The Prophet's Prayer (SAWS) Introduction

Praise be to Allaah, who made Prayer compulsory on his slaves and
ordered them to establish it and perform it well; who linked success
and felicity to humility in Prayer; who made it the criterionto
distinguish between Eeman and Kufr ; and who made it a restrainer from
shameful and unjust deeds.
Prayers and peace be upon our Prophet Muhammad, who was addressed in
the Words of the Exalted:
"And We have sent down to you the Message, that you may explain
clearly to the people what is sent for them" 1 , and who fully carried
out this task. The Prayer was one of the most important things which
he explained to the people, verbally and practically, even praying on
the pulpit once -standing, bowing and prostrating, and then saying to
them, I have done this so that you may follow me and learn my prayer.
2 He obligated us to copy him in his prayer, saying, Pray as you have
seen me praying. 3 He also gave the goodtidings to whoever prayed like
him that such a person has a covenant with Allaah that He will enter
him into the Garden, saying, There are five prayers which Allaah,
Mighty and Sublime, has made compulsory:he who performs ablution well
for them, prays them at their proper times, and is complete in their
bowings, prostrations and humility, he has a guarantee from Allaah
that He will forgive him; but he who does not do so, has no guarantee
from Allaah: if He wishes, He will forgive him or if He wishes, He
will punish him. 4
Prayers and peace be also on his family and his pious and just
Companions, who passed on to us his worship, prayer, sayings and
actions (sallallaahu 'alaihi wasallam), and who made these, and these
alone, a Madhhab and a path for them to follow; and also on those who
follow in theirfootsteps and tread their path until the Day of
Judgment.
When I finished reading the book of prayer in At-Targheeb wat-Tarheeb
by al-Haafiz al-Mundhiri (rahimahullaah) and teaching it to our
brothers, four years ago, it became clear to us all the important
position of the Prayer in Islaam; and the reward,grace and respect
awaiting thosewho establish and perform it well; and that all this
varies, depending on its closeness to the Prophet's prayer
(sallallaahu 'alaihi wa sallam). This is what heindicated in his
saying, Verily theslave prays a prayer of which nothing is written
down for himexcept a tenth, ninth, eighth, seventh, sixth, fifth,
quarter, third or half of it. 5 Therefore, I reminded the brothers
that it is not possible for us to perform prayer as it should be
performed,or even approach that, unless weknow the detailed
description of the Prophet's prayer (sallallaahu 'alaihi wa sallam),
including its essentials, manners, forms, supplications (du'aas) and
remembrances (adhkaar), and then we make an effort to put that
knowledge into practice carefully, for then we could hope that our
prayers would restrain us from shameful and unjust deeds, and that the
reward and blessings mentioned in the narrations would be written down
for us.
However, detailed familiarity withall these aspects of prayer is
unlikely to be achieved by most people nowadays, even many scholars,
because of their limitingthemselves to a particular Madhhab. But, as
anyone concerned with assisting in compiling and studying the purified
Sunnah knows, in every Madhhab there are sunnahs which are not found
in other Madhhabs; moreover, in every Madhhab there are sayings and
actions which cannot be authentically traced back to the Prophet
(sallallaahu 'alaihi wa sallam) - most of these are found in the
sayings of the later scholars 6 , many of whom we see firmly
attributing these to theProphet (sallallaahu 'alaihi wa sallam)! 7
This is why the scholars of Hadeeth - may Allaah reward them well -
have produced books of Takhreej on the famous books of the later
scholars, explaining the rank of each hadeeth given in them: whether
e.g. authentic, weak or fabricated. Examples of these books of
Takhreej are: Al-'Inaayah fi Ma'rifah Ahaadeeth al- Hidaayah and
At-Turuq wal-Wasaa'il fi Takhreej Ahaadeeth Khulaasah ad-Dalaa'il by
Shaikh 'Abdul Qaadir ibn Muhammad al- Qurashi al-Hanafi; Nasb
ar-Raayah li Ahaadeeth al-Hidaayah by Haafiz Zayla'i, and its abridged
version ad-Dirayah by Haafiz Ibn Hajr al-Asqalaani, who also wrote
Talkhees al-Habeer fi Takhreej Ahaadeeth ar-Raafi'i al-Kabir; there
are manyothers, naming which will only lengthen this discussion.

