Question: Does spirituality necessarily go hand in hand with prayer and meditation?⁸³

Sri Chinmoy: Yes, spirituality goes hand in hand with prayer and meditation. Spirituality is a specific subject. In order to be a good student of spirituality, one has to study hard and in a specific way. Prayer and meditation are subjects one has to study in order to become a good student in the spiritual life. Prayer and meditation are our two good friends who are all the time helping us in our inner life.

When we pray, we feel that there is Someone who is thinking of us, looking after us and taking care of us from Above, and that Someone is our Beloved Supreme. When we meditate, we feel that our Beloved Supreme is within us or all around us. We feel His Presence deep with us, inspiring us to lead a higher and more fulfilling life. Prayer makes us feel that we have to go to Him in order to please Him. We are at the foot of the tree and He is at the top of the tree, so we have to climb up in order to reach Him. But meditation makes us feel that no matter where we are, whether we are at the foot of the tree or on the topmost branch, He is all the time with us, helping us and guiding us.