Date: 5th Rabi al Awwal 1442
بسم الله الرحمن الرحيم الحمد لله رب العالمين اللهم صلى وسلم على سيدنا محمد وعلى آله وأصحابه و من ول و بعد
In the name of God The Infinitely-Good The Merciful, all praise to God, The Lord of all creation. Oh God grant blessing and peace to our master Muhammad and his family and his companions and the righteous and those who come after.
Before starting intermediate prayer, you should be able to complete all the necessary acts of prayer covered in Part One, including to recite everything in Arabic.
The key to paradise is prayers, and the key to Prayer/Namaz is purification. One’s focus in prayer is one’s focus in purification. Purification is half of faith. Improving and perfecting one’s prayer is a lifelong journey.
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Purification
The first “Sunnah”(1) you should add to purification is that you mention God’s name. The minimal way to do this is to say “Bismillah”(2), and the optimal way to say this is “Bismillahir Rahmanir Rahim”(3)
Beyond this, it is very important that you use the “miswak”(4). The minimal way to do this is to use any toothbrush, and the optimal way is to use a twig from the Arak Tree. One prayer with miswak is better than praying two weeks without.
The other Sunan to practice include washing one's hands before starting "Wudu"(5) and going over each limb three times.
It is also very praise worthy to extend the area of washing. The optimal extensions of the areas of Wudu are:
- the entire head including the inner and outer ear; the entire arm up to the armpit;
- the leg up to the knee.
Prayer
One should recite something after "Surah Fatiha"(6). The minimal way to do this is to recite three “Ayat” or one long “Ayah”(7), and the optimal way to do this is to recite a complete “Surah”(8).
When one says “Allahu akbar”(9) to enter into the prayer, he should raise his hands to his shoulders. The worshipper should also raise their hands at three other parts, totaling four parts during which he raises his hands to his shoulders. When one goes into and out of the bowing posture, and when he stands up from the sitting posture (not the prostration posture).
When in the first standing posture, before bowing, he should fold his hands over his heart, with the right over the left. During the second standing, after bowing, his hands should rest at his sides.
When one is in the bowing posture he should glorify God, the minimal thing to say “Subhan Allah”(10), the intermediate thing to say is “Subhana Rabbi al Adheem”(11), and the optimal thing to say is “Subhana Rabbi al Adheem wa bi hamdih”(12). The minimal number of times to say it is once, the optimal number to say it is any odd number, though no more than three times when leading the prayer.
The same rules apply to the glorification of God in the prostration posture, with a small change to the verbal form. Instead of the name “al Atheem” one uses the name “al Ala”(13).
Along with reciting in the postures, there is a prescribed speech between postures. When transitioning from one posture to the next, one says Allahu akbar. This is the case for all movements except one: when standing from the bow. The minimal thing to say is “Sami Allahu liman hamidah”(14), and it is optimal to add “Allahumma Rabbana wa lakal hamd”(15) and a minimal phrasing of this addition is “Rabbana lakal hamd”(16). The rulings here are the same whether praying alone or as a leader or follower.
Among the Sunan of prayer is the exact method of the sitting posture. In prayers which have two sittings, the first of them should be sitting on the left foot, with the right heel over the right toes. In the final sitting of all prayers one should have the left foot sticking out from under the right leg, with the right heel over the right toes.
Finally is the Sunnah to add to the exiting of prayer. The optimal way to exit the prayer is to turn to the right and say “as salamu alaykum wa rahmatullah”(17), then turn to the left and say it again.
