What does salah involve?
Salah is a particular ritual of movement and prayers designed to demonstrate to God a human’s self-understanding of his or her role as a created being. Salah is the foremost act of worship. Since salah involves various standing, bowing and prostrating positions, there are no pews or chairs in a masjid, the Muslim house of worship. Rather, the worship area is typically a simple, carpeted open space oriented towards the city of Makkah, where the Ka’bah is located. The length of time required to perform the salah depends on the number of ra’kah, or “units” of worship involved. For example, the early morning worship involves two units, the evening worship three units, and the other worship times four units. Each unit consists of standing, bowing, and prostrating (touching the forehead to the ground) twice. During each of the stages or positions, various verses from the Qur’an and supplications are recited in Arabic. In the case of congregational worship, an imam (leader) is chosen to lead
