A COMPARISON

in human life. In contrast, a Muslim bears the heavy, almost overwhelming responsibility of spreading and implementing God’s law, eradicating human-made laws wherever they are enforced, and establishing a system of life based on the law of Allah, the One without partners. This monumental task assigned by Allah to Muslims cannot be achieved by a single person against the organized forces of rebellion. Even if millions of Muslims exist worldwide, if they work individually and separately, they cannot succeed against the well-organized opposing forces. Therefore, it is crucial that all individuals who wish to worship God unite into a single group and work together toward their goal. Prayer, along with building individual character, serves this collective purpose. It constructs, establishes, and sustains the entire framework of this social system, setting it into motion five times a day, like a machine, ensuring its continuous operation. (Islami Ibadat par ek Tahqeeqi Nazar by Maulana Maududi, pp. 41-45) The benefits of prayer described in this interpretation are not entirely wrong. However, the core of prayer has been overlooked. The true nature of prayer is that: It is a remembrance of God (Aqim as-