Rain prayer

According to Muslim prophetic tradition, during a prolonged drought a man came to Muhammad as he was delivering the Khutba (sermon) of the Friday prayer in the Al-Masjid an-Nabawi mosque, to pray and implore for the rain to fall, for the men and the cattle and the orchards suffered from the lack of water, and in response, Muhammad raised his hands in Dua and prayed to God for a downpour.{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=etnEKz_rOfgC&pg=PT311|title = The Religion of Islam|isbn = 9781934271186|last1 = Ali|first1 = Maulana Muhammad|date = 14 April 2015| publisher=Ahmadiyya Anjuman Ishaat Islam Lahore USA }} After his supplication was answered with torrential rain for days, Muhammad again prayed to God for the excessive rain to stop.{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=pVk1DwAAQBAJ&pg=PA292|title = The Religious Men in Jebel Marra: The Process of Learning and the Performance of Islamic Rituals and Practices|isbn = 9783643909169|last1 = Nur Mohammed|first1 = Bakheit M.|year = 2017| publisher=LIT Verlag Münster }}

On another occasion Muhammad is said to have walked out of the mosque in broad daylight into an esplanade with the congregation of priors, and prayed for rain, then performed a prayer consisting of two rak'ahs as a group while reading Al-Fatiha aloud, as he did in Friday prayer.{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=udUR_uKyE1kC&pg=PA261|title = Muslim Religious Institutions in Imperial Russia: The Islamic World of Novouzensk District and the Kazakh Inner Horde, 1780-1910|isbn = 9004119752|last1 = Frank|first1 = Allen J.|date = January 2001| publisher=BRILL }}

File:Eid al-Fitr prayers in Tehran - November 4, 2005 (3).jpg]]

In Muslim agricultural societies, in times of calamity such as drought, the Imam is asked to provide spiritual help to the community in the hope of inducing God to fall rain.{{Cite web|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=CDpzAgAAQBAJ&pg=PT56|title = A Guide to Salat (Prayer) in Islam|last1 = Saqib|first1 = Muhammad Abdul Karim|date = 13 April 2015}}

On the day fixed to perform this prayer, the imam of the mosque leads Muslims in a collective ritual to ask God to give them enough rain for agricultural and human drinking needs, and personal hygiene.{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ofTPUY61X-IC&pg=PP92|title = Islamic Law in Action: Authority, Discretion, and Everyday Experiences in Mamluk Egypt|isbn = 9780191629822|last1 = Stilt|first1 = Kristen|date = 12 January 2012| publisher=OUP Oxford }}

This prayer ritual takes place in the same open space outside the mosque where the two Eid prayers are held annually.{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=dVjnaKYAN9sC&pg=PA87|title = The Living and the Dead in Islam: Epitaphs as texts|isbn = 9783447050838|last1 = Diem|first1 = Werner|last2 = Schöller|first2 = Marco|year = 2004| publisher=Otto Harrassowitz Verlag }}

Different countries across the world observed many times this prayer.

• Thousands of worshippers across the UAE came together on 7 December 2024, Saturday to observe rain prayers, ( Salat Al Istisqa) following a call by President His Highness Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan.{{Cite web |last=National |first=The |title=UAE worshippers answer President's call to pray for rain |url=https://www.thenationalnews.com/news/uae/2024/12/07/uae-worshippers-answer-presidents-call-to-pray-for-rain/ |access-date=2024-12-09 |website=The National |language=en}} The prayers were performed at 11am in mosques and prayer halls nationwide, as the country sought divine blessings for rainfall.{{Cite web |date=2024-12-07 |title=Nationwide rain prayers held in UAE, seeking divine mercy |url=https://gulfnews.com/uae/government/nationwide-rain-prayers-held-in-uae-seeking-divine-mercy-1.1733567168661 |access-date=2024-12-09 |website=gulfnews.com |language=en}}

• In Saudi Arabia also offered this prayer many times in different years. {{Cite web |last=ഡെസ്‌ക് |first=വെബ് |title=സഊദിയിൽ മഴക്ക് വേണ്ടിയുള്ള പ്രത്യേക നിസ്‌കാരം നടന്നു |url=https://www.sirajlive.com/a-special-prayer-for-rain-was-held-in-saudi-arabia.html?s |access-date=2024-12-09 |website=Sirajlive.com |language=ml}} King Salman called on Muslims in Saudi Arabia on 27 November to pray on Thursday for rain, the Saudi Press Agency reported. "Everyone who is able should be keen to perform the prayer, in accordance with the tradition of Prophet Muhammad," the Royal Court said.{{Citation |title=5. King Salman: The Daedalus of Saudi Arabia |date=2021-09-01 |work=Mohammed bin Salman |pages=61–72 |url=https://doi.org/10.1515/9781685851057-006 |access-date=2024-12-09 |publisher=Lynne Rienner Publishers |doi=10.1515/9781685851057-006 |isbn=978-1-68585-105-7}}

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Category:Salah

Category:Salah terminology