The human aspire to the highest truth, the underlying monism of Hinduism, pertaining ultimately to the one Brahman, began before the ritual process, before the invocation of diverse deities for the fulfilment of varied needs.
The Gayatri Mantra was part of all Vedic ceremonies and is still invoked in Hindu temples all over India and other countries around the world today, exemplifying its essence.
".... those who, renouncing all actions in Me, and regarding Me as the Supreme, worship Me... of those whose thoughts have entered into Me, I am soon the deliverer from the ocean of death and transmigration, Arjuna.
We can see from Krishna's injunction that prayer is fundamental to Hinduism, that to dwell constantly on the Divine is key to enlightenment.
Ōṃ bhūr bhuvaḥ svaḥ tat savitur vareṇyaṃ bhargo devasya dhīmahi dhiyo yo naḥ pracodayāt.