After many years he found no easy answer, but came to the conclusion that we must find freedom, reality and God by ourselves... and this can happen only if we are truly touched by the grace of God. One day in the mid nineties this seeker recorded his personal experiences in a nutshell version. Later, several people referred to it as "your beautiful prayer" and so it was given a name, "The Helpers Prayer".
After many more years, as an old man, this seeker was traveling, and he met a stranger who asked him, "What do you do now?" He replied, "Well, I have being trying to find God all my life and that has not been easy." The stranger asked, "What would you do if you find God right now?" The seeker got quiet, and this is the answer he received, "We cannot think of God as a person or compare God to anything we know. It is beyond words or human understanding. If a human being was a raindrop that fell into the mighty Ocean, that would be like his meeting God."
The Helper's Prayer
We enter this world with nothing and must leave with nothing, the time of departure is known only to Almighty God and none is exempt from this reality. The path of Subud is not easy, it has many obstacles and pitfalls, but none to rival our own pride. If you fall, have the courage to rise and persist, for when everything fails, the latihan will be with you always. Patience and sincerity are our great allies, surrendering to the power of God is a divine gift.
Right and wrong, good and evil are open to debate; in Subud there are no scales to weigh sin nor a yardstick to measure spirituality. If put to the test, we will fail, but for the grace of Almighty God.
Bapak has given us an immeasurable gift through the grace of the Almighty and told us all that we ever need to know to guide us; this was his legacy to his children, for he was truly a Messenger of God.
Above all, my Brothers and sisters, do not neglect the Latihan, for the spark that you once received at your opening is the light that must guide you when you leave this world. May the Grace of the Almighty be with you always.
A Helper of Bapak
Santa Cruz, California
October 13, 1996
We enter this world with nothing and must leave with nothing, the time of departure is known only to Almighty God and none is exempt from this reality. The path of Subud is not easy, it has many obstacles and pitfalls, but none to rival our own pride. If you fall, have the courage to rise and persist, for when everything fails, the latihan will be with you always. Patience and sincerity are our great allies, surrendering to the power of God is a divine gift.
Right and wrong, good and evil are open to debate; in Subud there are no scales to weigh sin nor a yardstick to measure spirituality. If put to the test, we will fail, but for the grace of Almighty God.
Bapak has given us an immeasurable gift through the grace of the Almighty and told us all that we ever need to know to guide us; this was his legacy to his children, for he was truly a Messenger of God.
Above all, my Brothers and sisters, do not neglect the Latihan, for the spark that you once received at your opening is the light that must guide you when you leave this world. May the Grace of the Almighty be with you always.
A Helper of Bapak
Santa Cruz, California
October 13, 1996
