Have the People Prayed?
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Have the people prayed? These are some of the last few words of our beloved prophet Muhammad (may the peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) as he came in and out of consciousness while he was on his deathbed. He fainted. When he woke up, he asked if the people had prayed. They hadn't as they were waiting for him so he washed himself to get some strength and tried to walk to the inside of the masjid but he fainted again. When he woke up, he repeated if the people had prayed and, as they still hadn't, he again washed himself, tried to walk to the inside of the masjid but then fainted again. For the third time he woke up, asked if the people had prayed and washed himself again, in the hope of leading his ummah in the 'Isha prayer of Thursday evening.
His main concern after each time that he regained consciousness was if his ummah had prayed. After the third failed attempt, he passed the duty on to his closest companion Abu Bakr (ra) and then he (may the peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) died a few days later. The last time that our beloved prophet saw his ummah, they were in salah and he smiled and was pleased with them. What would he think if he saw us now? We listen to music, watch movies or sport through the time of salah, sleep through Fajr and allow our work and studies, whether haram or halal, to distract us from praying on time or praying at all.
The only command that was prescribed on us from the heavens is salah (prayer). Every other act of worship that we have was prescribed on Earth by the angel Jibreel (alayhi salaam-AS) to our beloved prophet Muhammad (may the peace and blessings of Allah be upon him). Salah was set aside to be given to him in the special one to one meeting in which Allah Ta’ala directly spoke with him. This reveals to us how important salah is, as well as the fact that it was prescribed on Bani Israeel in a similar manner, as Allah Ta’ala prescribed it on Prophet Musa in the direct conversation between Him and Prophet Musa (AS) at the valley of Tuwa.
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Allah says in the Qur’an (interpretation of the meaning): "Indeed, I am Allah . There is no deity except Me, so worship Me and establish prayer for My remembrance." (Qur'an 20:14)
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As soon as Musa (AS) became a prophet, he was given the command of prayer second only to being told that ‘There is no god but Allah’. Salah is the 'ibadah (act of worship) about which Rasool Allah (may the peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said that if the Muslim doesn't do it then he/she has left Islam as between a person and becoming a disbeliever is discontinuing prayer.
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Also, prayer is the most important ritual in Islam which no one is permanently exempted from. If you don’t have enough money or you don’t have excess wealth then you are exempted from hajj and zakah. If you are unable to fast because you are old or ill then you are also exempted. However, if due to illness or paralysis you can’t pray standing up then you have to pray sitting down. If you can’t pray sitting down then you have to pray lying down. If you can’t pray lying down then you pray with your finger and if you can’t pray with your finger then with your eyes. Allah Ta'ala explained to the Muslims how to pray Salatul Khawf in surah al-Nisa’ (4:102) and did not excuse them from praying salah even on the battlefield.
In fact even when the companions of Allah's Messenger were in difficult and dangerous situations they were not excused from leaving their salah but rather than feeling discontented about this they hated to even shorten their recitation or abandon their sunnah salah during such times even though it would have been permissible for them to do so.
There are a few truly inspirational incidents that show us how important the sahaba regarded their fardh and even sunnah salah. For example, once Abbad ibn Bishr (ra) was keeping watch over the Muslim camp during the night when he decided to pray at the same time. He was hit by three arrows by the enemy and only woke his companion up after the third hit because of his love for the Qur'an and his fear that if he continued his salah the Muslims would be attacked via his direction. He said, "I was reciting a surah and I did not want to stop until I finished it...In the name of Allah, if it wasn't for that I would have been considered to be neglectful of my responsibility (thaghrun) which was given to me by Rasool Allah (may the peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) I would have rather died than stop my salah or I would have finished it."
Also, when Abdullah ibn Unays (ra) was sent by Rasool Allah (may the peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) to kill Khalid ibn Sufyan, an open enemy who was mobilising people to attack the Muslims, the time of 'Asr prayer arrived. Abdullah was worried about missing his salah as he was pretending to be on Khalid's side and didn't want him to know that he was a Muslim. In his own words, Abdullah described what he did when he said, "I was praying as I was walking towards him and my ruku would be the movement of my head."
Furthermore, there was also Khubayb bin Adiyy (ra) who was captured in an ambush and sold to the mushrik Makkans. Before he was crucified he asked to pray 2 rakah of salah and after finishing he said, "If it wasn't for the fear of you accusing me of being afraid of death, I would have made these two rakah longer." Praying two rakah before being executed later became a sunnah.
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Finally, Allah’s Messenger (may the peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said, "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."
Umm Hafab
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From IslamQA.info
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Praise be to Allaah.
The importance of the prayer in Islam cannot be understated. It is the first pillar of Islam that the Prophet (peace be upon him) mentioned after mentioning the testimony of faith, by which one becomes a Muslim. It was made obligatory upon all the prophets and for all peoples. Allah has declared its obligatory status under majestic circumstances. For example, when Allah spoke directly to Moses, He said,
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"And I have chosen you, so listen to that which is inspired to you. Verily, I am Allah! There is none worthy of worship but I, so worship Me and offer prayer perfectly for My remembrance." [Taha 13-14]
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Similarly, the prayers were made obligatory upon the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) during his ascension to heaven. Furthermore, when Allah praises the believers, such as in the beginning of surah al-Muminoon, one of the first descriptions He states is their adherence to the prayers.
