Aqeel Mahmood – S 03 Ep 03 Fiqh Pillars Obligations And Sunnahs Of Salah

AI: Summary ©
The speakers stress the importance of understanding Islam's pillars, including obligations and the sun Telescope of worship. They stress the importance of fulfilling all conditions before worship, reciting surahs, and being mindful of actions and behavior. They also discuss the importance of praying ahead of worship and not reciting intentionally. The speaker emphasizes the importance of reciting surahs after missed pillars and realizing them before the third or fourth r respect of the third or fourth row.
AI: Summary ©
As-salamu alaykum wa rahmatullahi wa barakatuh.
Bismillah ar-Rahman ar-Rahim, alhamdulillahi rabbil alameen,
wassalatu wassalamu ala ashraf al-anbiyai wal-mursaleen,
abina muhammadin wa ala alihi wa sahbihi ajma
'een.
Insha'Allah we're going to be continuing with
the fiqh of salah.
And last week we spoke about the conditions
of salah, and we mentioned things which must
be done prior to the salah.
And we said that the word condition, or
sharrat, refers to things which must be done
before the salah.
So when we speak about conditions of prayer,
they are always things which have to be
done prior to the salah.
And we spoke about the different conditions of
salah facing the qibla, a person being in
a purified state.
And there were questions also at the end,
speaking about purification of the body, purification of
the clothes.
And if a person is in a state
where he has impurity on his clothes from
himself after he has gone to the bathroom,
then that must be removed from his clothes,
from his body, and from the place where
he may be praying, prior to him actually
beginning the salah.
And there was a question regarding impurities from
an animal.
Can he pray if there are impurities from
an animal?
If he is able to, then he should
try to pray in clean clothes, because this
is the command of Allah subhanahu wa ta
'ala.
خُذُوا زِينَتَكُمْ عِندَ كُلِّ مَسْجِدٍ Allah says, wear
your adornments or adorn yourselves when you go
to the masjid, meaning when you pray.
So a person should be in a clean
state.
If, however, there are some impurities, then in
some cases he can pray, in some cases
he can't pray, depending on the kind of
animal that the impurity came from.
So if the impurity was from an animal
which is halal for a person to eat,
then he can pray in those clothes, if
he has to.
If the impurity is from an animal which
is haram for him to eat, then he
can't pray in those clothes.
So, just so you know, inshallah, with regards
to purification.
So we spoke about the dog saliva when
we spoke about purification and wudu and things
which are considered impure.
And whatever comes out of the private parts
of an animal is considered impure if it's
an animal that is haram for you to
eat.
As for the saliva of a dog, it's
not considered impure in and of itself.
So if it licks your vessel, then you
have to clean the vessel seven times, one
time with soil.
That's the narration of the Prophet ﷺ, just
for the vessel.
So inshallah, today we're going to be speaking
about some of the other aspects of the
salah.
And we'll be speaking about the pillars of
salah and the obligatory parts of the salah
and the sunan, the recommended parts of the
salah.
So inshallah, we're not going to be going
through the salah from beginning to end, going
through a description of the salah and what's
going to be done from the beginning all
the way to the end, mentioning every single
thing, because that's a separate chapter, that'll be
next week.
But we speak about the description of the
salah, sifat al salah, the description of the
prayer.
In this lesson, what we are going to
do is try to understand, first of all,
what a pillar is, what an obligation of
the salah is, and what a sunnah of
the salah is, and what the difference is
between these things.
And then once we've understood those, understanding what
is a rukun, which parts of the prayer
are pillars, which parts of the prayer are
obligatory parts, and which parts of the prayer
are sunnahs, because each of them have their
own rulings.
So if a person misses a pillar, it's
not the same as a person missing an
obligation of the salah.
If a person misses a sunnah of the
salah, it's not the same as him missing
an obligation of the salah.
There's a difference with regards to the rulings.
So we're going to go through all of
these things, and then after we understand the
pillars, obligatory acts, and also the sunnah of
the salah, then we'll have an idea of
whether or not the prayer may have to
be repeated, whether or not the prayer is
valid, whether it's accepted, whether or not we've
achieved the complete salah, or as complete as
we're able to, whether a person can maximize
and increase their reward by doing some of
the sunnah, etc.
So inshallah, we're going to be beginning with
the arkan, the pillars of the salah.
A pillar, scholars have given lots of definitions
with regards to what a pillar is, when
it comes to salah and other acts of
worship.
The pillar is basically an essential part of
an act of worship.
An essential part of an act of worship.
It's an essential part, it's an important part
of the act of worship.
To the extent where if it's not done,
the salah, in this case, is not valid.
The salah is not valid.
And it's different to something which is wajib,
which we'll get to.
So in regards to the arkan, the pillar,
it's something which is an essential part of
an act of worship.
In our case, it's an essential part of
the salah.
Think about it, for example, in comparison to
the pillars of Islam.
If a person doesn't pray intentionally, he's missed
out a pillar of Islam which takes him
outside the fold of Islam.
If a person, let's say, forgets to pray.
Let's say, for example, a few days went
by and he forgot to pray.
For example, he has to make up those
prayers.
Just because he forgot doesn't mean now those
prayers are like ignored and it's fine, it
just carries on.
Likewise, when it comes to the pillars of
the salah, if they're missed, either intentionally or
accidentally, the prayer is null and void, it
doesn't count anymore.
Because he's missed a rukn, a pillar of
the salah.
So pillars of the salah are things which
if they are missed or if they're omitted,
whether accidentally or whether intentionally, basically the salah
is not valid anymore.
This is how essential a pillar is.
So the pillars of Islam, you miss Ramadan,
for example, you miss hajj, you miss some
of the requirements of the specific acts of
worship, then there is no salah, there is
no hajj, there is no fasting.
For example, ihram, being in a state of
ihram is an obligation during hajj.
So you have to be able to be
in a state of ihram.
