An introduction to Salah, the Islamic ritual prayer and second Pillar of Islam.
Salah is the Islamic ritual prayer — a set sequence of standing, bowing and prostrating, combined with specific recitations, performed five times a day at fixed times. It is the second of the Five Pillars of Islam, right after the Shahadah.
Salah is not a private, free-form conversation with God in the way that a du’a (personal supplication) is. It has a defined structure that the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) taught by example, and Muslims aim to pray it the way he prayed. This is why Salah looks broadly the same wherever in the world it is performed.
The word itself is often translated as “prayer”, but it carries a wider sense of connection, remembrance and turning towards God. The rest of this Salah Centre walks through the conditions, movements and recitations of Salah in order, starting with what is needed before you begin.
Key points
- Salah is the Islamic ritual prayer, performed five times a day at fixed times.
- It is the second of the Five Pillars of Islam.
- Salah follows a fixed structure taught by the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him), not a free-form prayer.
- This is why Salah is performed in broadly the same way by Muslims everywhere.
Hadith
Islam is based on (the following) five (principles): 1. To testify that none has the right to be worshipped but Allah and Muhammad is Allah's Messenger. 2. To offer the (compulsory congregational) prayers dutifully and perfectly...
Sahih al-Bukhari, no. 8 (Book 2, Hadith 1) .
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