Prayer, a Divine Bond

* This is an entry for the June Blog of the Month Competition

Silent whispers through the air spinning up high

Followed by lusters in the sky

Reaching across throughout the trees Creating a beautiful scene

Shining beyond what man knows

Lightning such darkness

These are prayers that cut down the shadows of despair.
- Medison

      

We all offer prayers ever day. We have plenty of our wishes we tell Allah every day. We are happy when prayers are heard and sad when we don't get results of our prayers, isn't it so? But have you ever thought what does the word Prayer means; what it signifies and why we all put our so much faith in it? Word prayer means communion, talk, supplication. Prayer is a communication process that allows us to talk to Allah!

He wants us to communicate with Him, like a person-to-person phone call. Cell phones and other devices have become a necessity in today’s society. We have smartphones, Bluetooth devices and computers! These are means of communication that allow two or more people to interact, discuss, and respond to one another. Such is the prayer for talking to our Lord Almighty Allah. When we pray, we talk to Him, we praise Him, we ask Him what we wish for. Prayer and praise have deep relation. For prayer, praise is important, without praising Him, prayer will be incomplete. It’s natural to express praise for that which we enjoy.

Delight goes hand in hand with praise. When something or someone thrills us, we are compelled to express it. The enjoyment is not really complete until we do. The “Wow!” follows the pleasure like the rumble of thunder follows the lightening flash. Allah, Our Lord, Our saviour, Our creator, blessed us with countless joys, favours and all sorts of things we can wish for. He ordered the sun to keep us warm, He ordered winds to blow to comfort us, He ordered animals like cattle to serve us ,He made us superior to all creatures, He facilitated us in all walks of life. He does not ask for anything in return. What we owe Him is to praise Him for His blessings through our prayers, to strengthen the bond between us and our Lord. Although there is no constraint upon a Muslim on how to invoke Allah Almighty, however, Salah (namaz) is the preferred means of doing so as when a person worships Allah he or she develops a connection with Allah and any invocation within that or after that connection is bound to be accepted by Allah more compared to invocation done in any other circumstance. In Quran, Allah Almighty says:

Allah is With Those Who Offer Namaz and Stay Patient:

“O you who have believe, seek help through patience and prayer. Indeed, Allah is with the patient.” (2:153)

Therefore, a Muslim must use prayers as a means of invocation and ask Allah Almighty for help and assistance in any difficulty or worry. Not offering prayer is actually falling into the prey of Satan, whereas those who try to offer and establish prayer are actually resisting his temptation and when these temptations are resisted for long the result is one not falling prey to Satan ever again on any forefront.

    

In a nutshell, those who learn and read Quran on a regular basis are familiar with the importance of prayer and how strongly has Allah Almighty emphasized on it and explained its importance to the people in Quran. A Muslim must realize that above anything,Prayer is an obligation and every Muslim has to fulfill his or her obligation. It is through prayers we can solidify our connection with the Lord of all worlds and win His Happiness. Let us all think about it and offer our prayers honestly and regularly for the purity of our souls.

O' Allah, 

I pray to You 

with a heavy heart

and brittle bones

please let confidence

unfold like flowers

that sprout between my ribs

please take the butterflies 

out of my stomach

because they crowd it

and make me sick

please fill my mind with the knowledge

that Your love is stronger than

all of the hate that fills the earth

please inscribe on my flesh

that You have a perfect plan for me,

and with You I can conquer

all of my doubts, all of my worries

please never let me forget

what You have done for me

please hold my hand

while on this wearisome journey

and allow me to find life in Your happiness

- Maranda Spotser

- Arwa Nehdia (Class of 2020)