When a person accepts Islam, he is entrusted with the sacred duty of performing namaz. This is the stronghold of the Muslim religion! Even the Prophet Muhammad said that prayer is the first thing a person will be asked about on the Day of Judgment. If the prayer was performed properly, then other deeds will be worthy. Every Muslim is required to perform five prayers daily (night, morning, lunch, afternoon and evening prayers). Each of them includes a certain number of characteristic actions, called rak'ahs.
Each rakah is presented in strict chronology. First, a faithful Muslim must read the suras while standing. Next comes the bow. At the end, the worshiper must perform two earthly bows. On the second, the believer sits on the floor, after which he gets up. Thus, one rak'ah is performed. In the future, everything depends on the type of prayer. The number of actions can vary from four to twelveonce. In addition, all prayers are performed at their own time, having a personal gap during the day.
Existing types of prayer
There are two types of obligatory prayers. Some are daily duty done at a fixed time. The rest of the prayers are not performed every day, only sometimes and on special occasions.
Evening prayer is also a well-ordered action. Not only the appointed time was established, but also the number of prayers, clothes. The direction in which believers should aspire to Allah is also determined. Moreover, among people there are certain exceptions for certain categories, including women.
Time for daily prayers
The beginning of the night prayer ‹‹Isha›› comes at a time when the redness leaves the horizon and complete darkness comes. Prayer continues until midnight. Islamic midnight is exactly in the center of the time intervals, which are divided into morning, evening prayers.
The morning prayer ‹‹Fajir›› or ‹‹Subh›› begins at the time when the darkness of the night begins to dissolve in the sky. As soon as the sun disk appears on the horizon, the prayer time is over. In other words, this is the period of sunrise.
The beginning of the lunch prayer ‹‹Zuhr›› corresponds to a certain position of the sun. Namely, when it begins to descend from the zenith to the west. The time of this prayer lasts until the next prayer.
Evening prayer ‹‹Asr››, starting after lunch, is also determined by the position of the sun. The beginning of prayer is indicated by the presence of a shadow that is equal to the length of the object that casts it. Plus the duration of the shadow at the zenith. The end of the time of this prayer is marked by the reddening of the sun, which acquires a copper hue. It also makes it easier to look at with the naked eye.
Evening prayer ‹‹Maghrib›› begins at the moment when the sun is completely hidden behind the horizon. In other words, this is the period of decline. This prayer continues until the next prayer arrives.
The true story of a believing Muslim woman
Once upon a time, an absolutely incredible story happened to a girl in the city of Abh, located in the southwestern part of Saudi Arabia, during the evening prayer. On that fateful day, she was preparing for a future wedding. When she had already put on a beautiful dress and applied make-up, a call to perform the night prayer suddenly sounded. Since she was a sincerely believing Muslim woman, she began to prepare for her sacred duty.
The girl's mother wanted to prevent her from praying. Because the guests have already gathered, and the bride could appear in front of them without makeup. The woman did not want her daughter to be ridiculed, considering her ugly. However, the girl still disobeyed, obeying the will of Allah. It didn't matter to her how she looked in front of people. The main thing is to be pure and beautiful for the Almighty!
Despite the will of her mother, the girl nevertheless began to perform prayer. And at that moment, when she made a prostration, it turned out to be the last in her life! What a delightful and incredible end for a Muslim woman who insisted on obeying Allah. Many people who heard this real story told by Sheikh Abdul Mohsen Al-Ahmad were extremely moved.
Evening Prayer Sequence
How to read the evening prayer? This prayer combines five rak'ahs, where three are obligatory and two are desirable. When a believer finishes the second rak'ah, he does not rise to his feet immediately, but remains to read the prayer ‹‹tahiyat››. And only after saying the phrase ‹‹Allahu Akbar››, he gets to his feet to perform the third rak'ah, raising his hands to shoulder level. An additional surah after ‹‹Al-Fatiha›› is read only in the first two rak'ahs. During the third, ‹‹Al-Fatiha›› is read. At the same time, the prayer is not pronounced aloud, and the additional sura is no longer read.
It is noteworthy that in the Shafi'i madhhab, the evening prayer lasts as long as a red tint remains in the sky after sunset. Approximately 40 minutes. In the Hanafi madhhab - until the darkness begins to dissipate. About an hour and a half. The best time to pray is after sunset.