1. Sunnah pl. Sunan- literally a way of doing things; when mentioned by itself it is almost always referring to the sunnah of Rasulullah ﷺ↩
2. Bismillah - With the name of God↩
3. Bismillahir Rahmanir Rahim - With the name of God, The Gracious, The Merciful↩
4. Miswak - toothbrush; specifically made from the Arak tree↩
5. Wudu - an act of worship consisting of ritual washing; removes minor abstract impurities↩
6. Surah Fatiha - Chapter of the Opening↩
7. Ayah pl. Ayat - verse; especially a verse of the Quran↩
8. Surah - Chapter↩
9. Allahu akbar - God is greater ↩
10. Subhan Allah - Glory be to God↩
11. Subhana Rabbi al Adheem - Glory be to my Lord, Almighty↩
12. Subhana Rabbi al Adheem wa bi hamdih - Glory be to my Lord, Almighty and All praise is due to Him↩
13. Subhana Rabbi al Ala - Glory is to my Lord, the Most High↩
14. Sami Allahu liman hamidah - God hears he who praises Him↩
15. Allahumma Rabbana wa lakal hamd - Oh God our Lord and to you is all praise↩
16. Rabbana lakal hamd - Our Lord to you is all praise↩
17. as salamu alaykum wa rahmatullah - Peace and blessings of God be upon you↩
___________________
Anything I said here which is true, is from Allah. Anything I said here which is false if from myself. I ask forgiveness for my shortcomings. I seek refuge in Allah from knowledge which does not benefit. May Allah grant us understanding of things as they are. May Allah bless and grant peace to our master Muhammad and his family.
When one is in the bowing posture he should glorify God, the minimal thing to say “Subhan Allah”(10), the intermediate thing to say is “Subhana Rabbi al Adheem”(11), and the optimal thing to say is “Subhana Rabbi al Adheem wa bi hamdih”(12). The minimal number of times to say it is once, the optimal number to say it is any odd number, though no more than three times when leading the prayer.
The same rules apply to the glorification of God in the prostration posture, with a small change to the verbal form. Instead of the name “al Atheem” one uses the name “al Ala”(13).
Along with reciting in the postures, there is a prescribed speech between postures. When transitioning from one posture to the next, one says Allahu akbar. This is the case for all movements except one: when standing from the bow. The minimal thing to say is “Sami Allahu liman hamidah”(14), and it is optimal to add “Allahumma Rabbana wa lakal hamd”(15) and a minimal phrasing of this addition is “Rabbana lakal hamd”(16). The rulings here are the same whether praying alone or as a leader or follower.
Among the Sunan of prayer is the exact method of the sitting posture. In prayers which have two sittings, the first of them should be sitting on the left foot, with the right heel over the right toes. In the final sitting of all prayers one should have the left foot sticking out from under the right leg, with the right heel over the right toes.
Finally is the Sunnah to add to the exiting of prayer. The optimal way to exit the prayer is to turn to the right and say “as salamu alaykum wa rahmatullah”(17), then turn to the left and say it again.
1. Sunnah pl. Sunan- literally a way of doing things; when mentioned by itself it is almost always referring to the sunnah of Rasulullah ﷺ↩
2. Bismillah - With the name of God↩
3. Bismillahir Rahmanir Rahim - With the name of God, The Gracious, The Merciful↩
4. Miswak - toothbrush; specifically made from the Arak tree↩
5. Wudu - an act of worship consisting of ritual washing; removes minor abstract impurities↩
6. Surah Fatiha - Chapter of the Opening↩
7. Ayah pl. Ayat - verse; especially a verse of the Quran↩
8. Surah - Chapter↩
9. Allahu akbar - God is greater ↩
10. Subhan Allah - Glory be to God↩
11. Subhana Rabbi al Adheem - Glory be to my Lord, Almighty↩
12. Subhana Rabbi al Adheem wa bi hamdih - Glory be to my Lord, Almighty and All praise is due to Him↩
13. Subhana Rabbi al Ala - Glory is to my Lord, the Most High↩
14. Sami Allahu liman hamidah - God hears he who praises Him↩
15. Allahumma Rabbana wa lakal hamd - Oh God our Lord and to you is all praise↩
16. Rabbana lakal hamd - Our Lord to you is all praise↩
17. as salamu alaykum wa rahmatullah - Peace and blessings of God be upon you↩
___________________
Anything I said here which is true, is from Allah. Anything I said here which is false if from myself. I ask forgiveness for my shortcomings. I seek refuge in Allah from knowledge which does not benefit. May Allah grant us understanding of things as they are. May Allah bless and grant peace to our master Muhammad and his family.