Our server costs ~$56 per month to run. Please consider donating or becoming a Patron to help keep the site running. Help us gain new members by following us on Twitter and liking our page on Facebook!
Current time: March 28, 2024, 4:18 pm

Thread Rating:
  • 0 Vote(s) - 0 Average
  • 1
  • 2
  • 3
  • 4
  • 5
The Philosophy of Salah/Daily Connection/Prayer
#1
The Philosophy of Salah/Daily Connection/Prayer
Salah means connection, and here I want to go through the inward reality of Salah.

A lot of people will look at the ritual, and think, "Why?".

We will start with the issue of "Wudoo". Wudoo refers to purification, but it's done with water. I won't go to details of the procedure of Wudoo, but rather, emphasize on the philosophy it.

You should know that according to Quran, God's throne was on water (11:7) and many places it states he has send down from the heaven purifying water.

One particular verse that stands out is:

(Quran 8:11) When He caused calm to fall on you as a security from Him and sent down upon you water from the heaven that He might thereby purify you, and take/keep away from you the uncleanness of the Shaitan, and that He might fortify your hearts and steady (your) footsteps thereby.


Imam Jaffar [as] said:

Precaution is like water flowing in a river. The three levels of precaution are like trees of every colour and variety planted on the bank of that river, each tree absorbing water from that river according to its essence, capacity, delicateness and thickness.
 
Then the benefits, which creatures take from these trees and fruits, are according to their value and worth. Allah said,
 

Quote:وَزَرْعٌ وَنَخِيلٌ صِنْوَانٌ وَغَيْرُ صِنْوَانٍ يُسْقَى بِمَاء وَاحِدٍ وَنُفَضِّلُ بَعْضَهَا عَلَى بَعْضٍ فِي الأُكُلِ

 

Palm trees having one root and [others] having distinct roots - they are watered with one water, and We make some of them excel others in fruit. (13:4)
 
Precaution in acts of obedience to Allah is like water for the trees, and the natures of the trees and their fruits in their colours and tastes are like the measures of belief. Whoever has the highest degree in belief and the purest nature with respect to the soul has the greatest precaution. He who is precautious has the purer and more sincere worship: whoever is like that is nearer to Allah.
 








My comment: Here we see Guarding against evil (Taqwa) and Guarding our relationship with God, has been likened to water. Our faith being like a tree, the greater the tree the greater amount of water.


Else where, Imam says:


If you seek purification and ablution (wudu'), then go to water as you would go to the mercy of Allah, for He has made water the key to being near to Him in intimate conversation, and a guide to the domain of His service. Just as the mercy of Allah purifies the wrong actions of His bondsmen, so are outward impurities cleansed only by water. As Allah said,
 

Quote:وَهُوَ الَّذِي أَرْسَلَ الرِّيَاحَ بُشْرًا بَيْنَ يَدَيْ رَحْمَتِهِ وَأَنزَلْنَا مِنَ السَّمَاء مَاء طَهُورًا

It is He Who sends the winds as good news before His mercy; and We send down pure water out of heaven! (25:48) and elsewhere,

 

Quote:وَجَعَلْنَا مِنَ الْمَاء كُلَّ شَيْءٍ حَيٍّ أَفَلَا يُؤْمِنُونَ

We have made of water everything living. Will they not then believe? (21:30)
 
As He gives life to every blessing in this world from water, so by His mercy and overflowing favour He gives life to the heart and to acts of obedience, and to reflection in the purity of water, its fineness, its cleanness, its blessing and the subtleness of how it mixes with everything; through water He also gives life to the heart, when you purify those limbs which you have been commanded by Allah to purify, and which you use to worship in your obligatory and customary prayers.
 
From each limb come many benefits. When you treat the limbs with respect, then their benefits will soon spring up for you. Deal with Allah's creation like water which mixes with things and gives everything its due, while not changing itself in essence. This is expressed by the words of the Messenger of Allah, 'The sincere believer is like water.' Let your purity with Allah in all your obedience be like the purity of water when He sent it down out of heaven and called it pure. Purify your heart with precaution and certainty when you purify your limbs with water.






