Requirements of prayer

It has been narrated in juridical, mystical and ethical books that: prayer is a reality which contains four thousand questions. This huge amount of external and internal questions represents the excellent position of prayer among the other worships. I don’t know how to start the declaration of this important spiritual action; I’m like a person who has stood near a beach and is looking at an extremely massive sea.

Two conditions have been stated for prayer: external, internal

In this section, the external and internal conditions of prayer will be mentioned simply and briefly.

External conditions

1. Purity includes the ablution, Vozu, Tayammom and removing contamination from body, clothes and the cleanliness of whole prayer’s place as much as possible.

2. Avoid wearing silky and damasking (hareer) clothes and using golden material for men and the clothes which have made from the wool of animals that have taboo meat.

3. Consideration of prayer times; prayer is much better to be established as soon as its time arrives, and also standing in a place where no one passes in front of worshiper.

4. Worshiper should stand toward the Kiblah along with whole attention and concentration to what he wants to do and the fact that he has stood in the presence of a great omnipotence.

5. Before the establishment of prayer, reciting some verses of holy Quran has been recommended for instance:

إِنِّي وَجَّهْتُ وَجْهِيَ لِلَّذِي فَطَرَ السَّمَاوَاتِ وَالْأَرْضَ حَنِيفًا وَمَا أَنَا مِنَ الْمُشْرِكِينَ[1]

   “Indeed, I have turned my face toward He who created the heavens and the earth, inclining toward truth, and I am not of those who associate others with Allah.”

6. Raising two hands to the near of ears while two palms are toward the Kiblah.

7. Standing courteously and dignifiedly in the presence of God and fixing eyes at the place of genuflection, especially to the clayish segment on which the worshiper puts his forehead.

8. Takbeer and Sura Hamd and Toheed should be said with calmness, because being hurry in prayer removes its all divine effects.

9. Bowing and putting forehead on the clay in Sajdeh along with placing two palms, two knees, two big toes and saying Tashahhod and Salaam. It should be noted that the Morning Prayer is two Rakats, noon prayer is four Rakat, afternoon prayer is four Rakats, evening prayer is three Rakats and the night prayer is four Rakats. 

It should be considered that in every Rakat of prayer after reciting Sura Hamd and Toheed and bowing one time and genuflecting for two times, and in the final two Rakats of the prayer which are four Rakats reciting Sura Hamd for one time or reciting “سبحان الله والحمد الله ولا اله الا الله و الله اکبر” one time according to the indults of religious scholars whom the worshipers imitates from.

These are the external conditions of prayer that have been named as the introductions of prayer.

Internal conditions

The Great Fiez has stated in the valuable book of Mahjato-al-Bayza that the essence of prayer depends on six realities:

Presence of heart

Intellection

Solemnity

Obeisance

Hope

Modesty[2]

Presence of heart

Presence of heart is a reality that creates a deep concentration and attention to the Almighty God regarding the affairs of the prayer. If one can’t draw his attention and heart’s emotions toward God, the presence won’t happen and the entity of worshiper won’t be aware of his beloved and he can’t gain spiritual light originating in divine world.

Intellection

Intellection refers tasting the meaning of the prayer and earning the divine beneficences of it; the attainment of beneficence leads mankind to be intoxicated from the divine wine and also it creates an unusual power for his spirit to ascent.

Solemnity

Solemnity means to fear from the great dignity of Almighty God which originates from the real divine cognition and one who is ousted from the divine cognition and fails to pay attention to the dignity of God doesn’t fascinate his heart and can’t have the solemnity. 

Obeisance

Is it possible that one talks to someone else and concentrates his mind to the meaning of his words, but doesn’t care about him? Obeisance means that, in addition to the presence of heart and paying attention to the meaning of the words, worshiper should bow for God 

Hope 

Maybe one fears from an influential person, but he hopes for his loving kindness and mercifulness. Worshiper, in addition to prostrating in front of God and fearing from the dignity of the world’s owner, should be hopeful to the Supreme Being and expect his kindness and mercifulness. 

Modesty

Worshiper should pay attention to this fact that he is a tiny particle located at the front of a dear essence that is extremely enormous and great; he should know that he has completely sunken into sins and offenses and his existence is like inexistence and his worship is insignificant. A worshiper should be aware of this fact that God is familiar with his inside and outside, and he should practice paying attention to all of these affairs so that he can adorn himself in the presence of God.

