The prayer step by step

The Prophet ﷺ said: "Pray as you have seen me praying." (Bukhari 631) So the prayer is learned mostly by watching and praying with others. This lesson gives the general outline.

The five prayers and their units (rak'at): • Fajr (dawn): 2 • Dhuhr (midday): 4 • 'Asr (afternoon): 4 • Maghrib (sunset): 3 • 'Isha' (night): 4

Before praying: be in a state of wudu; have a clean body, clothes and place; be decently covered (the details vary between the schools; ask the imam); face the qibla (the direction of Mecca); and the time of the prayer must have begun.

How one rak'a unfolds: 1. Standing, facing the qibla, with the intention in the heart, raise the hands and say: اللَّهُ أَكْبَرُ (Allaahu akbar, "Allah is the Greatest"). 2. Recite Al-Fatiha. The Prophet ﷺ said there is no prayer for whoever does not recite Al-Fatiha. (Bukhari 756, Muslim 394) In the first two rak'at, add a short surah. 3. Bowing (rukuu'): say "Allaahu akbar", bow with the hands on the knees, and say: سُبْحَانَ رَبِّيَ الْعَظِيمِ (subḥaana rabbiya l-'aẓiim, "Glory be to my Lord, the Magnificent"), usually three times. 4. Stand back up saying: سَمِعَ اللَّهُ لِمَنْ حَمِدَهُ (sami'a llaahu liman ḥamidah, "Allah hears the one who praises Him"), then: رَبَّنَا وَلَكَ الْحَمْدُ (rabbanaa wa laka l-ḥamd, "Our Lord, to You belongs the praise"). 5. Prostration (sujuud): say "Allaahu akbar" and prostrate, with forehead, nose, hands, knees and toes on the ground, saying: سُبْحَانَ رَبِّيَ الْأَعْلَى (subḥaana rabbiya l-a'laa, "Glory be to my Lord, the Most High"), usually three times. 6. Sit briefly, then make a second prostration. That is one rak'a. Stand up for the next.

After the second rak'a, sit for the tashahhud (the testimony). In the last rak'a, recite the tashahhud and then the prayer upon the Prophet ﷺ. The imam or teacher will teach you the wording used at the centre.

Finish by turning the head to the right then to the left, saying: السَّلَامُ عَلَيْكُمْ وَرَحْمَةُ اللَّهِ (as-salaamu 'alaykum wa raḥmatu llaah).

Some details differ between the schools of law (position of the hands, when the hands are raised, reciting aloud or silently, etc.). All these ways rest on sources. Ask the imam, and in congregation, follow the prayer leader.

You do not know Al-Fatiha by heart yet? That is normal at the start. Depending on the school, there are ways to pray during the learning period; ask the imam. What matters is to begin.

Understanding the lesson

Explanation Every movement of the prayer has a meaning. Standing, we stand before our Lord; "Allaahu akbar" reminds us that Allah is greater than anything occupying the mind. Bowing is a gesture of respect; prostration is the peak of humility, when the forehead touches the ground. The Prophet ﷺ said that the servant is never closer to his Lord than when he is prostrating: "so make much supplication in it" (Muslim 482).

The prayer must be calm. A man prayed quickly in front of the Prophet ﷺ, who told him several times: "Go back and pray, for you have not prayed." Then he taught him to stay still for a moment in each position (Bukhari 757, Muslim 397). This calm, called ṭuma'niina, is part of the prayer.

Presence of heart (al-khushuu') is the soul of the prayer: "Successful indeed are the believers, those who are humble in their prayer" (meaning of verses 23:1-2). It grows when we understand what we say: hence the value of learning the meaning of Al-Fatiha and the formulas.

The Prophet ﷺ compared the five prayers to a river flowing past one's door, in which one bathes five times a day: no dirt would remain (Bukhari 528, Muslim 667).

Common mistakes: praying too fast; pushing the prayer to the end of its time without reason; giving up because one does not yet know everything.

Lessons to draw • Pray on time, even briefly, rather than putting everything off. • Stay still for a moment in each position, without hurrying. • Use prostration to call on Allah; on whether one may supplicate in one's own language during the obligatory prayer, the schools differ: ask the imam. • Learn the meaning of one prayer formula each week. • Pray at the mosque when possible, to learn by watching others.

Key points • Fajr 2, Dhuhr 4, 'Asr 4, Maghrib 3, 'Isha' 4 rak'at. • One rak'a: standing with Al-Fatiha, bowing, rising, two prostrations. • Calm in each position is part of the prayer (Bukhari 757, Muslim 397).

The main message Prayer is the believer's daily meeting with Allah: done calmly and attentively, it soothes the heart and washes away sins.