And if you go to Arafah and you're
wearing your trousers and your t-shirt and
you start making dua and everyone else is
in ihram because you forget, for example, which
is very unlikely, but in that situation there
is no hajj, he's not in hajj.
He's not performing hajj because he hasn't fulfilled
the pillars of hajj itself.
Whether it was intentional or accidental, there is
no hajj.
So he has to repeat the hajj because
that hajj doesn't count for him if it
was his first time doing that hajj.
So he hasn't fulfilled that obligation.
So a rukn is something which is an
essential part of an act of worship.
So what's the difference between a rukn and
a condition?
Do you have to fulfill all the conditions
of salah, for example?
Do you have to fulfill all the pillars
of salah?
So what's the difference?
What's the difference between a condition and a
pillar?
I just mentioned it a few minutes ago.
Difference between a condition and a pillar.
I mentioned it last week.
Very good.
Condition is something you have to do before
the act of worship.
A condition is something you have to do
before the act of worship.
Somebody wants to borrow your car.
You say, I'll borrow you my car on
one condition.
It's before.
Can I borrow £100?
I'll give you £150.
On the condition that you pay it back
after a week, for example.
So you haven't given your car, you haven't
given any money until they accept or fulfill
or agree to accept the condition.
Then you can give whatever they've asked for.
So salah, a condition has to be fulfilled
before the salah itself.
A ruqn is something which is part of
the salah.
It's something which is in the salah.
It's things which are taking place in the
salah itself.
So that's the difference between a condition of
salah and a pillar of salah.
So we have pillars of salah.
We've established what a condition is.
We know what a pillar is now, an
essential part of an act of worship.
If it's missed out intentionally or accidentally because
he forgot, regardless of which circumstance he may
have omitted it, intentionally or by accident, the
act of worship is not valid anymore.
In this case, the salah is not valid
anymore.
If he did it intentionally, he is sinful.
He has to repeat the salah.
If he forgets, he's not sinful, but he
has to repeat the salah.
So it's the same in the sense that
the salah itself and its validity doesn't count
in both circumstances.
Then you have something which is wajib.
So a pillar is something which cannot be
missed, whether intentionally or accidentally.
Something which is wajib cannot be missed intentionally.
If it's missed intentionally, there is no salah.
And if it's missed accidentally, then he has
to perform at the end of the salah,
sujud-us-sahu, which is the prostration of
forgetfulness.
If he forgets, that's why it's called sujud
-us-sahu, the prostration of forgetfulness.
So with regards to the wajibat of salah,
the obligatory acts of the salah, if they're
intentionally left out, then there is no salah
for this person.
And if the person accidentally left them out
because he forgot, then in this case he
continues the salah, but he makes up for
it by performing sujud-us-sahu.
So the difference between a rukun and a
wajib, a rukun, it doesn't matter if you
miss it out intentionally or accidentally, there is
no salah.
And an obligatory act of the salah, if
you miss it intentionally, the salah has to
be repeated.
If you miss it accidentally, you can continue
the salah, but you have to perform sujud
-us-sahu before a person finishes the salah
or after, depending on the situation.
Inshallah, sujud-us-sahu we'll talk about later.
Sujud-us-sahu is one of those subjects
which requires some depth and it can be
a bit complicated if it's not understood properly.
So those are the arkan and as we
said, the wajibat.
If a person misses them intentionally, the salah
is invalid.
If he misses them accidentally or as a
result of him forgetting, then he can perform
sujud-us-sahu.
There is no need for him to repeat
the salah after this.
So what is a sunnah?
What are the sunnah of salah?
What does a sunnah of salah mean?
If a person intentionally or unintentionally, because he
forgot, misses a sunnah, a recommended part of
the salah, the salah is not invalid.
The salah is not invalid if he misses
a sunnah act of the salah itself.
However, it does reduce something.
What does it reduce?
It reduces the value, the beauty, the complete
nature of the salah and also reduces the
reward of the salah.
So as we'll see inshallah when we speak
about the recommended acts and the sunnah of
salah, some of these things we are doing
anyway.
And in fact we do them so often,
all the time, that for many of us,
the sunnah, if we don't do some of
them, it wouldn't feel right.
Because we're so used to doing these things.
So it's from Islam for a person to
try to excel when it comes to his
acts of worship, especially things such as the
salah, which is very important, it's something we're
doing on a regular basis, and it has
its status and its station in Islam.
So a sunnah is something which is recommended
for a person to do.
If he misses it, either intentionally or accidentally,
it does not break the salah, the salah
is still valid.
So you have ruqan, which is the most
important, you could say, when it comes to
the validity of the salah.
Either way, it's invalid if it's done intentionally
or unintentionally.
The wajibat, if it's done intentionally, the salah
is invalid.
If it's done unintentionally, as a result of
him forgetting, he has to perform sujood sahoo.
And something which is a sunnah, if it's
forgotten or left out intentionally, there is no
requirement, the salah is still valid.
The salah is still valid, it's not considered
invalid.
So let's move on to the pillars now.
What are the pillars of the salah?
There are 12 pillars of salah, 12 pillars
of salah in total.
The first pillar is standing up for the
obligatory prayers.
Standing up for the obligatory prayers.
Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala says, وَقُومُوا لِلَّهِ
قَانِتِينَ Stand up in your salahs observant, and
when you are worshipping Allah subhanahu wa ta
'ala.
وَقُومُوا لِلَّهِ قَانِتِينَ So it's something which is
an obligation, it's a pillar from the pillars
of the salah.
The Prophet sallallahu alayhi wa sallam, he said,
صَلِّ قَائِمًا He said, pray standing.
فَإِن لَّمْ تَسْتَطِي If you are not able
to, then pray sitting.
So the pillar is to stand in the
obligatory prayers.
If a person is unable to stand, then
he can sit.
Otherwise, he should be standing in the salah
for the obligatory prayers, for the five daily
prayers.
With the only exception being if he is
unable to.
If he's unable to stand in the obligatory
prayers, then it's permitted for him to sit
down.
