The purpose of announcing the call to prayer to the baby is so that the first words he or she hears are the invitation to Allah.  Also, whenever Allah is mentioned, Satan will retreat as he fears the name of Allah.  So in that sense, it is a protection for the baby also to be surrounded by Allah and the call to prayer.

I remember living in the city and hearing the call to prayer from the loudspeakers at the masjid.  There is nothing more compelling than to hear this throughout the neighborhood.  It draws you in with its tone and always made me feel like I was part of something greater.  The beauty of the call to prayer is that all over the world, millions of Muslims just like yourself are all gathering to bow down in prayer facing the same direction, bowing down in the exact same manner, using the exact same words, all at exactly the same time, all over the world.  Sometimes I would think of this when I would feel alone in Islam, when I would feel like I stood out when I would excuse myself for prayers or praying in front of others at work.  I would remember that an entire world of other muslims exist out there.

So in that respect, I invite my newborn into this world, into this community of muslims and invite him or her to adhere their prayers and join the beautiful faith of Islam.  I feel so blessed to have been given the gift of Islam in my life.  Alhumdulilla.

Allah has blessed me with so much – I have another child on the way.  I am beginning to feel a strong pull back to where I once was – time spent contemplating the words of the Qur’an, meaningful prayers spoken and felt in my heart again.

While it took me a long time to reach this point, I don’t fear it will take me long to reach back to where I was, because I know that with each step I take towards Allah, Allah will cover twice the distance.  All I can do is show my appreciation that Allah is always there to guide us and bring us back.  And although I may have wavered from the straight path, Allah knows what is in my heart and will reach out to bring me back to the right way.  All I must do is open my heart and my mind to the true meaning of this life – praising Allah in all that we say and do.

Today I will thank Allah for the water I drink, for the food I eat.  I will pray and ask Allah to guide me.

Yet in all things, I am a perfectionist.  I strive to always complete every task with diligence, to work as hard as I can to accomplish the things I demand of myself.  I place heavy demands on my shoulders to be a great mom, a perfect wife, a dedicated employee, an active muslim.

At rare moments, I am granted a reminder that we are not perfect and we are not expected to be perfect, and that sometimes the only thing we can be sure of is that we will never be perfect, because only Allah is perfect.  We as human beings, are not expected to do everything right.  We are not expected to carry all knowledge, as Allah is the one that is all All-Knowing.  Humans commit errors, humans have faults.  We waver on the Straight Path, we sway from one side to another at points in our lives.  But always Allah accepts our return and helps guide us back to the Right Way.

It is unhealthy to place these demands on myself.  When I am praying, I take it easier on myself.  I remember that the only obligation I have in this life is to Allah.  He simply asks us for 5 prayers of worship to him, a gift to us to help us in the dunya, to help strengthen our faith, and to help bring us closer to him.  Daily.  With all that he has blessed us with, all that he asks of us is 5-10 minutes of our time, 5 moments of reflection to bring us back, to remind us of the blessings He has given us and to remind us of our purpose in the Life of this World.

So five times a day we pray the following:

Allahu Akbar (God is great(er))

Subhaana ala humma wa bihamdika
wa tabaara kasmuka wa ta’aalaa jadduka
wa laa ilaaha ghairuk

Glory to You, O Allah, and Yours is the praise.
And blessed is Your Name, and exalted is Your Majesty.
And there is no deity to be worshipped but You

A’uudhu billaahi minash shaitaan ar-Rajeem

I seek refuge in Allah from Satan, the accursed.

