how to concentrate on salah?
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Its funnt how wheI only ask you guys on how to clncentrate on salah and i get lectures on prayer history and stuff....lol rotfl which has nothing to do on how to concentrate on salah...lol
Salaam and welcome to the forum handshake
I think they were trying to help.
Anyways, please try to understand the next verse
443 O you who believe, do not approach the sallaat while you are sukara, until you know what you express. Nor if you have had intercourse, unless traveling, until you bathe. And if you are ill, or traveling, or one of you has excreted feces, or you had sexual contact with the women, and could not find water, then you shall select from the clean soil; you shall wipe your faces and hands. God is Pardoning, Forgiving.
I have no idea how you do your sallaat but that doesn't matter.
443 is a clear command.
Maybe you don't know what "sukara" means but I think you know what "until you know what you express" means.
So it is for us not even allowed to go to sallaat while we don't know what we express.
Now ask yourself the next question Do you know what you express while you do sallaat?
I think the answer to this question is for you and for a lot of people a "no" (when we take "sallaat=prayer".
Now the big questions is, how come you don't know what you express?
I think if you can answer this question for yourself then you will be able to correct your sallaat and never loose concentration again.Salaam,
Bender -
Salaam and welcome to the forum handshake
I think they were trying to help.
Anyways, please try to understand the next verse
443 O you who believe, do not approach the sallaat while you are sukara, until you know what you express. Nor if you have had intercourse, unless traveling, until you bathe. And if you are ill, or traveling, or one of you has excreted feces, or you had sexual contact with the women, and could not find water, then you shall select from the clean soil; you shall wipe your faces and hands. God is Pardoning, Forgiving.
I have no idea how you do your sallaat but that doesn't matter.
443 is a clear command.
Maybe you don't know what "sukara" means but I think you know what "until you know what you express" means.
So it is for us not even allowed to go to sallaat while we don't know what we express.
Now ask yourself the next question Do you know what you express while you do sallaat?
I think the answer to this question is for you and for a lot of people a "no" (when we take "sallaat=prayer".
Now the big questions is, how come you don't know what you express?
I think if you can answer this question for yourself then you will be able to correct your sallaat and never loose concentration again.Salaam,
BenderMaybe your right...but we could always strive right?..I mean there are rewards for people who strive...hopefully
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Maybe you don't know what "sukara" means but I think you know what "until you know what you express" means.
So it is for us not even allowed to go to sallaat while we don't know what we express.Peace Bender. I know we usually tend to agree, but the implications (for me personally) of this line of thought are just too bizarre; if you are right about this I would hardly ever be allowed to pray. Rarely if ever do I even begin to grasp the full implications of "bismillah", let alone whatever comes after. After drinking even a very small amount of alcohol though, I lose all ability I ever had of remembering or sensing the presence of God in any meaningful way. Without such drugs in my system, I can always try to increase my awareness of what I am saying, through prayer. In a certain way, one reason I keep praying regularly is in order to become aware of what I am saying, but certain drugs make it impossible and pointless to even try. I therefore think that trying to understand the verse in question by disregarding the "sukara" qualifier is a big mistake.
Mind you, as usual I'm speaking from experimental personal experience rather than from a Quranic scholarly perspective here. Take my personal anecdotes for what they're worth.
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Peace Bender. I know we usually tend to agree, but the implications (for me personally) of this line of thought are just too bizarre; if you are right about this I would hardly ever be allowed to pray. Rarely if ever do I even begin to grasp the full implications of "bismillah", let alone whatever comes after. After drinking even a very small amount of alcohol though, I lose all ability I ever had of remembering or sensing the presence of God in any meaningful way. Without such drugs in my system, I can always try to increase my awareness of what I am saying, through prayer. In a certain way, one reason I keep praying regularly is in order to become aware of what I am saying, but certain drugs make it impossible and pointless to even try. I therefore think that trying to understand the verse in question by disregarding the "sukara" qualifier is a big mistake.
Mind you, as usual I'm speaking from experimental personal experience rather than from a Quranic scholarly perspective here. Take my personal anecdotes for what they're worth.
Salam Bender
Just like Magnus I agree with you in most things, but this one I got to express a gentle disagreement.
