What is the Middle Prayer?

30 Sep

Know, dear seeker of knowledge divine, that the “mother of all prayers” is the middle prayer. God calls it al-salat al-wusṭa, or the “prayer of the center” because it is the center, and [the five canonical prayers are] its periphery. In a certain sense, the middle prayer is ... the innermost secret of the five prayers. As such, no prayer is devoid of the middle prayer, since each prayer draws its form and time from it.

Some scholars define the middle prayer as the late-afternoon ʿAsr prayer…But the middle prayer is not, as it were, a prayer in itself. Rather, it is a flow of light. It is the manifest connection between the heart of the worshipper and his Lord. The middle prayer is therefore the locus of the divinely accepted prayer.

From a different perspective, the middle prayer is the disclosure of the Perfect Human Being (al-insan al-kamil) within the domain of worship. For it is the door through which the worshipper enters upon his Lord. It is the reverential fear, by virtue of which the prayers are accepted by the Lord Almighty. It is the intention that abides in the heart. It is the sheer sincerity (ikhlas) that dwells in the deepest recesses of the kernel of the heart (suwaydaʾ al-lubb). That is, the holy Messenger of Allah is the physical embodiment of the middle prayer.

Moreover, the middle prayer is the true prayer that manifests in the form of the perfect heirs who are chosen by God to bring His servants out of the darkness to the light. It is the connection between servant and Lord, the eternal and noneternal, existent and nonexistent.

In order for you, dear wayfarer, to perform the middle prayer with exacting perfection, you must first perfect your ritual ablutions (wuḍuʾ) with the water of the unseen (maʾ al-ghayb). This ablution is performed within the Haʾ of Ipseity (haʾ al-huwiyya) of the name Allah. Upon performing your ablutions in the Haʾ, you become enwrapped (indiraj) with the luminosity of the intermediary (wasiṭa) in a complete manner. Thereupon you shall understand the [middle prayer whose] unifying connection (sila) flows through each of the prayers (salawat).

— Shaykh Mohamed Faouzi al-Karkari (qs) Kaf al-Astar

More Teachings

Is the Path for Everyone? Yes — here’s why

Choose a Path for yourself. You can be an Adamic human being by virtue of the inblowing of the Spirit within you…or a bestial human being by virtue of the dominance of your bestial body, so that the Spirit’s influence weakens within you. You will then become ignorant of your reality, and you will not draw out the treasure that is buried within you.

The Path and the Name

The seeker must journey from the Haʾ of the Name back to the Alif, bearing in mind their differing levels. Entering unto the singular Alif is achieved through the attributes of the saint, not through those of the believer. Attaching to the elevation of the Alif enables the knower of God to taste the reality of servanthood.

God’s Light is Real — Not Metaphorical

When you strive against your lower self, the reality of this world becomes evident to you, you know that it is non-existent; that it has no existence except through God. Then God provides you with light, and through that light you come to know how close He is to you.

The Mantle of Divine Majesty

A mantle conceals the upper part, whereas a garment conceals the lower part. The higher part of the divine mantle is an allusion to Lordship (rububiyya). This mantle of Lordship comprises two sides: the outer side is the aspect of Lordship, and inner side is the pre-cosmic reality of the Cloud (al-ʿamaʾ).

Three Levels of Being within the Microcosm and Macrocosm

the sensorial human being is the one whose heart is stamped by the forms of the sense-objects. He is marked by a dominant love for the herebelow. Moreover, the spiritual human being is the one whose inward vision (basira) has opened up so that he perceives what lies beyond the sensorial realm.

Fasting the “White Days” of the Lunar Month

The Prophet (s) recommends fasting during these blessed days, and it is said that Ibrahim (s) fasted them as well. The early Arabs called these days the “White Days” (al-ayyam al-biḍ) because the moon is brightest during this period and it achieves its most complete perfection.

Finding a True Master

With manifold arguments and no shortage of nagging, my teachers, father, family, friends, and loved-ones, sought to hold me back from cutting my worldly ties and setting off alone in search of God and a true master; and in their efforts to do so they would attempt to clinch the matter with various rational and religious objections.

Why is the Divine Name the Mirror of the Spiritual Traveler?

The spiritual traveler’s journey through the Name, however, must begin at the last letter Haʾ, which we call the Haʾ of Divine Identity (haʾ al-huwiyya).

Knowledge of God Inspires Reverential Fear of God

Reflective thought that is devoid of the remembrance God (fikr duna dhikr) is a transgression. For true reflection only occurs in the wake of long periods of remembrance (dhikr tawil), once your time has been filled with the invocation.

“I am the Dot”

And this is the dot that is ascribed to the all-inclusive names and divine realities because it is through the basmala that God takes charge over the servant who has realized the station of servanthood and upon whom His names and attributes have become manifest in both his knowledge and his state.

Yousef Casewit

What is the Middle Prayer?

“I am the Dot”

The Shade of the Tree of Allegiance