Bismillaah ar-Rahman ar-Raheem
Al hamdu lillaahi rabbil ‘alameen
Ar-Rahman ar-Raheem
Maaliki yaumid Deen
Iyyaaka na’abudu wa iy yaaka nasta’een
Ihdinas siraatal mustaqeem
Siraatal ladheena an ‘amta’ alaihim
Ghairil maghduubi’ alaihim waladaaleen
Aameen

In the name of God, the infinitely Compassionate and Merciful.
Praise be to God, Lord of all the worlds.
The Compassionate, the Merciful.
Ruler on the Day of Reckoning.
You alone do we worship, and You alone do we ask for help.
Guide us on the straight path,
the path of those who have received your grace;
not the path of those who have brought down wrath, nor of those who wander astray.
Amen.

Allahu Akbar
Subhanna rabbiyal ‘Azeem (3x)

God is great.
Holy is my Lord, the Magnificent.

Sami’ allaahu liman hamidah
Rabbanaa wa lakal hamd
Allahu Akbar

Allah listens to those who praises Him.
Our Lord, to You is due all praise.
God is great.

Subhaana rabbiyal ‘Alaa
Allahu Akbar

Glory to my Lord, the Most High. God is great.

At Tahiyyaatu lilaahi was Salawaatu wat tayibaatu
As Salaamu ‘alaika ayyuhan nabiyyu wa rahmatul laahi wa barakaatuh
As Salaamu ‘alainaa wa ‘alaa ‘ebaadillaahis saaliheen,
(Hands on knees, raise right forefinger:) Ash hadu allaa ilaah ilallaah
Wa ash hadu anna Muhammadan ‘abduhuu wa rasuuluh

All greetings, blessings and good acts are from You, my Lord.
Greetings to you, O Prophet, and the mercy and blessings of Allah.
Peace be unto us, and unto the righteous servants of Allah.
I bear witness that there is none worthy of worship except Allah.
And I bear witness that Muhammad is His servant and messenger.

Allaahumma salli ‘alaa Muhammadin wa ‘alaa ali Muhammadin
Kamaa sallaita ‘alaa Ibraaheema wa ‘alaa ali Ibraaheema
Innaka hameedun Majeed
Alaahumma baarik ‘ala Muhammadin wa ‘alaa ali Muhammadin
Kamaa baarakta ‘alaa Ibraaheema wa ‘alaa ali Ibraaheema
Innaka hameedun Majeed

O Allah, bless our Muhammad and the people of Muhammad;
As you have blessed Abraham and the people of Abraham.
Surely you are the Praiseworthy, the Glorious.
O Allah, be gracious unto Muhammad and the people of Muhammad;
As you were gracious unto Abraham and the people of Abraham.
Surely you are the Praiseworthy, the Glorious.

As Salaamu ‘alaikum wa rahmatulaah

Peace and blessings of God be upon you.
Prayer and the worship of Allah serves to center me.  Before I begin the prayer, I am deeply entrenched in whatever project I am working on, I am weighed down by the pressure of all the things that need to get done – dishes in the sink, laundry unfolded, work-related deadlines.  I start my wudu and the world starts to slow as I focus on the ritual washing of my hands
mouth
nose
face
forearms
head
ears
feet
I lay my prayer rug out before me and now the world is behind me as I step into prayer.  The sounds of the life of this world instantly dull – phones ringing, people chatting, day-to-day life happening around me.  I am enclosed in a connection between myself and Allah and it feels good.  I bow down and speak the words of worship that I have learned to pray, letting their meaning sink into my consciousness from Arabic to English and back again.  I concentrate on my physical movements – upright, bending, kneeling, sujood.  With my forehead placed on the ground, I am humbled in front of the Almighty God, Lord of the Heavens and the Earth and all that is in between.

My soul replenishes.

Perspective.  I feel as though my blog posts are my time to work out all the craziness that is jumbled up in my mind.  To spew it all out onto the page, so that I can find out what it is I am hoping to say to myself.  Most of the time I don’t have anything figured out until it is looking back at me from the screen.  Blogging is my therapy.

I have a problem relaxing.  It can be difficult for me to clear my head when I attempt to pray.  I start by shutting the door, dimming the lights, and laying out my prayer rug.  I cover my head with a long, heavy, black scarf.  I kneel down on the floor, close my eyes,  and block out the noises in the background.  So that it is just me in the room.  And Allah who is Everywhere.