When I pray my thoughts are racing through my head and I get the most weird ideas. Yesterday I was at the mosque and due to some stuff happening in my life (don't want to bore you with details) the words "Is this a sign? is this a sign? Is this a sign?" kept repeating over and over in my head.......I think I sat on my knees facing Mecca for at least 30 minutes before I had processed and actually found an answer............I lost control over my brain but used the salat as a processing system......Afterwards I felt peace and I truly do think that I have connected/bonded with Allah.
What 443 is talking about is to not block the brain. It could be chemicals, it could be anything that will not let you use your brain to connect with Allah. It has nothing to do with your current state of mind or that you should block your own brain and only concentrate on performing the prayer correct.
A friend of mine has a neighbour who says it is better for him to fix his garden while thinking about God than to sit in church praying to God while thinking about his garden........not the same we talk about about, but there is a point in this statement that I find valid. -
Peace Justamuslim,
You say that it not just your opinion, then you go on to give your opinion,
but it's ok, all opinions are welcome.I believe the salat ritual has been divinely preserved.
We made them imams who guided in accordance with our commandments,
and we taught them how to work righteousness, and how to observe the Contact
Prayers (Salat) and the obligatory charity (Zakat). To us, they were devoted
worshipers.When the Quran was revealed, it corrected the parts of those duties that had been
corrupted over the years like wudu and fasting, the positions of salat has remained,
so therefore there was no need for them to be re-revealed.We have revealed this scripture to you, to point out for them what they
dispute, and to provide guidance and mercy for people who believe.You will find in the Quran, for example, words like Umrah, Arafat, Safa and Marwa
and sacred months described as the Quran teaches about Hajj.None of these terms is explained in the Quran, not because the Quran is not
complete, but because God already taught us that all these rituals are to be inherited
and learned from previous generations and are well known to them. All rituals should
be devoted to God Alone. Most of these practices are universally accepted.I personally believe in the divine preservation of the salat ritual.
Do you as I find it interesting that almost all muslims pray the same way (positions)
regardless of opinions?Peace
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thaks but it is realy hard to get rid of songs or music in my head which is difficult. Any advice on how to silence your mind during salah? is there a certain sound that you allow to play in your head like nature sounds or something? cuz sometimes it is very frustrating.
The best tip I can give you is to try and be relaxed when you concentrate. Have you ever meditated before? If you have, it can be hard for a lot of people to properly concentrate. But with consistent practice you'll no doubt get there. Also, concentration is a funny thing because sometimes you may be concentrating more than usual but you don't feel it just because you're so used to it.
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Peace Justamuslim,
You say that it not just your opinion, then you go on to give your opinion,
but it's ok, all opinions are welcome.I believe the salat ritual has been divinely preserved.
We made them imams who guided in accordance with our commandments,
and we taught them how to work righteousness, and how to observe the Contact
Prayers (Salat) and the obligatory charity (Zakat). To us, they were devoted
worshipers.When the Quran was revealed, it corrected the parts of those duties that had been
corrupted over the years like wudu and fasting, the positions of salat has remained,
so therefore there was no need for them to be re-revealed.We have revealed this scripture to you, to point out for them what they
dispute, and to provide guidance and mercy for people who believe.You will find in the Quran, for example, words like Umrah, Arafat, Safa and Marwa
and sacred months described as the Quran teaches about Hajj.None of these terms is explained in the Quran, not because the Quran is not
complete, but because God already taught us that all these rituals are to be inherited
and learned from previous generations and are well known to them. All rituals should
be devoted to God Alone. Most of these practices are universally accepted.I personally believe in the divine preservation of the salat ritual.
Do you as I find it interesting that almost all muslims pray the same way (positions)
regardless of opinions?Peace
so can you share to me how do you pray? Cuz when when I pray I stand bow and prostrate. Then I do whatever I want in those positions. Mostly wheen I stand I recite surah's then bow ang glorify then stand and glorify again. Thene I prostrate, sometimes I sit while kneeling. and supplicate( mostly ask for forgiveness)...so how do you pray?...do you pray the 24434 rakas? and stuff?
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so can you share to me how do you pray? Cuz when when I pray I stand bow and prostrate. Then I do whatever I want in those positions. Mostly wheen I stand I recite surah's then bow ang glorify then stand and glorify again. Thene I prostrate, sometimes I sit while kneeling. and supplicate( mostly ask for forgiveness)...so how do you pray?...do you pray the 24434 rakas? and stuff?