Despite the fact that the time of the evening prayer continues until the night prayer, Maghrib must be performed immediately for the first time after it begins. If the faithful becameperform namaz at the end of the evening prayer, but delayed the end, and completed one full-fledged rak'ah on time - the sacred duty is considered fulfilled. Since one of the Hadiths says: ‹‹Forcing one rak'ah, performed the prayer itself››.
Mandatory cleansing before prayer
Have you recently converted to Islam? Or did you follow the religion that your ancestors followed? Then you undoubtedly have a huge number of questions. And the very first of them: “How to do the evening prayer”? Undoubtedly, it may seem to a person that its performance is an extremely complex ritual. However, in fact, the process of studying it is quite simple! Namaz is made up of desirable (sunnat) and necessary (wajib) components. If the believer does not fulfill the sunnats, his prayer will be valid. For comparison, consider the example of food. Food can be eaten without spices, but is it better with them?
Before performing any prayer, the believer must have a clear motivation for her ascension. In other words, in his heart he must determine exactly what prayer he will perform. The impulse is born in the heart, but it is not permissible to express it aloud! Therefore, based on the above information, we can confidently conclude that the main thing in daily prayer is to know how the evening prayer is performed correctly, what time it starts! A devout Muslim should disconnect from everything worldly, focusing only on turning to the Almighty.
What is taharat?
A certain rowperformed actions brings a person out of the state of ritual impurity (janaba). Taharat is of two types: internal or external. The inner cleanses the soul from unseemly deeds, sins. External - from impurities on the flesh, shoes, clothing or dwelling.
Taharat for Muslims is a light that purifies thoughts, motives. In addition to the fact that it must be performed before each prayer, it is good to perform a small ablution in any free time. Do not neglect such a useful act as the renewal of voodoo. It is extremely important to remember that without the ghusl, a small ablution is invalid. Everything that destroys the ghusl destroys the taharat!
Differences between male and female prayers
Women's prayer is actually no different from men's. It is extremely important for a woman to perform evening prayers and other prayers, following the requirements for her. Therefore, the performance of home prayer is much preferable, so as not to be distracted from pressing concerns. In addition, women have several specific conditions.
When a woman visits her characteristic stages of menstruation, postpartum bleeding, this significantly limits the performance of daily Islamic duty. The same rule applies to other types of bleeding, discharge that prevent prayers. In order not to be mistaken, it is extremely important to correctly distinguish between these states! Since in some cases it is forbidden, in other cases it is necessary to perform prayers as usual.
When is ghusl available to a woman?
Each state has its own characteristic name, and the duty is to teachprayer and knowing what time the evening prayer begins is usually entrusted to her patron or husband. Uzur is unnatural bleeding. Nifas - postpartum blood purification. And finally, haid is a monthly cleansing. For every woman understanding, the difference between these states is fard.
Unfortunately, a woman can perform ghusl only after the complete cessation of haid, nifaas or marital intimacy. As you know, taharat is a direct way to prayer, without it prayer will not be accepted! And prayer is the key to Paradise. However, voodoo can, and even should, be produced during such periods. Do not forget that a small ablution, especially for a woman, is no less significant. If wudu is performed according to all the canons, with due sincere motivation, the person will be blessed with the blessing of barakat.
The rules are the same everywhere
Faithful Muslims living in different countries are required to say a prayer exclusively in Arabic. However, this does not mean that you can only memorize Arabic words. All the words included in prayer should be understood by every Muslim. Otherwise, prayer loses all meaning.
Clothes for performing prayers cannot be indecent, tight-fitting, transparent. Men should at least cover the area from the knees to the navel. In addition, his shoulders should also be covered with something. Before the beginning of the prayer, the faithful must clearly pronounce its name and, raising their hands to the sky, bent at the elbows, say the phrase: “Allahu Akbar”! After praising the Almighty, Muslims,folding their hands on their chest, covering their left with their right, they perform not only the evening prayer, but also other prayers.
Basic rules for prayer for women
How to read the evening prayer for women? A praying woman should cover her entire body, excluding her face and hands. Moreover, it is not permissible for a woman to hold her back as straight as a man when performing a waist bow. Following the bow, the Muslim woman should sit down on her left leg, pointing both feet to the right.
It is also forbidden for a woman to put her feet shoulder-width apart, thus violating the right of a man. And do not raise your hands too high when saying the phrase: ‹‹Allahu Akbar››! And during the performance of bows, it is required to be extremely accurate in movements. If suddenly some place on the body is exposed, you need to quickly hide it, continuing the ceremony. During prayer, a woman should not be distracted.
