Why salah matters
Salah (namaz) is the second pillar of Islam. After faith itself, the greatest duty on a Muslim is to pray five times a day. It is obligatory on every Muslim man and woman who has reached puberty and is of sound mind.
Salah in the Quran
Allah commands the establishing of prayer in many places, for example:
وَأَقِيمُوا۟ ٱلصَّلَوٰةَ وَءَاتُوا۟ ٱلزَّكَوٰةَ وَٱرْكَعُوا۟ مَعَ ٱلرَّٰكِعِينَ ٤٣Wa aqeemus salaata wa aatuz zakaata warka'oo ma'ar raaki'eenAnd establish prayer and give zakah and bow with those who bow [in worship and obedience].Surah Al-Baqarah 2:43
ٱتْلُ مَآ أُوحِىَ إِلَيْكَ مِنَ ٱلْكِتَٰبِ وَأَقِمِ ٱلصَّلَوٰةَ ۖ إِنَّ ٱلصَّلَوٰةَ تَنْهَىٰ عَنِ ٱلْفَحْشَآءِ وَٱلْمُنكَرِ ۗ وَلَذِكْرُ ٱللَّهِ أَكْبَرُ ۗ وَٱللَّهُ يَعْلَمُ مَا تَصْنَعُونَ ٤٥Utlu maaa oohiya ilaika mional Kitaabi wa aqimis Salaata innas Salaata tanhaa 'anil fahshaaa'i wal munkar; wa lazikrul laahi akbar; wal laahu ya'lamu maa tasna'oonRecite, [O Muhammad], what has been revealed to you of the Book and establish prayer. Indeed, prayer prohibits immorality and wrongdoing, and the remembrance of Allah is greater. And Allah knows that which you do.Surah Al-'Ankabut 29:45
Salah in the hadith
- The first deed a servant will be asked about on the Day of Judgement is his prayer; if it is sound, the rest of his deeds will be sound. (Tirmidhi 413, Nasa'i 465)
- If a river ran by your door and you bathed in it five times a day, would any dirt remain on you? That is the likeness of the five prayers — through them Allah wipes out sins. (Bukhari 528, Muslim 667)
- Between a man and shirk and kufr stands the abandoning of prayer. (Muslim 82)
Remember: salah is not only a duty — it is a direct conversation with Allah. These five daily meetings calm the heart, give the day its order and keep one away from wrongdoing.
In this course we learn, step by step: purification and wudu, prayer times and rak‘ahs, the conditions, pillars and obligations, the complete way to pray, and the Jumu‘ah, Eid, Janazah, Witr and voluntary prayers.