I take prayer very seriously and understand that it is necessary to remove myself
temporarily from this worldly life and enter the domain of God. This life is to be
abandoned temporarily for one cannot be in two places at one time. "Contact" with
God is sacred, and an opportunity to "center" and nourish the soul.I begin by preparing myself by making dua's leading up to wudu then dua's while
making wudu and dua's on the way to prayer.Then assume the standing position, making intentions until i am focused on my
relationship with God. I open the prayer with takbir, seek refuge from
shaytayn the cursed then recite the bismalah and the fatiha while breathing
deeply.Then taking time to breathe I continue
Then bow with chin towards the chest, glorfying my lord with his praises
Then stand up erect, glorfying my lord with his praises
Then fall prostrate, glorfying my lord with his praises
Then sit, glorfying my lord with his praises
Then prostrate, glorfying my lord with his praises
Then stand and repeat.
At the end of salat I salam the angels signifying my return to this worldly life
and recognizing their presence.Yes I pray the 24434 rak'ats
I think what bender is alluding to is the state of mind
Salaam and welcome to the forum handshake
443 O you who believe, do not approach the sallaat while you are sukara, until you know what you express. Nor if you have had intercourse, unless traveling, until you bathe. And if you are ill, or traveling, or one of you has excreted feces, or you had sexual contact with the women, and could not find water, then you shall select from the clean soil; you shall wipe your faces and hands. God is Pardoning, Forgiving.443 is a clear command.
Maybe you don't know what "sukara" means but I think you know what "until you know what you express" means.
So it is for us not even allowed to go to sallaat while we don't know what we express.
Salaam,
BenderPeace
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I take prayer very seriously and understand that it is necessary to remove myself
temporarily from this worldly life and enter the domain of God. This life is to be
abandoned temporarily for one cannot be in two places at one time. "Contact" with
God is sacred, and an opportunity to "center" and nourish the soul.I begin by preparing myself by making dua's leading up to wudu then dua's while
making wudu and dua's on the way to prayer.Then assume the standing position, making intentions until i am focused on my
relationship with God. I open the prayer with takbir, seek refuge from
shaytayn the cursed then recite the bismalah and the fatiha while breathing
deeply.Then taking time to breathe I continue
Then bow with chin towards the chest, glorfying my lord with his praises
Then stand up erect, glorfying my lord with his praises
Then fall prostrate, glorfying my lord with his praises
Then sit, glorfying my lord with his praises
Then prostrate, glorfying my lord with his praises
Then stand and repeat.
At the end of salat I salam the angels signifying my return to this worldly life
and recognizing their presence.Yes I pray the 24434 rak'ats
I think what bender is alluding to is the state of mind
Peace
Interesting....well may i ask what evidence you have for performing this sala ritual?...i mean im not here asking you so thtaht i could argue. Im justasking you cuz im interested...lol
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Interesting....well may i ask what evidence you have for performing this sala ritual?...i mean im not here asking you so thtaht i could argue. Im justasking you cuz im interested...lol
Peace filipinomuslim,
It's ok, all questions are welcome. I, like you pray in the universally accepted positions,
i.e., standing, bowing, sujud etc., the evidence is the universally of salat for it is obvious,
not hidden, and has been around for a long time. Please read my earlier reply # 35Peace
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Peace Justamuslim,
You say that it not just your opinion, then you go on to give your opinion,
but it's ok, all opinions are welcome.It is not my opinion that God did not define salat = ritual prayer. Just as it is not my opinion that God did not define "hijab" as woman's head cover in the Koran.
When the Quran was revealed, it corrected the parts of those duties that had been
corrupted over the years like wudu and fasting, the positions of salat has remained,
so therefore there was no need for them to be re-revealed.Can you provide historical evidence to your claims. How was wudhu corrupted over the years?
None of these terms is explained in the Quran, not because the Quran is not
complete, but because God already taught us that all these rituals are to be inherited
and learned from previous generations and are well known to them. All rituals should
be devoted to God Alone. Most of these practices are universally accepted.Can you provide references to your claim that God taught this ritual. To whom and when did God teach this ritual as you delineated in later posts?
Clearly, you are making claims about God. I am asking you to provide me evidence of your claims.