Azan

When you hear the voice of Muezzin, fill your heart with terrific calling of hereafter and raise your external and internal sleeves in order to responding to the summons of God and hasten to establish your prayer, because the people who exult and rush to do God’s commandment by hearing the voice of Azan, in hereafter, they will be called to be imparted in the beneficence and mercy and goodness and grace and loving kindness and pleasantness.

Consider Azan as a criterion for your liberation or confinement in hereafter: if hearing the voice of Azan gladdens your heart and it makes you cheer and happy, you are among the people who will be released, otherwise try to heal yourself because your heart and entity have been sicken. Pay attention to this tradition that, at the time of Azan, Holy Prophet (PBUH) used to say to Belal: 

 "ارحنا یا بلال"[3] Oh my Muezzin! By saying Azan create exultation for our hearts.

Azan starts by the name of God and finishes by his name; it means he is the first and the last. By hearing the phrase of “الله اکبر” that means “God is great”, try to prostrate your heart and know that there isn’t anything greater than him and nothing really exists except him and if you don’t pay attention to these meanings, in fact you haven’t heard and said the Takbeer.

Time

At the time of prayer, be aware of this magnificent time that God has specified for you so that you can do your thraldom. It’s the time of grasping the factors of liberation, so be cheerful and happy because the way that can convey you toward the Almighty God is ready. Some of Holy Prophet’s (PBUH) wives say:

“Holy Prophet (PBUH) used to talk with us and also we talked to him but when the time of prayer arrived, he used to alter and behaved in a manner as if he isn’t familiar with us and we’re stranger.”[4]

At the time of prayer, Imam Ali’s (AS) body used to shake and writhe. Someone told him: “what’s happen?” he answered: “it’s the time of repaying a trust which was given to the skies and earths and mountains but they didn’t accept it.”[5]

At the time of prayer, Imam Sajjad (AS) used to become pale and the color of his face turned yellow.[6]

You that cleaned the place of prayer and washed your clothing and body and have prepared the external conditions of prayer, but have you paid attention to your heart and spirit and mind? Don’t they need purification? Purification of entity and sanctification of heart can be possible by repenting and regretting from what you have done in the past and its need a strong will to never do them. Don’t forget your inside purification because the Almighty God have a special attention to the inside.

Concealing sexual organ

 The purpose of concealing the sexual organ is to preventing people from looking at the obscenities and deficiencies of body. Naturally, mankind embarrasses that a respectable person sees his external deficiencies. One should embarrass and moan heartily from internal disgracefulness and moral rascality and wrong thoughts etc. These are the things which constantly are being seen by God. The internal contaminations should be removed from entities through penitence and fearing from Almighty God and the torture of hereafter.

Imam Sadiq (AS) said: “the clothing of continence from sin is the most beautiful clothing for human.”[7]

Place

Imagine that you are in the presence of justice and it’s time to considering the account, what will you do if your dossier would be black due to the intensity of sins? Keep it in your mind that the best place for establishing the prayer is mosques and other holy shrines, because compassionate God has specified these places as the locations of prayer’s compliance and the centers of distributing mercies and beneficences and affections and loving kindness.

Imam Sadiq (AS) said: “when you arrive to a mosque, pay attention to this matter that you intend to enter in the presence of a great sovereign; a king that no one can enter in his presence except the pure people and no one can sit beside him except the honest and faithful people. There you should admit to your disability and incapability and pay attention to your misery and ask for the mercifulness of God. He is one who is the most compassionate to you and he accepts pure deeds however they would be few.”[8]

Kiblah

Kiblah is a direction where the body should be located toward it and this is a symbol for inside. So, situate your thought and spirit and heart toward the owner of Kiblah and pay attention to the words of Holy Prophet (PBUH) who said: “when a servant stands to say the prayer and concentrate his volition and heart on God, it’s like a day when he was born from his mother.”[9]

Imam Sadiq (AS) said: “when you locate toward the Kiblah, disappoint yourself from the world and whatever is in it, turn away your heart from everyone except him, place the dignity of God in front of your entity and heart, remind the Day of Judgment and locate yourself between the hope and fear.”[10]