Prayer - A Conversation with Allah

Only once did the Prophet ﷺ go up to Allah whilst being alive. Only once. Angel Jibreel took the Prophet ﷺ from Makkah to Jerusalem and from Masjid al Aqsa, in Jerusalem all the way to Allah.  

Allah says, 
سُبْحَانَ الَّذِي أَسْرَى بِعَبْدِهِ لَيْلًا مِنَ الْمَسْجِدِ الْحَرَامِ إِلَى الْمَسْجِدِ الْأَقْصَى  
 “Exalted is He who took His Servant by night from al Masjid al Haram to al Masjid al Aqsa”. [17:1] 

From Masjid al Aqsa, Palestine, the Prophet ﷺ ascended the sky, surpassed the universe, went beyond the different levels of Paradise and then went as close as he could to Allah. What happened when the greatest man to be created came close to Allah? Allah the Almighty revealed the 5 daily prayers.  

If Allah wanted to, He could have told the Prophet ﷺ that we must pray 5 times a day whilst he was on the Earth. While the Prophet was in Makkah, Allah could have instructed us to pray 5 times a day. Instead, Allah made it more special; Allah took the Prophet ﷺ up, higher than everyone and everything. The Prophet ﷺ went beyond the earth, stars, galaxies, universe and when he was close to His Lord, Allah revealed the obligation to pray 5 times a day.  

One may question the reason behind this journey. Some scholars said that in the sight of Allah, the one who prays to Allah 5 times a day has a rank that is much higher than every other creation. Better than all the other creation that Allah has created! Another wisdom that scholars have shared is that when one prays to Allah 5 times a day, he will slowly, slowly reach a level whereby he feels he is very close to Allah. When one feels spiritually connected to Allah then one day, he will also be physically close to Allah in Jannah.   

What is the reward of those who worship Allah and pray 5 times a day? What is the reward of the believers who went through the hardship of waking up early in the morning to pray Fajr? What is the reward of those who do wudu in the cold? Allah will reward such people with Paradise. And the best reward in Paradise will be to see Allah. The Prophet ﷺ described this moment in the future by saying,“When the people of Paradise enter Paradise, Allah will say, ‘Do you want anything more?’ They will say, ‘Have You not brightened our faces, admitted us to Paradise and saved us from hell?’ Then the veil will be lifted and they will not have seen anything more dear to them than looking upon their Lord, may He be glorified and exalted”. [Muslim] 

If one decides to not pray to Allah, at least a minimum five times a day, what will happen to him? Allah answers that question by quoting the people of hellfire, 
(43) قَالُوا لَمْ نَكُ مِنَ الْمُصَلِّينَ (42) مَا سَلَكَكُمْ فِي سَقَرَ  
 “(When the people of Jahannam will be asked), ‘What has caused you to enter Hell?’ (42). They will say, ‘We were not of those who used to pray.’” (43). [74:42-43] 

So the first reason provided by those who entered Jahannam is that they did not pray, they did not make the effort to pray. It takes roughly 5-10 minutes to pray each prayer and there are only 5 prayers. If you do the maths, then you will realise that all of the prayers should only take 50 minutes of your day. You have the other 23 hours to do whatever you want. If one cannot give up one hour out of 24 hours to pray to Allah, the Creator and Sustainer, then how can they enter Paradise? Allah is not telling us to spend hours and hours in prayer, just a small portion of our day is enough. We need to remember the reward and punishment next time we are deciding whether or not to pray.  

Paradise has been made for those who pray and do other good actions. One can never really fully describe Paradise. The Messenger of Allah ﷺ said regarding Paradise,“Allah has said: I have prepared for My righteous servants what no eye has seen, what no ear has heard, and what no heart has conceived”. [Tirmidhi] 

When we see something beautiful, such as a cute animal or the incredible sky, we become amazed. In Paradise, we will see the Maker of the heavens and the earth. We will see the one who created you, me, your parents and the whole of humanity. We will see Allah.  

Now the question is, do you want to be amongst those who see Allah? Well, next time it is time to pray, make some effort to pray. Do you want to be amongst those who see Allah? Well, next time you have an opportunity to do something good, try to do it. Do you want to be amongst those who see Allah? Well, next time there is something that will lead to a sin, try to avoid it and distance yourself from it. In Paradise, nothing will be haram. Everything is halal. Because you tried your best to stay away from the haram in this world, in the next, the word ‘haram’ would cease to exist.  

Anything we want at the end of the day, comes from the earth. Whether it is food, it probably grew on a plant or a tree, if its material such as gold and silver and diamond and pearls, it still came from the earth. So no one can give you anything from beyond the earth. Cars, watches, phones, everything is made from materials found in the earth. Even us; me, you, and your friends, we are all from the earth. You want Paradise? There it is. It is front of you. All you have to do is carry on worshipping Allah and very soon you will see Him.   


You want to earn the pleasure of Allah, start today. Start praying 5 times a day, start being good to those around you. Reduce and then eliminate your bad habits.  	  

I ask Allah to give us the tawfeeq to pray five times a day and enter Paradise through His Mercy. Ameen.