OK, before I begin with the actual post...when I first read the comment I had received, I translated it as "I am having issues prioritizing my prayers." As I was about to post this, I re-read it and realized it was actually referring to lack of concentration during prayer. Ah well, insha' Allah this post I made will not come to waste even though I misread the comment. To the person who commented: I will reply promptly to your concern in the form of a comment, iA(insha' Allah/God Willing).
Here is my post, then...please keep in mind my initial misinterpretation.
The first course of action would be to determine exactly why you and your friend are having issues focusing on your prayer. It is highly likely that you are struggling to define and practice what is or should be your priority(striving to become the best Muslim you can be). Perhaps you have distractions, perhaps you are busy--but think about it like this. Can you not spend at least 25 minutes a day to save and bless your soul in the Hereafter? (25 minutes=5 min for the 5 obligatory prayers)
"And they who carefully maintain their prayers –Those are the inheritors. Who will inherit al-Firdaus. They will abide therein eternally." (Surah al-Mu’minoon, ayah 9-11)
[And they shall be asked], “What put you into Saqar (Hell)?” They will say, “We were not of those who prayed… (Surah al-Muddaththir, ayah 42-43)
Assuming one day is 12 hours, you are spending less than four percent of your day with those prayers. And they are so very important, so inexpressibly important. I'll list a few reasons below:
1). Keeps you close to Allah(SWT)
2). One step closer to Jennah/Paradise, one step away from Hell. OK, more than a step, probably. But still...it's as if you have bought one of your five tickets to Jenna, insha' Allah, as Salah/Prayer is one of the five pillars of Islam.
"Indeed, I am Allah . There is no deity except Me, so worship Me and establish prayer for My remembrance." (Surah Ta-Ha, ayah 14)
3). Bottom line: Allah(SWT), the Compassionate and Merciful, Ordered the Believers to Do So. Let us be among them insha' Allah.
Once again, please feel free to suggest future posts' subject matter. Comments are very welcome
Assalamualaikum
Here is my post, then...please keep in mind my initial misinterpretation.
The first course of action would be to determine exactly why you and your friend are having issues focusing on your prayer. It is highly likely that you are struggling to define and practice what is or should be your priority(striving to become the best Muslim you can be). Perhaps you have distractions, perhaps you are busy--but think about it like this. Can you not spend at least 25 minutes a day to save and bless your soul in the Hereafter? (25 minutes=5 min for the 5 obligatory prayers)
"And they who carefully maintain their prayers –Those are the inheritors. Who will inherit al-Firdaus. They will abide therein eternally." (Surah al-Mu’minoon, ayah 9-11)
[And they shall be asked], “What put you into Saqar (Hell)?” They will say, “We were not of those who prayed… (Surah al-Muddaththir, ayah 42-43)
Assuming one day is 12 hours, you are spending less than four percent of your day with those prayers. And they are so very important, so inexpressibly important. I'll list a few reasons below:
1). Keeps you close to Allah(SWT)
2). One step closer to Jennah/Paradise, one step away from Hell. OK, more than a step, probably. But still...it's as if you have bought one of your five tickets to Jenna, insha' Allah, as Salah/Prayer is one of the five pillars of Islam.
"Indeed, I am Allah . There is no deity except Me, so worship Me and establish prayer for My remembrance." (Surah Ta-Ha, ayah 14)
3). Bottom line: Allah(SWT), the Compassionate and Merciful, Ordered the Believers to Do So. Let us be among them insha' Allah.
Once again, please feel free to suggest future posts' subject matter. Comments are very welcome
Assalamualaikum
About time. I was getting worried I might not get a response.
ReplyDeleteThat may not have been what I was looking for, but it did certainly help and made me rethink about exactly how I should place my prayers on the priority scale. Jazak'Allah.
:)
ReplyDeleteIn response to your actual concern...focusing...well, perhaps you should think about what you're actually doing...think about the significance of what you are doing: you are worshiping Allah(SWT), Praying to Him...think about His Great Qualities...picture yourself standing in front of him, kneeling and praying. That image may help instill the essence of Salah in your conscience...therefore you will be more focused during prayer as you are fully involved. Please let me know if this helped or not. Assalamualaikum! :)
About time. I was getting worried I might not get a response. :P
ReplyDeleteJazak'Allah for the advice. Insha'Allah it'll work better than widening your eyes periodically in order to keep focus. :/
:)
ReplyDeleteAlhamdulillah it served its purpose, but then I started thinking about if my focus was really focus at all.
ReplyDeleteIs focus in Salah just knowing what you're saying, or is it beyond that? Jazak'Allahi in advance.
Assalamualikum. Focus in Salah is both about knowing what you are saying and actually caring about what you are saying. For example...let's take a somewhat extreme example. In the days of the Prophet Muhammad, peace be upon him, there were disbelievers who pretended to be Muslims...they probably did pray Salah and know what the words meant, but did they actually kneel and recite with devotion to their Lord?
ReplyDeleteHere's how I see it...if your Love and Faith in Allah(SWT), Your Taqwa...if it's solid and strong, then how can you not be focused during prayer? Focused would mean reciting the words of Allah(SWT) or the Quran with Fear and Love...being immersed in your prayer...not thinking about other irrelevant things.
Hope that helps.
Salams :)
Assalam-u-Alaikum,
ReplyDeleteI'd say it didn't help at all, but that would be lying. :P
It helped a lot, Alhamdulillah. I also decided to take my prayers slowly to reflect more on them and to keep my concentration. Jazak'Allah for the help and may Allah reward you.
Now, I just want your honest opinion. The most widely-supported video game franchise nowadays is Call of Duty. Think what you may, it is NOT Mario. COD is an FPS (First-Person Shooter). I'm against the killing and bloodshed, but there are shooter games out there like Battlefield and Brink that reward supportive actions, like being a battlefield medic as opposed to soldier. Would you consider those to be OK or would you place them on the same level as COD, which is based around only killing? Jazak'Allah in advance, and Wassalam.
I'm glad the post helped you :). I'm really not that familiar with those video games, to tell you the truth. Sorry :(.
ReplyDeleteHowever, personally, I play(ed) games like Super Mario Sunshine and things like that, haha :) I avoided violent games, back when i used to play video games frequently.
If I posted a link to a vid of one of those games, would that help?
ReplyDelete