One of the most well-known religious practices in Islam is daily ritual prayer (Arabic ٱلصَّلَاةُ; Romanized salat or salah). This special type of prayer is one of the Five Pillars of Islam.
Salat may be performed alone but it carries special merit when done with other Muslims. The most important salat is the midday prayer at the mosque on Fridays.
Salah or Salat?
In English and other European languages, Muslim ritual prayer is sometimes referred to as salah and other times as salat. These two words are interchangeable and mean the same thing.1
Salah and salat are different romanizations of the same Arabic word ٱلصَّلَاةُ, which ends with a different sound depending on where it appears in a sentence (in Arabic). In non-Arabic languages, both spellings and pronunciations are acceptable, no matter where the word appears in a sentence.1
What Times Are Muslim Prayers?
Muslim ritual prayers are performed five times a day. Each prayer is named for the time of day in which it takes place, as follows:
- Sunrise (Fajr)
- Midday (Dhuhr)
- Afternoon (Asr)
- Sunset (Maghrib)
- Night (Isha)
The exact times of these prayers vary, as they depend on the times of sunrise and sunset in one's location.
The Call to Prayer
At the five appointed times, a prayer leader announces a call to prayer (adhan), a melodious chant of specified words in Arabic. For Muslims not within earshot of an adhan, there is an app for that.
Ablutions (Ritual Washing)
Salat must always be preceded by ablutions (Arabic wudu'), which is ritually washing the face, hands, and feet. This can be done with sand when water is not available. (Quran 5:6; also 2:222, 4:43.)
Direction of Muslim Prayer
Salat is always in the direction (qibla) of the Ka'ba shrine in Mecca, Saudi Arabia. In mosques, this is marked with a special niche called a qiblah.
Positions and Recitations
An individually-sized, rectangular prayer rug (sajjada) is commonly used during salat. At the mosque, these rugs are laid out in rows on the floor for worshippers.
When performing salat at the mosque, worshippers are aligned in parallel rows behind the prayer leader (imam), who directs them through the rak'as (prescribed postures and recitations).
Islamic ritual prayer begins in a standing position and moves through several simple postures until the supplicant is kneeling. Specified recitations are said in each posture.
These recitations or prayers include glorification of God, recitations of the Qur'an, and blessings on the Prophet. Salat concludes with the taslima (greeting), "Peace be upon you," even when praying alone.
Three Special Salat Prayers
In addition to the regular prayer times, there are three types of special congregational prayers in Islam:
- salat al-jum’ah every Friday
- salat al-eid on the two major Islamic holidays
- salat al-tarawih every night during the month of Ramadan
Other Muslim Prayers
In addition to the prescribed ritual prayers of salat, Muslims may offer an individual devotional prayer of praise or petition, called a du'a, anytime. This is often done in a sitting position with palms raised.
These prayers sometimes include repeated praise formulas, or recitation of the 99 Beautiful Names of God, often assisted by a rosary, called a masbaha.