Ṣalāh — the Prayer (Years 7–11) — Islamic Studies

The five daily prayers, their times, wuḍūʾ and facing the qiblah; how prayer keeps a Muslim connected to Allah.

Ṣalāh is the second pillar and the daily heartbeat of a Muslim's worship. Five times a day, a believer pauses whatever they are doing to stand, bow and prostrate before Allah, keeping a steady connection with their Creator throughout the day and night.

Why this matters Prayer is a regular meeting with Allah. It brings calm, discipline and humility, reminds a person of what truly matters, and turns them away from wrongdoing. Because it happens five times daily, it keeps faith alive at every part of the day rather than only in special moments.

The five daily prayers

The five prayers, with their broad times, are:

Fajr — before sunrise, at dawn.
Ẓuhr — after midday.
ʿAṣr — in the afternoon.
Maghrib — just after sunset.
ʿIshāʾ — at night.

Each prayer has a set number of units (rakʿāt) and a window of time in which it should be performed.

Wuḍūʾ — preparing to pray

Before praying, a Muslim performs wuḍūʾ (ablution), washing certain parts of the body such as the hands, mouth, nose, face, arms, head and feet with clean water. This cleans the body and prepares the heart to stand before Allah. The schools differ on some fine details of how wuḍūʾ is performed, but the essentials are widely agreed.

Facing the qiblah

When praying, Muslims all over the world face the qiblah — the direction of the Kaʿbah in Makkah. Whether in Britain, Africa or Asia, believers turn towards the same point, a beautiful sign of unity in worship.

How prayer shapes a Muslim

Standing, bowing (rukūʿ) and prostrating (sujūd) teach humility before Allah. Rising early for Fajr builds discipline; pausing during a busy day builds mindfulness. Over time, regular prayer softens the heart, brings peace, and helps a person keep away from bad deeds. It is, in the words of the Prophet ﷺ, a light for the believer.

The five daily prayers spread across the day, each with its own window of time.

Common exam mistake: reversing the order of Ẓuhr (after midday) and ʿAṣr (later afternoon), or placing Ẓuhr in the morning. Ẓuhr always comes first of the two afternoon prayers in the day's cycle.

Exam technique: state the timing description (dawn, midday, afternoon, sunset, night) alongside each prayer's name, not just the name alone — mark schemes reward correct timing knowledge as well as naming.

Put the five daily prayers in order across the day:

Fajr — before sunrise
Ẓuhr — after midday
ʿAṣr — in the afternoon
Maghrib — just after sunset
ʿIshāʾ — at night