Give Me Peace: The Ahimsa Prayer
This is such a beautiful, eloquent prayer. It is something that one could recite each and every day for life, for it is not in the knowing but in the doing and the being that we embody peace. In the Kabir tradition this prayer is called “Prarthana-panchak se”, and is by Ramesvarananda Saheb, translated in Prof. David Lorenzen’s book, Praises to a Formless God, SUNY Press, NY.
O Gurudev, give me peace,
Give worthy feelings, worthy intelligence.
Give mutual cooperation.
Give purity to my heart.
Let there be pure feelings in my mind.
Let there be pure conduct by my body.
May my speech be free of falsity and slander.
May the sentiment of devotion increase.
May my thoughts not be agitated
by the ripening of innate karma.
May my body and mind be healthy,
May my worship be free of obstacles.
May I remain in the presence of Saints
and be filled with the sentiment of devotion.
May I swim across the ocean of samsara [world of changes],
the ocean filled with passion, hate, change and fear.
Let there be neglect for wicked persons
and compassion for the destitute,
Happiness among those of good conduct
and friendship with good people.
May buffoonery cease and may we delight
in the words that lead across samsara.
May we be merry in the study of wisdom;
May we keep our minds under control.
May we have hope of refuge with the Satguru,
May we have no fear of lust and other vices.
May we ever yearn for self-awakening
and have faith the the words of revelation.
May the darkness of ignorance be destroyed;
May the lamp of knowledge be lit.
May the law of death be forgotten,
and immortality be expanded.
May there be no harm done to living beings
through my words or my actions.
May I never feel the least attachment
to the objects of my senses.
May there always be happiness
and the absence of desire.
May there be an end to the power of samsara,
and a beginning to the knowledge of God.
