Worship - Praying
| Purification | Praying | ||||||||||
| 31 | 32 | 33 | 34 | 35 | 36 | 37 | 38 | 39 | 40 | 41 | 42 |
| Zakah | Fasting | Pilgrimage | |||||||||
| 43 | 44 | 45 | 46 | 47 | 48 | ||||||
Lesson 35
Conditions - Integrals
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·
Prayer is a continuous relation
between a bondman and his Lord. Prayer prevents obscenity and rejuvenates a
sense of piety to Allah. It cultivates in a Muslim the spirit of community ,
brotherhood, equality, and discipline. It is an ideal model
for the Muslim nation that should be
led by their best in knowledge, jurisprudence and morality.
·
Prayer is obligatory for every
Muslim in its five specific times: early morning (after dawn and before
sunrise), noon, mid-afternoon, sunset, and evening.
·
Prayer is the most preferred form of
worship as it is the pillar of religion. It is the first pillar of Islam after
saying, "there is no god but Allah and Muhammad is the Prophet of
Allah."[1]
· The Prophet's highly recommended
prayers: some are confirmed Sunnah and others are not. Besides, it is up to the
Muslim to perform more voluntary prayers as he likes.
·
The prescribed prayers are
obligatory for every sane, mature Muslim. Women must be free from menstruation
and post-natal bleeding in order to pray.[2]
·
Conditions for a prayer to be
performed correctly are:
a) Purification of what
makes it necessary to perform ablution, as well as purification from Janabah
(having sexual intercourse) by bathing
b) Covering the private
parts of the body: from the navel to the knee for men, and the whole body
excluding the face and the two hands for women
c) Facing the direction
of prayer (Qiblah)
d) The purity of
one’s clothing
e) Knowing the due time
for prayer[3]
·
Obligatory elements of prayer:
a)
Sincere intention
b)
Performing the obligatory standing unless unable
c)
Saying Allahu Akbar (Allah is the Greatest), a sign of entering ritual
consecration
d)
Reciting Surah Al-Fatihah (The Opening Surah of the Holy Qur’an) in every
Rak`ah (unit) of prayer (with the exception of the person who is led in audible
prayers)
e)
Bowing down and returning to the upright position
f)
Performing two prostrations and sitting between them
g)
Performing bowing, prostration and standing at a natural speed
h)
Sitting to recite the last Tashahhud then greeting)
This
is the arrangement of every unit.[4]
Prayer is obligatory:
Allah says:
(النساء: 103)
This
means: “When you have finished As-Salah (the prayer - congregational),
remember Allah standing, sitting down, and lying down on your sides, but
when you are free from danger, perform As-Salah (Iqamatas Salah).
Verily, the prayer is enjoined on the believers at fixed hours.” (4, An-Nisa’:
103)
The Prophet (peace be
upon him) said:
“Islam
is raised on five pillars: The testification that there is no god but Allah,
that Muhammad is His bondsman and Messenger, the establishment of prayer,
the payment of Zakah [poor-due], the pilgrimage to the House of Allah (Ka`bah),
and fasting during Ramadan.”
(Reported by Al-Bukhari and Muslim)
The
wisdom behind the prayer and its merits:
Allah says:
(العنكبوت:
45)
This
means: “Verily, As-Salah (the prayer) prevents from Al-Fahsha' (i.e. great
sins of every kind, unlawful sexual intercourse, etc.) and Al-Munkar (i.e.
disbelief, polytheism, and every kind of evil wicked deed, etc.).” (29,
Al-`Ankabut: 45)
The Prophet (peace be
upon him) said:
“The
principle of this matter is Islam, its hump is prayer, and its top is
Jihad.” (Reported by At-Tirmidhi)
“Verily
between man and polytheism and unbelief is the negligence of prayer.” (Reported by Muslim)
The Messenger of Allah
(peace be upon him) said:
“I
have been commanded to fight against people until they testify that there is
no god but Allah, that Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah, perform prayers,
and pay Zakah. If they do that, the protection of their blood and property
will be guaranteed by me, except when justified by law, and their affairs
(regarding truthfulness of faith) is decided by Allah.”
(Reported
by Al-Bukhari and Muslim)
Ibn Mas`ud (may Allah
be pleased with him) narrated:
“I
said: O Messenger of Allah, which deed is the most beloved by Allah? He
said: Performing the prayer at its fixed time.”
