The Delight of The Eyes: Salah

Every believer should see salah as the most important sign of their worship and take care to perform it correctly. The divine command in this regard is unequivocally clear: “[O Muḥammad], tell My servants who have believed to establish Salah…” (Ibrahim, 31)

The five pillars, known as the pillars of Islam, constitute the believer's area of responsibility in the most general terms. Each of us has these five principles, kalima-i shahadah (declaration of faith), salah, zakat, fasting, and hajj, firmly pinned to our long-term memory since childhood. That these principles, which are repeated many times in various verses of the Qur’an, constitute the greater structure of Islam is stated expressly through the words of our Prophet (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam):

“Islam is based on (the following) five (principles): 1. To testify that none has the right to be worshipped but Allah and Muhammad is Allah's Apostle. 2. To establish salah 3. To pay zakat (obligatory charity). 4. To perform hajj. (Pilgrimage to Mecca) 5. To fast during the month of Ramadan.”(Bukhari, 8)

Of course, the orders and prohibitions of Islam are not limited to these five principles. The hadith only mentions the essentials on which Islam is built. However, with a more in-depth look, it will become evident that even the declaration of faith (shahadah), which is the first of the five, represents all the principles of Islam. Bearing witness that there is no god but Allah means living with the consciousness of tawhid (oneness and uniqueness of Allah). And living with the consciousness of tawhid requires doing what Allah commands and avoiding what He forbids. Likewise, bearing witness that the Prophet (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam) is the Messenger of Allah means believing in everything he declared. Moreover, our holy book, the Qur’an, was conveyed to us by the Messenger of Allah (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam). It is part of our natural devotion to him to accept all of his words as absolute truth.

Salah, zakat, hajj, and fasting are, in a way, manifestations of bearing witness to the oneness of Allah and believing in His Messenger. Salah, in particular, which is mentioned right after the kalima-i shahadah, represents the main pillar of the structure of Islam.

Salah has a rather exceptional place among other acts of worship; it encompasses the whole life of a believer until their last breath and concerns every believer regardless of their well-being. Fasting and hajj are limited to specific times of the year. Likewise, zakat and hajj partly depend on financial wealth. But salah has a distinct status of its own. It encompasses the believer's whole life by being allocated to five different times daily.

Statements that are used by some of our brothers and sisters such as “I do not pray salah, but my heart is filled with good intentions, and that’s what matters” or “I do not pray salah, but I am better than those who pray and yet do such reprehensible things” are untrue. These expressions are words born of obliviousness and an outlook far from being conducive to comprehending the importance of salah. Such a bargain or comparison can never be made for salah. If a believer shows slackness in their prayers, they must immediately repent and resolve never to give up their prayers again. And suppose a believer does something Islam forbids despite performing the daily prayers. In that case, they must immediately repent, make the light of salah shine through their life, and set a good example for others.

In short, every believer should see prayer as the most important sign of their worship and take care to perform it correctly. The divine command in this regard is unequivocally clear: “O Muḥammad], tell My servants who have believed to establish Salah…” (Ibrahim, 31)

The emphasis on “establishing prayer (iqama salah)” in hundreds of verses of the Qur’an that command prayer refers to performing the prayers correctly. So what should we understand from the expression “establishing (iqama) the prayer?” Much can be said on this subject. However, establishing (iqama) the prayer means, in the most concise terms, to perform salah as the Messenger of Allah (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam) did.

As narrated by Malik bin Huwayris (radiyallahu anh):

“We came to the Prophet (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam) and were all young and about the same age. The Prophet (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam) told us: ‘Pray as you have seen me praying, and when it is the time for the prayer, one of you should pronounce the azan, and the oldest of you should lead the prayer.’” (Bukhari, 631)

All the details about how to perform the prayer in congregation at certain times, on time, with awe and humility, and by observing the ta'dil al-arkan (performing the principles of prayer (rukns) properly) are available in the practices of the Messenger of Allah (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam). His life of worship was entwined with many forms of salah such as sunnah, ishraq, duha, awwabin (a sunnah salah after salatu’l-maghrib), tahajjud, musafir (the prayer of travel), hajat (the prayer of need), kusuf and khusuf (Solar and Lunar Eclipse), and especially the fard (obligatory) prayers. The description of salah in a hadith as “the delight (comfort) of my eyes” (Ahmad b. Hanbal, Musnad, 19/305) is essential in that it points out the significance of salah in the life of the Messenger of Allah (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam).

Salah becomes a delight to the eyes and a joy to the heart only when performed correctly and following the example of the Messenger of Allah. Only then can it prevent one from evil or immoral actions, as expressed in this verse:

[O Muhammad] “Recite what has been revealed to you of the Book, and perform the prayer (salah). Verily, the prayer prevents from Al-Fahsha’ (immoral sins) and Al- Munkar (evil deeds), and the remembering (by establishing prayer) of Allah is greater indeed. And Allah knows what you do.” (Al-Ankabut, 45)

Taking the salah of the Messenger of Allah (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam) as an example is not an abstract wish. Our fiqh books explain the outward aspects of this prayer, and our tasawwuf books explain the side of it related to our inner world in detail. Every believer should be concerned with performing a beautiful prayer inside and out, making up for what they lack, and correcting their mistakes.

Yes, every believer should first worry about their own salah. They should see if salah prevents them from committing sins as it is meant to. They should not legitimize their weaknesses in salah by commenting on someone else's.

Salah is the way that leads to qurbiyyah (closeness to Allah). A believer who gets closer to the Almighty Allah through prayer in accordance with his command “Prostrate and approach” (Al-Alaq, 19) worries about how they can rectify their own flaws. First of all, they are concerned about themselves and their descendants. As taught by Ibrahim (alayhissalam) in his prayer:

“My Lord! make me an establisher of prayer, and [many] from my descendants. Our Lord, and accept my supplication.” (Ibrahim, 40)

Abdülkadir Alioğlu