Allah says in His Glorious Book: “Attend constantly to prayers and to the middle prayer and stand up truly obedient to Allah," Surah Al Baqarah (02:238), and: “Successful indeed are the believers, who are humble in their prayers," Surah Al Mu'minun (23: 01- 02), and: “Surely the hypocrites strive to deceive Allah, and He shall requite their deceit to them, and when they stand up to prayer they stand up sluggishly; they do it only to be seen of men and do not remember Allah save a little.” Surah An-Nisa (04: 142).
His Eminence, Sayyed Muhammad Hussein Fadlullah (ra), had described prayer as an act that abolishes sins, a manifestation of the best deed, and a representation of the fortress against Satan. He continues to explain, in the religious sermon of one of the Friday prayers, that the prayer is the means that enables us to feel His kindness, compassion, love and mercy towards His servants, for the prayer is a call to communicate with Him, not because He is in need for us, for He can do without His servants, but rather, He aims to make us sense our importance and significance in this vast universe. Actually, the one who recites the Azan says: “Make haste towards the prayer, make haste towards the worship, make haste towards the best of the deeds…” Through this linkage and meeting with Allah we would receive His blessings, care and grace, for the prayer brings about mercy, for it is narrated: “When the Muslim servant performs prayers, his sins to fall off of him, just as the leaves fall from a tree in autumn.”
It was also narrated that the Messenger of Allah (p.) took a branch from a tree under which he had gathered with other Muslims, and once he shook it, its leaves fell off, so he told them: “When a Muslim prays seeking the pleasure of Allah, his sins would fall off from him just as the tree leaves would fall.” It was also narrated that if the one performing prayers knew how much the grace of Allah encompasses him, he would never lift his head up from prostration, and: “When a person stands up for prayers, Satan approaches him and looks at him with envy and jealousy, as he sees the Mercy of Allah encompassing the person.”
As one prepares himself to stand before Allah, he must ensure that he adheres to a specific dress code that reflects the reverence he feels toward his Creator. There are several requirements regarding what one should wear:
First: clothes must cover one’s private parts
1) It is obligatory on both men and women to cover their private parts during prayer. Private parts are genitals and the anus in the man and the whole of the body except the face, hands, and feet in the women.
2) All things that can cover the private parts may be used, even if they are not made of textile or sewn; however, this excludes things such as tree leaves or mud, except when other suitable materials are not available.
3) The minimum requirement for the cover is that the material should not be so thin that the skin beneath is clearly visible.
4) If the private part is uncovered during prayer, from the beginning of the prayer, or if the person praying knows this but forgets to cover up, then is he becomes aware of this or remembers it after finishing the prayer, their prayer is valid; and if he becomes aware of this or remembers it during the prayer, he must hasten to cover up and their prayer is valid. It is not obligatory on others to inform the person praying regarding this.
Second: clothing must be pure
1) Dress for prayer must be pure and free from any impurity, as explained in the chapter on purity. This only applies to any form of dress that is suitable, in terms of its size, for covering the private part, and includes the actual covering area of the clothing or whatever is joined or attached to it; however, purity, is not a condition for things that are not suitable as a cover, such as head caps or socks, as will be explained.
2) If only two sets of clothing are available as a cover, but it is not known which one is pure and which is impure, the prayer must be performed wearing the first one and then repeated. When repeating the prayer, the second one must be worn.
3) If any impurity fell on the dress and the person prayed without knowing this, and if he remained ignorant until he finished his prayer, his prayer is valid, but if he comes to know about it during prayer, and if there is time, it is an obligatory precaution to stop the prayer, purify the dress or change it, then start prayer again. However, if there is no time even to offering one prostration, the person must hasten to take it off and change it or purify it in a way that is not considered to invalidate the prayer, then continue his prayer. But if changing or purifying is not possible, then he should continue his prayer with the impurity on his dress and his prayer is valid.
4) If a person performs prayer with an impurity due to forgetfulness, his prayer is invalid, and he must repeat it within the time or after it; the same applies if he remembers this during the prayer.
Third: the clothes must be free to use
1) It is a condition that the clothing covering the private part must be free to use as an obligatory precaution.
2) Praying while wearing misappropriated clothing occurs in many instances:
- the person knows and is intentionally wearing such clothing; in this case the prayer becomes invalid. The same applies if he forgot, and if he was not the one who misappropriated the clothing.
