Truth in a Nutshell

Prayer of the Heart

The repeated invocation of the Name … [makes our prayer] more inward, more a part of ourselves – not something that we do at particular moments, but something that we are all the time; not an occasional act but a continuing state. Such praying becomes truly prayer of the whole person, in which the words and meaning of the prayer are fully identified with the one who prays. All this is well expressed by Paul Evdokimov (1901-1970): “It is not enough to possess prayer: we must become prayer – prayer incarnate. It is not enough to have moments of praise; our whole life, every act and every gesture, even a smile, must become a hymn of adoration, an offering, a prayer. We must offer not what we have but what we are.” That is what the world needs above all else: not people who ‘say prayers’ with greater or less regularity, but people who are prayers.

The kind of prayer that Evdokimov is here describing may be defined more exactly as ‘prayer of the heart’.
_{Kallistos Ware, The Power of the Name}

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When we do not know the reality, praying loudly holds us back from preparing the spiritual ground, and the thought of gaining praise from others sometimes enters our mind. There is danger of our becoming impostors by praying aloud. Such prayers, which contain no truth and do not come from the heart, are simply meant to please others… Human passions cannot influence the Lord. It is not necessary to cry loudly to enable our prayers to reach him. He is not far off. His unseen ears are everywhere. He knows the secrets of every heart and mind, and he can fulfil every desire. Spiritual wealth cannot be gained by praying aloud. One should offer silent prayers with the tongue of the soul, and should pray that he may always act according to the will of the Lord.
_{Maharaj Sawan Singh, Philosophy of the Masters, Vol. III}