Since the beginning of time, religion has been a part of human society, helping individuals shape their morals and values. Furthermore, religion provides one with a sense of importance and belonging. Many religious practices involve rituals meant to connect one to the divine. Among the many ways of connecting with the divine are living a just life, being a good-hearted person and living in praise and admiration of nature and human life. However, the most personal ways of achieving that divine connection are through prayer and meditation. Prayer is largely practiced by the western world. This is partially due to the fact that Judaism and Christianity are the prevailing religions in this region, and prayer stems back from the Judeo-Christian religions. Meditation is a more common practice in the Eastern traditions. Hinduism and Buddhism are two important religions in the Eastern world that practice meditation as a form of connection with the divine. This essay will attempt to answer the question "what is the difference between Hindu meditation and prayer in the Western world?" It will be shown that both meditation and prayer are forms of mystical contemplation. Prayer however is human communication with God or divine figures; while the Hindu view of meditation is not only communication with the divine, but also the unification with the divine. .
To fully understand certain Hindu terms and traditions, it is necessary to look at the historical context of Hinduism. According to Klaus Klostermaier, Hinduism is unlike all the other major historic religions. "In Hinduism, the momentous event of a foundation at one point in time, the initial splash in the water from which concentric circles expand to cover an even wider part of the total surface, is absent" (Klostermaier, 5). This metaphor shows the lack of a historic beginning. There is not a specific origin or founder of this faith. This is partially because the Hindu's believe that the eternal law governs everything, therefore, there exists no beginning or end.