Salah

1)
There is no word in English to translate Salah. it is not merely "prayer" in the limited sense of turning to God in supplication. The Arabic word for supplication is Du’a.

Salah is performed in a prescribed form. It is preceded by ablutions (wudu). The five set prayers have special names and are performed at special times — between dawn and sunrise (Fajr) early after noon (Zuhr), mid-afternoon (‘Asr) sunset (Maghrib) and night (‘Isha’).

Salah needs to be performed on time. It should not be delayed deliberately.Salah consists of units or rak‘ah. Each rak‘ah consists of the pronouncement of Allahu Akbar (God is Most Great), of the Opening Surah of the Qur’an, of praising and glorifying God. All words in the salah are always recited in Arabic.

Salah consists of precise bodily postures — standing, bowing, prostrating and sitting. The posture of salah is an indication of man’s relation to his Creature — a relation of reverence submission and gratitude.

Salah sharpens our moral sense. It keeps us from indecent, shameful activities. This is stated in the Qur’an: "Salat indeed prevents a person from indecency and evil." (29:45).

Salah is a regular means of purifying both body and soul. The ablution before the Prayer with fresh water act as a refresher and cleanser. The salah if properly performed purifies the soul of arrogance and hypocrisy. The Prophet, peace be on him, likened a person who regularly performed salah to a person who washes himself regularly in a stream of clean running water five times a day. Salah thus serves as a training in cleanliness, purity and punctuality.Salah brings mental satisfaction and emotional fulfillment.

Dr. Farida Khanam

2)

Ibn Khaldun has recorded an incident regarding Salat in his Muqaddama. It was during the days of the second caliph, ‘Umar Faruq, that the army of Sahaba entered Persia. There were no mosques there at that time, so Muslims prayed in the open fields.

Rustam, the general of the Persian army often saw Muslims saying their prayers out in the open. He saw all the Muslims standing in straight lines in rows, their leader standing in front, and amazingly, all the Muslims assuming the same postures as their leader. All the Muslims stood together, kneeled together and sat together as indicated by their prayer leader. On seeing this, Rustam once remarked. "Umar has eaten my liver (Umar has undone me completely). He is teaching the dogs the adab (discipline) of life."

Discipline is the outward form of salah (prayer). When a non-Muslim observes the devotees at prayer, he will arrive at the same conclusion—that they are taking lessons in discipline.

Discipline is the external aspect of salah. The internal aspect of salah is khushu and taqwa. Just observing the external aspect of salah gave Rustam a scare. Now you can understand, when the external aspect is combined with the internal aspect, how powerful salah could become!Salah is the greatest form of worship for Muslims. It is moreover, the greatest power of Muslims. If we could tap this power fully, we should receive all the blessings of this world as well as the next.

(Inner Virtues of Muslim Ritual prayers)
Maulana Wahiduddin Khan