Part II — Rev. Dr. David B. Burrell, C.S.C.

PCG 2. Theodore M. Hesburgh Professor in Arts and Letters, University of Notre Dame, Notre Dame, IN

Rev. Dr. David B. Burrell: How is it that in prayer people discover that they literally have no distance to traverse between themselves and God?

Sri Chinmoy: My dear Father, prayer is a magnet. When you put a magnet between two iron filings, the magnet immediately unifies the two objects on either side. In exactly the same way, prayer is the magnet between humanity's tearful heart and God's cheerful Heart, between humanity's cries and God's Smiles.

When we soulfully cry or soulfully smile, inside our cry and smile we discover the very Presence of God. We do not have to travel the length and breadth of the world to discover God's Existence. We can discover God's Existence here and now inside our own heart of love.

For everything we need in life, there is a teacher to help us find it. If we need God, then prayer is the teacher, prayer is the helper, prayer brings God into our consciously awakened life.