The Importance of Tawheed and the Evil Result of Neglecting it:

Shaykh Saalih ibn 'Abdillaah Al-Fawzaan
From his book Duroos min Al-Qur'aan Al-Kareem (p.5-11)
~

Someone may say, and it actually has been said, "What is it with you
that you always focus on tawheed and you talk so much about it?! And
you don't take into consideration the condition of the Muslims in our
day and time, those who are being killed and caused to flee all over
the earth, those being persecuted by the empiresof disbelief in every
place?!"
So we say, and with Allaahlies success:
Tawheed is the foundationupon which this upright religion has been
built, so focusing on it means to focus on the very core itself. For
if we were to reflect over the Noble Qur'aan we would find that it
expounds on issues of tawheed repetitively, somuch so that there does
not exist a single soorah inthe Qur'aan that does not mention tawheed
, clarifying it and prohibiting what opposes it. It was Al-Imaam Ibn
Al-Qayyim who pointed out that the entire Qur'aanis about tawheed ,
since it is only made up of the following:
* Information about Allaah and His Names and Attributes - This is the
tawheed that we are to have knowledge of, called tawheed
ar-ruboobiyyah .
* Commands to worship Allaah alone with no partners and prohibitions
of worshipping other thanHim - This is the tawheed that we must put
into action, called tawheed al-uloohiyyah .
* Commands to obey Allaah and His Messenger ( sallallaahu 'alayhe wa
sallam ) and prohibitions of disobeying Allaah and His Messenger (
sallallaahu 'alayhe wa sallam ) - Theseare the ways that tawheed is
actualized and completed.
* Information about what Allaah has prepared for the people of tawheed
, the delights, success, salvation, and triumphs in this life and the
Next, and the punishments that are in store for the people of shirk in
this life, and the eternal torture prepared for them upon their
one-way entrance into theHellfire - The first is for those who
actualize tawheed , the latter is for those who do not. [1]
Therefore the entire Qur'aan is centered around tawheed . If you were
to think about the soorahs revealed in Makkah, you would find that
most of them focus entirely on tawheed . That is because the Prophet (
sallallaahu 'alayhe wa sallam ) stayed in Makkah for 13 years calling
to tawheed and warning against shirk . Thevast majority of the
religious obligations like zakaah , fasting, Hajj, the affairs of
halaal and haraam , business transactions, etc. were not revealed
until after the Hijrah to Al-Madeenah. Thelegislation of the prayer is
an exception to this, as it was made an obligation while the Prophet (
sallallaahu 'alayhe wa sallam ) was still in Makkah on the Night of
Al-Mi'raaj , when he ( sallallaahu 'alayhe wa sallam ) was taken by
night (to Jerusalem) [2], but that was only a short time before the
Hijrah .
So the majority of the soorahs revealed before the Prophet (
sallallaahu 'alayhe wa sallam ) made hijrah were focused entirely on
tawheed , thus showing how truly important the subject is.
Furthermore, the religious obligations were not revealed until tawheed
was presented and established within the souls of the people, and the
proper 'aqeedah had taken root. For verily actions can not be correct
except with tawheed , nor can they have other than tawheed as their
foundation.
The Qur'aan has illustratedthat the Messengers ( 'alayhim As-Salaatu
was-Salaam ) all began their missions by inviting the people to
tawheed before anything else, as Allaah says [3]:
( And We sent a messenger to every nation (proclaiming) : 'Worship
Allaah and shun false deities!' )
Allaah also says [4]:
( And We never sent any messenger before you, except that we revealed
to him that 'There is no deity worthy of worship except Me, so worship
Me!' )
And every prophet used tosay to his people [5]:
( O my people - Worship Allaah as you have no other deity worthy of worship! )
So this was the affair of the messengers - they began with tawheed .
Similarly the callers and revivalists who followed the messengers used
to begin by focusing on tawheed . That is because every single da'wah
that isnot built upon tawheed is a fruitless call that does not
fulfill its purpose, and there is no positive result to it. Every
da'wah that does not focus on tawheed is a lost call, with regards to
its end results. This is something well known and seen all over.
On the other hand, every da'wah centered around tawheed is a truly
successful call, by Allaah's Permission, a cal that benefits the
society and bears many fruits. History bears witness to this.
So we are not neglecting the issues of the Muslims, rather we are very
concerned about them. We are assisting them andtrying to prevent every
harm from reaching them using all our resources.....

