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All praise is due to Allah. We praise Him, seek His assistance and His forgiveness. We believe in Him and place our trust in Him. We seek refuge in Allah from the mischief of our souls and our bad actions. He whom Allah guides no one can mislead him, and he whom Allah misleads no one can guide him. We bear testimony that there is no god except Allah. He is alone and has no partner and we bear testimony that our leader Muhammad is His servant and messenger. O Allah, shower your peace and blessings on him andon his descendants and the companions. I seek refuge in Allah from the Shaitaan accursed. In the name of Allah, the Most Beneficent, the Most Merciful. “Who has created death and life, that He may test you which of you is best in deed” (i.e. who amongst you do the good deeds in the most perfect manner, that means to do them (deeds) totally for Allah’s sake and in accordance to the legal ways of Prophet Muhammad( sallallahu alayhi wasallam)) (The Qur’an, Al-Mulk 67:2). Introduction The mistakes wish to highlight here are ones frequently committed in salaat by men and women, boys and girls. Because they are serious mistakes, it is imperative that rectification is made urgently. Will start by first of all explaining the virtues and significance of the five obligatory salaats. Importance of salaat: Salaat is a supreme form of worship. In particular, the five daily salaats are very special. Initially, Almighty made the performance of fifty daily salaats obligatory on this Ummah but due to the intercession of Rasoolullah sallallahu alayhi wasallam this command was changed to five. Further, Almighty Allah said that if a person prays five times a day he or she shall be conferred the reward of having prayed fifty times a day. This is the virtue of the five daily salaats. May Almighty Allah instil its significance into our hearts (aameen). I will now turn to some fascinating reports regarding the origins and wisdom of the five obligatory salaats. Fajr Salaat: The first person to offer the two rak’ats of Fajr salaat was Hadhrat Adam alayhis salaam. He was taken out of Paradise, which was illuminated, and sent into the world. When he arrived here it was night-time. This made him deeply anxious and distressed. Slowly it began to light up and subha sadiq appeared. Hadhrat Adam(a s) felt revivified. Before sunrise he offered two rak’ats of salaat by way of thanksgiving. The first rak’at was for the dispelling of darkness and the second in gratefulness of the daylight. Almighty Allah liked this prayer so much that He made the two rak’ats of Fajr salaat obligatory on the Ummat of Rasoolullah sallallahu alayhi wasallam (E’nayah). Zuhr Salaat: The first person to offer the four rak’ats of Zuhr salaat was Hadhrat Ibrahim (a s). The salaat was performed after successfully fulfilling the command of Almighty Allah and offering his son Hadhrat Ismail (a s) for sacrifice. The first rak’at was performed to thank Almighty Allah for helping him overcome this difficult test; the second for substituting a ram (from Paradise) for Hadhrat Ismail (a s); the third for the direct address he received from Almighty Allah, saying: “And We called out to him: “O Ibrahim! You have fulfilled the dream (vision)!” Verily! Thus We do reward the Muhsinun” (i.e. good-doers, who perform good deeds totally for Allah’s sake only, without any show off or to gain praise or fame etc. And do them in accordance to Allah’s Orders) (The Qur’an, As-Saffat37:104-5). |
