that answers thy prayers will answer them at times to that which is your own misdoing, if ye would so have it. For it is a learning situation, even in the prayer, even in that which is as meditation.
Q. What is meant by “thy closet”?
S This is the inner self, the Holy of Holies. That which is shut off from the world, even as the closet in which hangs thy goodness, thy robes that are put upon self, making self even to that which is the spiritual.
Q. Is there much value in meditation without prayer?
S. Meditation is valuable at all times, but so oft without prayer it is not meditation but contemplation. Contemplation has its points. For many it should be prayer, contemplation, and meditation.
Q. About vain repetitions: this does not refer in any way to the affirmations that we use over and over, does it?
S If an affirmation becomes as even that which is given here, repetitious, where the mind does not dwell upon the thought, but gives only lip service, even if it is mental lip service, and the mind wanders or it is not focused upon what it is asking, it is vain repetition.
Confirmation that the Lord’s Prayer raises the forces through the centers in the body.
Matthew 6: 9-13
After this manner therefore pray ye: Our Father which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil: For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, forever. Amen.
S This has been given and explained before. This is as that which raises the forces within the body through the centers of the body. This may be awakened within self even though it is not in the form as given. It is yet the idea that is as the importance here. For even as we have given before, it is that which stirs the individual, rather than the context itself that is important.
Q. Is the version given by Edgar Cayce current or should it be modified in any way?
S It is correct.
Praying for others
Matthew 7: 6
Give not that which is holy unto the dogs, neither cast ye your pearls before swine, lest they trample them under their feet, and turn again and rend you.
S This does not have so much to do with that which is the parting of the wealth or material so much as it has to do with prayers and thoughts. That is why a prime directive to each, and every individual is: pray only for those who ask for your prayers. For then you interfere with that which is their own progression.
Q. I thought it was all right to pray for others if you ask that the Father’s will be done.
S For their general good and the Father’s will, but never without asking unless prefixed by “thy will be done”.
Q. What does asking represent?
S Asking is that which is prayer, or the bending of that which is the personality or the ego to realize that there is that which is more important than self – God.
Meddlesome prayer groups – importance of prefacing prayers with “thy will be done”
Q In reading 941-1 given in 1975, the Source speaks of “meddlesome prayer groups.” In what way is a prayer group meddlesome? Are there meddlesome individual prayers?
(Editor’s note: 941 would be the number given to an individual who received a reading in 1975)
S Yes. Those who would force their thoughts and their ways upon others, regardless of how good the intentions are, are meddlesome. Those who put forth great and grandiose prayers in volume meddle with individuals and with forces. Remember, even though this is a material plane there are forces that are beyond the material present in this plane that move in accordance with world thought, group thought, and even individual thought. You have heard the saying, “the more the merrier.” It’s true. The more that voice their opinion in a certain way, the more they affect, and effect, mankind to that which is either positive or less positive. If it is to the less positive, it is the meddlesome. It takes more of your time to find the path, for them to find the path, that the great exodus will occur for souls. See?
Q Does that also affect those other things that are growing upon the earth such as the vegetable kingdom and the animal kingdom?
S Oh, definitely so. If you could hearken back in your own memories to those times when you first viewed this earth plane from afar and view it now, you could see the difference in the beauty, the density, the wondersomeness of that which is the animal and vegetable life and maybe it’s good you can’t. You might weep.
Q Is it meddlesome for somebody, following up on that question, to pray for healing for somebody without being asked?
S Always prefix prayers with “Thy will be done.”
Importance of faith in order for the Christ to work within to heal and cleanse.
Mark 6: 4-5
But Jesus said unto them, “A prophet is not without honour, but in his own country, and among his own kin, and in his own house.” And he could there do no mighty work, save that he laid his hands upon a few sick folk, and healed them.
S To overcome that which is your own selves, your minds, your carnal minds, your intellects based upon the world and the world thought, you can do little until you have that which is faith in that which is given in the Scriptures at this time and place, you see. Jesus the Christ could do no things called miracles. For the example here was as that (which) of those who have little faith or no faith stop that within the body. Those being the thought patterns as given, the intellect, the will, the mind, and nothing can then be done. Therefore, the example here is: you must go away from that which, even as Jesus here did, detains the movement forward, or holds that down which is that which goes up. There is within self the place to go to leave these things behind. And that is to meet the Christ within. For here is the washing away of that which is unfaith, replacing it with faith. Most often, in the case of those who are overcome by their own intellect, it is through that which is the exploring of new ways, new selfishness (if you would have it that) that leads them to the place of faith and unselfishness, as they explore that which is meditation (so often begun in selfishness) to become unselfish.
Q In the example given, is this a question of the vibrations of peoples’ minds affecting the vibrations of Jesus?
