“And seek help through patience and
prayer, and indeed, it is difficult except for the humble in spirit,
Who know
for certain that they shall meet their Lord and that they shall return to Him.” (Al-Baqara, 2: 46-47).
Prayer (Salat) is a spiritual purification through which Muslims
are required to undergo five times a day. Prayer is an integral part of Islam
and is thus incumbent upon every sincere Muslim believer. Prayer enables Muslims
to affirm five times per day the Unity and attributes of Allah, and their
belief in Muhammad (pbuh), His Messenger. Prayer is therefore a part of the everyday
affairs of the Muslim – he has been commanded by God Almighty to pray in the
morning before sunrise, prayer is also ordained for him just after midday, a
third in the afternoon, a fourth just after sunset, and a fifth in the evening
before going to bed. Prayer is thus the first daily preoccupation of a Muslim
and also his last. Prayer enables man, even when at his busiest, to disengage
himself from worldly affairs in order to remember his Maker. Whilst Islam
emphasises the accountability of each and every individual to Allah, it allows
for the weaknesses and imperfection of man. 
Although one is supposed to pray five times a day, allowances are made
for those whose work schedules are such that they cannot break off at the
required times of day. Thus, certain prayers can be combined and said together.
Furthermore, if one is ill or on a journey, concessions are made so that the
number of prayers are reduced, or in the case of illness, the actual form of
prayer may be changed. For example, Instead of standing for prayer, the sick
person may sit down to pray and if he is unable to do even that, he can lie
down on the bed to pray.
Congregational prayer is also an important social institution. It is a
time when people, rich and poor, of high rank and low rank, stand next to each
other as equals to remember God Almighty. None is given any preferential treatment
as to where they stand in the Mosque. The concept of specific reserved places
is unknown. Any differences between individuals in terms of rank, wealth or
colour vanish in an atmosphere of equality before Allah.
Prayer is definitely a very strong and effective means for the
purification of the heart. God Almighty says in the Holy Quran :
“Recite what has been revealed to you of
the Book and establish prayer: for prayer restrains from shameful and unjust
deeds; and remembrance of Allah is the greatest (thing in life) without doubt.
And Allah knows what you do.” (Al-Ankabut, 29 :
46)
“And establish prayer at the two ends of
the day and at the approach of the night. Surely
good deeds take away evil deeds. This is a reminder to the mindful.” (Hud, 11: 115).
Therefore believers are told to purify themselves:
“He indeed is successful (the one) who purifies it
(his soul)
and he fails (the one) who corrupts it.” (As-Shams, 91: 10-11).
And the Holy Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) said:
“The key to Paradise is
prayer, and the key to prayer is ablution (i.e. purification or the act of
purification).” (Tirmidhi).
Abu Dhar (ra), a close companion narrated that the Holy Prophet (pbuh)
went out in winter, when the leaves were falling, and took two branches of a tree
whose leaves began to fall. Then he turned towards him and said, “A Muslim
observes prayer for God’s sake and his sins fall from him as these leaves fall
from this tree.” (Ahmad).
Abu Huraira (ra), another close companion of the Messenger of God (pbuh)
reported the latter as saying, “If one of you has a river at his door in which
he washes himself five times a day; do you think it would leave any dirt on
him?” The companions said that it would not leave any dirt on him (and that
he would be clean). The Prophet of God (pbuh) said, “This is an example of
the five prayers with which God wipes out all the evils of man.” (Bukhari,
Muslim).
Thus, the concept of purification (both physical and spiritual) is
central to Islam. There are many sayings of the Holy Prophet which clearly
state that prayer is a means of purifying the worshipper from evil tendencies, from
within himself and also outside, at physical level (i.e. body hygiene) and the
accomplishment of good deeds (i.e. spiritual hygiene which cleanses his soul).
And the Holy Quran describes the state of such people in these words:
“In it (i.e. the mosque) are men who love to be purified,
and God loves those who make themselves pure.” (At-Tauba, 9: 109).
Undoubtedly a true Muslim must be pure in body, mind and soul, and daily
prayers help him to achieve this degree of purity and goodness. This is because
prayer (Salat) is a perfect form of remembrance of God and the latter is
a very effective means of suppressing evil and thereby purifying the heart of
unhealthy tendencies. The Holy Quran clarifies it in the following two verses:
“Surely I, Ever I, am God (Allah); there
is no god except I; so worship Me, and keep up the prayer for My Remembrance.” (Taha 20: 15).
“And remembrance of Allah is the greatest (thing in life) without doubt.” (Al-Ankabut 29: 46).
The real object of prayer (Salat) is that people should not
neglect their obligations to God, Who is their Lord and Master and they are all
His servants. The daily prayer is prescribed to remind them of the presence of God
and their duties and obligations to Him. This remembrance suppresses evil tendencies
in man and leads him to his moral advancement. The effective sanction of the
presence of God in the prayer acts as a restraint upon his tendencies to break
Divine Laws. The greater and the stronger the feeling of the Divine Presence in
the prayer the greater and the more effective is the restraint upon his
tendencies to break the Divine Law. Thus prayer by suppressing the evil
tendencies of the worshipper, purifies his heart and soul of evil and leads him
on the straight path to the growth of his inner self; he leaves the darkness of
the self to the Light of God Almighty.
The daily prayer is prescribed to strengthen this belief in the heart of
the worshipper. Without daily prayer, it is physically impossible to consistently
maintain the strength of this belief and, consequently, adherence to goodness
and piety. If the heart of a worshipper is deprived of this feeling, how can he
possibly adhere to goodness and avoid evil for fear of God in his daily life?
The obvious recipe is the practice of daily prayer: to evoke and revive fear of
God in the worshipper and strengthen his belief in the Omnipresent God so that
he may walk in ways of goodness and piety and avoid evil.
May Allah enable each one of you my disciples and followers, as well as
all Muslims worldwide to develop the excellent taste for prayer. Without
prayer, we are like a fish out of water. We are bound to spiritually die
without this constant rendez-vous with God which reassures us the opportunity
to have the door of God’s Mercy, Love and Compassion ever open for us. May
Allah accept all our Salat (prayer) and count us ever among His elite
servants. Ameen.
----Friday Sermon of 04 November 2016 ~(03 Safar
1438 AH) by Khalifatullah Hadhrat Munir Ahmad Azim Saheb (atba) of Mauritius.