Prayer Energy – how to channel the power of the universe to help bring about peace, freedom and healing in Ukraine

Recent events in Ukraine have many of us in shock – and horror. If ever there were a time to turn to a higher power – surely it is now.

In my late twenties I was privileged to co-author the book Prayer Energy (Cico Books 2009; 2019) with international bestselling author Richard Lawrence – a Senior Bishop in The Aetherius Churches. Since that time my experience of prayer has grown exponentially – and the reason for this is that I am so fortunate to follow a spiritual path – King Yoga – that explains prayer so clearly and simply. And not just the theory of it – but how to actually do it, so it really works…!

That’s why I’d like to share with you four extracts from this book – which teach the basics of why and how to pray so that you too can experience the power and the beauty of this holy practice.

Introduction

Prayer is a way of channeling and transmitting energy. It can bring joy, inspiration, healing, peace, exhilaration–and even bliss. 

Let’s debunk some common misapprehensions right away.

• It is not a dull duty or a meaningless chore, but a vibrant, living power
• It is not the deluded hope of someone crying out in desperation, but the practical solution to myriad problems.
• It is not an act of fear or false piety, but one of courage and true love

If prayer were understood and practiced every day by more people, I wholeheartedly believe that not only would those people’s lives change, but the whole world would also change. Why?

Because prayer works. And once the nature of prayer becomes clear and we begin to understand how it works, the confusion and doubt that all too often haunt the would-be prayerful believer are gone. 

Everything in creation is manifested through energy. In Indian philosophy this energy is known as prana. In China, it is referred to as qi (or ch’i), in Japan as ki. It is akin to the Greek concept of pneuma and the Melanesian mana. The name is not important, though. What is important is what it is, and what it does. It can be aptly described as “universal life force” because that is exactly what it is–the force of life, which exists throughout the universe. It is life itself. And even more remarkable than this, we can all invoke and use this energy simply by the power of thought. When we want something, the desire makes us magnets for energy. We use our minds, consciously or unconsciously, to direct it to bring about a certain result. This is the power of creative visualization, or intention, but it is not real prayer. 

What is real prayer?

Real prayer is not a device for trying to get whatever we want. It is an expression of love. To pray properly, we must unchain the shackles of selfishness from our hearts and condition the energy we invoke with the power of love. Think of love as the vehicle in which the energy travels to its destination. As the great yogi Swami Vivekananda put it: “The moment you have succeeded in manufacturing love out of prana, you are free.”

The efficacy of a prayer is not dependent on the whim or favoritism of a mythical overlord, whom some mistake for the great Divine Source. On the contrary, it is exact in the way that a science is exact. In fact, I would say that it is a science–albeit one of which few scientists seem to have much understanding. It is a scientific formula for sending energy, conditioned by love, from the person praying to the focal point of the prayer. 

How well a prayer works basically depends on:

• How much energy we invoke and send out.
• How well this energy is conditioned by love.
• The karma of the situation or condition you are praying for.

Master of Yoga Dr. George King (1919-1997) – pioneer of the Dynamic Prayer technique as taught in King Yoga, the spiritual path named after him

Viewed in this light, there is no need to be haunted by the specter of doubt when our prayers don’t seem to be answered. Prayer is a natural power–not a superstition. Comments such as “I prayed for world peace for five minutes last night and yet war is still going on, therefore God does not exist” are absurdly superficial. To bring about world peace would require a colossal amount of spiritual energy. In fact, miraculous though it sounds, with the right quantity and quality of spiritual energy, the world could be utterly transformed. Dr. King, from whom I learned virtually everything I know about prayer, taught that the only real energy crisis on Earth is the spiritual energy crisis, and that until this is put right humankind will always suffer from shortages of more basic forms of energy. Prayer is undoubtedly one of the best ways to help solve this crisis. 

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The prayer technique

This is a simple way of sending energy to those in need.

1. 

   The hand position described in the prayer technique

   Stand or sit quietly for a few moments with your back as straight as is comfortable, breathing deeply and evenly, with your eyes closed. Then raise your hands so they are roughly parallel with the top of your shoulders, palms facing outward, fingers together.

