Believer's Support and Absolute Tranquility

بسم الله الرحمن الرحيم
In the Name of Allah, Most Merciful, Most Compassionate
Assalaamu alaykum

Dear Friends

I pray that you are well.

The prayer (as-salat) is our support and strength, and joy for those people who Allah blessed them in their prayers. The prayer is an absolute peace and tranquility. The Prophet, Allah bless him and grant him peace, said: "The coolness of my eyes is in the prayer."

The call to prayer is a comfort to People of Allah. The Prophet, Allah bless him and grant him peace, said :"O Bilal, comfort us with it." Meaning give the call to prayer.

There is no act more powerful than the prayers, especially the five times prescribed daily prayers -- Dhuhr (afternoon), 'Asr (mid-afternoon), Maghrib (sunset), 'Isha (night) and Fajr (dawn). The five prayers take the weight of fifty prayers. It is a very potent concentrated medicine to pray five times daily. It is our personal school as long as we keep it for the rest of our lives. We will learn knowledge that we cannot learn from books.

Imagine someone who prays five times everyday no matter where they are, no matter what conditions they are in, the prayer will teach him things that books cannot teach. Praying in parking lots, sidewalks, roadside, airports, malls and many other awkward places, would teach him who is more important and whose eyes he care about more. Books cannot teach him that.

Imagine praying five times everyday in places where there are the four seasons -- summer, fall, winter and spring. It can be quite challenging in the winter when Fajr is very early in the morning and in the summer when 'Isha is very late at night. It requires planning and readjusting your sleep and work schedule in order to perform the prayers at their prescribed times. This teaches us an important virtue in our daily lives -- being flexible. Books cannot teach us this.

Someone who prays five times everyday faithfully under whatever circumstances and wakes up in the middle of night and pray is not an ordinary person with Allah. He is a very special person.

Allah created us and so He knows what is best for us. We don't need to guess. We simply obey His commands. He has commanded us to pray because He knows we need the prayers. He is All-Knowing. And if we don't pray, we are simply denying a precious gift from the Most Generous. And this is not a wise thing to do. Would you deny a billion dollars that is given to you with no string attach? How much can you do with a billion dollars? The prayer is worth more than a billion dollars. In fact, it is worth everything you have and all the wealth on this earth and the Most Generous will reward you for your prayers and expect nothing in return.

There is no better way to expose ourselves to the Mercy and sweet breezes of the Mercy of Allah other than through the prayers and in particular praying as our Prophet ﷺ prayed, inwardly and outwardly. Our lives change at least 5 times a day, with our 5 daily prayers, and it is an amazing change.

إِنَّ الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا وَعَمِلُوا الصَّالِحَاتِ وَأَقَامُوا الصَّلَاةَ وَآتَوُا الزَّكَاةَ لَهُمْ أَجْرُهُمْ عِندَ رَبِّهِمْ وَلَا خَوْفٌ عَلَيْهِمْ وَلَا هُمْ يَحْزَنُونَ ﴿٢٧٧

Indeed, those who believe and do righteous deeds and establish prayer and give zakah will have their reward with their Lord, and there will be no fear concerning them, nor will they grieve. (277)

[Qur'an al-Baqarah 2:277]

إِنَّ الَّذِينَ يَتْلُونَ كِتَابَ اللَّـهِ وَأَقَامُوا الصَّلَاةَ وَأَنفَقُوا مِمَّا رَزَقْنَاهُمْ سِرًّا وَعَلَانِيَةً يَرْجُونَ تِجَارَةً لَّن تَبُورَ ﴿٢٩

Those who rehearse the Book of Allah, establish regular Prayer, and spend (in Charity) out of what We have provided for them, secretly and openly, hope for a commerce that will never fail. For He will pay them their wages, nay, He will give them (even) more out of His Bounty: for He is Oft-Forgiving, Most Ready to appreciate (service).

[Qur'an Fatir 35:29-30]

The prayer is the ascent of a believer. So, understand that that it is something big -- bigger than any PhD projects, in fact bigger than all the projects of the world and all the great businesses of this life. The prayer is the greatest opportunity to draw near to the Lord of the worlds. As soon as the prayer time enters we should be longing to stand before our Lord. The more longing we have to stand before our Lord, it would directly translate into the next world and our degree of closeness to Him.

So let's pray and do not leave and neglect your prayers. When the prayer is intact and in shape then everything else will be intact and in shape as well, inshaAllah.

May Allah grant us excellence in worship, steadfastness and tranquility in prayers and good health so we may worship Him more and better. Ameen.

Please don't forget us in your night prayers. Jazakallahu khairan.

And Allah knows best.
Wassalaam