Prayer,
anglicized from Latin precatio, is an
invocation or act that seeks to activate a
rapport to a deity or object of worship through deliberate communication. Prayer can be a form of
religious practice, may be either individual or communal and take place in public or in private. It may involve the use of words or song. When
language is used, prayer may take the form of a
hymn,
incantation, formal
creed, or a spontaneous utterance in the praying person. There are different forms of prayer such as
petitionary prayer, prayers of
supplication, thanksgiving, and
worship/praise. Prayer may be directed towards a
deity, spirit, deceased person, or lofty idea, for the purpose of worshipping, requesting
guidance, requesting assistance, confessing
sins or to express one's thoughts and emotions. Thus, people pray for many reasons such as personal benefit or for the sake of others.