Converting to Sunni Islam

[S.S94]

Assalamu Alaikum,

I want to convert to Sunni Islam but the the first most important thing I need to to know is, is that is Sunni salah (prayer) exactly the way our Prophet used to pray - so the same verses, same actions, etc etc....

Second thing, I'm having second thoughts on sunni hadith. Shia muslim have their own hadith that they say is the true hadith and sunni muslims have their own different hadith which they say is right. What am I to believe?

Thank you,

Salaam.

[amr123]

Assalamu Alaikum,

I want to convert to Sunni Islam but the the first most important thing I need to to know is, is that is Sunni salah (prayer) exactly the way our Prophet used to pray - so the same verses, same actions, etc etc....

Sister,
Here is a video on explaining how to pray Salah : http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M7ZySx-TMeY
This video will also help you :http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NkX7vjIaP7U

[S.S94]

Salaam,

I don't want to know how to pray, I know all the steps already and everything that we need to recite, what I want to know and HAVE to be sure of is that did the Prophet pray in exactly the same way?

[TripolySunni]

Salaam,

I don't want to know how to pray, I know all the steps already and everything that we need to recite, what I want to know and HAVE to be sure of is that did the Prophet pray in exactly the same way?

al-Salamu Aleykum,

How do we know how to pray? the nation has been praying the same prayer generation after generation, the Prophet SAWS lived in Mecca and Madinah and his students and family lived there and they all prayed his prayer and taught it to their children:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7LTQ1hoxrOw

We also know how to pray from the Quran, because in the Quran Allah tells us that there must be Soujoud and there must be Ruku'u, for example:

"O you who have believed, make Ruku'u and make Soujoud and worship your Lord and do good - that you may succeed." [22:77]

The Quran does not go into detail and Allah left this matter to the Prophet SAWS, he peace be upon him tells us: "Pray like you see me pray."

We also know how to pray from the authentic Sunnah and traditions of our prophet SAWS which we recorded and preserved generation after generation, there are many authentic narrations about how to pray, when to pray, what to do for ablution, what to do when you have the period(for women), how to pray if you are travelling ect... a few examples:

Sahih Bukhari - Volume 1, Book 8, Number 371:
Narrated Anas:

'Aisha had a Qiram (a thin marked woolen curtain) with which he had screened one side of her home. The Prophet said, "Take away this Qiram of yours, as its pictures are still displayed in front of me during my prayer (i.e. they divert my attention from the prayer)."

^ This narration is telling us that we must not have drawings of humans or animals in front of us in prayer so that they do not distract us.

Sahih Bukhari - Volume 1, Book 8, Number 398:
Narrated 'Abdullah:

"Once the Prophet offered five Rakat in Zuhr prayer. He was asked, "Is there an increase in the prayer?" The Prophet said, "And what is it?" They said, "You have prayed five Rakat.' So he bent his legs and performed two prostrations (of Sahu).

^ This narration is telling us that the Dhuhr prayer must only be 4 Raka'at and if we by mistake forget, because as you know we humans forget and only Allah does not forget, so if we forget then we must make two additional prostrations called the prostrations of "Sahu" or "forgetfulness"

Sahih Bukhari - Volume 1, Book 8, Number 435:
Narrated Abu Qatada Al-Aslami:

Allah's Apostle said, "If anyone of you enters a mosque, he should pray two Rakat before sitting."

^ This narration is telling us that the proper Islamic etiquette is to pray two raka'at when we enter the mosque before we sit down.

Sahih Bukhari - Volume 1, Book 8, Number 374:
Narrated Abu Hazim:

Sahl bin Sa'd was asked about the (Prophet's) pulpit as to what thing it was made of? Sahl replied: "None remains alive amongst the people, who knows about it better than I. It was made of tamarisk (wood) of the forest. So and so, the slave of so and so prepared it for Allah's Apostle . When it was constructed and place (in the Mosque), Allah's Apostle stood on it facing the Qibla and said 'Allahu Akbar', and the people stood behind him (and led the people in prayer). He recited and bowed and the people bowed behind him. Then he raised his head and stepped back, got down and prostrated on the ground and then he again ascended the pulpit, recited, bowed, raised his head and stepped back, got down and prostrate on the ground. So, this is what I know about the pulpit."

Ahmad bin Hanbal said, "As the Prophet was at a higher level than the people, there is no harm according to the above-mentioned Hadith if the Imam is at a higher level than his followers during the prayers."

^ This also describes the prayer of the Prophet SAWS, so basically dear sister in Islam the scholars gather all of these narrations and there are hundreds of them, and we pray accordingly.

As for the sect called "Twelver Shia" this is a deviant sect which forms about 10% of the Muslim population, the average Muslims usually stay away from all kinds of small deviant sects so that they don't trick us or misguide us.

Inchallah you have a good idea of how we know what we know about our religion.

Salama Aleykum,

[Nomadic]

Please go through this link as it is written for a new muslim in mind but a lot of the tips and advice is applicable to your situation
http://www.sunniforum.com/forum/show...one-help/page2

[Anybody]

Bismillah Al-Rehman Al-Raheem

Wakekum-Assalam Sister:

May Allah guide you, me, and all of us on the Straight Path.

Sister, you say you feel conflicted because you do not know which hadiths are right, the hadiths belonging to the Sunni or Shia.

Sister, Alhamdullilah, you have been blessed with a good mind that you are questioning now. So, Sister, you must use your intellect to see what the differences between the hadiths are and also ask Allah to guide you to what pleases Him. Is that not better than asking us, Sister, whereas you may feel that whatever answers we give are based on our subscription to Sunni Islam and biased?

And Alhamdullilah, you have been given good resources by others before me in your thread; so, please do peruse them.

I have every confidence, Sister, that Allah will show you the Straight Path.

If I have said anything that is good and true, it is from Allah; if it is anything other than that, it is my own mistake.

[Caliph]

Go read some hadith from al-kafi, I honestly don't like shia hadith because they ain't from prophet (saw) they are from random imams.

Secondly, you will have to pick 1 of the 4 madhab. I am Hanafi myself, with some rulings from other madhab. These will teach you how to pray in diffrent ways.

[Barong]

Hi! I am a Christian from the Philippines. I want to learn about Islam and considering to become a Muslim. Can anyone help me get in touch with someone or refer me to a mosque or center in Manila that i could attend to get oriented about Islam? Thanks.

[amr123]

Hi! I am a Christian from the Philippines. I want to learn about Islam and considering to become a Muslim. Can anyone help me get in touch with someone or refer me to a mosque or center in Manila that i could attend to get oriented about Islam? Thanks.

Hi bro, welcome to the forums. Perhaps you can make a new thread so more people will notice your request. Well you can ask your doubt about islam in this forum too. We are glad to help you.

[Barong]

amr123 , thank you for responding and giving me the opportunity to ask questions. Actually ive been reading books about Islam and the koran, but i think it would be necessary for me to interact with brothers since it would not be right to interpret the readings without personal guidance from a Muslim teacher. As you suggested, I'll try opening a new thread on this.