And then I stand up and start my prayers.  Sometimes the life of this world interrupts my prayers.  I hear a noise in the other room or the cat scratching at the door.  My son is shouting in the living room or my husband is fixing something in the house (that probably didn’t really need fixing.)  I go back to my prayers, repeating the words, focusing hard on their meaning.  I remember Allah and I remember that I am a Muslim.  Sometimes, I cry.

I feel refreshed afterwards.  I feel renewed.  I thank Allah for the gift of worship.  The ability to feel the closeness of Allah, to feel His presence, His greatness.  Ashadu alla ilaha illallahu, Wa ashadu anna Muhammadan abduhu wa rasooluh.

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Several weeks back I was in sujud and I prayed for Allah to show me what I should do.  To guide me, to pick me up, to allow me to hear Him and understand.

I went to a conference yesterday and I carpooled with a lady I work with.  She talked about the ups and downs in her life, how at some points she had wealth and at other times she had nothing.  But her perspective was the same regardless.  She said after a certain point she stopped struggling against life and started to accept where she was.  Instead of trying to force everything in her life to fit how and where she wanted it, she stepped back, relinquished control and accepted it.  She stated that “it is much easier to swim with the current than to fight against the current.”

A close Christian friend of mine and I were discussing the struggles of living our lives in a secular world.  I expressed to her all my fear, my worries, my deep conflict with the direction my life was heading and what I wanted out of it.  She has a beautiful talent to express herself through her religious education and she often makes poignant statements that bring me back to the Right Way.  She reminded me that the life of this world is only temporary.  It is our test.  God gave us the tools [our respective books] to guide us on the Straight Path.  He never said it would be easy.  But He is with us always.

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I have taken more notice lately of the trees changing colors.  The shade of blue of the sky mid-morning.  Birds – the way they fly.  I listened to the songs they sing.  I watched a sunrise.  I experienced a sunset.  If any of you reading this are experiencing similar inner jihad, I strongly recommend you do the same.

Today.

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Allah is the All-Knowing, the All-Aware, the All-Seeing.  He is the Creator.

17:96 (Asad) Say: “None can bear witness between me and you as God does: verily, fully aware is He of His creatures, and He sees all [that is in their hearts].”

42:27 (Asad) For, if God were to grant [in this world] abundant sustenance to [all of] His servants, they would behave on earth with wanton insolence: ^[31] but as it is, He bestows [His grace] from on high in due measure, as He wills: for, verily, He is fully aware of [the needs of] His creatures, and sees them all.

For more on the 99 names of Allah, please click here.

Things are going to change.  Things are going to get better.  I won’t settle for this any longer.  I wish I hadn’t let it go on for so long, but at least now I am starting on the path towards something better.  I feel sick.  Got to keep moving.

I have been struggling spiritually lately and I realized that part of my inner jihad comes from my lack of access to other Muslims going through the same things I am.  I know you are out there, I know how to get to you, but I have neither the time nor the resources to reach you.  Except through this blog.

When I was blogging, hearing from other Muslim readers and bloggers was such a support to me.  Living in an area (as many of us are) with a low population of Muslims, it has become much more difficult for me to find time to reflect, pray and worship with others who know, understand and care about the same things that I do.  I always felt a strong support from the online community of Muslim bloggers, and I am hoping to re-connect with some of the Muslims (and new sisters and brothers) that I used to converse with when I used to maintain this blog.

Forgive me for my absence and my desertion of “Ace is the Place.”  I truly desire to make more regular visits to this blog, not only for the support and friendship it has created for me, but also to provide guidance and wisdom to those who may be new to Islam and still learning their way around.

Thank you to those who return, and welcome to new visitors.