I believe the salat ritual has been divinely preserved.
I personally believe in the divine preservation of the salat ritual.
You can personally believe in anything but what is your belief based on?
Do you as I find it interesting that almost all muslims pray the same way (positions)
regardless of opinions?I don't find anything interesting about universality of rituals. Millions of people believe and worship Jesus as their Savior universally celebrating Christmas every year. Almost all muslims follow hadiths. Just because millions believe in something does it mean it is the truth?
Performing any kind of ritual worship is not contradictory to the Koran and if one finds benefit in performing and continuing this ritual worship, there is no sin in doing so but to say that God commanded this ritual worship is a serious offense not to be taken lightly.
To define salat = this ritual worship and to say that God commanded this ritual worship is a fabrication said about God. Salat is mentioned in the Koran in several places but where in the Koran did God define salat = this ritual worship involving sitting, standing, bowing, prostrating, of a certain format and length?
If one were to take this definition of salat=ritual worship and apply it to the various verses where salat is mentioned in the Koran, it simply defies coherence of thought, logic and sense. Case in point verses 4101 to 104.
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Clearly, you are making claims about God. I am asking you to provide me evidence of your
claims. You can personally believe in anything but what is your belief based on?Peace justamuslim,
When we study the Quran in the right context and seek understanding it will be open
to us. As can be noted, the Quran is efficient at teaching us deen and does not state
the unnecessary. Also you may have noted, some things are elaborated on while some
things are understood by having knowledge of Quran. The Quran is the source of deen,
all other knowledge must be in agreement with it. Tauhid, Fasting, hajj, , charity, salat.The practices of deen predate Muhammad
Here are some examples
Going a little farther, he fell with his face to the ground and prayed,
"My Father, if it is possible, may this cup be taken from me. Yet not as I will, but
as you will."Matthew 176 And when the disciples heard it, they fell on their face,and were
sore afraid.Ezekiel 1113 And it came to pass,when I prophesied,that Pelatiah the son of
Benaiah died.Then fell I down upon my face,and cried with a loud voice,and said,
Ah Lord GOD! wilt thou make a full end of the remnant of
Israel?2 Chronicles 2018 And Jehoshaphat bowed his head with his face to the ground
and all Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem fell before the LORD,worshipping the
LORD.Joshua 514 And he said,Nay;but as captain of the host of the LORD am I now come.
And Joshua fell on his face to the earth,and did worship, and said unto him,What saith
my Lord unto his servant?Exodus 348 And Moses made haste, and bowed his head toward the earth,and
worshipped.Genesis 1717 Then Abraham fell upon his face, and laughed,and said in his heart,
Shall a child be born unto him that is an hundred years old? and shall Sarah, that is
ninety years old,bear?Genesis 173 And Abram fell on his faceand God talked with him, saying,.
The deen is very old, and its practices have been around for a long time.
O people of the scripture, our messenger has come to you to proclaim for you
many things you have concealed in the scripture, and to pardon many other transgressions
you have committed. A beacon has come to you from GOD, and a profound scripture.With it, GOD guides those who seek His approval. He guides them to the paths
of peace, leads them out of darkness into the light by His leave, and guides them in a
straight path.Shall I seek other than GOD as a source of law, when He has revealed to you
this book fully detailed? Those who received the scripture recognize that it has been
revealed from your Lord, truthfully. You shall not harbor any doubt.The word of your Lord is complete, in truth and justice. Nothing shall abrogate
His words. He is the Hearer, the Omniscient.ONE DEEN ONE GOD
Peace
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To define salat = this ritual worship and to say that God commanded this ritual worship is a fabrication said about God. Salat is mentioned in the Koran in several places but where in the Koran did God define salat = this ritual worship involving sitting, standing, bowing, prostrating, of a certain format and length?
Peace justamuslim,
According to your line of thinking I am interested to know your view of Jum'a i.e.,
should there be a khutbah?ONE GOD ONE DEEN
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@hawkninetynine,
Let's stick with salat instead of digressing off talking about juma and deen.
You made the claim that salat in divinely preserved, that God taught us the rituals and the Koran corrected parts of the rituals that had been corrupted over the years like wudhu...
