بسم الله الرحمن الرحيم
والحمدلله رب العالمين والصلاة والسلام على أشرف الأنبياء والمرسلين
In the name of Allah, the Most Merciful the Most Compassionate
All praise be to Allah, and may peace and blessings be upon the most noble of the Prophets and Messengers.
Salah (prayer) is one of the five pillars of Islam. Such is that importance of salah that unlike any other commandment, Allah called the Prophet (pbuh) to the heavens to prescribe him with the five daily prayers. Initially, the commandment was for fifty prayers a day, but fearing that this would become a burden to the Ummah, the Prophet (pbuh) requested for it to be brought down to just five. Despite this, the rewards for keeping the prayers are as if we had prayed all fifty.
The daily prayers are a way for us to keep a close connection to our Creator. It is through salah that we can get our suplications answered and our needs fulfilled. When the companions of the Prophet (pbuh) were in need, they would turn to Allah in prayer. Salah is a way for us to show a commitment to our faith. Everytime we pray salah, we renew our commitment to Allah and relieve ourselves from the pressures of our daily lives.
The last thing that Prophet Muhammad (pbuh.) emphasized at his deathbed was salah. He also said the first thing we will have to answer about on the day of judgement is salah. If our record on salah is good then insha Allah the rest of our reckoning will be made easier. The importance of salah was emphasized in the Quran about 500 times, so all Muslims should be aware of how central salah is to our faith. Indeed, the Prophet (pbuh) said that “Salah is the only distinction between a believer and a non-believer.” (Muslim) So imagine of the status of that person who misses his prayer? What distinction does that person has from the non-believers?
Allah mentions in the Quran:
Therefore remember Me (by praying, glorifying, etc.).I will remember you, and be grateful to Me (for My countless Favours on you) and never be ungrateful to Me. (2:152)
Despite this, so many of us miss salah completely or do not make salah on time. There is no excuse for this. Alhamdulillah, some of us have prayer rooms at school, college or university. Imagine how Allah, the most merciful, appreciates it when his servant turns to Him in prayer, interrupting all worldly duties. Whoever does salah, Allah makes his day easier and facilitates his needs in this world and also in the hereafter.
Another habit Muslims should have is to make salah wherever they are. So even at work, or when we are out, we should not miss the salah. The ground in which we pray salah, even if in the streets, will be a witness for us in the day of judgement. Once salah becomes regular in our lives we begin to understand the benefits it brings and almost impossible to miss it. Salah becomes such a basic part of our lives that we feel empty without praying to the extent that we find relief in salah.
Finally, some of us may have missed salah in the past and may have not recovered those prayers thinking that missed prayers do not really matter. Salah becomes obligatory to all Muslims once they reach puberty. Therefore it is important that we calculate those prayers that we have missed and make up for them. We will be accountable in the day of judgement for every prayer that we miss and there is a severe punishment for missing the salah. Unfortunately, many fail to pray particularly the night and morning prayers (Fajr and Isha). Abu Hurayra reported that the Messenger of Allah (pbuh) said, “And if they only knew what was in the prayers of ‘Isha’ and Subh [fajr], they would come to them even if they had to crawl.” (Bukhari/Muslim)
May Allah strenghten our determination and steadfasteness in performing our salah and may we grow closer to our Creator through salah. Ameen.