Unity When Fasting and on the Day of the 'Eed

Unity When Fasting and on the Day of the 'Eed:

Source: Silsilatul-Ahaadeeth As-Saheehah 224 (1/440-445)
~
Regarding the hadeeth:
"Fasting begins on the day you all begin to fast, and Al-Fitr (the
'Eed) is the day when you all have broken your fasts." [1]
At-Tirmithee, after mentioning this hadeeth, said, "And some of the
people of knowledge explained this hadeeth, saying that fasting and
breaking the fast are both to be done along with the main body and
majority ofthe Muslims."
And As-San'aanee said, "In it is evidence that proves that agreement
of the people is needed for establishing the 'Eed, and that the one
who is alone in his knowledge of the moon sighting must go along with
the others, andtheir decision regarding the prayer, the breaking ofthe
fast, and the day of slaughtering is binding on him." [2]
And Ibnul-Qayyim, may Allaah have Mercy on him, explained this,
saying, "And it has been said (by the people of knowledge) that there
is a refutation in this for those who say that a person can fast and
break his fast based on calculated estimations, without others having
knowledge of this. And it has also been said that if alone witness
sights the moon, and the judge does not accept his sighting (forsome
reason), then he himself does not begin his fast based on it, nor do
thepeople begin their fasts based on it." [3]
And Abul-Hasan As-Sindee,after mentioning the hadeeth of Aboo
Hurayrahfound in At-Tirmithee's Sunan , said, "And what is apparent
from the hadeeth's meaning is that these affairs are not for
individuals, it is not for people to act alone in these affairs.
Rather, the decision is to be made by the imaam and the main body of
Muslims. It is obligatory for all individuals to follow the imaam and
the main bodyof Muslims. So therefore, if one person sees the moon,and
the imaam does not accept his testimony, then he has no right to go
off on his own in these affairs,rather he must go along with the
jamaa'ah." [4]
I say (Al-Albaanee): This is what seems to be understood from the
hadeeth. This understanding is supported by the way 'Aa'ishah used it
(the hadeeth) as a proof against Masrooq when he did not want to fast
on the day of 'Arafah, fearing that it may actually be theday of
An-Nahr (the 'Eed). She clarified to him that his opinion has no
weight,and that he must follow the jamaa'ah . She said, "The Day of
An-Nahr ('Eed Al-Adh-haa, the day of slaughtering) is the day the
people slaughter, and the Day of ('Eed) Al-Fitr is the day the people
break their fasts."
I say (Al-Albaanee): And this is what is befitting to the gracious
Sharee'ah that seeks to bring the people together and unite their
ranks, keeping them away from individual opinions that split their
unity. So the Sharee'ah does not give weight to the opinion of an
individual regarding acts of community worship likefasting,
establishing the day of the 'Eed, and praying in congregation, even
when the individual is correct as he sees it.
Don't you see that the Companions, may Allaah be pleased with them,
used to pray behind each other, while some of themheld that touching a
woman or bleeding nullifies one's wudhoo' , and others did not
understand that? And some of them used to pray the entire prayer
during their travels and others would shorten theirs? Their differing
in these affairs and others did not prevent them fromgetting together
to pray behind one imaam and being conscience of its importance. This
is because they knew that division in the Religion is worse than
differing over some opinions.
Some of them ignored opinions that contradictedthe leader's position
in great gatherings like the one at Minaa, to the point that they
would abandon their own position totally in such a large gathering, to
escape the fitnah that might result in their actions based on their
position. Aboo Daawood narrated that 'Uthmaan, may Allaah be pleased
with him, prayed four rak'ahs (not shortening hisprayer) in Minaa.
'Abdullaah ibn Mas'ood detested his action, saying, "I prayed two
rak'ahs behind the Prophet (sallallaahu 'alayhe wa sallam), two
rak'ahs behind Aboo Bakr, two rak'ahs behind 'Umar, and I used to pray
two rak'ahs behind 'Uthmaan in the beginning of his leadership, but
then he began to complete the prayer (praying four rak'ahs), and thus
the paths became divided. I only wish that I could have two of the
four rak'ahs accepted from me." Thereafter, Ibn Mas'ood prayed four
rak'ahs ! So it was said to him, "You blame 'Uthmaanand then you
yourself pray four rak'ahs?!" He replied, "Differing is evil." [5]
And Ahmad narrated this exact account on the authority of Aboo Tharr
[6], may Allaah be pleased with all of them.

