Question: I would like to know whether I should pray for something I want or whether I should just pray for God's Will to be done.

Sri Chinmoy: To pray for God’s Will to be done is the highest form of prayer. But a beginner finds it almost impossible to pray to God sincerely to fulfil him in God’s own way. Early in the morning, a beginner will say to God, “God, I want to be Your unconditionally surrendered child.” Then, the next moment, when jealousy, insecurity or pride enters into him, his self-offering becomes all conditional. At that time the seeker says, “God, early in the morning I prayed to You so sincerely to fulfil Your Will in me, but You didn’t listen to my prayer. Otherwise, I would have been above jealousy, fear, doubt, anxiety and attachment.” If the seeker prays for something in the morning and his prayer is not fulfilled in a few hours’ time, immediately he becomes discouraged. Then he stops praying and meditating for six months. For a day he offers his sincere prayer, then for six months the seeker is ready to enjoy his ignorance. So when the seeker is just starting out, it is always advisable for him to pray to God for whatever he feels he needs most, whether it is patience, purity, sincerity, humility, peace, and so forth. This kind of prayer is always best for the beginner. Then God will give the seeker a little Peace, Light and Bliss, which are the precursors of something infinite that is going to come into his inner being. Then, when the seeker has received and achieved some Peace, Light and Bliss and has become established to some extent in his inner being, at that time he will have some confidence in God’s operation and also in his own life of aspiration.

When one is making very fast progress or is a little advanced, he feels that there is some reality within himself and that this reality is not going to disappoint or desert him. Then he feels that God is fully aware of what he desperately needs and is eager to supply him with the things that he needs, because God wants to fulfil Himself in and through His chosen instrument. God has to fix his choice Hour for that seeker, and at His choice Hour, God will fulfil Himself in and through that particular chosen instrument. When a seeker feels this kind of confidence within him, that is the time for the seeker to pray, “Let Thy Will be done.” At that time he can sincerely say, “God, now I want to please You only in Your own Way.” At that time he will feel that God wants to manifest Himself in and through him. He will feel that the moment God makes him perfect, he will be able to serve the divinity in somebody else or be able to help somebody else toward perfection.