Because of an illness, because he's got some
kind of injury, or whatever the case may
be.
So in those kinds of circumstances, in those
situations, it would be permissible for him to
sit.
But otherwise, if he's healthy and he can
stand, and he decides not to, because maybe
he's had a long day, he's feeling a
bit tired, or he just feels like sitting
for whatever reason, not because of any pain
or anything like this, or because he's unable
to stand, then his salah wouldn't be valid.
So he has to be standing, with the
exception of a person who is unable to
stand.
Of course, then he is permitted to sit
down.
With regards to the optional prayers, the nawafil
prayers, the other salawat outside of the five
obligatory prayers, it is permitted for him to
stand, and it's also permitted for him to
sit.
However, the reward is halved when he sits
and prays, as opposed to when he stands
and prays.
So for example, at home, a person who
wants to pray, nawafil prayers, optional prayers, increase
his reward, and for whatever reason, he wants
to relax, he wants to sit down, he's
feeling tired, so he sits down and prays
two sunnahs, two nafil salawat, two rakahs.
He's rewarded, but the reward won't be the
same as if he was to pray standing
up.
The prayer would be accepted.
It wouldn't be wrong for a person to
do this in the nawafil salawat, but it
would be an issue if he had decided
to do this in the obligatory prayers with
no reason whatsoever.
So the only exception is if he's not
well, if he's ill, if he isn't physically
capable of standing up, then he should sit
down, he can sit down.
With the nawafil prayers, then the person is
able to choose.
However, the reward isn't the same.
If he sits down in the nawafil prayers,
the reward is halved as per the sunnah
of the Prophet ﷺ.
So that's the first pillar of the pillars
of salah.
The second pillar is takbeerat al-ihram.
Takbeerat al-ihram is the first takbeer that
a person begins the salah with.
The first takbeer, the statement Allahu Akbar, when
he begins the salah, this is a pillar
from the pillars of Islam.
He has to make takbeerat al-ihram.
So this takbeer for beginning the salah is
a pillar from the pillars of Islam.
And why is it called takbeerat al-ihram?
What does ihram mean?
Where does the word ihram come from?
Okay, good.
So anything which may have been permissible before
salah now becomes impermissible in the salah.
The word ihram comes from the word haram.
Something which is not permitted for you to
do.
Like when you are going for hajj or
umrah and you're in a state of ihram.
Because certain things are haram for you to
do.
Relations with your spouse, applying perfume, cutting your
hair, etc.
So takbeerat al-ihram, you're in a state
where certain things are now forbidden for you
to do.
Speaking outside of the salah, moving around, those
kinds of things.
So the second pillar of Islam, or second
pillar of salah, is takbeerat al-ihram.
The first takbeer that a person makes and
it has to be that specific statement.
Allahu Akbar.
If somebody said, for example, Subhanallah, at the
beginning of salah.
Is this salah valid?
No, it has to be Allahu Akbar.
What if he said, Allahu ta'ala Akbar?
Again, it wouldn't be permissible.
Because what has been narrated from the Prophet
ﷺ is that he would say, Allahu Akbar.
And the Prophet ﷺ, he said, pray as
you have seen me praying.
So, the way the Prophet ﷺ used to
pray, the things he used to say, the
things he used to do in the salah,
this is exactly how we pray, imitating and
copying the greatest of creation, the Messenger of
Allah ﷺ.
The third pillar of salah is qira'at
al-fatiha, reciting surah al-fatiha.
Reciting surah al-fatiha in every single rak
'ah.
The Prophet ﷺ, he said, la salata liman
lam yaqra' bi fatihatil kitab.
There is no salah for the one who
does not recite the opening chapter of the
book, meaning surah al-fatiha.
So this must be recited in every single
rak'ah of a person's salah, whether it's
a fard salah or whether it's an optional
salah.
It's something which has to be recited.
And, if, for example, a person is praying
by himself, it has to be recited.
If you're praying in congregation and it's a
silent prayer, you recite surah al-fatiha.
If you're praying in a loud prayer and
the imam is reciting surah al-fatiha, what
do you do in this situation?
Scholars differ with regards to what happens.
Does the imam take the position of reciting
surah al-fatiha for those who are behind
him?
Do you still have to recite surah al
-fatiha?
There's an empty khilaf amongst scholars.
But if a person is able to recite
surah al-fatiha after the imam has recited
surah al-fatiha and before he carries on
reciting another surah, then that's best, if he
can do that.
So, for example, our sheikh, when he recites
surah al-fatiha, he leaves a small gap.
And in that gap, you can recite surah
al-fatiha if you're able to.
If you're not able to recite the whole
of surah al-fatiha, are you accountable?
Are you going to be accountable for not
being able to recite it?
You're not going to be accountable because it's
out of your control.
So, you recite as much as you can.
If the imam carries on reciting and goes
on to the next surah, if there's no
gap, if the imam just says surah al
-fatiha and just carries on with another surah
after five seconds or a few seconds, again,
that's something which he's not required to do.
And, you did your best, you try as
much as you can to recite the surah,
and if you can't recite the surah and
the imam recites the next surah after fatiha,
then you just stay quiet and you listen
to the recitation.
Because you're not supposed to be reciting while
the imam is reciting, by the way.
So, that's where the issue comes.
Because if you're reciting while the imam is
reciting, then it's contrary to the instructions of
Allah in the Quran, that when the Quran
is recited, وَإِذَا قُرِئَ لَقُرْآنُ فَاسْتَمِعُوا لَهُ then
listen to it, وَأَنْسِتُوا and remain silent, لَعَلَّكُمْ
تُرْحَمُونَ so that you can be shown mercy.
That's the issue.
So, try reciting the surah after the imam
recites it, fatiha, and if you're not able
to, inshallah, you've tried your best.
Allah says, فَاتَّقُوا اللَّهَ وَمَسْتَعْطُونَ Fear Allah as
much as you can, and then you just
listen to the imam.