- The person is ignorant and has not made the necessary effort to know about it; it is better to render the prayer, and to act accordingly.
- The person is ignorant but has an excuse or does not know that the things has actually been misappropriated, or forgot, but he is not the one who misappropriated the clothing; in all these cases the prayer is valid.
3) The prayer performed while wearing misappropriated clothing is accepted if there is a compelling reason that persists throughout the entire duration of the prayer. Otherwise, it is precautionary to delay performing the prayer until clothing that is free from such issues can be obtained.
Fourth: The clothing must be free from parts of the dead
It is a condition that the clothing of the person praying is not made from parts of a dead animal that has a "fluid" soul, or even from a dead animal that has no "fluid" soul, as an obligatory precaution—regardless of whether the dead animal was one whose meat is permissible to eat or not. This does not include animals whose meat is permissible to eat, even if the validity of their tathkiya (slaughtering in the Islamic way) is doubtful, as discussed in the chapter on impurities, where it is stated that praying with such clothing is allowed.
Fifth: The clothing must not contain any parts of animals whose meat is impermissible to eat
1) It is a condition that the clothing is not made from the skin or hair of animals whose meat is impermissible to eat, even if they were slaughtered in the Islamic way. This applies to all parts of the clothing, including minor attachments such as cat hair that may adhere to the clothing of the person praying.
2) Excluded from what is mentioned above is the skin and fur martens, squirrels, beavers and fennec foxes; praying with these is allowed, provided that, for the skin, the animal was slaughtered in the Islamic way.
3) It seems that the ruling regarding animals whose meat is impermissible to eat does not apply to animals that have no “fluid” soul, although including them within the ruling is preferable. Additionally, the ruling does not apply to animals whose meat became impermissible due to external reasons..
Sixth: The clothing must be free of gold
1) It is not permissible for men to wear gold during prayer or at other times; this includes pocket watches that hang from the clothing and eyeglasses with golden frames, as an obligatory precaution in both cases. Things that are not commonly regarded as part of wearing, such as gold teeth or gold tooth crowns, are not included in this ruling. The same applies to items that are held or plated in a manner where the plating is considered as coloring. As for women, they are permitted to wear gold at all times.
2) If a man prays while intentionally wearing gold, he has sinned, and his prayer becomes invalid. However, if this occurs due to forgetfulness, unawareness, or ignorance, the prayer does not become invalid.
Seventh: The clothing must be free of pure silk
1)If such clothing is of the kind that is sufficient on its own to offer prayers, and this pertains to what is commonly regarded as clothing.
2) It is impermissible for men to wear clothing made from pure silk, except for compelling reasons. If a person intentionally wears such clothing, knowing the ruling, and prays in it, the prayer is invalid. As for women, they are permitted to wear silk at all times.
3) It is acceptable for buttons and hems of clothing to be made of silk, though it is preferable that any silk hem or sleeve does not exceed the width of four fingers.
4) It is permissible to wear silk mixed with other textiles, provided that the other material constitutes a greater proportion than the silk.
By attending our prayers, Allah would bestow upon us the blessing of being brought up in accordance with His teachings, as He would remind us about our responsibilities, once we recognize the position of Allah in the existence, for He is the Greatest, the Highest, the Beneficent and the Merciful, and He is in control of every fate and the One we ought to refer to for our need.
Once man realizes all these traits, he would get to know himself and his responsibilities. Moreover, as we recount the testimony of the oneness of Allah and recognize the message of His Messenger (p.), we ought not forget the responsibilities we ought to shoulder, and we ought to be guided by the path of Allah; thus, in our prayers we address Allah and say: “You alone we worship, and You alone we ask for help” Al Fatiha (01:05), meaning that we succumb to You and not to anyone else, and we seek Your help and not that of anyone else. Moreover, following His guidance, we say: “Guide us to the straight path. The path of those upon whom You have bestowed favor, not of those who have evoked [Your] anger or of those who are astray” Al Fatiha (01:06-07). While praying, we also confirm the peace is linked to the message of His Messenger (p.); thus, we say: “Peace be upon you, O Prophet, and the mercy of Allah and His blessings,” as well as peace with oneself and the good servants of Allah: “Peace be unto us and unto the good servants of Allah,” and peace with the universe, environment, and the entire life.
