The Wisdom Behind the
Postures and Phrases of Prayer
Prayer is the second pillar of
Islam.
“...so let the first
thing to which you will invite them be the Oneness of God. If they
learn that, tell them that God has enjoined on them, five prayers to be offered
in one day and one night.”[1]
After a person testifies to or
affirms their belief in Allah and His messenger Mohammad the next important
step is to pray. To pray in the way that has been prescribed for us by
God and taught to us by Prophet Muhammad, may the mercy and blessings of God be
upon him.
God said…
“…glorify the
Praises of your Lord, before the rising of the sun and before (its)
setting. And during a part of the night (also) glorify His praises
…” (Quran 50:39-40)
Today we are going to look a
little closer at the way we pray and try to understand the significance of the
positions we assume and the order in which we assume them. Before we begin
it is worth remembering that Islam is a religion that is actually more than a
religion. It is a way of life.
While for many religion is
something practiced on a weekly basis, for Muslims it is a way of life that
flows into every aspect of their being. Islam is concerned with healthy
believers; healthy in mind, body and spirituality. The way we pray
demonstrates this.
“Verily, the prayer
is enjoined on the believers at fixed hours”. (Quran 4:103)
“And I did not
create man...except to worship Me Alone” (Quran 51:56)
Muslims pray in the early
morning before sunrise, in the middle of the day, in the afternoon, at sunset
and at night. Muslims pray in obedience to God because they believe God
created humankind for no other purpose except to worship Him. Thus the
epitome of worship is prayer.
God is the most kind and the
most merciful so, as we would expect, the benefits embedded in the prayer
are for us and us alone. God does not need our prayers but we surely need
the benefits we attain from praying. The benefits are spiritual,
emotional and physical and the most important is establishing a connection to
our Lord, the Most Merciful.
The Arabic word for prayer is salah and
interestingly it is a word that denotes connection. Prayer is our way of
connecting with and maintaining a connection with God. Prayer at fixed
times serves as a reminder of why we are here and helps to direct a
person’s thoughts and actions away from sin and onto the remembrance of
God.
Prayer comprises of both
physical movement and mental concentration. It includes the posture of
standing, deep bowing, prostrating (touching the forehead on the ground) and
sitting. The movements or postures have been compared to other exercise
regimes and there is no doubt that five times per day, a Muslim is engaging in
a moderate exercise regime that encourages good blood circulation, regular calm
controlled breathing and general suppleness. Although not physically over
demanding it is a mild form of physical exercise done consistently.
It is important to perfect all
of the movements of the prayer, rather than haphazardly rushing through them
because each movement has a purpose. From the opening Takbir (saying
Allahu Akbar or God is Great) to begin the prayer the movements and postures
are of both physical and spiritual benefit for us.
Standing calmly and gathering
our thoughts improves posture, balance, and self-awareness, as well as
normalising blood pressure and breathing. However that takbir also
denotes that the prayer has begun and all matters relating to this world are
left far behind. A calm meditative state is achieved and a
connection is made. In the few minutes it takes to pray, each
person stands before God in full submission. We gain peace, tranquillity
and numerous health benefits a few of which are mentioned below.
Bowing stretches and tones the
muscles of the lower back, thighs, legs and calves, and abdomen. The
physical benefits of prostration are many; prostration can help maintain the
lymph and skeletal systems and the prostrate, bladder and adrenal glands.
The placement of the forehead upon the ground causes an increased blood
supply to the brain and has been cited as having a good effect upon memory,
vision, hearing, concentration, and other cognitive abilities.
As the person praying moves
through the positions of prayer, standing, bowing, prostrating and sitting, it
assists in general good health by stimulating the large intestine and aiding
detoxification and digestion.
The position of prostration,
when the forehead touches the ground is exclusively associated with the Islamic
form of prayer. It is the apex of a person’s prayer and it is mentioned
in the authentic traditions of Prophet Muhammad as the position in which a
believer is as close to God as it is possible to be.
"The nearest a
servant comes to his Lord is when he is prostrating …”[3]
This is the supreme benefit in the different postures of prayer and it is a
mercy from God that so many other physical benefits are also associated with
prayer. God asks us to worship Him and then rewards us with countless
blessings beyond the supreme benefit of pleasing our Creator.
Over the years many have
suggested that the Islamic prayer contains benefits associated with yoga and
tai chi however it would be more correct to say that these health regimes
incorporate many of the health benefits contained in the prayer. It is logical
to think that the One who created us also gave us the means with which to keep
ourselves healthy and strong both in belief and physical attributes related to
the mind and body.
Source: www.islamreligion.com
Footnotes:
[1] Saheeh
Al-Bukhari
[2] Saheeh
Al-Bukhari
[3] Saheeh
Al-Bukhari
No comments:
Post a Comment