Understanding Salat — Page 197
Qa‘dah 197 prosper Ibrāhīm and his people. You are indeed the Praiseworthy, the Glorious. If we don’t have a personal attachment with the Holy Prophet sas , then the name Muhammad will not mean much to us. Dur ū d will feel like a formality because we’re pray- ing for someone we don’t really know. When we see people become emotional at a S ī ratun Nab ī Jalsah or when they’re talking about the Holy Prophet sas , we’ll feel awkward, like we’re missing out on something. We want to develop this attachment with the Holy Prophet sas , but sometimes we don’t know how. The solution is simple; it is reading the biography of the Holy Prophet sas. This method of develop- ing an attachment is so simple that if we read the biography of any historical figure, by the time we finish, we will feel like we know them personally. This method is so effective that it can be seen in the lasting influence that even fictional characters have on us. When we read a novel or watch a movie that immerses us in its world, we feel like we live in that world. Sometimes when we’re daydreaming, we imagine that world, or even ourselves as being in that world. A good story follows a method for taking us on its journey. We begin our journey by identifying with the main character in the exposition. We live through all of their struggles in the rising action. In the climax, we feel their victory as if it is our victory. By the end of the story, we feel as if we have been on an epic journey with people who Reading biography of the Holy Prophet sas