Salat

For an Indian village, see Salat, Kulpahar. For the river of southwestern France, see Salat River.

Salat (also salah and other spellings) (Arabic: صلاة, Qur'anic Arabic: صلوة), meaning to pray, or to bless, generally refers to prayers that Muslims offer to Allah and most commonly refers to the five daily ritual prayers in Islam. It is one of the Five Pillars of Islam in Sunni Islam, and one of the ten Branches of Religion in Shi'a Islam. As such, it is compulsory (fard) upon every Muslim. It is quite commonly known as namaaz in south Asian languages such as Urdu and non south Asian languages such as Persian.

Performing salat is the most compulsory act in Islam, after the declaration of faith (shahadah).

The salat must be performed in the Arabic language to the best of each worshipper's ability (although the du'a afterwards need not be in Arabic), and are to be recited by heart, although beginners may use written aids. The person performing salah is referred to as a musalleeh.

All salat should be conducted within their waqt (prescribed time) and with the appropriate number of raka'ah. While they may be prayed at any point within the waqt, it is considered best to pray them exactly at the beginning of their periods, when the call to prayer (adhan) announces the time of prayer. When too far from a mosque to hear a call to prayer, the time may be inferred from the position of the sun in the sky.

Etymology

The word 'salat' is from the root Saad-Lam-Waw and has the following meanings, taken from Classical Arabic lexicons (e.g. E. W Lane): prayer, supplication, petition, oration, eulogy, benediction, commendation, blessing, honour, magnify, bring forth, follow closely, walk/follow behind closely, to remain attached, to contact or to be in contact. Its core underlying meaning relevant to all its usage in the Qur'an is to go/turn towards, as mentioned in Qur'an 75:31-2.

Purpose of salat

To Muslims the daily ritual prayers are to firstly honour and fulfil their 'contract' with God (arab. Allah) and also serve as a constant reminder to Muslims that they should be grateful for Allah's blessings.

The prayer is mentionend in the Qur'an as a means to keep the believer safe from social wrong and moral deviancy (ref. Qur'an 29:45).

Types of salat

Prayers are generically classified as compulsory and optional. A more precise division consists of classifying salat into four types: fard, wajib, sunnah and nafl.

Fard salat are compulsory and denial of which renders one a non-Muslim.
Wajib salat are compulsory and denial of which renders one a sinner.
Sunnah salat are optional and were those practised by the prophet Muhammad.
Nafl salat are optional and regarded as extra prayers which bring more reward.

Fard salat

The fard prayers are the five daily prayers, the Friday prayer and the funeral prayer. Fard prayers are further classed as fard al-ayn and fard al-kifayah, meaning obligatory on the individual and obligatory on the Muslim community, respectively.

The five daily prayers

Muslims are commanded to perform salat fives times a day. These prayers are obligatory on every Muslim above the age of puberty, with the exception being those who are mentally ill, too physically ill for it to be possible, menstruating, or experiencing post-partum bleeding. Those who are ill or otherwise physically unable to offer their prayers in the traditional form are permitted to offer their prayers while sitting or laying, as they are able.

Some Muslims offer Sunnah prayers in addition to the fard prayer. Shia refer to these prayers done immediately before or after the fard prayers as nafil, or nawafil, prayers and perform them in sets of two raka'ah. The number of raka'ah (prayer units) for each of the five obligatory prayers as well as the sunnah prayers are listed below:

Name	Time Period	Sunnah before fard		Fard	Sunnah after fard
Name	Time Period			Fard
Sunni	Shi'a	Sunni	Shi'a
Fajr (فجر)	Dawn to Sunrise	2 Raka'ah¹	2 Raka'ah	2 Raka'ah	-	-
Dhuhr (ظهر)	After true noon until Asr	4 Raka'ah¹	8 Raka'ah	4 Raka'ah²	2 Raka'ah¹	-
Asr (عصر)	See footnote³	4 Raka'ah	8 Raka'ah	4 Raka'ah	-	-
Maghrib (مغرب)	After sunset until Isha'a	-	-	3 Raka'ah	2 Raka'ah¹	4 Raka'ah
Isha'a (عشاء)	Dusk until Fajr⁴	4 Raka'ah	-	4 Raka'ah	2 Raka'ah¹, 3 Witr	2 Raka'ah

¹Prayed daily by the prophet Muhammad

²Replaced by Jumu'ah on Fridays.

