Salah, the Daily Prayers

The practice

Salah is the formal prayer performed five times a day: before dawn, at midday, in the afternoon, at sunset, and at night. It is the second pillar of Islam, and the muezzin's call to prayer marks its hours in Muslim communities around the world.

How it is kept

Before praying, a Muslim performs wudu, a washing of the hands, face, and feet. The prayer itself is a set sequence of standing, reciting the opening chapter of the Qur'an, bowing, and prostrating with the forehead to the ground, at home, at work, or in the mosque. Friday brings a congregational prayer at midday with a sermon.

What it means

Five times a day, the schedule of heaven interrupts the schedule of earth. Muslims describe salah as a direct audience with God without an intermediary, and its rhythm makes remembrance of God a habit of the body as much as of the mind.