Productive Tips to Maintain Khushu in Salah
[Read Part 1]
Wouldn’t it be nice to have some form of an invisible protective shield around us while we pray to keep the distractions away from us? Yes! And here’s some good news: each one of us can and should build this protective shield to guard our salah as per the instructions given in the Quran and the Sunnah. The following ayah;
“And those who strictly guard their Salawat”[23:9]
goes to show that our salah needs to be constantly shielded and guarded from everything that affects its quality. The collective attentiveness in the actions of the heart, tongue and limbs form the basis of the khushu protective shield.
In the first part of this article, we looked at the nature of khushu and how it affects us both in and out of salah. Now we will look at some practical steps you can take on your path to developing khushu in your own salah.
Here are some practical tips to maintain khushu:
1) Knowledge:
Increase in Islamic knowledge; learn about Allah, tawheed, His Names and Attributes, and various aspects and sciences of the sunnah. Why? Because Allah says:
“It is only the learned amongst His servants who truly fear Allah”[35:28]
With regards to gaining knowledge, even our Prophet (peace and blessings of Allāh be upon him) had a teacher to understand the Deen of Allah: it was angel Jibrail (peace be upon him). Therefore, we must seek knowledge under the guidance of Islamic teachers and scholars (without relying too much on Shaykh Google).
2) On Time:
Pray on time and plan your life around salah timings and not the other way around. Prioritize pleasing Allah over pleasing people. We can’t say, “But I have work, I have to meet so-and-so etc.” because before all of that came about, we already knew about our salah timings; so that’s not a valid excuse. But in situations that are out of our control, such as an exam, try to ask the moderator if a few minutes can be allowed for salah. That way we would have at least tried our best rather than not trying at all.
3) Seek Refuge in Allah:
Seek refuge in Allah (glorified and exalted be He) from Satan by saying “Aa-udhubillahi min As-Shaitanir Rajim” before starting the salah and during the salah too when needed. Also say Bismillah (In the name of Allah) before beginning the salah.
4) Be Mindful:
Contemporary psychologists use a very simple technique called “Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy” to help people stay focused in the present moment rather than being engrossed in foggy thoughts of past or future while losing touch with reality. It means to simply remind yourself to come back to the present moment as soon as you realize that your thoughts have drifted away from what is happening right now. With practice, InshaAllah we can benefit from this technique to maintain our khushu. Start by being mindful of Allah when you make the intention for ablution; be attentive while doing the ablution; then recite the recommended dua after completing the ablution. At all times of the day, keep away from anything that makes you forget the remembrance of Allah. Satan will use various tricks and tactics to divert us, so we have to be aware of his methods. The moment you realize that the heart and mind have wandered off, try to bring your attention back. The more often you do this, the more your humility will improve insha Allah.
5) Understand:
Read the tafsir (exegesis) of Surah Al Fatiha; understand each Ayah and pause in between. (Tafsir by Ibn Kathir is recommended.) Remember, well-begun is half done! Read translations to understand all the surahs that you recite during salah. Try to offer Tahajjud and recite the Quran during those hours of the night, as that is a good time for understanding the words of Allah.
6) Visualize:
Always try to remind yourself that you are standing in front of Allah (glorified and exalted be He), pray as though you see Him; and if you cannot do that, then be aware that He is definitely seeing you. As you recite, visualize the Arabic words of each surah. Do not close your eyes, but focus on the place of sujood.
7)Never Stop:
Be wary of sticking to your salah, particularly in times of distress – it will help a lot in dealing with the situation as mentioned in the Quran:
“Seek Allah’s help with patient perseverance and prayer. It is indeed hard except for those who are humbly submissive.”[2:45]
. Help children develop their humility and concentration from a young age. Do not force them to offer salah, rather inspire them to come to salah.
8) Good Pace:
Be attentive and relaxed by maintaining a good pace between salah actions, giving a minimum of 5 seconds or more per action. Every time you say ‘Allahu Akbar’, say it from your heart. Make your sujood a bit longer than usual, recite duas in it and also before the final tasleem.
9) It Could be the Last:
Before approaching salah, remember the inevitable reality: death. Allah (glorified and exalted be He) created us only to worship Him. Perform every salah as you would perform your last salah. We may not know when, but one day we will be praying our last one.
After each Salah, develop a habit of reciting the supplications as recommended by our Prophet (peace and blessings of Allāh be upon him).
After reading this article and understanding what it says, it is really up to us to take a moment and step outside of our self, honestly analyze the quality of our Salah, level of our Iman and the impact of these on our life as a whole. We’ll all agree that correct knowledge is absolutely lovely, but it will be of no use to anyone at all until we actually decide to implement what we now know. It is only then that knowledge becomes lovelier and in turn beautifies us from inside and out.
Do not lose hope or give up if these tips do not work at first or do not provide an immediate solution. Remember that the seed of khushu will grow only after a gentle rain of consistent reminders seep into the heart by Allah’s Will.
Recommended reading: Download free e-book titled “Humility in Prayer” published by Daar-Us-Sunnah Publishers, Birmingham. Available at www.kalamullah.com
About the Author:
Nabila Usman is a freelance writer and student from United Arab Emirates.
Email: [email protected]
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jazak Allah khairan for he beautiful post.i was badly in the need to improve my kushuu level and maintaining. Alhamdulillah.
i have an issue as to maintaining the kushu level during the days in which women are forbidden to offer salah.
because i personally experienced this kind of calamity.how should womend tackle with this issue.?
Jazak Allah Khairan
With regards to your question, I’ll try to answer it as best as I can based on my limited knowledge of Islam. I ask Allah (swt) to make me write a sincere advice for you and make it free from riyaa and a reminder to myself first, Ameen.
