PREPARATION FOR PRAYER WITH KHUSYU' AND THE VIRTUES 

    Solat is an activity that can bring us closer to Allah SWT and is a pillar of Islam. Nevertheless, prayer should be performed with full reverence so that we can appreciate the beauty of this worship. Khusyu' means sincere, wholehearted, focused and full of self-surrender. Ibn Abbas explained that Khusyu' means full of fear and reverence. 

قَدْ أَفْلَحَ الْمُؤْمِنُونَ، الَّذِينَ هُمْ فِي صَلاتِهِمْ خَاشِعُونَ

"Indeed, fortunate are the believers, (namely) those who are humble in their prayers". (QS Al-Mu'minuun: Verses 1-2). 

    Therefore, for this time I will state preparation for prayer with khusyu'.

1. Taharah (Wudu' and Tayammum) 

    Wudu' is the Islamic procedure for washing body parts using water, typically in preparation for prayers. Al-Quran stated that " For Allah loves those who turn to Him constantly and He loves those who keep themselves pure and clean." It starts with washing the whole face, then washing the forearms including the elbows, wiping over the whole head, washing the feet including the ankles, then sequence, and succession. 

    For Tayammum, there have several conditions that Muslims must follow it. The first one is intention. Secondly, lack of water or the impossibility of using it despite its presence. Thirdly, do not have thick materials like wax, oil paint, or nail polish that cover the skin on the face, hands, and arms. Fourth is not having a state that invalidates wudu' while making tayammum. Then, the soil to be used for tayammum must be clean. Tayammum is made by touching the soil firmly with the hands twice. After the first touch, the face is wiped and after the second one, the arms are wiped. The organs have to be wiped by the whole hand or at least three fingers in the tayammum. In the last one, the entire face and arms have to be wiped until it's covering them. 

2. Application of Prayer Based On the Situations

Qasr is the shortening of prayer that consists of four rakaats, where the rakaats are shortened to two. This is only applicable to Dhuhr, Asr, and Isha’s prayers. It is not permissible to shorten Maghrib or Subuh prayers which consist of three and two rakaats respectively.

The practice of qasr is permissible based on the following:

"And when ye go forth in the land, it is no sin for you to curtail (your) worship if ye fear that those who disbelieve may attack you. In truth, the disbelievers are an open enemy to you.”

Distance for the Qasr to be permissible

The minimum distance traveled in order for it to be permissible for prayers to be shortened is two marhalahs, which is four burdens. One building consists of four forsakes and each farsakh is 5.514km under the metric system. Two marhalahs therefore is approximately 89 km.

Jama' - The Combining of prayers

There are two types of Jama' that is permissible:

Jama' Taqdim which refers to the combination of two prayers into the earlier time, such as combining Dhuhr and 'Asr and performing it during Dhuhr, or combining Maghrib and Isha' and performing it during Maghrib. 

Jama' Ta'khir which refers to the combination of two prayers into the later time, such as combining Dhuhr and 'Asr and performing it during 'Asr, or combining Maghrib and Isha' and performing it during Isha'.

Solat Sunnah Nawafil 

Solat Sunnah Nawafil is very beneficial and important. It's an optional prayer which a Muslim can pray and get rewarded in the world afterward. 

3. Conditions for the Acceptance (Syarat Sah Solat) 

• Al-Islam (Solat is only accepted by a Muslim) 
• Al-'Aql (Sanity. The insane is not held accountable for his/ her actions)
• Al-Tamyeez (Puberty) 
• State of the purity (Having wudu' or taking a ghusl to remove ritual impurity)
• Remove of filth (Clothing should be free from impurities and also a place of worship)
• Covering the awrah 
• Commencement of time (the salah must be prayed in its proper time and not a minute before)
• Facing the right direction of the qiblah 
• An-Niyah ( The intention for the prayer being prayed should be present)

4. Pillars of Prayer 

• The Intention
• The Opening Takbir 
• The Standing (Qiyam) 
• Reciting the Fatihah 
• The bowing (Ruku')
• The Immobilization in This Pillar (Toma'ninah)
• The Straightening Up (I'tidal)
• The Prostration (Sujud) Two Times 
• The Sitting Between Two Sujuds 
• The Last Seated Position 
• The Invocation in Favour of the Prophet 
• The Ending Salam 
• The Order