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Once a man asked the Prohpet (peace be upon him) about the most virtuous deed. The Prophet (peace be upon him) stated that the most virtuous deed is the prayer. The man asked again and again. The first three times, the Prophet (peace be upon him) again answered, "The prayer," then on the fourth occasion he stated, "Jihad in the way of Allah." [This is form a hadith recorded by Ahmad and ibn Hibban. According to al-Albani, the hadith is hasan. Muhammad Nasir al-Din al-Albani, Sahih al-Targheeb wa al-Tarheeb (Beirut: al-Maktab al-Islami, 1982), vol. 1, p. 150]
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The importance of prayer is demonstrated in the many of the Prophet’s statement. For example, the Prophet (peace be upon him) said,
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"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.
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The importance of the prayers lies in the fact that no matter what actions one performs in his life, the most important aspect is one’s relationship to Allah, that is, one’s faith (imaan), God-consciousness (taqwa), sincerity (ikhlas) and worship of Allah (`ibaadah). This relationship with Allah is both demonstrated and put into practice, as well as improved and increased, by the prayer. Therefore, if the prayers are sound and proper, the rest of the deeds will be sound and proper; and if the prayers are not sound and proper, then the rest of the deeds will not be sound and proper, as the Prophet (peace be upon him) himself stated.
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In reality, the prayer is performed properly – with true remembrance of Allah and turning to Him for forgiveness – it will have a lasting effect on the person. After he finishes the prayer, his heart will be filled with the remembrance of Allah. He will be fearful as well as hopeful of Allah. After that experience, he will not want to move from that lofty position to one wherein he disobeys Allah. Allah has mentioned this aspect of the prayer when He has said,
"Verily, the prayer keeps one from the great sins and evil deeds" (al-Ankaboot 45). Nadwi has described this effect in the following eloquent way,
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Its aim is to generate within the subliminal self of man such spiritual power, light of faith and awareness of God as can enable him to strive successfully against all kinds of evils and temptations and remain steadfast at times of trial and adversity and protect himself against the weakness of the flesh and the mischief of immoderate appetites. [Nadwi, p. 24]
The overall affect that the properly performed prayers should have upon humans is described in other verses in the Quran:
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"Verily, man was created impatient, irritable when evil touches him and niggardly when good touches him. Except for those devoted to prayer those who remain constant in their prayers…" (al-Maarij 19-23).
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As for the Hereafter, Allah’s forgiveness and pleasure is closely related to the prayers. The Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) said,
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"Allah has obligated five prayers. Whoever excellently performs their ablutions, prays them in their proper times, completes their bows, prostrations and khushu` [Khushu` in the prayer is where the person’s heart is attuned to the prayer. This feeling in the heart is then reflected on the body. The person remains still and calm. His gaze is also lowered. Even his voice is affected by this feeling in the heart. For more details on this concept (as well as the difference between it and khudhu`), see Muhammad al-Shaayi, al-Furooq al-Laughawiyyah wa Atharahaa fi Tafseer al-Quran al-Kareem (Riyadh: Maktabah al-Ubaikaan, 1993), pp. 249-254.] has a promise from Allah that He will forgive him. And whoever does not do that has no promise from Allah. He may either forgive him or punish him." [Recorded by Malik, Ahmad, Abu Dawud, al-Nasa’I and others. According to al-Albani, it is sahih. Al-Albani, Sahih al-Jami, vol. 1, p. 616.] ]
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The prayers are a type of purification for a human being. He turns and meets with his Lord five times a day. As alluded to above, this repeated standing in front of Allah should keep the person from performing sins during the day. Furthermore, it should also be a time of remorse and repentance, such that he earnestly asks Allah for forgiveness for those sins that he committed. In addition, the prayer in itself is a good deed that wipes away some of the evil deeds that he performed. These points can be noted in the following hadith of the Prophet (peace be upon him):
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"If a person had a stream outside his door and he bathed in it five times a day, do you think he would have any filth left on him?" The people said, "No filth would remain on him whatsoever." The Prophet (peace be upon him) then said, "That is like the five daily prayers: Allah wipes away the sins by them." (Recorded by al-Bukhari and Muslim.)
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In another hadith, the Prophet (peace be upon him) said,
"The five daily prayers and the Friday Prayer until the Friday prayer are expiation for what is between them." (Recorded by Muslim.)
Warnings to Those Who Don't Pray on Time
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It is not permissible to delay prayers beyond the time when they are due, because Allaah says (interpretation of the meaning):
“Verily, As‑Salaah (the prayer) is enjoined on the believers at fixed hours.” [al-Nisa’ 4:103]
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“Then, there has succeeded them a posterity who have given up As‑Salaah (the prayers) [i.e. made their Salaah (prayers) to be lost, either by not offering them or by not offering them perfectly or by not offering them in their proper fixed times] and have followed lusts. So they will be thrown in Hell.” [Maryam 19:59]
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It is better to hasten to perform the prayers when the time for them begins, because of the hadeeth narrated by al-Bukhaari (496) and Muslim (122) from ‘Abd-Allaah ibn Mas’ood (may Allaah be pleased with him) who said:
I asked the Messenger of Allaah (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him), “Which deed is most beloved to Allaah?” He said: “Prayer offered on time.” He said, “Then what?” He said, “Honouring one’s parents.” He said: “Then what?” He said, “Jihad for the sake of Allaah.”
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