It’s 25 days to the blessed month of Ramadan.
Allah (subḥānahū wa taʿālā) says:
قَدْ أَفْلَحَ الْمُؤْمِنُوْنَ ، الَّذِيْنَ هُمْ فِْى صَلَاتِهِمْ خَـٰشِعُوْنَ
“Successful indeed are the believers, who are humble in their ṣalāh…” (23:1-2).
In the beginning āyāt of Sūrah al-Mu’minūn. Allah describes the qualities of the successful believers. The passage starts off by mentioning those ‘who are humble in their ṣalah’, and ends with the ninth āyah mentioning those ‘who consistently maintain their prayers’. Thus, ṣalāḥ features in both the beginning and the end of the list, demonstrating its great significance.
Ibn Kathīr (raḥimahullāh) explained this āyah: “Khushūʿ (humility) in ṣalāh is only attained by the one who has completely emptied his heart for it, who fully occupies himself for it and does not pay attention to anything else besides it, and who prioritises it over everything else. At that point it becomes a source of comfort and intense joy.”
The Prophet ﷺ stated, “The first thing to be lifted from this ummah will be khushūʿ, until you will not find anyone with khushūʿ” (Ṭabarānī).
Ḥudhayfah (raḍiy Allāhu ‘anhu) said, “The first thing you will loss of your religion will be khushūʿ and the last thing you will lose of your religion will be ṣalāh. There may be a person praying yet there is no goodness in him. Soon a time will come when you will enter a large Masjid and not see a single person with khushūʿ in it.”
The Prophet ﷺ said, “Indeed a person may pray for sixty years, yet not a single ṣalāh of his will be accepted. Perhaps he perfected the rukūʿ but not the sujūd, or he perfected the sujūd but not the rukūʿ” (Ibn Abī Shaybah).
“Two rakʿahs with contemplation are better than standing up for the entire night with an inattentive heart.” – ʿAbdullāh b. ʿAbbās (radiy Allāhu ʿanhumā)
Ibn al-Qayyim (raḥimahullāh) compared khushūʿ in ṣalāh to the soul in the body. When the soul leaves the body, the body dies. Similarly, without khushūʿ the ṣalāh lacks its soul, spirit and essence. Likewise, praying ṣalāh without khushūʿ is like gifting a dead servant to a king. He then writes, “Allah (subḥānahū wa taʿālā) will neither accept it nor reward him for it, even if the obligation (of ṣalāh) has been legally fulfilled.”
Content credit: Life With Allah Blog, “The Importance of Khushu in Salah.”
Action for today:
Before your next ṣalāh, pause for one minute to quiet your heart, understand the meanings of what you recite, and remove distractions, pray as though it is your last prayer.
Be a voice for Healing and Hope.
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