Can you back up your claims? Where is the evidence that God taught the ritual of worship as you posted? How was wudhu corrupted over the yeas and what part of wudhu was corrupted that the Koran corrected?
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@hawkninetynine,
You made the claim that salat in divinely preserved, that God taught us the rituals and the Koran corrected parts of the rituals that had been corrupted over the years like wudhu...
Can you back up your claims? Where is the evidence that God taught the ritual of worship as you posted? How was wudhu corrupted over the yeas and what part of wudhu was corrupted that the Koran corrected?
Peace justamuslim,
We made them imams who guided in accordance with our commandments,
and we taught them how to work righteousness, and how to observe the Contact
Prayers (Salat) and the obligatory charity (Zakat). To us, they were devoted worshipers.Sahih International And We made them leaders guiding by Our command. And We
inspired to them the doing of good deeds, establishment of prayer, and giving of
zakah; and they were worshippers of Us.Muhammad was to observe the deen of Abraham
Then we inspired you (Muhammad) to follow the
religion of Abraham, the monotheist; he never was an idol worshiper.Sahih International Then We revealed to you, , to follow the religion
of Abraham, inclining toward truth; and he was not of those who associate with Allah.Moses said Salat
We inspired Moses and his brother. "Maintain your homes in Egypt for the
time being, turn your homes into synagogues, and maintain the Contact Prayers
(Salat). Give good news to the believers."Exodus 348 And Moses made haste, and bowed his head toward the earth,and
worshipped.Jesus said Salat
"He made me blessed wherever I go, and enjoined me to observe the
Contact Prayers (Salat) and the obligatory charity (Zakat) for as long as I live.Going a little farther, he fell with his face to the ground and prayed,
"My Father, if it is possible, may this cup be taken from me. Yet not as I will, but
as you will."Ismail said Salat
He used to enjoin his family to observe the Contact Prayers (Salat) and
the obligatory charity (Zakat); he was acceptable to his Lord.You will find in the Quran, for example, words like Umrah, Arafat, Safa and Marwa
and sacred months described as the Quran teaches about Hajj, none of these are
defined in Quran but are to be learned from previous generations. That is the reason
I asked you about Jum'a because it also is not explained in Quran.Ablution is practiced by other cultures as well, the Quran explains the correct manner
for the muslims, obviously there was a need for the explanation.THERE IS ONLY ONE GOD
Peace
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Salaam Magnus and Emil,
Thanks for your response.
I did not disregard the sukara part. I think that ?until you know what you express? actually explains the meaning of the word ?sukara?.
I think that the general meaning of ?sallaat? is something like ?contact?. In case of prayer, it is making contact with Allah. So when you recite The Quran in your prayer, do you know what you are saying to Allah?
Magnus, you said that you begin your sallaat to Allah, with ?BismiAllah?. Now the question is What are you actually saying to Allah? Are you saying ?In the name of Allah? to Allah?
Some say that they do o only chapter AlFatiha in their prayer, but to who are they talking when they say "Alhamdu lillahi rabbi al3alameen"?
Most sunni sholars even agreed that it's even allowed to say every single verse from The Quran in their prayer. So according to them it's even allowed to say this in prayer
"I am Allah, there is no god except Me, so serve Me and hold the contact prayer for My remembrance." (2014)& & &So how should we do our sallaat?
I believe that we have to do our sallaat in a state of mind, where we exactly know every word we express. If we just recite The Quran then we not only don't know what we are saying but also we loose our concentration because of this.
So how should our sallaat be like? Are there examples in the Quran? sure there are.
193 When he called out to his Lord secretly.
194 He said "My Lord, my bones have gone frail, and my hair has turned white, and I have never been mischievous in imploring You my Lord."26117 He said "My Lord, my people have denied me!"
26118 "So open between me and them a rift, and save me and those who are with me of the believers."There are maybe hunderds examples like this. One thing to note in all those prayers of past rasuls/nabi's is that they always begin their call to Allah with "My Lord" (=Rabbi) and not with "bismiAllah AlRahmaani AlRaheemi".
"bismiAllah AlRahmaani AlRaheemi" is not used to contact Allah but can only be used to contact others then Allah, see for example the story of Sulayman in chapter (2727-31).
