Prayer
Prayer is the second pillar of Islam. Prayer means "calling on, addressing, making a fervent request, asking for help." In the Qur'an, prayer is also described as "turning to Allah with all one's soul" or the "acknowledgement of one's weaknesses and limited power before Allah's infinite might, and asking for help from Him". Praying any time is a great virtue for people, however, Muslims are additionaly supposed to perform 5 special prayers every day beside regular prayers.
Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) said, "Offer your prayers (Salat) the way you see me offering them." [26]. The generality of the Prophet’s (PBUH) statement includes women. Therefore, all the actions of the prayer apply equally to men and women. There is nothing in the Sunnah to necessitate the exception of women from any of these descriptions. It's a major misconception in Islam, those women pray different than men. Outside of the dress code, women do not pray different then men. Men and women pray equally in the same manner. There is no difference between the way a man prays and the way a woman prays.
Muslims are often seen kneeling and prostrating on small embroidered rugs, called "prayer rugs." For those unfamiliar with the use of these rugs, they may look like small "oriental carpets," or simply nice pieces of embroidery. During Islamic prayers, worshippers bow, kneel, and prostrate on the ground in humility before God. The only requirement in Islam is that prayers be performed in an area that is clean. Prayer rugs are not universally used by Muslims, nor specifically required in Islam. But they have become a traditional way for many Muslims to ensure the cleanliness of their place of prayer and to create an isolated space to concentrate in prayer. Prayer rugs are usually about one meter long, just enough for an adult to fit comfortably when kneeling or prostrating. Modern, commercially-produced rugs are often made of silk or cotton [27].
The following table shows the details about prayers in Islam:
No |
Name |
No of Rakah |
Time |
1 |
Al-Fajer |
2 |
Before the sunrise |
2 |
Al-Duhar |
4 |
Noon time |
3 |
Al-Asar |
4 |
End of the afternoon |
4 |
Al-Magrab |
3 |
After the Sunrise |
5 |
Al-Ashaa |
4 |
Before mid night |
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