<!-- Begin #main - Contains main-column blog content --> <div id="main"><div id="main2"> <h1 id="blog-mobile-title"> <a href="http://slvercussionistic.blogspot.com/"> You got the music in you! </a> </h1> <p id="description-mobile"></p> <h2 class="date-header">Thursday, July 12, 2007</h2> <!-- Begin .post --> <div class="post"><a name="9035910395750234169"></a> <h3 class="post-title"> Practical Ways to Improve Your Salat </h3> <div class="post-body"> <p> <div style="clear:both;"></div><p dir="ltr"><span lang="en-us"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;">By Nizami Suleman<br />Kasmani<br /><br />Here are practical ways we can improve and enjoy our Salat as it was<br />meant to be! Today we have indeed come to treat the Prayer (Salah) as<br />something insignificant in our lives. Very often we hear our elders say,<br />“I will start praying when the time comes.” Others, especially the<br />younger Muslims, do not find much comfort, and joy in their Prayers. Due<br />to our treatment of Prayer as a burden, our love and passion for the<br />Prayer has vanished.<br /><br />Our hearts have become hardened, and we have become a depressed and<br />defeated people. As a result, many are searching for ‘cures and remedies’<br />to the distress in our lives, through any means available, but are unable<br />to find any because they have ignored the greatest medicine - Salah!<br /><br />If we look deep into our daily lives and diagnose the causes of our<br />spiritual, social and psychological illnesses, we will realise that<br />probably something as uplifting, as evolutionary, and empowering as Salah<br />is missing.... If we, the youth, realize the potential role of Prayer in<br />changing our lives and as a constant source of hope, we would regret<br />missing even a single Salah.<br /><br />The Role of Salah in Changing our Lives<br /><br />The whole purpose of Salah is to be ever conscious of Allah, the Creator<br />and Sustainer of all things. Salah is indeed, one of the most<br />comprehensive forms of Dhikr (Remembrance). No wonder, Allah states in a<br />Hadith qudsi: “Out of all the ways through which my servant gets closer<br />to Me, Salah is the dearest to Me.” (Bukhari)<br /><br />It is unfortunate, therefore, that we do not always take full advantage<br />of this gift. We may compare the obligatory Salah to bathing five times a<br />day. If after such frequent bathing, your body still remains dirty, then<br />we may question the usefulness and efficacy of such bathing. Similarly,<br />if after regular observance of Prayer your heart remains unmoved and your<br />morals remain corrupt, we may question the usefulness of your Prayer. If<br />you enter into Salah and come out of it the same person, then you have<br />missed something great. How can you improve the quality of your Salah?<br /><br />Remember, first and foremost, that as soon as you commence your Salah,<br />Shaytan makes it his duty to fill your mind with anything and everything,<br />but thoughts of Allah. He tries ceaselessly to disengage your mind and<br />heart from such remembrance. It is this state of absentmindedness that<br />destroys the quality of your Prayer.<br /><br />Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) once said: “Allah does not accept<br />the Prayers of an individual until his heart achieves in it what his body<br />has achieved.” [Al- Ghazali in Ihya-Uloom ad-Deen] The ability to<br />concentrate in Prayer may be improved by undertaking adequate<br />psychological, mental and physical preparation before the prayer and by<br />utilizing certain techniques during the Prayer.<br /><br />Ways to Improve Salat<br /><br />Avoid praying in a state in which you are mentally and physically<br />fatigued. Keep your mind free of worldly worries, evil thoughts, and<br />ideas.<br />Plan what verses/duas you are going to recite.<br />If you do not understand Arabic, learn the meaning of what you recite<br />in your Prayer.<br />Remind yourself that engaging in Prayer offers you an opportunity to<br />release yourself from the tensions of this world. The Prophet (Pbuh) has<br />said that in Prayer was placed the comfort of his eyes. Therefore cherish<br />the opportunity to remove the burdens of this world from your shoulders.<br />Use your Prayer to remain focused on your mission in life, which is<br />to bring your entire being to serve only Allah.<br />Use your Prayer as a source of strength, inspiration and enthusiasm<br />for your life and activities.<br />Fulfill all your personal needs before you commence your Prayer, for<br />e.g.,thirst, hunger and calls of nature.<br />Pray in a pure physical state. Perform your wudu with care and<br />perfection. Although the whole earth is a masjid or a place of worship,<br />choose a place that is clean.<br />Pray in an environment free of noise and one where there is no<br />distraction. Adorn yourself with clean and respectable clothes.<br />Assess your mental readiness for Prayer before its commencement,<br />during the various postures, after each raka and ultimately at the end.<br />Pray with humility both in your mental state and in your physical<br />manner.<br />Pray with hope and awe.<br />Remind yourself continually that you are talking to the most<br />important ‘One’ in your life - your Creator and Sustainer. He is in front<br />of you. You are facing Him and you are involved in a dialogue with Him.<br />Commence your Prayer by seeking Allah’s help and protection from the<br />influences of Shaytan.<br />Lower your gaze while praying and do not allow the physical<br />environment to distract you.<br />On each occasion that you recite the Sifat or attributes of Allah in<br />Ruku and Sajda, consider how indebted you are and how grateful you should<br />be to Allah and express your true emotions.<br />Utilise the occasion of Sajda to make additional dua to Allah. The<br />Prophet said: “A servant is nearest to his Lord when he is in Sajda, so<br />increase your supplication when in Sajda.” (Muslim.)<br />Pray as if it is your last Prayer. The Messenger of Allah said: When<br />you stand up to pray, perform your prayer as if it were your last...’<br />(Ahmad)<br /><br /><br />Compiled from<br /><br />“In The Early Hours”<br /><br />by Khurram Murad</span></span></p><div style="clear:both; padding-bottom:0.25em"></div> </p> </div> <p class="post-footer"> <em>signed, sealed and delivered by Nur Abdul Karim @ <a href="http://slvercussionistic.blogspot.com/2007/07/practical-ways-to-improve-your-salat.html" title="permanent link">11:03 AM</a></em> <span class="item-control blog-admin pid-1381892679"><a style="border:none;" href="https://www.blogger.com/post-edit.g?blogID=32240216&postID=9035910395750234169&from=pencil" title="Edit Post"><img class="icon-action" alt="" src="https://resources.blogblog.com/img/icon18_edit_allbkg.gif" height="18" width="18"></a></span> </p> </div> <!-- End .post --> <!-- Begin #comments --> <div id="comments"> <a name="comments"></a> <h4>0 Comments:</h4> <dl id="comments-block"> </dl> <p class="comment-timestamp"> <a class="comment-link" href="https://www.blogger.com/comment/fullpage/post/32240216/9035910395750234169">Post a Comment</a> </p> <p class="comment-timestamp"> <a href="http://slvercussionistic.blogspot.com/"><< Home</a> </p> </div> <!-- End #comments --> </div></div> <!-- End #main -->
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