Faith and the city: Just one prayer away from God

Danish philosopher Soren Kierkegaard once said, “Prayer does not change God, but it changes him who prays.” And if change is the only constant, then it is inevitable that man prays regularly, isn’t it?

Just the reason why, no matter how busy our lives might be, we pray. In India, it manifests itself in several ways — bowing in respect in front of a Sai Baba statue on your way to work, genuflecting in front of the Ganesh Idol at school before entering your examination hall, remembering the Almighty at the morning assembly — devotion finds form everywhere.

According to the Quality of Life survey by DNA and AZ research, overall 55% of adults in the city pray, whereas the number of people who meditate is seen to be rising, especially in Mumbai city. In fact, the survey findings indicate that meditation as a habit has become quite popular in central suburbs and central Mumbai.

Overall, south Mumbai and the suburbs pray the most. But what comes across strongly is that no matter how starved for time one may be, the saying ‘God is everywhere’ is considered to be true.
Chembur resident Sunita Dube, who practices at several hospitals in the city rarely offers prayers at home. Often cramped for time, commuting from one hospital to another, she can give only 15 minutes for her morning prayers — a far cry from the one hour she devoted earlier, in her joint family. “Since every hospital has a small temple, I make the best use of it and finish my daily prayers there itself. Meditation also helps me calm down when I’m really stressed,” she says.

For Mumbaikars who spend a lot of time travelling in the train, the railway commute also serves as place to pray. Ankita Shethia, a manager who stays at Nerul says that she feels uncomfortable praying in the morning as she is in a constant state of hurry. “One needs to be at peace while praying. However, since I spend over an hour in the train, I do my prayers there itself. My prayer book is always in my handbag and I use it to chant,” she says.

The bhajan-kirtan groups of passengers are typical of Mumbai’s suburban rail network, turning mere commuters into pilgrims of sorts as entire railway compartments are heard chanting and singing hymns in full gusto on their journey to work and back. In fact, Thane resident Sudhish Sharma keeps devotional books in his bag, which he reads when travelling to work and visa-versa. “I am more relaxed when I am travelling. As I have nothing to do, I can easily concentrate and meditate. God is omnipresent, so there need not be a hard and fast rule that prayers must be offered at a particular place only,” he says.

The city also has people who have experimented with faith. Flovie Martins, who recently converted to Islam from Christianity would earlier do her namaaz five times a day, but now she can make it only twice in day — early in the morning and when she reaches home after office. “Commuting for four hours everyday with all the deadlines and work pressure in the office doesn’t leave much time for prayers. Although meditation soothes one’s mind, I can’t do it for long,” she says.