In the name of Allah- the Most Gracious, the Most Compassionate.
السلام عليكم ورحمة الله وبركاته
As Salaamu Alaykum wa Rahmatullahi wa Barakatu
Welcome to the eleventh rendition of the greatest thread on TSR!
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Books On The Seerah (Life of the Prophet Muhammad)
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Books on the Sahaba (Companions Of The Prophet Muhammad)
[QUOTE=ash92[excludedFace]smile[/excludedFace];51189471]In acknowledging God's greatness, and humbling oneself regardless of the potential to be arrogant, perceiving oneself to be greater than a being who is submissive to another, one who is not in need of another, etc. As God instructs this - humbleness - it is conforming to His instruction, in the hope of becoming a better person and being of those who God guides/helps/loves. Thus, it neither lessens nor empowers God, rather it is only we who are benefited by it.
(...)
With regards to your analogy, it is true - one would only bow/be respectful, etc. to someone of power when seeking help. But one would certainly not do this to the Queen 'every day, all day'. Whereas if you share a relationship with this person of power which exceeds your personal gain and the sufficing of only a few of your needs, where you ask this being for help for all things (despite also making efforts on your own behalf, etc.) and you do not feel ashamed in doing so, and you have love for this being, and confide in Him and seek strength from Him, and ask from Him that which others could not provide, and know that what He does will be for your good without any malice or jealousy, etc. - then you wish to turn to this being often, for strength, for hope, for confidence, for success, and so on.
(...)
On the authority of Mughira b. Shu'ba: Allah's Apostle (ﷺ) kept standing in prayer (for such long hours) that his feet were swollen. They (his Companions) said: Verily, Allah has pardoned for thee the earlier and the later of thine sins. Thereupon he said: Should I not prove myself to be a grateful servant (of Allah)? [Sahih al-Bukhari and Sahih Muslim]
[QUOTE=ash92[excludedFace]smile[/excludedFace];51189481]In fact, through salah, we spiritually develop ourselves, we are reminded to be humble, we obtain guidance through dhikr (remembrance of, by tongue and mind) of the Quran, we feel invigorated, we regularly do dhikr of God, we are reminded of God and his instructions (thus, facilitating taqwa [staying away from sin because of remembering Allah]), we take out time to detach from the dunya (worldly life) in order to be close to God, we regularly ask for guidance, we regularly ask for blessing (for ourselves and others), we regularly ask for forgiveness (for ourselves and others), and so forth.
"And when My servants ask you concerning Me, then surely I am very near; I answer the prayer of the suppliant when he calls on Me, so they should answer My call and believe in Me that they may walk in the right way." [Surah al-Baqarah, ayah 186]
Like it or not we are all slaves. We all worship something or someone. By worship I mean we strive to do things that would please our object of worship and we strive to avoid things that would displease our object of worship. Our object of worship is our ilah. No one could say that they have no ilah or no Lord.
We are all born slaves of Allah. We are born into "La ilaha Il Allah" - we serve no other object of worship than Allah. Before our birth Allah gathered us all and asked a simple question : "Am I not your Lord?" and we replied "Of course you are!".
But in this test of life we are bombarded with idols. External idols who appear to rival Allah and internal idols who appear to stand in between us and Allah as if they are some mediator between us and Allah. Our desires could be our idols too. The only way to prove to ourselves that we are still slaves of Allah and no one else (let it be some other diety, our desires, or even time) is to revolve ourselves around Salaah. Salaah is what seperates us from those who pretend that their Lord and Master is other than Allah.
So let us makes sure that our Rabb every day is Allah and no one else!
NAK once gave a good advice to pray with concentration: Spend two minutes before Salaah clearing up your mind and preparing for Salaah even after Wudhu.
I believe the quality of Salat improves if you actually know what the words mean (for those whose first language is not Arabic). So one should try to remember the translation.
Another way to enhance Salat is to not rush it. Salat gives us an opportunity to connect with God so we should make it count.
I think once you find enjoyment and an inner peace in praying Salah - it improves ones quality of Salah. This can be done by getting closer to Allah, learning more about the deen and being happy with whatever situation Allah has put you in. If you enjoy Salah then you automatically will have khushoo.
Was reading various ahadeeth on prayer (inspired by today's topic) and this one really moved me:
Al Qasim bin Muhammad said, "Whenever I went out in the morning, I used to visit `Aishah رضي الله عنها (his aunt and the wife of the Prophet, صلى الله عليه و سلم) and greet her. One day I found her performing Ad Duha prayer, reciting this Ayah repeatedly, crying and invoking Allah: 'So Allah has been gracious to us, and has saved us from the torment of the Fire.' (52:27) I stood there until I felt bored, so I left and went to the market to do something and said to myself that when I finish what I have to do, I will go back to`Aishah, رضي الله عنها. When I finished and went back to her, I found her still standing in prayer, reciting the same Ayah, crying and invoking Allah.'" [Al Ihya 4/436]
- Uthman bin Abi Dahrash said, "I never performed a prayer without invoking Allah afterwards to forgive me for falling into shortcomings in the way I performed it." [Tarikhu Baghdad 13/207]
- When Ali bin Al Husain used to perform Wudu, his color would change. His family asked him why this happened to him every time he performed Ablution, he sid, "Do you know before Whom I am about to stand (in prayer)?"
- "I accompanied `Ata bin Rabah for eighteen yers. When he became old and weak, he used to stand in prayer and read close to two hundred Ayat from Surat al Baqarah while standing in such firmness that no part of him would move." [As Siyar 5/87, Sifat as Safwah 2/213]
[QUOTE=ash92[excludedFace]smile[/excludedFace];51196709] Ibn ‘Ijlan said:
“Allah (‘azza wa jaal) made the believer’s strength in his heart and did not make it in his limbs, don’t you see a weak old man fast the hot days and stand (in prayer) at night while a young man is unable to do that.” [Sifat Al-Safwa, 3/341]
on the topic of loss of concentration or waswaas. it is in the athaar that scholars said '' Alhmdulilah who said woe to those who are distracted from their salah, distracted in their salah. For if it had been said we would all be doomed''
Best ways to concentrate during salah: 1-know that you are standing in front of the lord of the universe 2- say audu billah min al sheytaan al rajiim in yourself before reading fatihah 3- clear your mind of everything 4- try to get tuma'ninah in your prayer meaning do not rush it and as the prophet pbuh forbade speeding your salah as though like the rooster moving its head up and down fast to pick its food.
[QUOTE=ash92[excludedFace]smile[/excludedFace];51196815]33 Ways of developing Khushoo in Salaah (by Sh. Muhammad Saalih al-Munajjid):
“The first matter that the slave will be brought to account for on the Day of Judgement is the prayer. If it is sound, then the rest of his deeds will be sound. And if it is incomplete, then the rest of his deeds will be incomplete.”