Comment: According to the Imam, all blessings of God are from water. That is why when we do Wudo (outer purification), we should be going to it hoping for God's mercy.


It should be noted the word "mercy" doesn't justice to the word "rahma" for the word "rahma" can mean mercy, but as well everything from God's compassion or love. 


Other hadiths say to look for God's grace or go to God's grace when going to water. 


We then see that we should purify our whole body to the service of God. 


It says to purify our hearts with Taqwa (Guarding/precaution) and certainty when we purify our outer limbs with outward water.


It should be noted that it was stated all blessings are created from water. That said, all goodness created in humans, is a form of descent from water. 

Consequently, water is a station of the beautiful names of God and prescence of God,  as the Quran states "And his throne was upon water", and from there every good blessing comes about.

Consequently, the fruits of goodness grow from this water. Consequently, deeds that imitate outward good deeds without this water, are not accepted, for their substance is unclean. 

It as Quran says "to him ascends the pure/good word, and the righteous action raises it" and else where says "he knows what goes down to it and what ascends in it".



The purification is to be done to God's Water of his presence on this throne, his expansive compassion and love, and purify oneself with the exalted presence of pure blessed nature of God's holy Names  from the uncleanness that is insincerity, evil, and low inclination, and to receive his blessings in the form of vision of beauty (certainty) and guarding from deviation from his honour (Taqwa).
Reply
#2
RE: The Philosophy of Salah/Daily Connection/Prayer
[Image: travis_wut-w.jpg]
[Image: extraordinarywoo-sig.jpg]
Reply
#3
RE: The Philosophy of Salah/Daily Connection/Prayer
Quote:A lot of people will look at the ritual, and think, "Why?".

Incorrect.

[Image: islam_027.jpg]


I look at the ritual and think "what the fuck is wrong with you assholes?"
Reply
#4
RE: The Philosophy of Salah/Daily Connection/Prayer
I'm surprised they don't develop chronic back pain for praying 3 times a day turned to Mecca
Whoever fights monsters should see to it that in the process he does not become a monster. And if you gaze long enough into an abyss, the abyss will gaze back into you

Reply
#5
RE: The Philosophy of Salah/Daily Connection/Prayer
So what I got from the OP is water is good stuff. Of course, I must confess, I did skim....rather a lot. Yada, yada, allah this, blah that.

I like to drink water and Lo! purify my stinky skin with it after a workout at the gym. Otherwise, it's me knocking buzzards off of shit wagons. Praise be to Zeus!

It does work quite well for that porpoise. Notice, porpoises swim in what.....WATER of course. It's a theme of connectedness to our fishy-selves. Not that a porpoise is a fish. It's a mammal. I might be crazy, but I'm no fool when it comes to sea critters.
Reply
#6
RE: The Philosophy of Salah/Daily Connection/Prayer
Water has been used a symbol of the nature of God's blessings, being pure, giving growth, and the nature of his light "and his throne was upon the water".

Now the next thing to talk about is God the direction of Salah. We face ourselves to "the house of God", because our intention is to journey from the darkness of the soul to the house of God's light.

The intention in Salah therefore is always directed towards travelling towards God. "Verily I am emigrating to God" Prophet Lut in Quran.

The next thing is "God is greater" in the beginning of prayer after making the intention of the Salah towards closeness of God. This is known as Takbeer.

