These terms are used almost interchangeably, but there is a difference that must be understood when studying various religions with differing ways of approaching spirituality.
Prayer is directed toward a deity. A person prays to a particular god, goddess, or spiritual entity with the understanding that the entity is listening.
Meditation is "thinking about." Usually a particular idea or phrase, icon, or idol attracts the attention and involves the participant, who is seeking spiritual enlightenment or understanding.
Contemplation is a more open-ended meditation. The person contemplating doesn't try to understand as much as to experience.
A recent six-year study conducted at Duke University has come to the conclusion that prayer is good for one's health. Dr. Harold Koenig, directory of the University's Center for the Study of Religion/Spirituality and Health, reviewed the cases of some four thousand participants from various faith traditions and found that the relative risk of dying for those who frequently prayed was 46 percent lower than for those who didn't. Additionally, people over the age of sixty-four who prayed regularly had significantly lower blood pressure, survived heart surgery more often, and recovered more quickly from depression, alcoholism, hip surgery, drug addiction, stroke, rheumatoid arthritis, and bypass surgery.
No one knows why. Studies of this kind obviously cannot be used to "prove" divine intervention. The results could be psychosomatic. But they are undeniable.
Sources: Hales, Dianne. “Why Prayer Could Be Good Medicine.” Boston Sunday Globe, March 23, 2003. Ludwig, Theodore M. The Sacred Paths: Understanding the Religions of the World. 2nd ed. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall, 1996.