If you're able to recite it, alhamdulillah, if
you're not able to, then you're not going
to be accountable because you've tried your best.
So, that's with regards to fatiha.
Otherwise, if a person is praying by himself,
if a person is praying a nafil salah,
or it's an obligatory salah, and he's by
himself, he has to recite surah fatiha.
It's a pillar from the pillars of salah.
If after the salah he realized, hang on,
my third and fourth rakah, I forgot to
recite fatiha, then he has to repeat the
salah.
Because this is what a pillar is.
You need to remember, a pillar is something
which has to be fulfilled.
It's an essential part.
Meaning it has to be fulfilled.
Either way, intentionally you miss it out, you're
sinful, if it wasn't intentional, then the salah's
invalid.
You have to repeat the salah then, if
you remember it afterwards.
The fourth pillar from the pillars of salah
is the ruku.
Being in the ruku position.
Making the ruku.
So once you recite fatiha and another surah,
you go into ruku, that position is a
pillar from the pillars of the salah.
Allah says, O you who believe, perform ruku
and perform sujud.
So ruku is a required, essential pillar from
the pillars of the salah.
And number five is which means standing upright
after you've performed ruku.
So the position of standing back up again.
Standing back up again, upright.
In the upright position after a person has
performed ruku is the fifth pillar from the
pillars of the salah.
And the Prophet in the famous hadith when
he was telling the companion about how to
pray, he said, Then get back up after
ruku until you are standing upright.
Until you are standing up straight again.
Just as you were before you went into
ruku, likewise you should stand up as you
were in a straight position with your back
straight.
So that's the fifth pillar from the pillars
of the salah.
Pillar number five is going into sujood.
So the sajda position.
Sorry, number six.
Pillar number six is going into the sajda
position.
So the actual sajda.
As we mentioned in the other ayah.
Perform ruku and perform sajda.
And the Prophet said, Perform sajda until you
have established and you feel at ease in
that position, in that sajda position.
So, performing sajda, the position, the act of
being in that physical state of the sajda.
And of course the sajda is twofold.
There's two sajdas in every single rakah.
The seventh pillar of salah is the sitting
between the two sajdas.
The sitting between the two sajdas.
So for example, if somebody said, you know,
I'll just combine between the two sajdas.
I'll just do one long sajda and then
I won't do a sitting between the sajdas
and I'll get back up in the second
rakah.
Is this salah valid?
No.
You have to sit up after the first
sajda and then go back down into the
second sajda.
If there is no sitting between the two
sajdas then there is no salah.
Again, as per the hadith of the Prophet,
come back up until you are sitting straight,
sitting upright and then you go back down
into sajda.
So pillar number seven is the sitting between
the two sajdas.
Pillar number eight is attama'neena.
Being at ease or being in a tranquil
state in each of these specific positions that
we've mentioned.
Being at ease.
Being at ease when you're standing, being at
ease when you're in rukuh, being at ease
when you get back up from rukuh, meaning
it's not supposed to be rushed.
It's not supposed to be something that you
do really quickly.
Sometimes a person may do it very quickly
and he hasn't really been at ease in
any of those positions.
Again, how does a person know?
Well, if a person didn't give time for
his body to be in a relaxed state
in each of those positions, then he hasn't
really been in a state where he's felt
at ease.
And how long that state will be and
how long the tranquil state is going to
be for, that could differ from person to
person.
But the person knows himself whether or not
he was in a state of ease, whether
he was rushing too much, whether or not
he was actually in a relaxed position, feeling
at peace in each of those positions of
the salah.
So the eighth pillar is being in a
state of ease in every single one of
those positions that we've mentioned.
Based on the hadith that we've already mentioned
a number of times where the Prophet would
mention being in sajdah, being in ruku, حتى
تطمئن until you are at ease in sajdah,
until you are at ease in ruku.
Again, you have to define what we mean
by rushing.
As we said, the time period could differ
from person to person.
And as long as the imam is making
those positions, for example, the imam may be
in that position for two seconds, for us
our habit may be four seconds, but because
we're behind the imam, as long as he
makes those positions, and he fulfills the pillars,
then the salah is valid inshallah.
Even then, you still have to be in
a peaceful, tranquil state in every position of
the salah.
You have to be in a state of
peace and tranquility.
It has to be both.
So mentally, whatever issue you were in before
the salah, you try your best to be
in a physical state where you're not rushing
the salah.
So mentally there's things you may be able
to do in the salah to be able
to take your mind off whatever's been happening.
But physically, the body needs to be at
ease.
So when the Prophet ﷺ says حَتَّ تَطْمَئِنَّ
until you are at ease, he's referring to
the physical state.
He's referring to the physical state itself.
Mentally, of course, a person tries his best,
and there are other ways in which a
person can remain focused in the salah.
So the eighth pillar is being at ease
in every single position that we mentioned from
the pillars of the salah.
The ninth and tenth pillar are the final
tashahud and sitting during the final tashahud.
So nine is the last tashahud, the final
tashahud in salah.
Why do we say the final tashahud?
Because, of course, if it's three rakahs or
four rakahs of salah, there's going to be
two tashahuds.
So this is the last tashahud, the final
tashahud, the second tashahud before a person gives
salaam.
So the ninth pillar is the final tashahud.
The tenth pillar is sitting during the final
tashahud.
For example, if a person's coming up from
the second sajdah and he's making tahiyyat while
he's getting up, and as soon as he
sits up he gives salaam, because he recited
it in record speed, and he says it
while he's getting up, and then as soon
as he sits, he's like, I'm done, and
he hasn't fulfilled the ninth or the tenth
pillar.
What's the tenth pillar?
Being in a sitting state to do the
final tashahud.
So the final tashahud is a pillar of
the salah, and sitting during the final tashahud.
And when we say tashahud, we're referring to
the du'a, at-tahiyyatu lillahi wa-s
-salawatu wa-t-tayyibatu, as-salamu alayka ayyuhan
nabiyyu, until the end of that specific du
'a, that's known as the at-tashahud.