Establishing five daily prayers
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Establishing five daily prayers is no mean feat. If you have converted from an irreligious or nominally religious background, you may never have done any kind of regular worship before. Even if you have, Islam requires considerably more devotion than a good many religions. Praying five times a day means a lot more remembering to pray and organising your day than going to church every Sunday morning. Then you have to pray at the right times too. Its not just five prayers at any random convenient times. You can download prayer timetables from http://www.islamicfinder.org/ and the best advice would be to print out a copy month by month and keep one stuck to your noticeboard, in your handbag or anywhere convenient so you can refer to it as necessary.

It is not advisable to attempt to do all five daily prayers right from the time you take your shahada. Islam was revealed to the first generation of Muslims gradually over a period of 23 years. The first Muslims became Muslims when they stated their belief in One God and the revelation of Muhammad  – for much of those 23 years they still drank alcohol (Allah had not yet revealed the verse forbidding it) and did not yet pray five times a day (that came with Muhammad’s  night journey.) Allah revealed the Qur’an gradually to give the new Muslims a chance to adjust to the new lifestyle. New Muslims of today are given the same leeway. Practicing Islam is a huge change, and its far better to take it step by step and keep practicing than to try it all in one go, get totally overwhelmed and then upset with yourself because you failed to keep it up, and end up giving up altogether. To quote one scholar: Islam is a medicine that cures mankind. But to take it all in one go is to overdose and that can be fatal.

It is hard to balance taking things slowly with the common human inclination towards laziness. I have outlined a system by which you can gradually introduce your five daily prayers with minimum room for laziness. (Though if an inclination towards laziness is something the shaytaan is whispering into your heart, its still possible to succumb even with the best system so you’ll have to stay on your guard.)

Start by looking at the times for the five daily fard (compulsory) prayers and picking one (or two if you are feeling confident) that you think will be the easiest to stick to. If you have already shown your boss your nice shiny new Islam certificate and s/he has already found you a prayer room, it might be an idea to start with the Dhur (early afternoon) prayer. (If the idea of showing your Islam certificate and asking for a prayer room fills you with horror, Dhur might be the last prayer you decide to establish.)

Once you have picked your easiest prayer time, establish that prayer. Endeavour to never forget to pray that prayer, and try to make sure you always pray it on time. If you slip up, don’t worry, pray it late. Better late than never! (even if its over 24 hours late.) I have found out from personal experience that it is far better to pick a specific prayer than to simply state you will pray once a day and pray the prayer that is most convenient on that day, because as well as building up the number of prayers you do each day, you are also developing the self discipline to remember to pray on time and reject any whisperings of shaytaan telling you that you can do your prayer a bit later.

Once you have fully established the one or two prayers you picked to start with, so that you rarely, if ever, forget to do them, pick another prayer time and establish it in the same way. Don’t increase the number until you are regularly praying the ones you have picked already and feel they are a part of your daily routine. Gradually work your way up to five in this way. Don’t start adding Sunnah (extra) rakats (units of prayer) to your prayer unless you are confident that you can cope with them. Doing the Sunnah rakats is the next step after you have established the five fard prayers. It is important to do the Sunnah rakats as well as the fard prayers – but don’t try to run before you can walk.

Don’t get the impression that you have to be perfect in one prayer before you add new prayers to your schedule, you will never be perfect. When you are praying each prayer on time most of the time and you feel it is part of your daily routine, that is when you add the next prayer. Don’t wait until you never forget. For some of us, that could be forever.

As you increase the number of prayers, you will find that you may have to adjust your daily schedule to fit your prayers in. This is a good thing to do. The prayer times are reasonably flexible as to not require too much rescheduling, but it is far easier to remember to pray if you have built prayer times into your daily schedule than if you are just trying to remember that you have to pray between particular times. Remembering to pray will always be more difficult when things happen that disrupt your daily schedule, just remember – better late than never.

