2 - Salah

• Minaret - A tall tower at the mosque from which the call to prayer is made
• Muezzin - The man who recites the call to prayer from a mosque
• Subhah - Prayer beads
• Salah = Prayer -

  • Prayer is the most important way to worship Allah
  • Salah is one of the Five Pillars of Islam
  • Salah is a reminder of the importance of submitting to Allah's will
  • If they miss a prayer they can catch up later, but it would be a sin to miss prayer regularly
• Five Times -

  • Muhammad's Night Journey tells how he was taken on a winged horse to Jerusalem to the presence of Allah
  • Allah wanted people to pray 50 times a day, but another Prophet Moses said it was too much, and 5 times were agreed
• Types of Prayer -

  • Fajr -After dawn
  • Zuhr - After Midday
  • As'r - Late Afternoon
  • Magheib - After Sunset
  • Isha - After Dark
• Adhan -

  • The adhan is the Islamic call to prayer before each of the 5 daily prayers
  • A muezzin would call the adhan from the top of the minaret
  • When a Muslim hears the adhan, they will start their preparations for prayer
  • The adhan says 'God is great... Come to prayer'
• Mosque and Jummah Prayers -

  • Salah can be said at the mosque on any day but Friday is the main day for the Jummah prayers when men are expected to attend
  • Women traditionally pray at home. If they go to the mosque they will pray in a separate area or at the back of the prayer room, behind the men
  • At the Jummah prayers a sermon is given by the Imam
  • Praying with others builds the Ummah (community of Muslims)
• Praying at Home -

  • When Muslims pray at home they must have a quiet, clean place to prostrate
  • If possible a room is set aside for prayer where people never wear their shoes
  • Praying at home makes people more comfortable about the way they pray
• Du'ah -

  • There are no set times for Du'ah prayers but are often said after Salah prayer
  • Du'ah can be personal requests for you, family or someone else
  • Du'ah prayers thank Allah, or ask Allah for help, forgiveness or guidance
  • Some Muslims use Subhah to help them with Du'ah. A Subhah consists of 99 beads to represent the names of Allah