Saying Prayers

verse 56 of surat adh-dhariyat which reads "i only created jinn and man to worship me" declares that allah has created human beings to serve him. in other words, the purpose of human creation is, as allah says in the qur'an, to serve our lord who has created all things. so, those who accept the qur'an as their guide put worshipping allah above all other things, and they spend their short lives—seventy-odd years if they are granted that much—with a view to the afterlife and to winning allah's favour. this shows itself in every moment of their earthly lives.

a believer is aware that the teachings of the qur'an apply not only to a part of his life in this world, or to moments or stages in it, but to the whole life. he obeys allah's commands to the fullest of his abilities and does as many good works as he can. he spends his time in the acts of worship that allah has revealed in the qur'an, and when he finishes one work, he goes on to another. because allah says in verse 162 of surat al-an'am, "say: 'my prayer and my rites, my living and my dying, are for allah alone, the lord of all the worlds'" , he pursues what is good and beneficial and there is no break, stop or limit in his efforts. for a believer, beginning a new job after the previous one has been completed is necessary because he knows that he must spend every second given to him in this earthly life working to win allah's favour, and that he will give account in the afterlife of every moment he has spent in this world. for this reason, he spends every minute hoping only to win allah's approval, and doing those things that he hopes allah will most approve of. in the qur'an, allah tells believers to exert their efforts in this direction:

so when you have finished, work on. (surat al-inshirah: 7)

the believer's actions to win allah's favour are uninterrupted from one day to another. this is indicated in verse 76 of surah maryam: "in your lord's sight, right actions which are lasting are better both in reward and end result."

and in another verse, our lord reveals that he wants people to persevere in their worship:

he is lord of the heavens and the earth and everything in between them, so worship him and persevere in his worship. do you know of any other with his name? (surah maryam: 65)

the perverse logic of some ignorant people in this regard leads them to doubt the existence of the afterlife and to just perform some acts of worship from time to time.

some people make the great mistake of trying to get the blessings of this world, which they have set as a goal; they do anything to become rich, gain status and get other things they want. within a very short time they become engaged in a huge contest for the sake of a "paltry price" (surat at-tawba: 9) that they will soon lose. but a believer who pursues allah's favour and the way to the garden strives only for allah. the qur'an describes this quality of a believer:

but as for anyone who desires the hereafter, and strives for it with the striving it deserves, being a believer, the striving of such people will be gratefully acknowledged. (surat al-isra': 19)

a believer who spends his whole day seeking allah's favour is resolved and eager in the performance of his prayer. he remembers allah all day long in his heart and in his activities and ponders deeply his power, intelligence, knowledge, artistry and other attributes. this attitude is the application in daily life of the commands in the following verses:

… remember your lord much and glorify him in the evening and after dawn. (surah al 'imran: 41)

remember your lord in yourself humbly and fearfully, without loudness of voice, morning and evening… (surat al-a'raf: 205)

in verse 28 of surat ar-ra'd, our lord says that hearts will find peace only in remembering him:

…those who believe and whose hearts find peace in the remembrance of allah. (surat ar-ra'd: 28)

a person who takes the qur'an for his guide will be meticulous in performing acts of worship such as praying five times a day, fasting and performing wudu, as allah has commanded. for example, saying prayers on time is an important matter. he does not let worldly concerns stand in the way of his prayer. every time he says his prayers, he does it with humility, joy and enthusiasm, hoping that it brings him closer to allah.

however, those who do not approach allah with real enthusiasm but for show or out of fear of what other people may think cannot experience joy in worshipping allah. when they perform the prayer, they have no idea that it could bring them closer to allah. their minds are too involved in their daily affairs to remember allah and praise him. in the qur'an, allah gives a warning to those who are neglectful of their prayers:

so woe to those who do the prayer, and are forgetful of their prayer, those who show off… (surat al-ma'un: 4-6)

this means that they delay the prayer outside of its due time or even don't do it at all. however, although the surah doesn't refer to it, intelligent people take warning of being distracted in the prayer.