³According to Imam Abu Hanifa, 'Asr starts when the shadow of an object becomes twice its height (plus the length of its shadow at the time of Dhuhr). For the rest of Imams, 'Asr starts when the shadow of an object becomes equal to its length (plus the length of its shadow at the time of Dhuhr). 'Asr ends as the sun begins to set.

⁴According to Shi'a Imams, it is valid at any time after the Maghrib prayer has been validly performed and ends at the time for the Fajr prayer.

Optional prayers can be offered at any time during the day, except at sunrise, true noon, and sunset. The prohibition against salawāt at these times is to prevent the appearance of sun-worship.

Jumu'ah

Salat al-Jumu'ah is a congregational prayer performed on Friday and which replaces the Dhuhr prayer. As such, it is sometimes referred to as the 'Friday prayer' in some countries. It consists of a sermon (khutba) given by the khatib after which 2 rakahs are performed.

Janazah

Salat al-Janazah is a funeral prayer. It is classed as fard kifayah.

Exceptional circumstances

Qada

In certain circumstances one may be unable to perform one's prayer within the prescribed time period (waqt). In this case, the prayer must be performed as soon as one is able to do so. These prayers performed after the prescribed waqt are called qada. It is not permissible to deliberately miss performing the salat within its waqt with the intention of performing it afterwards.

Qasr and jama

When travelling over long distances, one may shorten some prayers, a practice known as qasr. Furthermore, several prayer times may be concatenated, which is referred to as jama. Qasr involves shortening the obligatory components of the Dhuhr, 'Asr and 'Isha prayers. Jama combines either the Dhuhr and 'Asr prayers into one prayer offered between noon and sunset or Maghrib and 'Isha between sunset and Fajr. Neither qasr nor jama can be applied to the Fajr prayer.

Wajib salat

The wajib prayers are considered compulsory in the sense that denial of which renders one a sinner (but not necessarily a non-Muslim).

Witr

Witr salah is performed after the salah of 'Isha. It may contain any odd number of raka'ah from one to eleven according to the different madha'ib. However, Witr is most commonly offered with three raka'ah. It is preferable to perform Witr in the latter part of the night, but it is much better to perform it at the beginning of the night than not at all.

During a three-raka'ah Witr prayer, it is recommended that the sura following Sura al-Fatiha be Sura al-Ala. In the second rak'ah, it is preferred that that sura be Sura Al-Kafirun while in the third raka'ah, one of the last three chapters of the Qur'an is recommended. Before going to ruk'u in the third raka'ah, the Muslim should offer an extra takbir and du'a while standing.

Eid

Eid salat is performed on the morning of Eid ul-Fitr and Eid ul-Adha. It is wajib upon males to perform it, but women will often times still attend. It consists of two raka'ah, with seven takbirs offered before the start of the first raka'ah and seven raka'ah offered before the second. Unlike with Jumu'ah prayers, the khutbah (or sermon) is offered after salat. However, the khutbah is an integral part of the Eid salat. The Eid prayer must be offered between sunrise and true noon, or between the time periods for fajr and dhuhr, respectively.

Sunnah salat

Sunnah prayers are those that are performed to emulate the practices of Muhammad. Sunni Muslims also perform sunnah prayers for extra reward.

While nafl salat may be performed at almost any time of the day, certain Sunnah prayers have prescribed waqts associated with them. Those ordained for before the fard prayers must be performed between the call to prayer (adhan) and the start of the iqamah, while those ordained for after the fard prayers can be performed any time between the end of the fard prayers and the end of the current prayer's waqt. Any amount of extra raka'ah may be offered, but most madhabs prescribe a certain number of raka'ah for each Sunnah salah.

