Learning to read namaz during ramadan.

[Sab]

Hi, I have made loads of mistakes in the past and committed sins I am too ashamed to talk about. However I really want to repent and try to better myself as a muslim, and I'm hoping I can begin this during Ramadan inshallah. The thing is I don't know how to read namaaz, I have been going over what you need to read and the motions but it all gets really confuing and I get all muddled up. The only way I can do it is if I keep a set of instructions near me and keep referring to them as I go along. Even then I sometimes get confused and it takes me a while to figure things out. So I was thinking would it be ok if I started by learning what needs to be read, and then learning when it needs to be read and picking up my namaz like this through Ramadan?

Even wudu takes me ages to make, and other members of my family are getting annoyed by how long I hog the bathroom. Is it ok if I slowly start reading namaz, as I learn throughout Ramadan? Would this affect my repentance?

Inshallah I will also try to read the Quran, and Seerah during this month as well. The other thing is sometimes when I go to do something like say, read the biography of the Prophet (pbuh), the task seems to daunting so I go for a more basic option. For instance I go to read Martin Ling's biography of the Prophet (pbuh), but then it seems to difficult, and a lot of effort and this sometimes discourages me so I go for a more basic biography of the Prophet (pbuh), something more at a beginners level. Is this also ok?

Thank-You for your help, and I hope you all have a beautiful Ramadan.

[Hamza81]

Hi, I have made loads of mistakes in the past and committed sins I am too ashamed to talk about. However I really want to repent and try to better myself as a muslim, and I'm hoping I can begin this during Ramadan inshallah. The thing is I don't know how to read namaaz, I have been going over what you need to read and the motions but it all gets really confuing and I get all muddled up. The only way I can do it is if I keep a set of instructions near me and keep referring to them as I go along. Even then I sometimes get confused and it takes me a while to figure things out. So I was thinking would it be ok if I started by learning what needs to be read, and then learning when it needs to be read and picking up my namaz like this through Ramadan?

Even wudu takes me ages to make, and other members of my family are getting annoyed by how long I hog the bathroom. Is it ok if I slowly start reading namaz, as I learn throughout Ramadan? Would this affect my repentance?

Inshallah I will also try to read the Quran, and Seerah during this month as well. The other thing is sometimes when I go to do something like say, read the biography of the Prophet (pbuh), the task seems to daunting so I go for a more basic option. For instance I go to read Martin Ling's biography of the Prophet (pbuh), but then it seems to difficult, and a lot of effort and this sometimes discourages me so I go for a more basic biography of the Prophet (pbuh), something more at a beginners level. Is this also ok?

Thank-You for your help, and I hope you all have a beautiful Ramadan.

Asalaamu Alaikum, my sister it i clear that you want to get closer to Allah after feeling emptiness and loss from being far away from him. Our hearts and souls yearn for Allah and surely this life is but a deception. We may spend our lives chasing this life and its riches and pleasures etc but then die the next day and how did it benefit us? All it has done is destroy us and waste our precious time for this life is so short and we are here so such a short amount of time. Therefore we must spend every second preparing for our eternal life. How do we prepare for it? By investing into the hereafter by doing good deeds and doing everything we can to please Allah and refraining from anything which may anger or displease him.

The past is done and gone so it matters not anymore. The best thing to do is to learn from the past and take lessons from it. There is no use worrying about the future because we do not know if we are to be alive tomorrow let alone next week, next month or even next year. Therefore what is important is this present moment. It is now that we can make the necessery changes. We cannot change the past and we cannot do anything about the future but we can make changes NOW. The biggest deception of our enemy satan is to make us keep putting off making the necessery changes to our lives. He keeps trying to convince us to change tomorrow, next week or next month because he knows if he makes us put it off now then maybe we will forget about it and put it off altogether. That is why you mentioned that whenever you try to do a task you find it difficult and end up leaving it. This is because of the deception of satan who whispers in our ears and tries to make us put off the important things.

On top of that you should also build up gradually and not overwhelm yourself with too much straight away. For now just concentrate on th fundamentals which is the prayer. That is the most important thing for every Muslim and is the minimum a Muslim must do. After the Shaahada (proclamation of faith) there is nothing more important than the prayer. So for now put all your efforts into learning the prayer and how to perform corrrect wudu and then after that you can learn how to recite the Qur'an with correct tajweed as well as read and learn about the Prophets life from the Seerah and also read tafseer and deeper meanings of the Qur'an etc.

It is far better if you can find a sisters circle near your area or a learned sister who you can go to and she would teach you the prayer and other basics of Islam as well as how to recite the Qur'an with tajweed. If you need any help getting in touch with sisters or sisters circles near your area then please state your area or town, city etc and i can try and help you with that.

You did mention that it takes you a very long time to do the wudu. What you ned to do is to learn and practise how to perform correct Wudu and eventually it will become second nature to you and you will be able to perform it quickly and efficiently.