Allah says in His Glorious Book: “Attend constantly to prayers and to the middle prayer and stand up truly obedient to Allah," Surah Al Baqarah (02:238), and: “Successful indeed are the believers, who are humble in their prayers," Surah Al Mu'minun (23: 01- 02), and: “Surely the hypocrites strive to deceive Allah, and He shall requite their deceit to them, and when they stand up to prayer they stand up sluggishly; they do it only to be seen of men and do not remember Allah save a little.” Surah An-Nisa (04: 142).
His Eminence, Sayyed Muhammad Hussein Fadlullah (ra), had described prayer as an act that abolishes sins, a manifestation of the best deed, and a representation of the fortress against Satan. He continues to explain, in the religious sermon of one of the Friday prayers, that the prayer is the means that enables us to feel His kindness, compassion, love and mercy towards His servants, for the prayer is a call to communicate with Him, not because He is in need for us, for He can do without His servants, but rather, He aims to make us sense our importance and significance in this vast universe. Actually, the one who recites the Azan says: “Make haste towards the prayer, make haste towards the worship, make haste towards the best of the deeds…” Through this linkage and meeting with Allah we would receive His blessings, care and grace, for the prayer brings about mercy, for it is narrated: “When the Muslim servant performs prayers, his sins to fall off of him, just as the leaves fall from a tree in autumn.”
It was also narrated that the Messenger of Allah (p.) took a branch from a tree under which he had gathered with other Muslims, and once he shook it, its leaves fell off, so he told them: “When a Muslim prays seeking the pleasure of Allah, his sins would fall off from him just as the tree leaves would fall.” It was also narrated that if the one performing prayers knew how much the grace of Allah encompasses him, he would never lift his head up from prostration, and: “When a person stands up for prayers, Satan approaches him and looks at him with envy and jealousy, as he sees the Mercy of Allah encompassing the person.”
As one prepares himself to stand before Allah, he must ensure that he adheres to a specific dress code that reflects the reverence he feels toward his Creator. There are several requirements regarding what one should wear:
First: clothes must cover one’s private parts
1) It is obligatory on both men and women to cover their private parts during prayer. Private parts are genitals and the anus in the man and the whole of the body except the face, hands, and feet in the women.
2) All things that can cover the private parts may be used, even if they are not made of textile or sewn; however, this excludes things such as tree leaves or mud, except when other suitable materials are not available.
3) The minimum requirement for the cover is that the material should not be so thin that the skin beneath is clearly visible.
4) If the private part is uncovered during prayer, from the beginning of the prayer, or if the person praying knows this but forgets to cover up, then is he becomes aware of this or remembers it after finishing the prayer, their prayer is valid; and if he becomes aware of this or remembers it during the prayer, he must hasten to cover up and their prayer is valid. It is not obligatory on others to inform the person praying regarding this.
Second: clothing must be pure
1) Dress for prayer must be pure and free from any impurity, as explained in the chapter on purity. This only applies to any form of dress that is suitable, in terms of its size, for covering the private part, and includes the actual covering area of the clothing or whatever is joined or attached to it; however, purity, is not a condition for things that are not suitable as a cover, such as head caps or socks, as will be explained.
2) If only two sets of clothing are available as a cover, but it is not known which one is pure and which is impure, the prayer must be performed wearing the first one and then repeated. When repeating the prayer, the second one must be worn.
3) If any impurity fell on the dress and the person prayed without knowing this, and if he remained ignorant until he finished his prayer, his prayer is valid, but if he comes to know about it during prayer, and if there is time, it is an obligatory precaution to stop the prayer, purify the dress or change it, then start prayer again. However, if there is no time even to offering one prostration, the person must hasten to take it off and change it or purify it in a way that is not considered to invalidate the prayer, then continue his prayer. But if changing or purifying is not possible, then he should continue his prayer with the impurity on his dress and his prayer is valid.
4) If a person performs prayer with an impurity due to forgetfulness, his prayer is invalid, and he must repeat it within the time or after it; the same applies if he remembers this during the prayer.
Third: the clothes must be free to use
1) It is a condition that the clothing covering the private part must be free to use as an obligatory precaution.
2) Praying while wearing misappropriated clothing occurs in many instances:
- the person knows and is intentionally wearing such clothing; in this case the prayer becomes invalid. The same applies if he forgot, and if he was not the one who misappropriated the clothing.
