Send a prayer request to be read on the radio
On Mahakatha Radio, your prayer for someone you love is read aloud at 7 am or 7 pm India time, followed by a mantra chosen for them. Here is how it works.
If you search for a radio prayer request, almost every result is a Christian station. Those stations do something beautiful, and we have great respect for them. But if you're Hindu, or simply feel at home with mantras, you may want the same thing in your own tradition: a place where a prayer for someone you love is read aloud, followed by a mantra. That's what Prayer Requests on Mahakatha Radio is. It airs every day at 7 am and 7 pm India time, and anyone, of any faith, is welcome to send a prayer.
Why a prayer on the radio?
A prayer said quietly at home is complete in itself. So why ask for one on the radio? For many people it's about being heard, and about not being alone with something.
Hearing a prayer read aloud is like the golden era of radio, when you heard your name in a dedication. You feel heard. And everyone listening joins you in your cause.
Prashant Mahakatha, curator
When your prayer goes out, it isn't only us saying it. Everyone tuned in at that moment, whether in a kitchen in Pune or on a night shift in Toronto, is holding the same person in their thoughts for a minute. There's something in that which is hard to describe and easy to feel.
How it works, step by step
- Who it's for, and why. Tell us the person's first name (or yours) and what the prayer is about: healing and strength, in memory of someone, or a special day.
- Your words. A few lines in your own words is enough. You don't need to write well or know any Sanskrit. We read every request and shape it gently into a short prayer, in plain English.
- Your offering. From ₹251 or $7. Give what feels right. Every offering also keeps the radio free, with no ads, for everyone who listens.
- On air. Your prayer is read aloud during Prayer Requests, at 7 am or 7 pm India time, followed by a mantra chosen for the person you're praying for.
- We let you know. We email you when it's on air, so you can gather the family and listen together.
You can offer a prayer here. For more detail, our earlier post on how to offer a prayer walks through the same steps.
Prefer something quieter?
Not every prayer needs to be read aloud. You can add one to the prayer wall for free. A short line such as "For my father, strength before his operation" appears on the wall, where other listeners can see it and hold it too. Some people start there and offer a prayer on air later; some keep it on the wall. Both are prayers.
What people pray for
Prayers come in every shape, but most are for one of a few things. Each has a guide with words you can use at home.
- Healing. A parent in hospital, a child with a fever that won't break, a friend after surgery. Our page on prayers for healing has short prayers you can say tonight. Prayer walks alongside medical care, never instead of it.
- Family. A new home, a marriage, peace between brothers who haven't spoken in a while. See prayers for family.
- Exams. Parents praying for a child before boards, or students praying for themselves. Our prayer for exams has Saraswati and Ganesha mantras for the night before.
- In memory. A grandmother on her first death anniversary, a friend gone too soon. Our prayer for a departed soul offers words for grief, and a mantra for peace.
- Special days. Birthdays, anniversaries, a first day at school, a baby's naming ceremony. Joy is a perfectly good reason to pray.
We read every request before it airs. Prayers wishing harm on anyone, or asking to control someone, aren't read, and we never promise that a prayer will change an outcome. What we can promise is that it will be said with care.
If you're writing to us in a hard time
Some people come to the radio at the hardest moment of their week, late at night, when they can't sleep for worry.
If you've come to the radio in a hard time, I want you to know you're cared for. Even if it isn't in person, even if it's only a radio page or an email, we're listening.
Prashant Mahakatha, curator
If you're struggling yourself, please also reach out to someone near you, or a doctor or helpline. A prayer can sit beside that help; it shouldn't replace it.
Respectful of every faith
Mahakatha Radio plays Hindu and Buddhist mantras, and the prayers we read follow that tradition. But we're often asked whether someone of another faith can send a request, and the answer is always yes. A mother praying for her son sounds the same in every language.
Listen, or send a prayer
If you'd like to hear what Prayer Requests sounds like before you send one, listen live at 7 am or 7 pm India time. And when you're ready, offer a prayer for someone you love. We'll read it gently, and everyone listening will hold them with you.