Muslim Prayer

Muslim Prayer

Huda is an educator, school administrator, and author who has more than two decades of experience researching and writing about Islam online.

Huda. "The 5 Muslim Daily Prayer Times and What They Mean." Learn Religions, Feb. 8, 2021, learnreligions.com/islamic-prayer-timings-2003811.
Huda. (2021, February 8). The 5 Muslim Daily Prayer Times and What They Mean. Retrieved from https://www.learnreligions.com/islamic-prayer-timings-2003811
Huda. "The 5 Muslim Daily Prayer Times and What They Mean." Learn Religions. https://www.learnreligions.com/islamic-prayer-timings-2003811 (accessed September 12, 2022).

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For Muslims, the five daily prayer times (called salat ) are among the most important obligations of the Islamic faith . Prayers remind the faithful of God and the many opportunities to seek His guidance and forgiveness. They also serve as a reminder of the connection that Muslims the world over share through their faith and shared rituals.

Prayer is one of Islam's Five Pillars , the guiding tenets that all observant Muslims must follow:

Muslims demonstrate their faithfulness by actively honoring the Five Pillars of Islam in their everyday lives. Daily prayer is the most visible means of doing so.

As with other faiths, Muslims must observe specific rituals as part of their daily prayers. Before praying, Muslims must be clear of mind and of body . Islamic teaching requires Muslims to engage in ritualistic washing ( wudu ) of the hands, feet, arms, and legs, called Wudhu , before praying. Worshippers must also be dressed modestly in clean clothing.

Once the Wudhu has been completed, it's time to find a place to pray. Many Muslims pray at mosques, where they can share their faith with others. But any quiet place, even a corner of an office or home, can be used for prayer. The only stipulation is that the prayers must be said while facing in the direction of Mecca, the birthplace of the Prophet Muhammad.

Traditionally, prayers are said while standing on a small prayer rug , though using one isn't required. The prayers are always recited in Arabic while performing a series of ritualized gestures and movements intended to glorify Allah and proclaim devotion called Rak'ha . The Rak'ha is repeated two to four times, depending on the time of day.

If worshippers are praying communally, they will conclude prayers with a brief message of peace for one another. Muslims turn first to their right, then to their left, and offer the greeting, "Peace be upon you, and the mercy and blessings of Allah."

In Muslim communities, people are reminded of the salat by the daily calls to prayer, known as adhan . The adhan are delivered from mosques by a muezzin , the mosque's designated caller of prayer. During the call to prayer, the muezzin recites the Takbir and the Kalimah.

Traditionally, the calls were made from the mosque's minaret without amplification, though many modern mosques use loudspeakers so that the faithful can hear the call more clearly. The prayer times themselves are dictated by the position of the sun:

In ancient times, one merely looked at the sun to determine the various times of day for prayer. In modern days, printed daily prayer schedules precisely pinpoint the beginning of each prayer time. And yes, there are plenty of apps for that.

Missing prayers is considered a serious lapse of faith for devout Muslims. But circumstances do sometimes arise where a prayer time may be missed. Tradition dictates that Muslims should make up their missed prayer as soon as possible or at the very least recite the missed prayer as part of the next regular salat.

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Ensure the area is clean and free of impurities. This includes your body, your clothes, and the place of prayer itself.

Perform wudu . You must be ritually pure before you go start praying. If you're not, it's required to perform Wudu "ablution" before you do. If since your last prayer, you have urinated, defecated, passed gas, bled excessively, or fallen asleep deeply, you need to perform wudu [1]
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If you are praying in a masjid (mosque), which is highly encouraged for men, enter quietly—other Muslims might still be praying and you don't want to disturb them.
If you are unsure of the cleanliness of your area, spread a mat or cloth on the floor for good measure. This mat (or prayer rug) is very important to Islamic culture.

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Perform ghusl (full shower) if needed. Certain circumstances will require that you perform ghusl instead of wudu to be cleansed before and after removing najas (impurities) and before praying. If you wish to pray after having sexual intercourse, ending your menstruation period or postpartum bleeding, giving birth, having a wet dream or ejaculating, you need to perform ghusl. [2]
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To perform ghusl, you must wash your entire body and hair with water. It is recommended that you wash 3 times.
Note that when you perform either wudu or ghusl, anything that prevents water from touching the obligatory areas of the body must be removed, including things such as nail polish, accessories, and waterproof mascara. [3]
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Perform tayammum (dry purification) if needed. If a Muslim is unable to use water, he or she may choose to perform tayammum instead of wudu or ghusl. This rite involves using clean soil or dirt or a natural rock that has not been used before to perform tayammum. [4]
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Face the Qibla . This is the direction all Muslims face to turn in prayer towards the Holy Ka'bah. The Holy Mosque in Mecca is the most revered place of worship for Muslims around the entire world. All Muslims are required to face the Ka'bah five times every day when offering their prayers.
If you are traveling on a ship or airplane and fear that the time of prayer will end before you reach someplace where you can determine the direction of Ka'bah then, in that case, you can offer Salat without facing Ka'bah. It is Mustahab(recommended) that one face the Ka'bah at least during the takbeer of ihram(saying "Allahu Akbar" at the beginning of Salat). [5]
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Pray at the proper time. The five prayers of each day take place at very specific times. [6]
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"Indeed, the prayer is on the believers prescribed (at) fixed times." Quran 4:103