- The person is ignorant and has not made the necessary effort to know about it; it is better to render the prayer, and to act accordingly.
- The person is ignorant but has an excuse or does not know that the things has actually been misappropriated, or forgot, but he is not the one who misappropriated the clothing; in all these cases the prayer is valid.
3) The prayer performed while wearing misappropriated clothing is accepted if there is a compelling reason that persists throughout the entire duration of the prayer. Otherwise, it is precautionary to delay performing the prayer until clothing that is free from such issues can be obtained.
Fourth: The clothing must be free from parts of the dead
It is a condition that the clothing of the person praying is not made from parts of a dead animal that has a "fluid" soul, or even from a dead animal that has no "fluid" soul, as an obligatory precaution—regardless of whether the dead animal was one whose meat is permissible to eat or not. This does not include animals whose meat is permissible to eat, even if the validity of their tathkiya (slaughtering in the Islamic way) is doubtful, as discussed in the chapter on impurities, where it is stated that praying with such clothing is allowed.
Fifth: The clothing must not contain any parts of animals whose meat is impermissible to eat
1) It is a condition that the clothing is not made from the skin or hair of animals whose meat is impermissible to eat, even if they were slaughtered in the Islamic way. This applies to all parts of the clothing, including minor attachments such as cat hair that may adhere to the clothing of the person praying.
2) Excluded from what is mentioned above is the skin and fur martens, squirrels, beavers and fennec foxes; praying with these is allowed, provided that, for the skin, the animal was slaughtered in the Islamic way.
3) It seems that the ruling regarding animals whose meat is impermissible to eat does not apply to animals that have no “fluid” soul, although including them within the ruling is preferable. Additionally, the ruling does not apply to animals whose meat became impermissible due to external reasons..
Sixth: The clothing must be free of gold
1) It is not permissible for men to wear gold during prayer or at other times; this includes pocket watches that hang from the clothing and eyeglasses with golden frames, as an obligatory precaution in both cases. Things that are not commonly regarded as part of wearing, such as gold teeth or gold tooth crowns, are not included in this ruling. The same applies to items that are held or plated in a manner where the plating is considered as coloring. As for women, they are permitted to wear gold at all times.
2) If a man prays while intentionally wearing gold, he has sinned, and his prayer becomes invalid. However, if this occurs due to forgetfulness, unawareness, or ignorance, the prayer does not become invalid.
Seventh: The clothing must be free of pure silk
1)If such clothing is of the kind that is sufficient on its own to offer prayers, and this pertains to what is commonly regarded as clothing.
2) It is impermissible for men to wear clothing made from pure silk, except for compelling reasons. If a person intentionally wears such clothing, knowing the ruling, and prays in it, the prayer is invalid. As for women, they are permitted to wear silk at all times.
3) It is acceptable for buttons and hems of clothing to be made of silk, though it is preferable that any silk hem or sleeve does not exceed the width of four fingers.
4) It is permissible to wear silk mixed with other textiles, provided that the other material constitutes a greater proportion than the silk.
By attending our prayers, Allah would bestow upon us the blessing of being brought up in accordance with His teachings, as He would remind us about our responsibilities, once we recognize the position of Allah in the existence, for He is the Greatest, the Highest, the Beneficent and the Merciful, and He is in control of every fate and the One we ought to refer to for our need.
Once man realizes all these traits, he would get to know himself and his responsibilities. Moreover, as we recount the testimony of the oneness of Allah and recognize the message of His Messenger (p.), we ought not forget the responsibilities we ought to shoulder, and we ought to be guided by the path of Allah; thus, in our prayers we address Allah and say: “You alone we worship, and You alone we ask for help” Al Fatiha (01:05), meaning that we succumb to You and not to anyone else, and we seek Your help and not that of anyone else. Moreover, following His guidance, we say: “Guide us to the straight path. The path of those upon whom You have bestowed favor, not of those who have evoked [Your] anger or of those who are astray” Al Fatiha (01:06-07). While praying, we also confirm the peace is linked to the message of His Messenger (p.); thus, we say: “Peace be upon you, O Prophet, and the mercy of Allah and His blessings,” as well as peace with oneself and the good servants of Allah: “Peace be unto us and unto the good servants of Allah,” and peace with the universe, environment, and the entire life.