2. Visualize a scintillating white light coming down from above you into your head, charging every cell of the brain with its vibrant power. Take this energy down through your neck and shoulders, on through the chest and out to the front of the heart chakra, a few inches in front of the breastbone. Charge this center with the bright, white light.
3. Then visualize the light coming from the shoulders down through the arms and into the hands. Now direct this energy outwards, so you have a stream of healing white light flowing out from your palms and heart chakra. You are now ready to say your prayer, which is normally done out loud. You can direct the energy wherever you choose, whether it be to a person who is ill, or to a region in crisis, visualizing the person or the region not as they are, but as they could be–glowing with spiritual happiness and well-being.
4. When you have finished, brush your right hand over your left, away from you. This acts as a seal for the energy and is symbolic of completion of the practice. These hand positions are known in the east as mudras, a word particularly associated with Tibet. 

Even without mention of a Divine Source, this technique will still have some power, but I would strongly recommend that a request is made of the Divine Source–whatever you like to call it. This can help to raise the prayer’s energy and empower it by the conscious recognition of the truth that the energy we are using comes from a source greater than ourselves. 

Likewise, it is a good thing to end a prayer with a few words of thanks to the Divine Source. Our thanks are not needed, of course, but since we have received something, expending some energy in thanks acts as a token repayment, giving a certain balance to the ritual being performed. Thankfulness also acts as a positive affirmation that a prayer will be effective–otherwise there would be nothing to be thankful for. This confidence in your ability, providing it is not presumptuous, serves to empower the prayer. 

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Say it with feeling

For prayer to work properly, it should be expressed with sincerity and feeling, and the whole act should be performed with single-minded concentration. We should not pray as though talking at a coffee afternoon or gossiping with a friend. Prayer is not a telephone call to your mother, or a request made to the boss, a priest, movie star, politician, or even a president–it is an appeal to the Divine Source. Imagine, metaphorically speaking, that you had the opportunity to have an audience with God, if that’s how you want to refer to the Divine Source, and say what it is you want and how you feel–this is virtually what is happening when you pray. If you mumble your prayers, or say them without feeling, you are as good as saying, “I don’t have to make any effort when expressing myself to God.” In fact, this shows a lock of appreciation for the Divine Source of all creation, and therefore for the most important part of yourself, and will considerably limit the power of the prayer.

Jane Austen said: “Grant us grace, almighty Father, so to pray as to deserve to be heard.” She made a good point. Technically, all prayers “deserve to be heard,” because they invoke and transmit a certain amount of energy, but the quantity and quality of the energy will increase dramatically when we start to pray dynamically.

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To end this blogpost, here is a beautiful prayer written by our dear friend and colleague, the late Rt. Rev. Ray Nielsen, for the world as a whole, which you may like to try along with your own specific prayers for peace, freedom and relief of suffering in Ukraine at this time:

A Prayer for the World

Oh mighty God–which is the light which shines through and behind all things,

We pray that Your wondrous power of love may fall upon our troubled world–now!

May it fill the hearts and minds of all those who are suffering and in need at this time–

May it manifest as a great healing light, to give comfort to those who are sick–

May it uplift those who feel abandoned in their loneliness and despair–

May it inspire those who have the responsibility of world leadership

To bring lasting peace to our planet.

Oh wondrous God, may we be given the power and strength

To reach forever inwards and upwards towards our Divinity

So that we may always be mindful of the ONENESS of all life.

We invite you all to join us online in sending much-needed healing energy out into our suffering world – all our world healing Services broadcast online are listed here.

About the author
Mark Bennett is the co-author of two books, both of which he wrote with international bestselling author Richard Lawrence, namely Prayer Energy and Gods, Guides and Guardian Angels, which was voted “best book on spirituality 2007” by readers of Kindred Spirit magazine. He is the youngest International Director of The Aetherius Society, whose teachings he chose as his spiritual path at an early age.