Bismillah
When I was given this topic, I started mentally rewinding all the series and
lectures, books or articles I had heard/read about khushoo and its importance in
salah. However, what I soon realized was that it didn’t matter how much I read
or how many lectures I listened to, the effect of having khushoo only lasted for
a few prayers and was not a consistent element in my salah.
For those who are not really sure what khushoo is, its most often translated as
sincerity and concentration during salah, where you focus only on speaking with
your Creator and not getting distracted by worldly affairs.
A famous speaker portrayed a very powerful and beautiful definition of khushoo.
He said khushoo is a feeling when your limbs and mind become numb, when you
can’t think or hear about anything else around you because you are standing in
front of the King, the Master and speaking to Him. He referred to this numbness
as something similar to what students would go through if they were summoned in
front of the Principal’s office: the fear in their hearts and the numbness that
engulfs their mind for a split second.
Sadly, there have been instances when I rush through the salah and sometimes
even forget if I am praying the 3rd rakat or the 4th one! In trying to figure
out where I was going wrong repeatedly, I narrowed down on the following points,
which I hope would help you to develop khushoo when you pray next time,
insha’Allah.
1. Get into the groove even before prayer begins:
Imagine how we would plan for a meeting or an interview. We would begin with
checking if we are dressed properly, if our papers are ready and if we have
perfected our speech. We would probably even repeat the speech many times over
to make ourselves look prepared and confident.
Imagine the amount of pre-preparation we should undergo in order to talk in
front of the Lord of the Heavens and the Earth! So, in order to focus in salah,
let us prepare even before we actually start praying.
Condition your mind and nafs to get into the groove by:
· Repeating after the adhaan
· Reciting the dua after adhaan
· Doing wudhoo with concentration
· Dressing nicely! (You are presenting yourself in front of your Lord,
remember?)
· And, most importantly, pray on TIME.
2. Learn something new:
Try learning a new short surah, or maybe even a few lines from a long surah.
Recite the same after fatiha. This way, you are automatically forced to
concentrate on reciting something new. In turn, you will be keeping your heart
and mind vigilant. This is an extremely powerful tool to prevent your mind from
wandering away into thinking about other inconsequential matters while praying.
3. Don’t steal while praying:
Abu Qutaadah (may Allah subhaana wa ta’aala be pleased with him) said: “The
Prophet sal Allahu alayhi wa sallam said: ‘The worst type of thief is the one
who steals from his prayer.’ He said, ‘O Messenger of Allah, how can a person
steal from his prayer?’ He said, ‘By not doing rukoo’ and sujood properly.’” [1]
When treating salah as a boring form of physical movement, we tend to rush
through to get over with it! But, we lose the blessings of performing salah
here. While performing sujood, spend a couple of minutes extra to make dua. Bow
your heart along with your body and submit to the Highest Power. Allow humility
and peace to enter your heart and mind while praying rather than being worried
about what meal to prepare.
While getting up from sujood, sit up straight and then go back into sujood
position slowly, rather than slamming your forehead to the ground in quick
succession. Feel relaxed and allow each bone in your body to feel at ease. Salah
gives you a free ticket to talk to the King of Heavens and the Earth,
acknowledge the fact that it is a graceful and powerful meeting!
4. Learn the language:
Well, the main reason why most of us find it difficult to concentrate in salah
is because we fail to realize the magnanimity of the occasion, fail to realize
whom we are speaking to and in most cases, don’t even understand what we are
reciting because most of us are not native Arabs.
The best way to develop khushoo is to learn the language. If you don’t find time
or means to learn Arabic, you can start by learning the meaning of the surahs
that you generally recite during prayer. Try listening to the tafseers of those
surahs and you will automatically realize the beauty of each letter mentioned in
the Holy Book, helping you concentrate on every single word being uttered in
salah, making you crave for more, insha’Allah.