If you are physically handicapped or have medical problems (e.g. a back injury) that makes praying standing up very hard, you can pray sitting down, or even lying down. The same applies for temporary illness as well as long term conditions.

Women who are menstruating don’t pray, similarly women who are experiencing bleeding following childbirth. This is a concession to women, and I’m sure you’ll appreciate this concession most when you are recovering from childbirth.

Learning how to pray

Prayer in Islam is not simply a matter of putting your hands together and talking to Allah. You can talk to Allah any time you like, this is called “making du’aa” (supplication) and you don’t have to put your hands together or do any other ritual to do so. You can make du’aa anytime, anywhere and you don’t have to be in a state of ritual purity to do so. However, it is strongly advised to be as respectful as possible to Allah as the situation allows. If you are making du’aa whilst you are halfway through falling off a cliff, Allah will understand if you are not able to be in the appropriate state of purity or put much thought into what you are asking, for example. 

Salat, the ritual prayer, requires following a specific ritual which includes different positions, different supplications to Allah and reciting part of the Qur’an in Arabic. For someone who knows no Arabic, this is understandably a very daunting thing to have to learn to do. You should not delay attempting to establish regular prayers until you have learned the full prayer, you should simply do the best you are able at the time. As you start to establish your first prayer, you should try to improve your prayer a little at the time (as much as you can manage) from day to day. Whilst you are learning to pray, it is perfectly acceptable to recite some or even all of the supplications in English, until such time as you can memorise the Arabic. There is actually quite a lot of Arabic you have to memorise before you can pray correctly. Another way to go about this, if you want to recite the Arabic right from the start, is to write out the Arabic transliteration and stick it on the end of your prayer mat, so you read it whilst you are praying. You can also do the same with instructions to remind you what to do at any point in the prayer. This is better than learning part of the prayer in English because reading the Arabic helps you to memorise it, but the most important thing is that you are doing the best you can to pray as well are you are able. If saying bits of the prayer in English helps you to do this, then that’s what you should do.

Knowing how to pronounce the Arabic, even with transliteration in front of you, is a big challenge. Arabic has ten consonants that don’t exist in standard English, and no matter how well a book describes how to make those sounds, the only way to learn them properly is to learn from someone who speaks Arabic extremely well (especially if they are a speech therapist), or even better is an expert in Tajweed (the science of correct recitation of the Qur’an.) If your local mosque runs Tajweed lessons for beginners, sign up as soon as you can; as well as learning the correct pronunciation of the Arabic you need to learn, you will meet Muslims who can help, support and encourage you and you will be able to learn much more Qur’an much more quickly.

If you don’t know anyone who would be able to help you, the next best thing is to get a CD or other recording of the Qur’an being recited. This won’t help you so much with the supplications, but at least it gives you a very good idea of how the Qur’an should be recited. It won’t give you feedback as to whether you are pronouncing all the sounds correctly, but it will tune your ear in to what it is supposed to sound like. Failing all that, you will have to rely on transliteration but again, so long as you are doing the best you can do, it is okay.

As well as learning how to recite correctly, it is important to know the meaning of what you are reciting. As you learn to recite each new bit of Arabic, try to remember the meaning of what you are reciting. You are not an Arabic parrot, you are a human showing your devotion to your creator. 

It is preferable to get a Muslim friend to teach you how to pray. They will be able to show you so you can copy, hear you recite and correct you as necessary and generally encourage and help you to learn. If you don’t have such a friend, there are a few websites that have good illustrated sections on how to pray. here is one for starters I’m sure other good ones will be posted in due course inshaAllah.

http://www.islamicfinder.org/prayer/index.html

I remember when I first accepted into Islam.  One muslim that I knew handed me a simple prayer book with the words “Salah” sketched on top.  He explained to me that the prayer was THE most important aspect of Islam.  He stressed that I needed to learn to pray first and foremost, above all else.  He encouraged me to start that very same night. 

