THE SPIRIT OF SALATH (PRAYER

Salath—A Training Course in Character Development When Umar was the second Caliph and the Muslims had to engage in battle with the Sassanid Empire, there was a covered area for holding prayer in congregation. On one of the days before the battle, Caliph Umar led the prayer of all the Muslims present in this hall. The Iranian General at that time was Rustam. When he saw the Muslims offer prayer, he remarked: “We cannot win against Umar, because he teaches character and discipline to his people!” Rustam realized that salath was something that inculcated high character in those who observed it. This is the true salath, while the one that is performed only as a set of rituals and which does not impact one’s real life cannot be the salath that takes one to Paradise. Salath initiates a process in one’s life which leads to the development of such character and personality which make one worthy of inhabiting Paradise. According to a hadith: “One who observes the morning (fajr) prayer will come under the guarantee of God.” (Sahih Muslim). What is the meaning of this hadith? How can one who prays in the morning be guaranteed God’s protection? The fact is that fajr salath is the beginning of the process of character building. When you read salath in the morning it is like taking a pledge to instil the spirit of salath in yourself. You take a pledge to follow this spirit during the rest of your day. You decide to live in gratitude for God, undertake the process of tazkiya, aiming to purify yourself of negativities and becoming a positive person. Then the prayers offered during the day—Zuhr and Asr—are meant as mid-day reviews of the pledge you had undertaken in the morning. In companies and organizations, there is an annual review system in which they make an analysis of the profit or loss they may have incurred during the year. God has instituted a mid-day review system so that during the day a believer can review what he had promised to God in the morning. At the end of the day, when one prays at night (Isha), one engages in introspection. The night prayer is meant for the believer to introspect and understand whether he really spent his day in the spirit of salath; whether he adhered to the lessons he had learnt in the morning prayer. When the believer wakes up in the morning on the next day, he observes the same course. Thus, salath is not about repeating empty rituals or forms, rather it is meant as character-training for the individual. Salath is not about repeating empty rituals or forms, rather it is meant as character-training for the individual.