5. Perfect your relationship with Allah :
Allah says, “… and establish prayer for My remembrance” [Surah Taha 20:14]
This is the Lord, the All Mighty, All Powerful asking us to pray so that we
remember Him. Is there any instant when we forget our own families or kids? Now,
how is it that we forget the Creator, the one who created our families and kids?
You might be wondering why I am talking about perfecting our relationship with
Allah subhaana wa ta’aala on the same lines as that of khushoo. Ever noticed how
close we get with friends when we get to know them better? A phone call or an
online chat with them becomes more important than anything else. Imagine how
much more engrossed we would be if we could develop the same kind of
relationship (if not more) with our Lord ?
Our Rabb provides even after our disobedience, He loves us more than our own
mothers do, He descends down during the last part of the night waiting to see if
His slaves ask anything from Him, so isn’t it time we perfect our relationship
with Him? Understanding and allowing His Mercy and Love to enter our hearts will
make our hearts humble, filling it with unimaginable love, automatically making
us yearn for more chances to speak to the King, the All Merciful and Oft
Forgiving, with complete concentration!
Start thinking about Allah subhaana wa ta’aala throughout the day and it will be
easier to talk to Him when you are given 5 chances to do so. Take the first
step, and He will come running towards you!
6. Defeat Satan:
“Then I (Satan) will come to them from before them and from behind them and on
their right and on their left, and You will not find most of them grateful [to
You].” [Surah Al-A’raf 7:17]
Satan has promised to annoy us and take us away from the straight path. We are
given a challenge here to submit ourselves to our Lord and not let the Satan
win. Salah is probably the most perfect time for Satan to distract us and he
does end up succeeding on more occasions than one. Suddenly, an unfinished work
seems more important and his whispers start getting louder. Crush the satanic
whispers from within.
Stay away from haram, do not waste ‘free’ time, read beneficial books and do not
make your mind a piece of meat for the Satan to devour upon. Keep Satan at bay
when you are not praying and you will automatically be successful in cutting out
his whispers while praying insha’Allah.
7. Diversify your dua list:
Most of the time, we end up asking the same set of duas with an added ‘demand’
here and there according to the situation we are in. Notice how we always have
something new and exciting to share with our friends everyday? But, why is it
that we tell the same stuff everyday to our Lord? Speak to Him with zeal,
enthusiasm and humility. Start diversifying your dua list. Increase your time in
sujood and make dua, don’t rush to finish tasleem and walk out. Ask dua
constantly to increase khushoo levels.
8) Want to be successful?
Here’s how:“Certainly will the believers have succeeded: They who are during
their prayer humbly submissive (khaashi’oon)” [Surah Al-Mu’minun 23: 1-2]
In the above verses, Allah subhaana wa ta’aala says those who have attained
khushoo (khaashi’oon) are indeed successful. He doesn’t call them religious, He
calls them successful. Notice the choice of words here? When you manage to
discipline your nafs, mind and heart in front of the Highest Power, it becomes
easy to discipline yourself within the boundaries of Islam while dealing with
worldly matters too, making you successful here and in the Hereafter!
Know that you’ve experienced a small percentage of khushoo when:
· You can only hear the words which you are uttering to our Lord,
· When external noises are muted,
· When every single worry in your heart ceases to exist,
· When the beauty of Allah’s Mercy and the magnanimity of talking to Him
subhaana wa ta’aala fills your heart with awe, so much so that you don’t want to
complete your prayer and let the beautiful meeting end,
· When your limbs get soaked in numbness,
· When you feel sad that your meeting and one-on-one conversation with Allah
subhaana wa ta’aala is coming to an end during the last rakat,
· And, when you cry (without feeling embarrassed that someone might see you),
making you yearn for the next salah!
May Allah subhaana wa ta’aala make us of those who are successful. May Allah
subhaana wa ta’aala make us of those who are the chosen ones in His eyes. May
Allah subhaana wa ta’aala allow our hearts to taste the sweetness and beauty of
this blessed religion. May Allah subhaana wa ta’aala make us of those who
develop khushoo in every single prayer we are allowed to perform until our last
breath! Ameen.