Pillar number 11, all of these pillars and
all of these positions being done in a
specific order.
Being done in a specific order.
So for example, a person stands up first,
reciting Quran in his standing position, then he
performs ruku, then he stands back up, then
he does sajda, then he sits, then he
performs sajda, then he sits again and makes
tashahud, then he gives salam.
All of these things are from the sunnah
of the Prophet, being done in a specific
order.
It's not permissible for a person to mix
them up.
You can't pray and just jump into sajda,
straight away, and then go into ruku, and
then stand, and then sit, and then do
your own weird salah.
That's not permissible.
It has to be done in a specific
order.
The order of the Prophet, again, pray as
you have seen me praying.
The things he said, the things he did,
all of it has to be in compliance
with the sunnah of the Messenger of Allah,
and it's interesting, if you look at, for
example, the Orthodox Jews, the way they pray,
they do sajda first, because if you ever
go on YouTube and type in Jewish prayer,
they do sajda first, and then they do
ruku, and the sajda and ruku is very
similar to the Muslim sajda and ruku.
So they'll do sajda, they'll stand first, and
they'll be reciting, and then they'll do sajda,
they'll go down to sajda, then they'll do
ruku, then they'll stand up.
It's very similar, the similarities, they're quite similar.
Of course the way they do ruku and
sajda is slightly different, but it's more or
less the same position.
And what's even more interesting is Allah, subhanahu
wa ta'ala, when He speaks about Maryam,
a.s., commanding her to pray, Allah tells
her, ...
He mentions prostrating first, and then performing ruku.
So Allah knows best, it may have been
that the Sharia of the past, people, the
believers were commanded to perform sajda, and then
to perform ruku.
But subhanAllah, it's interesting how the positions can
be quite similar.
So, being done in a specific order in
Islam, with regards to salah, the actions have
to be done in that specific order as
per the sunnah of the Prophet, s.a
.w. The final pillar, from the pillars of
the salah, is what?
Taslim, giving salam.
Giving salam, as per the sunnah of the
Prophet, s.a.w., ...
He said that the Prophet, s.a.w.,
said, it's enough for you to place your
hands on your thighs, meaning in that position,
in the sitting position, then giving salam on
your right and then on your left.
So this is the final pillar from the
pillars of Islam.
Because the salah, as we mentioned a while
back, what is a salah?
An act of worship, in a dan, beginning
with takbir, ending with taslim.
Specific actions, specific statements, done in a specific
order, beginning with takbir, ending with taslim.
So there has to be a taslim being
given.
If salam hasn't been done, hasn't been made,
then you're still in the salah.
So for example, let's say for example, you're
in your salah, and you're praying, and you
haven't given salam, and something happens.
And you stand up without giving salam, to
go and see what's going on, some emergency.
Has the salah been fulfilled?
It hasn't been fulfilled.
Because you broke the salah before giving salam.
If you gave salam, and then you got
up to do something, or something, there was
an emergency and your child got hurt himself,
or whatever the case is, if you had
given salam, then your salah's fine.
But if you just got up like this,
you know, shocked, or you're in a rush,
or you're scared of something happening, and you
didn't give salam, because salam is a pillar
from the pillars of salah, your salah wouldn't
be farid.
You have to repeat the whole salah again.
So, these twelve brothers and sisters are from
the pillars of the salah.
And if any of these are missed out,
either intentionally or by accident, then a person
has to repeat the whole salah.
Now we move on to the obligatory acts
of the salah.
Then if you missed a rakah, you make
up the rakah, and you recite surah Fatiha
in the rakah that you're making up.
That's fine.
You still made the rakah.
It's overlooked, because as soon as you start
the salah, and the imam is reciting a
different surah, then you can't recite Fatiha anyway.
So it's the same situation as a person
not being able to recite surah Fatiha if
he did it with the imam, but he
didn't have enough time.
Same thing inshallah.
So the obligatory acts of the salah.
There's eight obligatory acts.
What are the differences between what's the difference
between a pillar and an obligatory act?
An obligatory act, if it's missed intentionally, the
salah is not valid.
If it's done by accident, he can continue
the salah, and he makes surah As-Sahih
before he gives salam.
So the first obligatory act of the salah
is the rest of the takbeers other than
the first takbeer.
The rest of the takbeers other than the
first takbeer.
If you look at the those of you
who are writing, if you look at the
pillars, what do we notice about the pillars?
Generally speaking, with the exception of a couple.
Yeah, but when we look at the pillars
that we just made a list of, there's
twelve pillars of salah.
You'll notice that most of the pillars, with
the exception of two or three, are physical.
They're physical.
So the position of ruku, the position of
sajdah, the sitting between the two sajdahs.
Most of them are physical, with the exception
of a few where a person says things,
taslim, takbeer al-ihram, surah Fatiha.
With the wajibat, you'll notice most of them
are things you say in salah.
Things you actually say in salah.
So the first one are the rest of
the takbeerat in salah, other than the first
takbeer.
The first takbeer is a rukun, is a
pillar.
The rest of the takbeers are obligatory acts.
Number two, al-tasmi' which is what is
said when a person stands up from ruku.
So when you stand up from ruku, you
say sami'allahu liman hamida.
This is called tasmi' So tasmi' is from
the obligatory acts of the salah.
It's from the wajibat of salah.
With the exception of when you're praying behind
the imam.
When you're praying behind the imam and the
imam says sami'allahu liman hamida, we say
rabbana walaka alhamd.
So, otherwise if a person is praying by
himself, then from the obligatory acts is for
him to make tasmi' saying sami'allahu liman
hamida.
The third obligatory act of salah is tahmid.
Rabbana walaka alhamd.
So the first part is sami'allahu liman
hamida.
The third, sorry the second part is sami
'allahu liman hamida.
The second obligatory act is sami'allahu liman
hamida.
The third obligatory act is saying rabbana walaka
alhamd or rabbana laka alhamd.
