Why Muslims Pray:
According to Koran, the whole of a Muslim’s life is meant for the praise, worship and submission to Allah. The framework of Muslim life and worship is what is known as the Five Pillars of Islam, Shahada or profession of faith, Salat or daily prayers, Zakat or almsgiving, Saum or Fast, and Hajj or pilgrimage to Mecca. If a devout Muslim follows Five Pillars this will lead him or her directly to the path of Heaven.
How Muslims Pray:
The Salat or daily prayer is one of the Five Pillars of Islam. A Muslim is supposed to pray Five times a day, at dawn, at noon, at mid afternoon, sunset and before midnight. A Muezzin or a holy man climb up to the Minaret of the Mosque and calls Muslims to pray in the Mosque at the prayer times. In a Mosque, the Muslims take off their shoes at the entrance and do Wadu (washing their hands, faces and feet). They then stand, kneel and touch the ground with their foreheads on a ‘Prayer Mat’, as they pray and recite verses from the Koran in Arabic. In a Mosque, an Imam, a person chosen by the congregation, who knows the Koran by heart, leads the prayers. There are no pictures, images or paintings in Mosques, as Islam is against idol worshipping. A ‘Mihrab’ (decorated place) indicates the direction of the Kabah in Mecca, towards which worshippers have to kneel so that all Muslims around the world are united in the praise of Allah. In the mosque or at home, a Muslim should pray on a ‘Pray Mat’ in a clean place, facing the Kabah that is in the direction of Mecca. The direction of the Kabah could be found by using a compass for praying purposes. A Muslim should cover their head with a cap or scarf before praying. Before starting prayer a Muslim should declare his intention to pray with a statement known as the ‘Niyyath’. Each time a Muslim while praying follows a prescribed sequence of ritual movements and words known as the ‘Rakath’. The number of Rakath he or she performs varies with each prayer session. At the end of the prayer or ‘Namaz’as it is called, worshippers exchange words with those praying on either side of them, as words of peace be with you, that is the end of the prayer or ‘Namaz’.