I believe that we have to contact Allah in the language we understand so that we only say things that we understand. And I think a prayer to Allah should begin with "Rabbi" or the equivalent of it in the language we understand.Ofcourse it is also allowed to use Quran verses but only a couple of them as most are not for sallaat. The verses I think you can use in you sallaat are the verses that start with "Rabbi" or "Rabbana". And I think we should express these verses in the way we understand them and not in the language of The Quran if we don't understand it.
Another thing is that verse 17110 is badly translated and most of times understood wrong by most of people. It doesn't say that we should do our sallaat with a voice that is not too loud and also not quite. nope
We can do our sallaat also in our mind yes
If you like I can go deeper into 17110 and why it doesn't say anything about the loudness of our voice.To make a long story short. let me ask you 2 these 2 questions. Do you loose concentration when you do "dua" and do you know what you express when you do your dua?
If you don't know what "dua" means it's what most sunnis do after their prayer.Sorry for the loooooooooooooooooooong answer.
btw. when I was a sunni I did not only loose my concentration after 3 seconds but I also didn't know what I was saying and most of times I didn't even remebered how many rakaats I did )
But now I don't even loose 1 second my concentration and I also know what I am expressing to Allah, and this is because I do my sallaat in the way I understand every single word I express.Salaam,
Benderps. this is ofcourse my personal understanding of sallaat to Allah.
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Magnus, you said that you begin your sallaat to Allah, with ?BismiAllah?. Now the question is What are you actually saying to Allah? Are you saying ?In the name of Allah? to Allah?
That's not really what I said though, and most definitely not what I meant, sorry for being casual with my choice of wording, leading to you misunderstanding me (I usually begin the spoken part of any calling upon my Lord with "Lord" or "Rabbi" or "Herre" or somesuch word, not that this is really here nor there for the sake of the theme of this thread)
My general view of salaat is that it is some kind of re-establishing of contact between me and my Maker. My mostly experimental view is that I need to re-connect because I have lost something, that the connection is corrupted in some way. I find that my awareness of what needs to be kept in mind decays over time. Because of this decay, my understanding of whom the Lord is - and therefore my understanding of what I am saying when I say for example "oh Lord..." - is usually vastly different at the beginning of my attempt at re-establishing contact compared to how I understand the whole concept of God towards the end.For contrast, consider your average internet user exclaiming "OMG!" in a casual, oblivious manner, and compare this to some hypothetical pious person using a similar phrase in calling upon his Creator, his soul trembling from the profound implications of the very concept, if you will.
Now, if I were drunk for some reason I'm highly likely to think and say all kinds of dumb things, because of my confused state of intoxication - therefore I'm forbidden to even try to re-connect to the Lord in such cases, I think.
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...sometimes I wonder... was God's intention that we improvise and make guesses so amply... ???
was His intention of leaving so many things for free interpretation to all?
For instance, I know of a few people who would NEVER ever learn anything about the Qur'an , let alone Salat and some other "traditional" details about Islam if there were no Internet...
Without internet I'd had never myself even approached the things I now know about the Qur'an...
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Peace!
The way I pray after ablutions, I stand and for a while I breathe calmly, focusing myself in the prayer (I can't describe the feeling but there is one). I recite sura al-fatiha (in italian, except the first verse, in arabic. Why? Because I like it, it suits me), then I pray God and words are never the same, I talk with open heart and sheer sincerity. It may last one minute or twenty. Then I bow to God, His creation (glad to be part of it) and the wonderful and everlasting Laws Gos gave us, to which I adhere and submit in peace (small segment but critical what heart accept as part of ourselves, the mind instantly adhere to it as true). Then I kneel and glorify God for what I have and I am, I seek refuge in Him asking to keep temptations, ingrates and hypocrites away from me and the people I love, to increase my knowledge when I study the Quran, beg for forgiveness, and many other things but, again, words are never the same. I prostrate three times reciting the shahada (as the Quran states) at the end.
So I reckon there is a kind of rituality and a high level of freedom in my prayer. What I've never liked are standard prayers words you know by heart but maybe don't represent you or your feelings in a particular moment of your life. Prayer is an act of worship, of course, but an instrument as well, to elevate our spirit to a dimension higher and more universal than earthly life. So let's find ourself a way, according to the Quran, to achieve betterment for ourselves. When we have done so we'll be able to share this contentment with our brothers, sisters and the whole Creation.
Peace!