Why are we encouraged to pray? We’re told to pray because the sages knew that this action can take us to a much deeper place within ourselves than we normally reach. It opens up pathways within us so that we can get to the core of our being—our sense of self—which is the real aspect of our true self.

Why do we have to reach this true aspect of our own self? Because there we can find contentment, the kind of inner peace that gives us a sense of security. It’s the level of understanding about our self that can give us peace of mind, even when the world around us, including unexpected personal events, can seem to throw our lives out of kilter.

And why do we have to be told to do this? Because the true essence of who we are is usually hidden from our own self. When we’re not aware of our true essence it can be challenging to know how to maneuver through any difficulties that show up in our lives. Recognizing our true essence can help us to gain a clearer perspective of the deeper reasons for our existence here on earth. Only then can we begin to see that we are each a very important part of life on earth. Only then will we start to realize that everything we experience in life has been given to us to push us forward into a clearer understanding of our existence. At that point we’ll begin to recognize how essential we each are to our human race and to our planet.

It takes an incredibly deep understanding to get us to realize how much we need each other. You can see by the state of the world right now that there’s so much more we could do if we understood this simple fact. We’d start to care much more about the impact our words and actions have on each other. We’d realize that a look, a smile, when shown with compassion and love, can change another person’s outlook for a whole day, or maybe even a lifetime.

We all have this power within us. It will never leave us. We simply have to know that when we use it, it can be a gift to us too. When we show compassion and love, it doesn’t just lift the other person—it lifts us up too!