How does a Muslim attain khushu' in his prayer? And what is the number of movements that invalidate the prayer?
Machine translationRead the Arabic original
The questioner : How does a Muslim attain khushu' in his prayer? And what is the number of movements that invalidate the prayer?
The Shaykh : Khushu' in prayer is not crying, as some of the common people think, but crying is a result of khushu'. Khushu' is the tranquility and steadiness of the heart, along with the stillness of the limbs, meaning the hands, feet, eyes, and head.
Khushu' is the essence and spirit of the prayer. For this reason, the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) forbade a person from praying while he is struggling to relieve himself, or while he is in the presence of food. The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him and his family) said:Riyad as-Salihin 1753.
There is no doubt that Satan attacks the one praying with everything he can, opening for him doors of whispers and anxieties that he never imagined, in order to cause him to lose this greatest objective in prayer, which is khushu'. You will find Satan knocking him down to the right and left and opening every door for him. But the Messenger (may Allah's prayer and peace be upon him) gave us a remedy for this: a person should spit to his left three times and seek refuge in Allah from the accursed Satan, for it will be removed by the permission of Allah. Spitting to the left is clear if the person is not in the mosque.
The questioner : Yes.
The Shaykh : But if he is in the mosque, or if there is one of the praying people to his left, he does not spit to his left. Rather, he turns to his left and seeks refuge in Allah from the accursed Satan.
Also, among the causes of khushu' is being eager to reflect and contemplate on what you say in your prayer. If it is Qur'an, then reflect on the meaning of the Qur'an. If it is supplication, then be aware that you are in need of this supplication and that Allah is near and responsive, and the like of that. If you do this and you contemplate what you say and do in your prayer, then this helps in attaining khushu' in the prayer.
It should be known that the scholars (may Allah have mercy on them) differed on whether the prayer is sufficient and absolves the conscience if anxieties dominate the prayer or make up most of it. There are two opinions. Some said: If waswas (whispers) dominate the prayer and most of his prayer is anxieties, then his prayer is not valid due to the lack of khushu' and submission in it, and because it came in the hadith that a person leaves his prayer and only a quarter of it, a tenth of it, or the like is written for him.
But the majority of the scholars are of the opinion that the prayer is sufficient and absolves the conscience, but it is very deficient.
In any case, a person should beware of these whispers opening up to him, and he should do what the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) guided us to, which is spitting to the left three times and seeking refuge in Allah from the accursed Satan, for Allah the Exalted will remove it from him.
The questioner : There is a paragraph, O Shaykh, about the number of movements that invalidate the prayer. Is there a specific number or something like that?
The Shaykh : As for the movements that invalidate the prayer, they do not have a specific number. But the movements that contradict the prayer, such that they are many and consecutive, are those that become forbidden and invalidate the prayer if they occur from the one praying, unless they are for a dire necessity, such as fleeing from fire, a wild beast, an enemy, or the like. In that case, they do not invalidate the prayer even if they are many and consecutive, due to the saying of Allah the Exalted:[Al-Baqarah 2:239]. Yes.
The questioner : May Allah reward you, O honorable Shaykh, and may Allah bless you and your knowledge, and benefit the Muslims through you.
The Shaykh : Khushu' in prayer is not crying, as some of the common people think, but crying is a result of khushu'. Khushu' is the tranquility and steadiness of the heart, along with the stillness of the limbs, meaning the hands, feet, eyes, and head.
Khushu' is the essence and spirit of the prayer. For this reason, the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) forbade a person from praying while he is struggling to relieve himself, or while he is in the presence of food. The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him and his family) said:
No Salat (prayer) should be performed when the food has been served, nor should it be performed when a person is in need of relieving himself.
لا صلاة بحضرة طعام ولا وهو يُدافعه الأخبثانThere is no doubt that Satan attacks the one praying with everything he can, opening for him doors of whispers and anxieties that he never imagined, in order to cause him to lose this greatest objective in prayer, which is khushu'. You will find Satan knocking him down to the right and left and opening every door for him. But the Messenger (may Allah's prayer and peace be upon him) gave us a remedy for this: a person should spit to his left three times and seek refuge in Allah from the accursed Satan, for it will be removed by the permission of Allah. Spitting to the left is clear if the person is not in the mosque.
The questioner : Yes.
The Shaykh : But if he is in the mosque, or if there is one of the praying people to his left, he does not spit to his left. Rather, he turns to his left and seeks refuge in Allah from the accursed Satan.
Also, among the causes of khushu' is being eager to reflect and contemplate on what you say in your prayer. If it is Qur'an, then reflect on the meaning of the Qur'an. If it is supplication, then be aware that you are in need of this supplication and that Allah is near and responsive, and the like of that. If you do this and you contemplate what you say and do in your prayer, then this helps in attaining khushu' in the prayer.
It should be known that the scholars (may Allah have mercy on them) differed on whether the prayer is sufficient and absolves the conscience if anxieties dominate the prayer or make up most of it. There are two opinions. Some said: If waswas (whispers) dominate the prayer and most of his prayer is anxieties, then his prayer is not valid due to the lack of khushu' and submission in it, and because it came in the hadith that a person leaves his prayer and only a quarter of it, a tenth of it, or the like is written for him.
But the majority of the scholars are of the opinion that the prayer is sufficient and absolves the conscience, but it is very deficient.
In any case, a person should beware of these whispers opening up to him, and he should do what the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) guided us to, which is spitting to the left three times and seeking refuge in Allah from the accursed Satan, for Allah the Exalted will remove it from him.
The questioner : There is a paragraph, O Shaykh, about the number of movements that invalidate the prayer. Is there a specific number or something like that?
The Shaykh : As for the movements that invalidate the prayer, they do not have a specific number. But the movements that contradict the prayer, such that they are many and consecutive, are those that become forbidden and invalidate the prayer if they occur from the one praying, unless they are for a dire necessity, such as fleeing from fire, a wild beast, an enemy, or the like. In that case, they do not invalidate the prayer even if they are many and consecutive, due to the saying of Allah the Exalted:
And if you fear [an enemy, then pray] on foot or riding
فَإِنْ خِفْتُمْ فَرِجَالًا أَوْ رُكْبَانًاThe questioner : May Allah reward you, O honorable Shaykh, and may Allah bless you and your knowledge, and benefit the Muslims through you.