Baha'i prayer

[ISFP]

hey all-

i had some questions about Bahai prayer.

i know that many Baha'i prayers are taken from the prayers and / or sayings of Bahá'u'lláh, Abdu'l-Bahá, and Shoghi Effendi; are Baha'is allowed / encouraged to make up their own prayers?

are there any recommended prayer positions favored by Baha'is or recommended by Bahá'u'lláh?

is there any set number of times a Baha'i should pray during the day?

thank you!

peace-

ISFP

[arthra]

i know that many Baha'i prayers are taken from the prayers and / or sayings of Bahá'u'lláh, Abdu'l-Bahá, and Shoghi Effendi; are Baha'is allowed / encouraged to make up their own prayers?

Reply:

Baha'is can certainly free to compose their own prayers however we're encouraged to use the revealed prayers of Baha'u'llah, the Bab, and Abdul-Baha in that order of preference. Although Shoghi Effendi composed prayers they are not regarded as having the same potency as revealed prayers of the Bab and Baha'u'llah.

are there any recommended prayer positions favored by Baha'is or recommended by Bahá'u'lláh?

Reply:

The Obligatory Prayers revealed by Baha'u'llah have specific instructions with them... All of them require ablutions and facing the Qiblah (Bahji).

is there any set number of times a Baha'i should pray during the day?

Reply:

Baha'is have a choice of any of three Obligatory Prayers that are said daily. The Short Obligatort Prayers is said around noon time; there is a Long Obligatory Prayer said once every 24 hours...no specific time requirement. A Medium Obligatory Prayer is said three tiems a day...morning, noon and evening.

Here is a site on the Obligatory Prayers:

http://bahai-library.com/compilations/prayers/BP-4.html

http://bahai-library.com/compilations/prayers/BP-5.html

[smkolins]

While the Obligatory Prayers have a variety of rules of time of day and positions Baha'is are to observe, there are books of prayers that have no particular conditions as well as a few other prayers that have other kinds of conditions - prayers at midnight for understanding, prayers for visiting memorial sites, and so on. In all there is only one all encompassing rule - the prayer said with detachment and sincerity is acceptable while an attempt at prayer with great repetition and fane-fair without these is not. I think the next most encompassing rule of prayer is that it is first and foremost a practice and duty for an individual alone - communal prayer where one person leads and others repeat is forbiden except in the case of the prayer for the dead.

Another factor one should appreciate about prayer is that the prayers written for our use often mention things not recorded anywhere else, and are to emphasize an attitude or feeling, a door to insight left ajar. It is not just a fact.