Five years would pass before I would take up his advice.  Five whole, entire years.  I wanted to pray – the desire was there – but I didn’t.  I still don’t know why I waited so long.  I remember feeling that I couldn’t do it, that I wouldn’t be able to keep them up, so I didn’t try.  I remember making feeble attempts but being too afraid to do them in public, or around my friends, so I stopped trying.  I made thousands of excuses, but that was all they were, excuses.  I knew in the back of my mind that the only way I was going to get back in touch again with Allah was for me to begin my prayers.  It was the only way I could properly honor Allah for all He had given to me – for guiding me to Islam, for providing for me and my family, for being with me each and every day, closer than my jugular vein.  To bow down in worship, to show respect for Our Creator. 

Once I finally started visiting the masjid and seeing other Muslims around me praying, I knew it could be done.  But I still felt scared, I still felt it was an impossible task.  FIVE times a DAY?!  It seemed like I would never be able to do it.  I didn’t even know how to speak Arabic, how was I supposed to say the prayer?  I recall standing there in the masjid, frozen in fear when the adhan (the call to prayer) started to be recited over the speaker system.  Everyone in the masjid stopped what they were doing and we all started shuffling out the door up to the prayer hall.  A thousand thoughts ran through my mind – should I leave?  No, I can’t.  Should I try?  I don’t even know what to do or say.  What should I do?

The force of the women rounding the steps up to the prayer hall prevented me from making a mid-walk dash to the exit door.  I fumbled my way through wudu (the ritual cleaning you do before prayer) with the help of another sister (who I am still friends with today!) and clumsily entered the line.  I tried to focus on Allah as I followed the others’ motions, trying hard not to look as though I had no idea what I was doing.  It seemed so complicated, how was I ever going to remember when to do what?

The next week I returned.  The topic of the meeting was “salah.”  It was a sign to me that Allah was not about to let me drop out now.  The Imam met with us to answer questions, and while he was busy answering very specific, detailed questions about the salah, I timidly raised my hand and blurted out:  “What if you don’t know how to pray?”  I immediately turned red in the face – which led to me trying to NOT turn red in the face (which always results in even MORE blood rushing to my countenance and forcing more embarassment.) 

The Imam reassured me that it was okay not to know, and that everyone has to start somewhere.  He told me I could say it in english until I learned it in Arabic (in fact, that I should say it in my native language first so that I would be sure to understand the meaning of it.)  I asked him what was I supposed to do when everyone went to pray – since I didn’t know how to do it.  He said that Allah scans the hearts of everyone in prayer and knows their devotion.  He said as long as my heart is in worship, Allah will see that and accept my prayer.  He said I could say “Allahu akhbar” over and over in my prayer and that would be enough, as long as I felt the words I was speaking.

I breathed a sigh of relief.  I had always thought the prayer had to be done perfectly, and that Allah would not accept my prayer otherwise.  I was afraid to try it because I felt I would fail.  But the Imam’s words reassured me that Allah knows us and is patient with us.

That night when I went upstairs for the prayer, I asked the woman next to me if I could follow along with her, since I didn’t know how.  She seemed more than happy at my request, and I felt more comfortable not feeling as though I were merely going through the motions.

I finally felt like a Muslim.  All of the past five years, I knew I believed in Islam and I knew the Qur’an was a direct message from Our Creator.  I was sure of that.  But I never felt like a Muslim like I did when I started to pray.  Every day I pray, I feel lighter and I feel closer to Allah.  I feel right again.  I value the prayer in that it is not for Allah – it is for us.  He does not need us to worship Him – it is for our benefit. 

Because the prayer is done five times throughout the day, not much time can pass in the day before I am again in connection with Allah, reminding myself of Judgement Day, reminding myself that He alone is the only one who controls what goes on, and he alone is the only one to guide us on the right path.  I am reminded that the life of this world is only temporary, and our true reality will be brought to our consciousness after death.  The greatness of Allah is beyond our human comprehension.