distracted people make the mistake of thinking that they are doing something for allah without fearing him, thinking about him and without sensing his presence or nearness. the behaviour that will bring a person nearer to allah consists of sincerity in performing prayers, fear of allah and obedience and humility before him.

some people have a very limited concept of prayer thinking that it is sufficient to obey a few of allah's commands in the course of the day. but according to the qur'an, worship is not limited only to religious duties like prayer, fasting, pilgrimage and giving sadaqah.

worship means service. that is, it consists of a person's attitude and state of mind and everything that he does and says as a slave of allah. no matter how important an obligatory prayer is as an act of worship for an individual, in the same way, overcoming anger, using courteous language, enjoining the right and forbidding the wrong, trusting other muslims and not being argumentative are also included in worship. (for a detailed discussion see harun yahya's commonly disregarded rulings of the qur'an) . for this reason, good behaviour is among those matters which must be applied and practised just as meticulously and determinedly as acts of worship. indeed, alongside that, muslims ought to know the kinds of ordinary transaction in the world, such as buying, selling, renting, marriage and divorce which are acceptable and the correct ways to do these transactions. in short, believers show great care every moment of their lives for all of the commands of allah in the qur'an and for the commands, prohibitions and counsels of the messenger of allah, may allah bless him and grant him peace.

one of the most important acts of worship a believer can perform in the course of his day is communication of the message, that is, to invite people to follow the right path, commend goodness to them and warn them against evil, and to invite them to increase in knowledge of islam, iman and ihsan and to read the qur'an. this worship is a necessary part of a believer's daily life. a believer is responsible at every moment to be a representative of allah among his creation and to proclaim allah's deen by his words, behaviour and by the kind of person he is. and this responsibility is not limited strictly to acts of worship; a believer will try to be an example to those around him by behaving in the best possible way. our lord speaks about this in the qur'an:

the men and women of the believers are friends of one another. they command what is right and forbid what is wrong, and establish prayer and pay zakat, and obey allah and his messenger. they are the people on whom allah will have mercy. allah is almighty, all-wise. (surat at-tawba: 71)

a believer is eager to do all he can to call other people to allah and to his way. he will tell them about allah, his unity and attributes, the purpose of their creation, right behaviour and conduct and the kind of life that pleases allah, and about good, evil, right and wrong in the qur'an, the day of judgment, the fire and the garden, and other such topics. he will tell them about the prophet, may allah bless him and grant him peace, in such a way as to draw them to him, to following and emulating him.

the conversation that believers have among themselves is truly mutual reminder. they call one another to obey the commands of allah and to live by the sunnah of his messenger, may allah bless him and grant him peace, and to live in conformity with islamic values. in short, the usual way of a believer is remembrance and reminder.

believers use both oral and written methods of reminder, and they may make use of today's highly developed means of mass communication. in calling people to the teachings of the qur'an, they can take advantage of television, radio, books, magazines, newspapers, internet and other media.

as important as the daily invitation of islam of believers living according to the teachings of the qur'an, there is the time they take to prepare the invitation. in the qur'an, allah indicates that those who wish to undertake the struggle of ideas on his way must first make preparation for it. for this reason, it is extremely important that a person prepares himself in every way for this work. allah says:

if they had really desired to go out, they would have made proper preparations for it… (surat at-tawba: 46)

to communicate allah's message, one of the things that the believer who is qualified to do so has to do is develop himself and to gain every kind of useful knowledge in order to communicate allah's deen. that is, he must educate himself both spiritually and intellectually. he must make every effort to speak and write concisely, to the point and on topic, to be persuasive, effective and to satisfy his listeners with the wisdom learnt from allah's deen. the main requirement is that a believer learn the deen of islam, the meanings of the verses of the qur'an and grasp the conduct and the sayings of our prophet, may allah bless him and grant him peace. so, all these preparations and efforts have a special place in the daily life of that believer who is qualified and authorised to call others to allah and his messenger.