How to pray for a beginner woman?
However, today there are many new converts to Islam women who are completely unaware of the rules for performing namaz. Therefore, we will tell you how the evening prayer is performed for beginner women. All prayers are performed in cleanliness (clothing, room) on a separate prayer rug, or fresh clothes are spread out.
First you need to do a small ablution. A small ablution can save a person from anger, negative thoughts. Anger is a flame, and, as you know, it is extinguished with water. That is why voodoo can be an excellent solution if a person intends toget rid of anger. In addition, if good deeds are performed by a person who is in taharat, then the reward for them increases. Which is also mentioned in Hadith.
One Hadith equates prayer with five times washing in the river. Hadith is a saying of the Prophet Muhammad. They mention that when resurrected, everyone will be in a state of desperate confusion. Then the Prophet will arise and take with him those who performed ablution taharat and performed prayer. How does he know everyone? To which the Prophet replied: ‹‹Among your herds there are exceptional white horses. In the same way, I will recognize other people and take them with me. All parts of the flesh will shine from taharat, prayer.”
Small wudu ablution
According to the Shariah, a small ablution consists of four paramount fard wudu. First you need to wash your face three times and rinse your mouth and nose. It is customary to consider the boundaries of the face: in width - from one earlobe to the other, and in length - from the area where the hair begins to grow to the edge of the chin. Next, wash your hands three times, including the elbow joint. If rings or rings are worn on the fingers, they must be displaced to allow water to penetrate.
After which it is necessary to wipe the scalp, after wetting the hands once. Next, once you should wipe the ears, neck with the outside of the hand, but without re-wetting the hands. From the inside, the ears are rubbed with index fingers, and outside - with thumbs. Finally, the feet are washed three times, with the initial cleansing between the toes. However, follow the procedureonly on the scalp, not the neck or forehead.
Basic rules for ablution
During ablution, you need to get rid of everything that can make it difficult for water to penetrate. For example, paint, nail polish, wax, dough. However, henna does not prevent the ingress of water at all. In addition, it is required to clean those areas where water during normal bathing may not get. For example, the folds of the navel, the skin under the eyebrows, behind the ear, as well as its shell. Women are encouraged to clean earring holes if they exist.
Due to the fact that cleansing obliges to wash the skin on the head and hair, if the woven braids do not interfere with the penetration of water to the roots, they can not be dissolved. The main thing is to wash your hair three times so that the water gets on the skin. After all the shameful areas are washed, and all impurities are removed from the body, you need to perform a small ablution without cleansing the feet. Having poured water over the body three times, starting from the head, they go first to the right shoulder, then to the left. Only after washing the whole body can one proceed to the feet.
Mandatory requirements for women
Of course, we already know a lot about how to spend the evening prayer, what time. It remains only to clarify some details. If the faithful received permission to take part in joint prayer, you can visit the mosque. However, as mentioned above, mostly women perform namaz at home. After all, taking care of children and the household does not always make it possible to visit a mosque. But men, when praying, must visit a holy place.
A faithful Muslim woman must comply with the mandatory requirements at every prayer. Maintaining purity in the rite itself, the intention to perform a prayer, the presence of fresh clothes, the ends of which should not exceed the level of the ankle. It is absolutely unacceptable to be in a state of alcohol intoxication. It is forbidden to perform prayer at noon and during sunrise. Evening prayers are also completely unacceptable during sunset.
Women who are starting to follow in the footsteps of the Great Prophet Muhammad, it is also important to remember that during the prayer, every believer should be turned towards the Kaaba. The abode of Allah Himself, located in the city of Mecca, is called Qibla. A person should not determine the exact location of Qibla. It is enough to calculate the side of Mecca. When a mosque is located in a city, the landmark is determined in accordance with it.
Who has the right to be called a true believer?
A person who converts to Islam, reads namaz daily, is improved and purified! Namaz automatically becomes an integral part in a person's life, being both an indicator and an instrument of his deeds. According to many sayings of the Prophet, if a person performs ablution according to all the canons, Allah Almighty washes away sins, as water does. The one who performs prayer sincerely will enjoy not only in its process, but also after the end.
The one who pays prayer, tempers his faith, and the one who forgets, destroys it. A person who rejects the need for prayer cannot be a Muslim. Because he rejects one of the fundamental conditions of Islam.
