1. Namaz – Five times a day

It is obligatory upon each and every adult Muslim and Momin to offer Namaz five times a day upto his death. Its timings are duly fixed. It is the most important worship of Islam. To this end, first of all, the body has to be cleansed. He washes his hands and feet; the process is better known as ‘Wudhu’. Thereafter, sometimes he stands before Allah, sometimes he bows down, sometimes he sits down and sometimes he prostrates down accepting and reiterating Allah as the real Lord and Master. During this period, he prays Allah to sustain him on Iman and protect him from the fire of Hell. The advantages of offering these five Namaz per day is that, however busy man is throughout the day, he does not forget Allah. He remembers Allah when he gets up in the morning. He also remembers Allah while going to sleep at night. He does not forget Him even at the peak of his business activities in the day. Another enormous benefit of offering these Namaz is that man gets cleansed of all the sins throughout the day as if the entire dirt gets removed from his body by bathing five times a day. It is the Namaz which distinguishes between a Muslim and Mushrik as well as a Momin and Kafir in this world. Man would be accountable for it the moment he dies. Whoever passes through the first stage, shall find the rest of the stages easier to get through. During one’s lifetime, a Muslim can never be exempted from Namaz at any cost, whatsoever. If he doesn’t have the energy to stand up and offer Namaz, he is permitted to sit down, if he cannot sit down, he can lie down; if cannot move his limbs, he can use his eyes for this purpose. If he cannot perform ‘Wudhu’ with water, he can perform ‘Tayammum’ (dry ablution). Nonetheless, he is bound to offer Namaz under any circumstances whatsoever. The whole concept underlying it, is to remember Allah and be in tune with Him, which is a must for everybody, whether he is healthy or unwell, although some concession has been granted in the timings and magnitude of Namaz during travels.
If there is no hindrance and he is not disabled, then he is supposed to offer Namaz collectively in Jamaat behind the Imam in the mosque of the locality. It is so because the reward for offering Namaz in Jamaat gets multiplied twenty-seven times than offering it individually. Moreover, it is obligatory upon the Muslims of the entire locality to offer Juma (Friday) prayers collectively once a week on Friday. By offering the daily and Friday prayers collectively, Muslims become abreast with the well being of their fellow brethren in every way besides fulfilling the duty of following their leader. Further, the idea of discrimination on different basis fizzles out by offering Namaz in the same row side by side.
Before the Jamaat offers prayers, ‘Adhan’ is called out, whish also declares the greatness and real Lordship of Allah, asserting that He alone is the real Master. It is the Adhan, which not only calls out Muslims to offer Namaz in Jannat but also the fellow brethren towards the soul-stirring message of Islam.