Salat - The Muslim Prayer Book — Page 57
S al a t —The Muslim Prayer Book 57 according to a Saying of the Holy Prophet sa. The reason is that those who come early, continue remembering God Almighty while they wait for the Prayer to commence; naturally they are in communion with Allah during more time as compared to the people who come later. Again, the Holy Prophet sa instructed that a new row should not be started until the previous one is fully filled. It is therefore clear that those who come early and occupy the first row and spend more time in the remembrance of God Almighty will be rewarded more than those who come just in time while the Takb i r is being recited or even later. These are the people who occupy the back rows. 2. If the Prayer has already started, the latecomer should join in the congregation in the position in which he finds them. For example, if they are in the Standing position, he should start his Prayer in standing position but if they are prostrating, he should join the congregation in prostration. When the Im a m ends the congregational Prayer by saying the Salutation , i. e. Assal a mu ‘Alaikum wa Ra h matull a h and turning his face towards the right and towards the left, the person who joined the Prayer later should go into Qiy a m position and complete the remaining Rak‘ a t of his Prayer individually. 3. S al a t consists of units. Each unit is called a Rak‘at. There are two Rak‘ a t and four Rak‘ a t Prayers in the Far d of obligatory Prayer. Each unit or Rak‘at consists of the following