Supplication

Supplication (also known as petitioning) is a form of prayer, wherein one party humbly or earnestly asks another party to provide something, either for the party who is doing the supplicating (e.g., "Please spare my life.") or on behalf of someone else (e.g., "Please spare my child's life.").

A young Muslim supplicating after Salat at Masjid al-Haram in Makkah, Saudi Arabia.

Supplication is a theme of earliest antiquity, embodied in the Iliad as the prayers of Chryses for the return of his daughter, and of Priam for the dead body of his son, Hector. Richard Martin notes repeated references to suppliants throughout the poem, including warriors begging to be spared by the Greeks on the battlefield.[1]

In Christianity, the prayer of supplication for health by and on behalf of the sick is referenced in early Christian writings in the New Testament, especially James 5:13-16.

One example of supplication is the Catholic ritual of novena (from novem, the Latin word for "nine") wherein one repeatedly asks for the same favor over a period of nine days. This ritual began in Spain during the Middle Ages when a nine-day period of hymns and prayers led up to a Christmas feast, a period which ended with gift giving. A contemporary Christian example of supplication is the practice of the Daily Prayer for Peace by the Community of Christ where a member prays for peace each day at a specified time. Philippians 4:6 says, "Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God."

In Islam, the Arabic word duʻā (plural du'aat) is used to refer to supplications. Adʻiya may be made in any language, although there are many traditional Islamic supplications in Arabic, Persian and Turkish. In Islam, duʻā tends to mean personal prayer. The supplications Duaas of Prophets are given in the Holy Quran. Supplication is the art of invoking the blessings of Allah the almighty. Very few people know how to supplicate and when their supplication is not granted they lose heart and sometimes utter such words, which are enough to relieve them of their faith.[2] In Islam the person must raise his hands with all humility, hope and fear and repeat his supplication three times. One need not raise his voice while supplicating. And, it is better to face the Kabbah while supplicating. Similarly one should not be aggressive while supplicating.[2]

The word Ardâs ( ਅਰਦਾਸ ) is derived from the Persian word 'Arazdashat', meaning a request, a supplication, a prayer, a petition or an address to a superior authority. It is a Sikh prayer that is a done before performing or after undertaking any significant task; after reciting the daily Banis (prayers); or completion of a service like the Paath, kirtan (hymn-singing) program or any other religious program. In Sikhism, these prayers are also said before and after eating. The prayer is a plea to God to support and help the devotee with whatever he or she is about to undertake or has done.

See also

References

  1. ↑ Martin, Richard (2011). The Iliad of Homer. Chicago: The University of Chicago Press. p. 50. ISBN 978-0-226-47049-8.
  2. 1 2 http://brighterkashmir.com/learn-the-art-of-supplication/. Missing or empty |title= (help)

External links

Look up supplication in Wiktionary, the free dictionary.
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