Sunday, August 10, 2008
Salat as a Miraj
at 10:33 PM
The view that salat or prayer is the mikraj for mukminin (believers) refers to the second opinion, doing miraj spiritually (not physically). A concentrated (khusyu) prayer is enabled to interact with, to muwajahah, muhawarah, to munajat, to communicate intensively with Allah SWT. How?Imam Ghazali in Ihya ‘Ulumuddin mentioned six “inner meanings (aspects)” that can perfect salats, that are (1) presence of qalb (heart) or hudur al qalb, (2) understanding, (3) ta’zim, glorifying Allah, (4) afraid, haibah, (5) hopeful, raja, and (6) ashamed
1. Presence of the qalb (hudur al qalb) in prayer is the cleanness of the qalb from things shouldn’t be thought about while doing salat.
2. Tafanhum is understanding meanings of the words and sentences uttered in salat. Understanding those meanings will able to help in presenting the qalb.
3. Ta’zim is glorifying God. Ta’zim is result of two knowledges: comprehending greatness of Allah and realizing one’s abjection and limitation as a God’s creature.
4. Haibah is one’s feeling toward Allah resulted from the awareness that power of Allah is very big and effective and from realization that law of Allah or sunnatullah will surely happen. Therefore, he or she is very afraid of breaking His rules, since the impacts will be a certainty.
5. Raja’ is hopeful; always thinking positively that Allah is the Most Compassionate and His Affection is very wide. In salat, feelings of hopeful and worried emerge alternately, worrying about breaking His rules, and hoping for His Mercy.
6. Meanwhile, ashamed feeling (hayaa’) to God resulted from one’s awareness of his limitations in doing religious services (ibadah) for Him.
According to Imam Ghazali, if those six things are in a person doing salat, then his heart will be concentrated (khusyu’) since all of his senses and awareness will focus on The Most, One God, The Most Great that is respected and afraid of but becomes his pillar of hope. Aisyah once told that while not in praying, Prophet Muhammad talked intimately to anyone, but while praying, he seems as if he didn’t know anyone else, and Aisyah acted like she didn’t know (him) too.
Khusyu will be easily reached by people with correct views of life, since wrong views of life will make hard concentration in doing religious services (ibadats). Delightment of munajat will only felt by people who don’t love worldly properties, since, like mentioned by Al Ghazali, one who is still be happy with his properties, what more mixing goodness with badness, will not be happy in requesting God (munajat). Love of properties and love of the day after can’t be united in one same place.
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