(Reported by Muslim)
The Prophet (peace be
upon him) said:
“The similitude of
the five prayers is like an overflowing river passing by the gate of one of
you in which he washes five times daily.”
(Reported by Muslim)
The Prophet (peace be
upon him) said:
“When
the time for a prescribed prayer comes, if any Muslim performs ablution well
and offers his prayer with humility and bowing, it will be an expiation for
his past sins, so long as he has not committed a major sin; and this applies
to all times.”
(Reported by Muslim)
Woman should be free from menstruation and post-natal bleeding:
The Prophet (peace be
upon him) said to Fatimah Bint Hubaysh:
“When the blood of
the menses comes, it is black blood which can be recognized; so when that
(i.e. black blood) comes, refrain from prayer; but when a different type of
blood comes, perform ablution and pray, for it is (due only to) a vein.”
(Reported by Abu Dawud and An-Nasa’i)
Conditions for rightly performed prayers:
Purification:
(See: Lessons 31-34)
Covering
one’s private parts:
Allah says:
(الأعراف: 31)
This
means: “Take your adornment (by wearing your clean clothes), while
praying.” (7, Al-A`raf: 31)
The Prophet (peace be
upon him) said:
“Allah
does not accept the prayer of a woman who has reached puberty unless she
wears a veil.” (Reported by Abu Dawud)
Qiblah:
Allah says:
(البقرة:144)
This
means: “So turn your face in the direction of Al-Masjid- al-Haram (at
Makkah). And wheresoever you people are, turn your faces (in prayer) in that
direction.” (2, Al-Baqarah: 144)
Allah says:
(البقرة:
149)
This
means: “And from wheresoever you start forth (for prayers), turn your face
in the direction of Al-Masjid-al-Haram (at Makkah), that is indeed the truth
from your Lord. And Allah is not unaware of what you do.”
(2, Al-Baqarah: 149)
Allah says:
This
means: “And from wheresoever you start forth (for prayers), turn your face
in the direction of Al-Masjid-al-Haram (at Makkah), and wheresoever you are,
turn your faces towards, it (when you pray).” (2, Al-Baqarah: 150)
Muslims should do their best to specify the direction of Qiblah as much as possible:
Al-Bukhari and Muslim
reported that: The Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) was seen praying
on his camel, while he was coming from Makkah to Madinah, the way in which
the camel walked.
Obligatory integrals of prayer:
Intention:
The Messenger of Allah
(peace be upon him) said:
“Verily
(the value of ) deeds depends on the intentions behind them.”
(Reported by Al-Bukhari and Muslim)
Standing:
Allah says:
(البقرة: 238)
This
means: “And stand before Allah with obedience.” (2, Al-Baqarah: 238)
The Prophet (peace be
upon him) said:
“Pray while
standing and if you can not, pray while sitting and if you cannot do even
that, then pray lying on your side.”
(Reported by Al-Bukhari)
The Prophet (peace be
upon him) said:
“The key of prayer
is purification; Takbir (saying ‘Allah is the Greatest’) makes (all acts
which break prayer) unlawful, and Taslim (uttering the salutation) makes
(all such acts) lawful.”
(Reported by Abu Dawud and At-Tirmidhi)
Reciting
Fatihah:
The Prophet (peace be
upon him) said to one of his Companions:
“Whoever
does not recite Al-Fatihah in his prayer, his prayer is invalid.”
(Reported by Al-Bukhari and Muslim)
The Prophet (peace be
upon him) said:
“When
you stand for prayer, perform ablution properly and then face the Qiblah and
say Takbir (Allahu Akbar), and then recite what you know from the Qur’an,
and then bow with calmness till you feel at ease, then rise from bowing till
you stand straight, and then prostrate calmly (and remain in prostration)
till you feel at ease, and then raise (your head) and sit with calmness till
you feel at ease, and then prostrate with calmness (and remain in
prostration) till you feel at ease, and then raise (your head) and sit with
calmness till you feel at ease in the sitting position, and do likewise in
whole of your prayer.”
(Reported by Al-Bukhari and Muslim)
The Prophet (peace be
upon him) said:
“And
its end is Taslim.”
(Reported by Abu Dawud and At-Tirmidhi)
This is a part of an
above-mentioned Hadith
The
order of the Rak`ahs of prayer:
The Prophet (peace be upon him) said:
“And offer your
prayers in the way you saw me offering my prayers.”
(Reported
by Al-Bukhari)