Significance of   Prayer

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If a person really   believes in Allah (God), how will he show it? And how will it affect his  life?

For a Muslim, his   faith is first demonstrated by the five daily ritual Prayers called Salah. These Prayers are so important that they   are the second Pillar of Islam after the Testimony of Faith (?There is no god   but God and Muhammad is the Messenger of God?), obligatory for all, and they   are the first thing the Muslim will be asked about on Judgment Day.

Five times a day a   Muslim is asked to stop whatever he is doing  be it sleep, work, or play  and make a ritual ablution before facing his Lord in Prayer. No matter what   his actions, the most important thing to a Muslim is his relationship with   Allah. This relationship is demonstrated and put into practice, as well as   improved and increased, by the ritual Prayers. Only if the Prayers are sound   and proper will the deeds be sound and proper.

In the Prayer, the   Muslim faces towards the Ka?bah in Makkah, the symbol of the Oneness of Allah and the unity   of Muslims. He stands, bows, and prostrates to his Lord while praising Him,   reciting some of the words He revealed in the Qur?an,   and asking for His forgiveness and mercy. In doing so, the Muslim reminds   himself of his position in the universe as a humble servant of Allah and of   his total dependence on his Creator, Cherisher and Sustainer.

When the Prayer is   performed properly ? with due humility and remembrance of Allah ? it has a   lasting effect on the person. It fills his heart with the remembrance of   Allah, and with fear of and hope in Him. He will not want to move from that   lofty position by disobeying Allah.

The Prophet   compared this experience of making ablution and praying five times a day to   having a river running in front of one?s house. If one bathed in that river   five times a day, would any filth remain on his body? Likewise, the ablution   and Prayer five times a day removes ones sins and also prevents him from sinning.

Prayers also affect   the life of the Muslim by encouraging him to schedule his activities around   their fixed times. There is some flexibility, for each time is actually a   span of one hour or more. But the Muslim who is conscious of Allah will   strive to schedule his life in such a way that he does not miss any of the   Prayers  for example, by postponing a shopping trip until after a Prayer, or   by taking a break from work, or by sleeping earlier so as to able to rise for   the Dawn Prayer.

Therefore, if one   really believes in Allah, he will show it by his commitment to the five daily   Prayers, and these, in turn, will help him to live righteously.