Prayer and contemplation: quiet time with the sacred

Prayer and contemplation are ways of spending quiet, intentional time with the sacred. They can be spoken or silent, and all they ask of you is a regular time, a quiet place and about 15 to 20 minutes of honest attention. If you are wondering how to pray when you are new to it, the steps above give you a simple place to start.

Why people do it

Prayer is one of the oldest human practices. Encyclopaedia Britannica describes it as communication with the sacred or holy, found in all religions in all times. It can be personal, such as a few words before sleep, or communal, such as prayers spoken together in a congregation. The philosopher William James went so far as to say that without prayer there can be no question of religion.

People pray for many reasons. Common forms include petition (asking), confession, intercession for others, praise and adoration. Contemplative prayer leans toward silence. Rather than saying a great deal, you rest in the presence of the sacred. Centering prayer, one well-known form, was developed in the 20th century by Trappist monks at St. Joseph’s Abbey in Spencer, Massachusetts. They drew on much older Christian contemplative writings such as The Cloud of Unknowing.

The practice speaks most directly to the soul and the spirit. For the soul, people often describe it as a source of meaning and comfort. For the spirit, it is about relationship, a deliberate turning toward whatever you hold as sacred. Our Spirit hub gathers more practices along these lines.

What the evidence says

This page treats prayer as a tradition, because it rests on tradition and experience rather than research. Studies of religion and health are mostly observational, and they look at religious life broadly, not at private prayer itself. A 2021 analysis of three prospective cohorts in International Journal of Epidemiology found that adults in the US who attended religious services at least weekly had 26% lower all-cause mortality, along with less depression and loneliness, compared with those who never attended. The authors stressed that religious decisions are not mainly about health. A 2022 systematic review in JAMA combined the highest-quality studies with expert panels. It recommended that health professionals be aware of evidence that spiritual community is linked with better health, and that spiritual care be part of care in serious illness. None of this shows what quiet prayer at home does on its own. Observational links cannot show cause and effect.

Variations

• Centering prayer. You sit in silence with a single sacred word and return to it whenever thoughts arise. It suits people who want a simple, structured form of contemplative prayer.
• Repetition prayers. Practices such as the Jesus Prayer in Christianity or dhikr in Islam involve repeating a short prayer or divine name. They suit people who find a steady rhythm easier than silence.
• Praying with a short text. You read a verse, psalm or passage very slowly, pausing on whatever stands out. This suits people who like words to anchor their attention.
• Prayer for others. Intercession means holding particular people or situations in prayer. It suits anyone whose quiet time naturally turns toward family, friends or the wider world.

For ideas on preparing a place that supports any of these, see the sacred space ritual.

Common mistakes

• Thinking prayer must be eloquent. Simple words, or no words at all, are enough. Speak plainly, as you would to someone you trust.
• Treating wandering thoughts as failure. Thoughts will come, often many times in a single sitting. The practice is simply to notice and return to your word or phrase, as often as you need to.
• Praying only in crisis. Prayer in hard times is natural, but a small daily habit gives it roots. A few minutes each morning or evening is a good place to begin.
• Using prayer to avoid needed medical care. Prayer can sit alongside medical treatment, but it should never replace it. If you have symptoms or a health concern, see a clinician as well.

If you want to read more about how different traditions understand prayer, the spiritual law of prayer explores the idea further.