S Jesus was acting here, not through His own mind abilities which were awe inspiring from man’s aspects, but worked only through that which is the Christ Force, the spiritual nature of His self; but could only work and give those miracles to others where faith existed. This is the law of the spiritual or holy side of that which is denoted or connotated in the name “man” or “mankind.” Therefore, Jesus was acting through that which was the law, rather in guidance to that, or the following the pattern as established by God. Easily He could have side-stepped it through the mental conditions, or even through the power of overcoming by that which is the spiritual, but those that would benefit from same would not have earned same to any degree, nor then would the example be given for those to learn later of what action-reaction and the spiritual path are.
Q Could we compare this to the question of prayer for healing of others to a radio – if it isn’t turned on, they can’t receive?
S Very much so.
Again, when the Christ force is risen then we become a channel for healing others as a conduit of that energy.
Mark 9: 27-29
But Jesus took him by the hand, and lifted him up; and he arose. And when he was come into the house, his disciples asked him privately, Why could not we cast him out? And he said unto them, This kind can come forth by nothing, but by prayer and fasting.
S Since the disciples represent that which are the parts of the human, or that which is still working within this plane, the truth of God cannot be worked by people of this plane. When the entity reaches that which is the Christ spirit, then God works through self. As Christ was the sacrifice, as Jesus was the opportunity, so you must be, too. Then the fasting, which is the sacrifice, is the key and the prayer is the way, and the meditation is the illumining of the individual to become that which is the conduit for the force of God, or that which is the Holy Spirit to act.
Description of meditation and going within and preparing ourselves by cleansing through prayer
Mark 14: 12
And the first day of unleavened bread, when they killed the Passover, his disciples said unto him, Where wilt thou that we go and prepare that thou mayest eat the Passover?
S This must occur within selves at that time when you prepare yourself each day to come before that which is the Creative Force, that which is Love, to lighten yourself, both with light and to make yourself less weighty by simplifying the thoughts, by simplifying the deeds, that you, too may find the place to meet the Lord
Mark 14: 13-14
And he sendeth forth two of his disciples, and saith unto them, “Go ye into the city, and there shall meet you a man bearing a pitcher of water: follow him. And wheresoever he shall go in, say ye to the goodman of the house, ‘The Master saith, Where is the guest chamber, where I shall eat the Passover with my disciples? ‘ “
S Here is the seeking within yourself through that which is the busyness of self, the complications of self (which is the city of self), to find the bearer of water, the spiritual truth, the spiritual way – and following same to that place, the inner chamber within yourself, that you, too, may use that which is the Blood of the Lamb to find the I AM of self, spirit, the word of the Lord, that which gives you life.
Mark 14:16-17
And his disciples went forth, and came into the city, and found as he had said unto them: and they made ready the Passover. And in the evening, he cometh with the twelve.
S Here is the preparation through the busyness of self, the turmoil, the tribulation of the minds, the physical activities of self that, then, you send forth those which are the thoughts which prepare the way for that which is the soul search, the cleansing, prayer, that you may then meditate and come before that place of stillness where the Lord provides.
Prayer prepares the place within, and meditation will allow the seed of truth to come forth.
Luke 1: 28
And the angel came in unto her, and said, Hail, thou that art highly favoured, the Lord is with thee: blessed art thou among women.
Then that which is the intercession, or that which is the prayer power, that which is the meditation, prepares that place within yourself, that the seed of truth may be watered, nourished, nurtured to the point that it may come forth.
We have been given the admonition to choose between light and dark, putting God first, and through joy and love and the peace of the Christ we may find the Path.
John 3:18-21
He that believeth on him is not condemned: but he that believeth not is condemned already, because he hath not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God. And this is the condemnation, that light is come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil. For everyone that doeth evil hateth the light, neither cometh to the light, lest his deeds should be reproved. But he that doeth truth cometh to the light, that his deeds may be made manifest, that they are wrought in God.
S Truthful things are the Christ in motion. To do those things that break you from that which is the dark into the light, you must act and be as that which is a part of faith. You have been given the four foundations as to that which is to open selves up. It is mankind’s option to choose the duty or themselves. It is complicated, it is simple. For if you do not put God first, you cannot ever succeed. For as we have given before through this channel and others, man has the selection to be either blown away to nothingness, or to become that which is as gods. The choice is yours – darkness which is nothingness or light which is as gods. Your very thoughts, your very deeds must begin as if you are on that which is a ladder, that which is a stair: step-by-step, day-by-day, action-by-action. You cannot take an elevator. You cannot bypass it. It’s work. But it may be joyous work, if you would have it so. If it is difficult for you as individuals to believe in a singular God, a God of spirit, and not shaped in the visual image as you can see man, then visualize that which is Jesus the Christ, even as He gave, though meaning the spirit and the actions. See it in that which are the physical features. If you have seen me, you have seen the Father.” This may personalize that which is the spirit, or the spiritual for selves. You must build the faith, and know the joy, the love, the peace that is of the Christ when you dedicate yourself, even to the smallest degree, towards the path as blazed by Jesus of Nazareth. You again have the choice – prayer, meditation, and actions.
