The importance of Prayer

The importance of the prayer in Islam cannot be understated. It
is the first pillar of Islam that the Prophet (peace be upon him) mentioned
after mentioning the testimony of faith, by which one becomes a Muslim. It was
made obligatory upon all the prophets and for all peoples. Allah has declared
its obligatory status under majestic circumstances. For example, when Allah
spoke directly to Moses, He said,
"And I have chosen you, so listen to that
which is inspired to you. Verily, I am Allah! There is none worthy of worship
but I, so worship Me and offer prayer perfectly for My remembrance." [Taha
13-14]
Similarly, the prayers were made obligatory upon the Prophet Muhammad
(peace be upon him) during his ascension to heaven. Furthermore, when Allah
praises the believers, such as in the beginning of surah al-Muminoon, one of the
first descriptions He states is their adherence to the prayers.
Once a man
asked the Prohpet (peace be upon him) about the most virtuous deed. The Prophet
(peace be upon him) stated that the most virtuous deed is the prayer. The man
asked again and again. The first three times, the Prophet (peace be upon him)
again answered, "The prayer," then on the fourth occasion he stated, "Jihad in
the way of Allah." [This is form a hadith recorded by Ahmad and ibn Hibban.
According to al-Albani, the hadith is hasan. Muhammad Nasir al-Din al-Albani,
Sahih al-Targheeb wa al-Tarheeb (Beirut: al-Maktab al-Islami, 1982), vol. 1, p.
150]
The importance of prayer is demonstrated in the many of the Prophet’s
statement. For example, the Prophet (peace be upon him) said,
"The first
matter that the slave will be brought to account for on the Day of Judgment is
the prayer. If it is sound, then the rest of his deeds will be sound. And if it
is bad, then the rest of his deeds will be bad." [Recorded by al-Tabarani.
According to al-Albani, it is sahih. Al-Albani, Sahih al-Jami, vol.1, p. 503.

The importance of the prayers lies in the fact that no matter what actions
one performs in his life, the msot important aspect is one’s relationship to
Allah, that is, one’s faith (imaan), God-consciousness (taqwa), sincerity
(ikhlas) and worship of Allah (`ibaadah). This relationship with Allah is both
demonstrated and put into practice, as well as improved and increased, by the
prayer. Therefore, if the prayers are sound and proper, the rest of the deeds
will be sound and proper; and if the prayers are not sound and proper, then the
rest of the deeds will not be sound and proper, as the Prophet (peace be upon
him) himself stated.
In reality, the prayer is performed properly – with
true remembrance of Allah and turning to Him for forgiveness – it will have a
lasting effect on the person. After he finishes the prayer, his heart will be
filled with the remembrance of Allah. He will be fearful as well as hopeful of
Allah. After that experience, he will not want to move from that lofty position
to one wherein he disobeys Allah. Allah has mentioned this aspect of the prayer
when He has said,
"Verily, the prayer keeps one from the great sins and evil
deeds" (al-Ankaboot 45). Nadwi has described this effect in the following
eloquent way,
Its aim is to generate within the subliminal self of man such
spiritual power, light of faith and awareness of God as can enable him to strive
successfully against all kinds of evils and temptations and remain steadfast at
times of trial and adversity and protect himself against the weakness of the
flesh and the mischief of immoderate appetites. [Nadwi, p. 24]
The overall
affect that the properly performed prayers should have upon humans is described
in other verses in the Quran:
"Verily, man was created impatient, irritable
when evil touches him and niggardly when good touches him. Except for those
devoted to prayer those who remain constant in their prayers…" (al-Maarij
19-23).
As for the Hereafter, Allah’s forgiveness and pleasure is closely
related to the prayers. The Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) said,

"Allah has obligated five prayers. Whoever excellently performs their
ablutions, prays them in their proper times, completes their bows, prostrations
and khushu` [Khushu` in the prayer is where the person’s heart is attuned to the
prayer. This feeling in the heart is then reflected on the body. The person
remains still and calm. His gaze is also lowered. Even his voice is affected by
this feeling in the heart. For more details on this concept (as well as the
difference between it and khudhu`), see Muhammad al-Shaayi, al-Furooq
al-Laughawiyyah wa Atharahaa fi Tafseer al-Quran al-Kareem (Riyadh: Maktabah
al-Ubaikaan, 1993), pp. 249-254.] has a promise from Allah that He will forgive
him. And whoever does not do that has no promise from Allah. He may either
forgive him or punish him." [Recorded by Malik, Ahmad, Abu Dawud, al-Nasa’I and
others. According to al-Albani, it is sahih. Al-Albani, Sahih al-Jami, vol. 1,
p. 616.] ]
The prayers are a type of purification for a human being. He
turns and meets with his Lord five times a day. As alluded to above, this
repeated standing in front of Allah should keep the person from performing sins
during the day. Furthermore, it should also be a time of remorse and repentance,
such that he earnestly asks Allah for forgiveness for those sins that he
committed. In addition, the prayer in itself is a good deed that wipes away some
of the evil deeds that he performed. These points can be noted in the following
hadith of the Prophet (peace be upon him):
"If a person had a stream outside
his door and he bathed in it five times a day, do you think he would have any
filth left on him?" The people said, "No filth would remain on him whatsoever."
The Prophet (peace be upon him) then said, "That is like the five daily prayers:
Allah wipes away the sins by them." (Recorded by al-Bukhari and Muslim.)
In
another hadith, the Prophet (peace be upon him) said, "The five daily prayers
and the Friday Prayer until the Friday prayer are expiation for what is between
them." (Recorded by Muslim