By Sacinandana Swami
The following prayers, which Srila Prabhupada described as “the sum and substance of devotional life [v. 24]”, are spoken by the demon Vrtrasura – to Indra’s great astonishment – in the middle of his fight for life or death with the king of the demigods (Indra):
“O my Lord, O Supreme Personality of Godhead, may I again be able to be a servant of Your eternal servants who find shelter only at Your lotus feet. O Lord of my life, may I again become their servant so that my mind may always think of Your transcendental attributes, my words always glorify those attributes, and my body always engage in the loving service of Your Lordship.”
“O my Lord, source of all opportunities, I do not desire to enjoy in Dhruvaloka, the heavenly planets or the planet where Lord Brahma resides, nor do I want to be the supreme ruler of all the earthly planets or the lower planetary systems. I do not desire to be master of the powers of mystic yoga, nor do I want liberation if I have to give up Your lotus feet.”
“O lotus-eyed Lord, as baby birds that have not yet developed their wings always look for their mother to return and feed them, as small calves tied with ropes await anxiously the time of milking, when they will be allowed to drink the milk of their mothers, or as a morose wife whose husband is away from home always longs for him to return and satisfy her in all respects, I always yearn for the opportunity to render direct service unto You.” (Srimad-Bhagavatam, 6.11.24-26)
These verses represent the forgotten voice of your soul. They express what each and every one of us wants in the deepest essence of our being. These prayers are also examples for what praying means in Krsna consciousness: prayer must be heart-deep. That means you have to go deep into the inside, and express what you find there. Other examples for such prayers are Advaita Acarya’s prayers, who realized that He was unable to deliver the people of His time and thus He prayed for the appearance of Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu. Or the prayers of Gajendra when his life was at stake. In great inner turmoil he remembered his past life during which he had already been on the path to Krnna and spoke from deep within, “My dear Lord, I need only you.” Or Draupadi, who prayed to Krsna when she was threatened by Durvasa Muni and his 10.000 disciples: “My Lord, now only You can help us!” These are heartfelt prayers. If your prayer is only ‘lipdeep’ the Lord will hear you, but He will not listen to you. However, when the voice of your prayer has that heartfelt sound, the Lord will listen.
From a lecture by Sacinandana Swami at Govardhana Hill
Source: http://www.dandavats.com/?p=72548
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