Other
Forms
of
Prayer

There are many occasions when muslims make prayers other than the essential Sala,

but still using the Raka format,

not just the Sunna prayers associated with those times,

but also other events in life,

like eclipses,

or perhaps more common in Scotland,

setting off on a journey.

And at one time of year in particular,

muslims will perform numerous Rakas in succession,

and that is during the Tarawih prayers of Ramadhan.

Many mosques will employ a Hafiz

to recite the full Qur'an

during Tarawih prayers over the course of the month,

and in Scotland the prayers are often made after 'Isha,

as a matter of convenience for the worshippers.

But they can also be made inbetween Maghrib and 'Isha,

or in the dark hours before the dawn prayer.

Tarawih is usually made in sets of twenty or thirty two Rakas,

in groups of four Rakas.

Clearly it is impossible for this tradition to be a Sunnah,

as the Qur'an could never be considered complete while the Messenger was still alive,

and it is said that it was widely established

at the recommendation of Umar Ibn Al-Khattab,

who heard of it being practiced by some reciters in the community,

and said how he considered it to be an excellent innovation.

But although the full Qur'an recitation was bid'a,

the format of each Raka remained the same as in the essential Sala,

whereas there are some formal prayers

that muslims will occasionally encounter with quite different requirements.

On the occasion of someone's death, there will be prayers said in congregation

as part of the funeral process known as Janaza,

though the body does not actually have to be present for the prayer to take place.

The Janaza prayer begins with a Takbir,

which is followed by the participants standing

making silent private personal internal prayer in their own words,

though these will traditionally be followed by Qunut prayers for the Messenger.

This sequence is then repeated another twice,

at the end of which the imam says another takbir

after which the prayer concludes with the usual salaams.

There is no Ruku or Sajda in the Janaza prayer.

The numerous occasions when two or more Raka of prayer

are considered the appropriate response to a situation,

are of course outnumbered by times when formal Raka are impractical,

and Du'a can be used to maintain focus on the realities of the human situation.

But both are there to help us remain Mindful of God,

to stay in remembrance all the time

and not forget.

This constancy of awareness may seem like an impossible task,

but humans are equipped to focus their attention

when given a firm enough prompting.

The word Dzikr meaning remembrance,

with a slight change of vowels

gives the Arabic word for a man.

But the root of the letter combination has a more vivid meaning,

that of 'to strike a man in the testicles',

something that brings a certain concentration of focus on the region involved

to the exclusion of most other distractions.

Of course, remembrance of God

should not need the same degree of physical pain to sustain it,

but God is more worthy of our attention than anything the physical world can offer,

whether the ecstacy of pleasure or the agony of pain.

It is God that makes us laugh and cry,

and provides us with both for a test.

And coping with either situation, is best achieved

by remembering our surrender to God.