Fiqh as-Sunnah Prayer

[muslim0-1]

as-Salamu'alaykum wa Rahmatullahi wa Barakatuh

Something I complied together, of the steps of salah on another forum.

On this thread we will cover Salah - its preconditions, facing the Kabah, intention, takbeer, rukooh, and sajuud.

[muslim0-1]

Prayer part 1

The preconditions of Salah are:

Having wudhu.
Knowing the time for the prayer.
Facing the Qiblah.
Covering the 'awrah.
Being pure from Hadath - (ritualistic impurities, i.e such as passing wind, being in the state of Janabah (sexual defilement), or menstruating, or generally being out of the state of wudhu')
Being pure of Najasah - nothing having any impurtiies on your clothing, such as feces, dog saliva etc).
Purity of the place of prayer (knowing the place that you are praying on is clean).

[muslim0-1]

Prayer part 2

Facing the Qiblah - Kabah :

When the Messenger of Allah sallahu alayhi wa salam stood for prayer, he would face the Ka'bah in both obligatory and voluntary prayers, and he sallahu alayhi wa salam ordered us, saying: 'when you stand for prayer, perform ablution perfectly, then face the qiblah and say takbeer. [Saheeh Bukhari and Muslim]

Allah Ta'ala said : 'Wherever you turn, there is the Face of Allah' [Surah al-Baqarah; 2:115]

As we all know, the first qiblah in Islam was Jerusalem. After a while, Allah commanded the Prophet sallahu alauhi wa salam to pray towards the Ka'bah in Makkah.

'He sallahu alayhi wa salam used to pray towards Bait al-Maqadas [with the Ka'bah in front of him] before the following verse was revealed: 'We see the turning of your faces to the heavens; now shall we turn you to a Qiblah that shall please you: turn then your faces in the direction of the Sacred Mosque'

[Surah al-Baqarah;2:144]

When the above ayah was revealed, to face the Ka'bah, there were people at Masjid Qubaa' [in Madinah] praying Fajr when someone came to them and said, 'Verily the Messenger of Allah sallahu alayhi wa salam has had some of the Quran revealed to him last night and he has been ordered to face the Ka'bah, [verily] so face it'. Their faces were towards Shaam (Palestine, Jordan area), so they turned round [and their Imam turned round to face the qiblah along with them].' [Saheeh Bukhari and Muslim]

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Prayer part 3

Intention:

Having the intention to pray that particular prayer. He sallahu alayhi wa salam used to say: 'All actions are by intention, and every man shall have what he intended...' [Saheeh Bukhari & Muslim]

Imam Nawawi commented and said :

'The intention is the purpose, so the person about to pray brings to mind that prayer and what is relevant of its characteristics, such as which prayer it is, whether it is obligatory etc. & he brings these things together in his intention with the first takbeer.'

[Rawdah at-Taalibeen;1/224]

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Prayer part 4

Takbeer:

The Prophet sallahu alayhi wa salam would start the prayer by saying:

Allahu Akbar - Allah is the greatest

The Prophet sallahu alayhi wa salam said : 'Verily, the prayer of a person sis not complete until he has made an ablution which has included the necessary parts of the body, and he has then said: 'Allahu Akbar' [at-Tabaraani]

He also used to say: The key to the prayer is purification, it is entered by takbeer and exited by tasleem. [Sunan at-Tirmidhi]

He also ordered us to say 'Allahu Akbar' when we are praying behind an Imam:

'When the Imam says: Allahu Akbar, then say: Allahu Akbar.' [Musnad Ahmad & Sunan al-Bayhaqi]