Nafl salat

"Nafl" (supererogatory) prayers are numerous which one can offer, as many as he or she likes almost any time. They cannot be offered at sunrise, true noon, or sunset because of the practice of sun-worship, which is regarded in Islam as a form of idolatry.

Preparation for salat

Cleanliness and Dress

When a Muslim is praying, his clothes and the place where he is praying must be clean. Men and women each are directed to cover their bodies in reasonably loose-fitting garments, with women covering all but their faces, hands, and sometimes feet, and men covering at least from their navels to their knees, with preference given to covering their chests and to above their ankles. Many men, in accordance with tradition, also choose to wear a kufi cap or other headcovering for prayer.

Ritual ablution

Prayer can only be conducted after a Muslim has performed wudu (ritual ablution). In wudu, Sunni Muslims wash their hands, teeth, faces, noses, arms, hair, ears and feet three times in a particular order. Shi'a Muslims first wash their faces, then their arms, and then wipe their heads and feet with the moisture on their hands. If a Muslim has had sexual intercourse, ejected semen, or is new to the faith, he or she must perform ghusl, a full-body cleansing.

When no water is available for performing ablutions, clean sand may be used in its place (this type of cleansing is known as tayammum). If the ablutions were performed using water, the Muslim is considered to have cleansed him or herself from the physical manifestations of sin in a lasting fashion that extends between prayers; unless the Muslim does something to remove this cleanliness, the cleansing would not need to be repeated before the next prayer. When sand is used, the cleansing is only temporary and regardless of whether or not the Muslim commits any physical acts of uncleanliness he or she will need to undergo the ceremonial cleansing immediately before the next prayer.

Performing salat

The Muslim performing salat begins his prayer by standing and facing the direction of the Qibla and making niyyah (the -- typically non-verbal -- intention to pray). He raises his hands and speaks aloud a phrase called the takbir:

{| "God is the greatest" الله اكبر الله اكبر Allahu akbar

At the beginning of each raka'ah, the first chapter of the Qur'an, Sura al-Fatiha, is recited.

{| "In the name of God, the Beneficent, the Merciful:" بِسْمِ ٱللَّهِ ٱلرَّحْمَـٰنِ ٱلرَّحِيم Bismillah ar-rahmaan ar-raheem "Praise be to God, Lord of the worlds," ٱلْحَمْدُ لِلَّهِ رَبِّ ٱلْعَـٰلَمِين Al-hamdu lillahi rabb al-alameen "The Beneficent, the Merciful," ٱلرَّحْمَـٰنِ ٱلرَّحِيم Ar-rahmaan ar-raheem' "Master of the day of judgment" مَـٰلِكِ يَوْمِ ٱلدِّين Ma^*liki yawm ad-deen "You (alone) do we worship, and you (alone) we ask for help;" إِيَّاكَ نَعْبُدُ وَإِيَّاكَ نَسْتَعِينُ Iyyaaka naabudu wa iyyaaka nastaeen "Show us the straight path" ٱهْدِنَا ٱلصِّرَ ٰط ٱلْمُسْتَقِيمَ Ihdina s-siraata l-mustaqeem "The path of those You bestowed favor upon, not anger upon, and not of those who go astray." صِرَ ٰطَ ٱلَّذِينَ أَنْعَمْتَ عَلَيْهِمْ غَيْرِ ٱلْمَغْضُوبِ عَلَيْهِمْ وَلاَ ٱلضَّاۤلِّينَ Siraata l-latheena anamta alaihim ghair al-mughdoobi alaihim wa la daaleen

During the first two raka'ah, and following the recitation of al-Fatiha, any other chapter or several verses of the Qur'an are additionally recited. The Muslim then bows at the waist into ruk'u, repeating the takbir, and once in ruk'u says at least three times:

{| "Glory be to my Lord, the Supreme." Subhaana rabbiy al-‘azheem

The Muslim then returns to a standing position, saying:

{| "May God hear the one who praises Him." Sami‘a-llaahu liman hamidah "Our Lord, for You is all praise" Rabbanaa wa laka-l-hamd.

and subsequently prostrates into sajdah, placing his forehead, nose, hands, knees, and toes on the floor, while once again repeating the takbir. Once in sajdah he says at least three times:

The worshipper then says at least three times:

{| "Glory to my Lord the Most High" Subhaana rabbiy al-alaa

After returning to a upright sitting position momentarily, he again repeats the act and words of going into sajadah, to complete one raka'ah.

