THE BEAUTY OF PRAYER!
Yesterday, February 1st, was our prayer
meeting in school. A special prayer meeting for our tenth and twelfth Board
children who will be facing their ICSE/ISC examinations in a fortnight! As the
children, parents and teachers walked into the auditorium, there was a feeling
of serenity that surrounded them. The double row of lit lamps behind which the
children sat cross-legged on the floor, reflected on their faces, exuding a
glow that momentarily screened the trepidation in their minds.
On stage, there were three models of a church, a temple
and a mosque all illuminated with tiny lights. In front of the temple were
myriad lamps, their tiny flames flickering in the slight breeze that wafted
through.
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Our senior Commerce master came and recited the Examination prayer
with utmost solemnity, a plea to God to be with our children and give them the
peace of mind and the fortitude to prepare well.
Three groups of children came in, one after the other, to
render hymns in all three religions. They were all class nine and eleven students,
and they sang soulfully. Children also recited verses from the Bible and couplets
from the Koran and the Gita, before launching into the respective hymns. The slogan
of our school shone bright as the music reverberated around the hall – “Let the
Peal of Harmony be the Appeal of All Religions.”
As they sang, our hearts sang with them, the sanctity of
the occasion taking precedence, and each of us sent our own prayers upwards
praying that our children would be able to do their best in the Board exams
ahead. The music died out and the principal and the beloved teachers in school
who had retired gave the children fabulous tips, the required encouragement and
wished them all the very best. The founder principal, an iron lady whose heart
still beats fervently for her school, spoke to the rapt children in her inimitable
manner.
At the end, all the teachers came forward and stood
before the children, as the latter fell at their feet for their blessings, blessings
which would go a long way, even beyond the Board examinations. It was a moment most
significant, a moment that both would treasure, a moment that emphasised the
importance of guru-bhakti and blessings.
As the children streamed out, they picked up the 'prasad' that had been sanctified by the 'pujari', a young Brahmin student who performed the 'arti' to the the fervent strains of ‘Om Jaya Jagadish Hare’.
How beautiful is prayer, how important is it to sit in silence and let your mind dissolve into the sanctity and the serenity that comes with prayer! How utterly significant is it to ensure that nothing disturbs the mind of a child who is about to face any significant event looming ahead. This was the predominant thought on all our minds as we gazed upon the reverent faces before us, faces of the beloved children we had nurtured from a young age.
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