Both of them are permissible.
Number four is saying in ruku, subhana rabbil
azeem, at least once.
Saying subhana rabbil azeem, at least once.
The sunnah is for you to say it
three times, but minimum it should be said
at least once.
Number five, saying in sajdah, subhana rabbil a
'la, at least once.
Saying subhana rabbil a'la, at least once.
And it's interesting, when a person is in
sajdah, he's been told by Allah subhana wa
ta'ala to say subhana rabbil a'la
al a'la.
What does al a'la mean?
The most high.
So when you're at your most lowest, when
you're at your lowest, you're remembering Allah who
is the highest.
There's this contrast between the weakness of the
slave and the power, the ultimate power of
Allah subhana wa ta'ala.
And it's supposed to bring about a sense
of humility.
A sense of acknowledgement that you are the
weakest.
In that state when you're performing sajdah, there
is no weaker state.
You're recognising your weakness in front of Allah
subhana wa ta'ala.
So it's a sign of humility.
It's a sign of your submission to Allah
subhana wa ta'ala.
And this is why the Prophet sallallahu alayhi
wa sallam, he said, ...
The closest a slave is to his Lord
is while he's in sajdah.
It's amazing that physically you're not the closest
to Allah in sajdah, physically.
If you're standing, you're a little bit closer
to Allah.
But spiritually, in terms of your connection with
Allah, you're the closest you could be to
Allah when you're in sajdah.
Not when it comes to distance, but when
it comes to humility.
When it comes to acknowledging your Creator.
And we ask Allah azza wa jal that
we're never in a state of arrogance where
we're unable to perform sajdah, whether intentionally or
whether because of some kind of illness or
because of some kind of problem.
I remember there was somebody I knew from
my school days.
Once he came here out of the blue.
He wasn't somebody who used to come here.
He used to have a rough time in
secondary school.
He was involved in smoking and drugs and
Muslim.
And he came one day and I was
trying to talk to him.
I was young at the time as well.
And salah time came, he prayed next to
me.
And I noticed in sajdah, he wouldn't put
his head down.
He would put his head close to the
carpet, but he wouldn't put his head onto
the carpet itself.
So Allah a'lam, why?
I never asked him why.
I didn't question why he did it.
Maybe I thought I'll see him again.
Whether it was arrogance, sometimes people who aren't
practicing when they come, they don't feel like
they're deserving of Allah's mercy, Allah's forgiveness.
Allah a'lam what the reason was.
Never saw him again after that.
A few years later when I started teaching,
I was teaching a child whose father was
in the same year as me in school.
And he mentioned to me that brother, to
remember him, I said, yeah what happened?
He said he killed himself.
So drugs, you know he was hooked on
drugs and he couldn't get his fix and
jumped off a building and killed himself.
So subhanAllah, you know sajdah is a means
by which Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala can
give you, can forgive you, give you guidance,
can protect you, bring you back to the
right path.
So when a person turns to Allah, when
a person makes those steps towards Allah, Allah
will hasten towards you, Allah will save you,
Allah will take care of you, Allah will
protect you, Allah will bring you back to
the deen.
And subhanAllah it's just an important lesson for
us of maintaining that connection with Allah subhanahu
wa ta'ala.
So the fifth obligation in Salah is saying
subhanahu wa ta'ala at least once, a
minimum of once.
The sixth obligation of Salah is saying between
the two sajdahs Rabbi ghafir li o Allahumma
ghafir li saying Rabbi ghafir li o Allahumma
ghafir li and the seventh and eighth obligatory
acts of Salah Anyone know what they might
be?
They're both together, similar to the pillars.
There were two pillars together.
Very good.
The first tashahud and also the sitting for
the first tashahud.
The first tashahud and also the sitting for
the first tashahud.
So when you get up from the second
sajdah, you can't just read the tashahud as
you're getting up and say I don't need
to say it anymore, just stand up straight
away for the third rakah.
Okay I'll save time.
That's not permitted.
So if it's done intentionally, Salah is not
valid.
If it was done unintentionally and you didn't
realize, then a person has to perform sajud
al sahw.
So those are the eight obligatory acts of
the eight obligatory acts of the Salah.
Now we'll move on finally inshallah to the
sunan of Salah.
The recommended acts of the Salah.
Now there are many many recommended acts of
the Salah.
There are many sunnahs of Salah.
We're not going to be able to go
into all of them inshallah but we're going
to go through some of them.
From them, the isti'adah, or before the
isti'adah, making du'a or istiftah.
And when we speak about the sunan of
Salah, in English we say it's things which
are recommended.
And when we hear the word recommended, sometimes
we think oh that means you don't have
to do it.
Or it's doctor's recommendations.
Doctor recommended it, oh I don't have to
do it then, it's just a recommendation.
My recommendation to you as your lawyer, as
your accountant, is you should do this.
Okay, I don't have to do it then.
That's what you're recommending, doesn't mean I have
to do it.
So we have this kind of mindset.
A sunnah is something you're rewarded for doing,
you're not sinful for leaving.
But a sunnah, especially when it comes to
Salah, completes the quality and the value and
the beauty of the Salah.
And the more sunan of Salah you miss,
the lower the quality of your Salah will
be.
To the extent where if you're missing all
of the sunnahs of Salah, because that's the
risk then, you might end up not doing
any of the sunnahs because they're just sunnahs
anyway.
Next, after the sunnahs are what?
Obligatory acts of Salah.
So now your obligatory acts of Salah are
not protected with anything.
Does that make sense?
You have the sunnah acts which are there.
If they're being fulfilled, would you ever intentionally
miss an obligatory act of Salah?
You wouldn't miss an obligatory act of Salah
because you're so careful of not missing the
sunan of Salah.
So if you're not doing any of the
sunan, the next in line that you're going
to be neglectful of and careless with are
the obligatory acts.
That's going to affect not just the quality
but maybe even the validity of your Salah
itself.
