The Prayer

The Prayer1 SALĀT In the Name of God, the Merciful, the Mercy-giving. (Bismi-llāhi-lrahmāni-lrahīm.) All praise belongs to God, Who has lavished His favours on His servants, filling their hearts with the light of religion and its duties, sent down from the Throne of Glory to the heaven of this world by the steps of mercy. One mark of His compassion: in contrast to earthly kings, though majesty and might belong to Him Alone, He urges the people to bring Him their requests and pleas, saying: ‘Will anyone call, that I may answer him? Will anyone seek my forgiveness, that I may forgive him?’ Unlike the rulers of this world, He keeps an open door and does not screen himself away. He allows His servants to converse with Him intimately in their Prayers, under all circumstances, be they in Congregation or isolation. Not merely allowing, indeed, He gently urges and invites. How different are those feeble worldly kings, who grant an audience only when they have received a gift or bribe! Glory be to Him, therefore, so grand in His sublimity, so Strong in His authority, so Perfect in His graciousness, so All-embracing in His goodness. Blessings and salutations to Muhammad, His chosen Prophet and selected friend, and to his family and Companions, those keys of right guidance and lanterns in the dark. […] 2

Merit of the Prescribed Prayers at Set Times (Salāt) Allah, Exalted is He, says: ‘Prayers have been prescribed for the believers at set times.’ [al-Nisā’, 4:103] (Inna-lsalāta kānat ‘alā-lmu’minīna kitāban mawqūtā.)

Said the Prophet, on him be peace: ‘There are five Prayers which God has prescribed for His servants. For those who perform them properly, without disrespectful omissions, there is a guarantee that God will admit them to Paradise. To those who do not observe them, however, God offers no such guarantee: He may punish them or He may admit them to Paradise, as He wills.’2 Said the Prophet, on him be peace: ‘The five set Prayers may be compared to a stream of fresh water, flowing in front of your house, into which you plunge five times each day. Do you think that would leave any dirt on your body?’ When they replied: ‘None at all!’ The Prophet, on him be peace, said: ‘Indeed, the five Prayers remove sins, just as water removes dirt.’3 Other sayings of the Prophet, on him be peace: ‘The five set Prayers are an expiation, for there is something amongst them by which major sins are repelled.’4 ‘What distinguishes us from the Hypocrites is our attendance at late night and early morning Prayers, both of which they miss.’5 ‘If a man meets God when he has been negligent of the Prayer, God will pay no attention to his other virtues.’6 ‘Prayer is the pillar of religion; to neglect it is to prepare the downfall of religion.’7

‘Prayer at the appointed times.’8 (In answer to the question: ‘Which action is the most meritorious?’) ‘If a man performs the five Prayers, in a proper state of purity and at the times prescribed, they will be a light and a proof for him on the Day of Resurrection. But he who misses them will be resurrected along with Pharaoh and Hāmān.’9 ‘The key to Paradise is ritual Prayer.’10 ‘After the affirmation of His Unity, no duty God has imposed on His creatures is dearer to Him than ritual Prayer. Had anything been dearer to Him than this, it would have become a form of worship for His angels. As it is [each of them performs part of the Prayer,] some bowing, some prostrating themselves, some standing upright and some sitting on their heels.’11 ‘Anyone who deliberately misses a Prayer has forsaken his faith.’12 That is to say, he has virtually been stripped of faith, since its knot has been untied and its pillar has fallen. The [Arabic verb meaning] ‘has forsaken…’ is used idiomatically, much as one might say that a man ‘has arrived’ when he is very near his destination. ‘If someone deliberately omits a Prayer, he ceases to enjoy the protective custody of Muhammad, on him be peace.’13 Abū Hurayra, may God be pleased with him, said: ‘If someone makes his ablution and does it well, then sets out with the intention of performing the Prayer, he is already in the state of Prayer while on his way to it. With each two steps he takes, a good deed is added to his record and a bad deed is erased from it. So do not linger when you hear the signal that the Prayer is beginning, for the one who is farthest from home will get the greatest reward.’ They asked: ‘Why is that, Abū Hurayra?’ and he said: ‘Because of all the steps he had to take.’ According to Tradition: ‘Of all a man’s actions, the first to be examined on the Day of Resurrection will be the Prayer. If it is found to be complete, it will be accepted of him along with the rest of his works, but if it is found wanting it will be rejected along with the rest of his deeds.’14 The Prophet, on him be peace, said: ‘Abū Hurayra, command your family to perform Prayer, for God will provide you with blessings too numerous to reckon.’15 A scholar once said: ‘One who performs Prayer is like a merchant, who does not start making a profit until he has recovered all his capital. In similar fashion, one who performs Prayer gets no credit for supererogatory devotions until he has discharged his basic obligations.’ Abū Bakr, may God be pleased with him, used to say: ‘When it is time for Prayer, get up and extinguish the Hellfire you have kindled for yourselves.’ 1

Extracted from al-Ghazālī, Abū Hāmid Muhammad. Inner Dimensions of Islamic Worship. Trans. Muhtar Holland. Markfield: The Islamic Foundation, 2002. 2 Abū Dā’ūd/al-Nasā’ī/Ibn Māja et al. 3 Muslim. 4 Muslim. 5 Mālik: mursal. 6 al-Tabarānī – different wording. 7 al-Bayhaqī et al: da‘īf. 8 al-Bukhārī/Muslim. 9 Ahmad. 10 Abū Dā’ūd. 11 al-Tabarānī – letter part only. 12 al-Bazzār – doubtful isnād. 13 Ahmad/al-Bayhaqī. 14 al-Hākim. 15 Untraced.