The original point of this post when I started was not just to tell my story, but to help a person to know how to start the prayer.  I feel there are many, many sites and information online for someone to learn the actual prayer itself, but it is best to learn from another Muslim (if at all possible, although I completely understand that for alot of us, this may be nearly impossible, especially if you don’t know any other Muslims in your area.) 

One article I had read in the discussion groups at ummah.com really inspired me and helped me to start the prayer.  It really broke down for me the idea that I HAD to know and do all five immediately and if I didn’t do all five in the day, then I shouldn’t even try cause it simply wouldn’t be good enough.  So I would like to direct you to this article, as it provides the advice I would like to pass on to you about starting to pray.

The article is found in the New Muslims Support Group area of the ummah.com website.  This section is not open to the public, so I am not able to link you to the post.  I will add it as an additional post to this topic. 

Starting the prayer may seem like a difficult task, but its benefit far outweighs the difficulty you might be imagining.  I always thought that I had to be perfect in order to pray, but I realize now that learning to pray is simply a process, just like learning another language.  No one automatically knew how to pray, everyone learned how at some point.  You have to start somewhere to gain the knowledge of the actions and the words, and the meaning and significance will come to you as you progress.  As long as you are dedicated in your heart to Allah, Allah will see that and accept your prayer.

Note:  Next week for the “Am I Muslim Series” I have scheduled to post “Five Ways to Strengthen Your Faith.”  However, I am in the process of moving and I am unsure whether or not our internet will be available on this coming Monday.  So if you are waiting for the next segment of the series, be patient and as soon as I have internet again I will be posting.

My mom has been sick for a good part of my life – she has Lyme Disease and was diagnosed when I was only five years old.  In those years, she was bed-ridden and the image I remember most was of me laying on the living room floor, coloring her get-well pictures out of my Care Bears coloring books while the visiting nurse gave her IVs.  I remember my mom smiling at me with only half of her face when she lost the nerves in her left side. 

You would never know what she went through if you met her today.  She is so strong and competent and driven.  Every season she has been out in the field beside my father, driving the plow, unloading the beet harvester, delivering seed to the plants.  She never slows down and she never stops, and they are a team.  Without each other, they would be lost.

Which is why this is so hard on her right now.  She deals with the pain of a broken bone – she won’t even fill her pain prescription.  It’s not the broken bone that is breaking her down; it is the fact that the injury occurred exactly one day before harvest season.  My dad is out there in the field alone, and she is at home, alone.  They are separated for the first time in the middle of the busiest time of the year, and she feels completely inept at not being able to help him, to carry out her duty of farming alongside her husband. 

And there’s not anything I can do to ease that for her.  I can offer her comfort, I can send flowers to cheer her, I can call to make funny jokes and try to make her laugh.  I try to tell her everything happens for a reason and a purpose.  But she doesn’t hear me.  I can see as I watch her eyes that her mind is going to be halfway in the field, feeling regret and remorse for her condition. 

Her whole life she has been strong.  She could have given up at any point in her struggle; I feel any normal person probably would have in the face of her obstacles.  But she will not give up and she hasn’t.  So although she can’t be where she wants to be – I just hope that she allows herself time to heal.  I will always admire her for her strength and determination.

My actual first trip to the masjid occurred while I was in college, doing research for a religion class.  I remember I was asked to wear a headscarf (and provided with one) and was guided into the women’s section of the masjid, which was behind a thick wall, blocking all view of the Imam.  I went into the masjid with an open mind, but seeing the separation (not to mention the very small area that the women were crammed into) was upsetting to me.  The woman who was guiding me through the masjid continued to make excuses for the situation, but I just wasn’t convinced.  I didn’t blame it on Islam – I already knew the religion stressed equality among the sexes – but I did feel that it was a situation that should be changed.

