Page 85 - Seekers Guide Book
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The Seeker’s Guide
9 What are the five daily
prayers in Islam?
rayer is form of worship of God. Prayer has been
Penjoined on believers five times a day at appointed
hours:
Believers are under the obligation to
say their prayers at the appointed hours.
(Quran 4:103)
These prayers are performed either individually at home
or in congregation in mosques. A believer begins his
prayer by uttering the words “God is Great”. These words
acknowledge that all greatness belongs to God and that
the worshipper will lead a life of modesty and humility.
Each prayer is segmented into several rak’ah, or units. In
each rak’ah a person stands, bows and prostrates, reciting
verses from the Quran and other prayers. These are the
five obligatory prayers:
1. Early morning prayer (Fajr): two rak’ahs between dawn
and sunrise
2. Noon prayer (Zuhr): four rak’ahs, between noon and
mid-afternoon
3. Afternoon prayer (Asr): four rak’ahs. The time for
prayer starts when the length of any object’s shadow
reaches a factor (usually 1 or 2) of the length of the object
itself plus the length of that object’s shadow at noon. The
time for the prayer ends at sunset.
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