All Divine religions offer prayer as ordained by the Lord of the universe, the One and Only God, who created the entire universe, and life wherever it prevails. In fact, a prayer made to our Lord is a "Thank You for everything" for without His blessings we would not have survived even for a single day. The importance of prayer/As salat is more emphasized in Islam than in any religion, for Jews and Christians attend the synagogue or church once a week, Muslims are ordained to offer five prayers EVERY DAY.
At number of places in the Qur'an, Allah has commanded believers to offer prayers for prayers directly connect a believer to Allah:
اِنَّنِىۡۤ اَنَا اللّٰهُ لَاۤ اِلٰهَ اِلَّاۤ اَنَا فَاعۡبُدۡنِىۡ ۙ وَاَقِمِ الصَّلٰوةَ لِذِكۡرِىۡ
"Verily I am Allah. There is no god beside Me. So, serve Me and establish Prayers to remember Me." (Surah 20 Ta Ha :14)
This is the real object of Salat. It has been prescribed to remind people that they should not become neglectful of Allah by worldly diversions and that they should remember that man is not an unbridled free being but a servant of Allah. Salat has been prescribed five times a day to remind man of Allah’s presence. The five prayers are offered before dawn, noon, midafternoon, just after sunset and then at night.
The importance of offering prayers can be gauged from one of the saying of the Holy Prophet (peace be upon him):
"The first matter that the slave will be brought to account for on the Day of Judgment is the prayer. If it is sound, then the rest of his deeds will be sound. And if it is bad, then the rest of his deeds will be bad." [Recorded by al-Tabarani. According to al-Albani, it is Sahih. Al-Albani, Sahih al-Jami, vol.1, p. 503.
In another Hadith, as reported by Abu by Huraira (may Allah be pleased with him): The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said: The nearest a servant comes to his Lord is when he is prostrating himself, so make supplication (in this state). So, wouldn't a believer be like to be near to his Lord while prostrating during daily prayers?
Since prayers are obligatory, these have to be offered no matter where one is. If a masjid is nearby, it is better performed there. But in case a masjid is not nearby, it can be offered anywhere, be it one's home, office or any place of work. Even one is not allowed to miss a a prayer when traveling. However,r for travelers a 50% concession is given in their numbers.
Prayer or As Salat, as is known in Arabic, has been made obligatory on every sane adult man and woman and there is no excuse or escape from it. Even if one is travelling, one must offer prayer, as for the ease of traveler, the number of obligatory cycles has been halved. If someone cannot offer prayer while standing, he should sit and pray and if one cannot even sit, then one should offer prayer while lying down on the bed.
This is the importance of prayer in Islam and one must never miss one's prayer. And if for some reason, a prayer is missed due to oversleeping or any other reason, one must make good by offering prayer on the first available opportunity.
If this is the importance of prayers in Islam, the one who misses the prayers regularly, should feel concerned for If one's feet do not lead him to prayers, these would not lead him to Jannah (Paradise) EITHER!!
So, my brothers and sisters in Islam, let us force our feet to lead us to a masjid or a prayer mat when it is time for an obligatory prayer. So long as we establish and guard our prayers, we are likely to please Allah and become a contender for Jannah. Let us not lose this opportunity while we are alive. Many in their graves would repent for not having been regular in guarding their prayers and would wish to be sent back to worldly life so that they could make up for the lost prayers. But this will not be so and cannot happen. Time is now!!
May Allah (سبحانه و تعالى) help us understand Qur'ān and follow the Sunnah of Prophet Muhammad ﷺ, which is embodiment of commandments of Allah contained in the Qur'ān. May Allah help us to be like the ones He loves and let our lives be lived helping others and not making others' lives miserable or unlivable. May all our wrong doings, whether intentional or unintentional, be forgiven before the angel of death knocks on our door.
وَمَا عَلَيۡنَاۤ اِلَّا الۡبَلٰغُ الۡمُبِيۡنُ
(36:17) and our duty is no more than to clearly convey the Message.”
That is Our duty is only to convey to you the message that Allah has entrusted us with. Then it is for you to accept it or reject it. We have not been made responsible for making you accept it forcibly, and if you do not accept it, we shall not be seized in consequence of your disbelief, you will yourselves be answerable for your actions on Day of Resurrection.
May Allah forgive me if my posts ever imply a piety far greater than I possess. I am most in need of guidance.
Reading the Qur'ān should be a daily obligation of a Muslim - Reading it with translation will make it meaningful. But reading its Exegesis / Tafsir will make you understand it fully. It will also help the Muslims to have grasp over social issues and their answers discussed in the Qur'an and other matter related to inter faith so that they are able to discuss issues with non-Muslims with authority based on refences from Qur'an.
Note: When we mention God in our posts, we mean One True God, we call Allah in Islam, with no associates. Allah is the Sole Creator of all things, and that Allah is all-powerful and all-knowing. Allah has no offspring, no race, no gender, no body, and is unaffected by the characteristics of human life.
You may refer to our reference page: As Salat / Prayers for any Q&A you may have with regard to prayers.
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