The Deep meaning behind the 5 daily prayers
Have you ever wondered why Allah (SWT) commanded us to pray 5 times a day? Is it just a duty – or is there a deeper meaning behind it?
Imagine that a poor man enters a palace to offer some gifts for the sultan. Upon entering, he sees gifts worth of millions of Liras offered by people far wealthier than himself. Ashamed by his own, he tells the sultan “I offer you all the gifts here under my name, since you deserve them all. If I could I would offer them all to you.” Since the sultan is not in need of anything, he views this poor man’s gift with a value equal to that of his intention.
The daily prayers in a way resemble this scenario. We enter God’s presence to present our thanks for the boundless favors He bestows upon us. Ashamed by the limited thanks of our own, we present not only our own thanks but that of the universe as well. Indeed, for instance in the tashahhud we say “All greetings belong to Allah and all prayers and good acts.” Since our own greetings, prayers, and good acts are close to nothing; we include that of the whole creation since that is what God deserves (in fact so much more). Since Allah Subhanahu wa Teala is in need of absolutely nothing and since He is the all Merciful, He accepts our thanks as though it were universal. That is, we don’t just thank God for only the favors He gave to us (which would be partial thanks). By offering all the greetings, prayers, and good acts of every creation; we offer thanks on behalf of the entire creation. This type of thanks is universal since it includes the favors given to the entire creation as opposed to just the individual favors He gives to us. [1]
In the chapter of An-Nahl (The Bee) verse 78, Allah (سبحانه و تعالى) states,
وَاللَّهُ أَخْرَجَكُمْ مِنْ بُطُونِ أُمَّهَاتِكُمْ لَا تَعْلَمُونَ شَيْئًا وَجَعَلَ لَكُمُ السَّمْعَ وَالْأَبْصَارَ وَالْأَفْئِدَةَ لَعَلَّكُمْ تَشْكُرُونَ
“It is God who brought you out of your mothers’ wombs knowing nothing, and gave you hearing and sight and minds, so that you might be thankful.”
So why did God create us and shower us with mercy? So that we may be thankful. For all the boundless favors that we are bestowed by God, our duty as humans is to be thankful and express our thanks through worship. Since prayer is the “pillar of religion”, it accomplishes this in the best form.
Indeed the Prophet Muhammad (عليه الصلاة و السلام) spent long periods of the night to pray and when asked about it replied that he needs to be thankful for the favors of God,
حَدَّثَنَا أَبُو نُعَيْمٍ، قَالَ حَدَّثَنَا مِسْعَرٌ، عَنْ زِيَادٍ، قَالَ سَمِعْتُ الْمُغِيرَةَ ـ رضى الله عنه ـ يَقُولُ إِنْ كَانَ النَّبِيُّ صلى الله عليه وسلم لَيَقُومُ لِيُصَلِّيَ حَتَّى تَرِمُ قَدَمَاهُ أَوْ سَاقَاهُ، فَيُقَالُ لَهُ فَيَقُولُ “ أَفَلاَ أَكُونُ عَبْدًا شَكُورًا ”.
The Prophet (ﷺ) used to stand (in the prayer) or pray till both his feet or legs swelled. He was asked why (he offered such an unbearable prayer) and he said, “should I not be a thankful slave.[2]
It is common to hear people say they perform all their prayers and acts of worship but their worldly lives still do not improve. As seen in the hadith above, worship is an expression of thanks to God for the endless favors given to us, it is not for asking more.[3]
In addition to offering a universal thanks to God, prayer also highlights the role of humans in the universe. Out of all the creation, humans were chosen to offer the worship of all creatures and act as a representative of the universe before God. Indeed, God created us as khulafa’ al ard (stewards of the earth) and chose us to act as a representative in our worship and thanks.
For these and many other reasons, prayer is considered the “ticket” to heaven.
So the next time we pray, let’s remember that we’re not just offering our own thanks. We’re standing on behlaf of the entire universe, and offering their thanks in the presence of God.
