Written for Insight but never used, this was me trying to get the young muslims to try their hands at writing some Islamic rap. Unfortunately, on hearing "The Greatest Name" they mostly considered my efforts to be laughable, so this supposed prayer rap (which had admittedly been getting out of hand, going on apparently forever and still not getting much past wudu) was left without actually saying much about the salah. Finishing it is just one of my many good intentions that may or may not happen.
THE PRAYER BREAK
There's a prayer we make together,
and a prayer we make alone.
The world is a place to pray in,
a prayer to make us One.
Salaat is made five times a day
in the Way of Muhammad the Messenger.
Salaat is made five times a day
in the Way of Muhammad the Messenger.
Five times a day we stop to pray
to the Merciful Creator,
Toward the One Who is over all,
like Whom there is no other.
To stand before Allah's majesty
how can we try to look our best?
Before Allah we have no grandeur,
what pleases Allah is cleanliness.
Water serves to wash us clean.
Wudu is our Washing!
Water serves to wash us clean.
Wudu is our Washing!
There are times when we act like animals.
We really can't avoid it.
One thing that everyone has to deal with
is going to the toilet.
Now a baby can't tell between food and filth
and has to learn the lesson
That what we take in must be pure and clean,
and what comes out is poison.
Water serves to wash us clean.
Wudu is our Washing!
Wash that poison right away.
Keep it from your food and water.
Wash it from your hands also.
Don't eat from fingers that are dirty.
What to do with all that stuff?
Don't put it in your streams and rivers.
Put it back into the earth
and let it feed the plants and flowers.
When we talk of making Wudu
toilet hygiene's just a start.
We need a special kind of washing
if we are to make Salaat.
Having washed where stuff comes out,
and got those bits of our body clean,
We can wash those special parts
that link what's outside with what's in.
But first we have to make it clear
exactly what we intend to do,
So we say to ourselves that we're washing for prayer,
washing for Salaat for Allah - Wudu.
Having declared our Niyyah
to make Wudu as best we can,
We clean the parts we use to clean the rest
- we wash our hands.
Then we rinse our mouths and gargle.
clean out dust that we've sucked in.
Rub our teeth and gums, or better
use a brush to get them clean.
Clean our tongues, and clear our tastebuds,
let us taste the food we're fed.
We use our tongues to say our prayers,
so let's wash away the bad things we've said.
The air we breathe is food for us also,
through the lungs into the blood
Keep it clean - don't breathe in poisons.
Smoke and fumes don't do you good.
Dusty air clogs up our noses,
leaves its muck all stuck up there.
Snuff up water. Flush that dirt out.
Smell the scents upon the air.
After that we wash our faces,
clean the pores of grease and grime.
Wash the sleep out of our eyes
to see things clear at prayer time.
Knowing that the way we see things
links up with the way we feel.
As a gift for everyone
wash off your frown - wipe on a smile.
Wash the wrists and down the forearms,
Elbows and the funny bone,
So strong we can use the bones as weapons,
so close to the nerves that cause us pain.
Wipe the top of the skull so thick
yet soft and open when we are born.
The hair that grows on after death,
that protects us from the frost and sun.
Wash the ears out with your fingers.
The thumbs can clean the dirt behind.
Our ears give balance and take in knowledge.
Don't listen to things that poison your mind.
Wipe the back of the neck with water,
the top of the spine where the nerves all join,
The neck where blood flows, Allah is closer,
and beneath the chin under the tongue.
Finally we wash our feet,
as far from the heart as we can Go,
Our feet that stand upon the ground,
through which we feel the world below.
Where nerves must end, and blood and lymph
begin their return to where they came.
Our feet that rest on the filth of the earth,
we wash before in Salaat we stand.
We keep our Wudu short and sweet,
beginning with a Bismillah.
We seal ourselves in cleanliness
and finish with the Shahada.
On Fridays for Salaat al Jummah
we wash ourselves all over.
Ghusl touches all our skin
and purifies our odour.
For Jummah with our neighbours
we all try to smell our sweetest,
And as much as we are able
we all try to dress our neatest.
But as long as we have Wudu
we can stand before Allah.
Then when we let what's inside out,
Wudu must be made once more.
If we have no water
we must still remember what needs cleaned.
We brush our palms with dust
and wipe ourselves in Tayammum.
Dust can also make us clean.
Waterless make Tayammum!
Pure and clean we are ready to pray.
The Adzan calls out for us to remember
Salaat is made five times a day
in the Way of Muhammad the Messenger.
Salaat is made five times a day
in the Way of Muhammad the Messenger.
Remember Allah at every moment.
Dzikr is our Remembrance!
Call on Allah for help and guidance.
Ask for forgiveness.
Give thanks for blessings.
Praise Allah's majesty.
with Du'a, our Calling!
But five times a day we are called on to pray
in the Way of Muhammad the Messenger.