After one raka'ah is complete, the worshipper returns to a standing position, again repeating the takbir, and begins another raka'ah. After every two raka'ah he returns to an upright sitting position and says the first portion of the tashahhud:

{| "All glorification is for God. All acts of good deeds and worship are for Him." At-tahiyaatu lillaahi wa-s-salawaatu wa tayyibaat. "Peace and the mercy and blessings of God be upon you, O Prophet." As-salaamu ‘alayka ayyuha-n-nabiyyu wa rahmatu-llaahi wa barakaatuh. "Peace be upon us and all of God’s righteous servants." As-salaamu ‘alayna wa ‘ala ibadillaahi-s-saaliheen. "I bear witness that there is no god but God, and I bear witness that Muhammad is His Servant and Messenger." Ash-hadu an laa ilaha illaa-llaahu, wa ash-hadu anna Muhammadan ‘abduho wa rasooluhu.

After all raka'ah are completed, the worshipper completes the tashahhud

{| "O God, exalt Muhammad and the family of Muhammad as You exalted Ibrahim (Abraham) and the family of Ibrahim. Verily You are full of praise and majesty." Allaahumma salli ‘ala Muhammadin wa ‘ala aali Muhammadin kamaa sallayta ‘ala Ibraheema wa ‘ala aali Ibraheem. Innaka hameedun majeed. "O God, bless Muhammad and the family of Muhammad as You blessed Ibrahim and the family of Ibrahim. Verily, You are full of praise and majesty." Allaahumma baarik ‘ala Muhammadin wa ‘ala aali Muhammadin kamaa baarakta ‘ala Ibraheem wa ‘ala aali Ibraheem. Innaka hameedun majeed.

To conclude the prayer, the Muslim turns first toward his right and then toward his left, each time saying the taslim (salutation):

{| "Peace be on you and the mercy of God." السلام عليكم ورحمة ال As-salaamu ‘alaykum wa rahmatullah.

Supplications after salat

Shi'a Muslims end the session by reciting takbir three times.

In either case, Muslims will often times, offer a supplication (du'a). This supplication, which essentially gives Muslims an opportunity to ask God for forgiveness and blessings, can be offered in any language. However, supplications in Arabic are preferred.

Prayer in congregation

Muslim men are suggested to perform the fard salat in congregation (jama'ah), behind an Imam. Jama'ah prayer is considered better and has more social and spiritual benefit than individual prayer. According to most Islamic scholars, performing salat in congregation is a confirmed sunnah, thus obligatory for men, but is not required of or forbidden for women.

When the worshippers consist of men and women combined, one man is chosen as the imam. In this situation, women are typically forbidden from performing this role. This point, though unanimously agreed on by the major schools of Islam, is disputed by some groups, based partly on a hadith whose interpretation is controversial; see Women as imams. When the worshippers are entirely women, one woman is chosen as imam. When men, women, and children are praying, the children's rows have traditionally been between the men's and women's rows, with the men at the front. Another common configuration is where the men's and women's rows are side by side, separated by a curtain or other barrier, with the primary intention being for there to be no direct line of sight between male and female worshippers, following a Qur'anic injunction toward men and women each lowering their gazes. The main idea behind this is that there remains no direct line-of-sight between the men and women, following an injunction from the Qur'an 24:30-31. However, in recent times, particularly in the West, the level of enforcment of such tradition has been widely varied.

The person chosen to be an Imam may be a scholar, or the one who has the best knowledge of the Quran.

Invalidation of prayer

Certain actions are not permissible during salat and these render the salat invalid.

External links

References

Research into exercise and salat