Sincere Prayers

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

Assalaamu alaykum

Dear Friends

I pray that you are well.

We may at times have turned our backs on Allah through our disobedience or our wasting of time with all our devices and quests for material, but Allah never turns His back on us. He is always there and near. When you realize that Allah is there and near, you become different forever. What better conversation to have other than with the Creator, Dhu Al-Jalali wa Al-Ikram (Owner of Greatness and Honor).

Allah has gifted us with prayers so we can train ourselves to jump the hurdles and talk to Him. So, rush to prayer. We are required, as Muslims, to disengage ourselves from all worldly occupations and resort to our prayers, even when we are most busy, for this is the only way to success.

Prayer is our spiritual diet of which we should partake at least five times a day. Those who think that it is too often or too much should remember how many times daily they require food for their bodies. Is not spiritual development much more essential than physical development? Is not the soul more valuable than the body? When one dies, the soul and the body become separated. The body begins to decompose, the stiffness wanes, the tongue protrudes, the temperature drops, the skin discolors, the flesh rots, and the parasites have their feast - until all that is left is dried-out tooth and bone. The soul remains "alive" and is returned to its Creator to be taken into account. If food is needed several times daily to minister to the needs of the body, is not spiritual refreshment at the same time badly needed? Or, if the body would be starved if it were fed only on the seventh day, has not the soul been actually starved by denying to it even the little which it could get after six days?

Allah Almighty says:

وَمَا خَلَقْتُ الْجِنَّ وَالْإِنسَ إِلَّا لِيَعْبُدُونِ

I created the jinn and humankind only that they might worship Me.

Thus, prayer first and foremost, is the response to this Divine directive to worship the Creator. Prayer represents the individual’s affirmation of slavehood before the Lord of the universe and submission to His Omnipotent Will. It also represents a willing acknowledgment of our weakness and neediness by seeking Divine Grace, Mercy, Abundance and Forgiveness. Prayer, then, is a willful, directed action by the believer, seeking direct, unmediated communication with Allah, for Muslims believe that every human being is of interest to the Divine. It also represents a concrete manifestation of the Islamic conception of freewill, in that the decision to pray is one that must be made by each individual. In this way, prayer is a uniquely “human” form of worship, for all other creatures submit without question to Allah’s Will and are engaged in His praise, glorification and remembrance, as Allah Almighty says:

تُسَبِّحُ لَهُ السَّمَاوَاتُ السَّبْعُ وَالأَرْضُ وَمَن فِيهِنَّ وَإِن مِّن شَيْءٍ إِلاَّ يُسَبِّحُ بِحَمْدَهِ وَلَـكِن لاَّ تَفْقَهُونَ تَسْبِيحَهُمْ إِنَّهُ كَانَ حَلِيمًا غَفُورًا

and there is not a thing but hymneth His praise; but ye understand not their praise.

Prayer, by its very nature, is a form of request or entreaty, and thus requires the full conscious participation of the one praying, with will, intellect, body and soul. The one engaged in prayer is in direct connection with the Creator Who hears everything the supplicant says and responds – though not necessarily in the affirmative – to each request. This is the concrete manifestation of Allah’s role as the Hearer, the Aware and the Responsive, which represent three of the ninety-nine beautiful Names and Attributes of Allah that form the basis of the Islamic conception of the Divine.

While the Shari'ah has given permanence to the institution of prayer by requiring its observance at stated times and in a particular manner, it has also left ample room for the individual himself to select what portions of the Qur'an he likes and to make what supplications his soul yearns after. General directions have no doubt been given, but ample room has been left for the individual to give vent to his own feelings before the great Maker of the universe.

Sincere Prayers

Ibn 'Ata Allāh, a renowned Egyptian Sufi scholar of the 14th century wrote:

The ritual prayer is the focal point of heavenly discourse, the source of purity by which the avenues of secrets expand and the gleams of lights radiate. So, if you want to know yourself, it is all by the prayer how you would weigh it. If it causes you to desist from worldly influence, then you know you are one who is given happiness. Other than that, you should be aware of what your feet have dragged along to your prayer, and then you will know that you have not obtained the secrets of prayer. Have you ever seen a lover that does not desire whom he loves?

This is what you take from the prayer of discourse with Allah: when you say:

‎إِيَّاكَ نَعْبُدُ وإِيَّاكَ نَسْتَعِينُ “You alone do we worship, and from You alone do we seek assistance” – and from the discourse with the Messenger, when you say in your prayers, “Peace be upon you, O Prophet, and the Mercy of Allah and His Blessing.” You say this in every prayer, whereupon you are cleansed of your sins, only to return to them yet again after receiving the blessings with which the Lord has favored you, which is meeting with your Lord, the highest of blessings.

