The Slave of Allah Must Perform Salah (Prayer) Hayya `ala-s-Salaah… Hayya `ala-l-Falaah…” Hurry to prayer. Hurry to SUCCESS. Yes, success. What perfect placement of these phrases: come to pray and take your success. Like macaroni and cheese, it’s plain and simple. Placed so cleverly and poetically within the adhan, the Islamic call to prayer. We hear this 5 times a day, but how often do we listen and follow?? Amidst chow downs, midterms, and movies, finding time to pray for youth has become somewhat of a difficult task. Many of us spend countless hours engrossed in the latest songs and tabloids, immersed in worldly matters or even grueling over a school assignment; those have become our priorities in dunya (this world). But what about our priorities for the akhira (Hereafter)?? Nowadays, some of us find it a chore to spend scarcely 5 minutes out of the 1440 minutes in a day prostrating to our Lord in repentance for our sins and seeking refuge from our worries. We have stopped giving salah (prayer) the importance it holds. Prayer is an obligation, not a choice—as many Muslims these days make it out to be. Salah is one of the things that Allah subhanahu wa ta’ala (Glorified is He) has Himself prescribed; I say prescribed, because it is the one true remedy to our worldly worries. “Guard strictly the Salah, especially the middle Salah. And stand before Allah with obedience.” (Qur’an 2:238) “Salah reminds you of Allah (subhana wa ta’ala), when you get up in the morning, it reminds you three more times when you are busy during the day, and once again before you go to bed.” The Prophet (sal Allahu alaihi wa sallam) describes the Hereafter, and in which he says: “…When Allah (subhana wa ta’ala) has finished judging mankind, and wants to bring whomever He wills out of Hell by His Mercy, He will order angels to bring forth those upon whom He wishes to bestow His mercy of the people who never associated anything in worship with Allah (subhana wa ta’ala), and who said, “Laa ilaaha illaah Allah”. The angels will recognise them in Hell, and will known them by the mark of sujood [prostration] on their foreheads. The Fire will consume all of a man except the mark of sujood which Allah (subhana wa ta’ala) has forbidden the Fire to consume. They will be brought forth, having been burned in the Fire, the water of life will be poured on them, and they will grow like seeds left by still after a flood.” (Saheeh Muslim) Let’s try to fathom this concept. Salah will distinguish the devout from the non-believer in hellfire. “Ma bayn al-kufr wal iman tark al-salah”—what is between belief and disbelief is leaving prayer. - The Prophet Muhammad (sal Allahu alaihi wa sallam) In modern day society, the pressures facing the ummah (Muslim community) are great; however, the remedy can be just as simple—by keeping steadfast in the daily prayers and having tawakkul (reliance on Allah), we make ourselves vulnerable to Allah’s help and mercy. We all have an inherent thirst, a thirst for feeling whole, complete, accepted. A thirst quenched by prayer. The Creator can give and He can take. The more we rely on Him, the easier our lives become. The further we go from Him, the further He goes from us, too. Abu Huraira radiAllahu anhu) reported that the messenger of Allah (sal Allahu alaihi wa sallam) said: ”The nearest a servant comes to his Lord is when he is prostrating himself, so make supplication (in this state).” (Sahih al-Bukhari) For our imaan (faith) to grow, we need the proper infrastructure. Buildings use pillars to support their structure. Growth is weak without a solid foundation. Salah is the second pillar in Islam, the foundation of the religion. There are five pillars in Islam which a Muslim considers the basis of faith: shahada (testimony of faith), salah, zakat (charity tax), sawm (fasting), and hajj (pilgrimage). If a person is ill, he/she is excused from fasting; if a person is poor, he/she is excused from paying zakat or performing hajj; however, there is no excuse for salah (aside from the monthly impurities women face). If a person is sick, he may pray sitting down. If he cannot do so, then he may pray lying down, if that is impossible, then he may pray with his eyes. Case in point, no excuses. Allah, subhana wa ta’ala, has commanded us to indulge in the purification of our souls. The modern day focus lies on perfecting the physical appearance; whereas, the Islamic perspective is rooted in perfecting the inward appearance. Insha’Allah (Allah willing), we take a few minutes out of our day to hurry to success and thank the Almighty, to ask from the Almighty, and to worship the Almighty. May we uphold His decree to the best of our abilities and be rewarded with Jannah. Ameen. Original source: suhaibwebb/personaldvlpt/worship/prayer/the-slave-of-allah-must-perform-salah-prayer/
Posted on: Fri, 23 Jan 2015 04:04:00 +0000