Life and Teachings of the Prophet Muhammad
3. The Concept of Worship in Islam
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“O men, serve your Lord who has created you and
those who have gone before you, so that you may
guard yourselves against evil.’ (2:21)
When a believer has developed this strong attachment to God,
he reaches a state of deep realisation enabling him to experience
the presence of God. The Prophet has been reported as saying:
“Pray to God as if you are seeing Him.” (
Mishkat
,
Chapter on Faith).
According to this saying, the most sublime form of worship is
that in which the worshipper is so lost in thoughts of God that he
finds himself very close to Him. His apprehension of the divine
presence should be as keen as if God were actually visible. This
state of psychological proximity is the most sublime achievement of
prayer. All rites of worship are aimed at arriving at that state.
So the aim of our worship is to enter into a relationship with
God “and” reach God. To find God thus in this life is the highest
reality of religion.
THE IMPLICATION OF WORSHIP
What God desires of man, first and foremost, is that he display
humility in His presence. It is this attitude, which is called worship.
But man has not been created in a vacuum. He has rather been
placed in a world full of diverse circumstances. If the believer has
truly surrendered his being before God, then this spirit will
manifest itself in his dealings with everyone he comes in contact