If one wishes to know his reality and to see his state with his Lord, let him look at his prayer. Either it will produce humility and tranquility or heedlessness and hastiness. So, if your prayer is not of the first type, then seek to throw dirt on your head out of neglect and sorrow. The one who sits with a perfume maker is given the fragrance of his perfume. The prayer, therefore, is the association with Allah, so when you attend it and you do not obtain from it anything, it indicates a sickness that resides in you, which is either pride or the absence of proper manners. Allah says:

سَأَصْرِفُ عَنْ آيَاتِيَ الَّذِينَ يَتَكَبَّرُونَ فِي الأَرْضِ بِغَيْرِ الْحَقِّ

I shall turn away from My revelations those who magnify themselves wrongfully in the earth.

It is not desired that one rushes from the mosque after his prayer. Rather, he should remember Allah after it and seek His forgiveness from his shortcomings in doing so. For perhaps his prayer is not in a state for it to be accepted. But if you were to seek Allah’s forgiveness, thereafter it will be accepted.

Ibn 'Atā Allāh’s warning not leave the mosque too quickly after performing the ritual prayer also has an esoteric meaning. The mosque, in the symbolism of Sufism, signifies the heart, while prayers signify the connection between the worshiper and the Divine Presence. Thus, Ibn 'Ata Allah here calls on the faithful to maintain that connection with the Divine Source in the heart and not be too quick to push it aside to return to worldly concerns. This means one should strive to keep that connection with the Divine Presence that has been built up through remembrance and prayer, and not fall into heedlessness.

كان الرسول صلى الله عليه وسلم اذا سلم من الصلاة قال: “استغفر الله ، استغفر الله ، استغفر الله ، اللهم انت السلام و منك السلام تباركت يا ذا الجلال و الاكرام “

After the Messenger of Allah (Allah bless him and grant him peacr) used to pray, he would seek Allah’s forgiveness three times. This was related by Thawban, who said:

When he finished from prayer, he would seek Allah’s forgiveness three times and say, اللَّهُمَّ أَنْتَ السَّلامُ وَمِنْكَ السَّلامُ ، تَبَارَكْتَ يَا ذَا الْجَلالِ وَالإِكْرَامِ (O Allah, you are the peace and from you is peace. Blessed you are, O Owner of Greatness and Honor.)

Ibn 'Atā Allāh also wrote:

The simile of some who had performed his prayer without tranquility and humility of heart or presence of contemplation is like the one who presents to the king one hundred empty boxes. Thereafter, he deserves the admonishment of the king because of his lack of intelligence and thought, which the king will utter about him when ever he is mentioned. But the one who prays with tranquility and presence of heart is like the one who presented the king with boxes of precious jewels, for surely the king will delight in that and will return the favor on him and he will always mention to others about the gifts he had received from him. This is because the one who gave has purity of heart, perfection of thought and high aspiration.

I say to you, O servant of Allah, when you enter prayer you are conversing with your Lord and speaking with the Messenger of Allah in the Witnessing, because you are saying, “Peace be upon you, O Prophet, and Allah’s mercy and blessings.” It is not said, “O you,” or, “O so and so,” in the language of the Arabs, except to someone who is present in the assembly. So, in your prayers, you should summon in your mind his greatness.

If you wish to know how you will traverse the Bridge on the Day of Judgment, then look at your state in proceeding to prayer in going to the mosque … for in this world, the prayer is the bridge of uprightness that is not seen by the eyes, but by the enlightened hearts and clear vision. Allah says:

وَأَنَّ هَـذَا صِرَاطِي مُسْتَقِيمًا فَاتَّبِعُوهُ وَلاَ تَتَّبِعُواْ السُّبُلَ فَتَفَرَّقَ بِكُمْ عَن سَبِيلِهِ ذَلِكُمْ وَصَّاكُم بِهِ لَعَلَّكُمْ تَتَّقُونَ

This is my straight way, therefore follow it.

So, the one for whom the path is enlightened follows thereon, but the one for whom his path is darkened does not see where he is stepping and is not able to travel the way; therefore, he will remain in his place standing and bewildered.

يدخل فقراء المسلمين الجنة قبل الأغنياء بنصف يوم، وهو خمسمائة عام

Abu Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with him) related that the Messenger of Allah (Allah bless him and grant him peace) said:

The poor of the Muslims will enter Paradise before the rich by half a day, and each day is five hundred years.

This is because they were foremost in the world in worship and constant in the Friday prayer and the congregation.

Allah alone grant success. May Allah grant us tawfiq. Ameen.

Allahumma salli 'ala Muhammad wa 'ala aalihi wa sahbihi wassallam.

And Allah knows best.
Wassallaam