So that's why it's very important that a
person completes as many of the sunan as
possible because it helps him perfect his Salah,
improves the quality of his Salah.
Also it shows that he's more focused in
Salah.
There's more attentiveness.
Because the sunnahs, he'll be thinking about them,
making sure he fulfills every single sunnah, or
as many as he can for each rakah.
So, making dua al-istiftah, subhanakallah wa bihamdika
wa tabarakasmuka after takbirat al-ihram.
This is something which is from the sunan.
Inshallah, hopefully many of us do it, if
not all of us are doing this.
Also, making isti'adah before reciting surah Fatiha.
Sometimes reciting the basmalah out loud, which is
also from the sunnah as is mentioned by
some of the scholars.
Saying ameen after the imam, or after a
person recites surah Fatiha.
The recitation after surah Fatiha.
Recitation after surah Fatiha.
Something which, hopefully, many of us, if not
all of us do anyway.
Also, after saying rabbana wa laka al-hamd,
making more duas.
After you get up from rakuh, simi'allahu
li min al-hamd, rabbana wa laka al
-hamd, hamdan kathiran tayyiban mubarakun fee.
There are other narrations of other duas that
the Prophet salallahu alayhi wa sallam used to
make also.
mila al-sama'i wa mila al-ardi
wa mila ma shita min shay'in ba'd.
Other narrations and other duas also.
A person increasing in dua after the final
tashahud and before he gives salam.
That's from the sunnah.
In fact, they say it's one of those
times when a person's dua is accepted because
you're in the presence of Allah and you're,
you know, making dua prior to giving salam.
And then there are acts which are from
the sunnah.
So these are things which a person says
in salah.
Then there are acts in the sunnah.
For example, raising the hands when you begin
the salah.
In the takbeerat al-ihram, when you make
takbeerat al-ihram.
When a person gets up from rakuh, going
down into rakuh.
When a person stands up after the first
tashahud.
When a person stands up after the first
tashahud.
Interestingly, placing the right hand, when a person
is standing, placing the right hand on his
left hand.
The right hand on his left hand.
This is something which, like, all of us
do.
It's something we're taught as children.
No one will say, ah, it's just a
sunnah.
I've never seen anybody or heard of anybody
putting the left hand on the right hand
and then saying, yeah, it's just a sunnah,
it's okay.
Salah's still valid.
It's okay, I can still do this.
It's not something that's done.
It's understood that this is just from the
things which you should do as a Muslim.
If somebody did do this, is his salah
valid?
Technically, his salah's valid.
But how many of us here would do
something like that?
It wouldn't even feel right.
But the salah's valid.
But this is my point.
Sometimes, some of these things, they're ingrained in
us from such a young age, and it's
something which we consider so important that if
we don't do them, we would think there's
something wrong with the salah.
So the point is, these sunnahs, they have
to be implemented to the extent where, okay,
a person understands if he doesn't do it,
the salah's still valid, but he's just giving
the salah that important status, that quality, that
beauty and that completeness that it's supposed to
have.
Also, a person placing his hands on his
chest when he's in the standing position, looking
at the place of sajdah when he's in
a standing position, placing his hands on his
knees when he's performing ruku, placing his hands
widespread on his knees, placing his hands on
his thighs, or on the ends of his
thighs when he's between the two sajdahs.
When he's in sajdah, making sure that all
of the parts of the body which should
be on the floor consistently remain on the
floor, consistently throughout the sajdah, that's from the
sunnah.
If a person does it for five, let's
say for three seconds, and then for whatever
reason, lifts his forehead slightly, or lifts his
hand slightly, right hand off the ground, as
long as he did sajdah on the parts
of the body he's supposed to do sajdah
on, for a period of time, the sajdah's
valid.
Like we mentioned with that brother, he didn't
put his head on the ground, so technically
his salah wasn't valid because he didn't actually,
okay, may have been unintentionally, Allah knows best,
but if it was intentionally, then there's no
salah because the sajdah position wasn't done in
its entirety.
Physically, the sajdah wasn't actually done, which is
a pillar from the pillars of salah.
In fact, even if it was unintentional, because
it's a pillar from the pillars of salah,
the sajdah itself, the physical position.
So, making sure that all of these things
are done in a correct manner, and with
that, inshallah, we've concluded with the pillars of
salah, with the obligatory acts of salah, and
with the sunnah of salah.
Pillars, if they're left intentionally or unintentionally, the
salah's invalid.
You have to repeat the salah.
Things which are wajibat of salah, if they're
missed intentionally, salah's not valid.
If they're missed unintentionally, he can make it
up by performing the situdu sahu, and inshallah,
his salah is valid.
And sunnah of salah, if they are omitted
for whatever reason, intentionally or unintentionally, the salah
is still valid, but it reduces the quality
of the prayer.
And with that, inshallah, we're going to be
concluding.
Any questions before we finish?
So, the pillars of salah.
Anyone want to repeat the pillars of salah?
Anyone want to write them down?
Pillars of salah.
The pillars, yeah.
So, the fifth pillar you're talking about.
We'll go through them all again, inshallah.
So, the first pillar of salah, takbeerat al
-ihram.
Second pillar of salah.
What's the second pillar of salah?
Oh, sorry.
The first pillar of salah, we mentioned, what
was it?
Standing.
Standing position.
Second pillar of salah is takbeerat al-ihram,
the first takbeer.
Third pillar, reciting surah Fatiha.
Fourth pillar, the ruku.
Fifth pillar, standing up from ruku.
Sixth pillar, sujood.
Seventh pillar, sitting between the two sardars.
Eighth pillar, being at ease in every single
of these positions.
Ninth and tenth pillar, the tashahud, the final
tashahud, and the sitting in the final tashahud.
The eleventh pillar, doing all of these pillars
and acts of the salah in a specific
order, and the twelfth pillar, giving salam.
Question here.
Do we exit the prayer when praying a
sunnah or nafl prayer when the iqamah starts?