What’s the Point in Studying Islam?

DRIVING back from my last final exam of the semester,my thoughts were
quickly arranging themselves into a list of all the 'to-do' things and
'to-read' books that I can now give attention to. But before that, the
elder with whom I was riding home had a very peculiar question for me.
It all began with him simply enquiring about how I did my paper, when
do I have my next semester and then, how long is the course. "Four
years?" was his startled response on being told the course duration.
Then camethe bomb. "Why are you studying this? Will it get you a job?"
I have found myself in this spot a few times before, having to explain
to peoplewhat good a four-year Bachelors degree in IslamicStudies
would do for me. I fail to understand why the answer to this—which
appears as rather obvious to me —is not so easily comprehensible for
others. Clearing my throat, I gave him two answers, one to convince
him and another to convince myself. "Of course, you could get a
job.Any school would be ardent to get me on board as an Islamic
Studies teacher," I said quietly, remembering when a few months back I
ended up in a small school for an interview for an Islamic Studies
teaching job. I hadn't brought along my CV, but on learning that I was
doing a course in Islamic Studies, the school'sowner looked
sufficiently pleased at her discovery and handed me books to prepare
myself for class next day. I never returned the next day, given that I
considered teaching as "not my cup of tea."
Next, I stated the obvious to my relative, who by now appeared
slightly more convinced. "See, when you are studying such wonderful
subjects like Aqeedah, Seerah, Hadith, Tajweed , isn't it great to
derive so much knowledge about Allah SWT and His religion out ofit?"
More often than not, we measure the suitability of an academic program
in terms of profit and loss – financial at that – and/or our own
interests. Will it get me a good job? What does the industry look like
in the next 10 years? Does the subject interest me? Is it my passion?
Talking of interests, Islam is our Fitrah , which we are born with. So
by default, we should be naturally inclined to improve our practice of
the Deen by studying and perfecting it.
As for profit and loss, Ibn Al-Jawzi رحمه الله said: "It happens that
a person has good health, but does not have free time because of his
being engaged in earning his livelihood; or he is rich but has no good
health. So, if these two (good health and free time) are gathered in a
person, butlaziness overtakes him from fulfilling his duties, then he
is a loser. (Know that) this world is the harvest field of the
hereafter; and in it there is business, the profit of which will be
visible in the Hereafter. So, whoever utilizes his free time and good
health in the obedience of Allah, he is the blessed one. And he who
utilizes themin the disobedience of Allah, he is the one who is unjust
to himself, because the leisure time is affected by business and
health is affected by sickness." [Fath al-Bari 11/23]
The Prophet (peace be upon him) made seeking knowledge an obligation
upon every Muslim. (Ibn Majah and Bayhaqi) It is true that gaining
detailed Islamic knowledge is a responsibility of a few in society (
Fard Kifaayah ), and when they (scholars) pursue it, others are not
obliged to. However, it is inthe interest of each one of us to study
the practical aspects of our Deen – be it our Aqeedah (The Prophet
(peace be upon him) preached only matters of Aqeedah for thirteen
years in Makkah, this is how important Aqeedah is!), or Fiqh issues,
such as those related to our prayer (Can we pray Isha after midnight?
Or knees first or hands first in Sujood ?), or just who wouldn't want
to acquire a beautiful Tilawah (recitation) of the Qur'an, knowing
where to pause atthe right places and with the right intonation and
teach it to our children?
These issues are even moreimportant to most of us because our belief
systems,methods of prayer, Qur'anicrecitation, and so on are so
culturally influenced that they may contradict true Islamic teachings.
Therefore, this is all the more reason to strive to correct ourselves.
The contemporary seeker of Islamic knowledge is probably seeing one of
the best times in recent history, as authentic knowledge is now easily
available at the click of a button and just a website away, no matter
in where he or she resides. Every now and then I receive online
invites to 'live sessions' by well-known scholars on Aqeedah, Tajweed
and various other Islamic sciences. The best part is that most of
these are free and short-term, making it easy for busy individuals to
take advantage of them.