For each one, there is a brief period of time it can be performed, determined by the rising and falling of the sun. Each salah takes about 5 to 10 minutes from start to finish, but should never be hurried.

The five prayers are Fajr, Zuhr, Asr , Maghrib, and Isha. They are at dawn, afternoon, in the mid-afternoon, at sunset, and at night, respectively. They are not at the same time each day, as they are timed by the sun, which changes path throughout the seasons.
These are the amount of rak'ah (units) for each of the 5 salah: Obligatory prayers: - Fajr prayer (2 units (Rak'ah)) - Dhuhr prayer (4 units (Rak'ah)) - Asr prayer (4 units (Rak'ah)) - Maghrib prayer (3 units (Rak'ah)) - Isha prayer (4 units (Rak'ah)) more details and optional prayers are as follows:

Fajr - Two rak'ah sunnah mu'akkadah (optional but highly recommended), then two rak'ah fardh (obligatory);
Zuhr - Four rak'ah sunnah mu'akkadah (optional but highly recommended), then four rak'ah fardh (obligatory), then two rak'ah sunnah mu'akkdah (optional but highly recommended), then two rak'ah nafl (optional);
Asr - Four rak'ah sunnah ghayr mu'akkadah (optional and NOT highly recommended), then four rak'ah fardh (obligatory);
Maghrib - Three rak'ah fardh (obligatory), then two rak'ah sunnah mu'akkadah (optional but highly recommended), then two rak'ah nafl (optional);
Isha - Four rak'ah sunnah, then four rak'ah fardh (obligatory), then two rak'ah sunnah mu'akkadah (optional but highly recommended), then two rak'ah nafl (optional), then three rak'ah witr (optional but highly recommended), then two rak'ah nafl (optional).

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Learn to say prayers in Arabic . Salah must be performed in the Arabic language because this is the language that the Qur’an was revealed in. It also allows Muslims outside of Arabic-speaking countries to recite the prayers and understand what is being said. Speaking all prayers in the same language avoids the confusion of translating words into other languages. [7]
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Use online sources to help you pronounce the obligatory prayer words, such as Rosetta Stone [8]
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, Salaam Arabic [9]
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, hosted by Pangaea Learning, Madinah Arabic [10]
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or Youtube [11]
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sources.
Take a course in Arabic at your local college.
Learn and practice the correct pronunciations with an Arabic speaker.

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Cover yourself. Men and women must both cover themselves with material that covers the skin throughout the prayer. While women must cover everything but their faces and hands, men must keep the area between their navel and knees covered. [12]
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The material must cover the body during prayer movements. So if, for example, bending causes a piece of material to slip and expose skin on a woman’s neck, she would need to ensure that her clothing is tucked in properly or put more clothing on before she can start her prayer.

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Make your intention known in your heart. Before initiating the salat, it is important that you have the intention to pray.

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Raise your hands up next to your ears and shoulders, then say Allāhu akbar (الله أَكْبَر). This translates to "Allah is the greatest." Do this while standing (or sitting if you can't stand).
The fingers should be spaced when the hands are raised.

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Place your right hand over your left hand. Place your hands either on your navel, on your chest, or between the two; there's a difference of opinion between Islamic schools of thoughts. Keep your eyes focused on the ground. It helps to keep your sight fixed on where your head will rest when prostrating later. Do not let your eyes wander.

Recite the optional Istiftah Du'a (opening prayer): Subhanakal-lahumma Wabihamdika watabarakas-muka wataaaala Jadduka wala ilaha ghayruk. A’auodu billaahi minash-shaytaanir rajeem Bis-millaahir rahmaanir raheem
Follow it with Surah Al-Fatiha (this Surah is recited in each Rak'ah): Bismillaahir Rahmaanir Raheem Alhamdu lillaahi Rabbil 'aalameen Ar-Rahmaanir-Raheem Maaliki Yawmid-Deen Iyyaaka na'budu wa lyyaaka nasta'een Ihdinas-Siraatal-Mustaqeem Siraatal-ladheena an
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Muslim Prayer

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