Prerequisites of the Prayer

Some prerequisites exist regarding the offering of Prayers.
Theseprerequisites must be fulfilled before the commencement of the
Prayer, otherwise the Prayer will not be considered valid. The
following are the prerequisites:
1.Knowledge that the time for the Prayer has begun:
Each prayer has its own particular time at which it must be performed.
Allaah Says )what means(:"…Indeed, prayer has been decreed upon the
believers a decree of specified times."]Quran 4: 103[ The Prophethas
clarified when the time of each prayer starts and when it ends. So
anybody who prays a given prayer before its fixed time, his prayer is
invalid.
2. Purity from Major and Minor impurities:
A minor impurity is one that may be removed by the performance of
ablution )Wudhou'(. A state of minor impurity results after defecation
or urination. A major impurity requires the performance of Ghusl or
ritual bathing. A state of major impurity results after sexual
intercourse or sexual discharge for both men and women. Menstruation
and postpartum bleeding are considered forms of major impurities. In
those cases, after such conditions come to an end, women are required
to make Ghusl before praying.
Allaah Almighty Says )what means(:"O you who have believed, when you
rise to ]perform[ prayer, wash your faces and your forearms to the
elbows and wipe over your heads and wash your feet to the ankles. And
if you are in a state of Janaabah )major impurity(, then purify
yourselves…"]Quran 5: 6[
The Prophetsaid:"Allaah does not accept any prayer that was not
performed while in a state of purity, nor does He accept charity from
what has been stolen from booty."]Al-Bukhaari & Muslim[
3. Purity of the body, clothes and place:
Such objects should be clean of physical impurities as much as
possible. If one can not remove them, he may pray with the impurities
present and does not have to repeat the prayer later. Concerning
bodily purity, it was related that the Prophetsaid:"Stay clean of
urine, as the majority of punishment in the grave is due to
it."]Ad-Daaraqutni[
'Alireported:"I used to have a great deal of prostatic fluid flowing,
so I asked a man to ask the Prophetabout it. He asked him and the
Prophetsaid:'Make ablution and wash your genital organ.'"]Al-Bukhaari[
Concerning purity of clothing, Allaah Says )what means(:"And your
clothing purify."]Quran 74: 4[
Jaabir Ibn Sumrahreported that he heard a man asking the Prophet:"May
I pray in the same clothes that I had on during intercourse with my
wife?"Hesaid:"Yes, but if you see some stains on it, you must wash
it."]Ahmad and Ibn Maajah[
Concerning the purity of the place where one is praying, Abu
Hurayrahsaid: "A Bedouin stood and urinated in the mosque. The people
got up to grab him. The Prophetsaid:'Leave him and pour a container
full of water over his urine. You have been raised to be easy on the
people, not to be hard on them.'"]Al-Bukhaari[
4. Covering the 'Awrah)parts of the body that should be covered(
Allaah, Almighty, Says )what means(:"O children of Aadam, take your
adornment at every Masjid )Mosque(…"]Quran 7: 31[
The meaning of "adornment" here is the covering of the 'Awrah. The
meaning of "Mosque" is "prayer." Therefore, it means "Cover your
'Awrah for every prayer." Salamah Ibn Al-Aku'said to the Prophet:"O
Messenger of Allaah, may I pray in a long shirt?"Hesaid:"Yes, but
button it, even with just a thorn."]Al-Bukhaari[
6. Facing the Qiblah:
All scholars agree that one must face the Qiblah during every prayer.
Allaah Says )what means(:"…Turn your face toward Al-Masjid Al-Haraam.
And wherever you ]believers[ are, turn your faces toward it ]in
prayer[..."]Quran 2: 144[
If one can not determine the direction of the Qiblah,he should ask one
who knows. If he finds no one to ask, he should try his best to
determine it. In such a case, his prayer will be valid, and he needs
not repeat it even though he discovers later on that he had faced in
the wrong direction. If it is made clear to him while he is praying
that he is facing the wrong direction, he needs only turn in the
proper direction without stopping his prayer.
The first one is performing voluntary prayers while riding )an animal,
car and so on(. The rider may bend his head slightly for the bowings,
but he should bend a little bit lower for the prostrations. He may
face in whatever direction his ride is going.
He did not, however, do this for the obligatory prayers. Ahmad and
Muslimrecorded that hewould pray on his mount while traveling from
Makkah to Madeenah, facing away from Makkah. Upon this, Allaah
revealed )what means(:"…Wherever you ]might[ turn, there is the Face
of Allaah..."]Quran 2: 115[ Ibraaheem An-Nakhaa'isaid:"They would pray
on their mounts and animals in the direction in which they were
facing."Ibn Hazmcommented:"This has been related from the companions
and those of the following generation, during travel and residence."
The second case is praying while having to deal with forced
conditions, illness and fear. Under such circumstances, it is allowed
to pray without facing the Qiblah. The Prophetsaid:"If I order you to
do something, do what you are capable of doing."Allaah Says )what
means(:"And if you fear ]an enemy, then pray[ on footor riding…"]Quran
2: 239[. Ibn 'Umar, may Allaah be pleased withhim,added:"Facing the
Qiblah or not facing it."]Al-Bukhari[
There are two cases in which one doesn't have to face the Ka'bah.'Amr
Ibn Rabee'ahreported: "I saw the Messenger of Allaahpraying while
riding and hefaced the direction in which he was going."]Al-Bukhaari &
Muslim[