Imam Jaffar states:

 
When you face the qiblah, you should despair of this world, what it contains of creation and what others are occupied with. Empty your heart of every preoccupation which might distract you from Allah. See the immensity of Allah with your innermost being, and remember that you will stand before Him. For Allah has said,
 


Quote:هُنَالِكَ تَبْلُو كُلُّ نَفْسٍ مَّا أَسْلَفَتْ وَرُدُّواْ إِلَى اللّهِ مَوْلاَهُمُ الْحَقِّ
There shall every soul become acquainted with what it sent before, and they shall be brought back to Allah, their true Patron. (10:30)
 
Stand at the foot of fear and hope. When you recite the takbir, you should belittle what is between the high heavens and the moist earth, which are all below His glory, for when Allah looks into the heart of His bondsman while he is saying the takbir, and sees in his heart something obstructing the truth of his declaring that Allah is great, He says, 'O liar! Do you try to deceive Me?
 
By My might and My majesty, I will deny you the sweetness of My remembrance, and I will veil you from My nearness and from joy in My intimate communion.'
 
Know that Allah does not need your service. He is independent of you, your worship and your supplication. He summons you by His favour to show you mercy, to put you far from His punishment, to spread some of the blessings of His kindness over you, to guide you to the path of His pleasure, and to open to you the door of His forgiveness. If Allah had created what He created in the universe many times over, forever without end, it would still be the same to Allah whether they all rejected Him or united with Him. All that He has from the worship of creatures is the display of His generosity and power. Therefore make modesty your cloak and incapacity your shawl. Enter under the throne of the power of Allah, and you will capture the benefits of His lordship, seeking help in Him and asking for His succour.





_________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________


So we can see the "takbeer" in the beginning of Salah is to belittle everything other then God and to remember indeed God is the most worthy goal and the most best reward.


It's not mean to mindlessly just state God is Greater, but to have a spirit of magnifying God in the heart so as to belittle the rewards other then him, and so that we attain his nearness and the remembrance of the highest tranquility and peace and the journey towards it.
Reply
#7
RE: The Philosophy of Salah/Daily Connection/Prayer
(April 9, 2015 at 4:26 pm)MysticKnight Wrote: Water has been used a symbol of the nature of God's blessings

Prove that water is a symbol and not an analogy!
Reply
#8
RE: The Philosophy of Salah/Daily Connection/Prayer
(April 9, 2015 at 4:51 pm)Surgenator Wrote:
(April 9, 2015 at 4:26 pm)MysticKnight Wrote: Water has been used a symbol of the nature of God's blessings

Prove that water is a symbol and not an analogy!
Symbol and analogy would mean the same thing here, so I don't get your objection.
Reply
#9
RE: The Philosophy of Salah/Daily Connection/Prayer
(April 9, 2015 at 4:52 pm)MysticKnight Wrote:
(April 9, 2015 at 4:51 pm)Surgenator Wrote: Prove that water is a symbol and not an analogy!
Symbol and analogy would mean the same thing here, so I don't get your objection.

Ok. Then it seems like you're "informing" us of your religion's beliefs and not really starting a conversation.
Reply
#10
RE: The Philosophy of Salah/Daily Connection/Prayer
(April 9, 2015 at 4:57 pm)Surgenator Wrote:
(April 9, 2015 at 4:52 pm)MysticKnight Wrote: Symbol and analogy would mean the same thing here, so I don't get your objection.

Ok. Then it seems like you're "informing" us of your religion's beliefs and not really starting a conversation.

Well if anyone wants to discuss the philosophy I am showing, I would love to. But people here are just attacking without aiming to discuss what has been said.
Reply



Possibly Related Threads...
Thread Author Replies Views Last Post
  How to pray based on the Quran alone: prayer in Islam as I understand it WinterHold 69 13784 December 21, 2019 at 8:41 pm
Last Post: Paleophyte
  Du'a Nudba (The prayer of sadness) Mystic 13 1795 October 7, 2018 at 2:47 pm
Last Post: The Valkyrie
  A poem of Salah I wrote back some years ago: Mystic 3 2542 April 4, 2018 at 5:52 pm
Last Post: SaStrike
  What is the islamic philosophy regarding toys? Ciel_Rouge 8 5104 October 28, 2012 at 2:06 pm
Last Post: Kane



Users browsing this thread: 1 Guest(s)