The Ruling on Khushu' in Prayer and Its Effect on Its Acceptance

The Shaykh:
May Allah greet you all.

The questioner:
Your Eminence the Shaykh, Salih, some questions remained from previous lessons. One of the brothers says: This questioner says that some people let their minds wander in their prayer, leaving off khushu' (humility) and going here and there. Is the prayer accepted? And what is the condition of khushu' in that?

The Shaykh:
In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful. Praise be to Allah, Lord of the worlds, and may Allah send prayers and blessings upon our Prophet Muhammad, and upon his family and all his Companions. As for what follows, khushu' is the spirit of the prayer and its essence. He, Glorified and Exalted is He, said: Khushu' in prayer is its spirit, its essence, and its outcome. Khushu' is stillness; it is stillness, even if it is little. This is in the hand of Allah, Glorified and Exalted is He, who grants it to whom He wills. However, it has causes. Therefore, the Muslim is prohibited from things that drive away khushu' or distract him from it.
He is prohibited from praying while angry or harboring hatred. He is prohibited from praying in the presence of food that he desires. He is prohibited from praying in the presence of anything that distracts him from the prayer, until he is free for it and turns to it with khushu' before his Lord, Glorified and Exalted is He. A prayer without khushu' is sufficient in terms of the outward form, because he performed it, but it is not sufficient in terms of the inward reality. Yes.