Absolute Justice, Kindness and Kinship — Page 224
Justice (‘ Adl ), Benevolence ( Ihsan ) & Kinship ( Ita’i Dhil-Qurba ) in Worship 219 Praying is good but it should not be done at the cost of others. The following tradition of the Holy Prophet sa clearly illustrates this point: It is reported that on one occasion the Holy Prophet sa offered his prayers as if in a great hurry and he finished it in a much shorter time than usual. After he finished the prayer he explained that he had heard a child cry and it was his concern for this distressed child that made him shorten his prayer. 31 According to another Hadith, the Holy Prophet sa expressed displeasure at the habit of an Imam whose prayers were reported to be too lengthy. 32 Categories of Prayer The Islamic system of worship has another unique distinction. All its prayers are divided into three categories: fundamental, non-fundamental but highly essential, and optional. All the five daily prayers are sub-divided into these categories. Central to them is what is termed as Far d. Far d ( ) is that fundamental part of each prayer which cannot be dropped under any circumstances. It is like the skeleton around which the infrastructure of every living body is built. All spiritual life revolves around this kernel. To drop even a single fundamental part of the five daily prayers will nullify that prayer altogether. The essential and optional prayers are like the muscles, flesh and skin without which fundamental prayers become lacklustre. Beauty, colour, and fragrance of