First of all, know that you are not alone in feeling that your Khushu has taken a slight downward plunge during your menses/nifas days. Most women feel that way; some more than others. But the good thing is that we can maintain our Khushu at a very good level even during these days by engaging in a variety of acts of worship. I’ll list some of them below:
1) Rida (Contentment) – Don’t feel bad about missing out on Salah or other acts of worship where purity is a prerequisite and you are prevented from it due to a natural reason. It is something that Allah (swt) has decreed for women and being pleased with the Will of Allah (swt) is one of the six pillars of Iman. Then seek reward from Allah for bearing it with patience and rida (contentment) and InshaAllah things will become easier.
2) Taqwa (Piety) – Ask Allah to grant you Taqwa i.e. piety and a good consciousness of Him throughout the day. Do your best to remember Allah (swt) at all times and places. This will help you refrain from commit sins of heart and limbs. My favorite dua related to this point is, “Allahuma a’ati nafsi taqwaha, wa zakkiha, Anta Khairu mann zakkaha, Anta Waliyuha, wa Maulaha”. It means, “O Allah! Grant me the sense of piety and purify my soul as You are the Best to purify it. You are its Guardian and its Protecting Friend”.
3) Astagfar (Seeking Forgiveness) – No matter what kind of calamity or problem we may be facing, we must always be engaged in Astagfar, even during menses/nifas. There are many ways of doing Astagfar, but the superior and most comprehensive way to seek forgiveness from Allah is to recite Saeed Ul Astagfar [Bukhari,Volume 8, Book 75, Number 318]. “‘Allahumma anta Rabbi la ilaha illa anta, Anta Khalaqtani wa ana abduka, wa ana ‘ala ahdika wa wa’dika mastata’tu, A’udhu bika min Sharri ma sana’tu, abu’u Laka bini’matika ‘alaiya, wa Abu Laka bidhanbi faghfirli innahu la yaghfiru adhdhunuba illa ant”. Which means, “O Allaah, You are my Lord. None has the right to be wrshipped except You. You created me, and I am Your slave/worshipper. And I am faithful to my covenant and my promise as far as I am able. I seek Your refuge from the evil of what I have done. I acknowledge before You all the favours that You have bestowed upon me. And I confess all my sins to You. So forgive me, since none can forgive sins except You.”
4) Duas (Supplications) – Use this time to make lots of dua for yourself, your family, friends and the entire Ummah. You can read some of them from the Quran and Sunnah or do it in your own words as long as it is something permissible. Ask Allah (swt) for correct guidance, good life in this world and the hereafter, a place in Al Firdaws and protection from the trials of grave and the fire.
5) Adhkar (Remembrance) – Never ever leave out your morning and evening adhkar and also those before going to bed and after waking up. Do a lot of tasbeeh. For example 1) SubhanAllahi wabihamdihi, SubhanAllahil Azeem 2) SubhanAllah, Alhamdulillah, Walailahi Illahu, Wallahu Akbar 3) Lailaha Illallah with Lahawla Wala Quwwata Illa Billah
6) Sadaqa (Charity) – It is not only financial, you can even prepare food and distribute it, visit your neighbors, smile at a Muslim, visit patients in hospitals and make dua for them or get them the things they might need. And then you can even donate some money to the needy or Islamic causes.
7) Ilm (Seek Knowledge/Teach) – Try to read the biography of our Prophet (peace be upon him), biographies of the Sahaba (may Allah be pleased with them) and that of the pious Salaf. Also explore a particular topic of interest in Islam, for example, Tawheed, the rulings of Zakah, rights and obligations of spouses/children etc. If you find it difficult to read, you could even listen to audio lectures which can downloaded for free from a variety of websites.
8) Quran – The majority of the scholars have said that you can recite the Quran during menses/nifas. It can be done either from your memory or while wearing hand gloves if you intend to read from the Mus-haf, particularly if you are a teacher/student of hifdh (Quran memorization) or revising the memorized bits.
9) Family – Be nice to the family and help them as much as you can.
10) Rest – I know we all tend to get moody during this time, but remember to protect your tongue from committing sins due to the moodiness. Look after yourself and take care of your body as it has rights on us. While resting, you may engage in some of the points mentioned above. And don’t forget to drink camomile tea as I find it very soothing for the moodiness. While you are at it, remember to thank Allah for the camomile flowers and the ability to make that tea :)
On a side note, just make sure that you are aware of the difference between menses/nifas and Istihada. Women are allowed to offer Salah, Tawaf and observe fasts during Istihada, unlike menses/nifas. Let me know if you want me to explain the difference.
If you need helpful website links or if anything isn’t clear and requires further explanation, then you are most welcome to email me. The address is at the end of the article above.
I pray that Allah makes me, you and anyone else who comes across this benefit from it. Any mistakes in it are solely from me and any good in it is solely from Allah. Alhamdulillah.
And Allah knows best. Assalamu Alaykum.
Your sister,
Nabila Usman
Just a note, many of the contemporary scholars have said that one can offer Quran, but traditional scholars still hold to the impermissibility of tilawah during those days. Since this is such a sensitive matter, it would be best to be on the safe-side and not do tilawah, even when one finds no other reason to prefer traditional scholars over contemporary ones. That said, recitation from memory of surahs & ayahs recited as duas, such as Surah Ikhlas, Surah Falaq & Surah Naas, Ayatul Kursi etc is unanimously jaaiz.
Wassalam
your post and your article are both excellent…Keep it up…
Certainly will the believers have succeeded:They who are during their prayer humbly submissive.
Qur’an (23:1 and 23:2)