What We Should be Asking God For
In nearly all religious traditions, prayer is synonymous with asking God for something—be it daily bread, good health, or relief from distress. While Śrīla Prabhupāda acknowledges that approaching the Supreme Lord for material benefit is a sign of piety, he repeatedly emphasizes that it is not the standard of pure devotion (bhakti). The Supreme Lord is the omniscient father who naturally provides for all His children without them having to ask. To approach Him merely as an order-carrier or a supplier of material goods is to misunderstand His supreme position. This article explores the philosophical evolution of prayer: from the pious begging of the neophyte, to the realization of God's universal maintenance, and finally to the unalloyed desire of the pure devotee who asks for nothing but service.
The Pious Approach vs. Pure Devotion
In the material world, those who suffer or desire wealth often turn to God. Śrīla Prabhupāda notes that someone who goes to a church or temple to ask for their "daily bread" is a thousand times better than an atheist because they accept the authority of the Supreme. However, this is still a lesser relationship based on need rather than love. True religion teaches us how to love God, not just how to extract material necessities from Him.
- Anyone who is going to church and asking God for bread, he's thousand times better than that rascal, who is not going to church, because he is, after all, approaching God.
- Even the birds and beasts get their bread without having to go to church to ask God for it. Similarly, our bread is also provided, whether we go to church or not.
- If anyone goes to God for asking some benefit, he's also pious man. But he's not a devotee. He may be counted in the list of pious men because he recognizes God, the Supreme. But he has not developed the highest principle of religion, love of God.
- In the Christian world they go to the church, "O God, give us our daily bread." But higher philosophy is that we should not or we need not ask God for our bread. That is already there. We should approach God, how to love Him.
The Omniscient Father Knows Our Needs
Why is it unnecessary to ask God for our maintenance? Because God is situated in everyone's heart as the Supersoul and is fully aware of what every living entity needs. Śrīla Prabhupāda uses the analogy of a good father and a son; a dependent son does not need to submit a list of demands to his father, because the father naturally provides for him out of love. A pure devotee relies entirely on this divine protection without demanding anything.
- The father knows what is the necessity of the child. So this is not very good business to ask God, "Give me this, give me that." Why shall I ask? If God is all-powerful, He knows my wants, He knows my necessities, and that is also confirmed in the Vedas.
- A pure devotee always engages in the service of the Lord without demanding anything. The Lord is present everywhere and knows the necessities of His devotees; consequently there is no need to disturb Him by asking Him for material benefits.
- No one has to pray to God to ask for anything, and he who does so is foolish because he does not know that the all-knowing God is within his heart and is well aware when he is in distress or in need of money.
- It is the duty of the son to depend upon his father without asking anything from him. The good son has faith that the father knows best how to benefit him. Similarly, a pure devotee does not ask anything from the Lord for material benefit.
Asking for Ashes
To approach the Supreme Personality of Godhead for temporary material things—such as a new car, a beautiful wife, or even liberation (mukti)—is considered a great foolishness in spiritual life. By quoting his spiritual master, Śrīla Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Ṭhākura, Śrīla Prabhupāda equates this behavior to approaching a vastly wealthy king only to ask him for a pinch of ashes.
- A pure devotee never asks the Lord for wealth, followers, or even a beautiful wife. He simply prays for uninterrupted engagement in the Lord's service. That should be the motto of life for all prospective students in devotional service.
- Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Thakura used to say that asking God for mukti or anything else other than bhakti is like going to a rich man and asking for ashes.
- My Guru Maharaja used to say that if we ask from God for some material benefit, it means that I am asking from a king a pinch of ashes.
- So this is our foolishness. When God comes to give us some benediction, we simply ask Him to load us down again with all these material bundles. We ask Him for more material things, for a happy family, for a large amount of money, a new car or whatever.
The Supreme Satisfaction of Seeing the Lord
The history of the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam is filled with examples of devotees who approached the Lord with material motives but were completely transformed upon seeing Him. Dhruva Mahārāja performed severe austerities to attain a kingdom, but when Lord Viṣṇu finally appeared, Dhruva declared he was fully satisfied and had nothing to ask. Similarly, Prahlāda Mahārāja, having seen the destructive power of material opulence in his demonic father, refused all benedictions.
- Even the great sages and saints cannot see You (God). What is my profit? I (Dhruva) left my home to find merely some scraps of glass and rubbish, and instead I have found a very valuable diamond. Now I am satisfied. I have no need to ask anything of You.
- When Dhruva Maharaja saw the Lord in his presence, he said, svamin krtartho'smi varam na yace: (CC Madhya 22.42) "My dear Lord, I have nothing to ask from You. Now I am completely satisfied.
- He (Prahlada Maharaja) did not ask any benediction that he might have asked, but he prayed that his atheistic father might be liberated. He never cursed any of the persons who engaged in torturing him at the instigation of his father.
- Prahlada Maharaja replied, - I was born into a family of demons and was inclined toward material enjoyment. I have seen my powerful father, who was feared even by the demigods, annihilated within a second. Why should I ask for anything.
Asking Only for the Privilege of Loving Service
If a pure devotee does not ask for material things, do they ask for anything at all? Yes, but their prayers are entirely spiritual. A Vaiṣṇava asks only for the opportunity to continue rendering transcendental loving service. They pray to serve the servants of the Lord, to remember Kṛṣṇa birth after birth, and for the spiritual welfare of others. This unmotivated (ahaitukī) desire is the zenith of Kṛṣṇa consciousness.
- Pure devotees ask the Lord only for the privilege of serving Him. This is our real independence. If we want anything else, it is a sign of our misfortune.
- For the Lord's service we can ask for His grace and mercy a hundred times, but for our sense gratification we cannot pray or ask anything - that is pure devotion.
- When a devotee prays to the Lord, it is not to ask for material benefits but to ask the Lord for His favor; he prays that he may be engaged in the service of the Lord's lotus feet birth after birth.
- O Lord Mukunda! I (King Kulasekhara) bow down my head to Your Lordship and respectfully ask You to fulfill this one desire of mine: that in each of my future births I will, by Your Lordship's mercy, always remember and never forget Your lotus feet.
Conclusion
The teachings of Śrīla Prabhupāda elevate the concept of prayer from a mundane transaction to an expression of ecstatic love. While it is good to approach God when in need, true spiritual maturity begins when one stops asking God to fulfill material desires. Because the Lord is already providing for every living entity, the human being's unique privilege is not to beg for bread, but to offer service. By abandoning the foolishness of asking for the "ashes" of material opulence and instead praying for the eternal shelter of the Lord's lotus feet, the conditioned soul finds the true diamond of complete satisfaction.
Dive Deeper into Śrīla Prabhupāda's Vani
Śrīla Prabhupāda lives within his instructions. This article is a summary of the profound truths found in the Vaniquotes category Asking God. We invite you to visit this link to study the complete compilation and experience Śrīla Prabhupāda's teachings in their direct, verbatim form.