The following are two videos which will help you to be able to perform Wudu correctly and also how to perform the prayer in the right manner:

How to make Wudu properly

http://youtu.be/13VfnqrcBSs

How to pray Salaah for women

http://youtu.be/M7ZySx-TMeY

Another thing which is very important especially for non Arabic speakers is to be able to know the meanings of what we read in our prayers. This will help us to be able to concentrate better in our prayers and imagine that Allah is in frontof us whilst we are in prayer. The following link provides the translation of what we recite in our prayers as well as the transliteration which is how to pronounce it in English:

The translation of Salaah (namaaz)

http://www.sunniforum.com/forum/show...-salat-(namaz)


There are four types of prayers. One is the Fard prayers which are the obligatory prayers. Second are the Waajib prayers which are the compulsory prayers. These are almost as important as the obligatory prayers so still have to be made up. Thirdly are the Sunnah prayers and Fourth are the Nawafil prayers which are voluntary.

There are two types of Sunnah prayers:

One is Sunnah Mu'kaddah which are the emphasised Sunnah's so they should be prayed if one has no excuse and it is sinful if one makes a habit of missing them.

The other is Ghayr Sunnah Mu'kkadha which are the Sunnahs which are not so emphasised but still carry a lot of reward.

Then there are nawafil prayers which are voluntary prayers. These can be prayed as much as one wants throughout the day and night except for the forbidden times of prayer which are 3:

1. After the Fard of Fajr up until 20 minutes after Sunrise

2. When the sun is at its highest point (Zawwal) which is 20 minutes before Dhuhur begins

3. From after praying the Fard of Asr up until Maghrib begins.

Note: Qadha and Janaaza prayers can still be prayed at these times.

In Ramadan nawafil prayers carry the reward of a Fard prayer. Subhanallah. That is why during Ramadan we should aim to pray as many Sunnah's and Nawafil prayers as we can. The following is the structure of the daily 5 prayers:

Fajr:

2 Sunnah Mu'kaddah - The most emphasised Sunnah Mu'kaddah prayer of the day

2 Fard

Dhuhur:

4 Sunnah Mu'kaddah

4 Fard

2 Sunnah Mu'kaddah

2 Nawafil

Asr:

4 Sunnah Ghayr Mu'kaddah - Not so emphasised but still very rewarding

4 Fard

Maghrib:

3 Fard

2 Sunnah Mu'kaddah

2 Nawafil

Isha:

4 Sunnah Ghayr Mu'kaddah

4 Fard

2 Sunnah Mu'kaddah

2 Nawafil

3 Witr - Waajib prayer so is compulsory to pray and has to be made up if missed.

2 Nawafil

It is best to pray the 3 Witr as late as possible like just before bed or even after Tahajjud prayer in the latter part of the night just before dawn (Fajr).

So my sister take things slow ad do not overwhelm yourself. Concentrate on learning the prayer and mastering it and with practise you will get there in no time inshallah. After that you can learn how to recite the Qur'an with correct pronounciation and learn a few small surahs. Meanwhile you can still learn about the basics of Islam to start off with as it is important for us to solidify our basic knowledge before we move onto more complicated areas.

The following thread will help ytou to make the best of this Ramadan. Please read through it and feel free to ask if you have any questions:

How productive was your day today in Ramadan?

http://www.sunniforum.com/forum/show...day-in-Ramadan


Free Islamic E books and Resources:


What is Islam?

http://www.islamreligion.com/category/49/



Introduction to Islam

http://www.islamicbulletin.org/servi..._p1.aspx#link2



Download the full Qur'an - Abdullah Yusuf Ali

http://www.islamicbulletin.org/free_...yusuf_ali2.pdf




The Benefits of Islam

http://www.islamreligion.com/categor...FUEa4Qod92u9Aw




How I Embraced Islam

http://www.islamicbulletin.org/servi..._p1.aspx#link3



How to Convert to Islam and Become a Muslim

http://www.islamreligion.com/article...FUEb4QodwHxFCg



Islamic resources in different Foreign Languages


http://www.islamicbulletin.org/services/foreign.htm



The Holy Quran

http://www.islamicbulletin.org/servi..._p1.aspx#link1




Quranic Science

http://www.islamicbulletin.org/servi..._p2.aspx#link4




The Prophet Mohammed (pbuh)

http://www.islamicbulletin.org/servi..._p2.aspx#link5




Companions of the Prophet (Sahabah)

http://www.islamicbulletin.org/servi..._p3.aspx#link8




Men in Islam

http://www.islamicbulletin.org/servi...p3.aspx#link16




Women in Islam

http://www.islamicbulletin.org/servi..._p3.aspx#link7




Islam: Beliefs and Teachings

http://www.islamicbulletin.org/free_..._teachings.pdf




Ramadan (Fasting)

http://www.islamicbulletin.org/servi..._p3.aspx#link9




Prayer (Salat)

http://www.islamicbulletin.org/servi...p3.aspx#link10




Hajj (Pilgrimage)

http://www.islamicbulletin.org/servi...p4.aspx#link11




Zakat (Poor Due)

http://www.islamicbulletin.org/servi...p4.aspx#link12




Children

http://www.islamicbulletin.org/servi...p4.aspx#link13




Islamic Resources and Hadith

http://www.islamicbulletin.org/servi..._p2.aspx#link6




More wonderful Islamic resources:

http://www.islamicbulletin.org/servi...p4.aspx#link14

http://www.islamicbulletin.org/servi...p4.aspx#link15



If there is any help you need or any questions you have then please do not hesitate to ask. Thank you