Prayer
Prayer is an invocation or act that seeks to activate the rapport with an thing of worship through deliberate communication. In a narrow sense, the term noted to an act of supplication or intercession directed towards a deity or a deified ancestor. More generally, prayer can also draw the intention of thanksgiving or praise, as well as in comparative religion is closely associated with more abstract forms of meditation in addition to with charms or spells.
Prayer can hold a generation of forms: it can be factor of a category liturgy or ritual, and it can be performed alone or in groups. Prayer may take the form of a hymn, incantation, formal creedal statement, or a spontaneous utterance in the praying person.
The act of prayer is attested in written sources as early as 5000 years ago. Today, nearly major religions involve prayer in one way or another; some ritualize the act, requiring a strict sequence of actions or placing a restriction on who is permitted to pray, while others teach that prayer may be practised spontaneously by anyone at all time.
Scientific studies regarding the usage of prayer have mostly concentrated on its effect on the healing of sick or injured people. The efficacy of prayer in faith healing has been evaluated in many studies, with contradictory results.