The Importance of Prayer

Syedna Taher Saifuddin RA and Syedna Mohammed Burhanuddin RA often stated that the two primary responsibilities of a Dai are: 1) to establish and call mumineen towards the Da’wat of Imamuz-zaman SA and 2) to pray and perform doa for mumineen. The Arabic root "d‘aa" linguistically supports these two definitions of: 1) calling or inviting towards something and 2) beseeching doa.

The Imams and Dais of the Dawoodi Bohra Community have always guided community members to persevere and attain success and prosperity in both Deen (religion) and Duniya (world).

Namaaz is one of the seven central pillars of our faith. Namaaz was prescribed to us by our Nabi Mohammed Rasulullah SA, and he taught us that it should be performed five times every day. Namaaz is a compulsory obligation (farizat) that each one of us commits to when we give our Misaaq to Allah Ta’ala and his waliyy.

Imam SA replied that they are both good and beneficial. The questioner persisted, but which one is better? The Imam SA answered, “do’a is best, have you not heard the ayat (quoted above) ‘and your Lord says, call on me and I will answer your prayer’.”

Rasulullah’s SA Khutba states that the middle ten days of Shehrullah are the days of forgiveness (Maghfirat), just as the first ten days are days of Rehmat and the last ten days are days of freedom from hellfire.

The Quranic Ayat quoted above is the one with which Syedna Qadi al-Nu’man begins his chapter on the 5th of the Pillars of Islam (Da’aimul Islam), “Sawn” (roza/fasting). In Islam the farizat rozas are once every year for 30 days during the month of Allah, Shehre Ramadan.

The ninth month of the Hijri calendar, the month of Allah Ta’ala, ‘Shehrullah’, is just a few days away. In their Rasa’il Ramadaniyya our Du’aat Kiraam encouraged Mumineen to take full advantage and ghanimat of this season of worship.

As the Final Hearing in the Bombay High Court begins on Monday (9th Rajab/27th April) with Syedna Qutbuddin’s appearance in the Honorable Court, we pray sincerely for our Dai and Dawat, remembering the phrases of Syedna Taher Saifuddin’s RA nasihat “Dawat ne Allah Abaad Raakhe –”.

In Me’raj, Rasulullah SA ascended the seven heavens and he, as the Quran describes it, “drew near and drew closer still, until he was within the length of two bows away or [even] nearer. Rasulullah SA, although a human being, was so elevated in ruhaaniyyat and spirituality that he was as near as possible to Allah Ta’ala. No other Prophet or Messenger attained this nearness.

Namaaz (prayer, salaat) is the “face of our religion” and one of the 7 Pillars of Islam (Da’aimul-Islam). It is an obligation (farizat) on each one of us to perform the 5 faraz at the designated times. It is said that on the Day of Judgment Allah Ta’ala will look first at whether we have prayed namaaz and then He will look at our other good deeds.