salat

Salat refers to the obligatory ritual prayer performed five times a day by practicing Muslims, facing Mecca.

Salat (or ṣalāh) is one of the Five Pillars of Islam and represents a foundational element of Muslim worship. It is a structured, ritual prayer conducted five times daily: at dawn (fajr), midday (dhuhr), mid-afternoon (ʿasr), sunset (maghrib), and night (ʿishāʾ). Each prayer is preceded by ritual purification (wudu) and includes a sequence of bodily movements—bowing (rukūʿ) and prostration (sujūd)—always oriented toward the Kaaba in Mecca.

The recitations include verses from the Qur’an, especially the opening surah (al-Fatiha), and fixed supplications. While salat can be performed individually, communal prayer is especially valued, particularly on Fridays during the jumuʿah prayer, which is led by an imam.

Beyond its devotional purpose, salat punctuates the day of the believer, fosters a sense of shared identity within the umma (Muslim community), and emphasizes submission to God. It should not be confused with duʿāʾ, which is a more personal and spontaneous form of prayer.