ISLAM: PRAYER-The most virtous deed

Subject: ISLAM: PRAYER-The most virtous deed Thu Jul 26, 2007 6:42 pm

Prayer: the most virtuous deed

THE importance of the prayer in Islam cannot be understated. It is the first pillar of Islam that the Prophet (sallallaahu ‘alahi wa sallam – 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,

“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]

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.
Once a man asked the Prophet (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]

The importance of prayer is demonstrated in the many of the Prophet’s statement. For example, the Prophet (peace 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.” [Recorded by al-Tabarani. According to al-Albani, it is sahih. Al-Albani, Sahih al-Jami, vol.1, p. 503. ]

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.
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,
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 Qur’an:
“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).
As for the Hereafter, Allah’s forgiveness and pleasure is closely related to the prayers. The Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) said,
“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.] 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.] ]

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):
“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.)
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.)

truly yours,
ALI-ZIAD NATCHER A. SALI
aznas0429@yahoo.com

Subject: Re: ISLAM: PRAYER-The most virtous deed Fri Jul 27, 2007 12:00 pm

ali you are posting in wrong topic i will move the topic in religion board

Subject: Re: ISLAM: PRAYER-The most virtous deed Sun Jul 29, 2007 6:23 am

Assalamu alaikum warahmatullah!

Safe, same din dun sa women's issues, bro ali also posted an article about shirk which belongs to "belief" category.This one as you know goes to the topic related to salah.

Jazakallahu khairan!

Chief Marshal Number of posts : 18 Registration date : 2007-06-04

topics moved goodjob

Subject: Re: ISLAM: PRAYER-The most virtous deed Sun Jul 29, 2007 7:54 am

Bro Batah Sug,

move mo uli ang topic to salah category.Thank u! Smile

,nasa aqeedah /belief kasi tayo eh..

Subject: Re: ISLAM: PRAYER-The most virtous deed Sun Jul 29, 2007 7:56 am

oo nga nu hahahaha pati ako nahihilo na eh.. itong ali na ito.. eh kakagatin ko yan.. niyahahaha Laughing

Subject: Re: ISLAM: PRAYER-The most virtous deed Sun Jul 29, 2007 11:15 am

hehe okei lang. cguro kelangan lang ni bro. ali ng orientation about sa forum, dapat hwag masyadong magmadali sa kakapost, read muna kung saan dapat, simple lang namn ,read and click(to open) the topic, then copy ,paste. okei dokie! And sana next time magbigay ng line spacing.

Subject: Re: ISLAM: PRAYER-The most virtous deed Sun Jul 29, 2007 1:37 pm

But anyway, in fairness,i just finished actually reading the whole article, masha-Allah! it reminds us more to be focus in our daily salah..Actually there's a hadith also collected by Imaam albukhari, that one of the deeds loved by Allah the Most Merciful,the Most High is performing the prayer at it fixed times.

Narrated by Abdullah

I asked the Prophet "Which deed is the dearest to Allah?" He replied, "To offer the prayers at their early stated fixed times." I asked, "What is the next (in goodness)?" He replied, "To be good and dutiful to your parents" I again asked, "What is the next (in goodness)?" He replied, 'To participate in Jihad (religious fighting) in Allah's cause." 'Abdullah added, "I asked only that much and if I had asked more, the Prophet would have told me more."Hadith #506-The Book of Prayer Times,Sahih Albukhari.

Jazakallahu khairan!

Subject: Re: ISLAM: PRAYER-The most virtous deed Thu Aug 07, 2008 9:31 pm

truly yours,
ALI-ZIAD NATCHER A. SALI
aznas0429@yahoo.com

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