Allah says in the Qur’an:
“O you who have believed, bow and prostrate and worship your Lord and do good – that you may succeed.” [22:77]
Ruku’ (bowing) and sajda (prostration) – salah is the first step to appreciating our creator. Where is our salah? How active and vigilant are we in getting out of bed? How lazy are we getting to the masjid?
When a non-Muslim who has never seen the Muslim prayer sees someone praying they realise the increase in humility throughout the prayer. We start by standing then we make ruku’, then after standing again we put our faces to the ground for the creator. The progression of salat itself teaches us that we are supposed to grow in our humility to Allah. The more humility we have the more humble we become, the more we appreciate our creator.
So what about in between the salawat?
Allah goes further, He mentions worship and doing good. We as Muslims understand that worship is more than just salah, it is an attitude. How we conduct ourselves everyday, how we walk, talk, dress, deal with others – our daily prayers are what shape these traits. Our salah is not merely a behaviour, it should have a direct effect on how we think, our attitudes to daily life.
If salah simply becomes just a form of exercise we will not see a change in our personalities. We must take a step back and review our prayer. Do we truly feel the humility or is it simply a chore?
Our salawat are the pillars that hold our day together, the foundation of a Muslim’s life. This is why we must plan our days around the salah and not the salah around our days.
May Allah make us of those who are truly appreciative of Him through the salah and our daily lives.
Allah knows best.