So, if you're towards the tail end of
a sunnah prayer or nafl prayer when the
iqamah starts, and you're able to finish the
salah before the obligatory salah actually begins, then
you can finish the salah before you join
the actual salah itself.
So if the mu'adhin is giving the
iqamah, and let's say you're in the final
rakah and you're giving sajdah, would you be
able to finish the salah before the imam
begins the salah?
You'll be able to finish the salah.
So you can finish the salah, get the
reward of completing the whole salah, and then
you can also join the imam inshallah, and
you won't miss any of the salah of
the imam either.
How to join the prayer behind the imam?
After the congregational prayer has already started.
So if the prayer has already started, you
simply join wherever the row is, and you
raise your hands, you make takbir, and then
you basically begin praying behind the imam, and
you don't need to recite anything because the
imam is reciting.
Unless the imam isn't reciting, then you can
recite surah Fatiha and another surah, but if
the imam does sajdah or rakuh before you're
finishing surah Fatiha quietly, then again, you're following
the imam, so there's no issue, there's nothing
wrong with this inshallah.
If I miss a pillar and realize before
salah ends, can I get back up to
repeat the rakah?
If I miss a pillar and realize before
salah ends, can I get back up to
repeat the rakah?
No, because then you're not fulfilling the order.
The order is being disrupted.
You can't go back.
Once you've missed a pillar, you have to
start the salah again, because it disrupts the
order.
Is the durood a pillar of the final
tashahud?
It's recommended for a person to do the
durood or to say Allahumma sallallahu alaihi wa
sallam until the end in the final tashahud.
It's something which is recommended.
Reciting surahs, is that a pillar or is
it a must?
As we mentioned, it's a sunnah from the
sunnah of the salah to recite a surah
after surah Fatiha.
In fact, sometimes the Prophet would recite surahs
after Fatiha, even in the third and fourth
rakah, whereas generally it's not something which was
done by the Prophet ﷺ, only sometimes.
What to do if joining a congregational prayer
when the imam is in sujood?
Do you wait until he stands up?
No.
So if the imam is in sajdah, you
join and you go into sajdah.
Because you get the reward of being closest
to Allah.
So if you're joining the salah and the
imam is in sajdah and you're thinking, I'll
just wait for him to get up and
go into sajdah.
That's not really having a connection with Allah
and wanting to pray and being closer to
Allah and having a love for the salah.
I know some people, they'll wait for the
imam to stand up but sometimes the imam
will just stay sitting because it's the second
rakah and you'll be doing the shahood, for
example.
So you start the salah, you join in
whatever position the imam is in and then
you get the reward, inshallah, of whichever position
you joined with the imam.
If the imam misses an obligatory act and
gives taslim, those in the congregation, do they
also give taslim?
Yes.
So you do taslim along with the imam.
Then the imam will do sadudu sahoo and
then you follow the imam.
During tahmid, can you also make any dua?
No, there are specific supplications that should be
made when you get up from rakuh.
The time when it's allowed for you to
make extra dua is in sajdah, after you
say subhana rabbil ala and also before you
give salam.
After the tashahud.
When making dua before taslim, does one raise
their hands?
No.
You don't raise your hands.
Your hands are kept on your thighs based
on the hadith of the Prophet ﷺ.
How to increase my focus in prayer?
That's a very long topic, lots of things
you could mention.
One of the things you could do is
focus on every single letter you're reciting.
Every single part of the salah.
Focus on every single letter that you're reciting
of every single word of every sentence in
the salah.
That will help you stay focused inshallah.
There's other things you can do, maybe one
session we could speak about some of the
things you could do to focus more in
salah.
When making dua before taslim or can I
read fatiha before the imam?
If I join the salah after the imam
has started a new surah, what do I
do?
You can't read fatiha before the imam.
Because the imam is there for you to
follow, not to proceed.
You don't say things before the imam says
them.
And you don't do things before the imam
does them.
So, you know, children for example, before the
imam goes to start it, they jump to
start it before the imam does.
So, obviously an adult, the kids, it's fine.
An adult shouldn't be doing that.
You don't go to start it before the
imam.
You don't get up before the imam.
So it has to be done after the
imam because the imam is there for you
to follow.
That's the whole purpose of the imam, inshallah.
Any other questions?
Three more questions, inshallah.
Yeah, so after the imam has said ameen.
So, dhuhr salah would be four rakahs.
So if you pray two rakahs and you
give salam, inshallah that would be considered a
sunnah or a nafl salah then.
So you would have to pray the four
rakahs of dhuhr.
If you pray two, it wouldn't be considered
dhuhr.
So, yeah, the brother's asking when do you
go into sajdah when the imam is saying
allahu akbar or after he's finished saying allahu
akbar.
So really the sunnah is that a person
shouldn't go into sajdah until the imam is
actually in sajdah physically.
The question is how do you know?
Because you won't know because you can't see
sometimes if you're in the third, fourth, fifth
row, tenth row.
So if the imam is able to go
into sajdah and just before he goes into
sajdah completely he makes takbir, that would be
the best thing.
Then you know that's when to go into
sajdah.
But if a person goes into sajdah after
the imam has started saying takbir and before
he's finished then inshallah that's fine.
Yeah, you should wait slightly.
So when the imam says allahu akbar, wait
for him to make takbir.
And once he's said takbir, if he's halfway
through then inshallah you can do it.
But it's best for him to finish.
It's just sometimes you know some imams, mashallah
it'll be a long allahu akbar.
Sometimes I say allahu akbar and it's quite
long and then you're kind of waiting.
So again it depends on his length and
things.
But if you're able to wait until he
says it and also the imam if he
keeps it short especially for sajdah, then that's
best inshallah.
Yeah, so again scholars differ with regards to
when the salah ends.
Is it after the first salam?
Is it after the second salam?
So as long as he's made the first
salam, the first taslim, then inshallah you can
make taslim.
And once he says the second taslim, then
you can make the second taslim.
Or if he says both and then you
do it after he says both, that's fine
as well.