I was reading an interesting blog post today by an atheist. He said one of his favorite songs is "My Sweet Lord" by George Harrison. My jaw dropped into one of those WTF positions as he's about as secular as it comes. He had a good point though, and it was this. That song uses every inch of musical space so even though he doesn't pray himself the song uses every space, making him in a way jealous of George Harrison to place himself there. I asked the blogger if it was okay to share, and he gave me permission..
"This next song [My Sweet Lord] is, strangely enough, quite popular with atheists like me. I couldn't tell you why outside of the fact it is just so moving from the tambourine to the vocals. Nothing goes to waste here. If there was ever a song that made me want to believe, its George when he sings "I really want to see you but it takes so long...".
There has always been a fine undercurrent for me, and that is for many death is not to be feared but truly a passage. I remember when I heard George had passed I was glad, for him. The world would miss him but he was now where he had longed to be and with who he longed to be with. We all should be so lucky."
So yes, prayer doesn't have to be to a deity. It can simply be a celebration of the way the universe functions atom by atom as a whole.