The second pillar of Islam – Salah
As sala’amu alaikum waramatuAllahi barakatuh brothers and sisters! Thank you for visiting this page and for your interest in what might be the most important pillar of Islam; salah. Salah is an extremely important subject when it comes to being a Muslim. We will go as far as to say that those who do not offer salah, with the exception of those who are truly unable to, are not Muslims. Why you ask? The answer is simple; Allah (swt) has commanded us in The Qur’an to bow down and prostrate to Him 5 times a day;
Surah 2 – Al-Baqara (MADINA) : Verse 238
Guard strictly your (habit of) prayers Especially the middle prayer, and stand before Allah in a devout (frame of mind).
Surah 2 – Al-Baqara (MADINA) : Verse 238
Be guardians of your prayers, and of the midmost prayer, and stand up with devotion to Allah.
Surah 37 – As-Saaffat (MAKKA) : Verse 165
Verily, we (angels), we stand in rows (for the prayers as you Muslims stand in rows for your prayers);
If you have read The Holy Qur’an, many of you will find that there is no description of how to prostrate and offer salah to Our Lord, Allah (swt). This is where the Sunnah of The Prophet Muhammad (saws) comes into play. Our beloved Prophet (saws) teaches us how to properly take wudhu (aka ablution) to prepare to offer salah, and teaches us how to offer salah (how many ru’kats, how many prayers a day, why so many, etc.). So as many of you can see my dear brothers and sisters, our obligatory as well as Nawafil (optional) prayers are very important. It is our way of communicating directly with our Creator, our Lord Allah (swt). Here is a beautiful hadith authenticating the previous statements:
Bukhari :: Book 1 :: Volume 2 :: Hadith 47
Narrated Abu Huraira:
One day while the Prophet was sitting in the company of some people, (The angel) Gabriel came and asked, “What is faith?” Allah’s Apostle replied, ‘Faith is to believe in Allah, His angels, (the) meeting with Him, His Apostles, and to believe in Resurrection.” Then he further asked, “What is Islam?” Allah’s Apostle replied, “To worship Allah Alone and none else, to offer prayers perfectly to pay the compulsory charity (Zakat) and to observe fasts during the month of Ramadan.” Then he further asked, “What is Ihsan (perfection)?” Allah’s Apostle replied, “To worship Allah as if you see Him, and if you cannot achieve this state of devotion then you must consider that He is looking at you.” Then he further asked, “When will the Hour be established?” Allah’s Apostle replied, “The answerer has no better knowledge than the questioner. But I will inform you about its portents.
1. When a slave (lady) gives birth to her master.
2. When the shepherds of black camels start boasting and competing with others in the construction of higher buildings. And the Hour is one of five things which nobody knows except Allah.
The Prophet then recited: “Verily, with Allah (Alone) is the knowledge of the Hour–.” (31. 34) Then that man (Gabriel) left and the Prophet asked his companions to call him back, but they could not see him. Then the Prophet said, “That was Gabriel who came to teach the people their religion.” Abu ‘Abdullah said: He (the Prophet) considered all that as a part of faith.
That is why we have decided to offer our video rendition of one of the most important pillars of Islam; Salah. The videos below describe and explain, in the Cambodian language of Khmer, just how important it is to offer salah and the proper way of doing it, inshaAllah. Please be mindful and if there are any discrepancies that you can point out, please do not hesitate to contact us. We are here to help spread the word of Islam and offer Da’wah for the sake of our Creator alone, so if we’re not doing some correctly we must rectify and acknowledge our mistake as well as fix it immediately. Let’s join together brothers and sisters and unite in offering salah to Allah (swt). Exalted is He, and He deserves nothing less than the best we have to offer our Lord.
Please enjoy the videos below my brothers and sisters! Insha’Allah it will be of some use to those of us who question the practice of their religion. Assalamu’alaikum warama’tuAllahi wa barakatuh!