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Observe perfect cleanliness and purity for the purpose of saying the
prayers. Brush your teeth also when performing ablutions.
The Prophet of God( Peace and blessing of Allah be upon him ) affirmed :
" The distinctive make of the members of my Ummah
on the Doomsday will be that their brows and organs of ablution will be
glowing with the radiance of Divine Light. Hence it is open to everyone
to enhance his share of the Divine Light as much as he wants."
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Put on clean, neat respectable civilized and proper dress for observing
prayers.
The Holy Qur'an affirms.
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Be punctual in the observance
of prayers.
innassalata
kanta alalmu'minina kitaban mauquta.
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Always say your prayers in congregation. At times when you miss the
congregation for any reason, try to say the obligatory (Fard) prayers in a
mosque. However, offering of Sunnat
(Prayers that are not obligatory (Fard) but
supererogatory offered by the Holy Prophet punctually and without faul)
prayers is permissible at home also. The Prophet of God( Peace and blessing of Allah be upon him )
has observed: " The person who join the congregation for prayer at
the start i.e. first Takbir for forty days a stretch from the torments of
Hall as well from the evil of discord"
In addition the this, The Prophet of God( Peace and blessing of Allah be upon him )
also affirmed :
" If the people become aware of the rewards and
blessing of offering prayers in a congregation, they would
hasten to join the congregation for prayer despite a thousand hindrances.
The first row of a congregation for prayer is like the row of angels. It
is better for two men to offer prayers together than separately. The
larger the congregation the dearer it is to God ".
(Abu Dowud)
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Say prayers in peace. Perform bows (Ruku) and prostration (Sajda)
calmly. Rising from a bow, stand straight with ease and then go into
prostration. Keep a suitable interval between two prostration and in
this interval. say the following prayer:
Allahumm-aghfir
li uahdini wajburni wa 'afini warzuqni
" O God, forgive me, be merciful to me, on the right path, remove my
misery, grant me peace and provide for my sustenance."
The Prophet of God( Peace and blessing of Allah be upon him )
has observed:
" The person who observes prayer properly, the
prayer itself blesses him with good wishes in these words ' May God
protect thee in the same manner in which thou took care of me"'.
The Prophet of God( Peace and blessing of Allah be upon him ) also
affirmed:
" The worst of theft is the theft of prayer". The
people submitted: " O Holy Prophet( Peace and blessing of Allah be upon him )
! How can one commit a theft in prayer." The Prophet of God( Peace and blessing of Allah be upon him )
answered: " By skipping over the complete performance of bows and
prostrations".
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Start making preparations for
the prayer at once on hearing the call. Perform ablutions and reach mosque
well before time. Sit down quietly in the line and wait for the
congregation to form. I t is symbolic of hypocrites to be sluggish, to
tarry and go for the prayers in a languid manner after hearing the
prayer-call.
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Announce the prayer-call with eagerness and zest. A person asked the
Prophet of God( Peace and blessing of Allah be upon him )
" O Prophet
of God ( Peace and blessing of Allah be upon you) ! Tell me a deed that
can lead me to paradise".
The Holy Prophet ( Peace and blessing of Allah be upon
him) observed :
" Announce the call for prayer ." The
prophet ( Peace and blessing of Allah be upon him) further affirmed:
" Within the extent to which the call of the
Mu'adhdhin
reaches each man who hears the call will bear witness in favour of the Mu'adhdhin
on the Day of Judgement. A shepherd who grazes his flock in the pasture
and pronounces the call in a loud voice at the fixed hour, all things
within the radius of the area in which his voice vibrates will stand
testimony in his favour on Day judgement". (Bukhari)
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If you are acting as an Imam, discharge your functions in relation to
the saying of prayer in accordance with all the manners and rules
prescribed by religion. Keep in view the interests of the
congregation and perform your duty as leader well.
The Holy Prophet ( Peace and blessing of Allah be upon
him) affirmed:
"The Imams who lead the congregation in prayer
in proper manner and entertain a high sense of personal responsibility for
the good performance of worship by members of their congregation will
obtain reward for the prayers of their congregation also. The Imam's
reward in this case will be equal to the combined reward of
congregation. However, the reward and virtue of the members of the
congregation is not curtailed
thereby".(Tabrani)
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Say your prayers with humility
in such a state that the heart should be filled with a sense of awe of the
Greatness and Glory of God and your entire being should be great sacrilege
to make unnecessary movements of hand and foot, scratching any part of the
body, to pass fingers through the beard, to plug the nose with a finger or
to fold up your dress. Take the utmost care to avoid such actions.
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Seek to gain nearness to God through prayers. Say prayers in such a
state of mind as if you are in the presence of God or at least be
mindful that God is watching, you.
The Holy Prophet ( Peace and blessing of Allah be upon
him) Observed:
" The bondman is nearest to God at the moment when he is lying in
prostration before Him. Hence while you are performing the act of
prostration, pray fervently." (Muslim)
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Say prayers with eagerness and zest. The formal observance of prayers as
if prayer were a burden or compulsion is no genuine form of worship.
Having said prayers of one time, look forward to the next hour of
prayers with eagerness and fervour. One day after having offered the Maghrib
prayers, some people stayed waiting for the hour of 'Isha prayers.
Presently, The Holy Prophet ( Peace and blessing of Allah be upon
him) arrived with such hurried steps that he ( Peace and blessing of Allah be upon
him) was panting for breath.
The Holy Prophet ( Peace and blessing of Allah be upon
him) observed:
" O people ! Be happy, your Lord opened a gate of the heavens
and showed your view to His angels and said with pride: ' Look my devotees
have finished one prayer and are awaiting the next hour of
worship'." ( Ibn Majah)
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Do not say prayers in a hurried manner with a sense of ' Let us get over
with complete devotion and a solemn awareness of duty and direct your
heart, mind, feelings, passions, thoughts and ideas to converge on God.
Prayer, in order to become a genuine form of worship, must contain
remembrance of God. The prayer of the hypocrites is always devoid of the
remembrance of the Lord.
