Page 70 - Prayer in the Qur'an

68 PRAYER IN THE QUR'AN

they were terribly shaken. Musa (as) asked for forgiveness both for
himself and the believers traveling with him:

… "My Lord, if You had willed, You could have destroyed them
previously and me as well. Would you destroy us for what the
fools among us did? It was only a trial from You by which You
misguided those You willed and guided those You willed. You
are our Protector so forgive us and have mercy on us. You are
the Best of Forgivers. Prescribe good for us in the world and the
hereafter. We have truly turned to You." He [Allah] said, "As for
My punishment, I strike with it anyone I will. My mercy ex-
tends to all things but I will prescribe it for those who do their
duty and pay alms, and those who believe in Our Signs." (Surat
al-A'raf: 155-156)
The most telling attributes of the Prophet Musa's (as) prayers re-

lated in the Qur'an are his sincerity and frankness. He prayed to
Allah sincerely and asked for help from Him and by Allah's will,
what befell him made him grow into a prophet holding great power.
One of the most important attributes of prayer is sincerity and
that it be heartfelt. At this point, one of the obstacles that may mis-
lead one is, out of feelings of embarrassment towards Allah, disin-
clination to confess one's sins and flaws to Him. This attitude may
make some people pray very "formally" and, either out of embar-
rassment or pride, hinder them from divulging their troubles to
Allah, although He knows our every sin, mistake, and any irrational
or erroneous attitudes or thoughts.

This being the case, what we need to do is to turn to Allah in sin-
cerity and frankness and share our every secret with Him. The inner
awe one has for Allah is definitely not an obstacle that will turn the
relation between Allah and His servant into "formality," but an en-