The second time I entered a masjid was as a muslim.  The masjid I went to was nothing like the first one I had attended.  I saw right away that the prayer area for the women was placed on a second floor, so that the women had full view of everything that was happening and a clear view of the Imam.  This seemed so much more appropriate and as a woman, I felt much more comfortable in this environment.  But this time was different, as I wasn’t just there to make observations and leave.  This time I was there as a Muslim, as a member of the community – or so I desired to be.

Luckily my experience was wonderful.  I was welcomed into the masjid so easily – there was a meeting organized just for people like me – new muslims who were unfamiliar with the masjid or perhaps with the religion of Islam itself.  We discussed all kinds of things openly and freely, the Imam came to meet with us to welcome us and answer questions, and we were placed on an email list for further communications. 

But not everyone has a similar experience.  Some who visit the masjid may feel alienated or distant from others.  Some may be too scared or nervous to even attempt a visit.  It can take some time before you are ready to make that the first step outside of your comfort zone.

I’d like to help you on your journey with knowing what to expect from your first visit, and how to have the best experience possible in order for the masjid to become a comfortable place of worship.  It seems that every masjid has a different “feel” to it.  Some are more family-oriented, with programs for kids, outdoor community gatherings, and after-school activities.  Others are more individual-centered, with less discussions and more educational activities, avenues for gaining more knowledge about Islam.  So if one masjid doesn’t seem to fit with your personality, keep looking and perhaps you will find one that is more suitable for your lifestyle. 

But all masjids are there for a place to worship, so the prayer hall is probably the most important area of the masjid.  It can help if you have a guide, someone to help you through on your first trip.  All you would have to do to arrange this is to call the masjid, introduce yourself, and ask them for help.  This way you will know exactly where you will be going when you first enter, and you won’t be like me who wandered around for 5 minutes before getting up the gall to ask someone where the meeting was!  If you want to go there just to pray, it won’t be difficult to find your way around, as this is usually the central ”hub” of the masjid. 

Another bit of advice is to get to know your Imam.  The Imam has alot of connections and knowledge about the activities and schedules of the masjid, so he can be your number one resource for answering any questions you may have.  They usually have time periods set aside for things like this, so you can call just to ask when the Imam is available to meet with you.  This can be a great way to introduce yourself to the masjid.

There is a great list of masjid etiquette and customs written by a fellow blogger.  These posts on Masjid Etiquette are so concise and well-written that I refer you to them now, as there is no better way to guide you on this issue than to direct you to this site and helpful posts.  (Click here for the follow-up post regarding masjid etiquette.)

One more thing I want to point out is this:  It’s okay if you make mistakes.  There were a couple of things that I completely overlooked when I first visited – I forgot to take off my shoes in the prayer area.  I passed in front of someone praying.  I left too much space between myself and the next person praying.  I entered the prayer at an inappropriate time.  I made all kinds of mistakes.  But the best part was that I learned as I went, and others helped me along the way.  It’s okay if you don’t know everything there is to know about Islam.  It’s alright if you don’t know all the proper things to do or say.  You will learn and then someday it will be you teaching another who may not be aware.

The best benefit I have found of being at the masjid is praying in congregation.  There is nothing like being a member of a community of people who believe in exactly the same things you do, who believe in the oneness of Allah and believe in the Qur’an as a message from Allah.  To pray alongside another who prays the same as you, to be a part of such an environment does wonders for your soul.  For years I stayed away from the masjid because I was too afraid to step outside of my comfort zone.  But since I started regularly attending the masjid and praying in congregation, my imaan (faith) has improved beyond anything I could have expected, and in such a short amount of time.  Knowing other muslims and reconnecting with a religious community has helped me to strengthen my faith as I have wanted for the past several years. 

So I wish you luck and I encourage you to try going to the masjid.  Ask Allah for help if you are nervous and know that Allah is with you always.

This concludes Part Four of the “Am I Muslim” series.  Look here next week on Monday for some guidance on “How to Start Your Prayers.”