Muslims are asked to meet Allah five times a day through performing Salah or the Islamic Prayers. These five meetings are the main factors for the love of Allah to be granted a happy life and Jannah.

Prayer

The Arabic term salah, which is normally translated as ‘prayer’, originally means ‘supplication’. In Islamic context it is defined as ‘an act of worship that includes saying specific words as well as doing specific actions, starting with the glorification, Allah-u akbar, and concluded with salam.[1]

It is prayer that builds a Muslim’s character: it keeps his heart pure and consolidates his faith. It helps a person to organize his affairs, giving him stronger motivation to maintain good conduct, be charitable and participate in good causes. As such, prayer has a clear positive role in organizing society.

Prayer points out the way of divine guidance and adds real meaning to life. It ensures that man does not feel loss, as it guides him along the way followed by all Prophets (peace be upon them all).

Prayer is a demonstration of man’s gratitude for the numerous great blessings Allah has bestowed on him. It is also an unmistakeable manifestation of man’s servitude to Allah. In prayer a person speaks directly to Allah, shows humility before Him, and addresses Him with reciting the Qur’an, glorification and supplication. Moreover, in prayer man feels his bond with Allah, which elevates him over the material world in order to give him clearer vision and reassurance. When the concerns and temptations of life become too strong, prayer helps man to regain his proper perspective, enabling him to see the truth and giving him a sense of what is greater and beyond. He will realize that life could not have been so perfect, and that things could not have been made subservient to man, in order to leave him living on the margin, caring nothing except for immediate enjoyments.[2]

Prayer provides spiritual nourishment. When we wish to rise to a higher level, we should fulfil all our duties, particularly prayer. When a person performs the ablution and stands up in full humility to pray, addressing Allah, supplicating in hope and looking forward for Allah’s grace, he will enjoy inner comfort and reassurance because he has assigned all his cares and concerns to the One who is ever merciful, the One to whom all dominion belongs and who is able to accomplish everything.[3]