The I as the personal thing, must become lesser; and the I AM, as the spiritual within selves, must become the greater
John 3: 22-30
After these things came Jesus and his disciples into the land of Judaea; and there he tarried with them and baptized. And John also was baptizing in Aenon near to Salim, because there was much water there: and they came and were baptized. For John was not yet cast into prison. Then there arose a question between some of John’s disciples and the Jews about purifying. And they came unto John, and said unto him, “Rabbi, he that was with thee beyond Jordan, to whom thou barest witness, behold, the same baptizeth, and all men come to him.” John answered and said, “A man can receive nothing, except it be given him from heaven. Ye yourselves bear me witness, that I said, I am not the Christ, but that I am sent before him. He that hath the bride is the bridegroom: but the friend of the bridegroom, which standeth and heareth him, rejoiceth greatly because of the bridegroom’s voice: this my joy therefore is fulfilled. He must increase, but I must decrease.”
S You have the confusion, here, of the mind. You have that which confronts the individual. For Aenon is that which typifies the mind which one might even say was in a state of disruption or even drunkenness from the mixture of the awakening and the feeling of the joy, and that which it is telling itself is real and not real. You have the peace which comes to the mind that lies near the spring. You have the crying out within yourselves from that which is the mind, as seen as the subconscious mind. For remember, the subconscious mind can lead you astray. And that which is the conscious mind calling out to the intellect, here as John, calling out, “What is coming? What has happened? What is right? How can you be less than the other?” And John, the intellect, you see, now getting rid of that which are as the stumbling blocks, which is the individual personality as seen as the most important (which must occur within yourselves), putting the intellect into the order the intellect has been created for. Often, we have given to you that the intellect is your devil. It is your demon. It is your downfall. But, chastened, cleansed, motivated by the will and by the actions of the spiritual urgings, puts aside the desire and says the “I” as the personal thing must become lesser, while the I AM which incorporates the spiritual within the selves, becomes the greater. This is the path that occurs in the true search in that which is contemplation, where the intellect is used to the proper side; prayer, which is the cleansing force (which is used in conjunction with contemplation, which in itself is a search) and meditation, which arrives at the I AM, brings forth the faith, the acceptance, the belief – and the search has been made correctly.
Prayers of cleansing by action rather than words, that we have made and lived and are reflected in the akashic records.
Revelation 4:6
And before the throne there was a sea of glass like unto crystal: and in the midst of the throne, and round about the throne, were four beasts full of eyes before and behind.
S These, then, are the actions that you come upon daily, as reflected, then, before the throne. These, then, are the choices that you have made, and do make. These are the opportunities that come your way. These, then, are the supplications, the prayers of cleansing, by action rather than word, that you have lived, that you have done, that you are. The beasts are those things that see, that know, that record, and in truth they represent here, then, that which you would assume to be the akashic records, past and present, and the dawning of the future, as reflected in, then, that which is the crystal.
Question about silent versus oral prayer: For most, oral prayer – you are getting a double dose. But for those who have attained and are attuned it is all inward.
Ram Reading 10-116
Q It is said that silent prayer is less effective than voice prayer. Is that true?
S Prayer is prayer. For most silent prayer is not as effective for the very reason that the oral presentation causes more of the attention of self to be drawn upon that which is being said. Although there are those who think that speaking the many words over and over and over constitutes prayer – that’s not so. Prayer is a thoughtful thing. It also feeds back into the body through that which is the capacity of the individual to take the auditory course too, you see. So you are getting a double dose, you might say, of good medicine. However, for those who are attaining, are attained and attuned, it is all inward anyway and therefore the vibrations caused by prayer are inwardly directed from the inward source and very much in attune with the circular motion of the flow within the body of the spiritual-mental-physical forces. [10-116]
When we have reached the six stages all we think, act, and do, is as a prayer to God.
Revelation 4:8
And the four beasts had each of them six wings about him; and they were full of eyes within: and they rest not day and night, saying, “Holy, holy, holy, Lord God Almighty, which was, and is, and is to come.”
S This is a representation of the six stages that man must attune and attain to. This is the rising of the six centers within selves that has been given before to you, that you must at the time of attainment be in a stage where all you think, act, and do, is as a prayer to God. Holy, holy, holy. For it is the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.